My reading habits have shifted in the past few years. Frustrated with less-than-subtle agendas in modern books, I've focused more on Christian books. How freeing to know I won't have to encounter unsavory content or wade through endless expletives! In addition, I'm honing in on specific authors and following their publication paths. My list of beloved authors is growing.
One author I've added to that list is Sara Brunsvold. I had the rare opportunity to attend an author talk just days after finishing her first two books. Sara is a down-to-earth, personable, and committed author. I am impressed by her drive to submit her writing to the guidance and use of God. She does something I always intend to do before each writing session, but often forget: she prays at the outset of every writing session. That is powerful!
Sara's books provide realistic characters in difficult circumstances that emphasize the grace and purpose of God. I have enjoyed every single one of her titles. Her most popular is her debut novel, The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs. Kip, which won the 2020 ACFW Genesis Award for Contemporary Fiction. I had this title noted in my phone many months before I saw an advertisement for her author talk at a local church near me. This book has garnered 734 five-star ratings on Amazon. My review can be found here.
Her second novel, The Divine Proverb of Streusel, really struck a chord with me. It emphasized things we share in common. I grew up in several small towns in Missouri and have a German heritage. Even though I'm not much of a cook, I copied out several of the German recipes shared in the novel. Many of the questions I asked at the author talk focused on this book.
Just a few months ago, Revell released her third novel, The Atlas of Untold Stories. This is a story of a mother-daughters road trip to literary locations in the Midwest. Relationships between mothers, daughters, and sisters can be complex. I loved how the journey led to great self-awareness, forgiveness, and redemption. Click here to read my review. Thanks to my pre-order, I also secured a guide to the road trip, in case I wish to take my own road trip one day retracing the steps of these characters. Shortly after the release, I reached out to Sara for an interview. If you haven't yet read a Sara Brunsvold book, you should remedy that soon.
Q1: Please share with us the research process that went into creating The Atlas of Untold Stories. Did you visit these locations with your own daughters in tow?
Sara: As a lifelong Midwesterner and an English major, I was familiar with the rich literary heritage the middle of the country boasts. I wanted to showcase that heritage. For research, I started inventorying the many Midwest sites connected to American literature. After whittling down the list to those my characters would most likely visit, I re-read the literature associated with those sites and studied the biographies of the authors. I was also able to visit many of the sites myself, often with my daughters and husband along with me. On one trip, my mom was with me, which was a sweet memory.
Q2: Which literary location was your favorite? If a reader only has time or means to visit one location on this literary road trip, what is a must-see?
Sara: If you have time for only one visit, I would recommend the Branson and Mansfield, Missouri, area. The two sites are fairly close together. Mansfield is where Laura Ingalls Wilder lived in her later years and wrote the Little House books. Her home and farm have been well-preserved, and the museum is amazing. Meanwhile, Branson is where Harold Bell Wright wrote The Shepherd of the Hills. The historic farm where the novel is set has been preserved for tours, and a stage production of the story takes place on the farm.
Q3: Did you have a favorite Midwestern author prior to embarking on the research and writing of this novel?
Sara: I grew up near Hannibal, Missouri, which is the boyhood hometown of Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain). He will always have a special place in my reader’s heart.
Q4: In the acknowledgements, you mention praying for future readers every time you sit down to write. What a gift! Can you describe how you prepare for each writing session? Is there a favorite writing location? Important writing utensil? Mindset motivator?
Sara: I start every writing session with prayer. That is a must. I keep my eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfector of my faith and every word that springs from it. Readers are almost always in view for me as I pray over my writing session. Most days, I am writing at home at my desk in the corner of my bedroom. Sometimes, though, a change of scenery helps spark creativity. In those cases, I will go to the library, a park, or a local coffee shop.
Q5: In every novel I have worked on, I've hit several walls (mostly toward the middle of the writing process). What is your favorite or most effective writer's block buster?
Sara: I relate to this! I once heard an author coach talk about “upstream issues,” and that was a game-changer for me. More often than not, the issue is not “writer’s block,” but a kink upstream from the place where the creativity seems to have run dry. I will go back several chapters (sometimes all the way back to the beginning, if necessary) and read/edit my way through the manuscript again. Maybe I made a decision earlier that isn’t quite playing out as well as I hoped. Maybe there is a detail that jumps out at me as a thread I need to pull forward in the scene where I’m stuck. Maybe the pacing is off, or the emotional arc is askew. A time or two, I just needed a reminder of how much I love the story I’m working on. Resolving upstream issues is my go-to fix.
Q6: I'm impressed with how you integrate your faith in your writing. You seem deeply dedicated to pursuing what God wants from your writing. Do you have any advice for Christian writers on how to integrate faith without hammering the message over the story? This is one of my chief complaints about some Christian fiction. I believe the story should supersede and subtly convey the message.
Sara: Spoken like a true artist whose heart belongs to Christ! One thing I observe about the author community is how we tend to overthink this, and I get it. When you are creating something in worship of a Holy God, it is only right to be reverent about what you put on the page. That said, the very same Holy God for whom we are worshipfully creating is fully capable of guiding us on where to use heavy strokes of Christian content in our art and where to have a lighter touch. If we are bowed before Him as we write, He is faithful to guide us. We don’t have to try to figure it out in our own reasoning.
Q7: The Atlas of Untold Stories emphasizes how important it is to allow our children space to become their own person. This is a personal struggle for me. God gives us each a unique story. I read a quote, "You cannot protect your child from their testimony." As a parent with a child attempting to break the chains of drug use, I wonder what you would say is the most important action involved in letting go?
Sara: What a wonderful, convicting quote. This is a deep question, and one I feel ill-equipped to answer. As I navigate the season of motherhood in which our girls are preparing to launch, I have leaned on prayer more than ever. Sometimes it is the only action I can take.
Q8: Branching off from those ideas, what would you say is the most powerful thing you have learned from the story God has entrusted in your life?
Sara: The most powerful lesson I’ve learned in my own testimony is surrender. Surrender to Jesus, surrender to God’s plans for my life, and daily surrender to the work He sets before me. Of course, surrender in motherhood is a big thing He is currently teaching me.
Q9: With these outstanding books under your belt, do you experience pressure to perform to the high standard you've established? How do you combat that pressure?
Sara: If I allow myself to, I certainly feel the pressure of expectations. But I have to remind myself that I’m not the main character. God is. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, so if He guided me through three books by his grace, He will do it again, for His own glory. That is the point I come back to in my prayers over my writing ministry. He will accomplish what He sets out to do; my job is to be obedient with the skills, time, and opportunities He has entrusted to me. I try to stay centered on that – and my husband is very good at helping me to that end.
Q10: Can you give us a glimpse into what you are working on now?
Sara: My fourth book, which releases in Fall 2026, takes the cross-generational female friendships of Steel Magnolias and mixes it with the forging of Christian community like in Neta Jackson’s The Yada Yada Prayer Group.
I'm grateful to Sara for taking her time to answer my questions. Her contemporary Christian fiction emphasizes hope, truth, and life. I love redemption in any story. It is so encouraging when brokenness finds healing and God moves in lives to restore and uplift. Sara taps into this so well in her novels. Be sure to check them out! You can find out more information, or sign on for her author newsletter, at her author website.
