Sit-Down Saturday with Anna Adams


Yeah, Anna, we're so glad you're here.


So, where did you get the idea for this novel?


Every year, my aunts and my cousin and I spend a week in Tennessee—that we cleverly call “Girl’s Week.” I got the idea while we were there. My family has been in the Sevierville area since the Revolutionary War, and I wanted to explore the idea of life in a small mountain town. I love the loving and the living, the traditions, the scandals, and the good deeds that go on in small towns. And Tennessee’s beauty—the cold mountain streams, the limestone outcroppings, the mist rising through the mountains—that beauty owns me.

In looking at the cover, if you could add a caption, what would it say?



“Lean on me.”

What is your favorite scene?
My favorite scene is later in the book, when Noah trusts Emma enough to admit some important things about his past in a place that’s special to both of them. Emma realizes she’s known Noah almost all her life, but he’s kept some deep, dark secrets that might have made a difference to them if she'd known.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I can’t choose between Noah and Emma. I understand Emma because she loves her nan the way I love my grandma, and she’s trying hard to be better than she’s ever been, and she wants love even though she still doesn’t know if she’s worthy of being loved. But Noah has fought hard for his family and his self and his reputation. He tried hard to fight for Emma, when she wasn’t capable of trusting that she mattered to him. He cannot say no to a person in need of help, and he tries to find room for forgiveness—though he’s endured far too much to forgive in his life. I love them both.

What music would match the mood of this novel?

I think the song, “Gravity,” by Sara Bareilles is a perfect theme song for Now She’s Back.

This is your 17th book.  Exactly what does that mean to you? 

I hope that I’m learning with each book. I'd like to reach more deeply into readers’ hearts.




What do you plan to work on next?

I’m working on Owen’s book. He’s Noah’s brother, and his story will be the next in a series of 3 books set in Bliss, Tennessee. I'm loving living in Bliss!
What are you reading for pleasure?
A mystery set just as Great Britain went into WWII. Marriage Can be Murder, by Emma Jameson. Love the characters, the mystery, and I'm so drawn to the time period!
Wishing you all the best of the holidays!
Anna

Comments

  1. Anna, Having grown up in a small town I can attest to the good, the bad and the ugly. LOL What I find interesting is that of my close friends who went to school from first grade through h.s. graduation, we all couldn't wait to shake the dust of the small town. Now I'm hearing that in their "golden" years, many of my friends are moving back there because of memories, nostalgia, family, etc. Looking forward to your book. I loved my travels through the misty mountains of Tennessee.

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    1. Roz, funny you say that! I've been gone from Tennessee since I was 17--but I always go back, and I do wish the husband and I had looked a little harder at living there. :-) If you find yourself traveling through TN again, let me know! Happy holidays to you!

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  2. Sounds like a great book. I have family in Tennessee too. I've only been once and that was to Chattanooga.

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    1. Thanks, Pamela--and for setting up this interview! We definitely need to have a Heartwarming meetup in TN. So many of us have ties there!

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  3. I enjoyed my few times passing through Tennessee. I had a wonderful time with my children when Tennessee hosted the World's Fair. Look forward to reading your book.

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  4. Thanks, Marion! I completely missed the World's Fair. Coming home that year just wasn't feasible, and I have yet to see what's inside that Sunsphere! :-)

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  5. Congrats, Anna! Love your cover and those beautiful, scenic photos. It sounds like your story really comes from the heart.

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    1. Thanks, Rula! This is a story close to my heart. Like you with your mountains, I sure love mine! :-)

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  6. This book speaks to my heart Anna. I LOVE visiting Tennessee, particularly the Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville areas. We try to get there as often as possible. I just adore the Great Smoky Mountains National Park!! I'm not surprised that you wrote a book that I know will appeal to me. I think we have many similar likes in common (I thought of many more I Love Lucy episodes that I LOVE). This one is going on my TBR list. I have got to read this one!!
    I so miss this blog. My grandma is extremely ill (I haven't been doing so great myself either), and I haven't been able to visit as often as I have in the past. Thx for cheering me up with news of this book. ( :

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    1. Laurie, I'm so sorry your grandma and you aren't feeling well. Hope you both start looking up soon! I'm laughing at our I Love Lucy conversations, and I actually owed you a copy of a book from a contest Melinda and I ran in April, before my first Heartwarming book came out. So I sent you a note!

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  7. Anna, your descriptions of this book are so compelling--the setting, the story.... I'm so excited to read it! I grew up in small town, too. One of the greatest things is also the worst--everyone knows and you know everyone. Like Roz, I couldn't wait to get out, but then when I did I realized how much I missed it. I'm so grateful to live in one again and love my small town life!

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    1. Thanks, Carol! I'm like you and Roz--left early, but I get back whenever I can. And I love hearing all the goings-on! :-) I do love the small town we live in now, but I miss all the family in the one I left behind.

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  8. I love the Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area...actually I love all parts of Tennessee. My sister lives in Chattanooga and I'm thinking about setting a book there. Great post and sounds like a great book.

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  9. Wow, Patricia, another one of us with ties to Tennessee! If you come this way to research, we definitely need to gather! ;-) I do love my little made-up town that feels so real!

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  10. I couldn't wait to leave rural living behind--though mine's in Indiana--but I never left it and now I don't really want to. That being said, every time I go to the Smokies or to the mountains in New England, I leave a little part of my heart behind. Can't wait to read this book!

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