Spotlight on Lisa Phillips

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Elle E. Kay earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Lisa Phillips is a USA Today and top ten Publishers Weekly bestselling author of Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense, independently published series romantic suspense, and thriller novels. She’s discovered a penchant for high-stakes stories of mayhem and disaster where you can find made-for-each-other love that always ends in happily ever after.

Lisa is a British ex-pat who grew up an hour outside of London and attended Calvary Chapel Bible College, where she met her husband. He’s from California, but nobody’s perfect. It wasn’t until her Bible College graduation that she figured out she was a writer (someone told her). Lisa is a worship leader, tea aficionado, and dog lover of two crazy Airedales.

Connect with Lisa:
Website | Instagram | Goodreads

Welcome to Heartbeats & Hideaways!

To celebrate her visit, our guest is offering one winner a copy of The Lazarus Protocol. Simply leave a comment on today’s post to enter the giveaway. A winner will be selected from the comments, so jump into the discussion below!

Thanks for joining us today, Lisa. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.

What first inspired you to become a writer, and how did your journey begin?

The dean of the Bible college I attended announced, “this is Lisa, she’s a writer” at my graduation ceremony! It was a small class at a small extension campus, and I was blessed to be there. God definitely planted a seed in me that day.

I had the privilege of seeing that dean again years later and telling him how much of an impact his words had on the course of my life. And I got to show him my books!

After graduating, I got married and moved to Idaho. I took Christian Writer’s Guild classes, connected with a local author group, and started writing. Every author’s first 3 or 4 books should NEVER see the light of day (mine, anyway) and eventually I was picked up by Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense line! I started indie publishing around the same time as my first LIS came out, and I’ve never looked back.

What does your typical writing process look like from idea to finished manuscript?

My process involves huge Post-It poster paper, a million Sharpie’s, and a lot of lying on the floor staring at the wall. Voice texting friends my ideas so far. Bouncing things off anyone who will listen.

When the story clicks and starts to feel exciting, I get to work writing a fourth of the story at a time. Usually I plan the next section after I write each one, though I have a general idea of where the story will go when I start. I work best with a plan, and lots of notes, and the ticking timer of a sprint! (Shout out to my sprints channel author friends!)

How do you develop believable characters that readers connect with emotionally?

I think if characters feel like real people then the reader will connect with them emotionally. But first, I have to connect with them. I have to know what they want more than anything, why, and how far they’ll go to get it. The best characters are those who are pushing forward in their lives, going after something. They keep a story on its toes!

What role does faith play in your work, both personally and creatively?

Faith plays a huge role in my work, I thank God for every idea and I have to lean on Him to show me how to refill the well of my creativity. It’s only by His grace that I’m able to do what I do. Even if the story doesn’t explicitly glorify Him (kind of like the book of Esther) I know He’s there working. Sort of like real life!

I also lead worship in my ministry, and that sweet time of connecting with the Lord and fellowshipping with people as they worship stirs my creativity. I’ll be leading worship at the Read Write Rendezvous this year in Nashville!

What’s next for you—are there any upcoming projects or releases readers should look forward to?

I’m kind of obsessed with my new series! (And why not?) I decided to write a romantic suspense wrapped in a spy thriller. My stories are always pretty complex, and these have more pov characters and more threads. They remind me of books like The Bourne Identity, or novels by Brad Thor or Vince Flynn.

Division Zero is a CIA black ops team, and each of them has a dangerous secret. They’re going to fall in love, fight with each other, get injured, get back up, and go out there to save the world from a dangerous enemy who has an insidious plan to take control.
If that sounds like something you might love, definitely check it out!

A suspicious death in Washington, ruled an accident.
A team dispatched into hostile territory.
A covert agent, bruised and hunted, but very much alive.

The CIA saved Stephanie-Jo’s life. Now she owes them her soul, and there’s no way out. When a private black-ops team becomes her only chance at survival, the mission shifts to a battle of wills. These men answer to no government, only to each other, and they’re hunting the same device she’s been sent to secure. Steph’s handlers don’t accept failure. She has to complete the mission—or die trying.

Adam Helton was declared dead by the Army years ago. Now he leads a team racing the clock to retrieve sensitive technology from a hostile zone, unaware of what will be unleashed if they fail. He’s always risked everything, but this time the stakes are different. Caught between the loyalty he lives by and the oath he swore a long time ago, Adam must risk it all if any of them are going to make it out intact.

With a ruthless group of true believers closing in and an enemy who always seems one step ahead, Division Zero faces its greatest test yet. Every thread they pull in this global conspiracy only reveals another, placing them squarely in the crosshairs as they race to stop an ally from making a catastrophic mistake.

The greatest threat isn’t always the one coming for you.
Sometimes it’s the one standing beside you.