Click here to ask Sarah!

[Caroline]

Hi! I have read two of your books so far, and I was wondering if you have ever thought of writing a sequel for one of your books. Thanks so much for answering all these questions!

[Taylor:)]

Heya! :D I'm Taylor and I absolutely love all your books and in my opinion, you are one of the best authors ever. I love everything about your books and you inspire me on my quest to become a writer. Although everyone seems to have asked all my questions, I have a few I really wanna ask anyway and I hope you don't hate me for re-asking in case I do.
1. What should a future writer expect as they try to get into the writing business?
2. How hard was it for you to get to where you are as an author?
3. When did you know you wanted to be a writer and who inspired you to pursue your dreams to become one?
4. What is your all time favorite book or who is your favorite author? (It's okay if you have more than one.)
Thanks again for all your great stories that still make me laugh, cry, and scream with delight or anger even after all the times I've read them. :)
Lots of love,
Taylor.

[Sabrina]

Hello my name is Sabrina and I've only read two or three of your books but I've really liked them. I became a fan after I read Just Listen. It was really powerful and I cried a lot (which means I loved it). You're an amazing author and create really relatable characters and I appreciate that. Thank you, and please keep writing. :)

[Eden]

Hi Sarah,
I'm really curious as to how you write your books. Do you relate all your stories to real life events? Like things that have happened to you?

Thanks:)

[Cassandra Jane]

Hi Sarah! Just wondering what has been your most successful book?

[Allison]

Hey Sarah, I adore your books! What was your personal favorite book to write, and which one did you struggle with the most, and why?

[Julia]

Hi Sarah! I just wanted to say you have been such an inspiration to me and actually i think started my obsession with reading! I was just wondering what your process is like when you write, do you plan out each character and know what will happen in the story from beginning to end? Or do you have an end in mind and then just write and see where it takes you? I'm very curious about your process of writing!

Ive read all your books but I have to say my favourites are The Truth about Forever and Just Listen, i just connected with those two the most for some reason :)

Thanks for taking time out to answer some of our questions!

[Patrice]

Hi Sarah! I love your books, and one really cool thing about them is how you connect or add little tidbits that come from other books.

I have always wondered how you came about those connections, like Colby beach and different people who pop up in different points. Do these connections come naturally or are the added through a more edited approach?

Also, after I have read all of the books I have enjoyed all the characters though I do have my favorites (probably due to the ones personality wise are closest to me). Do you have a favorite character or a couple characters from all of your books?

[Alexa]

Hey Sarah! My name is Alexa, and I absolutely ah-dore alllll of your books! They help me in so many ways, from getting me through a rough day to giving me something to read at night before I go to bed. I am such a dork and read literally, all the time; in classes, when I eat, before I go to bed, and I even listen to your books while I'm in the shower! (crazy, I know!) So, my question is, when you were in middle school, did you still have the ambition to read and to become an author or did you aspire to be something difernt? If so, what was it?

[Audrey]

Hello Sarah! My name is Audrey and I am in love with your books! Dreamland was my absolute favorite even though I cry each time I read it. Your stories are all very intriguing and with each one I find myself wishing and hoping right alongside of the characters. I know that The Moon and More will be just as fantastic as your other books! Where does inspiration for the plot line in your stories come from? And... How do you create characters that seem so real? Lastly, how do you create a romance that seems so tangible and real, not sappy and fake?
Thank you so much for answering these questions!
~Audrey :)

[TimeTravelling]

Hi Sarah! I'm Aiman and right after reading 'Just Listen', I just fell like TOTALLY IN LOVE WITH YOU! Sarah...How would you define Life in one sentence?

