We chat with author Sara Shepard about her latest release Wait For Me, along with writing and so much more!
Hi, Sara! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! So I’m an author living in Pittsburgh, PA, though I’ve lived lots of other places, too, including New York City, Philadelphia, and Tucson, Arizona. I’ve been writing professionally for nearly twenty years now, which is the best job ever. I’m also into running, playing piano, drawing, skiing, and hanging out with my husband, kids and pets. I have two enormous dogs, a cat, and a tortoise.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
Growing up, I always told stories. First I just told stories to my sister when we were very little. We started to make up imaginary worlds, and then we wrote stories about the worlds. This went on for years, well into our teens! I also kept journals where I would try and write chapter books, though I’d rarely get past chapter one. We had a Mac computer for the house, so I wrote stories on there, too. So I guess you could say I was one of those people who wrote for fun. It was like therapy for me!
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
The first books I remember reading are probably the Ramona Quimby books by Beverly Cleary. I loved how they were simple stories about families and kids—I could totally relate to them! I probably modelled some of my first stories after those. The first books that made me want to be an author were some of the books by Lois Duncan (I Know What You Did Last Summer) or Otherwise Known As Shiela The Great by Judy Blume. I also remember really connecting to She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb and reading it a whole bunch of times in eighth grade, so that would definitely count for a book I couldn’t stop thinking about, though it certainly isn’t the only one. I love reading, and there seem to be lots of books I can’t stop thinking about.
Your new novel, Wait For Me, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Romantic, suspenseful, mysterious, ethereal, and otherworldly!
What can readers expect?
I’ve written a lot of thriller novels, and this has some of those elements, but it also has some paranormal features as well as a heaping amount of romance. It’s sort of like a fairy tale but with a modern heroine who has to listen to her intuition and trust her gut. But there’s also a lot of mysteries and secrets built in, too, which keeps a reader guessing until the last page.
Where did the inspiration for Wait For Me come from?
So interestingly, the initial idea was given to me. It was a feature film proposal idea by Kevin Williamson (Scream, Dawson’s Creek) and Julie Plec (Vampire Diaries). A mutual friend introduced us, and they let me read their idea about past lives and complicated love that they’d thought about developing into a movie but never took it past the proposal phase. I thought I could make a book out of it. Granted, I changed a lot of the details, but certain things stayed the same.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I liked exploring the idea of someone having lived a past life and researching reincarnation. I discovered some really fascinating and eerie stories about people, especially children, who seemingly know implausible things about events that happened in the past or people long dead. It almost makes you want to believe that something magical is happening there. I don’t know if I really believe it for myself, but it’s an interesting and tantalizing idea to explore. Wouldn’t it be great if we all lived lives before this one? And we revisit them in visions or déjà vu or dreams? In my main character Casey’s case, her past life is poking through a little more prominently. What must that be like? It’s a realm I’ve never investigated before, and it was a lot of fun.
Do you have any advice for those who may have set some writing resolutions for the new year?
I always find that setting a schedule and sticking to it is key. Say you want to write a certain number of words in a day—just go for it. Don’t worry if what you write is terrible. Often the simple action of typing (or handwriting) the words to the page gets some magic flowing. And even if it doesn’t, at least you have words on the page, words you can adjust and edit and make better the following day! This was helpful for me when I had harsh deadlines for the Pretty Little Liars series—those books came out twice a year. I would try and write two chapters a day, even if the chapters were terrible. It also helps to outline where you’re going, at least roughly.
What’s next for you?
I have an adult novel in the works that’s at the moment titled The Village—it’s another thriller set in a remote “commune” in the desert. And I have a middle grade series coming out in the spring called Penny Draws a Best Friend. It’s a school story that’s fun and funny and features a character who has all of these anxieties. I feel like it’s a book I would have connected to as a kid. Maybe it will inspire other young writers out there!
Lastly, are there any upcoming releases of yours our readers should look out for?
Yep, mentioned Penny above! And The Village should be out in 2024.
