Susan Page Davis is an author and a homeschooling mother of six. She has written seven historical romances for Heartsong Presents, two children’s books for JourneyForth, and two romantic suspense books for Harvest House. She’s also written a cozy mystery with her daughter, Megan, that will appear in February 2008, and has more books in the works.Susan and her husband Jim live in Maine and are active in a small, independent Baptist Church. Jim is an editor at a daily newspaper. Their two oldest children are married, and the Davises have four gorgeous grandchildren. All of their children have been homeschooled all the way up, and the three oldest are college graduates. Child #4 will graduate in May. The two youngest, ages 12 and 14, are still learning at home with Mom.

Wow! I’m impressed with the years you’ve spent homeschooling and writing! I can’t wait to hear about how you did it!

Tell us about your call to write.

I always loved to write and wrote many stories when I was young. After marriage I got sidetracked into journalism and nonfiction articles. I freelanced as a news correspondent for several years, and continued to write features and type local news for the nearest daily newspaper for more than 20 years. Then in 1999 I realized I had a book-length story going through my head, and my husband encouraged me that summer to write it down.

How did you get your first “writing break?”

I’d have to say my first break came from Woman’s World Magazine. Their fiction editor put encouraging notes on my first few tries, and I determined to keep on sending her stuff until she bought a story. I eventually sold three stories there in 2003-04. I also sold short stories to other national magazines, and finally got my first book contract that same year.

What do you write and why this genre?

After seven historical novels and a fantasy, I am now writing romantic suspense. I’ve always loved to read mysteries and suspense, and that first book I wrote way back in 1999 was a mystery. It wasn’t published, but I haven’t given up the dream of writing in this genre. The puzzle of the mystery intrigues me. Suspense, which is more about danger, totally absorbs the reader. It’s about justice and good triumphing over evil—themes that will never grow old. Last summer Harvest House contracted two of my romantic suspense books, and I’ve loved writing them. I hope to produce many more. That doesn’t mean I’ll never write historicals again—I love those, too. But for right now, this seems to be what the Lord has for me.

Do you have any recent contracts and up coming releases?

In March, my first suspense, Fraiser Island, will be released. This book began with a challenge from my older son. He was supposed to write a book, too. Well, I finished mine, and he didn’t. I’m still hoping he’ll finish his someday!

 Frasier Island features a handful of military personnel fighting huge odds. When Harvest House bought it, they contracted for a sequel. I just finished writing it, and that book (working title Finding Marie) will come out in September 2007.

I also have two more short historicals coming out in 2007 (books 2 and 3 in my Maine Brides series with Heartsong), and a novel for young people, Sarah’s Long Ride, about a girl who competes in endurance riding.

What do you hope to accomplish through your novels?

Besides providing a good story and a temporary escape from the cares of the world, I hope to spotlight God’s sovereignty and His presence in our everyday lives. Some of my characters are slow at learning this concept. They want to be in control and have to accept the fact that it’s God who holds the power.

And now for the tough questions…

How do you balance being a mom, wife, and writer?

This is tough. Some days of necessity, I’m all mom, or all wife, or all writer. Or all church financial secretary, or… I could go on. We have a set time when school is supposed to start each morning. We don’t always start on time, but we try to get moving and get the school day in hand. First we do math and language, the subjects where the kids need my attention most. I’m usually able to spend a few hours a day writing, especially in the afternoon and evening. We all break for our big meal of the day at noon, since my husband works evenings, ensuring us at least a short time together. Everyone pitches in on household chores.

Do you think it’s possible to give yourself fully to raising children, homeschooling, writing, and keeping in shape? If not, which one for you has to take a back seat?

Well, that’s easy for me to see in my own life. I haven’t kept in shape. I’ve tried to keep the kids’ education on track, and my writing has progressed over the last 8 years to where it takes a lot of time. I’ve given up the part time freelancing for the newspaper so I can devote all my working time to my fiction. But in 1997 (two years before I started writing fiction seriously) I had a massive stroke. The doctors found no explanation and I recovered fully, but indirect effects contributed to an injury that has kept me from walking far at a time. I’ve had foot problems for 10 years, and sadly have not kept my body in shape.

