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Erin Bartels

Goodreads Author

Born

in The United States

January 02, 1980

Website

http://erinbartels.com

Genre

Fiction, Contemporary, Historical Fiction

Influences

Virginia Woolf, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Garrison Keillo ...more

Member Since

June 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/erinbartels

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ERIN BARTELS writes character-driven fiction for curious people. Her readers know to expect that each of her novels will tell a unique story about fallible characters so tangible that it’s hard to believe they are not real people. Whether urban, rural, or somewhere in between, her settings come alive with carefully crafted details that engage all the senses and transport the reader to a singular time and place. And her themes of reckoning with the past, improving the present, and looking with hope to the future leave her readers with a sense of peace and possibility.

Erin is the award-winning author of We Hope for Better Things, The Words between Us, All That We Carried, The Girl Who Could Breathe Under Water, Everything Is Just Beginning, a ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

Will there ever be a sequel to We Hope for Better Things? That ending just feels like there is more to tell.

Erin Bartels There are no plans for a sequel to We Hope for Better Things. I like to leave a little bit of untidiness at the ends of my books, allowing the reader …moreThere are no plans for a sequel to We Hope for Better Things. I like to leave a little bit of untidiness at the ends of my books, allowing the reader to imagine what might come next. Keeps the characters alive in some small way. :)(less)

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I just finished The Words Between Us and loved it!! But, PLEASE tell me there is going to be a sequel!! I want to hear all of Sarah's story and of course a whole book could be written around Dawt Pi, too! Please, I need to know more!! Have you considered returning to these characters?

Erin Bartels Hi Patty, I'm so glad you enjoyed The Words between Us. :)

I do intend to write Sarah's story at some point (though I must tell you it wouldn't be pub…moreHi Patty, I'm so glad you enjoyed The Words between Us. :)

I do intend to write Sarah's story at some point (though I must tell you it wouldn't be published in the next couple of years or anything). I intentionally didn't answer some questions about her subplot because of that. In the meantime, she does show up briefly in a short story I wrote that takes place in River City which you can find on the Extras page of my website: https://erinbartels.com/home/extras/

I don't know if I will get to Dawt Pi's story, though I would love to tell it. In our current publishing climate, I don't know that writing her story would be wise. There is much criticism (some of it deserved) of white authors writing the stories of non-white characters, especially when they do not share a similar cultural background. If I wrote Dawt Pi's story, I would likely want to do it in tandem with a Chin author. While I have many Chin friends and have served their refugee community for a decade as an ESL teacher, ad hoc social worker, trainer for citizenship tests, and in other capacities, I have not actually experienced life as a persecuted minority or a refugee. In pursuit of supporting #OwnVoices, I would want to work with a coauthor.

Again, I am so glad you enjoyed the book!

Best,
Erin(less)

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Erin Bartels’s books

Average rating: 4.06 · 15,729 ratings · 3,015 reviews · 21 distinct works • Similar authors

	We Hope for Better Things 4.22 avg rating — 6,204 ratings — published 2019 — 12 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Words Between Us 3.98 avg rating — 5,594 ratings — published 2019 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	All That We Carried 3.70 avg rating — 1,517 ratings — published 2021 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Girl Who Could Breathe Under Water 3.99 avg rating — 1,341 ratings — published 2022 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Everything Is Just Beginning: A Novel 4.12 avg rating — 526 ratings — published 2023 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Lady with the Dark Hair 4.10 avg rating — 407 ratings — published 2024 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	This Elegant Ruin and other stories 4.18 avg rating — 17 ratings — published 2013 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Beneath the Winter Weeds 4.40 avg rating — 5 ratings — published 2013	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Intentional Writer 4.75 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2014 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	We Shall Sometime Come to Someplace 4.67 avg rating — 3 ratings — published 2013	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Erin Bartels's Blog

Experimental Wolves

Once upon a time, oh, about 20 years ago, blogs took the online world by storm and dominated the way many people interacted with the internet (beyond looking up information). It was a beautiful time to be someone who enjoyed writing or reading longform creative nonfiction. I followed several blogs closely and others more casually. … Continue reading Experimental Wolves Read more of this blog post »

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Published on January 18, 2024 08:43

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Erin’s Recent Updates

Erin Bartels answered Kathlyn Dettmer's question: Is it necessary to read your books in order - are any in sequel? Thanks much! Hi Kathlyn, All of my books are standalone stories with no sequels and can be read in any order. Thanks for asking! Erin
Mar 13, 2023 10:51AM · 1 like · like
Erin Bartels has read Everything Is Just Beginning: A Novel by Erin Bartels (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 13, 2023 07:14AM · 1 like · like

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Quotes by Erin Bartels (?)

“Change happens when the cost of keeping things the way they are is too high.”
― Erin Bartels, We Hope for Better Things

6 likes

“...novels are for looking through someone else's eyes, seeing what someone else sees when they look at the world, and realizing, perhaps for the first time, that other people are just as real and alive and hurt as you are.”
― Erin Bartels, The Girl Who Could Breathe Under Water

tags: compassion, novels, pain, vulnerability

3 likes

“The end of a friendship—a true and soul-stirring friendship—is a terrible thing.”
― Erin Bartels, The Words between Us

3 likes

See all Erin Bartels's quotes »

Polls

Please vote for the May Members Choice Book.

If your book wins please plan to add to the conversation.

This poll will remain open until April 13th.

Good luck to all who nominated...

The Words Between Us

by Erin Bartels

1 vote, 100.0%

Happiness Falls

by Angie Kim

0 votes, 0.0%

Bloodroot

by Amy Greene

0 votes, 0.0%

Westering Women

by Sandra Dallas

0 votes, 0.0%

Wild, Beautiful, and Free

by Sophfronia Scott

0 votes, 0.0%

1 total vote

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