We chat with author Sarah Beth Durst about The Spellshop, which is a lush cottagecore tale full of stolen spellbooks, unexpected friendships, sweet jams, and even sweeter love.
Hi, Sarah! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hello! Thanks so much for having me on The Nerd Daily!
I’m a writer. Really, that’s the most important thing to know about me: I love writing. I think stories are as essential to human existence as food, water, and shelter. I also love cats, manatees, pizza, cheese, chocolate, raspberries, and my family, and I’m afraid of Frisbees and skunks. I’ve written nine books for adults, eight books for teens, and eleven books for kids — the vast majority of them are fantasy novels in which things talk that shouldn’t talk.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I have always thought of books as magic — they’re these little rectangles with the power to transport you into another world, to make you laugh and cry and feel and think, to take you on a journey and then bring you back home again, safe and sound, maybe slightly changed. I’ve always wanted to be a part of that magic.
But it wasn’t until I was ten years old that it occurred to me that an ordinary person could become a writer. Until that point, I think I just assumed writers sprang into the world fully formed, like Athena from Zeus’s head. When I realized that actual people wrote these books that I loved… it instantly became the only thing I wanted to do with my life.
I remember writing my first story in Mr. Bostock’s fifth grade class. It was a cross between The Wizard of Oz and G.I. Joe, and it had twenty-eight protagonists, each with their own transdimensional talking lion. I remember begging my parents for a subscription to Writer’s Digest during my Girl Scout troop’s magazine drive. I also emptied the library of every how-to-write book I could find. I even once read the phone book, looking for cool character names — I’d write them down on index cards and assign them each a magical power and a talking animal sidekick.
I still want my own talking animal sidekick.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: Gyo Fujikawa’s Come Follow Me to the Secret World of Elves and Fairies and Gnomes and Trolls
- The one that made you want to become an author: Alanna by Tamora Pierce — I have a crystal clear memory of reading that book at age ten and thinking to myself, “If Alanna can become a knight, I can become a writer.”
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: Beauty by Robin McKinley — That book is imprinted on my heart.
Your latest novel, The Spellshop, is out July 9th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Cozy, cottagecore, sweet jam, sweeter love
(Or these five: rogue librarian, sentient spider plant)
What can readers expect?
Readers can expect an escape, a respite, a sanctuary, a deep breath. The Spellshop is a cozy fantasy novel that’s full of kindness, stolen spellbooks, raspberry jam, quirky neighbors, found family, merhorses, and a slightly anxious sentient spider plant named Caz. I wrote it to feel like a warm hug.
It’s about a librarian named Kiela, who works and lives in the stacks at the Great Library of Alyssium. When a revolution breaks out and the library begins to burn, Kiela rescues as many books as she can and flees, along with her library assistant (and best friend) Caz, a talking spider plant. They escape to her childhood home, a remote and beautiful island, where they open a rather illegal spellshop that also sells a lot of raspberry jam.
I filled this book with as much joy and delight as I could pour into it, and I loved every second of writing it!
Where did the inspiration for The Spellshop come from?
The first note I jotted down for this book was: “a not-so-epic fantasy about starting over.” Followed by: “sentient succulent???”
As for what inspired me… the world is kind of dumpster fire these days. So I wanted to write a story that would make readers feel safe, comforted, warm, and (hopefully) maybe even a little healed.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I loved writing Caz! And Kiela. My favorite line that sums up Kiela is:
“It wasn’t that she didn’t like people. It was only that she liked books more.”
And here’s a moment between Kiela and Caz:
Caz rustled his leaves at her. “Say again? We’re going to what now?”
Kiela smiled broadly at him. “We’re going to open a spellshop.”
“Nope,” Caz said.
Kiela blinked at him. “Nope? What do you mean?”
“It’s a terrible idea,” Caz said. “I am assuming you threw it out there to soften me up for your real idea, which I won’t like but will at least be better than that.”
And I think my favorite scene to write was what I like to think of as Kiela and Larran’s first date, in which they ride merhorses (half-horse, half-fish creatures), as one does.
For those not familiar with cottagecore, what is it and why should they give it a try?
Cottagecore is a vibe. It’s an aesthetic that embraces a bucolic harmony with nature. And after writing The Spellshop, it’s completely dominating my Pinterest recommendations.
If you dream of a vacation in a little cottage by the sea — blue sky, lovely breeze, delicious cinnamon rolls, love and enchantment everywhere — then you should try a cottagecore book.
What’s next for you?
I am currently revising my next cozy fantasy book, The Enchanted Greenhouse. It’s a standalone set in the same world as The Spellshop, and I am absolutely loving working on it! It will be out from Bramble in summer 2025.
Lastly, what books have you enjoyed so far this year and are there any that you can’t wait to get your hands on?
I’ve read a whole bunch of excellent books this year that I loved:
- Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
- Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis
- The Stars Too Fondly by Emily Hamilton
- Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree
- What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher
- Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett
And there’s a book that isn’t out yet that I absolutely loved and have to recommend:
- The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong
As for books I can’t wait to get my hands on:
- Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis
- A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna
- Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune
I still think books are just as magical as I did when I was ten years old.
Thanks so much for interviewing me!
You can find Sarah on Instagram, X, Bluesky, Facebook, and at her website.
