Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have published two books, the stories in Christmas Grace and Light and another about music and life, called The Tuning Slide.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The current book, the Christmas stories were inspired by wanting to write a contemporary story for a Christmas Eve sermon. It was very well received and continued on for many years. There are fourteen stories in this book.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Other than trying to keep focused on what I’m writing and staying away from surfing, scanning, and falling down research rabbit holes, no.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Many storytellers have got me to where I am today, some were faith-based and others just wrote great stories. Walter Wangerin, Annie Dillard, Anne Lamott, and Loren Eisely are a few. Fred Craddock was a story-telling preacher, and Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through it are at the top of the list.
What are you working on now?
I am in the finishing stages of writing a memoir on finding my Dad in World War II. He died when I was sixteen (a long time ago!) and I never got to really know him. It has been amazing using his mother’s diaries of the war years to follow him and the family from 1940- 1945. I hope to get that published this spring.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Personal connections, email to podcasters, researching websites that promote books, and of course, Amazon.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write! The first draft will be awful- and that’s okay! Just write it.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Show it, don’t tell it!
What are you reading now?
I have been reading a lot of mystery and murder fiction. Matt Goldman’s series on Nils Shapiro is incredible as is Julia Spencer-Fleming’s series on Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne.
What’s next for you as a writer?
The book on my Dad, as I said, but then I’m in the early stages of a book about maintaining long-term recovery from addiction.
Author Websites and Profiles
Barry Lehman Amazon Profile