I have a awesome interview for you today with Lillian Keith, author of the upcoming Realistic Middle Grade novel Should We Tell Her?! She’s such a sweet and friendly person, and I know you’ll enjoy reading the interview as much as I enjoyed reading her answers myself! 😉 ❤️

The Interview!

Hi, Lillian! I’m SO excited to interview you today! So first, tell us about yourself and what you enjoy doing! How did you begin to love writing?

Hi Saraina! I’m so excited to be here with you too! Ah, let’s see. I’ll start with the basics *lol*. I’m a Christian, homeschool grad who might be slightly obsessed with coffee and pet chickens (I used to raise some as a teen and it was hard work, but super fun). I’m not a huge sports person, but I have enjoyed doing archery in the past. I also enjoy hiking and card-making, and even needle felting cute tiny dolls.

 I’ve always loved telling stories, so after learning to write in school, I started to pen them down on paper. Well, at least I tried *haha*. Little six year old me’s idea of writing a ‘book’/‘story’ was maybe one or two sentences, then tell the rest of the story through pictures that I drew XD. But I loved seeing my words on paper, so I kept trying to write my stories down. I guess that’s how I started to really love writing.

Where were you when the idea for Should We Tell Her? came to you? What was that like?

I was sitting on the porch swing with my mom and sister (…or maybe it was the patio chair next to the porch swing…*shrugs*) I might’ve moved to a different seat during that conversation, but I digress. Anyway, we were all outside, and I was trying to figure out my next story idea. Mom and Amy helped with the brainstorming, and eventually we came up with the basic idea of Should We Tell Her? It’s changed quite a bit since then (originally, the mom was dying of cancer, but then we decided on a coma instead.) But the idea of three sisters watching over each other remained.

Can you tell us what your favorite scene in Should We Tell Her?? (Be as vague as you want if it’s a spoiler-y one! 😉) Was it easy to write?

The end of Chapter Nine. *grins at vagueness*. Okay, I’ll just add that it was a very emotional scene (though I felt strangely excited for having come up with the idea.) It definitely took some thought to get it right, but I don’t remember it being super difficult.

Tell us about how you drew inspiration for the setting!

Aha, if Amy is reading this, then I give a shout-out to her! Long before I created this story, my sister, Amy, created the Hopewell Island setting. She even created the townsfolk and their backstories (a few actually made it into Should We Tell Her?). Writing stories isn’t really her thing, so she drew a lot of pictures of the people and the island; when we came up with the idea for Should We Tell Her? Amy wanted me to have the story take place on her island setting. So really, the credit goes to her!

What was the most memorable part of writing Should We Tell Her?? Were there any funny mistakes you made?

My writing time is usually low-key (and not much except writing happens *lol*), but while I was rearranging some sentences, I almost said Curtis was bald instead of Mr. Abernathy *facepalm* XD. I’m sure there were typos too, but I can’t recall any that stood out for me.

On a side note, I was thrilled to learn Curtis was a hit character. I wasn’t sure if I could write 12 year old boys well, but after getting feedback that he was a great, believable, character, I gained a lot of confidence. So that was a pretty memorable moment in my writing.

How did you choose the title? Did it come to you quickly?

No, and…no. There were a couple placeholder names that I used (Of Postcards and Trinkets, Sister Story, and Postcards From Mom.) But they didn’t really catch your attention, nor did it work with the cover or vibe of the story. Truthfully,  I’m really bad at coming up with titles. It was my mom who actually suggested Should We Tell Her? (and for the record, she came up with the title for my previous story, An Apprentice Escapes *Lol*.)

Was there a passage in the Bible that gave you a lot of inspiration?

No, not this time around. Actually, I didn’t even have a general quote for inspiration; mostly just pictures that I chose for the characters.

*whispers* Which character in SWTH do you secretly love the most? Or can you simply not choose?

*whispers back* I simply can’t choose. Each one is special. Wren was fun to write, I want to hug Aspen and Curtis, Piper is adorable, and George is funny. And of course there’s Gloria (I’m slightly biased because I love quirky chickens).

Why is the theme/message of Should We Tell Her? important to you?

The theme is about being together even in the hard times, and not trying to stand alone. It’s important to me because I believe families can help lift each other up in the middle of grief and rocky times (even true friends can do so too!) I’ve seen it happen in my family, and I wanted to share with my readers a deep family/sibling/friendship bond.

Why do you believe stories are important?

