Today we’d like to introduce you to Sabrina Fedel.
Hi Sabrina, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began writing seriously when I left my job as an attorney to become a stay-at-home mom. When my children got a little older, I was able to get my Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Lesley University. My first book, Leaving Kent State, is a young adult historical fiction centered on the 1970 Kent State University shootings.
It was published by Harvard Square Editions in 2016 and has won several awards. My latest book, All Roads Lead to Rome, is a young adult romantic comedy. It comes out on June 18, 2024, from Delacorte Press. In the meantime, I’ve also returned to legal work as an assistant district counsel for the environment with the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I doubt the way is ever smooth for anyone. My story is not smooth. After my long delay of staying home with my kids, I had to go back to school to show employers that I still have what it takes to be successful in the legal field. This past August, I finished the requirements for my LLM in information technology law and should be graduating soon.
Similarly, I’ve had to go through a lot of rejections and critique on my writing to be the writer I am today. I’ve been a member of a writing group since my kids were little, and it’s a wonderful experience to have fellow creatives who can tell you what you need to do to improve, but who also are your cheerleaders when things go right and your consolation when they don’t!
I met my wonderful agent, Michelle Hauck at Storm Literary Agency, this past spring, and it’s great to have her as a partner in my creative dreams. I love to be able to bring stories to people, and I hope to keep doing that for a long time to come!
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I love to write for young people. We tend to think of kids today as being so jaded – the best and the worst of humanity are at their fingertips thanks to the internet, and they learn the worst of life much too early. But they are still kids, and they want to understand the world they’ve been given, and to make it better. I love that they believe they can, and I want to empower them to keep believing that. You have to believe it to make it true.
I hope to inspire the people who read my books to think about this place they inhabit, and how even the small things they do can have a big impact on creating the world they want, rather than the world they are handed. I hope my books help people to feel seen, and to see others more compassionately.
What matters most to you? Why?
Well, I will always say, first and foremost, my children. I always wanted to be a mother, I think because I had such a wonderful mother myself, and she made it seem a lot easier than it is! But I was raised to believe that some things are fundamentally right, so those things also matter to me. My dad and most of my uncles served in World War II, and growing up in the long shadow of war taught me to appreciate democracy, ethics, and truth.
My parents were children of immigrants, so they taught me to value the immigrant experience and to care about others. The things that are important in the world today are the same things that have always been important in the world. The same truths we build our stories around today are the same ones we’ve built them around since the first stories were ever told.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.sabrinafedel.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/sabrinafedel
- Facebook: Facebook.com/sabrinafedel
- Other: www.lintree.com/sabrinafedel
