Another Cup of Coffee with Author Barbara Hinske

June 2020 – I had the pleasure of getting in touch again with Barbara Hinske, author of The Christmas Club, which was recently adapted into a movie for the Hallmark Channel, premiering as part of the “Countdown to Christmas” of 2019. She became the first interview for my blog, and now becomes the first one to come back for a second interview! Read our first interview here https://fullofcoffee.blog/2019/11/01/a-cup-of-coffee-with-author-barbara-hinske/.

Barbara has been recognized as Amazon and BookBub bestselling author. She has now 10 published books, including 6 for The Rosemont Series, The Christmas Club, The Night Train, Deadly Parcel, and recently released Guiding Emily.

She is from Cleveland, Ohio, and has been living in Arizona with her husband. She had the amazing opportunity of visiting the set where the movie The Christmas Club was filmed, and shared some moments with the actors and the filming crew. Read about her experience here https://fullofcoffee.blog/2019/11/16/behind-the-scenes-of-a-hallmark-movie-with-author-barbara-hinske/.

Here’s our delightful conversation:

Welcome back to Full of Coffee, Barbara! I already know you enjoy black coffee, so I’ll go to my next question. You recently published a new murder mystery novel with Deadly Parcel. What inspired you or how did you get the idea for this new story?

• I’ve had an over-active imagination since I was a child. I was always thinking up things that would scare me. That trait –difficult in a child who is afraid to go to bed, but helpful in an adult novelist– has stood me in good stead. When I’m going about my daily business, I’ll see a place or situation and think “wouldn’t it be scary if… “. The basic idea was born when I used to go to my car in a dark, deserted parking garage after work. I’d think “wouldn’t it be scary to step off the elevator in the parking garage to see a man carrying a dead body?” I had the idea and started writing it, and it just released as Deadly Parcel.

Quite interesting! Is there a possibility to make it a series, like you did with Rosemont?

• Yes! The next book in the collection is ready, Final Circuit, and it will be out in August 2020.

Your newest novel Guiding Emily: A Tale of Love, Loss, and Courage has finally been released! How did you get the inspiration and idea to write this story?

• I’ve lived down the street from The Foundation for Blind Children for decades. I’d never been inside. The Foundation’s Development Director, Steve Pawlowski, encouraged my husband and I to come for a tour with such enthusiasm and pride that we felt we couldn’t decline. The Foundation provides education, tools, and services for “children” from birth through one hundred and four. From observing teachers working one-on-one with students with multiple disabilities, to seeing the six-year-old child from Canada running and hugging staff even though his parents had been told by their Canadian doctor he would never walk or talk, to photos displayed on the wall of the group of blind teens and young adults who had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, I was moved beyond measure.

• Choking back tears, I asked Steve how I could help. What did the Foundation need? His answer was simple and straightforward: (1) funding, and (2) to raise awareness of problems that visually impaired people face within the sighted community. I’m an author and knew that a novel could address both of these issues.
• The story line of my new series was born in that moment. Guiding Emily is the first book in a series and is a love story between Garth, a guide dog, and Emily Main, his handler who loses her eyesight on her honeymoon. It’s the heartwarming/heartbreaking/poignant tale of their journey together. 
• The Foundation for Blind Children provided me with invaluable support in my research. I interviewed many of the staff members and clients. I will never forget the newly-blind adults who shared their mental and emotional journeys in the process of regaining their independence. 

Wow! What a great experience! To think that the Foundation is so close to your house and the visit gave you an idea for this book, that is amazing. Any other future project you want to tell us about?

• Book 7 in my Rosemont series will be out this fall. I’m itching to write book 2 in the Guiding Emily series. Readers are already asking for it and have suggested some great new plot twists! I’m also feeling the pull to write another affirming, uplifting Christmas novel.

You decided to donate part of the proceeds to The Foundation for Blind Children:

• Yes, half the profits from Guiding Emily will be donated to the Foundation. For the price of a book, every reader receives a novel that will provide a welcome respite from daily life and supports a remarkable organization that believes vision loss is a diagnosis, NOT a disability.

This is a fantastic opportunity to get a great book and help an organization that provides such great services to so many people. The book is available on Amazon here https://amzn.to/3cNqD4G.

I thank Barbara Hinske for coming back and sharing her story with us again. It’s a wonderful opportunity for me to learn about other writers, and I hope is an opportunity for you reading to expand your interest in reading and get to know about the authors behind these books.

Please, visit Barbara’s blog here https://barbarahinske.com/. Also follow her on Twitter @BarbaraHinske https://twitter.com/BarbaraHinske, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/bhinske/, and on Instagram @barbarahinskeauthor.

I’ll keep reading, I’ll keep writing, I’ll keep dreaming! Thanks for reading. Until the next one. It’s time for my tacita de café. Salud!

Para versión en español, vea https://fullofcoffee.blog/2020/06/18/otra-tacita-de-cafe-con-la-autora-barbara-hinske/.