Interview with Inspirational YA Author Gail Pallotta

Award-winning author Gail Pallotta’s a wife, Mom, swimmer and bargain shopper who loves God, beach sunsets and getting together with friends and family. She’s been a Sunday school teacher, a swim-team coordinator and an after-school literary instructor. A former regional writer of the year for American Christian Writers Association, she won Clash of the Titles in 2010. A 2013 Grace Awards finalist, she’s been a best-selling author on All Romance eBooks and in amazon’s paid kindle store. Her credits include three published books, two short stories, and a couple hundred articles. Some of her articles appear in anthologies while two are in museums. Visit Gail’s web site at http://www.gailpallotta.com

“Mountain of Love and Danger is a modern day fairytale of Jack and the Beanstalk, with cell phones and all. This story is fast paced and delightful. From chapter one to the last chapter there is plenty of suspense as you watch Jack try to figure out where his girlfriend has been taken. This story was written for young adults to appreciate. As an adult, I totally enjoyed it.” --Review by Author Linda Weaver Clarke

Welcome back to my blog, Gail. Please tell us about your new book, Mountain of Love and Danger. By the way, what genre is this novel?

This fairy tale retelling is a fantasy with romance and mystery. In it Jack Greenthumb finds romance in Fairwilde Kingdom—a different day—a different girl. Then a cruel mystery begins. Dad’s beaten, the family farm destroyed and Jack’s true love, Gwendolyn Bante, kidnapped. Jack’s undercover operation reveals Gwenie’s a captive atop a mountain accessible only by helicopter. Reaching her is a dangerous expedition even for a champion rock climber like Jack. However, a Greenthumb Acres employee plants a miraculous seed from Heaven for the rescue. Suspense mounts as Jack scales the perilous cliff to face a brute and a treacherous descent in this retelling of the fairy tale, Jack and the Beanstalk.

This is my favorite question. Where did you get your inspiration for this story?

I belong to a Christian critique group with four other authors. Mildred Colvin’s son, Jonathan, suggested we write a series of fairy tales and self-publish them. We thought it was a great idea, so we did. I chose a retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk because I thought it would lend itself to romance and mystery if Jack’s true love were at the top of the beanstalk. I enjoy reading and writing in that genre.

Mountain of Love and Danger is fifth in the series. The books are tied together by the setting, Fairwilde Kingdom. The others are At the Edge of a Dark Forest, a retelling of Beauty and the Beast by Connie Almony; Red and the Wolf, retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, by June Foster; Mirror on the Fall, retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Mildred and Jonathan Colvin; Swept Away, retelling of Cinderella, by Vanessa Riley.

A bunch of fairy tales? How interesting! What kind of research did you do?

I thoroughly researched rock and mountain climbing. Fortunately, I know someone active in the sport and called on him to review all of the pages involving the climb and the descent of the perilous cliff. I also researched police procedures for vandalism and kidnapping.   

Awesome! Now that’s impressive. You love to write young adult romances. What intrigues you most about writing this genre?

I enjoy writing that reflects the world around me, and I like young people. Over the years I’ve had lots of fun spending time with them. Then too, we’re a family who loves sports, so as a youngster our daughter chose to participate in swimming. Stopped Cold tells the story of a fictitious family based on my observations of being involved with young people not only in swimming but also as a volunteer literary instructor in the schools and various other activities. In Mountain of Love and Danger, which is a fantasy, I strove to make the book fun and fanciful as fairy tales are to me. I think young love can be a magical time, and in the case of Jack and Gwenie it turns out to be true love.

My next book, Barely above Water, is an adult romance, but it has adorable, wonderful young people in it. In the book an illness comes out of nowhere and strikes Suzie Morris. Her boyfriend dumps her. She has no living family, and her physician can’t diagnose the malady. She turns to a renowned alternative doctor in Destin, Florida, and takes a job coaching a county-sponsored summer league swim team. She’s determined to turn the

sometimes comical, rag-tag bunch into winners. Her handsome boss renews her belief in love, but learns of her mysterious affliction and abruptly cuts romantic ties. Later he has regrets, but must overcome his fear of losing someone close, then regain Suzie’s trust. She relies on her Christian faith as she faces the uncertainty of the disease, financial burdens without permanent employment, and heartbreak in this contemporary romance.

Thanks for telling my readers about your books. Where can my readers find you online?

My Web site - http://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com

Facebook - Authors and More Page - https://www.facebook.com/AuthorsandMore

Twitter - https://twitter.com/Hopefulwords

My blog - http://www.gailpallotta.blogspot.com

Thanks, Gail, for this wonderful interview. I hope my readers will check out your books.