Theresa Hall Interview

Q: Let me start with asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself.
A. Well, I’m a first-grade teacher, mom and grandma. I’ve lived in Texas my entire life and my accent backs that up. Lol! I grew up in a small town with only one caution light. I love that sense of community and how the pace is so much slower. I’m a quiet, shy person if I’m in a large crowd, but I’m not so much of an introvert in a smaller setting.

Q: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
A. I vividly remember that moment. I began to love writing in middle school, but I was always an avid reader. My mom started bringing me to the public library as a small child. When I was a preteen, I would sit outside and read all summer. I was probably about twelve when I saw an interview with a famous actress who had just published a book. She said, “Everyone has at least one book in them.” In that moment, I knew someday I would write a book of my own. It took years until that happened, but as it turned out I had several books in me. And hopefully, many more!

Q: Could you give us the highlights of your professional writing career including how you got your first writing break?
A. My writing career was more of a hobby for many years. I started writing my first novel when I quit teaching to stay home with my oldest son. That was twenty-two years ago! I had a great story, but I had no idea about the craft. Ultimately, it was rejected but the editor complimented me and said if I would learn the craft of writing, she had no doubt I would someday be published. That rejection kept me going. A few years later, I went through a lot of family issues and a divorce. In 2005, I stopped writing to focus on myself, my family, and my teaching career. In 2010, I sold my first novella to White Rose Publishing. In 2017, I sold another. That novella, Ransom in Rio, won two awards. My biggest break came when I entered The Great Love Inspired Author Search. I only entered for feedback from the editors, so I was very shocked when I sold. It was the best day ever!

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release Accidental Target?
A: Like I mentioned, this book was sold during the Love Inspired Author Search contest. It’s about a woman who is following her faith to keep her life on track, but everything gets turned upside down when a truck runs her off the road. She goes to help, only to find that she’s just crossed paths with a killer. The only person who can help her is the police sergeant who lost his own faith when his family was tragically killed. The message is about healing, forgiveness, and trust. Even if the reader can’t identify with the characters’ problems, we’ve all been in a position where we’ve needed our faith to find those three things.

Q: Where did you get your inspiration for Accidental Target?
A: I’m not sure, actually! I’m a pantser so that’s how most of my stories start. I get an idea, or what I call a “what if”, and then I just go with it. After I write the first scene I step back and develop the characters and plot.

Q: What is the main thing you hope readers remember from this story?
A: That nothing in life is too big for God to handle. He never leaves us. Even when we feel we can’t hear His voice, He’s always there.

Q: What inspires you to write?
A. I love writing. When I write I feel like my world is in balance. When I first started writing, my books were not inspirational, or Christian fiction. I tried to write mainstream romance, but God convicted me about what I was writing. I had to step back and ask myself what kind of books do I want to put into the world if I were to ever publish. I realized that God had blessed me with a talent that I needed to use to glorify Him. That is what inspires me to keep writing.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A. I have a couple of projects I’m working on right now. One that I hope to finish soon is about a female detective who finds herself the target of a serial killer. The Texas Ranger assigned to the case is the one man from her past that hurt her the most. She has a lot of trust issues to overcome.

Q: When you’re not writing what do you like to do?
A. I love to read suspense and watch crime shows like Dateline, 48 Hours, and Mindhunter. I also read a lot of books about criminal psychology. If I hadn’t become a teacher, I like to think I would’ve been an FBI profiler. Lol!