The Romantic Side of Suspense Author/Coach/Encourager Sarah Hamaker

Character Evolution with Elizabeth Goddard and Virginia Vaughn (Episode 73)
“I wrote [my hero in Critical Alliance] into the first two books, but I didn’t really know who he was or what he was doing exactly,” Elizabeth said. “I really left him as an enigma—and even the other characters in the book were like, what is he doing and where is he going. I answered those questions in book three.”
“I wish I was that clever that I could have it all plotted out beforehand,” Virginia said. “That’s my goal one day—to know all of my characters before I start my series.”
How Jamie Jo Wright Weaves the Past Into the Present (Episode 72)
“I’ve seen time slip done a couple of different ways, like when the characters are tied together by an event or an article in history,” Jaime said. “With my characters—whether they know it or not—the past is directly influencing the life of the current heroine. So you can’t separate the past heroine from the current heroine because the current day heroine wouldn’t be who they are.”
Why Mary Alford and Robin Patchen Ensure Good Triumphs Over Evil in Their Books (Episode 71)
“We see enough of the other kind of stories where the bad guy doesn’t get his in the end,” Robin said. “I like what they call whole stories, where good is good and bad is bad and good wins. I like to write whole stories.”
“We live in a very fallen world, and it’s nice to get away from the reality that evil doesn’t always get punished right now,” Mary said. “It’s good to have books where the hero and heroine have everything worked out in the end, the bad guy gets punished and there’s usually a happily ever after at the end of the story.”
How Sami Abrams Writes Well With Others (Episode 70)
Under Susie May Warren’s Sunrise Publishing, Sami worked with Lynette Eason in the Elite Guardians story world developed by Lynette in a previous series. “Lynette is my mentor for this book,” Sami said. “We collaborate as far as brainstorming, but she does help me if I run into a problem. … And she’s also the one editing it, so it’s a Lynette-style book.”
How The Dark Guest Got Its Title
One of the questions I often get is why did I call book one in The Cold War Legacy series The Dark Guest? It came from a very unlikely source. As a reformed Presbyterian (PCA), I’ve become more acquainted with the Puritans and their writings. Titles like The Mystery of Providence and The Rare Jewel […]
October 2022 New Releases in Christian Fiction
More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website Amish Romance: The Story of Love by Beth Wiseman — With little left to tie her to her home state of Texas and yearning for a slower life, Yvonne Wilson jumps at the chance to shake things up with a […]
September 2022 New Releases in Christian Fiction
More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website Contemporary Romance: A Heart to Trust by Judith McNees — Can two broken hearts learn to trust each other…and God? Grace Morgan has a closely guarded secret. One that also makes her good at guarding her heart. After all, she […]
Getting to Know PS Wells
Multi-published author PS Wells recently stopped by my blog to share some about her writing life. How do you pick the location/setting of your romantic suspense novels? For my novels, I take my readers to places they have never been to, and introduce them to history and activities they have not experienced. For instance, in […]
