|
Liz Curtis Higgs
Liz Curtis Higgs is the author of twenty-one books, with over two million in print. Her fiction includes two historical novels, two contemporary novels, and one novella.
A member of Novelists, Inc., Liz's primary writing focus now is historical fiction, in particular novels set in eighteenth-century Scotland. To aid in her research, she has visited the U.K. on eight occasions, with an extensive "Heart for Scotland" 12-city book tour in October 2003. She is a member of the Eighteenth-Century Scottish Studies Society and supports the National Museums of Scotland, Historic Scotland, and the National Trust for Scotland.
Liz has presented more than 1,500 encouraging programs for audiences in all 50 states, Germany, England, Canada, Ecuador, France, and Scotland. In 1995, Liz received the Council of Peers Award for Excellence from the National Speakers Association, becoming one of only forty women in the world named to the CPAE - Speaker Hall of Fame.
Feature articles about Liz have appeared in more than 250 major newspapers and magazines across the country, and she has been interviewed on more than 600 radio and television stations, including guest appearances on PBS/Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly, A & E, MS-NBC, NPR, CBC Canada, BBC Radio Scotland, Focus on the Family, and Janet Parshall's America.
Her children’s Parable Series was awarded the ECPA Gold Medallion for Excellence at the Christian Booksellers Association Convention in July 1998, and her book, BAD GIRLS OF THE BIBLE was an ECPA Gold Medallion Finalist in 2000. Her first novel, MIXED SIGNALS, was a Romance Writers of America RITA Finalist for both Best First Novel and Best Inspirational Novel and won the Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence 2000. Her second novel, BOOKENDS, was a 2001 finalist for the Christy Award for Best Contemporary Fiction. And her third novel, THORN IN MY HEART, was on the Christian Historical Fiction bestseller for seven months. The next novel in the series, FAIR IS THE ROSE, will publish March 16, 2004. In addition, Liz is the editor of an annual newsletter, The Graceful Heart, with 25,000 readers, and is a columnist for Today’s Christian Woman magazine with her back page feature, "Life with Liz."
On the personal side, Liz earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Bellarmine College, and is married to Bill Higgs, Ph.D., who serves as Director of Operations for her speaking and writing office. Liz and Bill share their 19th -century farmhouse in Louisville with their two teenagers, Matthew and Lillian, and too many cats.
|
Liz Curtis Higgs Answers The Faithful Fifteen
March 2004
Liz Curtis Higgs is the author of twenty-one books, with over two million in print. Her fiction includes two historical novels, two contemporary novels, and one novella. Here she shares thoughts about the power of prayer in her life and the importance of worship services in her weekly routine.
1. What kind of testimony to your faith are you demonstrating in this book? If you are writing fiction, do you write fiction that is based upon your faith, or that has a message for the reader? Is you goal to demonstrate your faith in your writing?
LCH: All of my books --- nonfiction, children’s, and fiction --- are meant to be a testimony to the unmerited grace of God. Though each book explores a particular aspect of the Gospel, it always comes down to God loving the unlovable…that’s us! In my three-book BAD GIRLS OF THE BIBLE series, I took a close look at 19 women from the Old and New Testaments, from Eve to Mary Magdalene, presenting their stories first as contemporary fiction, then as biblical fact in a verse-by-verse format. I so believe in the power of fiction to teach us God’s Word that for my current series of books, I’m examining the lives of Leah, Rachel, and Jacob in a collection of historical novels set in 18th-century Scotland. That meant doing all the biblical research (90 commentaries, 14 translations) and all the Scottish research (six trips to Scotland so far), and all the historical research (635 books on every aspect of Scotland and the 18th century). Whew!
My prayer is that in THORN IN MY HEART readers will reconsider the biblical character of Leah --- Leana McBride in my novel --- and discover, as she must, that God’s love is enough to sustain us. In FAIR IS THE ROSE, we meet the biblical character of Rachel --- Rose McBride in my novel --- and see what sort of tension and heartache this marriage triangle must have created for these two sisters. And in the third book, WHENCE CAME A PRINCE, we will see what happens when the biblical character of Jacob --- Jamie McKie in my novel --- must face his many deceptions from the past and move forward in his relationship with and commitment to Almighty God.
2. When did you come to a saving knowledge of Jesus? Where are you today in your walk? Is your faith an important part of what you do?
LCH: I came to know Christ in February 1982 after a wild and wooly decade of sex, drugs, and rock ’n’ roll. I was a radio personality at the time, and so my coworkers and my listeners saw a radical difference in me almost immediately. (When you leave work on Friday screaming, "Paaaarty!" and come in Monday morning saying, "Praise the Lord, I’ve been baptized!", people notice stuff like that!) Today I am as grateful for the grace of God as I ever was. The more I study the Bible and realize what a miserable sinner I was --- and still am, though in "quieter" ways --- the more glad I am that Jesus paid for my sins on the Cross. Faith is the single most important element of my life. It is why I write, why I speak, why I mother, why I breathe.