[Theo]

Hello Sarah! Huge fan for years now, and have to say This Lullaby will always be one of my favorite reads over and over again. Two questions for you:

1. What book is your all time favorite, can read "over and over again"?

2. What's your favorite breakfast?

[[deleted user]]

Hi, Sarah! My name is Janie and I'm a fan of your books. I'm such a sucker for romance-genre books. But I love the way that your books are realistic, but can be cheesy and corny at some times. My all-time favorite books of yours are What Happened to Goodbye? and The Truth About Forever. Anyway, even though I'm a thirteen-year-old girl turning fourteen this December, I love to write as a hobby. I'm been wondering:
1. How do you really connect with the readers through your books and the way you write them?
2. Was there any real-life experiences you had that helped you write your books?
I hope you give some thought into your answers. Thanks for reading and answering my questions! :)

[[deleted user]]

Hiya Sarah,Before i start talking .I just wanted to say You are an Amazing Author and i love you,You`re wrting and your Incredible books.My Favorite book that you wrote is Dreamland ,it is Amazing.The book Literally Made me feel like i was living in another Planet and it felt Amazing!
So i wanted to ask you if you could give me tips on writing storys and what is youre favorite book That you wrote??? I cant wait to see what you have in store ill be buying Alot of youre books!Thank you soooo much for taking youre time and writing The facsinating inspirational Books!!! I love you bye!

[Rebecca]

Hi Sarah!
So I absolutely love your book and will be getting your new book for my birthday in a week, I can't wait!
I was just wondering, where do you get the inspiration for your characters from?

[Julia]

Hi Sarah! I was just wondering where you get your inspiration from when you write a book.

[Lucía]

Hi Ruthie:

I totally agree with you about "The Truth about forever" and I'm interested to in the "sequels" possibility. There's a lot of Sarah Dessen's books that I want to know more about.

I'm reading just now Tammara Webber's "Where you are" and I like the idea about continuing a story that could finish just right there (in the first book) or go on and became even more interesting.

Lucía

P.S. -- Sorry if my english isn't good, because I'm learning (I'm spanish and I've been living in Spain my entire life)

[Akanksha]

Hi Sarah!!!
First of all, I'd like to say that I'm a huge fan of your books and I've read pretty much all of them:) Its amazing how much emotion you put in every character and when I'm reading your books I feel like I'm actually experiencing everything in them. Anyways, my question for you is that what was your inspiration to go into this genre and why did you choose to stick with it for all your books? Thanks so much and keep writing!

[Katie]

Sarah,

I think what's really intriguing about your books is that they are all very relatable. Although some of the books muddle together I still enjoy them when I'm reading. My teacher, Sara Kajder, who you were with a few weekends ago got you to sign a copy of The Moon and More for me and I can't even thank you enough. That's so incredibly special to me and my gratitude can not be expressed fully. I love the new book so much, I couldn't put it down. I was slightly frsutrated by the ending because I would have loved for her to get back together with Luke, I adored him, and I despised Theo but I think he contributed greatly to the story. I am attempting to write a story of my own and I really do not know where to start. All the concepts of every book I have read all muddle together and create a really and storyline. Any tips? Also, and new books you could recommend to a young adult reader looking for more books like yours?

Katie James

[Katie]

Hey Sarah! I'm Katie and I'm a HUGE fan! I absolutely love all of your book's characters and settings! My question to you is, how do you get your inspiration for your characters and settings? Are they based off of real people or did you completely make them up?

[[deleted user]]

Hi Sarah!
I absolutely love all of your books and the characters are so realistic and relatable :) I would just like to ask you how you get your inspiration for your books and how do you actually put thoughts to paper?
Thank-you so much,
Maddie

[Alice Reads]

Hi Sarah! I'm a huge fan, I've read many of yours books and I absolutely love them! I just have a few questions for you.
1) How do you develop your characters so well? I can never get my characters to be the way I want them to.
2) How do you write the plot, do you plan it from beginning to end, wing it, or write multiple versions?
3)How do you keep getting inspiration for your novels and not just give up? And how do you come up with original ideas so that not all of your books sound exactly the same?
4) Do you often get writers block, if so how do you deal with it?
5) How long does it usually take you to write one of your novels?

