![\"The](\"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/06\/sweetgum.jpg\" "\\"sweetgum\\"")
<\/a>Beth Pattillo (Heavens to Betsy <\/em>and Earth to Betsy<\/em>) knows how to follow a dream\u2014even with a pile of publishing industry rejection slips to her name. She spent seven years on the path to her first publishing contract, and the characters in her new novel, The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, embrace Pattillo\u2019s persistence. <\/span><\/p>\nEugenie, Ruth, Esther, Merry, and Camille are not perfect women. They each struggle with love in their own way\u2014unrequited love, forbidden love, overwhelming love, even lost love. Yet they battle on, meeting every month in the Pairs and Spares Sunday school room to knit, discuss that month\u2019s book selection, and puzzle out their lives.<\/span><\/p>\n When Eugenie throws neglected and abused teenager Hannah Simmons into their midst, however, walls decades in the making come crashing down. With secrets thrown on the table amid the tangle of yarn, needles and books, one thing becomes certain: The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society<\/a> will soon discover what\u2019s most important in the complicated lives they lead.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n Q. What was your inspiration behind The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society?<\/em><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The book was inspired by the knitting group at my church. I loved the way a group of diverse women, from their teens to retirement age, bonded over knitting and prayer. I think book clubs experience a similar phenomenon. Something about knitting or reading together really helps to create authentic community. One of the things I enjoyed most about writing this book was looking at the world from such different points of view. Each of the women in the novel is unique. And the variety of ages and life experiences kept things interesting.<\/span><\/p>\n Q. In the book, troubled teen Hannah Simmons has seen her share of neglect and abuse before meeting the ladies of the Knit Lit Society. Do you see many teens like Hannah in the course of your work as an ordained minister? If so, what is your philosophy in helping them find healing?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Unfortunately, I\u2019ve met a number of teens over the years that were neglected by their parents. I\u2019m a strong believer in youth ministry because I know it can provide guidance and care that\u2019s often missing in a teenager\u2019s home. In the novel, Hannah happens to be poor, but I\u2019ve found that income level, however high or low, doesn\u2019t always correlate to the quality of parenting. The love and attention of a youth minister and\/or youth sponsor can often keep a teen from making bad choices with disastrous consequences. Teenagers need to feel competent and valued. A strong youth ministry provides an opportunity for young people to find their spiritual gifts and use them. It also makes God\u2019s love tangible and powerful.<\/span><\/p>\n Q. Since not every town has a Knit Lit Society, what would your advice be to anyone who has a “Hannah” in their life or knows of a teen in a similar situation?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Most teens need someone to listen to them without judgment or agenda. Mentoring, serving as a youth sponsor, teaching Sunday school and Bible study \u2013 these are all great ways to reach out to teenagers. As a minister, in a particular situation, I have to assess whether a teenager needs the help of social services in addition to the love and care of a church family. All ministers are required by law to report suspected abuse. Neglect, though, can be a bit trickier. Ideally, a minister can reach out to the parents as well as the teen to try and help the family become more functional and caring. I always appreciated my church members letting me know if they thought a particular teenager needed help. I think it\u2019s better to get involved and ultimately find that the situation wasn\u2019t as serious as you thought than to ignore something until a crisis occurs.<\/span><\/p>\n Q. Do you knit in your spare time?<\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n I love to knit! I\u2019m into hand-tied yarn right now, taking eight or nine different yarns in a particular color palette and tying 2-3 yard sections end to end. The result is wonderfully shaggy scarves or shawls that have real depth of color and texture. (I was inspired by the owner of The Shaggy Sheep in my hometown of Lubbock, Texas \u2013 a terrific yarn store!) I\u2019m afraid I have numerous unfinished projects around the house, but one day, I hope to finish them all.<\/p>\n Q. You spent seven years waiting to publish your first book and now The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society<\/a> <\/em>is your fourth book. What advice do you have for novice or aspiring writers?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Aspiring writers have to persevere. For that matter, so do published authors. The publishing industry is a rejection-based business. Work hard, acquire a thick skin, be open to good criticism, and revise, revise, revise. As writers, we take our work personally, but the publishing industry doesn\u2019t. Rejection is a business decision, not a critique of our value as human beings!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \n My other piece of advice is to write every day, even if it\u2019s only a small amount. I run an email loop called Club 100 For Writers. The challenge is to write 100 words a day for 100 days. I\u2019ve seen this practice transform people\u2019s lives. Instructions for joining the group are on my website, <\/span>http:\/\/www.bethpattillo.com\/<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The first time I picked up The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/a> <\/em><\/span><\/strong>I had a difficult time getting into it, probably because I have read so many different books this month I just needed a break. I put it aside and read a suspense and a romance or two. By the time I returned to <\/span>The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/a> I was ready to see what it had to offer.<\/p>\n Initially, I thought it was just another book about several women who had absolutely nothing in common but their interest in reading and knitting. Suddenlya monkey wrench was thrown into their mundane group when a rebellious, rejected teen was added. As the story developed, each of the characters came alive with her own individual personality and issues. As each woman interacted with Hannah, they saw their own circumstances with new eyes. And as the women dealt with their problems and endeavored to help Hannah, the ties between the women became stronger and problems were resolved in surprising ways.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ABOUT THE BOOK: Beth Pattillo (Heavens to Betsy and Earth to Betsy) knows how to follow a dream\u2014even with a pile of publishing industry rejection slips to her name. She spent seven years on the path to her first publishing contract, and the characters in her new novel, The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society, embrace Pattillo\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=224"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":427,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224\/revisions\/427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}ABOUT THE AUTHOR: <\/span><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Beth Pattillo is an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and holds a Master of Divinity from Vanderbilt University. She and her family make their home in Tennessee. Her novel, Heavens to Betsy, <\/span><\/em>won the prestigious RITA<\/span> award from the Romance Writers of America. TheSweetgum Knit Lit Society <\/span><\/em><\/span>is her fourth novel. To<\/span> learn more, visit www.bethpattillo.com<\/span><\/p>\nQ&A with Beth Pattillo, author of The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
MY REVIEW:<\/h3>\n