Interview with Allison Wells

About the Author

​Allison Wells is a new author, but for the most part she’s a Southern wife and mother. With four active children, she spends most of her time in the car, but when she can she loves to sit down and read or write. Allison is a graduate of Clemson University in the beautiful foothills of South Carolina and she still lives close enough to hear football games on Saturdays.

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The Interview

1. Who or what inspired you to become an author?
I began writing my first book - a seventh grade murder mystery - when I was twelve. It was written in a spiral notebook and it was terrible. I mean terrible. But I’ve always wanted to write.

Fast forward many, many years and I found myself reading the work of Liz Curtis Higgs, who is an amazing author and encourager. In addition to reading her fiction, I also read several of her Bible studies and emailed her on behalf of a study group I was leading at the time.

She replied to me and was so uplifting and sweet. I had told her about my hope to one day become a published author and she was nothing but encouraging to me. She told me to keep trying, to never stop writing, and to always keep my eyes on the Lord.
I took her advice and here I am! Thanks, Liz!

2. What type of research did you do so you could write War-Torn Heart?
I'll be honest, I did not do a ton of research for War-Torn Heart. The main storyline was drawn from things I already knew of the setting and time. The story is told solely from one perspective, so there was no need to learn too much about the daily ins and outs of WWII.

I did, however, do research into the Clemson cadets who joined the war effort after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, as well as making sure my picture of the university was accurate for 1941. I also did a good bit of research on fashion and hair of the day, and proper vernacular for the characters.

3. What inspired the idea for War-Torn Heart?
War-Torn Heart was inspired by Clemson University’s rich military heritage and the small towns that surround the school. Not many books are written to take place during WWII, Christian historical fiction often takes place during the Regency or Victorian era, so I wanted to do something that would be a little different.

4. What did you as an author take away from writing War-Torn Heart?
As an author, I have learned to never give up. I began War-Torn Heart in 2005. Here we are a whopping fourteen years later and it is just now being published. I knew in my heart that God intended for me to be an author, I just had to wait for His timing. I faced a lot of rejection and especially a lot of busyness in raising four children, so having the perseverance to not give up and keep trying to become published has meant a great deal to me.

5. What is your current WIP?  What can you tell us about it?
Currently I have three books in progress. It’s too much, really, but I have to stop when the characters tell me to take a break.

One book is a modern retelling of the Woman at the Well. I’m struggling with how to end this one, but I have faith that it will come to me soon.

A second book is also a present-day story based on the Spin Doctor’s song Two Princes. We have a young woman who is being courted by two men and she has to choose one. I’ve never written a love triangle before, so we’ll see where that goes.

Lastly, and the one I’m most excited about, is a story of three generations of women who are slaves in South Carolina in the early 1800s. Their faith to overcome their obstacles and come out on top after the Civil War is the main focus of the book.