This week’s author interview is with Abigail van der Velde, author of Johanna and Henriette Kuyper: Daring to Change Their World (Chosen Daughters series).
- Question #1—Where are you from?
I was born in Mt. Airy, North Carolina, the hometown of Andy Griffith and the model for Mayberry in his TV show. My elementary school is now the Andy Griffith Playhouse. (I wish it had been a playhouse when I was there.)
- Question #2—What is your favorite book that you have written?
Asking which of my books is my favorite, is like asking a mother which child is her favorite. My favorite is the first one. (Technically it can’t be called a book since it hasn’t been published, yet.) The manuscript took me over twelve years to write. About seven years in, my toughest criticism came when I asked a woman in my writers group to read it and comment. She read it and commented: “If you hadn’t asked me to read it, I would have put it down long before the end of the first chapter.” After I recovered from that, I realized that writing a book was harder than I first thought, but I determined to learn to write a novel that honors the Lord and keeps readers engrossed, captivated, and tickled, turning the pages until the end. Those years of working on the craft of writing resulted in my YA novel (in manuscript form) called, Drawing Maarten, set in 19th Century The Netherlands and Indonesia. During those years, I also wrote my favorite book, Johanna and Henriette Kuyper: Daring to Change Their World, and kept on rewriting and editing and polishing Drawing Maarten. Now, I’m into my third book, a YA biographical novel about a female missionary to the American West in the 19th Century. After a year of research, I’ve written about a third of the first draft. I sense it may very well be my favorite book yet.
- Question #3—What is the best compliment you’ve received about your written works?
The best compliment I received came from the Indonesian wife of a university geography professor, introduced to me by a friend. In a courageous move, I asked her to read my Drawing Maarten manuscript. She said, “OK,” with the caveat, “I don’t have much time, so I’ll only read the last half, the parts set in Indonesia. I’ll get back to you in a month, maybe two.” Nevertheless, in three days, I received a call. “Let’s meet and talk about your book. I started on page one and couldn’t put it down. Learned so much about The Netherlands and then when Maarten got to Indonesia, felt like I was back home.” We met and talked and laughed and she gave me lots of ideas, adding details you don’t find in geography books.
The other best compliment I received was from the 94-year-old great-nephew of Johanna Kuyper who told me over the phone from his home in The Netherlands after he read my book: “It was like reading the story of how I was raised. I enjoyed reading this very much!” He took Johanna and Henriette’s story to heart, as I did.
- Question #4—What famous person (living or dead) would you like to meet?
The famous person I would most like to meet is Johanna Kuyper, so I could ask her, “Did I get you right?”
Buy Johanna and Henriette Kuyper: Daring to Change Their World now:
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