Interview with Author Sarah Sokol

By Cynthia Ray

Today I’m interviewing up and coming author Sarah Sokol on her latest book, The Perils of Presumption.

Sarah,I enjoyed this book. It incorporates fantasy, mystery and romance in a lovely way, with a feeling of intrigue, adventure, and excitement.   The ending is a surprise, happy, but perhaps not.

Thank you. Those are always the words I’m hoping will be associated with my writing. Mystery is a new genre for me, and it was definitely tricky, but the research involved was fun. I like stories and characters that feel complex, and draw you to the end with a niggling sensation that not all is what you may have thought, or that perhaps the ending won’t be so happy for everyone after all. I also love building up worlds that feel real and complex, full of all sorts of rules and details that may never come into play in the story I am telling, but create a sense of realism even when I’m trying to bake up a totally new world from scratch. That being said, it really is the characters and their relationships that are most important in my books. 

You have written in other genres as well.  Perhaps this is why it works so well in this novel.

Many of the authors I admire have published books in various genres, or a combination of genres in each book. My appreciation of that influences my writing, but I admit, often I mix genres as an excuse to add a romance subplot to my fantasy, urban fantasy, scifi, or alternate historical fiction. I tend to focus my greatest efforts upon fantasy, as magic has that special draw for me,and makes anything seem possible. Deep and abiding friendships are a recurring theme in my books as well, with romance that feels realistic, built on trust and affection. 

I was sorry to come to the end of the book.  Are there more in the works?

Yes. Perils is the first book in The Conclave Trilogy, with the second and third books already written and just awaiting another round of edits. The second book is called The Dangers of Denial and centers around two brand new characters in the same universe, while the third book, The Hazards of Hope, brings the story to a climactic conclusion centering around a growing villainous threat foreshadowed in The Perils of Presumption! It was a brand-new experience for me to write three books surrounding the same set of characters, world and story, and I fell in love with the Conclave universe during the process. The sequels allowed me to explore more unconventional characters within the conventional setting, and strong female characters completely unlike Charlotte from book one. Finishing the trilogy helped me to quicken the pace on the sequel to my first published book, Death Tally.  This is the favorite book I’ve written so far, because of the research required.

As you write, what motivates you to keep going, when things get tough?

Sometimes, there is nothing that will force it to happen and I just need to give it time. Sleep a lot, or travel if I can, observe people, taste new foods, see new things and get new perspectives, then come back, start typing and try again. However, on a day-to-day basis, when the story ideas are there but the motivation to get them on paper is missing, setting time goals is really helpful, and I will write a little each day, even if it’s only a paragraph. Often if I start with only a paragraph as my goal, I’ll end up wanting to keep going anyway! 

As a young author, how have you gone about building a platform to make your fiction available to a wider audience? 

There are a lot of websites that allow you to publish fiction, interact with other authors, post your new story ideas for edits, read other fiction, make friends and build an audience of people who love free fiction online. One website I’ve used for years now is Wattpad, which provides a lot of opportunities for writing competitions of all kinds, joining their Wattpad Stars program, and other opportunities depending on your level of participation. I’ve built a moderate audience through these means. Of course, being active on social media, having a website, and being consistent helps! There are little tricks and promotional tools that Amazon provides when you publish through them as well, that allow you to get a new wave of readers now and then. I always recommend joining a local writing group if you can manage to find one! It’s vastly helpful even if you’re just getting together to write and talk about writing. 

What authors or books inspired you? 

Growing up, my house was filled to the brim with classics. Whenever the difficult question of my favorite book pops up, I tend to answer Jane Eyre. I love how Charlotte Bronte was able to delve into a single character and her life, making me able to feel the things she felt and see the world through her eyes, taking me through the ups and downs of her whole existence. I aspire to create someone so real that they could become a friend to the reader in the same way I felt like a friend to Jane Eyre.

I also adore romance, not the typical bosoms-heaving alpha male toxicity, but genuine love, like that portrayed in The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. Fantasy novels have always sparked my imagination as well, from the very first time I listened to the Chronicles of Narnia on audio book. Growing up in an extremely religious household, other types of fantasy novels such as Harry Potter were discouraged, but I always managed to find young adult books revolving around magic, mystery and romance that my parents could accept. Although Tamora Pierce is one of my biggest inspirations, and she was banned in our house, possibly due to some content dealing with young women exploring their sexuality. Tamora Pierce found her way into my heart, and I snuck her books into my room at night to experience the beautiful, effortless worlds she created. 

Thanks for sharing your work with us, and I look forward to reading your next book!

Thank you for this opportunity!

You can find more about Sarah here: