It is
January 1208 and in a village on the border between Provence and Languedoc, a
monk whispers a benediction over the body of a slain papal emissary. The
Cathars—followers of a heretical faith—are blamed for the assassination. The
Pope declares a holy war and Languedoc is forever changed.
Eight
hundred years later, historian Lia Carrer returns to southern France to rebuild
her life after the death of her husband. Instead of finding solace in
Languedoc’s quiet hills and medieval ruins, the woman trying to heal risks
love, and loss, again.
Reincarnation
is familiar ground for Lia—an expert in the mystical beliefs of the ancient
Cathar faith—but to reconcile the truth of that long-ago assassination, the
logical researcher must accept religious fantasy as historical fact. Three lost
souls enter her life, each holding a key to the murder that launched a
religious crusade in the heart of Europe.
In
Another Life is set amidst the medieval intrigue of thirteenth
century Languedoc and Paris, intertwined with Lia's modern quest to uncover the
truth of an ancient murder and free a man haunted by ghosts from his past.
What readers are saying . . .
“Delicate and
haunting, romantic and mystical, IN ANOTHER LIFE is a novel with an
extraordinary sense of place. Fans swept away by Diana Gabaldon’s 18th-century
Scotland will want to explore Julie Christine Johnson’s 13th-century
Languedoc.”
— Greer Macallister, author of The Magician's Lie
“In this lovely
novel, Johnson shows us the redemptive power of love and second chances through
the ages. Evocative of Outlander, In Another Life is a thrilling combination of
romance, adventure, and history.”
—
Margaret Dilloway, author of Sisters Of
Heart And Snow and How To Be An
American Housewife
“Johnson’s
heartbroken researcher wends through the lush landscape and historical
religious intrigue of southern France seeking the distraction of arcane
fact-but instead, like the reader, is transformed by the moving echo of
emotional truth. An imaginative, unforgettable tale.”
— Kathryn Craft, author of The Art Of Falling and The
Far End Of Happy
About the Author
Julie Christine Johnson’s short
stories and essays have appeared in several journals, including Mud Season
Review; Cirque: A Literary Journal of the North Pacific Rim; Cobalt, and
the anthologies Stories for Sendai; Up, Do: Flash Fiction by Women Writers; and
Three Minus One: Stories of Love and Loss. She holds undergraduate degrees
in French and Psychology and a Master’s in International Affairs.
Her second
novel, The Crows Of Beara, a finalist in the Siskiyou Prize for New
Environmental Literature, has sold to Ashland Creek Press for publication in
fall 2017. In this work of women's fiction, a struggling American PR executive
and an enigmatic Irish artist face off over the development of a copper mine in
rural Ireland, finding love and redemption amid the rugged, mystical land.
A runner, hiker, and
wine geek, Julie makes her home on the Olympic Peninsula of northwest
Washington State with her husband. In Another Life is her first
novel.
Some Q & A with Julie:
I grew up in the rainshadow of the Olympic Mountains, on a slice
of paradise that is Washington state’s northwest corner: the Olympic Peninsula.
Thirty-five years after my parents’ divorce started an avalanche of life
changes and I left in middle school, I returned with my husband to write
full-time, surrounded by the mountains and water which shaped me.
In between, wanderlust carried me across the country and
around the world. But it wasn’t until reaching Seattle in the late 2000s that I
began writing. I took a workshop at Seattle’s superlative Richard Hugo House in
the Fall of 2010, then another. I wrote a short story, it was accepted for
publication, so I wrote another. And another. In July of 2012, I wrote the
first words to In Another Life and I kept going until it was done.
2. What are some things you enjoy when
not writing?
I’m outdoors as much as possible: I run, hike, bike, swim. I
attended culinary school and I’m a certified wine educator; a love for cooking,
good food and wine, carries through in how I relax and share time with others.
3. Do you have a ‘day job’ as well?
When my husband and I moved to the Olympic Peninsula in 2013, we
downsized and simplified our lives enough that I was able to plan about
eighteen months of writing without an income. I left a job I adored: wine buyer
for a natural foods retailer in Seattle, but I never looked back. Seventeen
months after making the decision to try my luck as a novelist, I signed with an
agent and was offered a publishing contract for In Another Life on the same day. Now I work longer,
harder than I have at any traditional day job. There are times when I look back
wistfully at a steady paycheck, health benefits, days off, vacation, a
workplace outside my home, colleagues, the water cooler chats . . . but only in
fleeting moments. I feel incredibly fortunate to be a full-time writer.
4. Where do you get your ideas?
Everywhere! A snippet of overheard conversation, a news headline,
a place I’ve traveled, stories overheard, a line of poetry, something someone
says I wish I could forget, but can’t, so it becomes a story.
5. Is there a particular author or book
that influenced or inspired your writing or decision to write?
I read Louise Fitzhugh’s Harriet
the Spy when I was six and
decided then and there that I would become a writer. It just took me
thirty-five more years to get started. But Pricilla Long’s The Writer’s Portable Mentor was what finally pushed me into a
regular writing practice, and that led me to believing I could write a novel.
6. Can you tell us about your challenges
in getting your first book published?