[Jessica Stimpson]

Hi Sarah!! I'm a huge fan, you're one of my favorite authors and I love all of your characters. You inspire me to make the characters in my stories just as amazing. So my question is where do you get the inspiration for your characters?

[Jessica]

Hi Sarah! What advice do you have for young writers who want to make it big in the writing community? (Namely, me! :D)

[Lily]

hi Sarah my name is Lily, I really love all your books especially along for the ride and just listen but mainly along for the ride. I really felt like I was in the actual story seeing everything that Audrey was and feeling everything too! So my question for you would be how did you get your idea for this book? and when you first became an author what was your lesson that you wanted to teach to us teens or adults? anyways I would have to say that of all the books I have read you are definitely my favorite author and I cant wait for the next book to come out by you!!!!!

[Rosa]

Hey Sarah!! I love your books. They are super interesting and INSPIRING!!! How do you come up with ideas to write your books? what is your favorite movie/ book?

[flautist]

Hi Sarah!! I am a huge fan, I LOVE all of your books and you are one of my favorite authors. I have a few questions for you.
1)How do you come up with your amazing characters?
2)How long does it usually take to write one of your novels?
3)Do you plan on making a series for one of your novels?
4)What is your favorite type of music and do you listen to music when come up with your novels?? :D

[Meghan]

Well hello there Sarah :)
The names Ely... Meghan Ely ;D
I see that there are quite a bit of questions that have been asked of you, so I won't make this long.
Just to throw this out there, I'm a fan (if you hadn't guessed :P), and I've read almost all of your books. And I've loved and enjoyed every one.
I love the way you write, how I can really connect with the main character, feel what they feel, see what they see. You have a gift :)
Oh crap, this is turning out to be long...
Anyway, all I'm saying is I love your books, and you're a great writer.
Sooooo onwards to my questions:
-Which book was the most fun and enjoyable to write, and out of all of your books which one is your favorite? What's your favorite Love Story?

[Rachel]

Hi Sarah! Of all of the book characters you have written, who is most similar to you?

[Sabrina]

Hi Sarah!
My name is Sabrina, and I'm a huge fan (like everyone else of course). I was wondering if you had any particular music you liked to write to/any music that gives you new ideas. This especially pretains to Just Listen as it is a book about music, but just in general. :)

[Sabrina]

Hi Sarah!
My name is Sabrina, and I'm a huge fan (like everyone else of course). I was wondering if you had any particular music you liked to write to/any music that gives you new ideas. This especially pretains to Just Listen as it is a book about music, but just in general. :)

[Eileen]

HI SARAH! I'm Eileen. you're such a great author and I've read all your collections in 3weeks! :) and i love them all!!! really!!!

[Micaela]

Hi sarah! I am a reader i read so.e of your booms they are amazine! Say ,How do you come up with such good ideas for your writings?

[Micaela]

Hi sarah! I am a reader i read so.e of your booms they are amazine! Say ,How do you come up with such good ideas for your writings?

[Melissa]

Hey Sarah! I am a huge fan and I have a huge question... Will you be writing another book?

[Kailey]

Hi Sarah! My name is Kailey; I am possibly your biggest fan...well, I'm sure many would be ready to compete with me for that title. Anyway, I was wondering a lot about your writing process: how do you go from a raw idea to a tentative plot to a real story?

Also, if you had to write a six-word story about your life, what would it be?

Also also...advice for aspiring writers?

[Maatii]

Hey Sarah! My name is Maatii. Do you have advice for a teen with writers block?

[Bernadette]

Hey Sarah,
I read your book that summer. Sarah I want to know if your books are going be a movie. I hope I enjoy reading more of books. Sarah in the new book are there going to be the same characters in the stroy. I
just asked. when I read the that summer it brings me back to my summer memories.