I believe a well written story gets us to think and maybe even grow. They can inspire and change our point of view. I think this is powerful and important to use carefully.

What was your first story idea (if you remember it)! Did it turn into a book? 

I think it was about a horse named Thunder, and how he entered jumping competitions. I used to have a horse stamp set by Melissa and Doug; I’d have paper stapled into a booklet and then I’d used the rubber stamps to ‘illustrate’ my story. I remember being excited over making my own ‘book’, though I became more engrossed with creating the scenes than actually writing. Come to think of it, I was around 6-7 years old, right around the time I started writing down my stories *haha*.

A random but fun one, now: what’s your favorite dessert? 

Chocolate brownies with ice cream! (I’d choose that over cake for my birthday *haha*. No seriously, I would.)

Can you share a wee bit about what writing projects are coming up in the future? 👀 

Ah, well I wish I could say it’s going to be an epic series spanning ten books *Lol*. But aside from the seeds of a novella idea, not much. I’m hoping to take a week-long break after this, then maybe ease back into writing short stories. Back in June, I wrote a short story for a friend’s anthology contest, but I realized I’m out of practice *grimaces*. I’m hoping to get into practice again later in August.

Thank you so much, Lillian!! 

Thank you so much for having me on your blog, Saraina! I had a blast answering these questions!

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Should We Tell Her? Blurb

“Mommy’s in Africa,” You kept saying, and you smiled for the first time since Mom hadn’t come home.

And suddenly, I didn’t want that smile to disappear. I didn’t want to hear your pleading voice asking over and over when Mom would come home. And I didn’t want to see the disappointment in your eyes anymore.

When summer turns to tragedy, twelve year old Aspen and her younger sister Wren struggle to cope. But how can they when their youngest sister can’t understand what is happening? Will they be able to pull together to help each other or will they fall apart?

Aside from writing, you’ll often find her feeding wild rabbits, arguing with spell check on Google Docs, or talking with her imaginary friends *ahem* story characters. Feel free to drop by her site and say ‘hi’. She loves meeting new people, hearing from excited readers, and making new friends (be forewarned, though. She loves puns and may try to sneak one into the conversation when you’re not looking!)

Author Links!

Author Site

Goodreads Author Profile

Pinterest Profile

Book Links!

Goodreads

Amazon

Giveaway Time

Lily is running TWO giveaways; 1) an ebook giveaway for international participants, and 2) a signed copy/goodies for U.S residents.

For the ebook giveaway, she’ll send a code for the winner.

In the U.S giveaway, she’s sending 1) a signed copy of Should We Tell Her? 2) a trio of tiny character dolls (Aspen, Wren, Piper) and 3) a homemade postcard to the winner.

You don’t want to miss out on this, so please enter below!! 😉

U.S Giveaway

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d7ac306c1/? 

International Giveaway

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/d7ac306c2/? 

Tour Schedule

Saturday, August 13th

The Introspective Introvert — Kickoff Post, Spotlight, and Giveaway Announcement!

Kristina Hall — Sneak Peak and Book Review

Sunday, August 14th

Joy C. Woodbury — Spotlight (and possible book review)

Monday, August 15th

The Misty Mayflower — Behind-the-Book Interview, and Book Review.

Vanessa Hall — Sneak Peak

Grace A. Johnson — Spotlight and Guest Post

Sisters Three — Author Interview and Sneak Peak

Rooted Scribbles — Behind-the-Book Interview, and Spotlight

Saraina Whitney — Author Interview

Tuesday, August 16th

Amy The Beloved — Art and Music Post

The Pencil Sisters — How to Make a Postcard

Wednesday, August 17th

Grace A. Johnson — Author Interview

Thursday, August 18th

Saraina Whitney — Sneak Peak

Friday, August 19th

Allie Anderson — Behind-the-Book Interview

Vanessa Hall — Book Review

Alicia Marentette — Spotlight, Sneak Peak, and Guest Post

Into My Writing Journey — Behind the Book Interview

Saturday, August 20th

Sparkle Girl— Sneak Peak, Behind-the-Book and Character Interview, plus Book Review

Rewrites With A Faerie Pen — Sneak Peak, Character Interview (Curtis), and Book Review

Sunday, August 21st
The Introspective Introvert — End of Giveaway

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*passes out chocolate brownies and ice cream* Thank you so much for reading, my friend! Lemme know: what’s YOUR favorite desert? Are you excited for Should We Tell Her? What do you think the mysterious Chapter Nine is about? 👀 If you like writing, how did you begin to get into it?