Rebecca DeMarino lives in the Pacific Northwest, and inherited her love of baking and gardening from her mother, a love of horses, reading and writing from her dad, and a wanderlust gene from both parents. No one knows where she got her passion for jogging and hiking! A Place in His Heart is a historical romance inspired by her ninth great-grandparents, Barnabas and Mary Horton, and is book one of The Southold Chronicles.
Visit Rebecca DeMarino online
A place In His Heart
Anglican Mary Langton longs to marry for love. Left at the altar and disgraced in her small hamlet, she is being pressured to marry the eligible son of the London milliner. Puritan Barnabas Horton, the town baker, still grieves the loss of his beloved wife, but he knows his two young sons need a mother. With tender hearts, Mary and Barnabas take a leap of faith and wed. But when Barnabas’s secret plans to move his family to the New World to escape persecution come to light, Mary’s world is upended. She could cross an ocean, but will she ever reach the secret places of her husband’s heart?
- ISBN: 0800722183
- Publisher: Revell
Interview with Rebecca DeMarino
Rebecca DeMarino celebrates her debut release this month, A Place in His Heart. This story of love, adventure, faith and devotion takes place on Long Island in the mid-1600s. The daughter of a Navy pilot and wife of an Air Force officer, Rebecca is no stranger to adventure.
Growing up in a military family, you moved around a lot. Looking back, was that a good thing or a bad thing for you and why?
We did move around a lot, and it was much like digging up roots and repotting versus replanting, because when your parent or spouse is in the military you know your home is temporary and you must be ready to move on. But you have the opportunity to experience a new place and people in a way that is not possible when just visiting, and I think my life is richer for that. I do have a sister, though, that married her high school sweetheart and they have lived and raised their children in the same house since they married. There is a richness to that too, from a different perspective.
Reflecting back, what do you see as most significant to your publication journey?
The people God put on my path. I’ve been so very blessed.
How do your faith and spiritual life play into the picture and affect your storytelling?
This aspect just amazes me. I always thought I would write contemporary suspense with a touch of romance and a Christian worldview. But when I sat down to write my first novel, it was a historical about my Puritan ancestors! Talk about getting into the thick of things. So while I think there is definitely a message that comes out in my writing, I write to entertain through story, and A Place in His Heart is a love story about Barnabas and Mary that I hope my readers enjoy.
What do you consider the greatest moment of your writing/publishing career?
It was when I watched my dad, Howard Worley, type The End for his novel, The Stagecoach Murders. He began writing that book at age 87 because I was writing a novel. He would send me each chapter in a priority envelope as he finished it, and he was amazing me. Then when he was almost finished, he required open-heart surgery to replace his aortic valve. Two days later he had a major stroke. His recovery is a whole other story, but I was able to help him type the last four chapters while he dictated, and then we published it through Create Space. Watching him autograph a copy for me was my second greatest moment.
Who/What spurs you to write? Where do your story and character ideas come from?
I grew up listening to my mom’s stories about Barnabas Horton, my ninth great-grandfather and how he came across the pond from England on a ship called The Swallow in the 1600’s. When my brother became interested in genealogy, we discovered there was a lighthouse named after Barnabas, located on Long Island. I asked my mom if she’d like to go there and off we went. There was a lot of interesting information about Barnabas. He was a baker and a very recent widower with two young sons when he met my ninth great-grandmother, Mary, in Mowsley, England. But I could find very little about her, and I began to wonder about what dreams and motivation she had and courage she must have possessed, when she married and then left her family behind for the wilds of Long Island. A few years later, I began writing my first novel in a quest to give her a voice
What do you enjoy doing when you are not writing? I like to hike or go for a jog – though often it’s just a walk, which works for me! I love gardening and baking, too. Playing with the grandkids is high on my list, though the closest ones live over an hour away so it’s not as often as I’d like. Reading has long been a passion of mine.
What books are on your nightstand (or e-reader) right now?
Right now I’m reading my way through Sincerely Yours, a collection of four novellas by Amanda Cabot, Laurie Alice Eakes, Ann Shorey and Jane Kirkpatrick. It contains four romantic stories based on the premise, what if you received a letter that changed your life? I’m really enjoying them and because it’s a busy writing season for me, I’m liking the ease of reading the short stories!
Finish this statement: The best thing about being a writer is...
...I’m doing what I’ve always dreamed of doing!
Any parting words?
Thank you so much for having me in for this interview! I’ve enjoyed it so very much!
Thanks for sharing with us, Rebecca.
Growing up in a military family, you moved around a lot. Looking back, was that a good thing or a bad thing for you and why?
We did move around a lot, and it was much like digging up roots and repotting versus replanting, because when your parent or spouse is in the military you know your home is temporary and you must be ready to move on. But you have the opportunity to experience a new place and people in a way that is not possible when just visiting, and I think my life is richer for that. I do have a sister, though, that married her high school sweetheart and they have lived and raised their children in the same house since they married. There is a richness to that too, from a different perspective.
Reflecting back, what do you see as most significant to your publication journey?
The people God put on my path. I’ve been so very blessed.
How do your faith and spiritual life play into the picture and affect your storytelling?
This aspect just amazes me. I always thought I would write contemporary suspense with a touch of romance and a Christian worldview. But when I sat down to write my first novel, it was a historical about my Puritan ancestors! Talk about getting into the thick of things. So while I think there is definitely a message that comes out in my writing, I write to entertain through story, and A Place in His Heart is a love story about Barnabas and Mary that I hope my readers enjoy.
What do you consider the greatest moment of your writing/publishing career?
It was when I watched my dad, Howard Worley, type The End for his novel, The Stagecoach Murders. He began writing that book at age 87 because I was writing a novel. He would send me each chapter in a priority envelope as he finished it, and he was amazing me. Then when he was almost finished, he required open-heart surgery to replace his aortic valve. Two days later he had a major stroke. His recovery is a whole other story, but I was able to help him type the last four chapters while he dictated, and then we published it through Create Space. Watching him autograph a copy for me was my second greatest moment.
Who/What spurs you to write? Where do your story and character ideas come from?
I grew up listening to my mom’s stories about Barnabas Horton, my ninth great-grandfather and how he came across the pond from England on a ship called The Swallow in the 1600’s. When my brother became interested in genealogy, we discovered there was a lighthouse named after Barnabas, located on Long Island. I asked my mom if she’d like to go there and off we went. There was a lot of interesting information about Barnabas. He was a baker and a very recent widower with two young sons when he met my ninth great-grandmother, Mary, in Mowsley, England. But I could find very little about her, and I began to wonder about what dreams and motivation she had and courage she must have possessed, when she married and then left her family behind for the wilds of Long Island. A few years later, I began writing my first novel in a quest to give her a voice
What do you enjoy doing when you are not writing? I like to hike or go for a jog – though often it’s just a walk, which works for me! I love gardening and baking, too. Playing with the grandkids is high on my list, though the closest ones live over an hour away so it’s not as often as I’d like. Reading has long been a passion of mine.
What books are on your nightstand (or e-reader) right now?
Right now I’m reading my way through Sincerely Yours, a collection of four novellas by Amanda Cabot, Laurie Alice Eakes, Ann Shorey and Jane Kirkpatrick. It contains four romantic stories based on the premise, what if you received a letter that changed your life? I’m really enjoying them and because it’s a busy writing season for me, I’m liking the ease of reading the short stories!
Finish this statement: The best thing about being a writer is...
...I’m doing what I’ve always dreamed of doing!
Any parting words?
Thank you so much for having me in for this interview! I’ve enjoyed it so very much!
Thanks for sharing with us, Rebecca.
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