Sarah Easter Collins, author of 'Things Don't Break on their Own' - Author and painter discusses showing and not telling, poetry focusing prose, and bringing themes together

Writer's Routine

Sarah Easter Collins is an all-round creative. Alongside being a painter, she's just published her debut, 'Things Don't Break on their Own'. It tells the story of Willa, whose life shattered into tiny pieces when her sister disappeared on the way to school, and she has never been able to put them back together again. Willa sees Laika everywhere: on buses, at parties, in busy streets. It’s been twenty-five years, and the only thing that has kept her going is her belief that her sister is alive, somewhere. But when a dinner party conversation about childhood memories spirals out of control, a shattering revelation from one of the guests forces Willa to rethink everything she thought she knew about her past.

It was inspired by many things - travelling around Africa and Thailand, teaching in the South West of England, the first dog in space, and also an obnoxious dinner party guest.

We discuss bringing those themes together, also the art of showing without telling, and how her painting inspires her writing... and vice versa.

You can hear how she knew the beats of a genreless novel, why she wakes up shockingly early, and how poetry helps her focus on prose.

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