About the Book

Book: Fences Left Broken

Author: Kristen Terrette

Genre: YA

Release Date: October 13, 2023

Mia’s father is dead, and her mother has left her in the rural Mississippi Delta town of Marigold with family she’s never known. Her two sets of grandparents are separated not only by a fence dividing their properties, but by skin color and a deep-seated hatred for each other which none of them will discuss.
When Mia learns their mutual hatred concerns a long-ago murder, she and her new friends set out to uncover who was murdered and why. Their search leads them to unspoken secrets and buried tragedies, stretching from the years of the Great Depression to the Freedom Summer Movement of ‘64.
Mia hopes to reconcile her grandparents by finding the truth. But can broken family fences be truly mended in the face of decades of unforgiving hate?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

With a background in education and theology, Kristen served as a children’s ministry director and women’s leader for many years before returning to her first love—writing the stories playing out in her head. She dove into the publishing world writing numerous articles, devotionals, and novels in both the Romance and Young Adult genres. After managing an international blog and a publishing house’s social media feed, she found herself as an intern at the esteemed literary agency, Writers House, in the summer of 2022.

This landed her a job with Martin Literary Management where she now takes on author clients of her own. Stories are her thing and authors are her people. When not on her computer writing, editing, or emailing, or with her nose in a book, you can find her getting a little too loud from the sidelines of a kids’ basketball or football game. She’s also a recent transplant to rural Georgia where she thrives on jogging her forty acres terribly, drinking coffee while birdwatching, and daydreaming of new book characters, plotlines, and making her client’s dreams come true (which are her dreams as well).

More from Kristen

All you need is a spark.

When people find out I’m an author or have read one of my books, I’m often asked how I came up with the story. My answer is always the same. They all begin with a spark, a small idea, sometimes even taking root first in a remote corner of my mind, that says, “There’s a story there.” And that one spark lights, then it quadruples, over and over until it ends up a bright and thriving fire.

The spark for Fences Left Broken was a documentary from 2016 called Dirt & Deeds in Mississippi which told of “the largely unknown and pivotal role played (in the Freedom Sumer Movement and the Voting Rights Act) by black landowning families in the deep South who controlled over a million acres in the 1960s.” This documentary was fascinating and linked generations who had no idea just how important they would end up being in a much-needed and changing time in history. Black sharecroppers who benefitted from an agricultural program during Roosevelt’s New Deal became landowners overnight. Skip ahead a few decades, and these same landowners, or their heirs, had the power to force change.

In the sixties, Mississippi law said that if you were a landowner, you could vote, which opened doors for black families. But, also, these black landowners had leverage. Land was king. Land was also collateral. So when Freedom Summer came along and the wave of black Southerners tried to register to vote, these black landowners had a unique advantage.

Blacks and whites who were volunteering for the Freedom Summer Movement were arrested, often on bogus charges like disrupting the peace and put in jail. But guess what? Black landowners put their land titles up as collateral and got these people out on bond.

Even crazier, out of the hundreds of arrests and bail bonds issued that summer, not ONE failed to follow through and appear in court. Not ONE person charged with a bogus crime was found in default, their bail revoked, and the bond kept. This means not ONE black family who put their land up as collateral lost it.

Historians have gone so far as to say the success of Freedom Summer and the result of the Voting Rights Act wouldn’t have been possible without these families risking it all for the sake of justice and equality.

This documentary was my spark. I got to thinking about these families. They were real people, now generations of people, living in these intertwined communities. What would this have looked like through the years? What became of these families? Where are they now?

And the rabbit trail of my mind began. That spark ignited, and I followed it, outlining potential events that could have happened to families in Mississippi before and after the 1960s, and it all led to my main character, Mia. And Fences Left Broken was born.

I hope you enjoyed learning some little-known history, and a little tidbit of my writing inspiration. And I hope you are curious to find out more about Mia’s story!

Interview with Kristen

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

100% in elementary school. I won awards every year in our Young Author’s Fairs at school. By high school and college, I was the family go-to to help with reports, essays, etc. My mom still tells stories about how I would write something to help one of my sisters in like five minutes, and it would be poignant and perfect. I don’t really remember doing this, but I’m glad I could help!

How long does it take you to write a book?

Typically, six months.

What is your real-life work schedule like when writing?

I am by far the most productive in the morning. I have prayer time, take my son to school, come home, get MORE coffee, and go to work. Overall, I’ve always worked while the kids are at school and the hubs is at work.

What are your favorite books to read?

I’m pretty eclectic, but I mostly read YA books— any and all in this genre except sci-fi. And I do love inspirational and historical fiction. And suspense and thrillers… I am all over the place!

When did you write your first book and how old were you?

See above! I know in 3^rd grade I wrote a book and won an award I was very proud of! So at eight years old.

How do you create your main characters?

Good question. I think I come up with their circumstances first— like their formative life events—then figure out how these would have shaped them as teens or adults. And this is a starting point also for how their character will evolve. 

What would you say is the most difficult part of writing a book?

Staying focused! Not going down the rabbit holes of research and social media and who-knows-what-else. Also, people tell me all the time, “I want to write a book.” Or “I have a book in mind.” And my constant response is to just start writing. It’s the hardest part. The starting and staying focused.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I love to jog (outside, NOT on a treadmill!), hike my property or anywhere really, go the beach, sit by a bonfire with drink in hand, and watch my son play basketball.

What does your family think of your writing?

Well, my husband and kids are surely proud of me, mostly because writing a whole book, much less books, are way out of their area of expertise and comfort zone. They haven’t read my books but have certainly heard a ton about them. Sadly, I’m the reader/writer/booklover of the family. They’re more into sports and TV, lol.

Do you base your characters on real people?

My characters are a mix of real people and totally made up. 🙂

Have you experienced writer’s block, and how do you handle it?

Yes, for sure. I mostly just keep pushing on in another way. Since a lot of my stories deal with historical events, I find myself researching more a lot of the time. I follow rabbit trails on the internet quite often. This can give me inspiration or challenge me to think of a scene or character differently which may shake something new out.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

The publishing world overall is full of incredibly generous and kind people!

How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?

Seven, but one will never see the light of day! It was a my first and worst for sure! But, my favorite is honestly this one, Fences Left Broken.

Where can readers find out more about you and your books?

I am pretty active on social media. J Instagram. Facebook. X.

They can also find me here: Website. Amazon. Goodreads.

Any current or upcoming projects you’d like to tell us about?

My current work-in-progress is not quite a sequel to Fences Left Broken, but it will take place in the “next county over” and a few Fences characters may make their way into the story. It’s also a timeslip with a group of teens. These high schoolers are rallying to have a statue taken down in the town square, and part of the storyline involves the “Hanging Bridge” which also makes an appearance in Fences Left Broken. It is also based on historical events. (I can’t help myself!). Its working title is What Must Come Down.

Blog Stops

Tell Tale Book Reviews, March 8 (Author Interview)

For Him and My Family, March 8

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 9

Artistic Nobody, March 10 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 11

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, March 12 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, March 13

A Reader’s Brain, March 14 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, March 15

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, March 16 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol, March 17

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, March 18 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 19

Guild Master, March 20 (Author Interview)

Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, March 20

Fiction Book Lover, March 21 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Kristen is giving away the grand prize package of a $75 dollar Amazon gift card and a copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/2a553/fences-left-broken-celebration-tour-giveaway