We chat with author Sarah C. Johns about The Sirens of Soleil City, which follows three generations of women who learn to own their mistakes and rebuild their bonds as they prepare to compete in the South Florida Senior Synchronized Swimming Competition.
Hi, Sarah! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Happily! I live in St. Paul, MN with my husband, two teenaged kids and our dog, Molly. After traveling around the world and living in South Africa, Hungary, Germany, Israel, Canada and Australia in my teens and early twenties, I landed right back where I started in St. Paul. I went to film school, so my other job is as a producer on video projects, mainly for corporate clients. It’s more fun than it may sound! I also live down the street from an urban zoo which means I often hear the roar of the lions when our windows are open.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I’ve been telling stories since I could talk. When I was a toddler, I had an extensive collection of Fisher Price Little People figurines. I named them all and had elaborate storylines going at all times. I would line the up plastic people near my bed every night and if one of them had gone missing, I would freak out. “Where’s Elizabeth Claire? We” – my parents – “have to find Elizabeth Claire. She has a hair appointment tomorrow before joining Ruthie Ann for a picnic at the pond.”
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: As a woman who was born and bred in Minnesota, am I allowed to say anything other than Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder?
- The one that made you want to become an author: The Sweet Valley High As a pre-teen, I figured out that there was a format that each book followed and it de-mystified the writing process for me. It made me believe that maybe I could figure it out too.
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: My favorites change all the time. Recently, I really enjoyed Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead.
Your debut novel, The Sirens of Soleil City, is out July 9th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Intergenerational, funny, poignant, sassy, surprising.
What can readers expect?
The defining event of my book is the 1999 South Florida Senior Synchronized Swimming Competition. Within that framework, the story is about mothers and daughters, granddaughters and grandmothers. It’s about middle age and being squeezed from all sides and old age and finding new friendships. There are women confronting mortality, and a woman awaiting the birth of her first child. Ultimately, I believe it’s a joyful book.
Where did the inspiration for The Sirens of Soleil City come from?
The older mother characters were very loosely inspired by my mother’s own two mothers, the mother who was in and out of her life, and the step-mother who raised her. For the majority of their lives, the mothers couldn’t stand each other. But, at the end of their lives, they were both living in West Palm Beach, Florida, just a few miles apart. They began to meet for the occasional lunch and became friendly-ish. After all, they shared a family! That was my jumping off point – though I took it to a highly fictionalized place.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
There’s twist at the end involving sabotage that was not at all planned. I didn’t know it was going to happen until I typed the scene. Total surprise, yet the absolute perfect thing to happen!
This is your debut published novel! What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?
A few years ago, I sent a previous book around to agents and didn’t find any takers. So, I regrouped and wrote Sirens, a story that was always in the back of my mind but I thought could “come later.” When I finally committed to working on it, the process went pretty quickly, from writing to signing with an agent to getting an offer from a publisher. It really was about finding the thing that I wanted to write, not what I thought I should write.
What’s next for you?
More writing! I’ve been deep into researching the next thing. I want to continue to feature middle-aged women, because I am one, and because we don’t always get a ton of attention and can actually be pretty interesting.
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’m looking forward to Kate Atkinson’s next Jackson Brodie installment, Death at the Sign of the Rook. When I’m writing, I read books in a different genre and mysteries and spy books fit the bill!
