Lynn Austin resigned from teaching to write full-time in 1992. Since then she has published 27 novels. Eight of her historical novels have won Christy Awards for excellence in Christian Fiction: Hidden Places (2001), Candle in the Darkness (2002), Fire by Night (2003), A Proper Pursuit (2007), Until We Reach Home (2008), Though Waters Roar (2009) While We’re Far Apart (2010), and Wonderland Creek (2011). She was inducted into the Christy Award Hall of Fame in 2013. Fire by Night was also one of only five inspirational fiction books chosen by Library Journal for their top picks of 2003, and All She Ever Wanted was chosen as one of the five inspirational top picks of 2005. Lynn’s novel Hidden Places has been made into a movie for the Hallmark Channel, starring actress Shirley Jones. Ms Jones received a 2006 Emmy Award nomination for her portrayal of Aunt Batty in the film.
In this interview, Lynn shares some of her thoughts regarding her latest holiday romance offering, Waiting for Christmas.
FF: What inspired the story in your book?
This Christmas novella, set in the Gilded Age, is a sequel to All My Secrets (but can also stand alone). I wanted to tell what happened next in the life of wealthy heiress Adelaide Stanhope after she walked away from her former life, and married for love. It was a momentous decision and would likely bring many changes that she wasn’t prepared for. Would she regret her decision? I wanted to find out.
FF: What can you tell us about the main characters in your book?
Adelaide Stanhope Forsythe is a young newlywed who is not only adjusting to married life, but to a much simpler lifestyle without all the benefits of her family’s wealth. She is determined to be a good wife, but is accustomed to servants, and has no idea how to cook or keep house. Adelaide is also developing a social conscience, and is involved in the women’s suffrage movement, and with helping the poor.
Howard Forsythe is Adelaide’s new husband, a young lawyer from a modest family who was given the opportunity to attend college and study law by an anonymous benefactor. He has never known wealth, but he loves his new bride and longs to give her the extravagant lifestyle she sacrificed to marry him. The fact that he can’t indulge and pamper Adelaide, frustrates him.
Jack Thomas is an eight-year-old runaway from an orphanage who comes to Adelaide and Howard for help. He insists that he isn’t an orphan and begs them to help him find his father and his three-year-old sister Polly.
FF: Which character surprised you the most?
Mrs. Gleason, the cook, surprised me the most by “coming to life” and playing a larger role in the story than I had anticipated. Mrs. Gleason is hired to teach Adelaide how to cook and keep house, but she ends up being a loving source of wisdom to the young couple.
FF: Why do you think storytelling is such a powerful way to share truth?
We rarely listen to lectures or statistics about the best way to live our lives, but through an engaging story, we are often able to make connections between the characters’ lives and our own. We can see the consequences of their choices or mistakes fully played-out, and get a glimpse of how biblical truths such as repentance, forgiveness, and redemption might work. Once we are drawn into a story, we are unconsciously open to the truths it might be portraying.
FF: What can you tell us about your next book?
I am currently researching my next book, a split-time novel set in western Michigan. One storyline takes place in the 1870’s during Michigan’s lumbering boom and follows the lives of two women who become unlikely friends. The second storyline takes place in 2024 and tells the stories of two women who restore the houses that the two historic women once lived in.
FF: How do you get into the right frame of mind to write for your genre/audience?
I do it by imagining that I’m writing the kind of book that I enjoy reading—a story that makes me laugh, makes me cry, and makes me think about the book long after I’m finished. I like just a touch of romance, without it being the main storyline. And I enjoy characters who seem to come alive. With these things in mind, I thoroughly research a historical era so that I and my readers are transported back in time. I create characters that are true to that era, and I get to know them thoroughly. I also keep lots of photos from my research on my desk so I can recreate the setting for my readers.
FF: What do you want readers to take away after reading your book?
Adelaide is discovering how to use her God-given gifts and life experiences in order to live well, and for God’s glory. I would love for readers to be inspired to do the same. God created each one of us to be marvelously unique and we each have a part to play in His kingdom.
FF: What are the biggest challenges for you as an author writing in [your specific genre]?
I write historical fiction, which has become a very popular genre. One of the biggest challenges is to write about a currently-popular time period, such as the Gilded Age or World War II, but to write about it in a refreshing, new way with new insights. It’s also challenging to stay true to the historical period without imposing modern ideas and issues.
FF: What authors or books have inspired you as an author?
The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom inspired me to draw closer to God. I longed to have the deep faith that her family had. The Chosen by Jewish author Chaim Potok took me into the world of Orthodox Jews and inspired me to write novels from a Christian world view, drawing readers into a story where faith and trust in God were important.
FF: How has your faith or world view impacted the way you tell stories?
My faith in God is such an integral part of my life that I can’t separate it from my storytelling. I tell stories that reflect the way I see life; some people have faith and some don’t, but they still must cope with all the challenges and choices in life. I believe that God is always at work in the background, whether we are aware of Him or not, and this gives our lives (and the lives of my characters) meaning. I believe that no matter what happens, God is in control, and this belief infuses my life and my stories with hope.
Waiting for Christmas
Lynn Austin
Tyndale House
Genres: Historical Romance, Christmas
Release Date: September 3, 2024
ISBN-10: 149647628X
ISBN-13: 978-1496476289
Book Summary:
In this hope-filled Gilded Age Christmas novella from bestselling author Lynn Austin, the year is 1901 and the hustle and bustle of the holidays is descending on New York’s Fifth Avenue.
For the first time in her privileged life, Adelaide Forsythe won’t be swept up in it. She couldn’t be happier about the prospect of a quieter Christmas. That’s not to say her transition from Miss to Mrs. has been without challenge. Though she doesn’t regret marrying for love instead of wealth, she can barely light the hearth or cook more than burnt toast. She feels woefully unprepared to run her own household.
Then, on the first Sunday of Advent, winter winds bring change through two unlikely means: a young orphan boy, hiding near Adelaide’s front steps, and a seasoned housekeeper who seems too good to be true.
The boy, Jack, claims he isn’t an orphan at all and is desperate to reunite his family. Adelaide and her husband Howard work tirelessly to solve the riddle of Jack’s story, while Adelaide’s new endeavors open her eyes to a world beyond her past experience—and all the challenge and possibility it holds. As Christmas approaches, small glimmers of wonder light the way toward the answers Adaleide seeks and the most miraculous gift of all.
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