Cuffe Sisters on Writing and a little about them

Where do you write? Describe your writing space. Anything that helps in the background? (Tea, music, pets etc.)

Sophie:  We have a small office in our daylight basement with our desks situated so our chairs are back-to-back.  Sadie's always got a cat sleeping on her desk (when it's not busying taking over her keyboard and adding lines in cat-speak).  Our mostly-Australian shepherd, Henry, makes the rounds from sleeping on my feet, to sleeping on her feet, to sleeping in front of the bookcase... you get the idea.  Sometimes we have music going, but now that we're *ahem* older, we find relative silence is a nice thing.

Do you have a schedule (daily or book-long) for writing, or do you just go with the flow?

Sadie: I prefer to write in the mornings (when I’m at my least brain dead), but real-life schedules demand I go with the flow. I never used to be a night owl, but now I do quite a bit of work in the midnight hour (when I’m sometimes severely challenged with no viable brain activity to draw upon).

A biography has been written about you. What do you think the title would be in six words or less?

Sadie: The Other Sophie

Sophie:  That would make me "the other Sadie" - we get that a lot. People can't tell us apart, even though I'm six years older (that's good, right?).  But I think I'd like mine to read, "She made people happy."

If money were not an object, where would you most like to live?

Sadie: Right here on Inherit the Wind Farm, but with the money-is-no-object part, I’d build a new barn, buy a walk-behind tractor and attachments, and take a trip to New Zealand, coming home via Scotland and Ireland.

Sophie: I've lived in Germany and California and, like Dorothy, there's no place like home for me.  I visit my son in Tennessee, and my daughter in Vermont, and I'm homesick after three days.  Which keeps me from wearing out my welcome anywhere!  We're so blessed to live here in Unorganized Territory! But I wouldn't mind accompanying Sadie on that trip to New Zealand!

Blood Brothers in Christ

EXCERPT, Warrior's Journey
Sean's eyes flicked to the watch on his wrist, then rose and met hers. "Going to the top of the falls is the best way to the summit. We can bushwhack to the peak and hit the marked trail. I've got it covered, Mom. I got us here, didn't I?"

Wherever here is. The words looped through her brain while they rested. Sean's eager chatter and contentment battled her common sense. She had this moment reconnecting with her son, but what good was it if they never made it back home?

As they picked their way up the ledges, the water's roar fueled her anxiety. The misty droplets spiraling off the falls no longer held a rainbow's promise. In the afternoon shadows, their chill seeped into her. Sean rocketed ahead, swinging from boulder to root like a monkey. Molly grasped a root mostly fastened to a rock and leaned back, arching her neck, stretching the knotted muscles. She closed her eyes. The sun glinted off the head of the falls and pooled golden behind her lids. A few more feet to the top and they'd see the peak and find the trail. Maybe.

A sound bounced over her, garbled by the falling stream. She opened her eyes and blinked into the glare of light. The shine eclipsed as the dark shadow of a man stood above her. The silhouette moved and the sun blinded her once more. She squinted and pulled her eyes down to the rocks directly ahead of her. Sean scrabbled up the remaining ledge to the top. The dazzling beams haloed both outlines. The figures wavered in the brightness and were gone.

"Wait!" she screamed, her fingers and knees tearing at the rocks.


EXCERPT, Arrow that Flies

Rand sprinted after him and spotted a flicker of movement far ahead before it disappeared in the forest gloom. "It's a whitetail, Brad," he called. "Probably the beggar deer."

He turned and trudged back to Jackie. Tree spiking -- an old trick but still effective against Brad's small chainsaw-driven outfit. The bark would eventually slough off at the wound, grow back and cover the gash. Encapsulated within the rings of growth, the tree would carry the spike as a souvenir of war for a lifetime. Jackie bent over to retrieve her dropped paint can. A whine vibrated in his ears and he caught the wink of yellow in his peripheral vision. The fiberglass missile thwacked into the tree inches from Jackie's head, spraying bark shrapnel over her cheek.

Jackie snapped her head up just as RJ crashed toward her. "Stay down!" he shouted. He grabbed her arm and forced her into a crouch, molding his body against hers.

She angled her head and pushed her jaw against his protective shoulder. "It's an arrow," she said.

"Be still," he muttered and looked up at the quivering shaft of a hunter's arrow embedded in the tree bole just above her. "Are you alright?" he asked. He gently touched her cheek.

Jackie flinched and he released her and stood. He put the tree between them as she wiped her knuckles across the wound, smearing blood across her cheek. "I'm fine," she croaked, and turned away, but not before he spotted tears welling up in her eyes. He held his arms stiff at his sides and fought the urge to comfort her.

