Sarah Mayberry and Sarina Bowen interview

Interview with Sarah Mayberry and SarinaBowen ahead of their release of Temporary.
Temporary is out September 12. My review will be here live the too! Trust me, you do not want to miss this book!

How did this union come together?

Sarah: We’d read each other’s books, and then we became email buddies. Over a couple of years, we chatted about this and that. Then Sarina contacted me out of the blue to ask if I’d be interested in collaborating with her. I said yes instantly (naturally!!).

What were the challenges of working together?

Sarah: I know the time zone differences were hard for Sarina, but I’m so used to them they barely register! Plus I loved that that book magically wrote itself while I was sleeping. That was pretty awesome.

Sarina: Sarah is more inclined to plot out scenes ahead of time. And she’s so good at it! I had a bad case of Collaborator Guilt as I checked her careful scene descriptions every time I sat down to write. That brings me to the real challenge of collaboration--stopping. Now I need to finish my own book and there’s nobody to tell me what to write next. It’s terrible.

Were there any lost in translation moments?

Sarah: Oh, plenty. Mostly originating from my Aussie-isms. Our vernacular is a weird mix of British and American words and sayings. And some are just ours. Often I don’t know they’re unique to us until someone says “Please explain.”

Sarina: That was the fun part! When I suggested we link an Aussie hero to an American heroine, I knew all the language would make for a good time.

How did the writing process work?

Sarah: We alternated stints.  Sarina would write, then pass the baton to me at the end of the day. If one of us was on fire, we’d keep going. If one of us had a commitment elsewhere, we’d agree to down tools for a few days. We had an outline, so we always knew what direction we were heading in.

Sarina: We both wrote Callan and Grace. It’s more fun that way.

How did the story develop? The original idea?

Sarah: Lots of spitballing. Sarina came up with the New York idea, and it was a no-brainer to do an Aussie hero and an American heroine. We talked about settings and scenarios.  The rest snowballed from there.

Sarina: Exactly. I had a jumping-off-point in mind and Sarah gave the plot some meat. And then we just ran with it.

The best part of writing together?

Sarah: Waking up and finding the book had written itself while I was sleeping. And reading what Sarina had written.

How easy was it meshing your styles?

Sarina: I knew it wouldn’t be too difficult, because I’d been reading Sarah’s work for so long already!

Sarah: I really didn’t think about it, to be honest. I just tried to write the best, most honest thing I could and hoped it worked out in the end.

Will there be further collaborations?

There’s a secondary character who really needs her story told! You’ll see…

What are the advantages of writing with a partner/Sarina/Sarah?

Sarah: It keeps your bum in the chair and your fingers on the keyboard. And you’re not alone when you hit a pothole.

Sarina: Exactly! Having two people to problem-solve makes all the difference.