ERIN BARTELS is the award-winning author of We Hope for Better Things, a 2020 Michigan Notable Book and 2019 Christy Award finalist, and The Words between Us, which was a finalist for the 2015 Rising Star Award from the Women’s Fiction Writers Association. Her short story “This Elegant Ruin” was a finalist in The Saturday…
Whether you’re someone who wants to wind down at night with a short story, fill the empty moments with a bit of poetry, or allow yourself to get swept into a novel that illuminates the past and delves deep into our present cultural realities, you’re sure to find something here that challenges, inspires, and entertains.…
From book talks and signings to writing conferences and workshops to book clubs and retreats, here are just some of the places you can find me throughout the year. If you see me anywhere, I hope you’ll introduce yourself! I love meeting readers and writers, talking about books, and sharing whatever wisdom I can to…
Would you like me to chat with your book club? Let’s make it happen! I’d love to visit your group to discuss characters, themes, or issues in my novel, or just talk about the writing life in general. If you’re in Michigan, chances are I can come in person. Out of state? Thanks to the…
According to the Lansing City Pulse, “Lansing author Erin Bartels may have struck gold with her debut work of historical fiction.” We Hope for Better Things made their Ten Best Reads of 2019 list! It was such a joy to talk with Emily Humphries on her Simply Stories podcast. We covered a lot of ground, including…
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT . . . The Words between Us “Alternating between flashbacks and the present day, The Words Between Us is a story of love found in the written word and love found because of the written word. It is also a novel of the consequences of those words that are left unsaid.…
Your Face Is Crooked is a semiautobiographical podcast that features short (about five minutes or less), true (or mostly true), often humorous vignettes that touch on everything from formative childhood experiences to bizarre neuroses to the insistent, nagging doubts we have about ourselves (sometimes on a daily basis). It’s about me, but in such a…
My musings on creativity, writing, sewing, nature, Michigan, family, faith, and more, often accompanied by lovely photos and sprinkled with what I hope amounts to good advice.
Book me as a speaker, teacher, or panelist at your conference, retreat, book club, writing group, or classroom. I love talking writing, books, and publishing, and I especially enjoy helping young and aspiring writers develop a rich writing life, improve their craft, and understand the publishing process. Choose from one of these topics or suggest your…
I love where I live. Michigan is more than Detroit and farm fields. It is a varied landscape, formed by ice and marked by evidence of its time as a tropical sea, forever being refashioned by wind and waves. It is a showcase for all four seasons, where in the same week you might get hypothermia…
Looking for a little something extra? Here’s where you’ll find it. Audio of original short stories or poems. Video Q&As. Maybe an interview with an author or otherwise interesting person. Who knows what visual and aural delights might show up on this page full of totally random stuff I wasn’t sure where to put? …
