Amanda Churchill: Writing Friends Are the Best Friends

Amanda Churchill is a writer living in Texas. Her work has been featured in Hobart Pulp, Witness, River Styx, and other outlets. She was a Writer’s League of Texas 2021 Fellow and holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from the University of North Texas. Follow her on X (Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram.

Amanda Churchill

Photo by Thaddeus Harden

In this post, Amanda discusses how she became Team Revision in the publishing process of her debut historical fiction novel, The Turtle House, her advice for writers, and more!

Name: Amanda Churchill
Literary agent: Sarah Bowlin at Aevitas Creative Management
Book title: The Turtle House
Publisher: Harper Books
Release date: February 20, 2024
Genre/category: Historical fiction
Elevator pitch: When a widowed Japanese war bride is forced to share a bedroom with her mid-20s granddaughter, the two women connect over a beloved lost place and the secrets they both carry.

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What prompted you to write this book?

Prior to my grandmother’s death in 2014, I had the rare opportunity to spend lots of quality time with her, the first time since I was a kid. I was exceedingly pregnant, finishing up my creative writing masters, and had just left my full-time job, and she was recovering from cancer and learning how to accept help for the first time.

Where she had never been very forthcoming about her experiences during World War II and the following Occupation, something about this particular time period allowed us to really talk and to connect. Toward the end of these conversations, she announced that her stories would make a really great book one day, maybe the best book. I had to laugh. She was the type of woman who made these grand pronouncements about everything—from the intelligence of her cat to the strength of her fingernails. I told her I would think about it, but honestly, I was worried that my abilities weren’t equal to her amazing life.

After she passed away in March of 2014, I found that I missed her deeply and the only way to feel better was to sit down and simply type out these stories. While putting them down, I quickly realized that I needed more information, that there were holes that I hadn’t seen before, so I began to write into these spaces. It was like I was darning a blanket, and my goal was to simply make sure my stitches disappeared so her life could burst forth from my computer screen. It was probably the most magical experience I’ve ever had—maybe ever will—as a writer.

How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?

From early, barely formed idea to publication? Nearly 10 years. But I worked on it in sputters, between all of the other parts of life. One part of the novel, the thread of story inspired by my grandmother, did not change dramatically from the moment it came from my head into the document. Thank goodness—because the other part did. I always wanted to have a granddaughter figure in the novel to both misunderstand and then to fully understand her grandmother’s story. I think there’s something so meaningful in those relationships. However, Lia changed ages, jobs, locations … the only part of Lia that remained faithful to the original idea was her disorientation with life.

Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?

As a debut author and someone not familiar with publishing, I would say that every day is a surprise. I think what I’ve gathered at this point is how to manage my own expectations of what process looks like. One starts out thinking that they’ve finally landed in the place, and one has—in a way. But there are many highways and byways and lanes within Publishingland, and there’s not necessarily a map one can download or pick up at the gas station.

As someone who is admittedly drawn to certainty, this took some time to get used to. Will I get to merge into the same offers or opportunities as someone in a similar position? Will I be able to get there in a different way? Will I be able to arrive at all? I’ve grown more comfortable with holding my expectations loose in my hands and keeping my mind on why I’m doing this: the words and the story.

Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?

I was surprised at how much I loved revision. Shocked. I had always heard that revising a novel was the worst and that drafting is far better. I adored getting into the story and tinkering. I liked seeing what could change for the better and how small movements created big waves within the text. I have decided that I’m Team Revision. I’d much rather make something that already exists better than create something from scratch.

What do you hope readers will get out of your book?

I hope readers love the characters. My grandmother is gone, so all I have now are my memories of her and this woman I’ve created in her likeness. When readers take in this story and remember Mineko, they are keeping my grandmother’s memory alive in some form, which feels magical.

I also hope readers will walk away with a greater appreciation of their own family’s origin and how important it is to tell these stories. Tell them when they hurt. Tell them when you think no one will understand. Tell them even if you think they aren’t worth telling. Because more than likely they are and someone needs them.

If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?

It’s over-said, but not overdone, so I’ll say it again: Find community. Writing friends are the best friends, and even if none of this had ever occurred, I have made the very best friends on this journey, people who have enriched my life and I hope I’ve done the same for them. It’s so wonderful to be able to read my friends’ work and be able to send them mine. It buoys me to be able to chat about what we’re struggling with and, even better, what we’re doing well. I never feel lost or invisible when I’m communicating with my writing friends, be it in-person, on text, or on a Zoom. They really are everything to me. 

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