by Tari Faris, @FarisTari
You can’t read a book set in 1930s America without expecting to find the Great Depression playing a major role. If you read a book that starts on December 7th, 1941 you would expect it to reference the bombing of Pearl Harbor. And if you read a book that set in September of 2001 you had better believe it would reference the bombing of the two towers.
But I am not talking about events as much as effects.
I was watching E.T. with my kids the other day and there were so many things that made it feel not contemporary. I am not just talking about the clothes and haircuts. Kids not wearing seatbelts, kids left home alone unsupervised, kids without bike helmets. They may seem small but my kids really noticed the differences. To them, it was a testimony that it was dated, history, a look into the past.
You don’t even have to go back as far as 1982 to see culture shifts. Look at Sleepless in Seattle as they walk people to the gate at an airport. In 10 Things I Hate About You, the main hero is caught on school campus with an open knife, and he gets nothing more than a hand slap. I think he got in more trouble for commandeering the sound system. And there are more – so many more examples that are just subtle shifts in culture, but people notice. It becomes “dated.”
As a contemporary writer, I want my books to feel contemporary whether they are read today or ten years from now. But this brings me back to the problem, how will COVID-19 change everything? Only time will tell.
Will masks become the new norm? I hope not – that could make kissing scenes a little cumbersome. Will handshakes become a thing of the past and every time I have a character extend a hand in greeting the reader will think, “Ah, a pre-COVID-19 novel.”?
It may not be these. It could be something much more subtle but I am guessing there will be something, or even a few things, that change because after 47 days (yes, I am counting) of sheltering in place, I know I am different. And I am guessing the rest of you are too.
So what do you think will be some of the changes that will stand out in our culture?
What Secrets Are Hiding Behind the Doors of this Small Town?
Real estate agent Hannah Thornton loves the historic community of Heritage, Michigan. Unfortunately, selling houses is not one of her fortes. She sees each house and the larger town of Heritage as something to be valued, not sold-off to the highest bidder. When a business mogul arrives in town determined to exploit the land and build a new strip mall, Hannah is determined to stop him from bulldozing her town’s past. At first no one supports her efforts—not even her best friend, Luke. Can Hannah help the town of Heritage see that true value lies in the things you cannot put a price tag on?
Even though Luke Johnson has grown up in Heritage as a foster child, he never truly felt like he belonged. Anxious to earn his place in the town and in Hannah’s heart, Luke applies for the job of assistant fire chief. But Luke does not anticipate the interview process to unearth secrets from his past he has kept carefully hidden. Will the pain of being honest be worth the risk? Can he pull down the walls he’s erected around his bruised heart?
Tari Faris has been writing fiction for thirteen years but has been creating fiction in her head as long as she can remember. She signed with Revell for her debut novel – You Belong with Me – which will be released in September 2019. She is represented by Wendy Lawton at Books & Such Literary Management and is a member of ACFW and My Book Therapy. She was the 2017 Genesis winner, 2016 Genesis finalist, and 2014 Genesis finalist. In addition to her writing, she also works for My Book Therapy as a special project manager and blog coordinator for LearnHowToWriteANovel.com. When she is not writing or working, she spends time with her amazing husband and kids. In her free time, she loves coffee, rockhounding with her husband and kids, and distracting herself from housework. You can connect with her at www.tarifaris.com