Welcome back to my "Christmas in July" Celebration.
Today, my guest is Miriam Thor. And we’ll be talking with her about her Christmas romance, HER FIRST NOEL, which will be released this 2018 holiday season. Glad you could spend some time with me today, Miriam. Now before we get into some of the highlights of your book, let’s take a moment to learn more about you. I read you were a sign language interpreter. Coincidentally, my sister-in-law is also an interpreter, so I’d love to know how you got started.
When I was young, a deaf girl attended my church, and a few of the ladies there taught a sign language class to help the other children communicate with her. I took that class and really enjoyed it. Then, in high school, one of those ladies taught a more advanced class that I took as well. It was at that time that I found that I really love ASL (American Sign Language) and felt that God was calling me to pursue a career where I could utilize it in some way.
I understand HER FIRST NOEL is the first book to be published though you’ve written others. Are they also romances?
No, HER FIRST NOEL is my first romance. The others are contemporary young adult fiction, fantasy, and children’s books.
That's awesome. Share a little background on HER FIRST NOEL with us. Where does the story take place, and who or what was the inspiration behind your main character Reagan?
The story takes place in Charlotte, North Carolina. I think my inspiration for Reagan came from the many young women I met in and just after college. When I first started thinking about Reagan’s character, I planned for her to have a cold heart and demeanor, but when I actually started writing, that just didn’t seem to fit. Very few, if any, of the young women I’ve known have truly cold hearts deep down, so Reagan doesn’t either. At the beginning of the story, she’s reserved and professional, but underneath it all, she has a good heart.
In your interview with Anaiah Press you mention Reagan is confronted with spiritual questions. Without giving us any spoilers, what themes do you hope readers will take away from this story?
Two themes I’d like readers to take away are (1) no matter how busy we are with work or other things, we need to be sure to make time for the people who really matter to us and (2) thanks to the Lord, none of us ever have to be truly alone.
That's so true. He will never leave or forsake us. I appreciate you taking the time to celebrate Christmas a little early with me, and congratulations on the debut of HER FIRST NOEL.
Miriam’s Social Media links:
website: https://miriamthor17.wixsite.com/author
Twitter: @miriamthor17
Bio:
Miriam Thor grew up in Louisiana and then moved to North Carolina for college. After graduating from Gardner-Webb University with a degree in American Sign Language and elementary education, she began a career as a sign language interpreter. Currently, she works at a middle school. In her free time, Miriam enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with her husband and cats. She has had short stories published by Youth Imagination and TWJ Magazine and poems published by Embers Igniting and Haiku Journal.