Best Forgotten - Fiction that changes hearts!

by Paula Vince

I'm delighted that Lisa has given me an opportunity to share once again on this blog. Before I talk about my new release, I’ll begin with a recent attitude adjustment.

I was having a prayer time that was more like a long complaint list. It went something like this. ‘Lord, I know several readers who I’m sure would love my books if only they bothered to take the time. You don’t know how frustrating it is when you have something which would bless people but they’re too indifferent to even want to know.’

No sooner were the words out of my mouth when His answer filled my spirit.

You think I don’t understand how that feels? Just remember who you’re talking to!

That made my pulse race. How could I have forgotten for a moment? It suddenly seemed I’d been raised to an aerial view to see the rut I’d dug for myself. It was clear how tightly yoked I’d been to my own ego, wanting to make a ‘success’ of selling Christian novels in Australia so I could prove my value to others and myself. I’d missed the point entirely. If I’d noticed that I was pacing over the same dusty ground month after month, I would have scrambled out of that dirty rut long ago. I’d started out on this adventure with Jesus. How short-sighted of me to be offended because I shared some of His own experiences.

Nothing has changed in my approach to selling books but how refreshing it feels to climb out of that result-driven rut and survey things from higher ground. How liberating to change my concept of ‘success’ and stop gauging it by the human feedback I receive compared to others. Even the air from the new vantage point feels cleaner and crisper to breathe.

Having said this, I really am excited to offer my new release, Best Forgotten to others. I’ve tried to weave together elements of mystery, suspense and redemption in a way I’ve never done before.

A young accident victim wakes up in hospital without a clue who he is. Not only does he have nothing in common with his family but he develops an aversion to the person he used to be. He cannot understand the way he used to behave or the choices he made. The more he learns about himself, the more puzzled and upset he becomes.

He discovers that his best friend disappeared without a trace on the night of his own accident. His girlfriend is strangely aloof and he cannot shake off a feeling that the answer will prove even more unpleasant than his amnesia. The more he tries to investigate, the more likely it appears that he was involved in something really shady and sinister. And he senses that something bad is after him. So he’s torn between wanting to find out and being terrified that he’ll have to face horrible consequences when he does.

I’ve been fascinated by the relationship between our thinking patterns and what we make of our lives. How is a person’s personality shaped by his sum of experiences? To what extent do the thoughts we choose to think make us into the people we are? Do our seemingly random choices have the impact to come back when least expected and impact the rest of our lives?

When you, the reader, find out the mystery, hopefully you’ll let out a gasp and cry, ‘Oh wow, I never saw that coming!’ That’s my intention, anyhow.

I love it when a work of fiction not only entertains readers but changes us at the core by getting us to think about how what we’ve read within the pages may also apply to us. These are the stories we like to remember, lend to others and call really special. I believe novelists have a responsibility to offer readers our very best and it’s a quest I take seriously.

For Australian and international readers alike, my books are available from Amazon.com and directly from my own website, www.appleleafbooks.com. In fact I invite you to visit my website if you’d like to read about my other titles too. For Australian and New Zealand readers, Best Forgotten and my other books are also available from Koorong and other good Christian book stores.

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Paula Vince always wanted to write fiction and loves to evoke tears and laughter. Her novels include a fantasy/adventure trilogy for young adults and four contemporary dramas with elements of romance, mystery and suspense. She lives with her husband and three children in South Australia’s beautiful Adelaide Hills, which she uses as the setting for several of her novels. Her novel, Picking up the Pieces was a finalist in the inaugural 2010 Omega Writer’s CALEB prize. Her most recent novel, Best Forgotten is a mystery/romance that has just been published by Wombat Books/Even Before Publishing.