Leslie Gould

About Leslie Gould

Welcome!

"Don't you just love words?" a college English professor asked me years ago. She was referring to the sounds, the cadence, and the beat of good writing. I agreed. But what I love most about literature is the emotions words recreate. My fiction is about those emotions--the feelings that flow from our relationships with our families, our friends, and our God.

I hope you'll enjoy reading my novels, Scrap Everything, Garden of Dreams and Beyond the Blue, as much as I treasured sorting and capturing the emotions and words to write them. Please send me an e-mail. I would love to hear from you.

Recommendation

One of the best books that I've read recently is The Hearts of Horses by Molly Gloss. I heard Gloss read a passage from the novel in May at PSU, and the scene she chose brought tears to my eyes. The novel is about a young woman breaking horses in 1917 in Eastern Oregon. Gloss's voice is pitch-perfect throughout the story. It reminded me of my grandfather's tone when he told old stories about being a cowboy on the high desert--all matter of fact with no drama. You had to really listen because his voice didn't change, even when someone got shot. But his stories were so good you couldn't help but listen. (My grandfather was 17 in 1917--probably another reason I really enjoyed the novel.) Ultimately The Hearts of Horses is a story about finding one's self within a community--and finding love along the way. It's a beautiful story.

Book Signing

On June 20 several Northwest authors, including Melanie Dobson, Patricia Rushford, Robin Jones Gunn, Cindy Hannan, Jill Williamson, and me, will be signing books at the Beaverton Christian Supply. Check out this flyer for all the details. I would love to see you there!

living by...

It's the end of winter term. I have a full weekend. Rewrites for my third Guideposts novel are due by Monday. Then spring break...and after that the final revisions to my thesis. So things have been busy, but I've been trying to live by faith, to give each day to God and try not to freak out about everything that needs to be done. But I often wake up in the middle of the night and get out of bed and add things to my to-do list. Does that mean I'm not living by faith? Or that I am (because once it's on the list, it's easier to trust God with it)?

Craziness

After a crazy summer, I'm trying to navigate my way through a crazy fall. Yes, soccer is in full swing and so is the second year of my MA/writing fiction program at Portland State University. Throw in two deadlines, and I'm desperate for every second of writing I can find. My new BFF is my laptop. Just kidding. Although after the kids and pets (I think), it is the first thing I'd grab if there was a house fire. All that to say I meant to post this link weeks ago. It's a blog/interview by my editor, Beth Adams, at Guideposts.

Changes

We moved my dad from an independent living facility, that he’d only been in since May, into an assisted living situation a few weeks ago. We also, meaning mostly my sister, cleaned out his house and sold it in the last month, thankfully before it even went on the market. Dad has had a lot of changes in these last few months, not to mention the last couple of years. On Friday I had lunch with him in his dining hall (this is a little like a college dorm—but with extra help), and then yesterday I took him to a doctor’s appointment. I’ve been noticing that when it’s time for me to go, that he seems sad. He’ll ask me if I can stay and visit a little longer or ask when I’ll be back. He stops smiling and says he thinks he’ll take a nap. Yesterday, driving home, I decided that Dad looks the way I feel on the first day of school. My children are leaving me! I’m all alone! (And then I start writing and remember that being alone isn’t necessarily a bad thing.) Empathizing with how he feels helps me not to feel so torn. He doesn’t really expect me to stay; he just doesn’t want me to leave. I don’t expect my kids to stay, and ultimately I do want them to leave. Still, it can be a lonely feeling.

What's Next?

I've been privileged to be part of the writing team for the Home to Heather Creek Series, published by Guidepost. The first two novels, Before the Dawn by Carolyne Aarsen and Sweet September by Tricia Goyer have been released.

My novel, Circle of Grace, comes out next month.

Bob Elmer is writing the fourth novel and Kristin Eckhardt is writing the fifth. I'm currently working on book eight. Visit here to learn about the entire project--and to meet Beth Adams, our editor extroardinaire who pulling the entire series together. She's amazing.

Here's a little marketing info about the series:

Heather Creek Farm, a small family operation in beautiful Bedford, Nebraska, is a peaceful place to live. Charlotte Stevens raised her children on Heather Creek Farm, but when her daughter Denise is killed in a car accident, she gets to try parenthood all over again.

Coincidentally, the three kids in the novel are the same ages as my three youngest. Hmmm. There's never a dull moment in real life or in writing fiction.



 


 

PNCLA + Summer

I had the wonderful privilege of speaking at the Pacific Northwest Association of Church Librarians conference on Friday. I've spoken to the Portland chapter twice before, but this time I was able to meet librarians from Idaho and Washington too. I love librarians. (Hi, Lib...hi, Nancy...just in case anyone is still out there...) Librarians are so interesting and gracious and knowledgeable and just plain fun to talk to.

Most of the rest of the very hot weekend was spent at a soccer tournament. My youngest daughter's team played their hearts out and took second place.

