M L Hamilton Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.
A. I’m a wife, mom of three grown kids, and soon-to-be grandma! I’m also a recovering chocoholic. My first three books, the Rustic Knoll Bible Camp series for middle grade and YA readers, were inspired by my childhood home at a Bible camp. Since then, I’ve graduated and am now writing mysteries for grown-ups.

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
A. I’ve always enjoyed writing since I was a kid. For a while, I told people I wanted to be a writer when I grew up, but other things took priority as I got older. I didn’t get serious about getting published until several years after college. A few friends kept encouraging me to write for publication, so when I became a stay-at-home mom, I took a couple correspondence courses and sold some articles to Christian magazines. That was over thirty years ago.

Q: Could you give us the highlights of your professional writing career including how you got your first writing break?
A. My first published piece was for a creative writing magazine that didn’t pay except in copies. But it was still a thrill to see my words in print and my name in a byline. Using what I learned in those correspondence courses, I went on to write and publish several more articles and a devotional. After about eight years, I was asked to write a play for my church’s women’s outreach. I have to admit I was pretty proud of myself for doing that—until I saw it performed. Oh my, I felt so humbled. I’d given these people a skeleton in black and white and they gave it life in Technicolor!
By that time, all three of my kids were old enough to quit taking naps and I couldn’t find a regular time to write when I wasn’t falling asleep. So I gave up writing for publication until the youngest got into school. Then I took a couple more refresher courses and focused on writing a novel. My first novel was published thirteen years later.

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release Pendant?
A: Elaine is a former Chicago teacher whose student disappeared from a field trip and was never found. More than a decade passes before she stumbles across a photo in the newspaper of a young girl wearing the very necklace that belonged to her student. But someone is desperate to keep the truth buried, and when Elaine’s life is threatened, she allows the one person she trusts to whisk her away to safety in Texas. However, hiding among the quirky residents of nursing care home is not what she had in mind. Now she must solve the mystery from afar, as soon as she figures out if her friend is keeping her from danger…or the truth.

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for Pendant?
A: The idea came from a newspaper article about an elderly woman who showed up at a care facility with only her purse, a jacket and a cane. She was alert and pleasant but refused to reveal anything about her background, other than to mention her husband who had died several years earlier. I never did find out who she was, but as soon as I read the article, I thought there’s a story there.

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this story?
A: My first goal in writing is entertainment, so I hope readers enjoy the characters and the story. There is a spiritual thread that deals with our doubts about the usefulness of prayer when we don’t see answers. I pray God uses that to speak to readers who need encouragement.

Q: What inspires you to write?
A. Whenever I hear of a traumatic situation in the news, I always think of the people affected by it, and how they handle it. I write to sort out and understand those situations, why they happen and what makes the characters tick.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A. My WIP draws on the current mass shooting events in the news. It’s about two women who must reach understanding and acceptance of each other after one of them is critically injured by the other’s husband.

Q: When you’re not writing what do you like to do?
A. I’ve discovered I really enjoy a little photography using the camera on my phone. My husband and I often head to a nearby lake to watch the sunset and take pictures. I also enjoy walking at a nearby park, and I waste way too much time playing computer games.