Author Interviews: Sarah Sundin "On Distant Shores"

You will remember when I read Sarah Sundin's With Every Letter and enjoyed it so much I ended up interviewing her on The Inkpen Authoress? Well, when I heard that her newest book, On Distant Shores, released, I sent her an email and asked if she'd be willing to be featured again.

 See, one of the things I like best about Sarah's books are how well researched they are. Her historical novels might not be the ones with the massive driving plots or the wild action, but they are accurate as all get-out and the characters get at you in a way that is not so frequent as you might think. In short, I love what of Sarah's work I have read, and I think you will too.

1. As a published author, which are your favorite and least-favorite parts of the responsibility of promotions?

Like most authors, I’m not fond of promotion. I love the “interact with readers” part of it—Facebook, email, things like that. I don’t care for blogging or writing articles, and I dislike when I need to post too many things about my books or myself within a short period of time. Book release months can feel a bit icky—and yet they’re a lot of fun too.

2. What is your favorite method for historical research?

Whatever does the job. I start with general books, peruse bibliographies for more specialized books, search the internet, contact museums and experts, and visit the settings when I can.

3. I know you have been to a couple of the places featured in your books, but when traveling to your setting is not an option, how do you ascertain that your portrayal of the places and people are accurate and believable?

That’s always a challenge. I love Google Maps “Man on the Street” feature where you can “drive” down the streets and enjoy a panoramic view. However, this shows me the sites in 2013. I have to watch out for what has changed and what hasn’t. I like to read firsthand accounts from people who were there for the bits of color.

4. Georgie sounds quite a lot like how I would have been if I was in the military during WWII. :) Describe her to us, and tell us how she became involved in the military in the first place!

Georgie was fun to write. She’s a perky people-person with a huge heart—but she struggles with fears, and she’s used to turning to friends and family to make decisions. In fact, she joined the Army Nurse Corps and became a flight nurse all to be with her best friend, Rose. When she’s faced with the dangers of the combat zone, she’s afraid she’s in over her head.

5. Your first book in the Wings of the Nightingale Series, With Every Letter was about Mellie Blake, On Distant Shores is about Georgie Taylor, and you have told us that the third book will be about the final gal in the tight-knit trio. If this isn't too much of a "choose your favorite child" question, can you tell us which heroine is your favorite and/or which most resembles your personality?

It’s definitely “choose your favorite child.” Mellie, Georgie, and Kay couldn’t be more different, but I completely loved writing from each point of view and adore each of these women. Mellie’s personality is definitely closest to my own—an introvert who never fit in when she was younger, but learns to embrace friendship.

6. In another interview you mentioned that your sons like to read your novels more than your daughter - do you have any idea why, and have your charming literary-ladies set a high standard for your sons' idea of a suitable wife? ;) {not that this would be a bad thing. Any guy would be lucky to win a Mellie's heart.}

That’s still true about my children. I’m not quite sure why the boys (15 and 20) like the books—except that I do blow things up. That’s important. My daughter (17) just feels uncomfortable reading romances her mother wrote. Eww. I understand.

As for the feminine standard, I hope my books would help. My heroines are realistic women with strengths and weaknesses, hopes and fears, dreams and hang-ups. I hope the stories would help the boys understand real women and how they work. For the same reason, my heroes are well-rounded, so young women will have realistic expectations on how men act—it’s rarely flowers and poetry and effusive compliments.

7. Your computer crashes and you lose a third of your book. (God forbid.) Your first reaction: 
   The paralysis of sheer terror. Followed quickly by freaking out.
8. Your son or husband or the technician comes in and finds the lost work; everything's peachy-keen. Your reaction to that initial reaction:

Embarrassment at the freaking out. Profuse apologies for the freaking out. Over-the-top gratitude.

9. You are handed plane tickets to go on a research trip to anyplace in the whole world except where your novels are currently set. Which continent do you choose, and what sort of story might you decide to write?

