Interview with Author Cara Putman

We're talking today to recently published author Cara Putman, whose debut novel Canteen Dreams is the first of three books coming from Barbour's Heartsong Presents. Cara also has a romantic suspense coming in June 2008 with Steeple Hill Love Inspired Suspense. Her first writing attempts began as a homeschool teen, but she says those early works are happily lost forever, though her dad claims he can find them on one of his many computers. (Sounds like our house.) :) Cara is smart and vivacious and one busy woman!

Tell us a bit about yourself, your writing, and your publishing journey.

I’m a wife, mom, attorney, occasional lecturer at a university, and ministry leader at my church. But I’ve had a deep desire to write since I was a child. That dream lay dormant for years as I went to college, got married, started a career, went to law school while working, and then started a family. Periodically I would pull the dream out and ask God if it was time to kill it.

Then in April 2005 I attended a book signing and met Colleen Coble. My husband told her I’d always wanted to write and the rest is history. I joined ACFW and attended my first writers’ conference in September 2005.

Canteen Dreams, my first novel, grew out of hosting a workshop for Jim and Tracie Peterson at that conference. I’d said I would never write for Heartsong. Famous last words! Then Jim and I started talking while we waited for the workshop to start. He’s from Kansas. I’m from Nebraska. He was a history major. I minored in history. And we both loved World War Two. I asked Jim if he’d ever heard of the North Platte Canteen. He hadn’t.

Over the next 24 hours, God dropped ideas in my mind about how to turn that into a great story. The love story is loosely based on my grandparent’s story, and I am so honored to be able to honor them while they are still alive.

A year later I received the contract for Canteen Dreams, my first contract, at the 2006 ACFW conference. Since then I’ve been offered three more contracts, and have a total of 4 books releasing in a year. After that, this journey is fully back in God’s hands, a wonderful place.

What is the greatest historical novel you’ve ever read and why?

Man. This is a tough question. I love the first two series that Bodie Thoene wrote. She made history come alive with characters and times that I cared about. I remember vividly watching a documentary on PBS years ago about the 1947-48 war between the Jews and Arabs. As I’m watching the documentary I could predict where everything was and what was going to happen because of her Zion Chronicles series. That’s great historical fiction.

I also love Gone With the Wind. Sweeping story, compelling historical framework, and a feisty heroine you have to love even as you don’t agree with all her choices.

Did you have any experiences that prompted your love of fiction and historical fiction in particular?

I have always loved history. I don’t really know what created that love, but if I’m reading non-fiction, it will usually be historical in nature and involve a war. There is something riveting about learning how people survived difficult times in the past. I also love the interplay of history and politics. Must explain my major in political science and minor in history.

How much time does it take to research your stories – what balance would you say there is between research and actual writing?

The research for me is about 50% of the work. Right now I really should be writing the third installment in the Nebraska World War Two series. I think one reason I’m struggling to fall back to 1944 is that this book will require the most book research. It’s about a setting and part of the homefront war that I know little about going in. So I need to back up and put the time into research and getting to know my characters.

Describe for us, if you will, your writing style, as in plotter vs. seat of the pants, and do you put more time into developing characters or plot or are they equal?

Because three of my first four contracts are with Heartsong Presents, those books had pretty complete outlines done before they were written. That is a requirement of that publisher. In many ways that makes the writing easy. Writing each chapter is a matter of connecting the plot points while allowing for the characters to change details.

For my suspense, I tend to know the general plot, but many more of the details are left to be discovered as I write.

That's all for today - but please come back tomorrow for part two of Cara's interview. And don't forget to leave a comment for a free copy of Cara's book Canteen Dreams.