A dog-lover and Christian writer, Mavis Duke Hinton published her first novel I Am Sarge in 2006, and continued with a delightfully heartwarming series of books featuring funny and loyal dachshunds as the main characters. She was gracious enough to give us here at I&F some insights into her life and writing.
I&F: Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Hinton: Born in North Carolina and raised in a military family, I had attended 13 schools by the time I graduated from high school. I have lived in eight U.S. states, with Alaska my favorite of all. Its northern lights and rugged mountains, abundant wildlife and natural beauty, even the 50-degrees-below-zero cold, were great experiences not found elsewhere. I’ve also lived in two foreign countries (France and Germany), and have visited Canada, Holland, Belgium, Spain, and Luxembourg. I began school in France, and was fluent [in French] by age five—I certainly can’t do that now!
While living in Europe, my family experienced medieval castles in Germany, the World’s Fair in Belgium, the Tulip Festival in Holland, and a bullfight in Spain. On camping trips across Europe, we enjoyed sharing meals with friendly Europeans along the way. One experience I especially enjoyed as a girl was being a Girl Scout and learning about nature and practical applications for life. I attended an American Girl Scout camp while living in Bremerhaven, Germany, traveling by train to the camp, and American girls from all over Europe converged onto the beautiful camp near Frankfurt.
I became a Christian at age 28, and my Christian worldview influences all areas of my life, including my writing. I have been married for 44 years, and we have two married daughters and three grandchildren. We also have a seven-year-old dachshund named Duke.
I&F: How did you get started writing? When did you first know this was something you wanted to do?
Hinton: I began writing as a young child and created entertaining stories for my family and friends. I wrote poems, created “newspapers” with headlines and pretend advertisements by age ten. As an English teacher, I taught creative writing and always wanted to write, but didn’t have time while teaching full time and raising a family. A few years ago after our daughters were married, I walked away from my career and started writing—I published my first novel in 2006.
I&F: Please give us a brief synopsis of one or more of your works.
Hinton: I have written four books in THE DACHSHUND ESCAPADES series, with a fifth book to be released later this summer (2015). All of the books are “written by” Sarge the dachshund, and his humorous lowdown from the ground about family, friends, and life in general brings smiles to dog lovers of all ages.
I AM SARGE, Book 1:
I am Sarge the super dog, named after my Papa Duke, who was a sergeant in the Army—and I am very proud of my special name. I was a scared little puppy when Mama and Daddy adopted me at eight weeks of age, but quite a handsome and intelligent dachshund now.
I’m known as a chow hound extraordinaire, and believe me, I have earned the title! Papa calls me his granddawg, and I know I’ll do great and mighty things someday. Grandma says I’m not only a granddawg, but also a grand dog.
Inside my home is all the warmth, fun, laughter, and love that I could ever want or need. The only thing lacking is people food. I never get enough of that, but don’t blame a dawg for trying. I also do my best to protect my family, but Mama says I’m too loud. (Isn’t that the point of barking—to be heard??)
I have lived through some zany times in this family–I even saved Papa’s life when he was attacked . . . by a fence. Such experiences only seem to happen to Papa.
All in all, my humans are tricky to figure out, ‘cause they don’t always say what they mean—but I can handle them. After all, I AM SARGE.
A heartwarming tale of family, joy,
good food, and unconditional love, Sarge’s story
will bring warmth and smiles to readers of all ages.
I&F: Why do you write? What does it mean to you?
Hinton: I initially wrote this series for the grandchildren who had never met “Papa” Robert Duke, a main character in THE DACHSHUND ESCAPADES. He was my late father, and was a dedicated Christian, a military veteran, a chef, a musician, an outdoorsman, and a master storyteller. Writing is a way of sharing God’s unconditional love with readers, and that is the golden thread woven throughout Sarge’s tales. I wanted readers to know that God loves them “no matter what,” and He wants a personal relationship through Christ with them.
I&F: Who inspires you in your work, and why?
Hinton: Oddly enough, the two dachshunds in my family are important inspirations for me! Shadow the doxie belongs to our oldest daughter and family, and Sarge is based upon Shadow’s life in a busy young pastor’s family. My doxie Duke is introduced in I AM DACHSHUND, Book 2. And, of course my family inspires me, because most of the characters in my books are based on my family members. But above all, God inspires me to write something that will resonate with readers, hopefully uplifting and encouraging them in their daily walk. I would never want to write anything that would be displeasing to Him.
I&F: What are your long-term goals concerning your writing? Do you have a place you see yourself as a writer in the next 5-10 years?
Hinton: As stated earlier, I plan to complete this series with one more book, A DACHSHUND’S MERRY-GO-ROUND LIFE. After that, I plan to begin a new series as a sort of spinoff, using one of the minor characters as the protagonist in the new series, tentatively entitled The St. Simon Island Chronicles. Oh, there will be a dachshund in these books certainly, but only as a sidekick to the main character, who is a spry grandmotherly lady named Savannah who runs a bed and breakfast on St. Simon Island (off the coast of Georgia) and helps solve crimes with her uncanny knack and her woman’s intuition. Her dachshund, noted for a strong sense of smell, assists her. She’s like an American version of Miss Marple, the British older lady in some of Agatha Christie’s books.
