Story Behind the Story

ASCENSION OF LARKS

Each story I write starts with something specific that sparks my interest. I overhear an intriguing snippet of conversation, read an article in a magazine, or am drawn to a vivid setting that captures my imagination. For Ascension of Larks, San Juan Island was the catalyst. I first dreamed a scene from the book, about a grieving family in an old farmhouse on San Juan, perched on a bluff overlooking Haro Strait. I was so captivated by the feeling that dream evoked that when I awoke I knew it was a story I wanted to explore.

San Juan Island is a special place for my family. We have a cabin there and spend time on the island every year. It’s truly a magical place – incredibly beautiful, idyllic and remote. It was the perfect setting for a story that explores the ideas of home and belonging and our sense of place in the world, themes I return to again and again in my novels.

I was living in Europe when I wrote the book, traveling the world with an international aid organization. And like my protagonist, Maggie, I was struggling with the concept of home. More than once on a trip, I would awaken in a foreign country and for several minutes I could not recall where I was. I’d lie awake trying to piece together the clues. Was I in Serbia? Spain? It was disorienting. I felt at times adrift.

So when I started to write Maggie’s story I knew it would take place on San Juan, where our family has such strong roots. The island drew me during a time of my life where I was feeling a little rootless. What I came to learn from living abroad, and what Maggie ultimately learns through her time on the island, is that our deepest relationships establish our strongest sense of place and that those who love us truly become our home.

Maggie’s story is bittersweet but ultimately hopeful. It’s a story of loss, courage, sacrifice, and connection. It’s my story in some essential way, and I believe it’s a story many readers can relate to as well. And of course, there is a touch of island magic in Maggie’s journey too, because I’m convinced that life is not cut and dried. We must hold space in our lives for a sense of wonder, both in the stories we read and the stories we live to tell. I hope you enjoy Maggie’s story and that it draws you ever closer to home.

~ Rachel