Let welcome to our latest and newest member to our list of authors. Let
welcome Wanda Brunstetter to Nighttime Reading Center again. She here on to spread her lastest book "
The Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits" written with Martha Bolton and also for a Author Spotlight. I am a member of
Wanda's Clippity Clop Club.
I have a chance to read her book "
The Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits ".
I am currently reading this book and i am just started so not far in.
This book is being a adapter into a Musical play and will be playing in
Lancaster Pa, in Bird In Hand area during April 2025 and in Indiana July
2025. Here is the Information for details and tickets..
Let read her Bio and then go to her interview.
#Interviews, #Interviewsaroundtheglobe,
#NRC,
Why Are Baking Contestants Disappearing?Mysteries
have a way of following Fannie Miller, so when she makes it into the
finals of the Tuscarawas County Baking Contest and contestants start
disappearing, she calls on her old friend Foster Bates, a retired cop
and part-time private investigator. Could it be that other
finalists—like the couple on verge of divorce who need the prize money. .
.or the three Beiler sisters, always in a huddle whispering—are somehow
responsible for these disappearances, thinning out the competition? One
thing is certain—Foster and Fannie will stay on the case until the end,
and everyone involved will learn something important about baking
contests, mystery solving, and life.
New York Times
Bestselling Author Wanda E. Brunstetter and Emmy-Nominated Author
Martha Bolton have teamed up to deliver a delightful whodunit from
Ohio's Amish country.
We
have several new Club members joining us this year. Would you be able
to give a brief summary of your writing career and its highlights for
you?
began
writing when I was a child. I loved to read ad began writing poems and
short stories. As an adult, after taking my first writing course, I
began writing fiction stories and non-fiction articles for publication.
Following another writing course, I submitted my first novel to Barbour
Publishing for their Heartsong Presents Book Club. After publishing
several more Heartsongs, Barbour opened up their trade fiction line. I
submitted a 3-book series entitled, Daughters of Lancaster County that
was about the kidnapping of an Amish baby. It sold well and made the
New York Times Best-seller’s List soon after it came out. The rest is
pretty much history, and I’ve been writing for Barbour Publishing
exclusively for nearly 30 years. One of the highlights in my writing
career has been seeing two of my books turned into musical plays, with a
third play opening soon, based on my co-authored novel, The Rise and
Fall of Miss Fannie’s Biscuits. The new musical will open this spring in
Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania, and again in July at the Blue Gate Theatre
in Shipshewana, Indiana.
Who have been some memorable people you have met over your writing career?
It’s
been a thrill for me to meet many authors, but three in particular made
an impact on me by their humble attitudes and obvious love for people.
Among them are Janette Oke, Karen Kingsbury, and Nicholas Sparks.
Although Nicholas does not write inspirational fiction, the fact that he
was willing to spend thirty minutes visiting with me and answering
several of my questions meant a lot and spoke volumes. One thing I came
away with after meeting him was the fact that he genuinely cares about
his family as well as those who read his books, and even people like me
whom he’d never met until our paths crossed during an author signing
event where he was the keynote speaker. Janette Oke and Karen Kingsbury
also took the time to visit with me, and after just a few minutes of
talking to them, I knew we were kindred spirits, who not only have a
passion for writing, but care deeply about the people who read our
novels.
When
Martha Bolton approached you about writing The Rise and Fall of Miss
Fannie’s Biscuits, you were on an extremely busy writing schedule. What
made this project so special that you wanted to fit it in?
First
of all, I was excited to hear that Martha wanted Fannie Miller to be
one of the leading characters. Since I had created Fannie in my novel,
The Quilter’s Daughter, and she’d been included in the musical called
“Stolen,” I thought it would be fun to reprise her character in a new
storyline. I was also pleased to learn that The Rise and Fall of Miss
Fannie’s Biscuits would become a musical play.
Besides
the Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits, you had other books
adapted to musicals (Stolen and Half-Stitched). Can you describe what
that process has been like for you?
