📚 A Bookish Chat with 'The Voice I Couldn't Ignore' Johanna Frank | Author Interview | #AuthorInterview

Today we welcome Johanna Frank to The Writer's Life e-Magazine! Johanna is the author of the Christian nonfiction, The Voice I Couldn't Ignore, and this interview is part of her Blog Tour by Pump Up Your Book. Enjoy!

Johanna Frank is a Canadian author based in Southern Ontario, where she lives with her husband, and delights in time with her children and grandchildren. Her award-winning A Lifeline Fantasy Series includes The Gatekeeper’s Descendants (Readers’ Favorite 5-Star Medalist), Jophiel’s Secret (Winner of the 2023 General Market Suspense Fiction Award and the Christian Speculative Fiction Award), and Here Lyeth (finalist for The Word Guild’s 2025 Christian Speculative Award).

In addition, Johanna has introduced a creative memoir, a deeply personal work that explores God’s abundant mystery and healing.

Known for her lyrical, imaginative style rich in symbolism and spiritual depth, she invites readers into otherworldly adventures and real-life reflections that illuminate belonging, faith, and the unseen.

“Frank, one of Canada’s emerging authors in spiritual fantasy, walks a fine line between general fantasy and faith-based fiction. Her work aims to innovate and transcend traditional boundaries, catering to a hungry market of curious readers who don’t want to be preached to but are open to exploring spiritual themes through fantasy.” – Sheri Hoyte, Reader Views

Her latest book is the powerful Christian nonfiction, The Voice I Couldn’t Ignore.

Connect with Johanna at Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram and BookBub.

Welcome to The Writer's Life! Now that your book has been published, we’d love to find out more about the process. Can we begin by having you take us at the beginning? When did you come up with the idea to write your book?

Thank you for asking! I actually talk a bit about that in the Letter to Readers at the beginning of the book. In short, this story has been a long time coming—well over a decade, really. It took that long to make sense of a series of unusual experiences that have shaped my life, many of which, I believe, show God’s incredible sense of mystery.

The prologue draws from pieces of an ancestor’s trauma that were passed down through family stories, while the main part of the book—told in first person—comes from my own encounters with haunting visions, vivid dreams, and deep personal loss. Pulling it all together was my way of trying to understand those moments and, in the process, find meaning, faith, and healing.

Who is your publisher and how did you find them or did you self-publish?

I made the decision five years ago when my first manuscript was completed to self-publish. My company name is Marrow Publishing and now has four titles to its credit. Quality control is absolutely critical and I have been keen to ensure quality and professionalism has been met at every step of the way.

Do you believe a book cover plays an important role in the selling process?

Yes I do. And it seems a cover must not only attract and pull in potential readers, it must speak to the genre audience as well. It is trickier than one might expect.

How hard was it to write a book like this and do you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers?

It was definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done—and also one of the most freeing. Writing about loss, especially the loss of a child, isn’t something you just decide to do one day. For me, it started as a way to make sense of grief, to find where God was in the middle of it all. There were days I couldn’t write a single word, and other days when the words just poured out like a release.

If I could offer any advice, it would be this: don’t rush the process. Let your heart lead, and give yourself permission to pause when it gets too heavy. Keep prayer and reflection close; they’ll guide you when logic can’t. And remember, it’s okay if your story takes years to find its shape—mine certainly did.

What other books are you working on and when will they be published?

My prior three novels fall into the speculative fiction category, perfect for adults and young adults alike. I am so honoured and pleased to say they have each won writing awards. Here Lyeth, published in 2024; The Gatekeeper’s Descendants, published in 2021; and Jophiel’s Secret, published in 2022.

My next book, which has also been circulating in my heart and mind, will be another speculative fiction novel. At least that is what I plan – one never truly knows what their tomorrows will bring about!

What’s one fact about your book that would surprise people?

I believe the hauntings of an ancestral trauma that leaked into my own life is one of the unique experiences I share in this novel, The Voice I Couldn’t Ignore.

Finally, what message are you trying to get across with your book?

God still communicates today and in many, many ways he seeks to reach us – we simply need to be keen to watch and listen.

Thank you again for this interview! Do you have any final words?

I want to thank YOU and your audience for this interview, for taking precious moments out of your day to read!

The Voice I Couldn’t Ignore—a work of creative nonfiction, a story when God forewarned, held and healed.

In a vision, God told Hanna he was taking her child. Seven years later, he did.

This story leads the reader through an ancestral prophecy, profound visions, and a mother’s journey through symbolisms in the Holy Land. It shares how she guided her teenage daughter through a devastating diagnosis while wrestling with God, and reveals her spiritual rebuilding of an unshakable house of faith in the aftermath of loss.

Read sample.

The Voice I Couldn’t Ignore is available at Amazon.