I love #ThrowbackThursdays on Facebook. I love looking at photos of big hair and bell bottoms. I love noting changes in my friends and in my kids. (They were such cute babies!) Likewise, I enjoy taking time to look back and see how my writing has changed. More than that, I like to replay how God showed up, meeting me as I worked.
When I was researching for my novel, Arms of Deliverance, one of the autobiographies I read was by a man who was a B-17 bomber pilot over Europe. He was also an American volunteer for the Spanish Civil War. I had never heard of this war before, which happened right before WWII in Spain. I started researching and I was soon fascinated. Some people call it “The First Round of WWII” because that’s where the Nazis first tried their hand at modern warfare.
B-17 Group Formation
For this series I dove into the lives of an American artist, a few International volunteers, a Basque priest, and a German pilot. I first researched the real people and then the plot for my novel began to take shape.
Amazingly, I was able to interview veterans from The Spanish Civil War. They were in their 90s! I mostly communicated with them through email, since many of them lived overseas. One man, who was very helpful, passed away while I was writing A Valley of Betrayal. Yet, he was very excited that I was writing about his experiences. I also received help from many researchers and historians and I bought every book I can find on the Spanish Civil War. (My bookshelves are sagging!)
The Challenges
This book was very challenging because I knew nothing about The Spanish Civil War before I started. Yet, I felt sure that God was leading me to write these books and once again, God taught me to trust Him. When He gives me an idea for a novel it is so big. I mean there is so much to pull together. Yet, God has shown me time and time again that He is faithful. He gives me ideas, leads me to the right research books, and even brings people into my life to help me!
While writing this series, I was really struggling with one of my characters, a Nazi pilot who flew planes over Spain during the Spanish Civil War. There were only 100 such pilots, and very little information about the airmen and their planes. How in the world was I going to get the information I needed? I had no idea, but I prayed.
Around that time, a man named Norm Goyer contacted me. He was working on his family tree, and he wanted to know if we were related. Even though I was under deadline, I did my best to track down the information that Norm needed from my in-laws.
We weren’t related, but as I chatted with Norm I discovered that he was an airplane expert and consultant for movies! Norm ended up helping me with research on my German pilot in Spain. He not only knew about the rare aircraft, Norm had flown one! What an awesome gift from God! This showed me again that whatever God brings before me, He also has the power to help me succeed.
A Valley of Betrayal was followed by A Shadow of Treason and A Whisper of Freedom. All the books follow the same characters and the same storyline. In fact, Book #2 begins the same day as Book #1 leaves off! The plot thickens, of course, and the stakes get higher with each book.
I’ve written over thirty books since then and every time I’m asked how God is involved in my writing, I can’t help but think of how God brought me Norm.
We all need a #ThrowbackThursday (or even Wednesday!) to remember God’s goodness. How has He showed up in your life? What miracles has He performed?
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This is one of the reasons I love to write! I feel closest to God while I’m writing historical fiction and He shows up with events, dates, and people that weave into my story with perfection. There are times a character says or does something I don’t see coming, but it enriches the story in ways I couldn’t anticipate. It really is the greatest form of communion with God. And when I’m fretting because the story isn’t coming together, or the plot isn’t deep enough, I always remember that God has a plan for my story. I just need to trust that He’ll show up and blow me away!
Yes, I completely agree, Gabrielle!
Tricia, God surely works in mysterious ways. Love your story about how you met Norm.
God’s shown up so many times in my life it’s hard to pick just one thing to tell you. I often feel His presence when I’m tutoring middle school students. To see the kids at the beginning of the year and how they progress through the school year… it’s amazing. So many times God helps me figure out the way the kids learn so that I can teach them the concepts they’ll need to know in order to pass the grade and the big state test at the end of the year. Miracles happen every day here, whether I see them or not. My most blessed days are the ones in which my spiritual eyes are opened enough to see how God is moving in my life and in the lives of the people He’s surrounded me with.
Blessings,
Andrea
That is awesome, Andrea!! I know God is using you in big ways!
Oooh — I got goosebumps reading your Norm story! Isn’t it wonderful how God works things in at just the right time?
Lucky for me God shows up in my life even when I don’t want him too. His constant that way, you know? 🙂 One really special time happened just after high school. I came from a very dysfunctional home. Irish immigrants with no family ties. It was really rough. Particularly since my dad wouldn’t talk about his past at all. The more closed-mouth he was, the more determined I was to uncover the secrets. So, with that in mind, I went to Ireland right after high school on a work exchange program. But wouldn’t you know it, no matter how hard I searched, I couldn’t find any living relatives on my father’s side. I had a few births and death certificates but that was it. I felt such a need to know about my family’s past — to understand how my dad could have closed off his family. My imagination worked over time on all kinds of scenarios.
Anyway, my time in Ireland was drawing to a close and I’d about given up hope until one day I met this little old man — Jimmy Cahill. We chatted a bit and I felt the strongest urge to ask him if he knew my grandfather. I supressed it until we were saying our goodbyes and suddenly I just blurted it out. Not only did Jimmy know my grandfather — he’d actually trained with him at a running club in North Dublin. I ended up in Jimmy’s parlour sipping tea while he regaled me with stories of my grandfather. He gave me pictures, a couple of running club yearbooks, a list of names of other people I should contact. In short a wealth of information. It opened the door to some amazing discoveries. There’s no doubt in my mind that it was the Spirit whispering to me that day on a Dublin street.
Sorry this is so long, but Norm reminded me of Jimmy and I got excited all over again!