Exclusive interview with Author Amanda Dykes

 Today, I'm thrilled to share with you my recent interview with author Amanda Dykes, in which we explore her newest book Born of Gilded Mountains and her writing. 

After you enjoy getting to know Amanda be sure to head over to Instagram and enter the 3-book Giveaway that I'm hosting (Open to US residents only). 

Instagram post link is https://www.instagram.com/p/C8TfdSVudzi/

1) How do you develop your setting (a photo, a trip, a random comment)? 

Settings are almost always how a seed of a story begins. I’ll see a picture, or learn a fact, or stumble upon something interesting in one of my research rabbit trails, and there’s this moment—a catch of the breath, almost—where my mind sticks and starts to wonder, what sort of stories does this place hold?

From there, it’s a one to two-year journey of reading books, interviewing people, visiting when possible, watching documentaries, and really immersing myself in what that place is, to the point that it feels like it becomes a part of me. I love getting to experience settings to this depth!

2) Was there some hidden gem that you discovered while writing Born of Gilded Mountains that surprised you? 

First of all, I’d love to take a moment to relish the question about a “hidden gem,” with regards to a book that’s partially about mining. 

Incidentally, one of my favorite things I learned came from learning about mining, and the life of the terrain. As I learned about how gold (and other minerals, gems, etc.) is kept in the veins of the mountains, I started to think about erosion. I wondered if gold eroded, sometimes. Then, the thought of “all rivers lead to the sea” (a phrase which is mostly true) struck me and I thought, does that mean there’s gold in the ocean?

The answer is a huge YES, so much that I’ll never look at waves the same again. What I now know and marvel at, is that these ocean waves rock with so much microscopic gold…and yet no one can mine it. People have tried, and there was even a pretty big scam involving mining gold from the ocean a hundred or so years ago. But for now, at least, when we look at a sea, we can know that it is
literally a sea of gold…washing in waves, and rising in tides, and settling on sea floors, while mankind toils to strike it rich on land. We have a treasury, all of us, if we will just see it.

3) Which of the characters do you most identify with? And why?

While neither Mercy nor Rusty are autobiographical, there are little pieces of me wrapped up in both of them, at different times. I identify with Rusty’s propensity to face struggles alone, even when a loving community surrounds her, and I identify with Mercy taking a very long time to find her voice…a major theme in the book for her. I was painfully shy as a kid, and now it’s my job to put my heart on the page for strangers to read. It feels vulnerable for sure, but I’m so thankful for the chance to be a part of the work of story.

4) In Born of Gilded Mountains who is your favorite hidden character (the one who is in the background but pivotal to the story)? 

There’s a great bear (or sasquatch) of a man, a hermit of sorts in the hills. His name is Reuben—a gentle giant, a quiet soul. I named him after a man I used to visit at a nursing home when my elementary school class used to walk down the street to spend time with people who lived there, many years ago. Reuben in the book is quiet, and the phrase “still waters run deep” is definitely true with him. He’s barely on page, but he’s integral to the story…and for some reason, he just captured my heart.

I also love Holden Huxley for the adult child that he is—he was very fun to write.

Oh, and Willa.

Oh wait, and there’s Miss Murdock…and Confetti the cat…and--

How long can this answer be? Just kidding. But I do tend to love the side characters. By the end of the story, I’m wishing I could write a story for each of them!

5) What do you most like about the genre that you are writing in?   

Learning! There’s always something new to learn in historical fiction. I know that sounds ironic—what could be new about history? But truly, there are so many hidden stories tucked away in time. And, they lead me into he real-life stories of people living today. I loved getting to learn from train experts, mine owners, and more, while researching this book!

6) What one question do you wish you would be asked and how would you answer it?

What a great question. A lot of people ask a lot of wonderful questions: why did you start writing, why do you write, what’s next; but one thing I’ve never yet been asked is, why do you keep writing?

Writing is a joy, a privilege, it’s exciting and takes me somewhere different every day. But writing as a profession, like every profession, also has its share of challenges.

What keeps me going when I’m feeling tired or not enough (which is always—I’m a big believer in a story being bigger than us—perhaps a topic for a different day) or feeling like retreating into a less public world?

There are a lot of reasons. Readers are a huge, huge part of this. The emails and notes I have received over the years have often brought me to tears. For a story I wrote alone in an obscure corner of my world, to have somehow been a part of something important or deep or tender in someone else’s world—it’s so humbling, and I’m deeply, deeply grateful.

I love my publishing team. They feel like family to me, and the gift of collaboration brings story magic. I love their hearts. I love their hearts for words and story, yes, but even more, I love their hearts for readers. They love you, readers. I don’t think they’d mind me saying that.

And last, but definitely not least: every day, I learn more in this story that God is writing with my life. Lessons I’m learning, graces I need, mercies freely given to me. The more I live, the more thankful I am for God’s gentle faithfulness to call my heart up and out, closer to him. He’s patient with me, He keeps me close even when I’m weak. I love Him more every day for it, and my gratitude runs deeper every day.

One of His languages is story. Experts have studied and dissected story structure and elements for centuries now, and there are timeless truths about the way it connects with hearts—things so sure and true, it’s almost like a different branch of science (I also love science…).

So, when I sense Him using the ink of time, to write a story for me to get to step into and live, and journey along with Him… I’m blown away.

I want to keep being a part of that work with Him. Whether that’s through words typed into novels, or time spent with others in other stories written through conversation and time, or gestures that tell a story, or any other form… I want to keep learning, and I’m honored to keep walking this road.

Thank you, Amanda, for taking time from your busy schedule to share it with us!

About Amanda Dykes:

Amanda Dykes's debut novel, Whose Waves These Are, was the winner of the prestigious 2020 Christy Award Book of the Year, a Booklist 2019 Top Ten Romance debut, and the winner of an INSPY Award. She's also the author of All the Lost Places and Christy Award finalists Yours Is the Night and Set the Stars Alight.


Find her online at AmandaDykes.com.