Author: Jennifer Slattery

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Books: Sweet Freedom a la mode compilation, Beyond I Do, Intertwined, When Dawn Breaks, Breaking Free, Restoring Love, Healing Love, Dancing in the Rain, Restoring Her Faith, Hometown Healing, Building a Family     

Building a Family: Two children abandoned by their mother brought them together, but they also may be the very thing that keeps them apart. #ContemporaryRomance @Jenslattery

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Joyful Storytelling

Interview by Jenny Fulton

This week’s guest is a wonderfully generous woman whom I’ve had the privilege of working with and swapping critiques. Even with a busy schedule and 11 published books to her name, she has shown that she’s not too busy, too proud, or too successful to give of her time to invest in others.

And with that, allow me to introduce and welcome Jennifer Slattery.

Jennifer is a writer, speaker, and the founder of Wholly Loved Ministries. Her passion is to help women discover, embrace, and live out who they are in Christ. With such a range of experiences and abilities, it’s no wonder that she wasn’t quire sure how to answer my first question: In which genres do you write?

“Oh, my,” she said. “This a loaded question. It might be easier to ask what I don’t write. For fiction, I write contemporary romance, currently for Love Inspired. I also enjoy writing articles, devotions, and Bible studies.”

Her latest release, Building a Family, is a contemporary romance set in the Texas hill country.

Why Texas? Well, for all you Texans out there…

“I’ve had something of a fascination, or perhaps a fondness, for Texas for some time,” Jennifer shared. “I have grown quite attached to the fictional town this story is set in – this is my third novel set in Sage Creek, Texas. I also have a heart for little kiddos, especially those in need of love and care, so I think this story line sprang from that. The rest just sort of grew out of various brainstorming sessions.”

What’s a story about small children and family without some humorous personal experiences thrown in? Has anyone ever had a bad experience with getting their house painted…?

“I used one scenario in the story my family and I have chuckled about numerous times. When my daughter was young, we lived in Southern California and had really tall ceilings. We decided we wanted to get our dining room painted and settled on what we thought was a light blush. The day the painters came in, I was supposed to meet relatives at Disney Land, which was about 45 minutes away.

“When I saw the paint go on, it looked much brighter, much pinker, than we’d hoped for! (Like cotton candy or Barbie Doll pink.) I probably should’ve said something—before they covered all the walls! But this was before cell phones, so I couldn’t call my family to tell them I’d be late. Plus, I assumed the color would lighten when it died.

“It didn’t, and my husband was far from thrilled to eat in a very pink dining room each evening. My daughter, however, was quite pleased and told me later she thought we’d painted it that color specifically for her.”

I think my daughters would have been equally excited about the change and would probably have thought the same thing.

Whereas some books have a more intense feel, others are of a more lighthearted quality. The latter describes the nature of Building a Family. Writing it brought Jennifer a lot of enjoyment.

“When life feels stressful or hard, as it sometimes can, it’s nice to have a fictional world to slip in to,” she said, “and the children often made me laugh and brought fond memories of when my daughter was young.”

One of the themes in this book is the strength of community.

 “Many people in the town come together to help Noah (the children’s uncle, on their biological father’s side) and Kayla (their aunt on their biological mother’s side) do their best to raise the kids and help them have the best life possible.”  

While Jennifer did weave a faith element through the book and hopes readers will sense God’s love and care, she also stated that she hopes they can have a few moments of stress-free, clean entertainment that helps them, temporarily, unplug from all the crazy stuff currently going on in our world.

“Sometimes I feel like we, as a society, have lost the ability to have fun, and I think our mental health suffers because of this,” she said.

So, if you’re in the mood for a good, clean, entertaining escape from the craziness and politics of this year, check out Jennifer’s latest book.

Book Blurb for Building a Family

Can love for two little matchmakers unite their reluctant hearts?

Worried that Noah Williams is still the reckless bull rider she remembers, Kayla Fisher is convinced he isn’t the right person to care for their orphaned niece and nephew. Now she’s back home, determined to fight for custody. But Noah is a changed man, and he intends to prove it. When Noah and Kayla start falling for each other, could raising the children together be the perfect solution?

Purchase the Books:

• Sweet Freedom a la mode compilation
• Beyond I Do
• Intertwined
• When Dawn Breaks
• Breaking Free
• Restoring Love
• Healing Love
• Dancing in the Rain
• Restoring Her Faith
• Hometown Healing
• Building a Family

Connect with Jennifer

• Website: https://jenniferslatterylivesoutloud.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JenSlatte
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slatteryjennifer/