Well, that’s not very nice. Right now I want to go to Boston or take a cruise on the North Atlantic to research my next series. And the last thing I need is a new story idea to distract me. How about Hawaii? That would be very inspirational.

10. Some authors swear by reading books in their genre during the writing-stage of their novel. Others consider that the most counter-productive thing they could ever do. Where do you stand on this?

No problem. I read what I like, in and out of my genre. I do try to keep up with the other WWII novels on the market to make sure I’m not duplicating story or character elements—and because I love a good WWII story. I also like to direct my readers to these other books, because they’re usually hungry for more. And I only write one book a year!

11. What is your favorite snack to eat while writing, or are you one of those creatures who can exist on lukewarm tea and no sleep?

Gumdrops, tea, chocolate, coffee—all good. While writing In Perfect Time (August 2014), I started chewing gum because my hyperactive drummer/pilot hero is a gum-chewer. I found it burns off my nervous energy when writing and reduces gumdrop consumption.

12. Ocean or mountains to rest up and recharge?

Yes, please  I love the ocean. I love the mountains. Both are inspiring and relaxing and rejuvenating to me.

13. What is your favorite book on writing how-to?

I have a trio. Christopher Vogler’s The Writer’s Journey for story structure and plot development, Brandilyn Collins’s Getting into Character for character development, and Dave King and Renni Browne’s Self-Editing for Fiction Writers for good general fiction writing conventions.

14. Are you a shoe-queen or a barefoot girl?

Neither. I don’t go barefoot because my feet get too callused, but shoes are just…shoes…to me. I like a good comfortable pair, cuteness is always fun, but I wear my favorites long past their fashion expiration date and refuse to pay much for new shoes. I’m disgustingly practical.

15. Have you ever read an Amish romance, and if so, did you like it?

I have. It isn’t my favorite genre, but I read Suzanne Woods Fisher’s books at first because she’s a personal friend—and I love them! She includes lots of humor, and her characters are complex, realistically flawed, and different.

16. Which do you love best: your cat or your well-meaning-but-destructive dog?

My cat. I’ve always loved cats best. But Daisy the yellow lab grows on you—she’s a true character. And she’s Facebook gold—any post where I mention Daisy gets twice as many comments as any other post. By far.

What a fun interview! Thanks so much, Sarah, for participating. And she didn't only participate in the interview; Sarah has agreed to give away a copy of On Distant Shores to one blessed reader! To enter, leave a comment on this post with your email address. That will earn you one entry. For extra entries, follow Sarah's blog, share the giveaway on Facebook, your blog, or Google+, and come back here with another comment to tell me what you did! The winner of the entry will be drawn next Wednesday, so don't forget to check back. Again, thank you for the interview, Sarah, and congratulations on the release of On Distant Shores! 

With Every Question: an author interview with Sarah Sundin!

Well I did promise you a treat a couple weeks ago, and though the timing is a bit off due to the holiday rush, I may now reveal the surprise. I contacted Sarah Sundin, author of a series and a half of historical romance, asking if she might be interested in being featured on The Inkpen Authoress. When she said yes, it is needless to announce that I was excited. I first ran into Sarah's writing by winning one of her books, With Every Letter, in a giveaway.

 I received the book, started reading, and was swept up on the rich flood of characters, words, and drama in the story. I am a sworn skeptic of historical romances, having found that most have no plot but boy-meets-girl-and-tears-and-drama-ensue. I mean, honestly. So truth be told, I wasn't expecting to like With Every Letter. Ahem. I was wrong, and I admit it freely. Mrs. Sundin's book actually had substance. So I made Mama read it, then Abigail, lent it another friend, then sent a copy to another friend, and I will make Sarah read it whenever I get it back in my hands. You can read my review of this book here.

So! Sarah Sundin graciously has taken time off her Christmas holidays to have a bit of a visit on the Inkpen Authoress. I asked her a sound dozen questions and she answered them all with a right good will. I tried to ask things I knew you'd be asking. Ho ho! So without any further discussion, here is Sarah Sundin--gracious guest and author extraordinaire!

