I met Author Ritchie Hale a few years ago at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference and we quickly became writing pals. She’s one of those individuals you’ll want to know. Witnessing her journey towards publication has been a delight. Continue reading this interview with Author Ritchie Hale to get to know the woman behind the book, Treasures of the Tattered Box, A Journey to Remember.
Interview with Author Ritchie Hale
Tell readers a few things about yourself.
I’m a seventy-year-old first-time author. This first book has been in the works for the past twenty-five years. It started as blog posts but outgrew itself and then I knew I had to roll up my sleeves and do the hard work of writing the book.
Did you always want to write?
I wanted that to happen right away but continued to allow “stuff” to interrupt. That stuff was all good stuff—raising our three children, foster parenting twenty-five special needs children (not all at once), teaching kindergarten and first grade for nearly thirty years, leading children’s choirs at school and church, being a pastors wife for fifty years, and caregiving my aging relatives. But all the while, I was writing.
From my earliest recollections, I wrote. By third grade, I was entering writing contests and won an award in my school district in Alabama titled “Tommy, the Tree.” I wish I had a copy of that essay because I would enjoy seeing the writings I did as a nine-year-old. It was a conservation contest, and I was keen on the whole aspect of writing from the perspective of the tree. Therefore, “Tommy” became my friend.
My dad was a gospel hymn composer and my aunt, his sister, a prolific writer with hundreds of pen pals across the world, so writing lyrics and essays were a part of everyday life in my home. My writing career began with mostly poems, inspired by something I would hear at church, or while on my many walks of solitude out in nature. I preferred being alone where “I could think.” I kept scraps of paper and a pencil in my pockets so if an idea came to me, I could jot it down to muse over at a later time. The notes I scribbled took me back mentally to the place of inspiration, and then I could write the words of my heart.
What book or article are you currently working on or just released?
I always saw myself as a published author, even when I was eleven years old, and titled my publishing company, ANOTHER RITCH PUBLICATION. It has taken me a lifetime to make this official, but when you dream big and keep pressing forward, dreams can and do come true. Another Ritch Publication, LLC became a reality this year with the release of my first book, “Treasures of the Tattered Box, A Journey to Remember”.
About Ritchie’s first book:
Ritchie was fourteen years old when she first met her great aunt Hallie and fully expected her to be a frumpy old lady. She was wrong. Thirty years later an old tattered box bound together with frayed twine containing treasures and keepsakes, would lead Ritchie on a twenty-five-year journey, often accompanied by her mother-in-law. They would visit six states and journey nearly fifteen thousand miles.
As the years and miles accumulated so did the participants whose lives were intertwined with the story of Hallie’s life, love, loss, and legacy.
Ritchie had set out on a journey to remember but discovered so much more.
What advice do you have for young writers?
If I were to mentor a young writer, I’d say, ORGANIZE. Get yourself organized from the beginning. You’ll find a dozen different plans to become an organized writer… but in the end, just do it. Each time you jot a note, date it, note the source, who said it, where it came from, or whether it was an original thought of your own. You’ll quickly forget that those awesome words came from your own mind, but you’ll be wondering, who said that?
Whether you use traditional file folders, computer files, spreadsheets, whatever, note and file EVERYTHING. Typically, I label my files as “IDEAS”, “DEVOTIONS”, “PRETTY PLACES”, “THOUGHTS FROM A SERMON”, etc. Within those categories, I usually have sub-files: IDEAS… about decorating, … about landscaping, … about life, … about death, … about children, … funny things, etc.
Second, WRITE. Write thoughts as they occur. Keep a pad of paper nearby at all times, day and night. If you awaken with an idea, jot it down because no matter how much clarity you have about it at the moment, it will be snatched away by the time you try to recollect the thoughts and how they shaped up in your mind.
Do you write in silence or with background noise/music?
I write in very noisy crowded places where I do not know anyone and will be just a strange hunched-over body, oblivious to the surrounding commotion, writing my heart onto the pages of steno pads.
Treasures of the Tattered Box, A Journey to Remember
What do you want your readers to take away from your books/writing?
I’d love to think when people read the words I write that the message of hope, joy, victory over defeat, and inspiration will speak to hearts. I prayerfully walk in the beauty of God’s world, soaking up every tiny detail the Father has prepared for our enjoyment… and then ask Him to write through me. Those quiet moments are my source of inspiration.
Now, with my first book “on the shelves,” I’ve started the next two. I’m so excited to have the time to make this my focus and hope to complete them within the year. We’ll just have to see about that, won’t we?
You can connect with Ritchie on her Facebook page or stop by and visit Another Ritch Publication.
Purchase Ritchie’s book on Amazon.
If you’ve enjoyed this interview with author Ritchie Hale, I’m sure she’d love to hear from you. Looking for other Christian authors to discover? Check out the following links?
Interview with Author Heather C. King and Author Sandy Quandt.
