Thanks for reading Elsie and Wyatt’s story! I had a fun time brainstorming and playing with ideas about Elsie’s background. She fascinated me, this character who was so fiercely independent and yet vulnerable. She wants to know details about her own past, and to be understood by another person, even though it scares her. She wants to be known.
We all want to be known, don’t we? I think God gave us this desire, every one of us. It’s at the heart of the friendships we seek, the relationships we pursue. We want to be known fully and understood and still loved. I enjoyed exploring how this played out for Elsie, who didn’t know who she was due to circumstances beyond her control. What I learned through writing this story is that maybe we won’t ever truly understand ourselves. Maybe other people won’t know and understand us as fully as we wish. But God does.
For Wyatt, being known meant letting his past go. Not being defined by it. I loved seeing how both characters’ desires for connection drew them closer to God and to each other.
Thank you for reading this book and letting me share this story, and Alaska, with you! I love hearing from readers! You’re welcome to find me on social media at Facebook.com/sarahvarlandauthor or on Instagram @sarahvarland, though I post entirely too many dog pictures. You can write me at sarahvarland@gmail.com.
Sarah Varland