Why I Write Allegories by Denise Hunter

Happy Monday everyone! Annette here. Welcome to our first Featured Genre Day. Every now and then we're going to host writers who will share about why they write the genre they write. Gives us an inside look at the many facets of Christian books.

Denise Hunter has been publishing fiction for years. But I didn't read her work until the well-received novel Surrender Bay. I kept hearing great feedback on this book and finally had to see for myself. So glad I did. You can read my review of Surrender Bay here.

Surrender Bay was followed by another allegory in the Nantucket Love Story series, The Convenient Groom. Her new book, Seaside Letters, will release in October.

I've had an interest in the symbolism of allegories for years and have wondered about writing them myself. So, I was curious about why Denise chose to write allegories.

Here's what she said:

I love the way Jesus told stories. His parables made his listeners think for themselves and draw their own conclusions. In his story of the Prodigal Son, Jesus never said, “Listen folks, the father in the story is God, and the Prodigal Son is you.” The son never had a “come to Jesus” moment, he simply returned to his father and was welcomed home with open arms. Jesus required the listeners to draw the connection for a reason. An allegory allows us to see the familiar in a fresh and powerful way, and that’s what I hoped to do with Surrender Bay.

Just for fun, readers, here's the blurb about her upcoming book:

Their letters could lead to lasting love . . . or expose Sabrina's mortifying secret.

Sabrina Kincaid didn't intend to fall for Nantucket native Tucker McCabe, the man she serves coffee to every morning-a man tied deeply to a past she deeply regrets. But she has. And she's fallen hard.

But she's kept this a secret from her handsome customer. And now Tucker wants to hire Sabrina to help locate his friend "Sweetpea"-the mysterious woman he's falling in love with online. Sabrina is not inclined to help, but if Tucker hires someone else, it could spell disaster. Because if someone else sifted through the emails and figured out the truth-then Tucker would discover that the person he's trying to find is . . . her.

Thanks for dropping by, Denise. We wish you the best!

Denise Hunter lives in Indiana with her husband Kevin and their three sons. In 1996, Denise began her first book, a Christian romance novel, writing while her children napped. Two years later it was published, and she's been writing ever since. Her books often contain a strong romantic element, and her husband Kevin says he provides all her romantic material, but Denise insists a good imagination helps too!