Copper Fire by Suzanne Woods Fisher
Suzanne Woods Fisher—COPPER FIRE–A NOVEL
Suzanne Woods Fisher’s just-released historical novel Copper Fire, is the sequel to the three-time award-winning Copper Star, a World War II love story inspired by true events. Fisher was a contributing editor to Christian Parenting Today magazine. Her work has appeared in Today’s Christian Woman, Worldwide Challenge, ParentLife, and Marriage Partnership. She has contributed to ten non-fiction books, including Chicken Soup for the Soul: Children with Special Needs. A wife and mother, Fisher lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and raises puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. The best thing about being a writer, she feels, is that all of life becomes material for writing. It’s all grit for the oyster.
Suzanne can be found at http://www.suzannewoodsfisher
Tell us a little about your family and your call to write.
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area with my husband, four children (one married, two in college, one in high school), and raise puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. I’ve always loved to write…largely because I wasn’t very good at anything else!
How did you get your first “writing break?”
I was on the staff of my college newspaper and met a young student named Ginny. We became fast friends. Sharing a love of writing, we kept our relationship going through letters. A few years later, after we had both married and had started families, Ginny called me to ask if I could take over some freelancing jobs. I jumped at the chance. I started writing for Christian Retailing, then Christian Parenting Today, and eventually became a contributing editor for that magazine. And those relationships have opened other doors.
What do you write and why this genre?
My favorite is historical fiction, because it becomes a fascinating puzzle to fit true events into a storyline. I work hard at representing history in an accurate way—I want readers to enjoy a good story but to finish my book confident in what they’ve learned. Also, I try to write about interesting people who have been overlooked. For example: Louise Tracy, wife of Spencer Tracy. In 1942, Louise Tracy started a foundation (The John Tracy Clinic) to teach oral communication (lip reading and speaking) to pre-school age children. She and Spencer had a deaf son, John. Louise ignored the conventional wisdom of the day (sending John to an institution to learn sign language) and had remarkable success teaching him to communicate. There’s a deaf child in my novel Copper Star. I contacted the JTC while writing Copper Star and was able to write it into the storyline, with their blessing. Louise Tracy was a remarkable woman. Way ahead of her times! I loved being able to bring attention to such a woman through this novel.
Do you have any recent contracts and up coming releases?
In late August, Grit from the Oyster: 250 Pearls of Wisdom for Aspiring Writers, will be released from Vintage Spirit. I wrote Grit with three other very talented authors.
And another piece of great news! I just received a contract from Revell/Baker for a non-fiction book called Amish Peace in an English Life. It won’t be out until 2010…but ‘everything Amish’ is filling up my head right now.
What do you hope to accomplish through your novels?
My favorite books (authors, too) point the way to God’s high path. Philip Yancey is my all-time favorite. I’ll read anything he writes. Working faith out in real life is the reason I write. A lot of my articles got started because I was trying to figure something out…generally, about raising kids. I was seeking ideas and encouragement. It’s important to me to help point readers to the Lord for answers, strength and guidance. Whenever I hear people start to lament about how hard things are in this day and age (and there are plenty of things to get stressed over)…I think of Hebrews 13:8: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” There is nothing new under the sun that He can’t understand or guide us through.
And now for the tough questions…
How do you balance being a mom, wife, and writer?
I am constantly trying to find a balance. I don’t think I’ve ever had a typical day! Not with four kids and a corporate-guy husband, a steady stream of puppies we raise for Guide Dogs for the Blind, added into that mix is my parents. My father is suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease…and it is incredibly challenging. My goal is to try and get three to four hours of concentrated work in, nearly every day. I can’t get much more than that in, yet I think that’s reasonable. I don’t want a spine that ends up resembling a question mark.
Did you write when your children were at home? Why or why not?
Yes, I tried to squeeze writing around naps, school, preschool, etc. Just magazine articles, though, when the kids were little. Short, quick, tight deadline. Interviews on phone calls were very hard to do (this was all pre-internet)
If you did write when your children were at home:
When did you find the time to write, and did you ever feel like you were neglecting your children when you write?
I think I felt as if I was often preoccupied. Not entirely present or “in the moment.” Sometimes, even if I’m with others, my mind can be a million miles away, mentally writing. Still working on that!
Do you think it’s possible to give yourself fully to raising children, writing, and keeping in shape? If not, which one for you has to take a back seat?
Ah, a constant battle! Being a writer is an odd career. To write well, one needs quiet time, space, discipline. But to write anything of substance, one needs relationships, activity, meaningful time with the Lord! I really love a quiet morning at home, but I am aware of the need to be open to interruptions and see them as beneficial to my life, not as intrusions.
Is it any easier writing now that your children are grown?
Yes! Mostly, I’m more seasoned. I’m a better writer! And on a practical level, I have more control over my time. Sort of.
Is parenting your grown children easier than raising them while they were young?
Easier? No. Different, yes. I think my kids on my mind just as much, and in my prayers just as much, but the problems get bigger as they get bigger. So does my faith, though, in seeing how the Lord has carried us through things.
What would you say to moms who can’t wait until their children are older so they can write more?
I would recommend that they journal on a daily basis and capture moments of childhood and early parenting. I encourage people to practice journaling as they would practice piano scales, exercising the craft. Journaling helps them to learn to pay attention and to remember details. But there’s no reason they can’t be writing. That’s the beauty of writing…all of life is material!
What interruptions in your writing didn’t you expect once your children were older and out of the home?
Just the other night, I received a panicky phone call that my dad had disappeared from his Alzheimer’s Board and Care facility. The police officers were out looking for him…and we finally found him (through the help of a guardian angel).
Taking care of my dad can get very consuming.
How do you handle these interruptions in your writing life?
I try to have the mind of Christ and make myself see the situation from His point of view. Otherwise, I can get very resentful. But when I try to think the way Christ thinks, it helps me yield to the circumstances, and I start to feel more tenderhearted toward my dad and his current needs. I even start remembering all of the kind things he has done for me in my life. Takes work, though, to
How do you get back into the flow of writing after you’ve been interrupted?
Sometimes it works, sometimes it just doesn’t. But I have a better sense of the big picture of writing. Not every hour is “billable.”
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?
Not really set aside, but definitely to keep it in balance. I know the Lord wants us to be careful we don’t turn writing into a golden calf. It’s a wonderful passion, but it shouldn’t be a substitute for more important things.
Did you ever feel like you’ve “missed” God in regards to writing, that maybe you should be doing something else?
Rejection can be very disheartening. It’s taken a while to work it through so that it doesn’t derail me. I think it’s just part of the writing gig…not necessarily a message from God to stop writing.
What advice would you give to writing moms who are have their hearts set on publication?
This is an industry in which “no one is looking for you.” Behind every published piece, a writer has a fat file of rejection letters. But, ah, there’s just something about that published piece that makes up for that rejection file! Persevere!
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
A while ago, I went to my first writers’ conference expecting to connect with editors, plug a few queries, well, you know the drill. I left the conference with something even better: Three new writer friends all at the same “career place.” We have kept in touch (a cinch for e-mail junkies), edit each others’ work, and are even writing a devotional together to encourage new writers called Grit for the Oyster. I went to the conference with one intention; God had another one in mind. So my parting words are: Stay open. Stay optimistic. And remember that if God calls you to write, He’s not calling you to be the best, just to give your best.
Find Suzanne on-line at www.suzannewoodsfisher.com
Copper Star (ISBN: 0-9793327-4-5) and Copper Fire (ISBN: 978-0-981-5592-0-9) are available at Amazon or other on-line booksellers, at Suzanne’s website, or can be ordered through your favorite bookstore.