[Rye]

hi Sarah! my name is mariah and I was wondering if you ever might write a book about a lesbian, bi-sexual, pan sexual , transgender, or gender queer character? I love your books I'm just curious if you might branch out

[Mon Zapata]

Ms. Dessen:
I read Just Listen and i found this book lovely,i love the way Owen find in the music a salvation, and i love the way he help Annabel, and i think the point of this is that i want to ask how do you get inspired to write such and amazing stories, and thank because i really learn about your book :)

[Stephanie]

Sarah, I don't want to waste your time, so I will get straight to your point...your books are amazing, and while I know stand-alone novels are more your thing, have you ever considered continuing Remy and Dexter's story???

[Chrissy]

Hello Sarah! First of all, I just wanted to say thanks for writing all of your amazing books! For my 17th Birthday, I got to go to NYC where you were doing a signing on my actual birthday at Barnes and Noble (May 30). So thanks for being there; it was awesome.
I have two questions that I hope you can answer:
1. Along for the Ride is my favorite book by you. What was your inspiration for this book?
2. I read somewhere that you were inspired to write The Moon and More from shirtless pool cleaner, lol. So - Luke. But, did you have an inspiration for Theo? His bubbly yet driven character/personality is so...unique, I was wondering how you came up with him.

[Fatema]

Hello Sarah! First of all I would like to say that I am a huge fan of your books and I'm so excited to read The Moon And More (it finally came out in the UK this month, and I got it to read as soon as my exams finish!) I love all of your books so much and I am an aspiring writer myself.
I have a few questions:
1.) Out of all the characters in your books so far, which one do you identify with most and why?
2.) When you write, do you need complete silence or do you have a music playlist or something?
3.) Out of all of your books that you've written so far, do you have a personal favourite?
I have loads more questions for you but I can't seem to find the list I made at the moment, I'll make another post when I find them! :)
Also, please please come to the UK? I'd love to meet my favourite author (you!) in person one day! :)

[Black]

Hi Sarah! First of all I want to Thank you for the beautiful books you write , many of them have been a good inspiration . I would ask you plenty of questions , but since I adore " lock & key " I just wonder what inspired you to the whole idea of the lock & key ?.
I was moved by this quote "it's a lot easier to be lost than foun .. it's the reason we're always searching and rarely discovered . So many locks not enough keys ". what does that come from ? can you paraphrase ?

[Lara]

Hi Sarah!
I got to say I enjoy your work very much! Especially Along for the Ride is amazing. As I read, I felt as if I were there witnessing everything all of these realistic characters were going through!
Anyway, I don't want to waste your time, so here is my question:
Before you start writing your books, do you already know how the book is going to develop and know exactly how the ending will be, or do you just have a general idea of how things might go and then come up with new ideas as you go along?
Thank you so very much for having this discusson! :)

[Andrea]

Hi Sarah Dessen! I love love love your books! My question is where do you come up with all the boys from you books? I have read many of your books and I was wondering do you get the inspiration from old boyfriends? Movies? Other books? You do a great job of changing each character.

[mj]

Hey, Sarah! I won't be able to say anything on Tuesday since I'll be working at a camp. I've read most of your books and you are one of my favorite authors of all time. You've been an amazing inspiration to me and helped me through a lot of tough times.
When you write books, you tend to overlap characters and I can't tell you how much I love that. (like Jason in The Truth About Forever and Along For the Ride or Morgan and Isabel in Keeping the Moon and Along for the Ride)My question about this is how do you choose to overlap them? Do you have a certain system or do you do it spontaneously?
I hope this doesn't take up too much of your time. since you do have a life other than your fans.
Thanks so much!
~Meredith

[Indigo]

i love the books ive read of yours and wonder what is your inspiration

[Sherry]

Hi Sarah! I really love your writing. :) What is your writing process? Do you first write and then edit, etc.?

[Sherry]

Hello again. Where do you go to for inspiration when you write? Or how do you get inspired?