Author Interview ~ Madisyn Carlin

Hello and good morning from the mountains! Yes, I do like to schedule my posts far ahead of time – so at the time I write this I am not in the mountains, but Lord willing, while you read this, I will be enjoying a vacay with my family at the cabin! 🌳🐦

For the past several days we’ve been celebrating the release of DECEIVED (see my spotlight post here) and today I am super thrilled to welcome the one and only, Madisyn Carlin to the blog! I will be conducting an interview, so grab some popcorn and soda and be sure to take notes, because Madi always has really good things to say!

Without further ado, Welcome Madisyn!!

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Madisyn, so glad to have you here! Let’s delve right into the questions – I know my readers can’t wait to hear your answers! If you could pick one historical person to meet, who would it be?  

I would like to meet Nathanial Green. He was a hero in the War for Independence who was ultimately caught and hung by the British. His tenacity and dedication to freedom and his colonies have always inspired me. 

That’s so cool, great choice! Tea or Coffee? 

I’m one of those weirdos who likes neither, but I may be persuaded to someday try tea again.   

Hmm, I really don’t know what to say. I’m a tea girl, so I suggest you try it with a bit of honey. It adds a touch of sweetness and a little brix but doesn’t make it overly sweet. What’s your favorite song? 

One of my favorite songs is “Promise of a Lifetime” by Kutless. It is so beautiful and applicable to the hard times in life.   

Yes, that’s a good one! If you could vacation anywhere in the world, where would it be?  

I believe I would choose to see the castles in Scotland. Talk about inspiration for my fantasy tales! 

Ooh Scotland is a great choice – I love castles! And the Scottish accent is so cool 😎 Besides writing, what are your hobbies/some things you enjoy doing? 

I enjoy spending time with family, playing ping pong and badminton (where we make our own rules) with my sister, and canoeing. 

That’s awesome. You should try jungle-pong sometime! 😁 You can kinda make your own rules with that one and it’s a great way to play if you have lots of people but not enough rackets! What is your favorite genre to read? 

My favorite genre to read is Christian fantasy. If you removed the fantasy books from my shelves, the majority would be empty.

Yes, love fantasy!! What are 3 things that inspire you to write?  

My mom, who is an author, was a huge inspiration. The second is an idea wouldn’t leave me alone, and the third is I looked at the books on my bookshelf and thought how cool it would be to have my own book beside Mom’s. 

That’s so cool, love it! Where is your favorite place to write?  

I usually claim part of the couch as my writing domain. That’s the comfiest place to write.

Cozy! What’s your favorite writing food/snack/drink?  

I don’t snack or consume anything while I’m writing, but I will take breaks and grab a glass of water and some chocolate-covered sunflower seeds on occasion. In my defense, the sunflower seeds’ nutrients offset the sugar in the chocolate. Those things are too good.

Those sound delicious! Who have been your biggest supporters during the writing of this book?  

My family is so amazing and supportive. I couldn’t do this without them. Mom answers my myriad of never-ending questions and helps me with the final polish; Lil Sis is my alpha reader and Master-of-Catching-Embarrassing-Inconsistencies-and-Errors; and Dad provides a thorough read of the project. They’ve resigned themselves to the fact that I may be just slightly crazy, and know if I’m wandering around with an empty expression it’s not because something is wrong, but that I’m trying to work through a sticky spot in a plot.  

Aww family is the best! How long did it take you to write your first draft of DECEIVED? 

It took approximately 71 days to write DECEIVED’s rough draft. That is fast for me. Usually I’m well in the three month mark before I finish a book. 

Wow, that’s great! Who was your favorite character to write for in this book? 

Rogan is my favorite character. He’s a wee bit cantankerous and has a lot of hidden hurt, but he really does have a good heart if you can get past all his walls.

I’m so excited to meet all of these characters!! What is one of your favorite moments/scenes in DECEIVED? 

One of my favorite scenes is where Rogan reads Holder’s father’s journal and finds the verse, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13, ESV). That verse will play a huge part in his character development, unbeknownst to him, and I enjoyed watching his befuddled reaction. Rogan is cynical and does not think people are worth the sacrifice, so this verse goes against his core beliefs.

Aww! What has been one of the best and one of the hardest things about your writing journey? 

