Meet author Barbara A. Curtis
Barbara A. Curtis is an author and reader of heartwarming Christian stories of both then and now. She lives in Connecticut with her husband, and they have one adult son. Additionally, she is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Novel Academy, where she continues to learn and hone her writing skills and connect with gifted storytellers in the writing community.
Tell us about your newest book.
Angel from the East is Book 1 of the Blooms of the Bitterbrush series. This multi-generational series follows the lives, adventures, and romances of four descendants named Elizabeth Rose after the family matriarch. Each generation’s Elizabeth Rose witnesses how God can take a “bitterbrush” life and turn it into something beautiful. In Angel from the East, New York City school teacher Eliza Roberts arrives at the Double E Ranch in Caldwell, Idaho, for a quick stop to view her recently inherited ranch from her deceased grandfather on her way to teach in California. But the magnificent ranch he had written of is unsightly and barely hanging on with two ranch hands and a handful of cattle left. To even sell it off, she must fix it up some first. And she knows just the person to ask, as her grandfather’s last letter told her if she ever needed help to ask Caleb Morgan, a good man whom he trusted with all he had. But when she asks Caleb for help, he refuses. Caleb Morgan, once the foreman of the Double E but now a saddlemaker in town, would love to help the spunky newcomer. Except for the fact that Eliza’s grandfather had ordered him to never step foot on the Double E Ranch again.
What inspired you to write your story?
I wish I could remember exactly what it was! Angel from the East was started probably seventeen years or so ago as a novella and has seen many transformations along the way and now has found a home as a full-length novel with Wild Heart Books. I was homeschooling our son when I started, and he must have been about nine and was handwriting his own historical story while I worked on mine.
I wanted to write a story that took place in Idaho near Boise, and in researching, I came across the bitterbrush plant, a drab, sagebrush-looking bush—until springtime when it bursts into bloom with beautiful yellow flowers. The matriarch Elizabeth left a legacy for her descendants—that the bitterbrush bush on the edge of the Double E yard was to never be cut down. It was to remain as a reminder of God’s goodness and faithfulness and of how God can take what looks like a drab, bleak-looking life and turn it into one of beauty.
What genre do you focus on.
I write Christian fiction romance, both historical and contemporary, thus my tagline of stories of then and now. This series is historical and covers four time periods—1897, 1920, 1945, and 1950. Each part of the genre is important to me—first of all writing from a Christian perspective, weaving in God’s truth and Bible verses and God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness. I believe stories can convey truths and touch hearts in a different way than nonfiction does and lets readers see pieces of themselves in the characters. And love is what every heart is hungry for. Stories set in historical times can keep history alive and inform readers of little-known and interesting aspects of real towns and events.
Why do you write?
I’m not a speaker, but God has given me words to put on the page through stories. I want to write to honor Him and to draw hearts to Him.
Who is your main character, and how did you choose that name?
The main character is Elizabeth “Eliza” Rose Roberts. In her story, she’s named after her grandmother, and I chose the family name Roberts after my own grandmother’s maiden name. I love the name Elizabeth, and it works well for a generational name as there are a multitude of nicknames to choose from for each of the matriarch’s descendants.
What is the hardest part of being an author?
For me, the hardest part is coming up with things for the characters “to do.” The beginning—discovering the characters and what they’re pursuing—and the ending of how they’ll be changed and their happily ever after come fairly quickly. But it’s the getting them from the start to the finish and the “happenings” along the way of their journey that I find the hardest to write.
What’s the best part of your author’s life?
I love the creative process. One minute there’s nothing but a blank screen, no story, no characters, nothing to touch anyone’s heart—and then as the words come, there’s this whole story. One that readers can travel along with and experience the characters’ journey together with them.
How have you changed or grown as a writer?
When I started writing, I wished I could find out “how” to write—beyond the instructors saying to write something down and then the rest of the class dissecting it. I longed to know how to write it in good form to begin with. So as I discovered American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and Susan May Warren’s My Book Therapy/Novel Academy, I soaked the lessons in, as I now had access to learning the “how” that I’d been desiring. So over the years I have seen my writing improve as I learned crafting and skills—and I’m still learning.
Do you have other books? We’d love to know.
Yes. Book 2 in the series, As Far as the West, is scheduled to be released in September 2025. And the third one, Gathered from the North, is in the latter stages of the behind-the-scenes preparation for publishing. I also have a contemporary novella (Beside the Still Waters) published in the Restoration & Romance anthology.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently writing When the South Wind Blows, Book 4 in the Blooms of the Bitterbrush series. This one will be a reunion of the characters in the first three books, bringing all the families together.
Website: BookswithBarbara.com
Link to book:
Amazon: https://a.co/d/34T3Y1N
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/angel-from-the-east-barbara-a-curtis/1146761316?ean=9781963212310
Social media links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572699209728
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