Sarah Zettel, Guest Writer
Sarah Zettel will be joining us at ICON 30. Sarah was born in California and since then has lived in ten cities, four states and two countries. Currently she lives in Michigan with hub Tim and Buffy, the Vermin Slayer (her cat). She has written nine novels so far, five of them science fiction and four fantasy. She also writes short stories in volume, mostly science fiction with a smattering of horror and fantasy.
Sarah Zettel has a fascination for “bioscience” — that is, biology, sociology, psychology, anthropology . . . you name it. She is a prolific researcher and this shows clearly in her writing.
She is currently working on the second novel in her “Camelot” series, which follows the lives of the women associated with the classic Arthurian sagas.
I had a chance to chat with her recently online and ask her some questions:
Do you do any work outside of your writing? How does your husband feel about your work?
We have one son, 3-year-old Alexander (also known as Swee- Pea). Between the writing and the mommyhood, I have absolutely no time for a day job. As to how my husband feels about my work, Tim is an aerospace engineer working on advanced propulsion for the University of Michigan. Not only does he love the fact that I’m an SF/F writer, he designs all my space ships and stations. Plus, as a military and history enthusiast, he helps out when I’ve got a battle scene or sword fight to choreograph. On a professional as well as personal level, it is a most happy relationship.
What kind of research do you engage in before embarking on a new project?
Given that I write fantasy, a big part of my research involves reading fairy tales. If I’m going to borrow a culture, I want to make sure I borrow the tropes and norms of its magic as well. The oldest stories have a lot in common, but each area has its own twists, turns and symbols, and it’s important to make sure those are part of the magic. Then, of course, I read as much history as I have time for. The web is terrific for fast answers, but there’s no substitute for a fat book for finding the details you never would have thought of on your own.
As you can see, Sarah is an insightful, thoughtful, intelligent and entertaining lady. We’ll be covering more of the interviews with her as time permits. Check back often to hear more thoughts and opinions from this fascinating author.
Gino