When do you find the time to write, and do you ever feel like you’re neglecting your children when you write?

I do my best writing in the morning, but my kids seem to do their best work then, too. Therefore I get more writing time later in the day, when they are done with their schoolwork and busy at other things. Yes, sometimes I have to tell them I can’t do something they want to do because I have a deadline.

How do you handle interruptions in your writing life?

I know some people shut their office door and won’t answer the phone during writing time. I can’t make myself do that. I want to be accessible to my family and others who need me, whether it’s my 12-year-old or my married daughter who lives 3,000 miles away. Working so long for the newspaper also trained me to respond to contacts. So, if the phone rings, I usually pick it up.

How do you get back into the flow of writing after you’ve been interrupted?

I usually go back and reread the section I was working on and take a running start at it.

What do you do to encourage yourself during those stormy days every homeschooling mom has?

We love snow days!! The public schools close, but we do school, and we get ahead of them. And when the school work is done, the kids go out and play in it. But if you mean figuratively stormy, sometimes we have to just “get through” and catch our breath when it’s over. We had some of those storms last fall, when my father died. We took several weeks off from school as we dealt with Grandpa’s illness, death, and funeral services, family concerns, etc. Then we eased back into our routine.

How do you position yourself to HEAR God’s voice when all the noises of life are swirling around you?

In the morning, when I first go to my desk, I try to have a few quiet moments to pray.

Since my husband works from 3 p.m. to midnight and sleeps later than the rest of us in the morning, we’ve chosen immediately after lunch for our family prayer and Bible reading time. It’s good to have this calm, quiet time in the middle of the busy day, when we come before God as a family.

If you do feel your priorities slipping, what do you do to get back on track?

If that happens, I have to stop cold and take a hard look at where I’m headed. There are times when I’ve realized I need to set aside more time each day for the kids, or they just don’t get it. The two youngest recently started karate lessons twice a week. Instead of separating us more, this has thrown us together more, since the half-hour ride each way means that the three of us have two hours a week together (at least) in the car, and we talk about a lot of things during that time. If I find my devotional time has slipped, sometimes I will write it on my “to do” list for a few days. The act of physically writing it down prompts me to remember it and not put other things first.

Has there ever been a time God told you to set aside your writing to focus on other areas of your life? If so, how did you handle that?

Since I began writing fiction, I haven’t put it aside for more than a few weeks, but I’ve had times where I had to give it less time. One example is this last year, when my dad was very ill. I got on a schedule of driving 25 miles to his house and spending the night there every other night. Our 25-year-old daughter came home to live at this time, and she was invaluable during Dad’s crisis. She was there with the two younger children while I went to my dad’s and my husband went to work. This went on for months, and my writing was slowed down some. Dad didn’t have Internet access at his house. If I did any writing there, I did it on a used laptop and saved to a disk, which I would bring home the next day and put on my desktop. My work progressed, but slowly.

Did you ever feel like you’ve “missed” God in regards to writing, that maybe you should be doing something else?

No, I feel that He brought me to this later in life (in my mid-40s), and it’s a joy to be able to earn money for my family this way.

What advice would you give to writing moms who are have their hearts set on publication?

Be patient. This may not be the time for you to be published. Don’t give up writing, but let God work in His timing. The most important writing you do now may be the lessons you plan for your children, or the letters you write to encourage others. But keep writing. I highly recommend keeping a journal. I know most homeschooling moms love to read and write. Keep it up! And if you feel God has given you a story or a message that should be published, by all means pursue it, but don’t let that become more important than your family. They come first.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

Every child is different, and every year of homeschooling is different. With six children, I started out expecting it to get easier, and for each child to learn at the same rate his older brother and sisters did. That hasn’t happened, and each one’s school experience had been unique. But that’s okay. Even when things don’t go as you planned, remember that they’re going exactly as God planned.

Thanks for having me, Gina! I invite your readers to visit my website at www.susanpagedavis.com and email me from there for a chance to win one of my books. I’ll be drawing a name each month for a free book.

Blessings to you and your family!

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