Even though it's the last day of June it felt like the first day of summer because I finally got a good chunk of writing done. 3,000 words in 2.5 hours. You cannot imagine the satisfaction and harmony that I've felt all day. Hopefully I can pull it off tomorrow and the next day and the next day...

Happy writing (and reading),
Leslie

on life and fiction

I spoke at the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers)/Portland meeting on Monday evening. Many of the people there were far more experienced writers than I am. I felt a bit like a poser, but I had a really good time.

I spoke on turning life into fiction--a topic I'm rather fond of. I encouraged anyone writing fiction (or nonfiction) that might humiliate a family member to talk with them about it before the book cmes out, even though I've read and heard you shouldn't do this. I'm not saying you shouldn't publish a book that a family member might be offended by; I'm just saying that it's better to talk with them about it before hand, just so they're prepared.

After I spoke, one of the writers at the meeting asked how one decides how to decide whether to write a story that really happened as fiction or nonfiction. We had nice little discussion about that, covering things like marketability and story arc, etc.

When I got home that evening, I sat down at the dining room table and leafed through the Time Magazine (June 16, 2008 issue) that my friend Kate dropped by (because of the article on "The Military's Secret Weapon" which is--drum roll, please--Prosac...and Zoloft...and Ambien.)

Anyway, I wish that I'd thumbed through the magazine before I spoke at the ACFW meeting because on page 4 is a question/answer segment with David Sedaris. I've only read one of his books--Me Talk Pretty Someday. He writes essays that are brutally honest and laugh-out-loud funny--and his other books are my "to-read" list.

Two of the questions and his answers in Time would have been perfect to share at the meeting. Here they are:

Should your books be shelved in the fiction or nonfiction section of the bookstore?
Reilly Capps
Telluride, Colo.
Nonfiction. I've always been a huge exaggerator, but when I write something, I put it on a scale. And if it's 97% true, I think that's true enough. I'm not going to call it fiction because 3% of it isn't true.

How has your family reacted to having their exploits included in your work?
Beverly Fleischman
Casper, Wyo.
Whenever I write about anyone in my family, I give them the story to read first. And I ask if there's anything they want me to change or get rid of. But you can never anticipate how people are going to read what you've written. You can write something with affection, but that doesn't necessarily mean that people are going to see it.

I love that 97%-3% ratio. Hey, if I could write "97% true" in my journal--that is to myself--I'd be feeling pretty good. If I could think and feel, in general, at the 97% level I'd feel great.

It's a good thing I write fiction.

New book and film recommendation

A couple of weeks ago, the film "Lord Save Us from Your Followers: Why is the Gospel of Love Dividing America?" was shown at our church. A Portland filmmaker and author, Dan Merchant, headed the making of the film and also wrote a book by the same title. (Check out the website for a preview or to see the entire film online for only $6.99--or buy the book.)

The film and book are both humorous and insightful and should appeal to everyone--Atheist, Agnostic, and Christian. Here's the back cover copy on the book:

"When did telling others of life-transforming faith turn into a bumper-sticker mentality which allows someone to state an opinion without the inconvenience of listening to another point of view? How did the public perception of Jesus' followers get so far away from His teachings? One man took two years of his life to find out.

"Lord, Save Us from Your Followers chronicles an intellectually daring search for meaningful dialogue. Follow author and film-maker Dan Merchant as he dons a bumper sticker jumpsuit to conduct street interviews in major cities, discusses the culture wars with diverse media players such as Al Franken and Michael Reagan, and experiences what Project Mercy is accomplishing in drought-ravaged Ethiopia.

"Merchant's journey is an insightful, humorous, and objective account that will move you to laughter and tears. But most of all, it will make you think about who Jesus really is and who He encourages all of us to be."

Lord, Save us from Your Followers shows at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland beginning Friday, June 13. I highly recommend both the film and the book. It addresses the current insincerity in both politics and society, and encourages open dialogue, service, and a good sense of humor!

Calling All Jane Kirkpatrick Fans

Jane Kirkpatrick is speaking at the Willamette Writers May 6 meeting. I lifted the following off the WW website:

Tues., May 6 "Enduring Stories"
Jane Kirkpatrick, Author
All Portland meetings of Willamette Writers are held at The Old Church, SW 11th and Clay, near Portland State University in downtown Portland, unless otherwise noted. Doors open at 6:15 pm, with a speaker or panel at 7 pm. Meetings usually run until 8 pm, with opportunities to meet the speakers or panelists after they speak. For more information about meetings, call 503-452-1592. Meetings are free to members of Willamette Writers, $5 for their guests, college students are free, and $10 for non-members.

The Oregonian places Jane's novel A Sweetness to the Soul in the newspaper's list of top-100 Oregon books, and besides being a fantastic writer, she's also an outstanding speaker.

I plan to go after my screenwriting class ends that evening. I'll already have parking! Hope to see you there.