After taking one month off, I’m back with another Author of the Month post! This month’s pick: the incredibly sweet and talented Jenna Van Mourik! Jenna was one of the first people I followed on #Bookstagram and let me tell you, she is GOALS! She does it all–she writes, she blogs, she has an awesome #BookTube channel, she runs a virtual book club, she has a brand new merch store–you get the picture! It was one of the greatest compliments ever when Jenna read my book and shared such wonderful things about it, and it was exciting to return the favor when I got the opportunity to be on the launch team for her debut novel, Jerusalem’s Daughter. From the moment I found out Jenna was releasing a book, I just knew it would be fabulous. And I’m happy to say that my instinct was correct!! For my full thoughts on Jenna’s beautiful debut, check out my review HERE. But for now, let’s jump into today’s post, which is an author interview with Jenna herself!
Author Interview: Jenna Van Mourik
Hi, Jenna! Thank you so much for joining me on the blog today! Can you tell readers who don’t know you yet a little about yourself?
Hello Ashton! Thank YOU for having me. The short version or “abridged” version is that I usually tell people is that I’m an “inspired writer and an inspirational fiction reader who reads, writes, and lives for Jesus.” It sums up both who I am and what I do pretty nicely, especially back when I more actively reviewed fiction books. To share a bit more of the “unabridged” version of who I am, my name is Jenna but I also answer to Jen. I live in Northern California with my husband and our toy Australian shepherd, Piper. I’ve been a California girl all my life and now, although I’m grown up and married, I still live next-door to my parents on the same street where I grew up. I have a huge passion for Christian Fiction and specifically Biblical fiction. For those who don’t know what Biblical fiction is, its a specific set of historical fiction novels that center around Biblical events or figures. I’ve always been fascinated by ancient history and what it would have been like to be there for some of those miraculous events. Because of that, when I started my bookish Instagram and blog, Biblical fiction naturally overtook my platform until it became what people most associate with me, and I’m more than happy to be “the girl who reads a lot of Biblical fiction”. I even host an online Biblical fiction book club through Instagram called Biblical Fiction Buffs (@biblicalfictionbuffs). There I host quarterly book discussions where we read Biblical fiction novels, explore the scriptural connections, and explore what lessons about God we can learn through those stories. In addition to reading and promoting Biblical fiction, I also began writing my own Biblical fiction novel Jerusalem’s Daughter, which is about one fictional young woman’s experiences trying to find the Messiah in the hopes that He can restore her family. It comes out March 16, 2021.
It’s so great to learn more about you! Speaking of questions about your life and background… When/how did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
That’s a lot harder to distinguish for me than it might seem. I grew up mostly an only child, except for all of my younger cousins who I frequently drafted to be in the plays and movies I would write and direct. I think they were happy to go along with it, for the most part! Haha, I was a very creative child, so I think I always knew I wanted to do something creative. I just didn’t know what. I really struggled in college trying to figure out what I wanted to study. I think I felt a certain expectation to study something “normal” like business or education because that’s what everyone else was doing, but those didn’t feel right for me personally. I didn’t enjoy the coursework and I wasn’t excited about becoming a business person or a teacher. I would try to get ahead on my coursework so that I could spend time writing, which was one of the only creative things I could do when I was one of six girls in a very crowded dorm suite. At a certain point I realized, “Wait! Why am I not just studying writing? I love it and it’s something creative and it’s something I could feasibly do for the rest of my life.” I think the reason that I hadn’t done that sooner was because of fear; fear of not being successful, fear of not having a “traditional” post-college career, and just fear of not being “good enough.” But once I got over that and learned to trust God and follow His leading even when I didn’t know what the outcome would be, I knew I wanted to be a writer. I wanted to hone my craft and learn to use my creative gifts to bring glory to Him. I ended up obtaining my B.A. in English from California Baptist University where I graduated magna cum laude. While there, I focused much of my research and study on the history and growth of the Christian fiction market.
