An Interview with Sara Dobie Bauer, Author of LIFE WITHOUT HARRY
I know a some seriously awesome writers. Sara is a real life friend of mine. Our husbands actually work together. She has ingested my baking. But more pertinent for this blog, she's a fabulous writer with a new book that's available for free. I'll let her tell you all about it!
- Who are you?
I’m an author and book nerd. My work has previously appeared in The Gila River Review, Canyon Voices, and Traveler Magazine, and I volunteer monthly at Perryville Prison, where I run a women’s book club. I’m originally from the Midwest (I attended Ohio University), but I’ve been in Phoenix for three years. Its culture, climate, and atmosphere have greatly influenced my work (especially Dia de Los Muertos). When not writing, I drink IPA, watch bad horror films, and practice yoga—not necessarily in that order.
- Can you describe Life Without Harry?
My novel pays homage to Harry Potter, the city of Phoenix, and my Uncle Barney, who died suddenly in Bali in 2008. About the book: Xanax-dependent author Samantha Elliot is on deadline with a literary festival three weeks away when a white owl flies into her windshield and then disappears. This wouldn’t be the strangest thing, if not for the magic wand that soon shows up and the Invisibility Cloak that just happens to make Sam invisible. Then, there’s Paul Rudolph: the office crush who finally asks her on a date. With the help of anti-depressants and her friend, Julie, Sam must navigate an ever-escalating world of Harry Potter and an ever-hotter relationship with Paul while finishing a manuscript before her agent (who might be Voldemort) arrives for the literary festival … and possibly Sam’s head.
- The book isn't fan fiction, but it's so heavily inspired by Rowling's work that you weren't able to publish it traditionally. Therefore, you're giving it away. To me, this is a savvy, doing-it-for-the-love kind of act, a way of bonding with other Harry Potter fans who feel a sense of loss because the series is done. Was the writing process cathartic in that regard?
Following the midnight showing of the final Harry Potter film, I was depressed for days. I’m talking curled into fetal position depressed. I’d always wanted to live in the world of Harry Potter—go to Hogwarts, own a wand, and most importantly, fly on a broomstick. Suddenly, Harry was gone. I suppose I’d also never dealt emotionally with the loss of my Uncle Barney. So I woke one morning and started writing Life without Harry. I invented an imaginary world in which Sam becomes fully immersed in Harry’s magic realm … and gets the opportunity to see her beloved uncle one last time.
- I have to ask--who did the cover? It's gorgeous!
Katie (Stout) Purcell. We’ve known each other since grade school. We used to sneak cigarettes after swim practice as teens. Who knew we’d one day grow up to be functioning adults?
- What would you do if you saw a vanishing owl?
Have another drink.
- Do you have any other projects you'd like to talk about?
I finished my most recent novel, Damned if They Don’t, in March. Damned takes place in my previous city of habitation: the romantic and humid Charleston, South Carolina. A story of violin music, she-devils, and last chances, I’m hoping to sell it to an agent soon.
- How can folks get a copy of Life Without Harry?
Go here. And prepare to practice your spell-casting.
Thanks, Sara!
- Who are you?
I’m an author and book nerd. My work has previously appeared in The Gila River Review, Canyon Voices, and Traveler Magazine, and I volunteer monthly at Perryville Prison, where I run a women’s book club. I’m originally from the Midwest (I attended Ohio University), but I’ve been in Phoenix for three years. Its culture, climate, and atmosphere have greatly influenced my work (especially Dia de Los Muertos). When not writing, I drink IPA, watch bad horror films, and practice yoga—not necessarily in that order.
- Can you describe Life Without Harry?
My novel pays homage to Harry Potter, the city of Phoenix, and my Uncle Barney, who died suddenly in Bali in 2008. About the book: Xanax-dependent author Samantha Elliot is on deadline with a literary festival three weeks away when a white owl flies into her windshield and then disappears. This wouldn’t be the strangest thing, if not for the magic wand that soon shows up and the Invisibility Cloak that just happens to make Sam invisible. Then, there’s Paul Rudolph: the office crush who finally asks her on a date. With the help of anti-depressants and her friend, Julie, Sam must navigate an ever-escalating world of Harry Potter and an ever-hotter relationship with Paul while finishing a manuscript before her agent (who might be Voldemort) arrives for the literary festival … and possibly Sam’s head.
- The book isn't fan fiction, but it's so heavily inspired by Rowling's work that you weren't able to publish it traditionally. Therefore, you're giving it away. To me, this is a savvy, doing-it-for-the-love kind of act, a way of bonding with other Harry Potter fans who feel a sense of loss because the series is done. Was the writing process cathartic in that regard?
Following the midnight showing of the final Harry Potter film, I was depressed for days. I’m talking curled into fetal position depressed. I’d always wanted to live in the world of Harry Potter—go to Hogwarts, own a wand, and most importantly, fly on a broomstick. Suddenly, Harry was gone. I suppose I’d also never dealt emotionally with the loss of my Uncle Barney. So I woke one morning and started writing Life without Harry. I invented an imaginary world in which Sam becomes fully immersed in Harry’s magic realm … and gets the opportunity to see her beloved uncle one last time.
- I have to ask--who did the cover? It's gorgeous!
Katie (Stout) Purcell. We’ve known each other since grade school. We used to sneak cigarettes after swim practice as teens. Who knew we’d one day grow up to be functioning adults?
- What would you do if you saw a vanishing owl?
Have another drink.
- Do you have any other projects you'd like to talk about?
I finished my most recent novel, Damned if They Don’t, in March. Damned takes place in my previous city of habitation: the romantic and humid Charleston, South Carolina. A story of violin music, she-devils, and last chances, I’m hoping to sell it to an agent soon.
- How can folks get a copy of Life Without Harry?
Go here. And prepare to practice your spell-casting.
Thanks, Sara!
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