Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Multnomah Fiction (April 17, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 159052747X
ISBN-13: 978-1590527474

I am pleased to post the following interview about author Amy Wallace! Enjoy!

1. Tell us a little about Ransomed Dreams.

Ransomed Dreams is about answering two questions: “Can dreams be redeemed?” and “What does forgiveness look like?”

Gracie Lang is being watched by a man who will stop at nothing to hide the truth from her. Having lost the only man she ever loved and the children who were her world, the truth is all Gracie wants – an explanation for what really happened. She longs to move forward but is bound by chains of fear. Then she meets Steven Kessler, a Crimes Against Children FBI agent assigned to uncover an international plot to kidnap the British Ambassador’s daughter. Steven awakens more than memories; he revives the possibility of a life Gracie desires. A life where healing and peace crowd out the nightmares. But his case and her past are dangerously connected. Suddenly, Gracie must decide if she’s able – let alone willing – to pay the required ransom to redeem dreams and restore hope.

2. Why write about FBI Agents and children?

I wanted to be an FBI profiler after I graduated college. But that’s not the path God intended for me. Instead I get to interview, read about, and then write about people I admire~ without having to do all the pushups. LOL

Why children? I adore my children and am passionate about them being a gift to treasure and helping tired moms (what mom isn’t tired?) remember that.

3. The Defenders of Hope website has a page with resources for protecting children. Can you tell us more about that?

It’s often been said that children are our future and our most valuable asset. They’re also incredible blessings from God. Ones we as parents want to protect. On the Protecting Our Kids page there are website links, safety tips, articles and statistics to help parents be armed with the knowledge and practical strategies to help keep children safe.

One of the most important things we can do is to pray with and for our children.

The next is to educate ourselves and them about internet usage and staying safe strategies. Netsmartz http://www.netsmartz.org/ and America’s Most Wanted kids http://www.amw.com/kids/ are two of my favorite resources.

4. This is obviously something very close to your heart. Can you explain your passion and what you hope to achieve?

My best friend says that when we’re at a mall she’s looking for great shoes while I’m monitoring the exits. I totally resemble that statement. Growing up military behind the Iron Curtain, I used my imagination early to dodge “spies” and concoct stories of what would happen if. Now as a mom and a suspense writer who does tons of research, my imagination takes me places I hope to never go in real life. I’m painfully aware that we don’t live in a safe world. So I want to share all I’ve learned with other moms as well as to encourage parents to not walk by fear, but be armed with knowledge tempered with faith in an all-powerful God.

5. With homeschooling your children, what does a typical writing day look like?

A typical writing day looks like a Saturday. 🙂 That’s the day I work from 9am to after midnight and get the majority of my writing done. I attend to edits and business things during the week while my children have afternoon quite times and then I also work after bedtime.

6. Who inspires you?

My children. They love life and they love God unapologetically. They work hard, play hard, and get back up when they mess up. They also forgive easily and love deeply. I want to grow up to be more like them.

7. How do you create your characters?

I don’t really hear my characters like a lot of my writing friends do; I see them. It’s like having a movie reel playing all the time in my head. Often that’s incredibly distracting. But the cool thing about the way I’m wired is that as I see these stories and characters, that’s a way the Holy Spirit speaks to me. Many times God touches on areas where I’m weakest or leads me to explore my greatest fears. In telling the best and most intense story I can, I walk it through with my characters and I’m changed. I love that part of being a writer. Especially when I don’t have to get shot at to learn!

8) Why is April 23rd a special day?

On this day 36 years ago, a little baby boy’s first cry changed my world. I wouldn’t realize that fact until twenty-three years later when a gorgeous, blond-haired, blue-eyed missionary stepped into my line of vision and smiled. Two month later he asked me to be his wife. I said “yes” and eight months later we said “I do” in a beautiful mountain chapel.

Now with over 12 years of marriage and three precious girls, it’s become a little hard to find something unique to do for his birthday. So I thought I’d share with you all some things about my hubby and ask you to help me wish him an extra special Happy Birthday!

Top Twelve Reasons Why David Wallace Rocks:

1) He fears not for his life when he says I’m beautiful right after I step off the scale scowling. And he does this often.

2) David not only cleans the house on Saturdays so I can write, but he’s also a fantastic cook. (Sorry gang, I’m keeping him!)

3) My hubby doesn’t just support my homeschooling, he jumps in and tackles being math teacher so my kids don’t have to know how truly math-challenged mommy is.

4) He agrees with me that chocolate is a vital daily nutrient.

5) He’s a great basketball player and will occasionally let me win a game without making it too obvious. Same goes for ping-pong matches.

6) He’s a great daddy who tells his little girls silly stories to make them giggle and prays for them every night.

7) He never stops trying to grow.

8) David has a heart for the high school seniors he teaches at church to show them how to reach for their dreams by walking intimately with God.

9) He’s quick to admit when he messes up and will humble himself before co-workers, friends, family, and especially me and our daughters to ask forgiveness.

10) David tells everyone who will listen what an incredible writer his wife is, and he totally believes that even if I don’t.

11) He’s always there to brainstorm and listen to my wild ideas, and he tells me they’re wonderful, even when I’m pretty sure they need tons of work.

12) My husband teamed up with God to push, pray, and provide my way onto the writing path. It was his cheering and total confidence in me that propelled me to type that first sentence that would become Ransomed Dreams some five years later. David was also the one who never gave up hope, even after one too many rejections or tough edits saw me wanting to quit and never type again. He’s always believed in me and encouraged me to do what he knew God had called me to do.

So for all these reasons and more, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HONEY! I love you to infinity and beyond!!! 😉

Care to join me in wishing my hubby a happy birthday? Please leave a note in the guestbook. He’ll treasure it and I’ll treasure the smile you’ll help me bring to his now 36 year old gorgeous face.

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I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this interview as much as I have! Oh, what a romantic man!
Cecelia Dowdy
www.ceceliadowdy.com