Cara Putman Interview

I'm welcoming Cara C. Putman to The Borrowed Book today. Cara lives in Indiana with her husband and four children. She's an attorney, teacher at her church, and contract lecturer or adjunct faculty at a local community college and Big Ten University. She has loved reading and writing from a young age and now realizes it was all training for writing books. An honors graduate of the University of Nebraska and George Mason University School of Law, Cara loves bringing history and romance to life.

Cara, I know your four-in-one novella Cherry Blossom Capers is releasing this month. Tell us a little about the common thread the stories share and what your story is about.

Cherry Blossom Capers tells the story of four neighbors who live in a charming community inside the beltway of Washington, D.C. Four gals with very different careers who all find trouble and love. White House assistant chef Tara Whitley works with an old flame, FBI agent Jack Courtland, to stop a plot to sabotage a state dinner. Attorney Ciara Turner and her nemesis Daniel Evans have trials tracking down a judge's murderer. Archeologist intern Samantha Steele and security guard Nick Porter are on the heels of a dangerous forger. Shop owner Susan Holland and renovator Vince Martini turn upside down her late uncle's mansion while investigating a string of mysterious accidents.

My novella is Dying for Love. Attorney Ciara Taylor is horrified when she stumbles over a judge's dead body in Alexandria. Will she be able to retain her composure and control when she joins her nemesis Daniel Evans in investigating the murder? Constantly on the opposite side of domestic cases, they have to work together to find the murderer. . .just in case the police and marshals run out of luck. As they are thrust back together, Ciara is reminded of how Daniel swept her off her feet as a clerk. Now she has to choose whether to risk her heart to love.

I love the tagline for the book--Lovers and Lawbreakers Collide Under the Cherry Trees. Who came up with that hook?

I wish I could say I did, but it was the marvelous marketing department at Barbour Publishing. It certainly sums up the book!

You wrote this book with three other authors. How did the four of you go about developing the idea that would link the stories together?

We first started developing the idea in 2007. We'd gotten to know each other through ACFW and wanted to help Gina Conroy get her first publication. We quickly landed on Washington, D.C. as the setting because of the great diversity it allows in careers, etc. From there we each picked a career we enjoyed and built our what-ifs from those ideas. It has been so fun to work together!

Is this the first time you've written a novella collection? If not, what are the others you've done?

This is my first novella. I have a second releasing in May: Rainbow's End with Nicole O'Dell, Annalisa Daughety, and Valerie Comer. It was such fun to get to do some collaborative writing. Usually writing is so solitary that for an extrovert like me it can drive me batty. Working on these two projects was a treat. I will always be grateful to Becky Germany for the opportunity.

You are a prolific writer and write across several genres. Do you find that readers follow you from genre to genre, or do you have a different reader base for each genre?

So far I think my readers have followed me to an extent. There are some fans of contemporary mysteries/suspense who will never pick up a historical and vice versa, but I've been delighted by the number who read both. I think that's because there are common elements across all my books. One would be a strong heroine who often doesn't see her strength at the beginning but as the story develops begins to see how strong she can be. Another is the common spiritual theme that no matter how bad circumstances are God never leaves us. And the third would be a strong sense of setting.

You've said that you want to write stories that help women to see how God can restore their lives and give them strength and hope. How does this apply to your story in Cherry Blossom Capers?

What a great question! In Dying for Love, Ciara assumes she's lost her only chance at love, but she comes to see that the past can be redeemed and made stronger as we lean on God for wisdom and direction.

What are you working on now, and when will it release?

Right now I'm working on the marketing for my three spring releases and waiting to hear about proposals that are out with publishers.

What message of hope would you like to leave with our readers today?

I'd call it more of a challenge. That as we launch 2012, what ways do you want to see God move in your life? I'm asking Him to call me to a deeper relationship. One where I am changed and transformed so that all anyone sees when they look at me is Him. I want an intimate relationship. And that would be my prayer for those reading this blog. That they would seek a deeper relationship with God. And that as they seek Him they would find Him in richer, deeper ways than they imagined.

It has been a pleasure to have you with us at The Borrowed Book today. Thank you for being our guest today and sharing your thoughts with us.

Cara has issued a challenge to all of us for the new year. What do you want to happen in your life this year? Leave a comment and tell us what you hope to accomplish.