Meet June Foster!

When Jess Colton stops drinking, he replaces alcohol with food, and nothing Holly Harrison does eases the pain of her past mistakes. Can their romance survive the obstacles from their former lives?

Today I have the pleasure of introducing debut author, June Foster. After reading the premise of her new book, I'm especially excited as June's book promises to take on some modern day issues we don't often see written about in fiction. I don't know about you, but I find it refreshing to read about characters who aren't all gorgeous, smart and ridiculously wealthy and successful by the age of 29. A little reality within the pages of a book is a good thing, after all.

 Welcome June, tell us about yourself.

I am a retired school teacher and travel full time with my husband Joe in our RV. I had never written fiction until January of 2010. The Lord literally opened up my heart and gave me the desire to write. I poured over every "how to" book I could get my hands on and started writing the story He'd placed on my heart. Today I've received contracts from Desert Breeze for four of my inspirational romances, all set in the Seattle area where we lived for ten years.

        Tell us about your new book?

Give Us This Day is book one in the Bellewood Series. The three titles each come from the Lord's Prayer. I have a heart to write about Christians who struggle with issues in their lives. Give Us This Day is about a man who gave up alcohol when he became a Christian. Because he was raised in a dysfunctional family, he struggles with an addictive personality. Now he's replaced alcohol with food and is extremely overweight.

Holly Harrison is a beautiful woman who knows the Lord but can't forgive herself for the ungodly lifestyle she led in college. She lives with the permanent scars of her past. When she meets Jess Colton, she sees past his bulk and falls in love with him.

 They are powerless over their pasts but God is able to work in their lives.

     What inspired this story?

My stories are based on issues that either I've dealt with or have personal knowledge of. To an extent, Jess Colton's problem could've been mine since I grew up in a dysfunctional home as well. But through God's grace, I've been made whole.

     Is there an underlying theme?

Yes. Jess Colton replaced alcohol with food because alcohol isn't acceptable in Christian circles. In addition, he learned the overuse was destructive. Jess realizes he should've replaced it with God instead. He confesses he relied on other things to bring him comfort instead of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit. When he admitted he was powerless and passed it on to the Lord, he began to find freedom.

       What's your favorite scene/character?

One of my favorite scenes is when Holly reveals her prosthetic to Jess. He tells her he can't see her anymore because he's ashamed of his size and doesn't want her to live with a hopeless diabetic. She removes her device to show him for the first time. She wants to prove to him he's not the only person whose body is flawed. Jess kneels down on the floor and kisses her stump as she sits on the couch. It's a very dramatic scene.

     What do you hope readers take away from reading your book?

I pray that anyone who struggles with the same issues as the hero and heroine will find hope that the Lord is mighty and can free them.

     How did you get started as a writer?

As I said above, I didn't start writing until after I retired from teaching. I never had any interest in writing fiction and had only written academically in college and graduate school. It was truly a "God thing."

       Do you have any particular method to your writing, any quirks that help you along in the creative process?

I love James Scott Bell's Plot and Structure, the three act structure, and his LOCK method. I plot a book in this manner and figure out the order of my chapters and what will take place. A plotter. But after that, I turn into a Pantzer. Many times, I'll be writing a scene and the characters "tell" me something about themselves I didn't know before or that would happen. I've changed entire chapters based on this information.

      What are some of your favorite books?

I love Latayne Scott's work, the entire Left Behind Series, and romance writer Mildred Colvin.

      I think it's very exciting to see Christian fiction broadening into new genres and addressing some difficult topics. What are your thoughts on this and where do you see things headed in the future?

Shawna, this is a question very dear to my heart – difficult topics. That is exactly what I feel the Lord has placed before me. I've written one book, Ryan's Father, on a very difficult topic but from a Christian worldview and have received numerous rejections. In each case, the publishers or agent said the market is not ready for it. But I haven't given up on Ryan. The Lord has a place for him one day. Christians are not immune to the world. I would like to see difficult topics addressed by the CBA market and told from a Christian worldview.

      What's up next for you?

I am working on book one of my Almond Tree Series set in Chico California. As you probably guessed, the characters in each deal with difficult problems but overcome by the grace of God.

Thank you for visiting, June. I think you and I have a lot in common with what we want to accomplish with and through our writing. I enjoyed this interview tremendously and hope to have you back with the next book.

Book blurb:

When Jess Colton asks Jesus into his life, he gives up alcohol but replaces it with a food addiction. The three-hundred pound man is baffled when the beautiful Holly Harrison declares her affection.

Holly Harrison lives with the results of an ungodly past. What Christian man would want a woman who lost her unborn baby and her lower leg due to her own carelessness? She doesn’t plan on falling in love with Jess yet she sees past his bulk to the godly man inside. When Jess drives a wedge between them, Holly loses all hope of a future with him.

Only God has the power to restore a hopeless food addict to good health and teach a young woman how to forgive herself, opening the door for an unlikely romance.

Purchase: Desert Breeze, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

June Foster is a retired school teacher with a BA in Education and a MA in counseling. She writes full time and travels in her RV with her husband Joe. June has contracts for four novels with Desert Breeze Publishing. The Bellewood Series, Give Us This Day – February 1, 2012, As We Forgive – September 1, 2012, and Deliver Us – April 1, 2013, and Hometown Fourth of July – July 1, 2012. June loves to write stories about characters who overcome the issues in their lives by the power of God. June uses her training in counseling and her Christian beliefs in creating characters who find the freedom to live godly lives.

For more about June please visit: http://junefoster.blogspot.com/