This is where I ‘fess my Cinderella story. But it’s proof that not
every writer has a long and terrible road ahead. I ended September 2014 with a
draft of In Another Life that I felt was ready to query. I’d
spent the summer researching literary agents, compiling a spreadsheet, and
months and months of drafting and redrafting my query letter. Before I sent out
any query letters, however, I decided to give in-person pitching a go. I
attended the Whidbey Island Writers’ Conference in October, and there I met the
two women who would, a few weeks later, become my agent (Shannon Hassan of
Marsal Lyon Literary, and the editor of In
Another Life, (Anna Michels, Sourcebooks).
7. If you had to go back and do it all
over, is there any aspect of your novel or getting it published that you’d
change?
I started writing In
Another Life without a plan.
I had the beginning, but no idea how I’d get to a middle, much less to the end.
Before I was two-thirds of the way through a first draft, I had 137,000 words,
scenes written out of order. At that point, I stopped where I was and began
revising from the beginning. By the time I had something resembling a first
draft, I’d written 170,000+ words.
Although I am a pantser by nature, I’ve learned how to channel my
energy into discovering my characters and themes before I begin writing the
story. What I learn about and develop in my characters guides the narrative
arc. In later drafts, as I close in on the story, I work loosely with Michael
Hague’s excellent Six Stage Plot Structure to give me a sense of how my
protagonist’s journey progresses from beginning to end.
8. How do you market your work?
I’ve worked over several years to build relationships with writers
and readers via my blog (ChalktheSun.org), Goodreads, and Twitter, long before
I knew I’d be a novelist. It was less about marketing or even building an
author platform than it was about sharing my writing, my voice, playing with
different styles, challenging myself with regular, focused writing through blog
posts and book reviews. When I began publishing stories and essays, social
media became a way to reach out: if people connected with my voice and the
things I had to share, perhaps they’d go on to connect with my work.
Now that I have an actual novel to promote, having a focused
presence on reader blogs, doing author events, reaching out to book clubs for
in-person or virtual discussions, attending conferences, networking with other
writers, reaching out to libraries, pitching to book festivals, keeping up with
my blog, my website, seeking targeted advertising opportunities, and still
submitting work for publication—there are so many ways to market and promote
one’s work, and I’m still learning what’s most effective. I want to spend my
time and energy connecting with readers who will stay with me for the long
haul, rather than seeking sales for my books.
9. What are you working on now?
Last September my second novel, The
Crow of Beara, sold to Ashland Creek Press, with a publication date of
September 2017. Right now, I’m working with my editor, Midge Raymond, on
revisions. Crows is set in contemporary Ireland with an
element of magical realism woven through. My agent is reading my third novel,
tentatively titled Tui,
set in contemporary New Zealand; it’s the first time I’ve featured a young
child as a main character. So, I’ll soon have those revisions to sort through.
And I’m researching a possible sequel to In
Another Life.
10. Is anything in your book based on real
life experiences?
The historical basis of In
Another Life is taken
straight from French history: Pierre de Castelnau was murdered near St. Gilles
in January of 1208 and his murder launched the Cathar Crusade. I wanted to
weave in threads of history to make the tapestry of fantasy that much more
vivid. Lia, the protagonist, and I share a terror of small, confined spaces and
a passion for wine. The roads Lia travels throughout Languedoc, the streets she
wanders in Paris, even her Paris hotel—the very room where she stays—are places
I’ve haunted during my travels in France.
11. Do you have a favorite chapter or
scene?
Ooh, I have to be careful with spoilers! I love the midwinter meal
at Rose and Domenec Hivert’s. Everything—the food, the wine, the love and
fellowship present around the table—makes me feel warm and peaceful and
captures the very essence of France’s joie
de vivre. Then there is the frisson of heartstrings Lia is feeling for the
man sitting beside her. . .
12. Do you have any advice for aspiring
writers?
Read. Read widely and deeply. Every day. Write every day. Get into
the habit so that writing becomes as natural and necessary as breathing. Seek
out mentors! Writers are incredibly generous with their time and we get so
excited when we find writing we love. We shout it from the rooftops. I’m
astonished at the love and support I’ve received from other writers, and this
is from someone who has a hard time reaching out and asking for help.
13. What are the downfalls of your writing
career? The best parts?
Many writers are introverted souls like me. To borrow Amy Nathan’s
phrase, I’m a “friendly introvert”. That works fine when you are huddled
in your office or working in a café with earbuds shutting out the world. But to
find readers, no matter how you publish, you must be prepared to open yourself
to the world. It’s something that is both the best and the worst of being an
author, because it can fill you with energy and it can zap you, in the same
day, in the same moment.
The best parts of writing are the writing itself‑—falling in love
with your characters, the a-ha moments of finding your way into the plot, the
sheer joy of losing yourself on the page, day in, day out—and the community,
virtual and real, of writers and readers who come together out of a shared
passion for storytelling.
14. Is there anything you’d like to say to
your readers and fans?
Thank you. Thank you for reading, for supporting writers by buying
our books or requesting them from the library, by sharing our work with your
friends and family, for writing reviews. Storytelling, as a reader and as a
writer, has saved my life and I know it’s brought so many out of their darkness
into the light of hope and belief. Whether you read to escape or to learn, to
explore or to find comfort, the simple act of reading means that the world goes
on, one page at a time.
I’m very serious about this sequel to In Another Life; I’ve got my
ideas, but I’d treasure knowing which characters you’d love to see again.
Thank
you Jill, for sharing In Another Life with your readers!
Website: juliechristinejohnson.com
Facebook: facebook.com/juliechristinejohnson
Twitter: @JulieChristineJ
Thank you, Julie, for taking the time to share a bit about your book and writing life!
