The Truth Behind the Story – An Interview with Beth Teliho

May 12, 2015 Off By Lisa

Grab your coffee cup, friends, because we have a visitor this morning.

Today, I am thrilled to have Beth Teliho, author of one of my new favorite books, Order of Seven, join us for a stop along her blog tour. I reviewed Order of Seven not long ago. You can check that out here. Go ahead, the coffee is still brewing.

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Now that you’re back, let’s get comfortable and learn about some of the truths behind Order of Seven…and stick around for the very end because you can win a very cool prize!

TMoM: Your book has clear undertones (or maybe not so under-) of respect for the environment and protecting the world. There is also a strong message of connectedness to the earth, to other humans, to all living things, really? Where does that come from?

BT: It came from my bones. It’s everything I believe, so much so that it doesn’t even feel like a belief as much as a truth. That connectedness and my love for nature/science will most likely always make its way into my stories one way or another. That being said, from the very beginning I had a clear and deliberate intention to have it be the undercurrent of this particular novel.

TMoM: In what ways do you see Order of Seven as a vehicle for promoting ecological and environmental consciousness?

BT: I hope it plants a seed, or at least leaves readers with a feeling of positivity and connectedness. Other than that, I don’t have some big agenda. I just wrote the story I wanted to read, while threading it with things I love or that I think are important.

OrderofSeven_FC_BNG (1)TMoM: In my years as a high school English teacher, students would often protest when it came time for discussion, arguing that we should leave literature alone, just enjoy the story, and not try to find meaning. They would often insist that authors intended no meaning at all. What are your thoughts?

BT: As an author, it’s incredibly rewarding to have readers understand the meaning you worked so hard to embed, but I do understand from a student’s point of view how tedious this can be at times when all they want to do is read for the love of stories.

I do think discussion is important, though. I read Life of Pi with a college class and learned things I may never have picked up on had I read it on my own, and these details are what made me love the story. I also think these dissections also teach readers – and potential writers – how much more goes into the story than what meets the eye.

Plus, when you’re an adult you get to have these discussions with your book club. #wine

TMoM: In Order of Seven, Devi and her friends will certainly leave behind an important legacy. What legacy would you most like to leave?

BT: Deep thoughts, with Beth Teliho….  Haha Okay, seriously, I would love my legacy to be compassion. I don’t mean to sound cliché or obvious, but I really believe in compassion for others, for animals, for the environment. Be kind. Be helpful. Care.

Karma, dude. Now let’s hold hands around the campfire and sing Kumbaya….

TMoM:  What would you most like your readers to take away from this story?

BT: Positive feelings, a head-banging-cotton-mouthed book hangover, and an insatiable thirst for more.

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Now about that prize… When you read Beth’s book, you’re going to need a bookmark…enter here to win an autographed Order of Seven bookmark!

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 bio picBETH TELIHO is a writer, artist and tree hugger who lives in Texas with her husband and two adventurous sons. Restless in the mundane, she writes about the abnormal, paranormal and otherwise fantastical because that’s what quickens her heartbeat. She laughs at inappropriate jokes, and prefers spicy food and margaritas to almost anything. One day, she hopes to live in a treehouse, where she can be an eccentric introvert with at least seven cats.    

 

 

 

Want to know more about Beth and her writing? You can find her at any of her links below.

Blog: www.bethteliho.me

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/writerbisme

Twitterverse: @beth_teliho

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/bethteliho

Want to be part of Beth’s blog tour? Click here to get involved.

 

CategoryLife
Tagsauthor interviews book reviews books

About The Author

Lisa A. Listwa is a self-employed writer with experience in education, publishing, and the martial arts. Believing there was more to life than punching someone else’s time clock and inspired by the words of Henry David Thoreau, she traded her life as a high school educator for a life as a writer and hasn’t looked back. She is mother to one glorious handful of a daughter, wife to the nicest guy on the planet, and reluctant but devoted owner of three Rotten Cats. You can find her adventures and thoughts on living life deliberately here on the blog.

19 Comments

  • brickhouse says:
    May 12, 2015 at 9:56 am

    I like this interview because it goes deeper into the message or just interests Beth has. I’d like to know how much research you (Beth) had to do to write this? As I mentioned in a FB post, you had to know about physics, geology, geography, sociology, anthropology, archeology and more! Did you study any of these in college? I am not finished yet (vertigo), but they are now in (spoiler alert) Africa. Dying to know what happens. 🙂 Lisa, great interview! 🙂

    • Lisa @ The Meaning of Me says:
      May 12, 2015 at 2:18 pm

      Thanks, Brickhouse Chick! There is so much in Beth’s book, isn’t there? That’s one of the reasons I loved it – so many angles and dimensions to grab the reader.

    • Beth Teliho says:
      May 13, 2015 at 7:14 pm

      Brickhouse, hope you’re feeling better soon. My best friend went through a whole vertigo thing and I don’t wish it on my worst enemy. She had vestibular neuritis (sp?) . Just horrible.

      Anyway, so happy you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read so far! Yes, my degree is in environmental science with a heavy emphasis on geology. Science is my jam! So research (dozens and dozens of hours) was FUN. In fact, it was one of my favorite part. My original manuscript was nearly DOUBLE the size of what you’re reading….so let’s just say you probably could’ve come out with a Master’s in interdisciplinary science had I left it all in! hahaha

  • Considerer says:
    May 12, 2015 at 2:42 pm

    Legacy of compassion? Ya big hippie!

    Great interview, though, and I liked reading about book clubs and Life of Pi, and I guess you do sometimes get more out of a book when you share it with someone. I’ve never really thought of that.

  • Steve says:
    May 13, 2015 at 1:52 pm

    Great interview. It’s great to read about a fellow Texan getting involved with environmental issues. Very cool.

  • Beth Teliho says:
    May 13, 2015 at 7:03 pm

    LISA, thank you for doing this. You asked phenomenal, unique questions and I thoroughly enjoyed answering them!

  • zoe says:
    May 13, 2015 at 8:19 pm

    Cool interview. Im currently 3/4 through the book….I would say where but don’t want to put out a spoiler. These were really good questions Lisa. Maybe finish tonight! Im so envious of an ability to communicate with trees….haven’t gotten over that since starting it.

  • Valerie Newman says:
    May 15, 2015 at 8:56 am

    I downloaded Beth’s book over a month ago and haven’t been able to start it yet. I am looking forward to extreme summer reading to catch up. I feel like Beth is a friend. She is so open and fun.

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