This is Me

Official Bio

(scroll down for something a little less formal)

Two-time Award-winning writer Jan Hemby is a native North Carolinian who is proud of her small-town heritage. Her first novel, The Gates Manor Band, was published in 2016 with the sequel, Secrets and Surrender, debuting in February, 2019. Her book, Burnt Toast: Devotions for Imperfect People, was released in February of 2018 and ranked number six out of the top one hundred new devotional releases on Amazon. It also received the silver medal in the Jenkins Group Illumination Book Awards’ 2019 Enduring Light Devotional Category. Jan’s first novel, The Gates Manor Band, also received the silver medal from the Jenkins Group Illumination Book Awards’ 2020 Enduring Light Christian Fiction category. 

Jan is also an inspirational speaker who has been featured at numerous book clubs, libraries, churches, and civic organizations. She currently lives in Wilson, North Carolina with her husband, Billy. They have two grown daughters, Hope and Cara, and two grand-puppies, Gatsby and Daisy. 

Something A Little Less Formal

Whew! Glad that's behind us.. Now we can just talk!

I've always wanted to be a writer. When I say "always," I really mean it. I started writing poetry

and short stories when I was in the first grade. Yep, at the tender age of six I had a poem

published in the weekly class newsletter. It was printed on one of those old mimeograph 

machines that turned your fingers purple. I still have a copy of it somewhere in my attic!  

Fast-forward ten years. At the age of sixteen I had an encounter with something that changed 

my life in more ways than I'll ever be able to communicate; although I'm sure gonna try! That "something" was the love of God. It's my goal to share the truth of that love through messages that are fresh and relevant.  Hence, my blogs and my devotional book Burnt Toast: Devotions 

for Imperfect People. In addition, I've written two fiction books, The Gates Manor Band and, the sequel, Secrets and Surrender.  Both of these contain a powerful message of redemption. You won't be able to put them down! 

Now, I realize that sounds like I'm bragging. Trust me, I'm not. When my first book was published, and none of my friends knew (yet) that I could write, I was offering to pick up their dry cleaning, mow their lawns - you name it - if they would read my work! The reason I can say with confidence 

that you'll love my books is because I can't take all the credit. I work with a publishing company that has the most talented editing crew a girl could ask for. It's a team effort whenever one of my books is successful. 

However, success isn't just measured by awards or even book sales, although those things are important.  Real success, to me,  is when a life is changed because of something I've written. It's when readers tell me my devotional book helped them get through a difficult season. It's when a friend approaches me at a book signing to tell me that she, like the character Margaret in my fiction books, had been a victim of abuse, and that the book's message of healing spoke directly to her. 

That's why I do what I do. I hope my writing will introduce you - perhaps for the first time - to a love that doesn't just specialize in the difficult, but the impossible. There's only one thing it can't do, and that is fail. 

Thank you for allowing me to share a little "about me."  To stay in touch, please click on the "Contact Us" page and provide your email so I can let you know about book releases and upcoming events.  

With the COVID 19 quarantine, my speaking engagements and books signings have been put on hold. The silver lining is that I've had lots (and LOTS) of time to write. A new devotional book is forthcoming!

My three books are available online at Amazon.com.. Amazon is offering lots of specials during the quarantine, so don't miss out!

The Gates Manor Band 

Secrets and Surrender 

Burnt Toast: Devotions for Imperfect People