Meet Sarah Sundin, author of novels set during World War II

Juanita: Hello, Sarah, I’m looking forward to our visit today and to getting to know you better. First, will you tell us where you grew up and where you live now? Also, tell us a little about yourself and your family.

Sarah: I grew up in southern California and now live in northern California. My husband and I have three children—two in college and one in high school.

Juanita: I noticed from your website that books were important to you as you were growing up. I think you said “Our house was wallpapered in books.” That’s a great way to grow up. What were some of your favorite books when you were a little girl and a teen-ager?

Sarah: I read pretty much anything I could get my hands on. The Little House on the Prairie books were particular favorites, as were the Betsy, Tacy, and Tib books.

Juanita: Now will you tell us about your spiritual heritage? I know you are a Christian because of your testimony on your website and the things you do. When you began writing, what impressed you to write from a Christian perspective?

Sarah: I write from a Christian perspective because I can’t imagine writing from any other. The Lord is active in my life, and I see Him at work all around me. To write stories omitting Him wouldn’t be true to reality.

Juanita: That’s a great testimony, Sarah, one I love to hear. I just finished reading On Distant Shores and the main character was an Army Pharmacist. I also notice you have a Doctors’ degree in pharmacy. Please tell us about this direction in your life and what inspired you to write about this medical field, along with placing it in the time frame of World War II?

Sarah: Starting in sixth grade, I fell in love with science and knew I wanted to use science to help people, which led me into pharmacy. I never seriously considered becoming a writer—but God had other ideas! However, my scientific and health care training has ended up being very useful to me as a writer. I’ve been able to decipher technical pilot manuals and write authentically about Army hospitals, nurses, and health care. My husband (also a pharmacist) kept bugging me to write about a pharmacist. My research turned up very little about pharmacy in the military during the war…but when I finally found some sources, what I learned fascinated me—and inspired On Distant Shores.

Juanita: I notice a lot of World War II history is included in your writing. Are most of your books set during this time period? What impelled you to get into this part of history and devote so much time to it?

Sarah: As of now, all my novels are set in World War II, including a future contracted series. I find it such an intriguing time period with an unlimited supply of stories. Part of the appeal is how ordinary men learned they could do extraordinary things, and how women tried on new roles while remaining ladies.

Juanita: You are also a Sunday School teacher and a leader in Women’s studies. I do these things, too. Can you tell us how long you’ve been doing this and which authors you prefer to study with the ladies you teach?

Sarah: I’ve been teaching Sunday school since 2002 and women’s Bible studies since 2003. I’ve enjoyed learning from Kay Arthur, Beth Moore, and many others. Our church women’s ministries uses a combination of video-driven studies from established teachers like these, but we’ve also recently begun using our own material. We have an excellent teaching team of about a dozen extremely talented ladies. We rotate teaching throughout the quarter, write our own lectures, and develop the discussion questions. The teachers like this because we get to teach from our personal study and what God lays on our hearts—but we only have to put together a handful of lectures each year. And the women love the variety of teaching styles and focuses.

Juanita: That sounds like something I would love to be a part of. I like the lecture format, too, and I just finished writing a Bible study about ordinary people in the Old Testament, that I will teach in January at our church. How long have you been writing and how many books have you authored? Are all of them still in print?

Sarah: I’ve been writing since 2000, and my first novel (A Distant Melody) was published in 2010. I have five books published right now (all still in print), two more coming in 2014, and then another three-book series after that.

Juanita: If one wanted to read a book just to get to know you and your style of writing, which one of your books would you recommend that we start with?

Sarah: I’d suggest either A Distant Melody (Book 1 in the Wings of Glory series) or With Every Letter (Book 1 in the Wings of the Nightingale series). However, all the novels do stand alone, so if another story particularly appeals, start there.

Juanita: I also noticed that you place a lot of importance on belonging to writers’ groups and studying the craft of writing. What advice would you give a beginning writer in this respect?

Sarah: If you’re writing for the Christian market, I strongly recommend joining American Christian Fiction Writers. There are email loops, free courses for members, online critique groups, and an excellent yearly conference. I love this group. Also look for writers’ conferences, which are great ways to learn gobs of material, meet other writers, and get connected in the industry. A good conference is worth every penny. I joke that I’m “addicted” to the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference—I need my yearly dose! (That’s a pharmacist joke).

Juanita: Do you have any more “words of wisdom” for our blog readers this week?

Sarah: If you have a dream on your heart, take advantage of the spirit of the New Year. Pray about this dream, and if it’s something God wants you to do, pray He’ll give you the courage, discipline, and wisdom to bring it to pass.

Juanita: Thanks so much for being a guest today and for introducing us to your books. I love books set during the 1940’s and 1950’s and many of our blog readers do, too.

Sarah: Thank you so much for having me!

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