1--What is the title of your latest release?
THE UNCHARTED FLIGHT OF OLIVIA WEST
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
An action packed dual-timeline novel featuring a ground-breaking female aviator and the young woman who uncovers her buried history decades later.
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
All of my books are set in Hawai’i, so that was easy! But also, I chose to have Olivia be from San Diego because that is where the aviation company where Charles Lindberg’s plane, The Spirit of St. Louis was built.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
Absolutely. Olivia West(1927) and Wren Summers (1987) are fun and multifaceted and inspiring. The kind of women I love to be around.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Olivia: feisty, brave, passionate Wren: creative, kind, savvy
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
It never had occurred to me that the first flights to Hawaii took 26 plus hours. I don’t think I would have made it!
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
Only a little bit here and there. Mostly, I wait until I’m done. And then I am always slightly horrified at how much editing I have to do. But I love editing (once I get over how much work it’s going to be) and I feel fortunate to have two great editors on my team–my agent, Elaine Spencer, and my editor at Mira, April Osborn. The book is always so much better after they get their hands on it.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Homemade pizza. I would eat it every night for dinner if I could.
9--Describe your writing space/office!
I move around the house, from our giant dining room table with views of the Kohala mountains (think Scotland) to my standing deck on our porch, to the bed. I have a policy that I write 300 words before I get out of bed in the morning.
10--Who is an author you admire?
Charlotte McGonaghy, among many others. I love what she did with Migrations and how incredibly atmospheric it is. Her writing is brilliant.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
Many books have, but I think the one that really got under my skin and made we want to be an author was Prodigal Summer, by Barbara Kingsolver.
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
I have that email printed up and framed! I had already unsuccessfully pitched 3 novels and had just found out I didn’t get picked for PitchWars (later found out I was first runner up) and was so discouraged and about to give up. The next day I got an email from Deidre Knight, the head of The Knight Agency saying they were reading my book aloud around the office and they loved it, and that Elaine would be reaching out to talk about representation. I was crying and so unbelievably happy. I still feel lucky every day because querying and rejections really take it out of you.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
Honestly, I don’t have a favorite. The books I read are all over the map. I’ve just listened to The Fourth Wing, read a non-fiction book about the deep sea called Underworld, and have Bright Young Women and The Roaring Days of Zora Lily at the top of my TBR.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
Such a hard question. I’m a big Tolkien fan so I’ll say the Lord of the Rings movies.
15--What is your favorite season?
I love fall turning into winter. In Hawaii, December is my favorite month.
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I try to get a massage, and also do something special with friends. For many years, we’ve also done a yearly girls trip to Hanalei Bay on Kauai on or around my birthday. It started when I turned 40, and (somehow) ended up with the name Cougar Camp. (I think there are at least a few novels worth of escapades, and someday you may see a book about it). It’s a fun tradition!
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
We recently watched Air on Amazon Prime and I loved it. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck did a great job with this one. Also Top Gun: Maverick. Just re-watched and it’s such a feel good movie.
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
Italian
19--What do you do when you have free time?
Hike, wild swims, stand up paddle, surf, yoga, spend time with my family, friends & animals, do yardwork, rarely miss a sunset, and read of course. Also, learning guitar and how to paint.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
After The Uncharted Flight of Olivia West, I have another book releasing in November 2024 that is very different from my other six books. It’s not historical, and it’s an adventure and a love story partly set on Maui. It’s so much fun and I’m in revisions with it now (which is not fun, lol). Stay tuned!
This extraordinary novel, inspired by real events, tells the story of a female aviator who defies the odds to embark on a daring air race across the Pacific.
1927. Olivia "Livy" West is a fearless young pilot with a love of adventure. She yearns to cross oceans and travel the skies. When she learns of the Dole Air Race—a high-stakes contest to be the first to make the 2,400 mile Pacific crossing from the West Coast to Hawai'i—she sets her sights on qualifying. But it soon becomes clear that only men will cut. In a last-ditch effort to take part, Livy manages to be picked as a navigator for one of the pilots, before setting out on a harrowing journey that some will not survive.
1987. Wren Summers is down to her last dime when she learns she has inherited a remote piece of land on the Big Island with nothing on it but a dilapidated barn and an overgrown mac nut grove. She plans on selling it and using the money to live on, but she is drawn in by the mysterious objects kept in the barn by her late great-uncle—clues to a tragic piece of aviation history lost to time. Determined to find out what really happened all those years ago, Wren enlists the help of residents at a nearby retirement home to uncover Olivia’s story piece by piece. What she discovers is more earth-shattering, and closer to home, than she could have ever imagined.
Women's Fiction Time Slip [MIRA, On Sale: February 6, 2024, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780778369516 / eISBN: 9780369747785]
Sara Ackerman is the Hawaii born, bestselling author historical novels set in Hawai'i. Her books have been labeled “unforgettable” by Apple Books, “empowering & deliciously visceral” by Book Riot, and New York Times bestselling authors Kate Quinn and Madeline Martin have praised Sara’s novels as “fresh and delightful” and “brilliantly written.” Amazon chose Radar Girls as a best book of the month, and ALA Booklist gave The Codebreaker’s Secret a starred review.
No comments posted.
© 2003-2024 off-the-edge.net
all rights reserved Privacy Policy