Interview with Tara Grace Ericson

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Tara Grace Ericson is one of my local writing pals, and I'm so pleased to have her on the blog today! I hope you'll enjoy learning about her and her stories, and maybe you'll want to check some of them out for yourself! 😊

Q: Welcome, Tara! You write small town romance set in the fictional town of Minden, Indiana. What drew you to writing small town stories? Is Minden based on a real place?

A: Minden is based on several small Indiana towns I used to travel through on my commute. I would see the small cafe or the little white church and think about the people who lived there. Really, though, it could be any small town tucked into a rural area and filled with people who still love Jesus, and believe in their community and helping each other out.

I love the nostalgia and simplicity of small-town life, My first book, Falling On Main Street, start with a "What-if" (like so many good stories do!), asking what if a corporate bigshot found herself fallen from grace and retreating to a small town so foreign to her?

Check out the rest of the Main Street Minden books!

Q: Have you always wanted to be an author? Tell us a bit about your journey to publication.

A: Hah! No, I never thought I would be an author, even though I love to read. I have an engineering degree and I honestly thought I would do that forever. I was good at it and it provided a comfortable living for many years, but God had other plans. I actually started writing as a way to kill time on flights with no internet! Wen God told me I needed to finish my book and have it published, I laughed and ignored Him. But He is persistent and eventually I published it. Saying yes to God, even when it seemed crazy was incredibly hard and incredibly rewarding.

Q: You've got a new series releasing soon. Can you tell us about it and when your readers can expect to see those stories?

A: Oh yes! I'm so excite for the Bloom Sisters Series. It is a spin-off of my first series, loosely connected. The Bloom Family owns and operates a working farm in rural Indiana. The farm has orchards and animals and crops, plus an event venue and bead and breakfast! Fun for everyone! The family has six daughters (all named after flowers, teehee!). The prequel (which tells their brother Hawthorne's story) comes out in March 23 of this year!

Book 1 - A Date For Daisy comes out in May, with Book 2 not far behind, coming in July! The stories are a mix of tropes and storylines, but each one will include the themes of family and faith. And of course the happily ever after!

Preorder Hoping for Hawthorne here!

Q: What's your favorite part of the writing process?

A: I love plotting. When the story is just an idea and I can spend time brainstorming all the possibilities before landing on the thing that is "just right," my creative juices get flowing and I get so excited!

I also love the process of tying storylines together. In my upcoming series, the timelines overlap a bite and the other stand-alone storylines jut in and rub against the one you are reading, like little hidden hints at what is to come in the next book. It's fun for me to know the whole picture and let the reader in a little at a time.

Q. Who are some of your favorite authors to read?

A: Francine Rivers was the first Christian fiction author I ever read. I love to read her books, as well as other Biblical fiction like Tessa Afshar and Connilyn Cossette.

I read voraciously, so I'll just list a bunch! Becky Wade, Elizabeth Maddrey, Mandi Blake, Toni Shiloh, Courtney Walsh, Rachel Hauck, Valerie Comer, etc. Mostly contemporary or Biblical fiction. When I discovered the world of Christian fiction, it opened a whole new realm of possibilities for me. Now it is almost exclusively what I read.

Look for A Date For Daisy, coming in May!

Q: I really enjoy the spiritual truth represented in your stories. What's a Scripture that has been meaningful to you recently?

A: God has really been imparting to me that every good thing springs from Him. Let me see if I can do it justice as I explain... The beauty of creation is beautiful because of Him. The joy of an innocent child is a mere reflection of the joy He brings. The innate goodness we see in people—generosity, compassion, love—all of it is a glimmer of His generosity, compassion, and love. God is reminding me that He is the source of everything good and pure. It's a refreshing way to look at the world, since these days it is so easy to focus on the evil we see and the fallen nature. But there is good, too. Echoes of the Creator still ring as beauty and light in the darkness. God has taught me so much over the two years I have been writing. It is an honor to share some of those lessons with the world through my books, my newsletter, and on social media.

Q: Where can readers find you online?

A: I'm on Instagram or in my reader Facebook group most of the time. 🙂

Erin, thank you so much for asking me to interview! All the hard work you put into this blog is amazing—we (authors and readers) are so lucky to have you share your thoughts.

Aww, thanks! I love connecting readers with stories they will love!

Before you go, click on the picture below to go to Tara's Amazon page. If you have Kindle Unlimited, all of her books are available there!