5:00 AM
Have you ever had a funny experience
connected with being an author? For instance, has someone ever overheard you
discussing the merits of one murder weapon over another or caught you shooting
at a can of gasoline to see if you could make it explode?
Once
while driving my daughter and her best friend to the high school, her friend
was moaning about how her father embarrassed
her so much by talking to their pet bunny. (Please read this with
15-year-old teen girl angst). My daughter said, “You think that’s bad? My mom talks to the people on her computer screen! And they aren’t even real!” Best friend said, “All right. You win.”
What do you love about being a writer, and
what do you like the least?
I
love almost all of it—the research, the planning, the rough draft, and even the
editing. I’ve come to enjoy a lot of the publicity parts of it—especially
speaking events and social media. I’m not so fond of writing nonfiction
articles for publicity, but what job doesn’t have parts to it that you don’t
like?
Are you a plotter, a pantser, or a
combination?
Serious
plotter. Verging on obsessive-compulsive. I fill out character charts, plot
charts, and scene outlines. Without that road map I won’t start the journey.
However, my characters have been known to lead me off my carefully laid trail,
and I let them. They know best.
Do you write full time, or do you work it in
alongside a full-time job?
I
do write full time, but I also work one day a week as a hospital
pharmacist—which pays way better than writing! And we have college-age kids.
What do your kids think about your being a
writer?
Our
daughter (18) thinks it’s kind of weird. She won’t read my books because it’s
icky to think of your mom writing kissing scenes. I do understand. I would have
thought the same thing when I was her age. However, our sons (16 and 21) think
it’s cool and love reading my books. Our youngest son served as my assistant
last month when I was researching my next series in Boston. My husband couldn’t
take much time off work, but he sweetly offered to let me stay several extra
days to research—and Matthew volunteered to stay with me and help. During the
trip the truth came out. Matthew said, “I was afraid you’d get caught up in
your research and get lost.” So he stayed to protect me! Isn’t that sweet?
What do you do to get past writer’s block?
I
usually get a running start. First I review my outline for the chapter. Then I
read the chapter or two beforehand to get in the right frame of mind. And then
I write. I give myself complete permission to write nonsense, knowing I can
always delete or edit it later. When I find myself truly procrastinating, it
often stems from a niggling sense that something is wrong with the story. Then
I take some time (I’m not writing anyway) to evaluate that section of the
novel. Why is it not working? Too much chit-chat and not enough action? Too
much research and not enough emotion? Is my heroine acting out of character,
and I need to back off from my outline and let her take over? Usually something
pops up, I rework my outline, and back to work I go.
Do you have any pets? Do you own them, or
they you?
We have a sweet but skittish cat named Janie, and a yellow lab
named Daisy. Daisy is six years old but still acts like a puppy, and she still
does not understand why on earth I want to type on that box thingie all day
when I could be playing with her! So she eats random household objects and
steals my slippers. She owns us.
Bio:
Sarah Sundin is the author of six historical novels,
including In Perfect Time (Revell,
August 2014). Her novel On Distant Shores
was a double finalist for the 2014 Golden Scroll Awards. Sarah lives in
northern California with her husband and three children, works on-call as a
hospital pharmacist, and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies.
Social media links
Website: http://www.sarahsundin.com
Make sure to stop by tomorrow, when you can enter to win a free copy of In Perfect Time!
Interesting interview---her kids are really funny!
ReplyDeleteHistorical novels are a favorite of mine...love that Sarah does her research...and the comment by her son, Matthew!! :)
ReplyDeletepatucker54 at aol dot com
My kids are hysterical! They keep me hopping every minute. And they keep me humble. Just last night I was the guest speaker for the Awana leaders' meeting at our church. When I told Matthew, he gave me an odd look and said, "Why would they choose YOU?" Yep, no chance of me getting a swollen head...
ReplyDeleteYour daughter cracks me up. Can't imagine mom writing kissing scenes? LOL! Way to keep you humble.
ReplyDeleteMy son probably would have had the same fear about me and research. I do tend to get absorbed and forget where I am. I've forgotten to pick them up from activities because I was following some research rabbit trail.
Loved this interview, Sarah! Thank you so much for sharing. :-)
ReplyDelete