About Sarah

Sarah Grimm is an award -winning contemporary romance author addicted to fast cars, reading and laughter. She lives in West Michigan with her husband, two sons, and three dogs and has a penchant for dropping F-bombs like the rock stars she loves to write about.
Sarah can't remember a time when she wasn't writing. In fact, her siblings believe she began writing in utero to pass the time. As a child, Sarah wrote constantly, littering the house with bulging spiral notebooks and ignoring the ribbing of her mother and sister who routinely said 'romances?' in a somewhat scornful tone.
Sarah believes in love, not just as a fundamental part of human relationships, but as a force that can heal emotional scars. She truly believes someone exists for each of us—a person we are destined to find. Our other half. A soul mate. The road to happy-ever-after isn’t always an easy one, so when you pick up one of Sarah’s books, expect her characters to have to earn their happy ending.
Sarah loves to hear from her readers. You can find her on Facebook, Instagram, Google+, Twitter, Goodreads, and Pinterest.
FAQs
For those readers who aren’t familiar with your work yet, in a few sentences, how best can you sum up you as a writer?
I write emotion-filled journeys, stories where the characters really have to work for their happily-ever-after. I torture my characters more than most writers, whether with past traumas or a current danger they find themselves in. However, I am first and foremost a romance author, so no matter what, everything works out in the end.
Tell us about what happens when you start a book. Does the plot take form first or does the idea come first? Do you then outline the direction (plot) and follow through?
The idea comes first. I’m a panster – which means I don’t outline, I just ‘fly by the seat of my pants’. When I start a book, the only thing I usually know are my characters’ names and how they first meet. I have a general idea of where they’re going to end up, but no idea how they get there. That way I’m just as surprised as the reader with the way the story unfolds.
The idea comes first. I’m a panster – which means I don’t outline, I just ‘fly by the seat of my pants’. When I start a book, the only thing I usually know are my characters’ names and how they first meet. I have a general idea of where they’re going to end up, but no idea how they get there. That way I’m just as surprised as the reader with the way the story unfolds.
What motivates you? (other than those characters demanding to be heard)
Maintaining my sanity! Seriously, writing is my escape. When I write I’m not thinking about my problems, the taxes, or how I’m going to pay the electric bill. I’m not worried about the state the world is in. We all need to escape now and then. For me, this comes with writing.
Maintaining my sanity! Seriously, writing is my escape. When I write I’m not thinking about my problems, the taxes, or how I’m going to pay the electric bill. I’m not worried about the state the world is in. We all need to escape now and then. For me, this comes with writing.
Which of the characters you’ve written most resembles you, and why?
Honestly? None of them. My characters come to me like a new friend, sit down and begin talking to me. They’re fully formed when they arrive and never much like me. I guess it’s a bit like a young child and their imaginary friend. Imaginary friends usually have these grand, interesting lives–lives that are nothing like the lives of the child who imagines them. That’s what my characters are like for me, totally different than I am, which makes it that much easier for me to ‘lose’ myself in their world.
Honestly? None of them. My characters come to me like a new friend, sit down and begin talking to me. They’re fully formed when they arrive and never much like me. I guess it’s a bit like a young child and their imaginary friend. Imaginary friends usually have these grand, interesting lives–lives that are nothing like the lives of the child who imagines them. That’s what my characters are like for me, totally different than I am, which makes it that much easier for me to ‘lose’ myself in their world.
Are you a window person or an aisle person?
Window. I want to see where I’m going.
Window. I want to see where I’m going.
Why do you write romance?
I’ve been asked this question more times than I can count, and usually when I’m totally unprepared to answer. So today, I thought I’d get my thoughts together once and for all. I didn’t always want to be a writer. Wait, can you hear that? That noise is my family unanimously hollering, “Yeah, right!” Sorry, family, but it’s true. Had you asked Sarah Grimm, the young girl, what she wanted to be when she grew up, she would have given a different answer every time. My dream changed like the blowing of the wind through the trees, or with whatever story I was reading. Then, I picked up my first romance novel and oh…my…God! I’d always loved to read, and suddenly I had discovered a whole new world. A world I could get lost in, where no matter how impossible the odds, a happily-ever-after always waited. Let me tell you, for a die-hard romantic, this was nirvana! What? No shock and awe that I’m a die-hard romantic? Learning that bit probably doesn’t surprise you, does it? I believe in love, not just as a fundamental part of human relationships, but as a force that can heal emotional scars. I truly believe someone exists for each of us—a person we are destined to find. Our other half. A soul mate. Perhaps the surprising part is that I’ve always believed this—even as a young girl. I love reading romance. But, I love writing romance even more—bringing two people together, even if it is only in my imagination. I love the stuttered heartbeats when the hero and heroine first meet—that first glance. Heck, I love the second and third glances! I love the gut punch of sexual awareness, the sweetness of that first kiss, and the momentary panic over the realization they’ve fallen in love. I love the idea how even at the worst of times, at those moments when you least expect it, two people can find love. I love the idea of good conquering evil, of the hero and heroine winning against all odds, and the bad guy ‘getting what he deserves’ in the end. Why would I want to write anything else? |