I totally get that feeling of the world pressuring you to take a certain “normal” path in life! I’m so glad you followed your passion, and more importantly, God’s plan for your life! It’s so awesome how He leads our steps that way.
As I mentioned at the top of this post, you have a bookish YouTube channel. On there, you have a video discussing this in depth (readers, check that out HERE!), but for those that haven’t had a chance to watch that yet, can you share your reasons for choosing the indie publishing route?
Yes! I didn’t always know for sure. When I announced that I was writing a book, the main questions that I got over and over were “When is it going to be done? When is it going to come out? When will it be published?” And I never really had an answer. Deciding that I wanted to be a writer was truly a leap-of-faith decision for me. I had just been trusting God and trusting His timing; I wasn’t really worried as much about deadlines because I didn’t want to think too far ahead. I was focused on doing things one step at a time. I figured that God had helped me decide I wanted to be a writer, and with more time, prayer, and trust, God would help me decide how I would be published as well. Eventually, he did! In the beginning of 2020 I was feeling very strongly lead to self-publishing for two reasons. First, I wanted control. Not just control over things like the cover, the title, etc., but also control over the content of the book. I don’t just mean control over explicit content, but I mean control over spiritual content. I wanted to have full say over what scripture went into my book and how much scripture. I didn’t want to be forced to compromise on my beliefs at any stage in the process. Second, I realized that after a few years in the book blogging world, I’d picked up a lot of things about how the industry works, and I felt pretty confident that I had what it would take to publish and market my own book. The things that I didn’t know how to do myself, I knew of people or friends who had those skills and would be willing to help me out or that I could hire.
Yes, the ability to control the process from start to finish–especially when it comes to the spiritual content–is such a huge benefit of self-publishing! I’m thankful it is easier than ever for authors to self-publish their work and do it well, thanks to technology and social media.
What is your favorite part of the writing process?
It may sound cliché, but I always say that my favorite part of the writing process is whatever I’m currently not doing. “The grass is always greener on the other side,” right? When I was editing Jerusalem’s Daughter, I kept thinking about how much I missed just being able to draft a story completely carefree. Now that I’m drafting my next project, I just want to get it done so that I can edit it, polish it, and make it truly shine! If I had to seriously pick an answer though, I think I’d say outlining and working on the first draft. I love planning a story, plotting out each arc, and getting to know the characters.
What kind of environment do you enjoy writing in the most? Do you like to listen to music or have a favorite snack on hand?
I have a wonderful home office where I do a lot of author business (things like managing my social media, formatting, answering e-mails). But if I’m being honest, I usually end up writing on my couch or curled up in bed with my laptop. I like to be comfortable and in my pajamas, surrounded by blankets, with my big, bulky, over-ear bluetooth headphones and a cup of coffee (I like to drive through Starbucks, but if I’m brewing it from home, I’ll make a blonde latte). I have a large playlist of soundtrack music that I write to and a few songs where the lyrics just capture the mood of the story I’m working on. If I can, I always prefer to write in the evenings or late at night because that’s when my imagination is the most active.
We sound pretty much the same in this area LOL! Though no coffee for me!
What character from your book, Jerusalem’s Daughter, do you identify with the most?
I think as authors we pour a little bit of ourselves into every single character. Of course, I identify a lot with Shamira. I think we both share the same passion and love for our families, and I too often trip over my words or say too much. However, I’ve grown a lot while writing this story and Shamira has developed so much as a character throughout each draft. I think ten-year-old Shamira and ten-year-old Jenna are a lot more similar than grown up Shamira and myself! But we could definitely still be best friends! 🙂
Yes, there will always be bits and pieces of ourselves in every character we write! And wouldn’t it be so fun if our characters could really come to life so we can be friends with them?! Haha!
One of the most interesting things about being a writer is all of the things, even random or weird things, that we have to research. What is the most interesting or strange thing you learned while researching for your book?
