Today I am interviewing author, speaker and editor Edie Melson about her book of prayer for family members serving in the armed forces. I grew up as an Air Force brat and had a son who served in the military making this is a subject close to my heart. Below is the cover copy which gives the best introduction to the content of her wonderful book While My Soldier Serves.

With over 2.3 million active and reserve military personnel, there are that many families who are waiting at home and praying for their well-being. While My Soldier Serves features 111 prayers for their soldier and 53 prayers for the one who waits at home. These thoughtful, specific prayers target the needs soldiers face every day such as for wisdom, strength, faith, protection, encouragement, comfort, and their team. Prayers for the one who waits at home include fear, loneliness, patience, faith, strength, and community. Written so that it can be used by anyone who loves a soldier, it is perfect for parents, spouses, friends, or even groups who band together to pray for our soldiers. Foreword by Todd Starnes, best-selling author and contributor to Fox New

Welcome, Edie. I’ve so looked forward to this interview I see you admiring my wall of photos. My father, father in law and son all served their country with honors. I prayed fervently the eight years my son served in the Army for both him and his family. I wish this book had been available then. Please, find a sit on the couch and help yourself to some brownies. After you’re all settled we’ll get started.

Tell my readers why you decided to write a book of prayer for soldiers?

This book was born out of my own need while our son was in the military and deployed in Iraq as a frontline infantry Marine. I couldn’t find a book like this, so I began writing out my prayers in a journal.

Share your process for putting this book together?

I began organizing this book by looking back through my own prayer journals. I looked at the things I prayed for our son over and over again. Those became the major headings. I also discovered that I also prayed for myself while he was deployed. So I included those prayers as well.

Did you do any research for this book or was it a child of your heart that needed to be shared?

No research, except for looking for applicable quotes to use in conjunction with the Bible verses. A lot of these prayers came—at least in a small part—from those I penned in my deployment prayer journal.

Edie, your words are powerful and speak from the heart. I’m sure many will find comfort and confidence in this book.

Tell us a little about other books you’ve published and what you have coming out in the future.

I have another book for military families: Fighting Fear: Winning the War at Home When Your Soldier Leaves for Battle. This one was published in 2011, by Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. It’s more a devotional and addresses a military family’s ongoing battle with fear. Later this month, Worthy is releasing a prayer journal to go along with While My Soldier Serves. And in late July, I’m releasing a second book of prayers. While My Child is Away: Prayers for When We’re Apart, addresses the emotions of a parent when a child is away from home.

What one piece of advice would you give to new writers with a non-fiction subject burning in their heart?

Consider the reader first. We all have stories and experiences that we want to share because God has moved so powerfully in our own lives. But first and foremost, we must understand that the books we write are for the readers first and us second.

What wise advice. I think with While My Soldier Serves you have tapped into a real need for military families. This is a good measuring stick for writers. Who is our readership and will what we want to share meet a need?

Thanks so much for stopping by and giving us some behind the scenes insights into how you crafted While My Soldier Serves

Enter a drawing

Edie Melson is doing a giveaway. Those of you with children, spouses or friends serving in the arm services are going to want in on this drawing.

She is offering a choice of While My Soldier Serves or the Deployment Journal. Comment on this blog or on my Facebook page to be entered in the drawing. If you share my blog on your social media let me know and I’ll put your name in again.

As always we will allow comments until Friday. Then I’ll contact the winner to get mailing information to pass on to Edie.

 

Edie Melson—author, blogger, speaker—has written numerous books, including While My Soldier Serves, Prayers for Those with Loved Ones in the Military. She’s also the military family blogger at Guideposts.org. Her popular blog for writers, The Write Conversation, reaches thousands each month, and she’s the co-director of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. Connections: Social Media & Networking Techniques for Writers is a print expansion of her bestselling ebook on social media. She’s the Social Media Mentor at My Book Therapy, the Social Media Director for Southern Writers Magazine, and the Senior Editor for NovelRocket.com. Connect on Twitter and Facebook.

 

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