Author Interview with Jennifer Lynn Cary

Today I’m Interviewing Jennifer Lynn Cary! Jennifer Lynn Cary is a Historical Fiction Author and I found out a lover of music like me! Find out more about her and her new book Sylvia’s Mother below; Plus, enter the giveaway too! And without further ado….

What inspires you the most?

For a good percent of my books, I’d have to say music. It has always been a part of my life and I’m a fool for oldies—1960s and 70s. Oh, I like big band, easy listening, and even Broadway music, but oldies are my favorite. They’re familiar, fun, and besides being great, they bring back a lot of memories—where I was when I first heard that song, or someone I knew who called it a favorite. But with the span of years, I also begin to wonder about what inspired the songs and that gets me imagining all sorts of things.

Once an idea takes root, how long does it take you to write it down?

It varies. I carried around the germ of the idea for The Prodigal for over ten years. The book I’m working on now has a section in the second scene that I wrote on my phone over a year before I started the book. My hubs and I were going out to dinner and the words started dancing in my head. So I pulled out my phone and typed them in. Carried it around until I finally started the book this last fall. Here’s the original (I did change it some when I finally wrote the scene).

Music had always interpreted Mac’s life. He’d spent adolescent summer days under the boardwalk and nights up on the roof with Ben E. King. Then he moved to the dock of the bay to hang with Otis Redding. But at graduation, his Uncle Sam sent him on an exotic, all-expense-paid trip and Eric Burdon and the Animals spoke truth to him—he had to get out of that place. It was bad. So bad. Especially those first few weeks in the hospital. Then there were the years of trying to resurrect his life, learning who he was. These days, though, he found himself with Doby Gray, grateful for the music that helped him drift away.

What are your hobbies other than writing?

Until last year, I would have said crocheting. I still enjoy doing that and I’m part of a group that knits and crochets prayer shawls, among other things. But a year ago Christmas my daughter got me a Cricut Explorer Air 2 and I fell in love. I also learned it is a money pit. Now I have another reason to sell my books, ha! But it did come in handy this last Christmas as I was able to craft lots of gifts for my family.

Do you have a genre that you would never write? (In the Christian genre sphere i.e. speculative, historical, contemporary, etc.)

I had a publisher once tell me that everyone has a speculative story in them. I begged to disagree. I still don’t think I could ever write what most people would call speculative. But… that same publisher would probably claim that my cardinal in the sycamore tree legend that runs through the Weather Girls and the Weather Girls Wedding Shoppe and Venue series is at least a nod in that direction. Still I beg to disagree. I don’t and won’t write speculative. Period.

Lastly, what was your favorite book growing up?

I grew up on Nancy Drew. Loved that sleuth. She had mad skills and never messed up her hair while solving the mystery. Actually, I learned things from the books. Little bits of trivia that served me well in adult life. As a kid, I volunteered at the public library in the summer, so I got first dibs on the new books coming in. But I always ended up saving up my allowance (or talking my dad into a loan) to buy another Nancy Drew.

Thanks for having me here, Kimmie. If anyone wants to know more about what I’m doing, feel free to check out my website, https://www.jenniferlynncary.com and join our newsletter family. They are the first to hear things and I like to occasionally give out goodies. Hope to see you there!

About the Book

Book: Sylvia’s Mother

Author: Jennifer Lynn Cary

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release date: February 26, 2023

She’s an overprotective single mother…

…He’s a former protector who can’t give up the role.

But who will guard their hearts from scheming high school matchmakers?

Eileen Avery is determined her daughter Sylvia won’t experience the heartaches she did. Even if it means taking parenting lessons from her mother, the dragon lady. But she is not like her mother. Not even remotely.

If only Sylvia could see that.

But she wants independence. How much is a good thing? And how much is too risky?

Besides, Sylvia is in love and needing a little freedom. It’s not like she’s about to run away to a commune and become a hippy. However, she is willing to try about anything to get her mom to loosen up, even play matchmaker. Maybe if her mother had her own love life, she’d quite trying to put Sylvia’s under a microscope.

But will it all blow up in her face?

Seth Matthews thought he’d said goodbye to Kokomo until an on-the-job injury with the FBI changed his plans. This town holds more than his family, and those memories had better stay buried for all concerned. But how was he to put his honed instincts on the back burner and stop safeguarding the ones closest to him?

He was willing to help his family with almost anything. But pretending interest in some woman to help with his nephew’s romantic endeavors? That was one thing he couldn’t see himself doing.

Until he realizes there was more than coincidence at play.

Forget about Women’s Lib. Return to 1972 Kokomo, Indiana for the second installment of The Weather Girls Wedding Shoppe and Venue series—Sylvia’s Mother—and the fight for personal independence. Join Sylvia, her mother, Eileen, and the kooky mix ups that all point to romance in this small town romp. If you enjoyed the Weather Girls and Judy in Disguise, then this book is a must read.

You will love Sylvia’s Mother, inspired by the pop 1960s song by Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show, because everyone dreams of a second chance with a first love.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Historical Christian Romance author, Jennifer Lynn Cary, likes to say you can take the girl out of Indiana, but you can’t take the Hoosier out of the girl. Now transplanted to the Arizona desert, this direct descendant of Davy Crockett and her husband of forty plus years enjoy time with family where she shares tales of her small-town heritage and family legacies with their grandchildren. She is the author of The Crockett Chronicles series, The Relentless series, and The Weather Girls trilogy as well as the stand-alone novel, Cheryl’s Going Home, her novella Tales of the Hob Nob Annex Café, and her split-time novels The Traveling Prayer Shawl and The Forgotten Gratitude Journal. Sylvia’s Mother is the second book of her spin-off series The Weather Girls Wedding Shoppe and Venue.

More from Jennifer

Do you remember your high school prom? The one in Sylvia’s Mother is based on an actual prom—the Stardust Ball at Kokomo High School. I didn’t attend it—I’d gone to the Autumn Prom, but not the Stardust Ball in 1972, so I had to contact fellow classmates to get the scoop.

The date in the book is actually when it really occurred. And there are a couple other real events and personalities added to this otherwise fictional dance. It was fun to have friends tell me of their memories and to find out what some of the nominees were doing now.

Something else I learned that made me want to write this story. I had been researching and found an old interview by Chuck Buell who used to be a disc jockey for WLS in Chicago. I’d always liked him so when I ran across the interview, I wasn’t too worried about getting anything specific—it was pretty much a stroll down memory lane.

And then he told a story about meeting up with Dr. Hook. They were hanging out in Monterey, California on the good doctor’s houseboat when he offered to introduce Chuck to the guy who wrote the lyrics for “Cover of the Rolling Stone.” Turns out the guy lived a couple boats down the marina, so they walked over and Chuck Buell met Shel Silverstein for the first time.

Yep, the man who wrote The Giving Tree and those childhood collections of poetry—Light in the Attic, Falling Up, and Runny Babbit—got his start writing rock and roll lyrics. Among them are “Cover of the Rolling Stone,” “A Boy Named Sue,” and “Sylvia’s Mother.” And once I learned that, I couldn’t help hearing his style (“voice”) in the songs since I had taught from his books in my elementary classrooms for many years. The thought made me smile and I had to write a story from one of those. “Sylvia’s Mother” fit the plan for my new series, so I borrowed the title.

I hope you will enjoy the story, even if you’ve never heard the song. But if you do know that old pop hit, I think you will enjoy a couple Easter egg surprises I hid along the way.