The author takes us behind the scenes of her romance based on the true-life story of C.S. Lewis and Joy Davidman.
Patti Callahan (who also writes as Patti Callahan Henry) is a New York Times bestselling author. Patti was a finalist in the Townsend Prize for Fiction, has been an Indie Next Pick, twice an OKRA pick, and a multiple nominee for the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA) Novel of the Year. Her work has also been included in short story collections, anthologies, magazines, and blogs.
Her novel Becoming Mrs. Lewis (Thomas Nelson), inspired by the true-life love story between Joy Davidman and C. S. Lewis, won the Christy Award for Book of the Year. In this exclusive interview, Patti talks about the impact her book has had on readers, explains what inspired her to explore this true-life love story, and reveals details about the companion podcast series…
Congratulations on Becoming Mrs. Lewis winning Book of the Year! When you wrote the book, did you expect it to impact readers so deeply?
When I was writing the book, I knew that Joy had impacted me in ways I hadn’t expected and so yes, I hoped for the same for others. AND YET—I had no idea of how. I am consistently astounded at the ways Joy speaks to readers, how her journey resonates with theirs!
What impact does winning awards have on how you approach your fiction?
Oh, I hope it doesn’t affect my writing at all. It’s an honor and a thrill (I still am stunned and grateful), but it has nothing to do with the day to day habit of writing or of doing the “work.” In fact, if I think about it too much I would worry about the judge’s opinions and freeze!
What inspired you to explore this true-life story in narrative form?
I was initially drawn to the story because of my fascination with what an improbable love story it was. But then I discovered that it was much more than a love story—or it was a different kind of love story—one with God and then self and then another.
Joy’s story is a transformational journey of courage that not only changed her life, heart, family and work, but the life, heart, family and work of one of our most beloved authors of the twentieth century—C. S. Lewis.
Click thru to discover the challenges of building a story out of real events…