FEATURED ARTIST FRIDAY: Ashlee Willis

Today I am pleased and excited to introduce you all to fellow family-friendly-fantasy author, Ashlee Willis. I discovered her through Anne Elisabeth's site, and was sort of surreptitiously following her blog... unbeknownst to me, she had done the exact same thing! So I was really excited when she invited me to help her spotlight her debut novel. I think we're going to be best buddies. Besides being a fellow author and lover of fantasy, Ashlee is also a homeschooling mom and a Christian. So, I've stumbled across another blogger/author Kindred Spirit.

Ashlee's first book, The Word Changers, is being released later this month (it is already available in Kindle format on Amazon if you can't wait), and I will be having her back over here on June 23 to talk about her book a bit more. But for now, all I'm sharing is the cover art and a blurb... because today we're focusing on meeting the author behind the curtain.

Her parents’ marriage is falling apart. Fifteen-year-old Posy feels her life is falling apart with it. Retreating to an old library down the street, she selects a mysterious book in a secluded corner and is magically drawn into its story... 
 
 Posy finds herself in a kingdom ruled by a cruel and manipulative king and queen who have attempted to usurp the role that belongs only to the Author of their story. The princess has fled and the kingdom is teetering toward rebellion. Posy is joined by the Prince Kyran as they fight with the characters of the story against their slavery to the Plot. 
 
 Posy and the prince search beyond the borders of the story for the runaway princess. They visit mysterious places, face horrifying monsters, and fight fierce battles. They make both friends and enemies as their journey leads them into many dangers. But some of the worst dangers, Posy soon finds, lie deep within her own heart.  
 
 Now Posy must find the courage and forgiveness needed to save the story and, most important, heal the heartache she knew in her own world. 
  

Hi, Ashlee, thanks so much for joining us today. Let's just dive right in with the questions. Can you tell us what are some of your fondest writing memories?

Although it’s more efficient for me to write on my laptop now, I remember the days when I was a teenager, taking my spiral notebook and a pencil out into the field or into the woods behind our house. Sometimes I’d sit with my back against a hay bale, sometimes I’d sit in this lovely glade of evergreens in the woods. I just can’t tell you how inspiring it was, and how peaceful it made me feel to be doing my favorite thing there in those lovely places.

Which authors do you admire, and why?

C.S. Lewis was and is my favorite.  It’s hard for me to explain why … his books were such a part of my childhood, I feel as if he is a part of my family! His work impacted me and probably in part made me the writer I am today. Others I love are Richard Llewellyn (his prose is some of the most beautiful I’ve read), Mary Stewart (who is responsible for introducing me into the world of Camelot), and J.R.R. Tolkien (whose world-building and character development blow my mind to this day!).

What is the most important thing you have learned about yourself through writing?

I think a part of me loves writing because I feel that, though life with all its troubles and pains is all around me, I can at least control this make-believe world of my own – have the characters do and say what I wish them to, contrive perfect plots and happy endings. Yet I’ve learned it’s not that way at all! Stories have a way of getting away from their authors sometimes, and it’s often not a bad thing when they do. Some of the best turns my stories have taken have been on “mistake,” because a character did something I didn’t expect her to, or made a decision I hadn’t planned ahead of time. It has taught me to let go of that need for control, not only in my writing, but in life.

How do ideas come to you?

Many times my ideas start simply. An expression on someone’s face, a turn of phrase, a place I’m in or even a sermon I hear. But as I write the stories down, outlining them first as I usually do, God starts working in the details, changing my original idea into something that is for his Glory. Which is exactly how I want it to be.

How would you like to be remembered?

I’d like to be remembered as a writer, of course, but mostly as a person. A mother, friend, wife, sister, daughter. I want the people who have known me, seen me and spoken to me face to face, to remember me for my kindness and patience and love of God. Those first two things, in particular, are things I have to strive for every day, but they are worthy in and of themselves!

What is the most fun thing about writing?

Sometimes the most fun thing about writing is NOT writing. Just sitting. Closing my eyes and seeing what my imagination will do, which path it will follow and what characters it will conjure. Imagination and creativity have always been amazing to me. I strongly believe God gave those things to us, and when I let mine fly free (for God’s glory, no less!), it gives me such joy and contentment. I feel as if creating is what I was, in fact, created to do.

Where did you get the idea for your book?

It started when I was very young. Just the idea – or longing, I should more accurately call it – of falling into one of my favorite books. It was simple enough, really – I think many people dream of such a thing. But as I got older and that old idea came back to haunt me, I realized it wasn’t so simple anymore. God had taken it and made it into something greater in my imagination – something centered around Him. That’s how The Word Changers began.

Can you pick a favorite character from your book or series? Why is that character your favorite?

It goes without saying that I love my main characters. But if I had to choose one of the secondary characters, I have to admit I have a soft spot for Alvar. He is a “common” character in the Plot – his role is not big at all. Almost nonexistent, to be honest. But his role in the larger story is crucial. He is unbelievably brave, speaking out against the slavery of the characters, standing up for what he believes is right. He is willing to do what it takes to bring the story back to what it was meant to be, the way it was written by the Author in the beginning – even though the odds are horribly against him. To me he represents how we should be: even if everyone around us is doing wrong, succumbing to evil because that is what is easiest, that doesn’t mean we should let that be our standard. We have a higher goal, like Alvar – that of finding our True Story, not the one the enemy has created for us.

Thank you for visiting us today, Ashlee. I can't wait to share more about your book on June 23! It sounds amazing, and I will definitely be acquiring a copy as soon as it's available in paperback.

If you'd like to learn more about Ashlee and her writing, you can visit her website HERE.