About Kristena

Hi everyone,

I wanted this page to be a little more personal.

I live in the Cincinnati, Ohio area, with my husband, Mark. We’ve been married for over 40 years.
He is, without a doubt, my best friend. Our road hasn’t always been smooth, but I’m sure anyone who has been married a third of a century would confirm that the ditches in the road helped to create our strong bond of closeness.

One of my favorite family pictures take in 2008 just before my son left for the Air Force

I have three grown children: Bethany, my oldest, is an outgoing redhead with the most amazing generous spirit I have ever known. She is beautiful both inside and out.
Kellena is my middle child. She is spunky and vibrant, and has always been a leader. Her smile can make any dark day brighter.
Jacob, my youngest, is a writer too, although I’m not sure he realizes it yet. I love his sense of humor and his upbeat personality. He’s in his thirties and stands two heads taller than I do, but he’ll always be my little boy who promised he would never grow up. (sorry Jake)

I’ve always been a storyteller. Some of my earliest memories are with my sister and school friends huddled together, making up stories. I first remember writing them down for school English projects. The first book I wrote was in high school. I showed this to only one younger girl I used to babysit. She grew into a close friend in later years, but we never spoke of that book again and I have since lost all but a couple of chapters.

I am a Christian and I write from a Christian world view, but not all my stories can be called “Christian” stories. Some of my characters are rough and are not believers. Since they don’t all believe in God they don’t act or speak as one would who abide by the Biblical guidelines. My stories sometimes contain mild swearing and can allude to actions that aren’t promoted in a Christian lifestyle. Why do I have these characters in my stories? Because we live in a world where this is a reality. We aren’t all perfect; we fall short of even our own ideals. But God demonstrated His love for us, that while we were still sinners, He died for us. (Rom 5:8)
My characters find their way through struggles, just as I did. My hope and prayer is that those who read my books/stories, see themselves in my work and are pointed to the complete love that is in Christ.
My greatest priority and highest calling is to honor God in all I do. This includes the talents and abilities He’s given me. Like writing.

I am a member of ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) and Writers Village University, among others.  I have enjoyed both but Writers Village University was where I really got my start; I had started my book before joining this group, but I had no confidence as a writer. I had no idea anyone could ever enjoy my scribbles!  I would highly recommend anyone interested in writing, to join the Writer’s Village University Beginning and General Writing Classes

Going to a writers’ conference is an extraordinary experience and one I will continue to do each year as long as I’m able. In fact, you may see me at more than one throughout the upcoming years. I met some of the most caring and loving people and learned more than I ever knew there was to learn about writing!

Here I am accepting my award.
I had an amazing time at the ACWC (Asheville Christian Writers Conference)

One thing I learned was that the book I had just won an award for, still wasn’t quite ready to be published! There is a lot to do when writing a book. The first draft is the easy part. Editing and cutting out all the (much loved) fluff is excruciating, but must be done.

I guess that does it, for now; I’ll update and add more facts from time to time.

—Kristena

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