Brad strode up, tweaked Jackie's chin up, stared her in the face, and let her go. The action lasted only an instant.

"Did you see who it was?" RJ asked, angry at Brad for putting his thoughts into action.

"Naw," Brad returned. "Probably some weasel out-of-stater thinking he knows how to bow hunt and using us for target practice before the season starts. They give any fool a license and turn them loose up here." He tweaked on the arrow. "High powered, nice and sharp."

"You shouldn't touch that," Jackie cautioned. "The sheriff ought to have a look at it."

"Oh, no. You're not getting the law involved in this," Brad exploded. He turned on RJ. "This is your doing, isn't it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," RJ spluttered.

"Sure you don't! I wouldn't be surprised if you set up this little stunt just so you could tie up my operation in a bunch of red tape," Brad accused. "We're not saying anything about this incident."

"It doesn't matter," Jackie interrupted. "We've got spikers. We don't know how many trees they hit."

"Don't matter. I can get my hands on equipment that'll handle it," Brad said.

"No," Jackie said. "I ought to talk to the office before we get in over our heads."

"One thing's for sure, I'll find out who did this, mark my words." The lumberman flung his gear together and glared at Rand. "Far as I know only three people knew we were coming here today. You, me, and Jackie. That makes one of us a traitor or a spiker, both the same in my book." In typical Brad Stanley style, he strode through the pines, muttering, "No sense marking any more trees. It'd just give them a bull's eye to ram the spike into."

RJ tuned out the rant and watched his friend stomp away and disappear where the trail curved around the pond.

Jackie tapped him on the shoulder. "What do you know about this?" she asked. He turned and faced her. The blood still oozed from her cheek and her dark brows crinkled over accusing brown eyes.

Sadie and Sophie Cuff talk about their new release and other books

Lynn: Tell us a little about WARRIOR'S JOURNEY, released April 1^st, 2012. What is the genre? What is it about?

S&S: WARRIOR'S JOURNEY is the second in the Blood Brothers in Christ series. It’s inspirational romantic suspense and features bad-boy identical twin, Rand Adams, a recent Christian who's trying to walk the walk, but frienimies from his past have other plans for him. Plagued by guilt for his part in his best friend’s death, Rand’s determined to help the widow and her son, but she fights him at every turn, and so does a stalker known as Warrior. Rand is running out of time as he tries to find a deadly foe and protect the woman he secretly loves.

Lynn: Is this completely out of imagination, or are there elements of your real life experience in the plot/characters?

S&S: Most of what we write is pure imagination, but a part of the settings and everyday circumstances of rural life come from our experience of living in Unorganized Territory.

Lynn: So you have written thirteen books and part of another. How many of those are currently published?

S&S: 3 adult, 1 young adult

Lynn: If I was a first-time reader of your books, which one would you recommend I start with and why?

Sophie: ARROW THAT FLIES is our first-pubbed book (yay! thank you, Desert Breeze! http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-191/S-%26-S-Cuffe/Detail.bok), and WARRIOR'S JOURNEY is the 2^nd in the series, so that would be the natural flow.  Our hope, though, is that they both do well as stand-alone books.  We'll have to rely on readers to let us know if that's true or not.  But if suspense doesn't work for you, we have FAITH IN THE SHADOWS, the first in the Wainwright Trilogy, set in Civil War time.  So far, it's our mother's favorite. http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-225/The-Wainright-Trilogy-Book/Detail.bok Book 2 in that series, THE SEEKERS, releases in July.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sadie-and-Sophie-Cuffe/184904781607548

http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7651703-sadie-sophie-cuffe

http://pinterest.com/cuffesisters/

The Cuffe Sisters about their Readers

What do you hope readers take away with them after reading your work?

S&S: We hope they take away a sense of joy and adventure that comes from the adventure of appreciating the gift of each day; a sense of escape into a different world, and, most of all, the reality of the difference faith in Christ makes in an individual’s relationships, decisions, and confidence.

 

Do you have a favorite comment or question from a reader?

Sadie: It's not really a comment, more of an experience. When our first book came out (YA), the original had a series of pages printed in there twice, so the first printing was donated to the Salvation Army. At a book signing two boys came in with their books. They knew all the characters and treated the story as if it was a real life adventure they had lived. I’ll always remember how they just yapped to me as if we were old friends. I don’t remember their exact words, but their genuine excitement and their total connection were such a gift and something we strive for in reaching our readers. Those boys got their books from the Salvation Army. We want to make a difference like that every time we write.