Although
I was not involved in the actual process of creating the musical plays,
I was in correspondence with those who were involved in creating the
musical, either before, during, or after the play was written. I also
had the privilege of attending the opening of Half-Stitched and Stolen
and got to meet many of my readers while signing the book I’d written.
What do you hope readers gain from The Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits?
In
addition to the enjoyment of a cute, cozy mystery, I hope readers will
find encouragement from the verses of Scripture that are scattered
throughout the book and were also an inspiration to the characters who
had been dealing with various problems. There are lots of scenarios in
the book similar to things we all face in our daily lives.
You broke your arm while on a book tour last summer. Can you give an update for your readers?
On
July 31st during a family reunion in Pennsylvania, I fell and broke my
left arm. This was just a few days before my signing tour was supposed
to begin. Although I was not able to attend any of those signings, my
daughter, Lorine, and daughter-in-law, Jean, who were also on the trip,
went to each of the signings in my place. Since our Sisters by the Sea
novella collection was available at the events, in which Jean and Lorine
had both written a story, they had the opportunity to meet several of
my readers and sign copies of that book. For the rest of my books that
were available at the signings, they had autographed sticker labels
previously signed by me to peel and stick inside each book that was
purchased or brought in by readers. Although I felt bad about not being
able to be at any of those signings, it was a comfort to know that
Lorine and Jean were there to greet my readers, as well as the ones who
had read their stories. We remained in Pennsylvania almost two weeks,
while I was treated for my injury at an acute rehab center in
preparation of the flight home to Washington State. For the kind of
break I had, I was given a brace to wear, rather than a cast. It was
uncomfortable due to the break and all the swelling that went with it,
and I didn’t do well on most of the pills they gave me for pain. When I
returned home and saw an orthopedic doctor in the area, I was told that I
would need to wear the brace a minimum of 8 weeks. It turned out to be
10 weeks before he would allow me to take it off. Even then, he
cautioned me to be careful and said it would be best if I wore the brace
whenever I was away from home. Later, after another x-ray of the arm, I
was informed that the broken bone had stopped healing and would need
some help. So, I began using a bone stimulator for 30 minutes per day
and was told that I would probably need to do this for the next 4-6
months. A few weeks after using the stimulator, I had another x-ray and
learned that the bone was starting to heal again. I could finally go to
out-patient therapy, where the therapist would be allowed to work on the
upper portion of my arm. By this time, 5 months after the fall, I had
lost a good deal of the range of motion in my left arm. I am able to
type, (praise the Lord!), cook, and do some simple chores, but am not
supposed to pick up anything heavy. Today I went to therapy for the 2nd
time, and will be seen twice weekly for the next 3 months, or possibly
more. My goal, and my prayer, is to regain full use of my left arm and
get complete range of motion back.
What Bible verse have you been especially drawn to lately?
Proverbs
17:22 (NKJV) is one of my favorite verses: “A merry heart does good,
like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.” Over the last two
years, beginning with my daughter’s stroke, our family has been faced
with one challenge after another. So, looking for things to be joyous
about has been an important help in dealing with the issues we’ve faced,
and quoting that verse of Scripture regularly has been extremely
helpful to me.
What do you hope readers gain from The Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits?
First
and foremost, I hope they enjoy reading the book. Sometimes in life we
all just need to sit down and enjoy some laughter and a good escape. We
hope this book does that for people. But there are also lessons to by
learned by the characters, and we hope that, along with the scriptures
they represent, will be a help and comfort to people too. And I
certainly hope there are more Fannie and Foster mysteries to come. I'm
game if Wanda is! We'll all try not to break any bones next time,
though.
You
can also find me on Facebook, where I have a fan page and a friend
page; Instagram, Pinterest; YouTube, and X (formerly Twitter)
Thank
you for Author Spotlight Wanda. I hope to see you around here. I hope you stop
by once in awhile.Thank to the Admin and though Questions for us Members of
Wanda Cippity Clap Club for these and allowing us to use the Questions into a blog post (Author Spotlight Post).
