I’m so excited to have author Alyssa Schwarz on the blog today! Keep reading to hear all about her writing, her home in Colorado, and her latest release!
- Give a little background about yourself and your writing.
I’m a Colorado native who went to school for geological engineering and then became a watercolor artist and author. Makes perfect sense, right? Lol. Joking aside, I do feel that my engineering background has helped me be a better writer, and if anything, it taught me how to research and ask all the “what if?” questions. So far, I’ve mainly written contemporary Christian romance set in the Colorado Rockies. I’ve also written a handful of flash fiction stories that have been published in Spark Flash Fiction’s online publication, and I am currently working on my next novel which will be a stand-alone and a split-time story set partly in WW2. (those are all the spoilers I can give at this time, but I’m excited to see where this story goes!)
2. When did you develop an interest in writing, and what inspired you to write?
From an early age, I loved to write. I never really took any creative fiction classes, but I had a lot of experience writing poetry and reports in school. After getting my engineering degree, I went back for my Master’s and really enjoyed working on my thesis. I thought maybe technical writing would be in my future (which it partly was), but then I started dabbling in fiction and fell in love with it! A few lines here, a scene description there… It wasn’t much at first, but I grew every day, and eventually drew up the courage to try writing a complete story from start to finish. That short story turned into a full-length novel which I indie published back in 2021, and now two years later, I’m finally closing out a four-book series!
3. You primarily write contemporary inspirational romance. Why did you choose this genre, and what do you love about it?
When I started writing my first book, I had no idea it would turn into a novel, let alone an entire series. This journey began in early 2020 when the world was a bit in chaos and anxiety was running high. I’ve always been a lover of books and fiction, and I knew that if I was going to write something, I wanted it to be filled with an uplifting message to turn readers’ attentions back toward what is good, and holy, and pure. I chose to write what I knew, and a contemporary romance series set in Colorado is what came out! I wanted to slow down the pace of our sped-up, out-of-control world, and settle into a cozy small town, filled with relatable characters who face real-life problems but ultimately still choose to trust God through it all. Inspirational romances are my go-to feel-good reads, and that’s exactly what I want to share with my readers.
4. Let’s talk about your most recent book, Fields of Glass. What do you think readers will most enjoy about this book?
I love a good enemies-to-more trope, and this one’s got just that! There’s the brooding hero who wants only to save his ranch, a stubbornly optimistic heroine who’s never stepped foot on a farm in her life, and two supportive friends with their own love story unfolding throughout the book. Throw in a funny meet-cute, a bunch of humor, and some adorable yet feisty lambs, I’m sure readers will find themselves laughing out loud while also empathizing with each of the characters’ struggles and decisions.
5. A lot of the things we experience, places we visit, or people we encounter ultimately find their way into our stories. Are any of the elements of Fields of Glass inspired by real life?
A few years ago, my parents and I went on a Colorado road trip and visited the entire southwest corner of the state. Most of the places I’d been to multiple times before, but Lake City was a new and exciting experience. Tucked in a corner of the least populated county in the state, the small town is brimming with charm from the old mining fronted buildings to the peaceful forests that surround it and the welcoming people who live there.
I won’t give away any spoilers, but there is a scene where Grace (all around city girl) tries to chop wood which was loosely based on an incident I had at my house a couple of years ago. I may or may not have been trying to remove an old stump, barefoot, and with a pickaxe. Don’t worry, no one was injured in the process, and we got it successfully removed after about an hour, lol.
6. You set your books in Colorado (just as I do!). How did you choose this setting, and how do you feel that the setting adds to your stories?
