Kimberley Woodhouse is joining us today to talk about … dinosaurs and her soon-to-release novel!
A couple of years ago, I asked my Facebook reader friends if there was a subject they would like to see covered in Christian Fiction that really hadn’t been tackled before. It generated a lot of conversation and several great suggestions. But in the middle of all of those comments, one caught my eye.
Dinosaurs.
Photo Credit: Renette Steele
At first, I was a bit hesitant to try and wrap my brain around paleontology, science and faith. Dinosaurs are so fascinating and the history around them is vast. And anytime science and faith intersect, it can get interesting. (Let’s just say writing this book had me praying a whole bunch.)
But what came out of this adventure into paleontology is my new book, The Secrets Beneath, releasing September 26!
I am SO excited about this book and this series. One – it’s a series that explores the joy of God’s creation and digging to see what treasures one can find in the dirt. Two – I got the opportunity to learn about women in paleontology from the early 1800s into the 1900s. Their passion and love for fossils and learning was inspiring. And three – it has been one of my favorite books to write. Ever.
The best part about writing this was the research. I traveled to Dinosaur National Monument, which is on the northwest border of Colorado and Utah in the Uinta Mountains. There you can see incredible skeletons of dinosaurs, all shapes and sizes, on display.
You can also travel through the park and get the chance to dig to some of your own fossils, a fantastic souvenir to take home, if you find one. The beauty and majesty of this park stretches on for miles and miles. The scenery is breathtaking.
And highly inspirational for an author!
Dinosaur National Monument is home to a massive bone quarry was found in 1908 by Earl Douglass, a paleontologist for the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh, PA. It was his story, struggle and passion for exploring the secrets hidden beneath the layers of dirt and rock in our world, that inspired much of this story. I had the pleasure of meeting his granddaughter, Diane Douglass Iverson. She spoke with me at great length about Earl’s persistence in a profession that was often painstakingly slow with little reward. Diane also shared about her grandfather’s love for God’s creation, and the songs and prose it inspired in him. He once wrote, “Every little untouched spot of nature, every tree, every plant suggests new ideas and and is a little incentive for the world of the imagination.” (Speak To the Earth and It Will Teach You: The Life and Times of Earl Douglass, 1862-1931) What a beautiful thought.
I am deeply indebted to Diane for the generosity of her time, and the permission to share quotes from her grandfather throughout this book.
My prayer for The Secrets Beneath is that readers come away with a sense of awe for the power and creativity of the Lord. As readers get to know Anna and Joshua, I hope they are inspired by their love for the West with all it’s grandeur and danger, each other, and their journey to gain a deeper understanding of the love and grace of Jesus.
To celebrate my new release, I’m doing two giveaways! One on my website, that celebrates my other series set in the West: Secrets of the Canyon Giveaway. This giveaway has a grand prize with a ton of goodies! (And a pre-order of The Secrets Beneath counts as an entry.)
I’m also doing a giveaway here on Petticoats and Pistols!
Comment below and let me know what your favorite dinosaur is.
If you don’t have one, I’d love to know: what your favorite thing about historical fiction?
I’ll pick two lucky winners to get a copy of The Secrets Beneath.
Until then, enjoy the journey!
Kimberley
Get your copy of The Secrets Beneath
(40% off plus free shipping)
Kim has been writing seriously for more than twenty years. Songs, plays, short stories, novels, picture books, articles, newsletters – you name it – she’s written it. It wasn’t until a dear friend challenged her to “do something with it” that she pursued publication. Now, she is a best-selling author of more than two dozen books, with more on the way. She has won The Carol Award, The Reader’s Choice Award, The Holt Medallion, and has finaled in the Selah Awards and the Spur Awards.
She is passionate about Bible study, reading, music, cooking, and pretty-much-all-things-crafty. Kimberley has been married to her incredible husband for twenty-nine years and counting and they have two married adult children.
Learn more about her on her website: Kimberleywoodhouse.com
My favorite dinosaur is the triceratops.
Tyrannosaurus so huge.
Don’t really have a favorite dinosaur.
My favorite is the Brontosaurus.
My favorite is Dino. LOL
Thanks for stopping by! I like how one person mentioned dinosaurs and you took off with the subject! Wonderful!
Your new book sounds very interesting. Triceratops is the first one that comes to mind. Thanks for the chance to win a prize.
cartoon dinosaurs. I love all the timeline of history from way back to medieval times to the present. Love your books.
Don’t really have one, but loved the movies, Land Before Time.
I love historical fiction partly because I loved History in school! I still like to learn how things were and could have been back then. I also grew up watching westerns, which also helps fuel my imagination, too!
I don’t have a favorite dinosaur. I love historical fiction because I have learned so much history through it. And it has been much more fun than the history we studied in school…lol. Thanks for the giveaway :).
Historical fiction which is my favorite genre allows me to escape and travel to another era and place. What an enjoyable and memorable experience.
Brontosaurus, long neck, I’m tall so I have a love for all tall animals, giraffes are my favorite. I love the Jurassic Park movies, especially the ones with Alan Grant in them. Your book sounds so interesting.
