Sara L. Foust Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.

A:  I am a homeschooling mom of five amazing kids, a farmer/paramedic/preacher’s wife, a women’s Sunday school teacher, Romantic Suspense and Devotional author, soon-to-be-missionary to the Philippines, and an avid reader.

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

A:  When I was in second grade I won an award for a little story I wrote. It was in that moment that I knew I wanted to be a writer when I grew up. I strayed a bit from that goal until recently, but I am so thankful the passion was always there waiting for me to allow it to wake up.

Q: Could you give us the highlights of your professional writing career including how you got your first writing break?

A:  Holding my first book in my hands was absolutely a dream come true. I had always dreamed of that moment and thought it would be years and years in the future, if it ever came. I am a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and in early 2017 I participated in an online class taught by Kathy Cretsinger, owner of Mantle Rock Publishing. I asked if I could query her and she agreed. She read my first few chapters and said, “I like your story but not the first two chapters. They’ve got to go.” I said, “Okay,” cut them, rewrote chapter three to be the first chapter, and signed a contract a few weeks later.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release Callum’s Compass: Journey to Love?

A: Callum’s Compass was so much fun to write. It is an idea I first had when I was in high school and incorporates so much of the local area here in East Tennessee that I love. There is a treasure hunt, a band of bad guys, a mysterious wild animal, a little romance, healing from past wounds, and characters who rediscover God’s love.

Here is the back cover blurb: KAT WILLIAMS’S brother died in a gruesome accident in the mountains of East Tennessee. She blames herself.

RYAN JENKINS’S fiancée was murdered. He couldn’t protect her.

With the death of her brother, Kat believes she is unworthy of love from anyone—even God. When a good friend elicits a promise that she will stop living in the past and then leaves her clues to a real-life treasure hunt, Kat embarks on an adventure chock-full of danger. To find the treasure, Kat will have to survive wild animals—and even wilder men. Can she rely on Ryan, the handsome wildlife officer assigned to protect her . . . without falling in love?

Ryan swore off love when his fiancée was murdered, but feelings long-buried rise to the surface around Kat. He volunteers to help with her treasure hunt, vowing to keep her safe. Together they venture deep into caves and tunnels . . . and even deeper into the depths of their unplumbed hearts.

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for Callum’s Compass?

A: There are many local legends about mountain lions having returned to East Tennessee. When I was in high school, I was fascinated by this local lore. These stories sparked my initial idea about a wildlife biologist researching in remote areas of Anderson County. The idea changed and grew over the years I ruminated on it, and now it is so much more than a simple story of animal research in the hills of East Tennessee.

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this story?

A: I hope that readers will remember God loves them no matter what their past holds. We can never do anything so bad that God will stop loving us.

Q: What inspires you to write?

A:  I find a lot of inspiration in nature. I love being outdoors and watching the way God’s amazing creation changes and continues to surprise me each and every day.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?

A:  I am working on edits for Camp Hope: Journey to Hope, book number two in the Love, Hope, and Faith series, which is set to release in July (yay!). I am also writing book number three, Rarity Mountain, and brainstorming for my next series.

Q: When you’re not writing what do you like to do?

A:  I like to read, take nature photographs, and camp with my family.