We recently connected with Deborah Edmisten and have shared our conversation below.

Deborah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with inspirations and heroes. Are there any historical figures you look up to?

George Washington Carver is a man I’ve looked up to for many years. He was a force of nature – born into slavery and orphaned at a young age, he overcame every obstacle with persistence, humility, and hard work. In his lifetime, Carver went from being a nondescript slave child to a world-famous scientist.

Studying Carver’s life is humbling. He did whatever it took to further his education – his love of learning was inexhaustible. At one point during his younger years, Carver did laundering and ironing to earn money. He also worked as a farmhand and a hotel cook . He did not view any of his jobs as beneath him despite having a stunning intellect. He took pride in every position he held and worked tirelessly in an effort to attain more education.

Because of George Washington Carver’s example, both in his humility and his work ethic, I’ve strived to emulate his attitude and his curiosity about life and nature. There will never be another George Washington Carver – he was a man among men – a unique and rare man who possessed both humility and genius. A man worthy of our admiration and imitation.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’ve been married to my best friend for thirty-five years, I’m the mother of three sons and one daughter, a mother-in-law to three incredible individuals, and grandma to five unique and wonderful grandchildren.

I grew up in Akron, Ohio, for the first ten years of my life before my family moved to Canal Fulton, Ohio, when I was in fourth grade. I’ve lived in the Northeast Ohio area the entirety of my life except for a three-year-stint in Jacksonville, Florida, for my husband’s job with the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.

I’ve been a voracious reader since a very young age and always dreamed of becoming a writer. Despite that dream, I didn’t begin writing seriously until my early 40’s…I’m now 58. After losing my mom to heart disease, it somehow brought about a “now or never” moment for me, and I’ve been writing ever since. I’ve published twelve books including historical fiction murder mysteries, Christian fiction mysteries and love stories, a tween time-travel trilogy and three children’s chapter books. Each book of my tween time-travel trilogy has been awarded the Story Monsters Approved designation – a program that recognizes and honors authors in the fields of children’s literature. Two of my middle-grade chapter books have been awarded honorable mentions in the Special Needs/Disability Awareness category and the Cultural Diversity category in both the Purple Dragonfly and the Royal Dragonfly Book Awards.

When I began writing, it was my goal to make each book entertaining while also addressing important and serious issues that would cause my readers to reflect deeply on their lives and the lives of others. That aim was born out of the fact that I couldn’t find any Christian fiction in my immediate area at the time that dealt with real-life, difficult subjects. So, I began to write what I wanted to read and branched out from there into different genres.

It’s been very satisfying to have people read my books and consider positions and viewpoints they may never have thought about or dealt with before. To have someone say they’ve been enlightened about racial issues, Down syndrome, mental health, trauma, domestic abuse, immigration, human trafficking etc., after reading one of my books is a joy that’s impossible to adequately describe.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being a writer/author is interacting with people at local author fairs answering their questions about writing and how to become a published author, and interacting with people who have read my books and been enlightened about different issues through reading them. I had a reader once tell me that she had never before considered the desperation that drove people to cross the border from Mexico into the United States. It made her feel compassion for them where as before she’d just looked at them as “bad people.” That is immensely rewarding and something I never take for granted.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I have benefitted so much from being a member of my local writers/author group, and I wish I had known earlier in my writing journey that such groups existed locally. Our group critiques samples of each other’s writing at our meetings. The suggestions are always helpful, and each member presents their critiques in a very respectful manner.

I would advise anyone who wants to pursue writing to find a local writing group. You will develop relationships with people there who can help you with publishing and marketing, editing and formatting, cover art/design and more.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://nothinghidden.blog
• Instagram: @deborahedmistenauthor
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debedmistenauthor
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HS5lgzfNOw&t=39s
• Other: Additional YouTube Book Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9bxHe0vtd4&t=1s

Image Credits
Two images by Charles Edmisten, Jr.