Since releasing my first book the other day, I’ve been getting some questions from people, so I thought I’d take a few minutes to address some of the things you may be wondering about.
1.) Is
this a true story? or Is this your life story?
Um, well, it’s not my
story, but it’s someone’s story. The things that Sadie deals with in Beautiful are things young girls deal
with every day. We don’t like to think about them, let alone discuss them, but
they happen. Maybe you know someone who’s dealt with some of these things. Maybe
you’ve dealt with these things.
2.) Have
you gone through withdrawal like Sadie?
No.
3.) Then
how could you write about it with so much detail?
I spent three long
years with an alcoholic and watched him go through withdrawal many, many times.
I have also researched this topic endlessly and read memoirs by recovering
addicts.
4.) What
made you want to write a story like this?
I’m not sure. In my
mind, Sadie’s story started at a point much later in her life then where she’s
at in Beautiful. From there, I took
her forward, but I also had to take her back and learn her past. By the time I had
spanned ten years of her life in my mind, I knew I had to write it down. I
began writing this series in March of 2010 without any serious plans of
actually publishing it. Several friends and family members were my ‘test
readers’. They gave me the push I needed to keep going. They told me I made
them cry. They said they stayed up all night reading. They told me their
husbands stole it from them and read it. Their husbands got mad because they wouldn’t
stop reading. They demanded I write faster. They made bets on how it would end.
People might read my
books and look at me a little differently now and I don’t care. Maybe there is
something wrong with me to write something that some think of as disturbing.
What’s more important to me is that people read this and feel something. That
they can have empathy. Because we don’t like to talk about these topics, we
never know who might relate to someone like Sadie. That’s why I want everyone
to share this book.
I am a survivor of
domestic violence. There are incidents that happen to Sadie that are exactly
what happened to me. I’ll let you wonder which ones those are. There are so
many pieces of my life in Sadie’s, and I am not sure there is one person in my
life that would be able to pick up on all of them. But I am not Sadie, and her
story is not mine.
Inspiration comes in the
strangest places. Once I wrote a whole scene based around an interaction I witnessed
between a bus boy and waitress at a restaurant (not in any of the Fragile Line
books). The houses, apartments, businesses, they’re all places I’ve actually
been. Characters are named after some of my supporters. Music is my biggest
inspiration. Everything from Christina Perri to Eminem to Taylor Swift. I have
a playlist on my iPod of the songs that inspire me, and I add more regularly. The
words “fragile line” are actually from a Taylor Swift song that just struck me
to the core. Sadie walks so many fragile lines throughout her life.
5.) Why
did you wait so long to publish?
I had dreams of
traditional publishing. I wanted to see my work on a book store shelf. For
years I tried to get an agent, but that never worked out. That doesn’t mean I have
no talent. It means I never connected with the right agent. I have debated on
self-publishing for a while, just never had the nerve to do it. When I made the
decision to take the leap, I felt like I was selling my soul. That’s how much I
have put into this. Even so, I knew the time was right. I need to support my
family, and felt that this would help us get through some rough times.
6.) When
will the next one be ready?
Oh, it’s ready now J
It will be available for pre-order soon, and will release shortly after
Christmas. My plan is to release a book a month for a while. I have four books
in the Fragile Line series ready to go, and two other books ready as well. I
have the fifth in the Fragile Line series in progress, in addition to three
others.
7.) How
many books will be in the series?
I’m not sure. I will
write until her story is done. My hope is that my readers will stick with me
through it all J
Lastly, let me take a
moment to thank some folks who have supported my writing all these years….Jeff,
Aubrey, my mom (Cathy), my sister (Joy), Laura, Kathy, Prairie, Misty, Sam,
Lindsey, Kristy, Amy, Season, Angie, my Aunt Kim, Nora, Cassidy, Jamie, Hannah,
Ellen, Michelle, Darlene, Adrienne….and I’m sure I’m forgetting at least 100 people!! I love you
all and thank you so much!
You can also follow me on Twitter @sarahpowell8
Love you, & will always support you. ❤️
ReplyDeleteLove you too!!
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