Tag: sarah answers

8, 9, 11, 35 for Pomona, Nevea and Delia

8: What is, perhaps, their biggest flaw? Are they aware of this or oblivious to it?

Pomona: She has attachment issues that aren’t her fault, but which she isn’t really aware of. This leads her to have a difficult time expressing her needs and forming positive, trusting relationships. She’s so afraid of hurting people that she has several walls built up to prevent that from happening.

Nevea: Nevea’s biggest flaw is her insecurity, but it actually manifests as overcompensated ego. She puts down others and elevates herself to hide the fact that her self-esteem is actually pretty damaged. She knows she’s mean to people, but she doesn’t really know the reason.

Delia: Delia is incredibly impatient, and she gets frustrated with people for not doing what she expects them to do as soon as she wants them to do it. And when situations don’t go her way, she bails.

9: Do they have a favorite season? What about a favorite holiday?

Pomona: Pomona’s favorite season is spring (no surprise), and her favorite holiday is Mărțișor (mur-tsee-SHOR), which is the holiday celebrating the arrival of spring. She doesn’t really participate in many of the celebrations, but she loves decorating the garden with red and white for it and watching from afar.

Nevea: She likes early- to midwinter best, because it’s lovely but not so cold as to be miserable. Her favorite holiday is the midwinter feast, which also involves parades and costumes and a chance to let the hair down.

Delia: Delia prefers the summer because she loves the sun and heat. She doesn’t have a favorite holiday in Izolat, but she remembers the Rainbow Festival from Solharena as being a past favorite.

11: What is something that would make your character fly into a rage?

Pomona: Hardly anything because she keeps herself so well-regulated. If anything sets her off, it’s usually when someone has put her down to her face too many times. But even then, her response is relatively mild and not what could be considered a ‘rage.’

Nevea: Anything mildly inconvenient. (Just kidding.) Nevea is easily triggered, but there’s a difference between her melodrama and legitimate ire, and the latter is usually brought about by someone underestimating her and treating her like an idiot.

Delia: Stupid people.

35: Is your character afraid of death? If they got to choose how to die, how would they want to go?

Pomona: Yes, she’s afraid of death because she’s not sure what might happen to her after she dies. She would be the one to say “of old age in my sleep” should she be asked how she wants to go.

Nevea: Yeah, she’s terrified of death, which is very inconvenient for her when the plot comes around. But, if she got to choose how she would die, she’d probably say by something sudden and invisible, like a heart attack.

Delia: This is a … complicated question for her. The short answer is no, she’s not afraid of death. If she could choose how she’d die, she’d say “of old age with my wife.” 

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I’ve just read in Seanan McGuire’s twitter that someone uploaded an ARC of her upcoming release to an illegal download site :( She says it can cause great damage because it’s possible her publisher decide not to publish the next books in the series.

Yes, I saw this thread, too, and it was kind of heartbreaking tbh. I have to say that I feel pretty much the same way as Seanan does. Most of the money I make off of Unrooted will be used to pay off student loan debt and pay bills, and if I was to be the victim of pirates and have any of that profit taken away, it would have a serious negative effect on me and my publisher (who is a boutique publisher and needs the revenue to cover overhead). 

People on tumblr tend to be pretty blase about pirated ebooks, but it can cause a lot of harm. Like Seanan, I have great sympathy for those who can’t afford or don’t have access to books, but there’s this assumption that the writers themselves aren’t in that position. Writing is generally not a lucrative career, and so any bit stolen from the little we get makes a huge difference. 

Hey Sarah I’m sorry to bother you but I could use some advice right now . I’m going into my sophomore year of college and I’m miserable. Many of my friends have transferred schools. Many others are planning too. The things that drew me to the school have been taken away. I feel like I’m not getting what I paid for. I kept hoping it would get better but things keep getting worse. (1/2)

(2/2)My college keeps dropping majors and has reduced the number of classes offered. I’m not happy here but I’m terrified to transfer and to lose more time and money. I’m not sleeping though and I’m crying all the time. If you have any advice it would be greatly appreciated.