I don’t really have a favorite dinosaur. My favorite thing about historical fiction is being “transported” to a different time and place and way of life. I’ve been seeing all the previews of your new book and can’t wait to read it. It sounds really wonderful.
Welcome back, Kimberley! You always have the most interesting subjects to blog about. I’ve always had a love for archeology and digging in the ground. The earth contains so many secrets beneath the layers of dirt. I confess I’m not especially drawn to dinosaurs. I’m more interested in the human bones and signs they left behind of their existence. Enjoy your stay. l’m wishing you much success with your newest book.
Thank you so much!!!!
I do not have a favorite dinosaur, but my husband and I visited a museum in South Dakota where they had dug up a number of dinosaurs in one place. I do not remember the location for sure, but we had to venture off our original route to get there. I was not disappointed at all. They also had a replica of a dwelling which supposedly was used during that time. It was extremely fascinating. All I can remember is they were big skeletons. But, I believe they all were. Your forthcoming book sounds very interesting. I admire every author who takes the time to research their subject matter so each reader can get more accuracy of the subject. I wish you the best in your writing career. I also look forward to reading “the Secrets Beneath” .
Historical fiction is fascinating and captivating. The portrayal of lives lived in a completely unique period of time and place is enthralling and unforgettable.
Don’t have a favorite dinosaur but I love history and reading about it.
no fav
My favorite is the brontosaurus(long neck). I joke calling one of our dogs a long neck dinosaur because of how long she stretches her ner neck.
So cool. I didnt really care about dinosaurs growing up. And then I got Epilepsy at 13 so much went on the way side. When our first was born, a boy, he fell in love with dinosaurs as soon as was humanly possible. He is 38 now and still loves dinos. So I started to fall in love with them also. I was going to fuel his passion at the time. Didnt know it would last his whole life so I was glad I encouraged it. He was going to become a paleontologist. When he went into kindergarten he even knew how to spell this. He could name all his dinosaurs. So picking one is difficult for me. (smile) but I do love the Triceratops and Brontosaurus
I had a nice long post on historical fiction and my computer dumped it when I had to take a break. No real favorite dinosaur. I enjoy learning about them all.
I enjoy well researched historical fiction because it gives me a window into another time period and what life was like for people. History was my least favorite subject in school. Memorizing dates, names, and events really didn’t teach much. The how and why is much more important and relevant to really learn something. At the end of my senior year of high school, my American History teacher assigned us to read a historical fiction book, our choice. I chose Lusing ydia Bailey by Kenneth Roberts. It was an author and type of fiction I had never read. It was an eye opener. The book covered the Napoleonic era, Haiti slave rebellion, and the Barbary pirates. I had never really heard anything about the last 2. Seeing events from the personal level of the characters makes history come alive and make more sense. I had a history methods professor in college who did not believe in preparing teachers to teach history by memorization. He felt the best ay to learn how to teach it was to learn how the information was gathered to write th history books. H had us pick a topic, research it in the field, then write what we found. That was such an eye opener. Once I got into the field, the information I found sent me in so many different directions discovering things I would never have thought of. It was a valuable experience and made me appreciate how important the little details can be to understanding historical events.
I don’t have a favorite but I work with children and one of the pre school boys has a backpack with all the dinosaurs on it and I think that cute.
I don’t have a favorite.
Brontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex.
So excited for this book!! I adore dinosaurs and the T-Rex is my favorite. It wins every time in the Jurassic movies. Lol! I love that you had so much fun writing this. You are amazing!!
As a child I read the book The Enormous Egg by Oliver Butterworth. So I always claimed the Triceratops as my favorite dinosaur.
I don’t really have a favorite but I do kind of like the ones with really long necks that eat off of tall trees. Not sure which ones those are, but I remember liking them from the Land Time Forgot movies.
Velociraptor.
denise
I taught dinosaurs and the Bible using two books about dinosaurs. My Pastor set outside Junior class to listen. Then he preached about it. The kids really loved it. I don’t have a favorite. Love them all. I sent books to my grandsons. Levicorne ,(sp) not sure spelling is in the Bible
Welcome. I do not know much about dinosaurs. My favorite thing about historical fiction is even if it is fictional, there are historical facts to be learned from reading. Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
Stegosaurus the one with fin like spikes is my favorite. My grandson loves dinosaurs.
I haven’t been to Dinosaur National Monument. My son and his wife are environmental scientists for the National Park Service and they go there frequently. I did see dinosaur footprints at Zion National Park on the Subway hike. So amazing to see!
I don’t really have a favorite, but my son loved dinosaurs when he was young. He had quite a few of the toy ones. We even decorated his room with dinosaurs! He could tell you the names of each, what kind they were, & what they ate. He’s 37 now! I still remember a few ones myself. Haha We went to few places (zoos) & other places when they had those on display . Some would move & roar! Fun trips, We also went to museums where they had the bones (skeleton ) on display, but he really enjoyed the Dinosaur National Monument! We went by there on one of our vacations. He could see all those bones still in the dirt & thought it was fascinating. (His dad & I thought so too! )
I’m looking forward to reading your new book, Secrets Beneath
Ginny