I'm happy you're here

A reintroduction and a title announcement

If you’re reading this, I suspect you’re an avid reader or writer of fiction, and if you have subscribed to Beyond the Books, I know you are. Welcome! I’ve had some subscribers leave recently, as well as new subscribers join, so in this moment of ebbing and flowing, I want to take a moment to reintroduce myself.

Hi, I’m Amy, and I’m a lover of the outdoors, a mother of three grown people, a keeper of chickens and a sucker for dogs, a fan of black licorice and tater tots (but not together), and a travel writer turned novelist.

My Substack is for bookish news and related insights, and while I will never hold back from taking a position when I feel ethically compelled to do so, this page is not intended to be political. (Unless you think my identity and therefore my right to exist, contribute, have a family, and generally take up space in this world is political, in which case, this account might not be for you.)

I live in a log home on wooded acreage in Western Massachusetts with my wife. We both came from Oregon, but took the long way around, via Mexico, where we lived as expats before settling here in the beautiful Berkshires. I will sometimes entertain you all with anecdotes related to our homesteading efforts (word used loosely), but mostly, this property, which we call Aster Hill, has become my ultimate happy place for writing novels. Seriously, we see potential for a mini writing retreat here one day.

I write upmarket suspense and women’s fiction. I don’t love that second term, because stories that center women are not just for women, and not all women’s fiction features a cis female progangonist, but as we all know, nothing is perfect, and I’ve learned that chasing perfection can get in the way of actually getting words on the page and books in the hands of readers.

So categorize my books any way you want…I’m just happy to be read! I value diversity and inclusion in my life and in my writing; as a reader, I benefit so much from immersing myself in books with characters who differ from my own lived experience, and I strive to write my own characters with the same authenticity and care. In addition to this space and my website, you can find me on the D&I committee at WFWA. If you’re a writer, this is a great resource for writing diverse characters.

My debut novel, THE WILD BETWEEN US*, is an outdoorsy suspense that was over a decade in the making: I began my first draft in 2008 and landed my agent in 2018, but did not secure a publishing deal until 2022 (the book came out in 2023). Like so many other pursuits, persistence is key in the traditional publishing game.

SMOKE SEASON, also squarely in the character-driven suspense category, came out a year later (almost to the day!) in 2024. I began writing Smoke Season before ‘Wild’ was published, and while my debut was inspired by the California Sierra Nevada, where I grew up, Smoke Season takes place on the river and in the small towns I loved during my years in Oregon.

My third novel, officially titled NOW THAT I KNOW YOU BY HEART, will publish in January 2026. In ‘Heart’, readers will meet Shelby Wright, who buys a historic inn on idyllic San Juan Island as a fulfillment of her late husband’s dying wish, only to find herself embarking on a journey of self-discovery that’s a long time coming. Think Hallmark movie meets later-in-life coming out story. Watch this space for a cover reveal, coming soon!

I am always working on a manuscript, and hope to be lucky enough to put novels out in the world for years to come. Thank you for being here! Writers need readers as much as readers need writers!

*I’ll let you all click through for the back cover synopsis of the books.