Sara Sheridan
Sara Sheridan
Sara Sheridanis a Scottish writer who works in a variety of genres, though predominately in historical fiction. She is the creator of the Mirabelle Bevan mysteries...
NationalityScottish
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth7 June 1968
father home treasure
I've always had a keen sense of history. My father was an antiques dealer and he used to bring home boxes full of treasures, and each item always had a tale attached.
real people archives
Without archives many stories of real people would be lost, and along with those stories, vital clues that allow us to reflect and interpret our lives today.
real important world
Writers of novels live in a strange world where what's made up is as important as what's real.
people inspire culture
If we don't value the people who inspire us (and money is one mark of that) then what kind of culture are we building?
character vocabulary interesting
A word out of place or an interesting choice of vocabulary can spawn a whole character.
book ideas imagination
Books have a vital place in our culture. They are the source of ideas, of stories that engage and stretch the imagination and most importantly, inspire.
thinking order people
It is one of the benchmarks of a culture I always think – the page at which it operates. A good way to measure it is to order a taxi and see how irate local people get if it is late.
book stories fiction
A book is a story, even if it's non-fiction, and once I've read it, I have the story with me inside my head always.
character sometimes left-behind
Sometimes I create a character from a scrap - a mere mention that has been left behind.
jobs historical novelists
As an historical novelist – there are few jobs more retrospective.
dirty dirty-business
History at its best is a gritty, dirty business.
research charity letters
Research material can turn up anywhere - in a dusty old letter in an archive, a journal or some old photographs you find in a charity shop.
understanding firsts looks
It is through our extended family that we first learn to compromise and come to an understanding that even if we don't always agree about things we can still love and look out for each other.
lonely inspiration two
People make interesting assumptions about the profession. The writer is a mysterious figure, wandering lonely as a cloud, fired by inspiration, or perhaps a cocktail or two.