3. Tell us about your church experiences, how you grew up (or maybe didn't grow up) in the church? Where you attend now? Your involvement in your local assembly.
LCH: I grew up an active member of the Lititz Moravian Congregation in eastern Pennsylvania. The Moravians are the oldest of the Protestant denominations, steeped in history and totally committed to missionary work. Did they present the Gospel? You bet. Did I hear it? Nope. Too rebellious, too determined to do things my way. When I went off to college I left my spiritual roots in the ground and pursued the world’s definition of a meaningful life --- physical pleasure, material goods, success at work. When I came back to church in 1982, it was at the invitation of two co-workers who had come to a saving knowledge of Christ perhaps a year earlier. I heard the truth, my heart was pierced, and seven weeks later I walked forward and dedicated my life to Christ. I still worship with that same body of believers --- Southeast Christian Church --- though it has grown considerably, from 1,200 to 20,000+ members. I’ve had the blessing of teaching a women’s Sunday School class there in my single years, of speaking there at weekend events for women, of leading a Bible study for 1,600 women in Fall 2002 and of working in the nursery on occasion (love those babies!).
4. Tell us about your current church family/fellowship; how does it influence your work?
LCH: The worship time is a HUGE need for me, and really feeds my spirit. Writing is solitary, even lonely work, and so to gather with my brothers and sisters and focus only on the Lord (instead of my characters or my deadlines!) is very important to me. Often when I’m listening to our pastor preach, the Lord will nudge me and I’ll find myself making notes in the margin for a book I’m working on. I don’t see that as working when I should be worshiping…my work IS a form of worship for me, because the entire time I’m writing I’m having a prayer dialogue with the Lord. "Does this convey your truth, Lord? Shall I go this direction?" It’s only natural that our "conversation" would continue when I’m studying his Word at church.
5. Who are your spiritual mentors? Your professional mentors?
LCH: Doris Foster, a mature woman in our church congregation, took me under her wing shortly after I came to know Christ in 1982. She was always there for me --- mentoring, listening, answering questions, and providing good books that made me dig deeper into Scripture. Doris was (and still is) my "Kentucky Mom," whose goal was never to replace my own mother (deceased in 1978), but to be there for me when I needed the kind of godly wisdom only time in the Word can produce.
As to professional mentors, there are dozens of writers and speakers who have influenced and encouraged me over the years, some of them without even knowing it! In Bible study, I look to Kay Arthur, Beth Moore, Dee Brestin and Nancy Leigh DeMoss as role models. In fiction, I turn to Francine Rivers, Angela Hunt, Robin Lee Hatcher and Jack Cavanaugh as gifted novelists committed to the Lord and to his work. I hesitate to even list names, because there are so many more. Many, many more, including dear friends and encouragers like Diane Noble and Lisa Sampson. Christian writers are a very special community of believers.
6. Discuss your calling/mission --- as a writer, and as a Christian.
LCH: My only mission is to proclaim the Gospel, the Good News that Christ died for our sins and rose that we might have the hope of eternal life in him. I’ve presented that truth in many different genres and formats, and I sense that the Lord has more ways in store for me. My particular calling is to encourage women. Though I have plenty of wonderful male readers as well, I have a real heart for women, especially those who, like me, grew up looking for love in all the wrong places and need to know that God alone provides the love we are searching for.
7. What are your Scripture reading habits?<
LCH: I have three devotional books and two Bibles stacked on the table in my "morning room," an enclosed porch that faces east and is surrounded by trees and a view of our neighbor’s lake. It is a peaceful place to begin the day, either before everyone else in the house is awake, or after I’ve returned from taking my two teens to school. My current devotional reading includes a collection of Puritan writings called THE VALLEY OF VISION, Anne Graham Lotz’s DAILY LIGHT, and THE MORAVIAN DAILY TEXTS. The translations I’m reading through are The Message and the New Living Translation. When I’m doing serious Bible study, I love the New International Version and the New American Standard Bible. And for my novels, since they are set in the 18th century, I use the King James Version.
8. What books have most influenced your work?
LCH: As a child, Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time had a huge impact on me. I must have read it a dozen times. As an adult, reading C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity was a life-changing experience for me. I realized that if a man that brilliant was convinced Christ was the answer, who was I to keep asking silly questions?! I gave my life to Christ soon after finishing that book. C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, and more recently Walter Wangerin, demonstrated to me the ability of storytelling to convey godly truth to a wider audience.
