|
||
|
|
|
FAQ about Sarah Andrews (and Em Hansen)About Sarah Andrews (and Em Hansen) About Sarah Andrews (and Em Hansen)Q. Are you REALLY a geologist?A. This depends on exactly how stringent your definition of the term ‘geologist' is. I have two degrees in geology (BA and MS), I've worked three decades as a geologist (okay, with a break or two; wanderlust, motherhood), I teach geology (well, not every semester, but…), and I've blazed a new path in geology (writing mystery novels about it). So give me a break! I'm a geologist! It's like a berry stain! It won't come out! Q. Is your mother, like Em's, an alcoholic?A. My mother is a very sweet, white-haired retired English teacher who lives in a 200-year-old farmhouse in New England, and she's all but a tee-total. See Where do you get your ideas. Q. When did you know you wanted to be a geologist?A. About four years after I started working as one. I studied it because it was fun, but also because I was good at it. I'm dyslexic, so finding a course I could pass without reading the textbook was great (I "read" the pictures)! Then I accidentally found work in it and a very wonderful mentor named Eddie McKee. So at first, I was following the line of least resistance, but over the years, it's given me more than I could have imagined. Q. Like what? A. An understanding of how the Earth goes together, and what makes it work. The companionship of great people, and work in which I can take pride. A living doing something essential. Q. What's essential about geology? A. (Astronauts excluded) when was the last time you left the planet? Hey, it's home! As a petroleum geologist, I helped produce resources on which our nation relies. As an environmental geologist, I cleaned up some of the mistakes that come from extracting and using geologic resources. At the USGS, I learned that pure research is there to keep both sides honest. And in researching the Em Hansen stories, I've learned how each application of geology does the same thing: serves humanity, advancing us to this modern life in which we can become smarter about how humanity uses resources, how much we use, and which resources we exploit. Q. It sounds like you're getting down to your deeper reasons for writing these books… A. That's true. It amazes me to consider the gap between what geologists do for humanity and what humanity knows about these rather obscure scientists. So ultimately I write so my readers can learn more about geology and science in general and make more informed decisions as they vote at the ballot box and with their consumer dollars. I do my best not to preach. I trust people to do what's best with the clearest information I can give them. And I love geology and my fellow geologists, and want people to know about what's so fascinating about both! Q. Why did you decide to write mystery novels about a geologist? A. Because I am one. And it's not just a "write what you know" game; I wanted to share what I find compelling about geology, and I wanted to tell the story of what it's like to be a woman in that male-dominated profession. It's getting more feminine every day, but women are still decidedly in the minority. Q. Where did you get the idea for creating Em Hansen? Have you known someone like her? A. She's kind of an Athena character, and I'm Zeus. There's a longer version of this story, but my publicist told me to keep these answers short. Q. Why is Em from Chugwater, Wyoming? Are you from there? A. I spent my first summer with the U.S. Geological Survey working near Chugwater, Wyoming. I was 23, and when I stopped for gas at the Co-op, the wheat combine drivers used to get on my case about the blaze on my vehicle door that read, “U.S. Department of the Interior—Interagency Motor Pool—for Official Use Only.” “What kind of official use is this ?” they'd ask. The place sorta stuck in my mind… Q. Are you like Em Hansen? Is she an alter ego? A. No…I grew up in the East, not the West. I can't drink black coffee (gives me whiplash) and I can't ride a horse (give me flying lessons). But I will admit that I "lend" her certain experiences I have had. We are…close colleagues. Where do you get your ideas?Q. Where do you get your plots? Have these things happened to you? A. The first few books are drawn directly from my experience working in geology, with a few dead bodies thrown in for interest (two of them actually happened…see the author's note in A Fall in Denver). Since then my pals from work have been passing me their beefs. Q. How about the characters? Isn't that Susan Landon in A Fall in Denver ? A. Most successful characters start out as amalgamations of "types" and then take on lives of their own, morphing wildly. Or I take someone I admire and turn them into a total villain. Or I take a normal person and remove one "pin" that keeps them normal, and what's left? A hand grenade. Q. Do you have ideas for more books? A. More than I could possibly write! I often find myself writing two books at once, I get so much material… Q. Do you write at the same time every day? A. No, I lack self-discipline, and my only habits are bad ones. The only things that keeps me on schedule are my son's timetable (I don't write while he's at home) and a compulsion to finish what I start. Oh, and my editor has me figured out. It's appalling how much work she gets out of me.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Home | Biography | Books | Guestbook | Events | For Educators | Reviews | FAQ | White Papers | Copyright Sarah Andrews 2003-2007. All rights reserved.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