Hey, hon! First of all, I’m so, so sorry the system is failing you like this. That can be incredibly disheartening and such a struggle. Know that I support you and I sincerely hope you find a way to make it work. There are two things I can suggest you do:

1) Stick it out and make it your bitch. Sometimes, when it seems a system to working against you and taking away what you came for, it can be hard to see past that, and I don’t blame you one bit. But if you are dead-set determined to remain at that school and get your money’s worth, there’s probably a way it can be done. This will take some creativity, backbone, and determination on your part. Sometimes it takes grabbing administration by the lapels (figuratively) and demanding that you get what you came for. Before you do this, it’s best to have a plan of courses and such that you think you need and/or want. Perhaps you will have to change your major to something adjacent, but that doesn’t mean you can’t accomplish your goals. Find out what really makes you tick and find a way to make that happen within the limitations of your school’s layout. And one more tip: Remember that, as sucky as it is, colleges and universities want your money. If you confront them with a “give me what I’m paying for or I’m leaving” attitude, that might help move things in your direction (especially if you have other students on your side). I can’t guarantee this will work, but it’s worth trying if you really want to stay.

2) Transfer schools. I completely understand what a terrifying prospect this can be. I freaked out just changing my major, let alone changing schools! But sometimes it is necessary. If what drew you to the school in the first place simply no longer exists and there’s no way you can get it back, you will be far more miserable staying for another 2.5 years than you will be by transferring and maybe taking summer classes if some of your courses don’t transfer. I promise, it’s better to take a little extra time to finish rather than sell your soul and be miserable for the duration of what should be a really exciting time in your life! I’m saying this having once been in a position where finishing on time was the Most Important Thing to me; but I’ve since learned that “on time” means different things for different people. There’s no shame in it, and while it’s incredibly disappointing that your school is letting you down, there’s no need to remain miserable if you have other options. 

Again, I’m so sorry that you’re in this situation, but given that you’re a sophomore, there’s plenty of time for things to turn around, no matter what your decision in. I’m rooting for you, and I hope you find this helpful!

Hi, Sarah! How are you doing? I hope this question doesn’t sound dumb but when you (and many other authors as well) talk about writing several drafts of your novels you mean you open a new document each time and write from scrach? Thank you!

It depends! Drafts can serve several purposes. If you’re making smaller-scale edits and moving things around, it might not be necessary to start a whole new document from scratch (usually I’ll open one to save scraps that I’m deleting or moving around so I still have them later if I change my mind). However, if you’re doing large-scale revisions and rewriting large portions, starting a new document will probably save you a lot of confusion and headache. 

I hope your R shop goes great, Sarah! Thank you so so much for this new edition of FFFTs!

Thank you! Please feel free to share it–the more who know about it, the better! And I’m so glad you enjoyed this edition, even if it was a little bit shorter than usual. I’m very excited for ‘Rumpelstiltskin’ next month! 

Since we’ve made it half the way now, I want to express my appreciation for your diverse reading challenge. Sometimes it feels a bit self-congratulatory to list the books I read, but I want you to receive feedback too. I find your challenge very helpful to diversify my reading since it motivates me to pick up certain and not random books as I did before. I owned most of the books I read for the challenge already, but they were just lying around until I had your challenge and themes.

You have no idea how wonderful it is to hear this, thank you! ❤ That was exactly the goal of the Diverse Reading Challenge. You’re right that it can seem self-congratulatory, but it also allows others to connect with and learn about diverse authors that they might not have considered before. I’m so glad that you’re benefiting from it. I know I am! Some of the best books I’ve read this year have come from the challenge! 

I’m already looking forward to running this again next year, but with even more specific themes to encourage critical thinking. And it can be even more of a “challenge” then, because participants will need to intentionally seek out the best books. 🙂

Thank you so much for taking the time to give me feedback. I find that so incredibly helpful and thoughtful. I’m glad you’re enjoying it, and I’m excited for the rest of the year!