9. Do you read secular fiction at all? If so, who are your favorite authors, and why?
LCH: Yes, I do. God has gifted these writers, whether they acknowledge the Source of their talent or not, and I like to see how "the best of the best" tell stories. I often don’t agree with the message they are conveying, or the lifestyles their characters lead, but I can still learn from the methods the writers use. And sometimes they offer more redemption than perhaps they are even aware of, which delights me. Such writers include Diana Gabaldon, because of her Scottish historical accuracy and detail, Rosamunde Pilcher, because of her ability to capture the nuances of everyday life, Elizabeth Berg, because of her honest, insightful voice, and Tracy Chevalier, because of her lyrical writing style.
10. What are your other media habits --- television, movies, music, etc.?
LCH: The only things I watch on television are classic movies, good dramas, and informative stuff --- The History Channel, Bravo, PBS, that kind of thing. With movies, I’m selective, but I do love a good story on film. There can never be enough historical movies for me --- Sense and Sensibility, Master and Commander, Nicholas Nickleby. And I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Incredible cinema. As to music, it’s either classical (Ralph Vaughan Williams, Gustav Holst) or Celtic. I have an embarrassing number of CDs in my writing studio --- harps, flutes, guitars --- all instrumental, all Scottish or Irish traditional music.
11. Do you and your family have any special faith-based traditions?
LCH: Hmmm. I must confess, I am more into spontaneity in family events, rather than traditions! Our holidays include very predictable and enjoyable "rituals," which have come to mean a lot to us --- the foods served, the table settings, the times that things happen, right down to where people sit when they open their Christmas gifts! We pray together at least once a day. That’s the most meaningful thing we can do as a family, I think.
12. Tell us about your prayer life and habits.
LCH: I keep thinking someday I’m going to get really organized and keep a prayer journal. I’m not there yet. My prayer life is based around 1 Thessalonians 5:17, "pray without ceasing" (nasb). I talk to God all the time, like Instant Messaging on email or a conversation by phone. My confessions and requests are ongoing and immediate, keeping my spiritual tank from getting empty. When someone says, "Will you pray for me about…?" I say, "Let’s do it right now." Whether we’re on the phone, sitting in a restaurant, or online, I stop right then and pray with them. In my flesh, I know I might forget to do so later. And in my spirit, I know that the time to pray is NOW, while the need is greatest.
13. Describe what you believe the role of writing in religion is.
LCH: God spoke the world into existence with words: "In the beginning God said…" Then he gave us his written Word, the Scriptures, which proclaim his truth. And then he gave us the Living Word, his Son. Words are clearly how God communicates his truth. As a writer, I pray that I can present his truth, his words for the world, through my Bible studies and biblical stories. If my words are effective at all, it’s because I was listening carefully enough to hear God’s voice. Any gifts are his, any glory is his. I just hover over my keyboard and pray.
14. Tell us about one or more of your favorite encounters with readers.
LCH: I have the most wonderful readers on the planet! They send me chatty emails, short notes, and long letters, sharing how one of my books has impacted them. I always write back ---always. I’ll send a handwritten note if I have their address, or an email if that’s how they contacted me. No one else reads my mail, since the content is often of a very personal, even painful nature. Many women are really hurting, and it’s an honor to encourage them through my books.
Here is a snippet from one letter this week that demonstrates the relationship I’m grateful to have with my fiction readers:
"How do you write like that, Liz? I've known the story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel all my life, but I never felt about it the way that I do now. I never even considered the fact that Leah and Rachel might actually have been very close. The book had me in tears in many places. I kept thinking 'what if it were my sister and me?' I can't wait to read FAIR IS THE ROSE. I'll be sure to have a box of Kleenex with me when I start."
15. Would you share a story about someone you've brought to Christ or share how your writing has helped someone?
LCH: My half-fiction/half-nonfiction book on Mary Magdalene seems to strike a chord with many readers and minister to their particular needs. The first half of the book (originally titled MAD MARY, soon to be re-titled UNVEILING MARY MAGDALENE) explores a Magdalenian sort of woman named Mary Margaret Delaney living in contemporary Chicago. One reader wrote…
"My heart broke for Mary Margaret Delaney. I have come out of a two-year-long depression, and by God's grace and with the help of a Christian psychiatrist, I'm whole. I appreciated how Mary Margaret's illness was presented and the sensitivity with which her suffering was portrayed. God showed me that not only did He love me, He wanted me to be whole and partake of His joy. I work at a forensic mental hospital, and I see so many broken souls come my way. It's a dream in my heart that I will be able to testify in my home church what it means to be mentally ill, and how Christians can reach out in love to help those who are brokenhearted. Thank you, Liz, for putting into words what I would have liked to say. Your courage and honesty have given me courage to share with some of the patients I work with."
Back to top.
|
