Marybeth Whalen and Free Books!

A real-life landmark on the coast of North Carolina links two people over time and in spite of circumstances. Can first love get a second chance?

Before we meet today's author, I want to announce that the winner of the drawing for Love on a Dime, by Cara Lynn James, is:

dleathers36@ . . .

Congratulations! I'll contact you today for your snail mail address, and we'll get your book to you right away. I encourage readers to keep commenting and/or subscribe at right in order to participate in future book give-aways!

Now let's meet novelist Marybeth Whalen, author of The Mailbox: A Novel, (David C Cook Publishers, June 2010).

Marybeth Whalen is the wife of Curt and mom of six children. The family lives outside Charlotte, NC. Marybeth is a member of the Proverbs 31 Ministries speaker team and a regular contributor to their daily devotions which reach over 350,000 people each day. She served as general editor of For The Write Reason and The Reason We Speak. She and her husband Curt co-authored Learning To Live Financially Free and her first novel, The Mailbox will be released in June 2010. Additionally, she serves as director of She Reads, Proverbs 31 Ministries' fiction division. Marybeth speaks regularly to women's groups and enjoys sharing stories from her daily adventures as a wife, mom, writer, and, most importantly, a follower of God.

Please tell us five random things we might not know about you.

-- I have always lived in my hometown of Charlotte NC.

-- I have 6 children.

-- I don't eat cheese.

-- I typically don't listen to female singers or read male writers. Not sure why that is or what that says about me.

-- I am terrible at math. Good thing I became a writer.

I'm having a hard time accepting your stance on cheese, Marybeth, but we'll soldier on here.

Please tell us a bit more about the plot of The Mailbox.

Centered on a real landmark on the coast of North Carolina, The Mailbox blends intriguing folklore and true faith with raw contemporary issues that affect every woman. When Lindsey Adams first visits the Kindred Spirit mailbox at Sunset Beach, North Carolina, she has no idea that twenty years later she will still be visiting the mailbox--still pouring out her heart in letters that summarize the best and worst parts of her life.

Returning to Sunset for her first vacation since her husband left her, Lindsey struggles to put her sorrow into words. Memories surface of her first love, Campbell--and the rejection that followed. When Campbell reappears in her life, Lindsey must decide whether to trust in love again or guard herself from greater pain. The Mailbox is a rich novel about loss, hope, and the beauty of second chances.

What is it about your lead character that will make your readers care about her? 

Lindsey is--as one of my readers recently said--a very real woman who loves the Lord yet has feet of clay. She makes mistakes, she doubts, she wonders, she searches. And yet she doesn't give up hope that God's best is out there for her.

Why will readers enjoy your novel?

It's light and fun and an easy read. It's that perfect beach or pool-side novel.

If you were the casting director for the film version of your novel, who would play your lead roles?

I had Kimberly Williams-Paisley in my head for Lindsey while I was writing the book.



As for Campbell, I pictured Paul Walker. So those would be my first picks. I have to wonder what the actual chemistry between those two would be!

You make a good point. Wouldn't it be awful to have your novel made into a film and then have the actors unable to pull off the chemistry you had created between your hero and heroine? I would imagine that happens on occasion.

What is one thing you've learned about yourself as a result of your writing career?

I have a lot more perseverance potential than I thought!

Choose an inanimate object to represent you. Explain what you have in common with that object.

A book. I am filled with words all the time. Just ask my husband.

What is the last book you read that moved you?

The Help by Kathryn Stockett. It gave me such sympathy for the lives of the maids and for the position that Skeeter was placed in as a woman living in that time. I loved that she pushed past the barriers that many others just accepted.

That book is endorsed often on this site! I loved it, too.

What are you working on now?

I just finished my second novel, which will come out next June. This one is totally different--a novel about the friendships of women and the pedestals we tend to put each other on.

Oh, I like that bit about the pedestals, Marybeth. Intriguing point of view.

Where else can readers find you or your writing online?

www.marybethwhalen.com or www.proverbs31.org

The book can be purchased online through the following buttons:



CBD.com

Thanks, Marybeth, for visiting with us and telling us about your novel. Readers, Marybeth has offered to give a copy of her novel to the winner of our drawing on Thursday, July 22. To enter, leave a comment for Marybeth, below. Leave your email address, in case you win, like so: trish[at]trishperry[dot]com.

Check out my interviews with Jennifer Hudson Taylor and Steve Rzasa below, and leave comments under their interviews to be entered in drawings for signed copies of their books.

Annoying legal disclaimer: drawings void where prohibited; open only to U.S. residents; the odds of winning depend upon the number of participants. See full disclaimer HERE.