I'm Happy to Welcome Cindy Thomson!

Happy to have Cindy Thomson visiting today! Check out her books, and especially her new one: Annie's Stories!

Tell us a little about your newest book:

Annie's Stories is book two in my Ellis Island Series, but it's completely stand alone. Some of the characters do repeat since the setting is Hawkins House, a boarding house for immigrant women. Here is the blurb:

The year is 1901, the literary sensation The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is taking New York City by storm, and everyone wonders where the next great book will come from. But to Annie Gallagher, stories are more than entertainment—they’re a sweet reminder of her storyteller father. After his death, Annie fled Ireland for the land of dreams, finding work at Hawkins House.

But when a fellow boarder with something to hide is accused of misconduct and authorities threaten to shut down the boardinghouse, Annie fears she may lose her new friends, her housekeeping job . . . and her means of funding her dream: a memorial library to honor her father. Furthermore, the friendly postman shows a little too much interest in Annie—and in her father’s unpublished stories. In fact, he suspects these tales may hold a grand secret.

Though the postman’s intentions seem pure, Annie wants to share her father’s stories on her own terms. Determined to prove herself, Annie must forge her own path to aid her friend and create the future she’s always envisioned . . . where dreams really do come true.

Why are you so interested in history?

I suppose it's because I've always wanted to know how I was connected. That has driven my interest in genealogy, which led to writing fiction. I do believe there are lessons to be learned from those who went before us, and I try to tell the stories. The Bible says to seek the old ways and if you walk in the paths you find you will find peace. (My rough translation of Jeremiah 6:16)

In your research for this book, did anything resonate with you specifically or touch you emotionally?

Yes, many things. One was the abuse so many Irish women endured being virtually enslaved in the Magdalene Laundries. I imagined a girl would have asked herself where God was in that place. My character Annie certainly asks herself that and the answer of course is that God never leaves us. That's not an easy concept for someone to accept when going through misery.

Give me five interesting tidbits about yourself.

I'm not sure everyone will think these things are truly interesting, but here goes:

1. I'm a baseball history researcher. I belong to an organization called the Society for American Baseball Research, whose members are mostly men. I've made wonderful friends there and even go to a bookclub where we discuss baseball books.

2. I survived the largest earthquake to hit the American continent in Anchorage, Alaska, and I don't remember it. I was only 3. My family was fine, but my dad, being stationed there in the army, had to go on search and rescue missions.

3. I have been to Ireland twice and spent most of my time in Northern Ireland (which is not what most tourists do, but they should!) I've made friends who live in Ireland have visited them over there.

4. I went to a book launch party while in Ireland. It was held in a small town beauty shop, because it fit the book's theme. They even did a demonstration beauty makeover. A very unique experience. You should look up Kate Kerrigans's books!

5. My favorite color is blue and my first six book covers have all had something blue on them. Some, like Brigid of Ireland and Three Finger are mostly blue.

What's next in your writing life?

I have the rights back to my first novel, Brigid of Ireland, and since it's never been an ebook, I'm about to put that on Amazon. By the time this interview runs it might already be there. I'm also working on book three of the Ellis Island series, Sofia's Tune. Sofia is Italian and she comes to live at Hawkins House because  a previous family secret has sent her mother into a depression and she cannot bear to have Sofia around. Sofia fears what happened when she was a young girl, something she can't remember, might have been her fault. It's going much slower than I would like. I don't know when it will be published subscribers to my newsletter will be the first to know.

Readers, check out Cindy's books here:

Amazon

About Cindy:

Cindy Thomson is a writer and an avid genealogy enthusiast. Her love of history and her Scots-Irish heritage have inspired much of her writing, including her new Ellis Island series. 

Cindy is also the author of: 

• Brigid of Ireland and Celtic Wisdom: Treasures from Ireland. 
• She combined her love of history and baseball to co-author the biography Three Finger: The Mordecai Brown Story, which was a finalist for the Society for American Baseball Research's Larry Ritter Book Award.
• In addition to books, Cindy has written on a regular basis for numerous online and print publications 

She is a mentor for the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild. She is also a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and the Historical Novel Society. Cindy and her husband have three grown sons and live in central Ohio. Visit her online at www.cindyswriting.com

Thanks so much, Cindy, for joining us today!