BookPleasures.com is honored to welcome acclaimed novelist Elizabeth Birkelund, whose latest novel, A Northern Light in Provence, is already resonating with readers for its lyrical prose, quiet emotional power, and evocative sense of place.

Elizabeth, known for her thoughtful and character-driven storytelling, invites us this time into the sun-drenched landscapes of southern France, where art, love, grief, and self-discovery entwine.

At the heart of the story is a woman seeking renewal after loss—and a vivid portrait of how unexpected encounters and unfamiliar surroundings can awaken long-dormant parts of the soul.

Today, we're delighted to speak with Elizabeth about the inspirations behind A Northern Light in Provence, her creative process, and how fiction can illuminate the paths we take through sorrow, hope, and transformation.

Norm: Good day Elizabeth and thanks for taking part in our interview. Elizabeth, what first inspired you to write A Northern Light in Provence? Was there a personal connection to the region or to the themes of healing and self-discovery that sparked the novel?

Elizabeth: I wrote this novel to explore the concept of translation that has intrigued me for years. Translation is not math. It's not 1+1=2. Rather, it's 1+1=100.

There are hundreds of ways of saying something in another language, even in our own language. The working title of this novel was Translating Love, because I wanted to explore how difficult it is to translate another person's experience of love.

There's the book called The Five Languages of Love, but by the time I finished writing the novel, I decided that there were as many love languages as there are people, so that means 8 billion!

A Northern Light in Provence is also a love letter to Provence.

About ten years ago, I fell in love with a hilltop village in the Luberon Valley. I have visited this village almost every year since then.

I wanted to revisit it in my novel to give readers a similar experience. Regarding Greenland, I have Danish ancestry.

One of our family names is Rasmussen. Knud Rasmussen was a famous explorer and anthropologist in Greenland, so I chose Greenland as the home of my protagonist, and this was before Greenland became a hot political topic!

Norm: The novel beautifully captures the emotional landscape of a woman processing grief while immersing herself in a foreign culture. What drew you to this particular emotional and physical journey?

Did you travel to Provence as part of your research or draw from your own experiences abroad?

Elizabeth: As I wrote above, I have spent time in Provence for the last ten years. But I've been a Francophile almost all my life and have travelled to most parts of France.

For this novel in particular, Provence was the inspiration. 

Norm: Your protagonist feels incredibly real and relatable. How do you approach developing such layered characters? Did she arrive fully formed in your imagination, or did she evolve as you wrote?

Elizabeth: Ilse Erlund arrived almost fully formed in my imagination from the start of the novel. I knew that she was an introvert, that she was a translator, that she was 35 years old, that she was restless to explore, impatient to leave her homeland.

I knew that she had lost a brother in a motorcycle accident. I knew that she had a difficult mother and a complicated father.

What I didn't know much about was her love life, and what would happen to her when she arrived in Provence.

I realize it sounds "corny" for an author to say this, but she's the one who directed my hand once she arrived in Provence.

Her love of the poet was going to be evident, but what about the poet's son? I wasn't sure! And what about the relationship she left behind in Greenland? I also wasn't sure.

So, yes, she did evolve as I wrote. As did her parents and her relationship to them.

Norm: Place plays a central role in this novel—Provence is almost a character itself. How did you capture its mood and texture so vividly? Were there specific sensory details or personal memories you wanted to preserve?

Elizabeth: Certainly, the colors of Provence! How I love the juxtaposition of the clay of the earth with the lavender of the flowers, with the terracotta rooftops with the views of the vineyards beyond, and then you have the open markets with the black tapenade and the bright red tomatoes, and the dusty grey goat cheeses.

And then there was the smell of freshly baked bread, the lavender soaps, the taste of French butter, the first sip of anise flavored Ricard, the thyme saucisson. Provence is a sensory feast. 

Norm: The novel feels both intimate and universal—touching on solitude, resilience, and reconnection.

How did you balance the personal scale of the story with these larger human themes? Did you start with the emotional arc or with the setting?

Elizabeth: Good question! 

The emotional arc is the incentive for the novel, but the physicality of the setting is, for me, the best and easiest place to get the novel started.

Set the scene, place the actors on the set, carry out the message… Hopefully, the emotional arc will be a true arc, which is always satisfying. 

Norm: Were there any surprises during the writing process—scenes, characters, or directions that took you somewhere unexpected? How did you know when to follow those new directions versus staying with your original plan?

Elizabeth: The most surprising aspect of writing A Northern Light in Provence was my trip to Greenland. I wrote the first draft without having been to Greenland.

I researched extensively, I spoke to explorers, to Greenlanders, read books about the country.

When I told my editor that I hadn't been to Greenland, she said, "Well, you know that you're going!" I said, "Of course." Then I asked her to join me.

To go to a country in which your novel is situated with your editor! This was a surprise. Now, my editor would know which parts of my novel rang true or false.

During our trip, I was doing well until we visited the home of Ilse, my main character. In the original draft, there were roads, trucks, cars, and emergency vehicles.

When we arrived in Oqaatsuut, we discovered that there were no roads.

No roads! Only grass, rocks; people walked to each other's homes, or else they took a ferry to other towns, or used dog sleds in the winter, ATVs in the summer. (Greenland has only 86 miles of paved roads.) I changed that part of the novel. So much about Greenland was surprising!

The icebergs, how huge they were, the whales, how numerous they were, the sled dogs, how they howled at dusk for their dinners. 

All in all, I stayed with my original plan, I just extended it, enlarged it, embraced it.

Norm: Are there scenes or passages in the novel that are especially meaningful to you—whether because of what they say, or how they came together? Can you share why those parts stand out?

Elizabeth: The scenes in which the poet and Ilse find a common ground in their work together spoke to me very much.

This sensitivity to language, this sharing of the love of poetry, their gentle seeking of meaning in life, the meeting of young and old, their discussions of what makes poetry mean something to someone.

These were the moments when I wanted the book to sing. 

The first scenes of Ilse arriving in Provence were also important to me. I wanted to convey the feelings I had when I first arrived in this hilltop village.

Revelation, joy, sensual awakening, discovery of self. 

Norm: How did your own reading life influence this novel? Were there specific authors, genres, or even works of art that helped shape the tone or style of the book?

Elizabeth: One author in particular helped me understand the part of the poet in my novel, and that is W.S. Merwin.

He translated troubadour poetry, lived in Provence, loved Provence, and wrote poetry. He was my inspiration for my poet and shaped the tone of his poetry.

Really, more than art, the settings of Greenland and Provence shaped the tone and style of the novel. 

Norm: Where can our readers find out more about you and A Northern Light in Provence?

Elizabeth: MY WEBSITE: 

My publicist, Janet Appel, Janetappel54@aol.com, will be happy to help.

Norm: As we close, what do you hope readers will carry with them after finishing A Northern Light in Provence? If they walk away with one insight or feeling, what would you like it to be?

Elizabeth: You sure ask profound questions!

First, I would like readers to enjoy the journey Ilse takes from Greenland to Provence, to experience her sensations, her joys, her disappointments.

Secondly, I would like readers to explore the notion of translation, first words, then countries, then the concept of love.

This is such a rich subject, and I had to edit so much from the final draft! Lastly, as readers follow Ilse's journey of self-discovery, I would hope that they would find a morsel of truth in the novel for themselves.

Ilse learned how important knowing herself was before jumping into a relationship that was not meant for her.  Part of the effort in translation in life, is understanding one's own language.

Norm: Thanks once again and good luck with all of your future endeavors