An Interview with Kaitlyn Facista, author of Into the Heart of Middle-earth

Many of you may know of Kaitlyn Facista from her wonderful Tea with Tolkien community. I’ve been a follower and friend of Kaitlyn’s for a few years now and I am always in awe of the amount of time, effort, and passion that she pours into her work. From free resources and reading guides on Tolkien’s works, to in-depth book clubs, to her overall cozy and welcoming social media presence, Kaitlyn’s love and knowledge of Tolkien’s works shines through everything she does. That’s certainly the case with her brand new book, Into the Heart of Middle-earth.

Diving into Tolkien’s beloved characters and stories, Into the Heart of Middle-earth is a thoughtful and heartfelt book that explores how to cultivate more courage, hope, and fellowship into your daily life. While Kaitlyn also looks at these virtues through the lens of her own Catholic faith, she makes sure to make these very applicable to anyone regardless of their own spiritual journey. (As someone who is personally not religious, I really appreciated how Kaitlyn did this and I loved learning more about her background with The Lord of the Rings and how much it means to her!) And as a fan of both Tolkien and Kaitlyn, I really enjoyed reading this book and getting Kaitlyn’s insights and gentle encouragement to find ways to carry the messages and virtues of The Lord of the Rings into daily life.

Kaitlyn describes Tea with Tolkien as a welcoming and positive online community celebrating Tolkien and that’s just what it is. It’s a place where you can grab a cup of tea, your favorite Tolkien book and learn and discuss your favorite books. Read on to learn more about this community and to read my full interview with Kaitlyn about Into the Heart of Middle-earth!

Interview with Kaitlyn Facista

I’m so interested to hear how this book came to be! What was the inspiration behind it and when was the moment you realized that what you were writing could be a book?

It came very naturally as I reflected on what my mission is for Tea with Tolkien. I have always written and oriented my community with the intention of helping people dive deeper into the works of Tolkien, but also to look at ways that we can carry the spirit of Middle-earth into our own daily lives. So as I began drafting the book and thinking about what direction I wanted to go with this project, it became clear very early on.

“Many people want to imagine being a hobbit at heart as sitting around eating strawberries in the grass, but they often forget how hard-won those strawberries are. Everyone wants to eat second breakfast and spend time with their friends, but nobody wants to carry Sauron’s Ring to Mordor.” —Kaitlyn Facista

Tea with Tolkien has been such a staple within the Tolkien community for several years now. How did all your experience within this community help shape Into the Heart of Middle-earth?

My community has strengthened, encouraged, inspired - but also really challenged me and prompted me to self-reflection over the years. I’ve learned so much about Tolkien, the world, and myself because of the friendships I’ve made through Tea with Tolkien. I wouldn’t have been able to write this book without the previous 9 years of community informing my perspective.

Was there any chapter of Into the Heart of Middle-earth that was particularly challenging to write?

Chapters 5 (“Steward the Fields that You Know”) and Chapter 7 (“Discern Your Path”) were probably the most challenging for me, in part because their messages are so interconnected. I almost felt that they could’ve been one giant mega-chapter, but publishers don’t like hearing that! I had to sit with these themes for quite a while before I was able to present them in a way that I felt did each one justice.

“Eowyn shows us that we have what we need to be heroes right here and now—we can find heroic courage within our own sense of identity and purpose, no matter what circumstances of life we are facing.”—Kaitlyn Facista

Reversely, were there any chapters or parts of your book that came really easily or turned out to be your favorite?

My favorite chapter to write was the one on Hope, not only because it’s such an important aspect of The Lord of the Rings but also because it was very personal. I’ve struggled throughout my life with holding onto hope and so I felt like it came very naturally. I also loved having the chance to connect Sam’s experience in Mordor to the story of Eärendil the Mariner.

One of the things I really appreciated about Into the Heart of Middle-earth is just how approachable it is for all readers and their own spiritual journey and goal, whatever that might mean to them. Can you touch on that a bit?

My goal has always been to emulate Tolkien in the way that he approached topics of faith; he famously noted that The Lord of the Rings is not an allegory, but that he prefers the term ‘applicability’ whenever it comes to the symbolism present in his story. In writing the book, I wanted to share what I know about Tolkien’s life and faith as well as aspects of my own, but I always wanted to do so with the intent of preserving the freedom of the reader (as Tolkien did). My purpose is to show you a new path to tread or perspective to consider, to give you a “nudge out of the door” as Gandalf might, without trying to force you in any specific direction.

“In his lowest moment, Sam Gamgee sang, ‘Above all shadows rides the sun, and stars for ever dwell, I will not say the day is done nor bid the stars farewell.’ I carry this song in my heart, and with it I have weathered many storms.” —Kaitlyn Facista

Into the Heart of Middle-earth touches on so many different characters from The Lord of the Rings and explores how their experiences can help inspire us in our daily lives. Are there specific characters from Middle-earth that resonate with you?

So many! In writing this book, I felt very connected to Frodo’s journey. There were many moments where I felt like this project was too big of a task for me, or that I wasn’t cut out for it, but I tried my best to remain anchored to my purpose in the same way that Frodo does - and to trust that this task was given to me for a reason. So much of Frodo’s life is centered around sacrifice and I try to embody that in my daily decision-making, allowing myself to be made uncomfortable for the sake of others. Now that I’m on the other side of such a big project, it almost feels like I’m Merry and Pippin returning to the Shire with a renewed sense of confidence, purpose, and ability. This was an adventure that was very intimidating and at times scary to take on, but I felt called to pursue this path and so now that I’ve returned “home”, in a sense, I feel like I have an entirely new perspective and set of skills that I can use to help those around me.

Are there any elements from Tolkien that you think you’ll approach or see differently now having written Into the Heart of Middle-earth?

I’ve spent a lot of time while writing this book reflecting on the themes of Choice in Tolkien’s works, and the power that lies therein. Tolkien’s heroes weren’t born perfect, and neither were his villains - they were each brought to these positions through their own choices. I find that very sobering, but also empowering. Each of us have within ourselves the ability to choose goodness wholeheartedly, and if that’s a decision we fail to make the consequences can be quite terrible for both ourselves and those around us.

At its core, Into the Heart of Middle-earth is a call to action for the reader to live out the values within The Lord of the Rings. If there were one thing you’d want readers to take away from your book, what would it be?

I hope that readers will finish this book feeling equipped and inspired for their journeys ahead, wherever it may lead. I hope that they would understand that it’s through small, daily actions that we can follow in the footsteps of Tolkien’s heroes to become who we were meant to be, and it’s in doing so that we can truly create positive, lasting change in our own communities.

“I have also learned from Tolkien that there are many different kinds of friendships, and there is room in life for all of them. You will have friends who annoy you from time to time, like Pippin does for Gandalf. You will have friends who challenge your perspective like Gimli does for Legolas. Like Sam carrying Frodo, there will times in life where you will need to carry friends through difficult seasons—and in other times, you will need them to carry you.”
—Kaitlyn Facista

What’s next for you?

I’m really looking forward to leading my community through a re-read of The Lord of the Rings from about May to December! It’s been a while since we’ve done a LOTR read-along and I know there are a lot of new Tolkien fans in my community who haven’t read it before; I consider it a very special privilege to be able to help guide new readers through Tolkien’s works for the first time.

Thank you so much Kaitlyn for taking the time to chat with me about your book and share your journey! You can join the Tea with Tolkien’s community online by heading to Kaitlyn’s website or Instagram and you can purchase Into the Heart of Middle-earth here!