Yay for books based in Colorado! I’m a proud Colorado native who has lived here all my life, so I couldn’t NOT write these stories set in such a beautiful and diverse state. (I may be a bit biased, but if you’ve ever visited, I hope you’ll agree Colorado is pretty great!) I’m a small town girl at heart and love all the quirks and charms of that slower pace of life. Each book in the Prescott Family Romance series is set in a different small mountain (or mountain-adjacent) town, providing unique backdrops of places and characters that play into every story. So far, each book has been set in Loveland, Buena Vista, Estes Park… and now Lake City! It took a little while for me to settle on the location for Fields of Glass. I knew I wanted somewhere fairly isolated, as the main characters find themselves trapped together on the ranch for the first half of the book. There were a lot of great options: Crested Butte, Ouray, Silverton… (all places I’d highly recommend visiting!). But Lake City ultimately won out with its mountain-locked town, small population, and rugged lifestyle.
7. Who was your favorite character to write in Fields of Glass?
Callie, hands down. I loosely based her character off of Anne of Green Gables—red hair, freckles, enchanted by the natural world around her, and a kind soul. I think we could all use a friend like Callie. Someone to cheer us on through every storm and speak truth into our lives when we need to hear it most. Out of every character I’ve ever written, she has been the most clear in my imagination which made it such a fun process writing her into the story!
8. Fields of Glass delves into some truly fascinating areas of knowledge that were new to me, such as the operations of Micah’s sheep ranch and the techniques of Callie’s beekeeping business. How did you conduct the research necessary for this book?
I actually have some family who lives on a ranch in the mountains, so a lot of the information was based on things I’ve seen up there or heard from them. They predominantly raise cattle and harvest hay, so I had to do a bit of online research to see how that differs from raising sheep. I probably spent about a week learning about sheep farming and beekeeping before diving into the first draft, and there was a lot of fact-checking along the way!
Fun fact: When I was a kid, there was one summer where I refused to play on the back patio because I was afraid of the bees buzzing in the Russian Sage plant by the door.
9. A strong theme in Fields of Glass is forgiveness. What led you to explore this theme throughout the story?
I think every family has its struggles and hurts to overcome, even the ones who seem like they have it all together. When I started writing this story, my grandpa was being admitted into hospice care, and there were a lot of emotions that came up in our family during that time. Some were good, but we also had to wrestle with the bad as well. I’ve learned that emotional wounds can run deep, and if we just bury them and move on, they’ll still remain years later. While forgiveness does not erase what happened, nor does it necessarily change the heart of the person who wronged us, it DOES change our own hearts and frees us to fully experience God’s present love when we are no longer focussed on the past.
10. Faith is important to your writing, just as it is to mine. How does your faith inform your writing, and how does your writing impact your faith?
The characters’ faith journeys are at the center of all my books, and they often reflect the season I’m currently in:
In The Glass Cottage, the main character learns to trust God as she makes an unexpected career change that takes her back home. I ended up losing my job at the beginning of the pandemic and was given the chance to start writing. It was a scary jump, but one I’m so glad I trusted God to take!
In Dear Beth, there’s a major theme of chasing after old dreams. This book was where I really decided I wanted to pursue being a writer after almost giving up on that dream as a kid.
In The Glass Road, the main characters are busy struggling to make life work for themselves when what they really need is to listen to God’s quiet voice. I often find my mind is full of other voices that seem to be screaming over one another, but when I step back and really listen, I can hear His calming and guiding voice.
And in Fields of Glass, besides forgiveness, one of the main themes is this idea that God is our great shepherd. This is something I’ve really been trying to lean into this past year, and while it can be difficult at times to listen to His directions, we can trust that He is already walking ahead of us.
Faith is not a stagnant thing, nor should it be. God is the only one who is forever unchanging, and that is something to cling to in a world of questions and uncertainties. I hope that I’m able to convey the truth of who He is through my writing and direct people back to Him and His grace.
11. Anything else you’d like readers to know?
I’m also a watercolor artist! I have a series of 14 drawings on permanent display in a hotel in Denver and have sold some other pieces through a small handful of local galleries. I haven’t painted much recently, but you can check out my mom’s and my art Instagram page, Sundog Studios, here: https://www.instagram.com/sundog_studios/
Thanks so much to Alyssa for joining me for this interview! You can find all her books (and a free short story!) on her website!
