Joining me today is author Deborah L. King, whose debut novel, Glory Bishop, was released June 4th, 2019 by Red Adept Publishing. By day, she is a graphic specialist on a medical journal. She spends her days working with radiological images. Growing up, she wanted to be a cook, a teacher, a model, an artist, a photographer, and an author.  To date, she’s cooked for and catered several receptions; taught Sunday School, led Girl Scout troops, and been a corporate trainer for a retail chain.  As a young adult, she modeled in boutique fashion shows. She now sometimes works as a freelance graphic artist and photographer; and with the publication of her debut novel Glory Bishop, she is officially an author. Her writing runs the gamut from poetry and women’s fiction, to espionage and science fiction.   When she’s not writing, Deborah enjoys cartoons, cooking, photography, and Star Trek. Born and raised in Chicago, Deborah has managed to achieve all her childhood dreams and still lives in the area with her husband and two youngest children.

SS: Please describe what Glory Bishop is about, Deborah.

DLK: Glory Bishop is a coming-of-age story about a young woman’s longing to reach outside the sheltered life of her mother’s madness and live in the world as a normal person.

SS: Can you share a teaser from your book?

The door closed, and she hoped he’d gone, but then he was behind her … his arms around her waist … his lips touching her shoulder. “Remember the first time you let me kiss you? You said you’d be my wife.”

Glory shrugged off the kiss and tried to ignore him—tried not to notice his scent or relax in his arms. She tried not to respond to his voice … tried not to care.

His lips touched the back of her neck. “Remember the second time you let me kiss you? You said you’d be my girl.”

She deliberately brushed his kiss from her neck and moved to the washing machine, careful to keep her back to him.

“Oh … so it’s like that now, huh? No problem. I’ll just sit down and watch you work. I’ve got all night. And you know, I always did appreciate you from behind, too.”

Glory growled under her breath, taking her annoyance out on the wet towels she pulled from the washer. She heard him sigh loudly as he settled down on the old couch. She whispered a prayer for patience and strength.

“Know what?” he asked. “I feel like singing.”

Glory continued her work and tried to ignore him as he flubbed his way through “Ribbon in the Sky” and “Isn’t She Lovely,” but when he started singing “Brick House,” she threw down the towel she was folding and gripped the edge of the table.

“Josiah Jackson, you leave me alone. Right now!” 

“Oh … so you’re talking to me now, huh? I win big. I get to hear your pretty voice and look at your fine a—”

“No!” Glory turned to face him, arms folded, seething, channeling every bit of hurt and anger into a glare that she wished would burn him to cinders. “No. I’m not talking to you. I’m asking the devil to leave me alone! I’m asking Satan himself to leave me alone and never speak to me again.”

“Well,” he said, standing and moving toward her. “Your prayer is gonna be answered. I’m leaving for the navy tomorrow.”

He smiled. He actually smiled. That no-good lying two-timing devil smiled his smug smile—that I’m the finest boy in the world, and I know you agreesmile. That I win smile.

Glory hated that smile. And she loved that smile. And all she could do was squeeze her eyes shut to keep the tears from spilling out.

SS: Where did you get the idea?

DLK: Years ago, I was in a writing class, and wrote a short story about a sheltered, repressed girl being embarrassed about going to a party.  That girl evolved into Glory.

SS: What’s the story behind the title? 

DLK: Back in 1998, I created an AOL screen name GLORY and I chose BISHOP as a last name because it’s the name of a street in a neighborhood where I lived as a child. I always wanted to go to the corner store on Bishop, but my mother would never let me. I’m glad my publisher liked the name … so we kept it.

SS: No spoilers, but tell us something we won’t find out by reading the book jacket.

DLK: Malcolm knows the Bible by heart and speaks in Bible verses when he’s excited.

SS: Tell us about your favourite character.

DLK: Malcolm is my favorite character. He has such a strong personality and is so sure of himself … but he can be vulnerable too.

SS: If you could spend a day with one of your characters, who would it be and what would you do?

DLK: I’d spend the day with Glory; maybe try to show her things beyond what she knows.

SS: Are your characters based on real people, or do they come from your imaginations?

DLK: A little of both.  Some of the characters are people I know, but most are from my imagination. Glory’s best friends are modelled after my friends from high school.

SS: How long did you take to write this book? 

DLK: About 25 years. I started it in 1992 and wrote off and on until 2016.

SS: What kind of research did you do for this book? 

DLK: I did quite a bit of research. I had to tour some places in Chicago and find the locations and names of 1980s businesses. The old Chicago Transit Authority map was fascinating as was the history of some of the neighborhoods.

SS: What did you remove from this book during the editing process?

DLK: For legal reasons we took out song lyrics and changed a few location names.

SS: Are you a plotter or a pantser?

DLK: Actually, a little of both. I start the story; then write an outline. Then I change the outline as the story evolves.

SS: What is your favorite part of your writing process, and why?

DLK: My favorite part is when I get into the zone, and the story starts flowing and the characters take control of the narrative and I learn new things about them.

SS: What is the most challenging part of your writing process, and why?

DLK: The most challenging part is discipline. I’m not too good at keeping my butt in the chair and my mind focused. The magic portal that is the internet often lures me in, and I waste time. When that happens, I try to turn that time into productive research …or so I tell myself.

SS: Can you share your writing routine? 

DLK: I write in spurts. I have had weeks where I laid on the couch and plotted the story scenes in my head. I’ve also had binges when I didn’t eat or sleep … just wrote for days on end.  

SS: Have you ever gotten writer’s block? If yes, how do you overcome it?

DLK: I get it frequently. When that happens, I usually switch to another part of the story and try working on that, or maybe work on a different book altogether. When it’s really bad, I read back over what I’ve already written and see where I can improve it.

SS: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

DLK: Do not, under any circumstances, let your favorite aunt (no matter how awesome she is and how much she’s taught you) borrow ALL of your handwritten only copies of your stories and essays to show her colleagues. You’ll never see them again. 

SS: How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have?

DLK: I have five books up in the air right now.  I’m actively working on two of them.

SS: Do you have any writing quirks?

DLK: I will keep a song playing on repeat until I finish writing a scene, passage, or chapter. One song I played nonstop for three days.

SS: How did you get into writing? 

DLK: I don’t ever remember not being a writer. I started writing earnestly when I was seven. I still remember the poem I wrote for Mother’s Day.

SS: What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

DLK: When I’m not writing, I like to cook, watch cartoons, and sit at my computer pretending to write.

SS: Apart from novel writing, do you do any other kind(s) of writing?

DLK: I’m working on a memoir about my infertility battle, and I dabble in poetry occasionally.

SS: Share something about you most people probably don’t know. 

DLK: I’m a bread bender.  I bake phenomenal breads and other high-carb, high-butter deliciousness.

SS: Which book influenced you the most?

DLK: The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis: “Make your choice, adventurous Stranger. Strike the bell and bide the danger, or wonder, till it drives you mad, what would have followed if you had.”

SS: What are you working on right now?

DLK: Right now I’m working on the story of Glory’s mother and what happened in her life to make her the way she is. 

SS: What’s your favorite writing advice?

DLK: When writing in the fashion of the old masters, don’t answer a video phone call.

SS: What book are you currently reading?

DLK: Breaking Out of Bedlam by Leslie Larson

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Glory Bishop must choose between living with her abusive mother while waiting for her boyfriend’s return, and an older man’s offer of freedom at a very high cost.

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