This is my second interview with Amy. To read my first one, go here!

Amy Wallace is married to a God-honoring hunk, a homeschool mom of three (ages 9,6, and 3), writer, Bible study teacher, and chocoholic. Some of her favorite moments are the ones she spends laughing, reading, and being goofy with her family. Amy loves writing stories, teaching teenagers, scrapbooking, playing basketball, and taking walks with her family. The beach is her all-time favorite place to be, and she collects teddy bears, tons of books, and dust on her furniture. Amy is the author of Ransomed Dreams, book 1 in the Defenders of Hope series, a contributing author of God Answers Mom’s Prayers, God Allows U-Turns for Teens, Chicken Soup for the Soul Healthy Living Series: Diabetes, and A Cup of Comfort for Expectant Moms. But getting to the heart of who Amy is can be summed up in a few short words: Amy is a daughter of the King learning to live and love with laughter.

Has your writing schedule changed since your first contract?

In very basic terms, no. I still do most of my writing on Saturdays. What has changed is that I do a lot of work on weeknights now too, especially during edits. Thankfully, I have an amazing family who rolls with the demands and are still excited about their wife and mommy being a writer.

I’m afraid of writing under a deadline. Afraid I’ll loose the joy of writing. Afraid my work won’t be as good because it will be rushed, and afraid my priorities will be skewed. Do you ever feel this way and how do you handle this?

There are days I feel like I miss myself coming and going. And days I wish deadlines weren’t real and editing was only a black moment in a fairytale. But deadlines and edits are part of the writing life. And so I’ve learned to schedule my insanity and guard my Saturdays. That way I still have days where I let everything else go and just get lost in the story because I know I’ve set aside enough time to get the work done before my deadline.

For the most part, I haven’t lost the joy of writing. There have been circumstances where I wanted to quit, but even during those seasons I still loved the writing and wouldn’t walk away unless God directed me to do that. Getting caught up in a story and watching God work through my keyboard are still as exciting an experience as the first time I started to type.

As for the quality of work going down because of rushing, I haven’t seen that happen. If anything, I’ve seen my work improve because I have the privilege of working with some fantastic editors who help me make my books their very best.

I see you have a third book coming out. Are there any more books in the series?

Enduring Justice, the third Defenders of Hope book, is the final story. My husband won’t accept that, but as far as I know Michael and Hanna’s story is the last of this series.

Do you have any more books under contract or in front of an editor?

I’m working on the next suspense series proposal and will turn that into my agent soon.

Do you have and agent? If so, who?

Chip MacGregor is my awesome and incredible agent.

Did you get your agent before or after you sold your first book?

That’s a complex question. I signed with my first agent long before the contract with Multnomah was offered. And right before I heard from Multnomah, I terminated my contract with that agent. It was almost two years later that I signed with Chip. I’m very thankful for both of the agents I’ve worked with and all I learned along the way.

What would you tell writing moms and dads looking for that agent who will sell their first book?

Be prayerful and get to know a number of agents before you pursue working with one. And make sure your heart and your work are ready for that step of signing a contract. A great agent is worth the wait and worth the work to polish your craft.

What will you do if the next contract never comes?

I’ll happily go back to being a wife, mom, teacher and friend and probably get a good deal more sleep.

If the next contract doesn’t come, I’ll be disappointed. But God and I have already wrestled this issue to the ground. And right now I’m resting in the fact that God knows my future, and it’s good. Next book contract or not.

Thanks so much, Amy. You’ve been a big encouragement to me and I know many others!

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