To begin with, a bio: Sarah Sundin is the author of With Every Letter, the first book in the Wings of the Nightingale series from Revell, and also the Wings of Glory series (A Distant Melody, A Memory Between Us, and Blue Skies Tomorrow). In 2011, A Memory Between Us was a finalist in the Inspirational Reader's Choice Awards and Sarah received the Writer of the Year Award at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. Sarah lives in northern California with her husband and three children. When she isn’t ferrying kids to tennis and karate, she works on-call as a hospital pharmacist and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies. Please visit her at http://www.sarahsundin.com.

Rachel: Having read {and rather adored} With Every Letter, I know you write books set in the WWII era. What made you choose this era over another?

Sarah: It’s such a fascinating time period, filled with millions of stories and so much inherent drama and romance—a novelist’s dream. Another thing I like about the World War II era is how ordinary men learned they could do extraordinary things, and how women explored new and exciting roles—while remaining ladies.

Rachel: What book(s) are you working on now?

Sarah: The second book in the Wings of the Nightingale series, On Distant Shores, is at my publisher’s now, and it’s already gone through the first level of edits out of three. I’m currently writing the rough draft of the third book in the series.

Rachel: What is your favorite part of marketing, and how much time do you spend working on publicizing your novels?

Sarah: I’ve found I really enjoy public speaking—both teaching the craft of writing and speaking to various women’s and church groups. Another area of marketing I enjoy is interacting with readers on Facebook and, to a lesser extent, Twitter. On average, publicity takes about one-third of my work time, which seems to be typical for an author. For a month or two before and after a release date, it takes a greater chunk, and less at other times.

Rachel: How did you decide on “historical romance” as your genre of choice?

Sarah: The romance part came naturally—that’s what draws me to most stories. I like almost all genres if there’s some romantic element. As for history, the story led me there. I started off writing contemporary romances, and then I had the story idea for A Distant Melody, my debut novel. The basic premise wouldn’t work in a contemporary setting. Naïvely I thought World War II would be easy because it was so recent and wouldn’t require much research. Please don’t laugh too hard. Thank goodness I found I adored researching.

Rachel: Did your love of writing grow from a love of reading, or did your love of reading stem from a love of putting words on a page?

Sarah: Reading came first. I came from a home with lots of bookcases, and one of the happiest moments of my childhood was getting my first library card. Like most bookworms, I made up stories, but mine weren’t any good and I knew it. In 2000, I had a dream with such compelling characters, I had to write their story. That first book will never be published, nor should it, but it got me started.

Rachel: What does your “writing space” look like? Is it vital to your craft to have your own space, or do you work well in “public” areas like the living room?

Sarah: I have my own office now, with a nice big L-shaped desk and a bookcase for my research materials. However, I started writing when my kids were little, and I wrote whenever and wherever I could. I still do lots of writing on the go. Just this afternoon I finished a chapter on my laptop in the dentist’s waiting room during my kids’ appointments.

Rachel: How much of your own personality goes into your characters? Which of your characters are you most like?

Sarah: I try to put as little of my own personality into my characters as possible, and yet a little bit of me goes into each character—it can’t be helped. I do a lot of personality testing on my characters and try to keep actions and reactions true to who they are.

Rachel: Have you ever tried what James Scott Bell calls the “Chapter 2 Switcheroo,” where you exchange the second chapter of your novel for the first in hopes of making a better, more exciting start to your novel? If so, or if you’ve done something similar, what are your thoughts on it? Yea or nay?

Sarah: I’ve never switched chapters 1 and 2, but I scrapped my original first chapter for A Distant Melody and started at a later point, and for my second book, A Memory Between Us, I originally started with a prologue which I eliminated. It’s very common for writers to open with a chapter that’s all backstory then realize it isn’t necessary and axe it.

Rachel: Which is your arch-nemesis: Beginnings, plotting, titles, characterization, or pacing?

Sarah: Plotting, by far. It usually feels like a smackdown wrestling match.

Rachel: Which do you prefer: dialog or description?