I don’t know if it’s necessarily interesting or strange, but as I read through the gospels, I was constantly astounded by things I’d missed. I kept stumbling upon little details I’d never noticed before, or things that the Bible records happening that I’d never heard anyone speak on before. Some of these became the inspiration for scenes in Jerusalem’s Daughter, although I can’t say which ones without giving away spoilers. But isn’t it amazing how we can read scripture over and over again, and still be drawing new things from it? God is so great!
Yes! It’s amazing how many things we can overlook and miss in the Bible, no matter how many times we read it. It is so layered and complex–absolutely fascinating!
Do you have a favorite memory from when you were writing Jerusalem’s Daughter?
One of my favorite memories that stands out is the first time Jerusalem’s Daughter was read by someone who wasn’t my family. Only my mom and cousin had read Jerusalem’s Daughter as I was writing it, so the first time that I sent it off to a friend to get an honest opinion was a big deal. My writer friend/critique partner Audrey Bodine was an absolute gem. She sent me so many reactions (as well as honest feedback), and I remember thinking how fun it was to be getting an actual reader’s reaction to my story. That definitely made it all feel real and made me excited to keep working on the story!
Aw, what a great memory!! I love that.
I saved a lot of quotes while I was reading Jerusalem’s Daughter–there were so many great ones! What is your favorite quote—or quotes!—from the book?
I have a few! I’ll share just three here though.
One for Shamira:
“The burden of change seemed to push and pull at her like a shepherd’s crook. Shamira was like a sheep wanting to go her own way and wander from the rest of the flock, but the rod of change and the hook of time kept nudging her back in line, guiding her in ways she was afraid to go.”
One for Asa:
“He could answer any question by quoting passages from memory, yet he still found that none of the answers he’d been trained to give were right. At least not for him.”
And one that I think captures the theme of the story:
“Your words have power. God can use them in magnificent ways … Keep telling your story, keep speaking the words only you can speak.”
I love all of those! Especially the last one!
What is the main takeaway you hope readers will walk away with after reading Jerusalem’s Daughter?
The power of words! We can focus a lot on the negative power of words, like how words can hurt someone’s feelings or how words when spoken in the heat of anger can destroy relationships, but my goal was to also focus on the good things that words can do as well. You never know how God might use your testimony, your words, or even your most simplest of actions to reach someone for Him. It’s so important to be wiling to be His vessel. Sometimes, all it takes to make a difference in someone’s life is just telling a story, sharing a smile, or praying a simple prayer.
I love that! And I definitely felt that message coming through when I read the book!
So I’m sure people are already asking you this all the time, but… what is next on the writing horizon for you?
I’m currently working on the sequel to Jerusalem’s Daughter, which follows the early church after the Pentecost and how it spread from Jerusalem. The main story follows one of the side characters from Jerusalem’s Daughter, and one hint that I can give is that Paul will make an appearance.
Ahhh, that’s so exciting! I can’t wait to read it!
Lastly, what is your best piece of advice for someone considering writing a book, or someone who is already writing and dreaming of publishing?
Pray! Trust in the Lord’s timing and lean on Him for direction. But also, make friends. I know it’s scary, but try to have multiple sets of eyes on your story before you start submitting it or publishing it. You don’t have to accept every criticism you get, but it’s definitely worth it to see what others think and get advice for how you can continue to hone your craft. Make writer friends and find critique partners (that you can trust). Writing often seems like a solitary activity, but it shouldn’t be. It’s better when you have a whole team of people supporting you!
That’s great advice, Jenna! It is definitely so helpful to have a team of people on your side, especially when they are ones that can help you make your book the best it can be!
And that’s a wrap on our interview! A huge thank you once again to Jenna for taking the time to answer my questions! I hope you enjoyed her answers as much I did, readers. Be sure to add Jerusalem’s Daughter to your Goodreads TBR today, and order your copy when it releases on March 16, 2021!!