One of the best things is watching these stories and worlds and characters come to life. The hardest thing is dealing with the self-doubt I believe every writer faces. That feeling your writing isn’t good enough, that the book will go nowhere, and that you’ll never be able to complete it because the plot feels week or you suddenly talk yourself out of the story.

That defiantly is something every writer struggles with and I’m so glad you didn’t let those doubts stop you writing this book! How have you seen God work through this book and your journey?  

I haven’t heard yet if this book has really impacted readers in any significant way, but I hope it will.  

I have definitely seen God work in my writing journey. My faith is stronger, I am bolder in working the Truth into my books (it was always there, but I wasn’t quite sure how to do it), and as I’ve matured both in temperament and writing experience, I find I simply don’t care if I’ll get bad reviews for “having too much faith”.  

I’m so glad you’re not afraid to include your faith – we need more authors with your mindset! What has God taught you through writing this book?  

One of the things He’s taught me is to be grateful I have a Bible, something my characters don’t possess. He has also taught me perseverance, since the journey has not been easy. Most of all, He is teaching me to rely on His timing, because Madi’s preferred timing certainly differs from His.  

Ain’t that the truth! 😅God works in such wonderful ways! What are some encouraging quotes or Bible verses that keep you going?  

John 14:27 and Isaiah 12:2a are verses I routinely rely on. I am more of a song girl than quote girl, so “Standing in the Storm” by Skillet, the hymn “Abide with Me”, and “All of Me” by Ashes Remain are three of the songs I defer to.

Those are all really good. Thanks for sharing! What inspired you to write this story and what do you hope readers will take away from it? 

A dream originally inspired this story. As I worked out the plot, the thought of a reluctant assassin, feisty smuggler, rigid king’s guard, and a royal bodyguard who sought the truth intrigued me. 

I hope readers will walk away with emboldened faith and the reminder that, even when life and the world are so dark it seems nothing can pierce that darkness, the darkness can never snuff out the Light.

I love that! What is your best piece of advice to aspiring authors?  

One piece of advice would be to not overthink your rough draft. If you have an idea, go for it. Don’t second guess yourself or the story. Just write. You can always polish and tidy it up later. If you never get that rough draft written, you’ll never write that story. 

That’s great advice. Thank you so much Madisyn for sharing all your wonderful thoughts! I truly can’t wait to read this book and I hope God continues to bless you’re writing as you seek to write for Him! 💖

Thank you so much for having me, Autumn! I enjoyed being here.

And to all of you readers, I hope you will all take a look at Madi’s book and seriously consider getting yourself a copy!! If you have preordered the book, or order it now, be sure to claim your swag! And there’s still time to enter the giveaway – but hurry, it ends soon!

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Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, April 25 

Madisyn Carlin | Intro + Book Spotlight 

Joy Woodbury | Book Review 

Tuesday, April 26 

Madisyn Carlin | Release Day! + Fun Facts 

Vanessa Hall | Author Interview 

Autumn | Book Spotlight

Wednesday, April 27 

Esther | Book Review 

Saraina | Character Interview: Therese 

Joy Woodbury | Guest Post

Friday, April 29 

Vanessa Hall | Book Spotlight 

Olivia | Book Review 

Sherrice | Author Interview 

Monday, May 2 

Vanessa Hall | Book Review 

Grace Johnson | Guest Post + Book Spotlight 

Stephanie | Book Spotlight + Character Spotlight: Ivelle 

Wednesday, May 4 

Grace Johnson | Author Interview 

Saraina | Character Interview: Rogan 

Friday, May 6 

Grace Johnson | Book Review 

Autumn – Author Interview (📍YOU ARE HERE!)

Jenavieve Rose | Book Review 

Thursday, April 28 

Madisyn Carlin | Group Interview 

Kristina Hall | Book Review 

Saturday, April 30 

Madisyn Carlin | Character Spotlight: Holder 

Stephanie | Character Spotlight: Rogan 

Sherrice | Book Review 

Olive Creed | Book Spotlight 

Tuesday, May 3 

Madisyn Carlin | Meet the Characters 

Stephanie | Book Review 

Thursday, May 5 

Madisyn Carlin | Character Q+A 

Issabelle Perry | Character Spotlight: Therese 

Saturday, May 7  

Madisyn Carlin | Blog Tour Wrap-Up 

Olive Creed | Author Interview 

Katja Labonte | Book Review 

Saraina | Author Interview 

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Keep planting and watering, the harvest will come!

-autumn