Do your fans comments or questions influence you in any way?

Sophie: We love hearing from readers, especially their take on our books.  We're so close to the stories, we sometimes forget that not everyone is as intimately connected to them, or to country life, as we are.  For example, one reader said she thought Stellars Ford was a car dealership (it's the name of a town). Another one made reference to fog horns not existing on farms, but if you live near the ocean near a lighthouse, the fog horn is a very real part of everyday life. We write what we know and try to convey small-town life the way it really is, not the stereotypical scenes portrayed on TV or in the movies.

Check it out - Blood Brothers in Christ Book Two is out!

Molly Stuart knows there's danger lurking nearby, waiting to take her son away from her. But her twelve-year-old refuses to talk about the stranger stalking them, and the only one who can help her is a man she doesn't trust. Rand Adams may not have been directly responsible for her husband's death, but he acts guilty. He cut out in the middle of the funeral and she hasn't seen him in the three years since. Now he's back pretending to care about her and her son, but he's hiding something. Rand and her son share a deadly secret that will shatter Molly's world and change their lives forever.
http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-281/Blood-Brothers-in-Christ/Detail.bok

Check out this incredible reader review for WARRIOR'S JOURNEY (we're humbled):
I haven't read the first book in the Blood Brothers in Christ series yet, but after reading Warrior's Journey, you'd better believe I'm going to. Those Cuffe sisters have not only come up with a great story, they've populated it with people I quickly learned to care about. Having a pre-teen as one of the important characters helped to give the cast an especially well balanced feel.
Despite being a genuine suspense novel, this book is definitely about relationships. Friends. Brothers. Father and son. Man and boy. Husband and wife. Man and woman.
While it's not unusual for the romantic part of a suspense story to have conflict of its own, Warrior's Journey kept me wondering whether things would ever work out--and how. The resolution was quite satisfying.
And although I'd had some suspicions about someone who turned out to be a "bad guy," the Cuffes kept me guessing until the very end, and even then the revelation caught me off guard.
I don't normally pay much attention to details about the setting, but the Cuffes are so good at describing the areas where the story takes place that I couldn't help but admire their attention to relevant detail--and to better feel that I could see, hear, and smell it. If they aren't describing areas they're already familiar with, they have done a fantastic job of researching those places.
Warrior's Journey should be an equally good read for men and women. It has suspense and adventure--lots of it. But the tender moments are many, and they're tastefully done. I was pleasantly surprised that this book doesn't scream out, "Women wrote me."
Don't take my word for how engrossing Warrior's Journey is. Find out for yourself.

Coming Soon - interviews with some authors I love!

We have a great lineup for April, with new posts almost every day! Stop in and meet some great authors, learn about them and their books, and check out an excerpt.  Up for April:

April 2-6  I visit Stephanie Burhart for a Desert Breeze Spotlight
April 10-13 Patty Froese visits here regarding her release for April 15, Perfect on Paper
 April 14-15 June Belfie visits to talk about her new release, A Special Blessing for Sara.

April 16-18 The Cuffe Sisters are up with the second of the Blood Brothers in Christ series, Warrior's Journey. All of the above are inspirational or Christian fiction.
April 25-27 Marie Hammerblod visits about her May science fiction romance, Kidnapped.

So stop in often. We are having great fun!

Visits this week - two to check out!

Be sure to post a comment there or here for a chance to win More Than A Job.  Please also click FOLLOW! Need to have 100 followers by April 1 so need your help.

Check these links:
http://sgcardin.blogspot.com/
http://cuffesisters.com/2012/complimentary-cuffes/welcome-lynette-endicott/

Each tells you something new, and gives you a chance to learn about a couple of my favorite authors.

Interview with Sadie and Sophie Cuffee

How long have you been writing? What is your first writing/composing memory?

Sadie: I've been writing since 1988 (and you'd think I'd be better at it by now, wouldn't you!) You know those authors who wrote honkin' stories and had them published in the newspapers by the time they were 6 years old? Not me (can you say late, late bloomer?). My first composing memory must be in 1988, I wrote some really bad poetry for awhile until my good friend (who is a gifted writer and poet) looked at one of my poems and, in true sisterhood fashion, said, "I think this would make a good story." So I ditched the rhyming dictionary (that speaks volumes, right there) and moved on to a better skill set match of farm & gardening articles (in my former life I was a commercial grower and landscaper), newspaper columns, and kids stories.

