Emily Graves spoke with Joy Farrington about the release of her book, human trafficking and working with people in the sex industries

Joy: It was a bit of a challenge when I was writing it and I had a couple of freak-out moments when I was putting the manuscript together, like: Do I really want everyone to know this? But I actually found it very releasing at the same time. As I was writing my story out, I was processing it again. That's something I'm quite passionate about, that through releasing this book, it would give people permission to share their own story. Often we have so much shame over things that have happened to us, or things we've done and it keeps us bound up. I'm really passionate about seeing people free from shame, because I know what it feels like to feel really ashamed of who you are or what's happened to you. I feel like by telling your story: it's vulnerable, but it kills shame at the same time. I think if I can do that for my life or if that helps somebody else to kill shame in their life, then I'm all for it and I don't mind at all.

Emily: Do you think that a lot of people are scared to talk about these issues?

Joy: Yes, probably. I think if we're looking at it from the Church's point of view, the conversation of sexual exploitation and pornography and the whole online world, I think there is a sense of fear to talk about these things. They're seen as a bit of a taboo subject and they are seen as shameful by a lot of people. I'd say maybe that it's more highlighted in the Church than outside of the Church, but I could be wrong. I think people are afraid to talk about it because it's really powerful when we are able to talk about it and that can be scary for people, but also it's vulnerable.

I think we all struggle with what people think of us and we worry about what they will think when they know this about me, or when they see the full extent of who I am and fully accept my story. Yes, it scares people.

Emily: Why is the book called Broken By Beauty?

Joy: I was struggling for a while to know what to call the book. I went back and forth with a couple of ideas and most of them sounded cheesy. I was then putting together the chapter titles and so, Broken By Beauty, the title of the book, is named after one of the chapters. I talk a lot about my time in Brazil in that chapter. Brazil had had such an impact on my heart and on my life and the phrase 'broken by beauty' essentially just captures that moment of meeting people who are so beautiful but have come out of such dark places, but their beauty and the strength of their story and their journey breaks your heart. I think there's two ways of being broken: one is traumatising and leaves you needing counselling and the other one is actually broken to fix things if that makes sense.

Emily: So what does God's love mean to you now, looking back on the past few years in your own personal experience of where God has taken you and what he has shown you?

Joy: I think I've begun to realise more and more how key his love is, like I can't move without it: it's so central to how I do life and how I think we should all be doing life, to be completely covered in God's love. It talks in the Bible about God being love and his love never failing and we sing those songs and we know those phrases but it's the fact that he is the source of love and therefore love in its entirety comes straight out of him. I can't do any of this without being in his love and it's brought healing to me in such deep ways, but its also enabled me to go to places that otherwise would be a lot harder to go into.

Emily: Yes and that's the real focus at the end of the book isn't it?

Joy: Absolutely, I love love - I know it sounds so cheesy and like one of those moments where you go 'What?', but I just do get so overwhelmed by love for people and for God. And I think it's those moments where you just align yourself with love and you're like, 'Wow!' - you look at somebody and all of a sudden all you see is everything that's amazing in them, even if it's in the most broken situations, just having the eyes of love enables you to see the purity in somebody that is astounding. I love it!

Emily: So how did this book come about?

Joy: I wrote an article for Cross Rhythms in January 2011, just after I got back from Thailand and it felt like a little bit of a blog entry where I just poured out some of my experiences about Thailand and sent it to Jon and Heather who then put it on the Cross Rhythms website. Then Authentic Media who are my publishers saw that article and got in contact with me as a result of that and offered me a book deal and just said they love my story, were really interested in it and wanted to publish it. That's how it came about, very much by accident on my account - but yes, an amazing opportunity!

Emily: So how do you feel knowing that you've written a book?

Joy: It's crazy! I remember being in primary school and making those paper books that you do in creative writing classes. I'd written about a horse or something and he'd made friends with a fairy - and that sort of primary school dream that one day I'm going to write a book - but as you get older you're like, No: that's a bit unrealistic. But it's actually happened: it's amazing and it's such a privilege, such a dream!