How a Year of Living Abroad Inspired a Novel

It seems like just yesterday that I was living a totally different life--in another city, in a foreign yet familiar country, where every day seemed to bring a new adventure.

The year was 2007, and I was a young(er) graduate student living in London.  I was studying for a graduate degree in European Politics, immersing myself daily in the history and struggles of the European Union and the countries of Central Europe, which was the focus of my degree.  

But even more exciting than my academic life was my personal one—I had finally achieved a lifelong dream of moving to London, the capital of the country in which my mother had grown up, the city she lived in as a young woman before pulling up stakes to go to America.  I’d always loved the city during my visits, and hoped that someday, I could follow Mom’s example and move there myself.  

And so when fate offered me the opportunity to do my graduate work overseas in England, I did what any sensible young traveler would do—I seized the opportunity and had what was probably the best year of my life.

One thing that stands out to me most when looking back on my time in London is how close the city’s history always felt to the surface of present-day life.  This was especially true when it came to World War Two.  London had endured so much during the war, and its successful struggle against monstrous tyranny decades ago still seemed coded into the city’s current identity, its sense of itself.

Since I was a child, I’ve been fascinated by World War Two history, particularly the Battle of Britain and the Blitz.  My year living in London only sharpened my interest, and I became more and more convinced that there was a story buried somewhere inside me that I wanted to tell about that time period—the novel I’d always dreamed of writing.

But, of course, there are a million WW2 historical fiction novels out there already (although as a reader, I’m not complaining!)  So, what would make my future book stand out?  What would be my hook?

Well, as it turned out…time travel.

I never thought of myself as a science fiction writer, and I still don’t.  Historical fiction is my jam.  But when I sat down to write my forthcoming novel, The Girl Who Tried to Change History, I finally realized after a few stops and starts that I didn’t want to try to tell my story through the eyes of a character who’d been born circa 1915 and grown up in early twentieth century London.  I wanted to switch things up a bit, and make my narrator a modern woman, from the 21st century, who’d somehow been sent back to a time and place that wasn’t her own.  

But how, and why?  What was she doing there?  What was her purpose?  What did she hope to accomplish, and what would her time spent in the past ultimately help her learn?

Eventually, I found the answer to all of these questions, as I typed away over a year and a half in odd moments snatched during free weekends to write my first novel.  

Now, in just a few months, my book will be available for the whole world to read, and everyone can discover the answers to these questions. I hope you’ll take time to read my story, and when you do, I’d love to know what you think!

Stay tuned for more details over the next few months as we get closer to my book’s publication on 6/6/23.  In the meantime, I’ll be dreaming of London, as I often do, and looking forward to my next visit to the city that’s long inspired me…so much so that I had to write a book.