When I first saw this question, what came to mind for me as a composing memory was our dad. He used to write lyrics and poems, and composed some pretty cool stuff that I didn't fully appreciate as a kid; but now I see how gifted he was (and he'd say it wasn't him, it was all God, and he'd be right!)

Sophie: Technically speaking, I could write before Sadie was born (that never gets old for me - hahaha), but professionally speaking, she got me started.  She was writing for God's World Publications at the time and suggested I send in some samples.  The editor said he liked my work and wanted to use an article in the next publication, but could I revisit it and make a couple of changes. Unfortunately, my ancient-at-the-time Mac had eaten my homework.I couldn't find it anywhere. A call to the local computer gurus said yes, they could retrieve it from the netherworld of the hard drive, but it would probably cost around $35.  So I cowgirled up and rewrote the whole thing.  That was my first lesson in SAVE, SAVE, SAVE!

Where do you find inspiration for your stories?

S & S: Inspiration usually smacks us between the eyes in an experience we’ve had, (just last week we slid off the ice into the ditch and had to be towed out...ugh! But Sophie said, “We can use this in a book!”), or in dialog we hear, or in a million little observances of the oddities and wonders of 21^st century life. It always takes awhile to sink in, and then we have to rummage for a piece of paper and write it down. We also find inspiration in asking, “What if?”

Who had the most positive influence on your life and how?
Sadie: That’s a tough one. As a Christian it’s really a two-fold answer. Obviously Jesus had, and continues to have, the best positive influence on my life by enabling me to grow to be more like Him. He’s taught me to think outside my small plans and have the courage and zeal to embrace His plan for my life, which is HUGE!

On the human side, there’re too many good people to pick just one. I've been truly blessed. (But I hate it when someone pulls the ethereal card, especially when it's me!) If I have to pick someone, I would say my sister. She’s my one-and-only. And as a big sister, there’s none better. She got up in the middle of the night and killed a spider on my bed with a well-aimed sneaker, then when I fussed (Hey, I was just a little kid!) that its crumpled body was still looking at me, she disposed of it without rancing on me. Greater love hath no sister than that, and it’s only gotten better with the passing of the years. Her example inspires me every day!

Sophie: I'm going to copy Sadie's first part, because Jesus Christ makes all the difference and is THE great influencer.

Our father was a huge influence on me. I never heard him swear, use the Lord’s name in vain, or lose his cool.  He was confident without being arrogant; fair without compromise; unconditional love personified, regardless of social status, educational status, economic status, race, religion, or creed.  But, as Sadie pointed out earlier, he'd have been the first to tell you it wasn't him, it was Jesus Christ in him that made him who he was. 

What is your favorite movie and why?
Sadie: I have a handful I really like, most of which are dated now. But at this moment I’d choose, “While You Were Sleeping.” Why? It’s got great dialog, classic lines, and perfectly-done family scenes (like the one around the supper table). I’m a sucker for ordinary blue-collar folks like us who dream big but enjoy the here and now on their own terms. It also has great characters and one of our goats is named Jo Jr., so it brings to mind the movie every day.

Sophie:  Hmmm, this is hard.  I'll go with "Sleepless in Seattle" (I'm noticing a pattern here!).  It's one of those movies where you just want them to get together, and they keep missing.  Plus it has one of my favorite lines, "It scares me what they aren't teaching you in school these days!"

If you had a time machine and could take one trip to any time in history, where would we find you?

Sadie: Back in the 1890’s traveling across the country from Maine to California so I could check out our great-grandparents on both coasts and do a little pioneering out west (and maybe even travel up to Alaska and strike it rich, or be one of the first women to write about it.)

Sophie: I'd like to go into the future and see my grandchildren as adults.

What are your hobbies?

S&S: Hiking, snowshoeing, skiing, ice skating, camping, backpacking, fitness, sewing, cooking, knitting, gardening, reading, crafts, music.

Tell us about your other occupations/jobs, besides writing.

S&S: At present we have a small dairy farm, so that keeps us busy caring for the goats and chickens year round, fixing fence in the spring (heavy early snow last fall did a number on some of our fence so we’ve got our work cut out for us in May), repairing the old tractor, planting the vegetable garden (and flower gardens, you gotta have some outdoor natural bling), clearing fields, and cutting hay in the summer, and splitting and stacking wood in fall and winter. We also work as worship team/administrative assistants in the church, and are involved in nursing home, youth, and musical ministries on a weekly basis.

http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-225/The-Wainright-Trilogy-Book/Detail.bok

http://www.amazon.com/Wainright-Trilogy-Book-One-ebook/dp/B0067D6N6E/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1321791291&sr=1-2