I will also write magazine articles all along the way. After the St. Simon books, I just might retire from writing.
I&F: How did you get published, and what has that experience been like for you?
Hinton: I initially published my first novel with a traditional publisher by sending them my manuscript, but publishing has changed a lot in the past ten years. Few traditional publishers accept manuscripts directly these days. I am now an “indie” author, meaning that I publish independently without a publisher. My books are printed through Amazon’s Createspace (paperbacks) and Kindle Direct Publishing (e-books).
Indie publishing is the new wave in the publishing industry, because more and more authors like the idea of having complete control over their works. It is also a big learning curve, learning how to format your own manuscripts for publication, creating covers or hiring someone else to do them, and then marketing your books worldwide. I must say that this new career is also a lot of fun for me.
I&F: What is the most important thing writing has taught you?
Hinton: To be aware of my readers as I write: I realize that everything I say will affect them in one way or another, and I sincerely want my words to be a positive and encouraging influence on them. The most important thing for me is to write something that is pleasing to the Lord, but to write it in such a way that my readers will not only enjoy my books, but come away with a smile on their faces and a spring to their steps!
I&F: Besides writing, what other things interest you? Do you have any hobbies that you really enjoy?
Hinton: I’ve always loved reading, and have the ability to shut out the entire world and immerse myself into books. My family used to say that the house could be burning down, but they’d have to shake me to get my attention if I were reading a good book!
I also enjoy traveling, probably because of my upbringing in a military family. It is exciting to visit new places and meet new people. My husband and I recently took a road trip from our home outside Atlanta and drove across country to visit our married daughter and her hubby in Arizona. While there, we all four drove to San Diego and spent three glorious days there. This great country of ours has so much to offer and learn about!
I enjoy cooking as well. My father was a chef, so good food was the norm in my home while growing up. And being a Southerner by birth, food plays a part in just about every social gathering, whether it is at church or at friends’ homes. Stimulating conversation is another favorite activity of mine. As an extrovert, I enjoy meeting people of all ages and getting to know them. And of course I love being with my family—we have such fun times together!
I&F: Is there something you’re working on right now? A new book or story you’d like to tell?
Hinton: In A DACHSHUND’S MERRY-GO-ROUND LIFE, Sarge the doxie sums up his life involving his zany humans and the menagerie of animals owned by those humans: six cats, one dachshund (my doxie Duke), a pesky cockatiel named Gizmo, and various other humans and animals he’s met along the way. He’s had some comical experiences with all of them, and continues to do so in this final book of the series.
I&F: Any advice for up-and-coming writers? What was helpful to you when you first started out?
Hinton: To begin with, I can only tell you what I’ve learned about publishing in my personal experience. I have published six novels (four in my series, and second editions of the first two books in this series), but that does not make me an expert in anyone’s estimation. Last year, I decided to go the indie publishing route (rather than with a traditional publisher). And, I don’t write about writing all the time. I have author friends who do just that, and I enjoy reading their blogs and articles, and I thank them, for I have gleaned helpful information along the way. I advise would-be writers to seek out those books and websites that can offer some helpful ideas before seeking to publish. Once you decide that you want to publish, go for it!
When I decided to write my first novel, I didn’t know anyone personally who could tell me how to get my first book published. I had been a classroom teacher for many years, always having that dream of writing but never having the time to do so. I walked away from my career for a time and just began writing. While in the process, I turned to the internet to do research, and I found that there are scam publishers, just like there are scams for just about every endeavor.
So, my first piece of advice is to do your research. I would recommend www.ChristianWriters.com as a resource if you want to write Christian fiction. I wish I had known about this marvelous site when I started. It offers discussion forums, advice, links, critiques, a myriad of helps for aspiring new and seasoned writers. Also, Jerry B. Jenkins’ Christian Writers Guild (www.christianwritersguild.com) offers writing courses, manuscript critiques, etc. This organization has an impressive list of mentors who are experts in the fields of writing and publishing.
Just be willing to write and rewrite. I have literally spent hours rewriting a single chapter. HOWEVER, I picked up some great advice on a well-known author’s website: “Get it all down on paper, not worrying about sentence structure, punctuation, or wording to begin with. You can go back later and rewrite” (and believe me, you will). When you’re on a roll, keep it flowing. Invaluable advice!
Another tip is to research your favorite authors on the internet. Their personal websites offer writing tips, and these writers are much more experienced than I.
To learn more about Mavis Duke Hinton and her work, visit Heartfelt Christian Fiction: www.MavisDuke Hinton.com or look her and her books up on Amazon (www.amazon.com/author/mavisdukehinton), Facebook (www.facebook.com/mavisdukehintonsbooks), or Twitter (@writer4dawg)