Author Spotlight and Q&A with Sarah Albee
Sarah Albee writes children's books for many age groups and under a number of pseudonyms. She has had three of her books appear on the New
York Times Bestseller list. Sarah once was a newspaper cartoonist and a semi-professional basketball player. These days she lives in
Connecticut with her husband and three children. Her books include Sesame Street stories, Why’d They Wear That? and Bugged: How Insects Changed History. You can read more about Sarah at http://www.sarahalbeebooks.com/.
Thousand Islands Book Festival: Hi Sarah, great to finally chat with you. I'm a big fan of your nonfiction books, especially the Poop one. Thanks for answering some questions today.
TIBF: To start, if you couldn't be an author, what other job would you most like to do?
Sarah: A really, really good tap dancer.
TIBF: If you couldn't be an author, what other job would you least like to do?
Sarah: Work in a meat-processing plant.
TIBF: What is one subject you wish had been taught in school?
Sarah: Forensics. (It is nowadays, but not when I was in high school.)
TIBF: How did you come up with one of your character's names?
Sarah: Ha! They're nonfiction. But here's one: the character Shylock, in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice, is (probably) based on a real-life person, Queen Elizabeth I's personal physician, Dr. Lopez. Sadly, his enemies accused him of treason (probably wrongly) and he was executed. Shakespeare was very likely aware of the story.
TIBF: What is your writing process like?
Sarah: I have a treadmill desk so I do a lot of work while walking. But for deep thinking, I curl up in a cozy chair with my laptop. But honestly, I have learned to write anywhere--in the bleachers of a basketball game, on a recording device while I'm driving, on the subway.
TIBF: What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?
Sarah: I have a very Big Moment Story about just this question, and I'll be talking about it at my presentation! It involves the queen of England.
TIBF: What Hogwarts House are you?
Sarah: I like to think Gryffindor.
TIBF: What is one thing you think readers would be interested to know about you?
Sarah: I played semipro basketball in Egypt. I am weirdly good at hitting a baseball, but I can't throw or field.
TIBF: As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot or spirit animal?
Sarah: My dog, Rosie.
TIBF: What is your writing Kryptonite?
Sarah: My garden on a beautiful day. But I do a lot of thinking as I weed and plant.
TIBF: What were your best book friends growing up?
Sarah: The Chronicles of Narnia, the World Book Encyclopedia.
TIBF: What is your favorite under-appreciated book?
Sarah: The dictionary in hard copy form. Can't live without mine.
TIBF: What is your favorite river?
Sarah: The Thames. I know so much about its history. The Tiber is a close runner up.
TIBF: When you are 95, do you think you'll feel like you had a useful and fulfilling life?
Sarah: YES
TIBF: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Sarah: You are better than you think you are.
Thousand Islands Book Festival: Thanks so much for that Sarah, it was really interesting. I hope to learn more about you as an author when I see you on June 3.