Sarah: I adore writing dialogue. Most of my scene sketches are nothing but dialogue, more like a screenplay—and then I fill in the narrative, description, and action.

Rachel: If you had to choose three {dead} authors to read and review your book, who would you choose?

Sarah: Jane Austen, Lucy Maud Montgomery, and Maeve Binchy.

Rachel: If you don’t mind sharing, how many times were you rejected by agents and/or publishers before being accepted?

Sarah: I lost count. Several dozen over the course of five years. When I first started submitting, historical fiction wasn’t selling at all. But in 2008, the market flipped and the publishers all wanted historicals. At that point, my first two novels were complete and polished, and the third was all outlined and ready to go—and I got my first contract.

Rachel: Coffee, tea, or lemonade? Rainy days or sunny?

Sarah: Rainy days are my favorite. I like coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon (hot or iced, no sugar), and ice water in the evening so I can sleep. But I do like lemonade on a hot day.

Rachel: Fiction or non-fiction for reading?

Sarah: For me fiction is fun and nonfiction is work. I only read nonfiction for research or for “assignments,” like for Bible study. But my heart is in fiction.

Rachel:  Favorite modern research-aid?

Sarah: I have a lot of fun with Google Maps, especially the “man on the ground” feature that lets you virtually walk down streets and look at the landscape. It’s phenomenal. It really helps me research locations I can’t visit—or refresh my memory for places I have visited.

Rachel: Final word for the readers?

Sarah: May 2013 be a year full of blessings and good books!

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Thank you so much, Sarah, for dropping by The Inkpen Authoress. I have appreciated hosting you here and getting to hear a bit of your story, wisdom, and techniques. And readers? Drop by Sarah Sundin's blog or Facebook page and get to know her better!

Word-play vs. Wonder

We have talked about the voices of different authors--how the ink our each of our pens flows differently. How we naturally piece together words in our own styles. We long to write as another author does, but our ideas do not flow like theirs. Then the search is on  for our own voice. --We have covered these things thoroughly indeed and bemoaned the glorious burnishing of being slain by another's pen. But tonight I was thinking of the books I've read recently and noticing something about each author that is perhaps one layer deeper than voice...

There is a phenomenon in reading that I often come across: a book will wholly and entirely transport me so that I forget all time and schedules and am simply living vicariously through a character. I will finish the book and look back with one of two sentiments:

Either the author spun his tale and description so effortlessly that the story was conveyed to my mind almost as a film....as a strand of vivid pictures without burden of words remembered

-Or-

The sheer beauty of the word-play is a large part of what captivates one when reading that book.

I fall in love with each example in turn and marvel over the intricacies of that author's skill. Sometimes you will also find a good author who relies on a combination of both for her voice. My style is such a one. I have not yet mastered the art of completely making a person forget they are reading, but neither am I an astonishing master of word-craft entire. I am a happy medium between the two--perhaps not a protege, but a comfortable companion by the fireside on a chilly evening.
One book that I finished recently {With Every Letter by Sarah Sundin, [which I just did a review of over at my other blog] } took the first example. Her characters were so alive, her plot so strong, her story and setting so vivid that I hardly realized I was reading. Instead, I was living that book alongside the characters and when I was finished reading the text, my mind kept up the dance all night and into the next day. To be able to write in that manner! What a gift.
But previously (and currently) I've been on a Rosemary Sutcliff and Jenny Freitag jag. These are authors whose skill in word-play is a vast part of the charm of their work. You want to take the book slowly because each sentence is skillfully wrought in a way that might be overlooked if read too quickly.

One set possesses a vividry built of efficient, simple, perfect dynamo-sentences. The other paints with a careful, rich-hued brush, but both are distinct masters of their craft. We hybrids are a rarer--though still a magnificent--race who would do well to look sharp about them and study the techniques of these solid, rock-bottomed authors to learn how to wield both pens effectively and build up our own craft.

“It has been my experience, sir, that when one broods too much on imagination, he can begin to see the images of his fancies imprinted on the faces of perfect strangers.”