Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Sarah Crossan: I had this idea that writers were a different breed

Teen site member Confessionsofabooklover finds out what it means to Sarah Crossan to be longlisted for the Guardian children’s fiction prize with Apple And Rain, and how all her books are about love

Sarah Crossan
Sarah Crossan: As a young person, I lacked confidence, despite performing well at school, and I had this idea that writers were a different breed – that I was born into the wrong family for this to be a possibility. Photograph: PR
I usually end with a questions like this, but why did you choose to become an author? Did you always want to be one or did it just occur to you one day? Did you have any inspirations and if so, who or what were they?
The weight of waterApple and Rain

I’d always wanted to be an author, but I didn’t really think this would ever be an opportunity open to me. As a young person, I lacked confidence, despite performing well at school, and I had this idea that writers were a different breed – that I was born into the wrong family for this to be a possibility. It was only in my mid-twenties, when I returned to university to complete a masters degree in creative writing, that I began to take the idea of publishing a novel seriously.

How does it feel that two of your books, Apple And Rain and The Weight Of Water were shortlisted for the Carnegie medal?
I cannot adequately express how happy each shortlisting has made me. To be shortlisted for a debut is an amazing feeling, but in some ways the Apple and Rain shortlisting was even more special because I realised it hadn’t all been a terrible fluke!

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