1. How did you discover the IMWA, and how have you been impacted or involved with the association?
When I moved to San Diego, I was looking for some places to meet people, and I had a recent experience of stories knocking around in my head, wanting to get out at night. I had been briefly connected with a fiction writers’ group in Maryland, and I looked for what was available. I found San Diego Writers, Ink, and took a couple of one-off classes, which I thoroughly enjoyed; I became a member, and then saw that Tracy Jones and Marni Freedman were doing a year-long course on memoir writing, which seemed to fit the stories that had been knocking around in my head wanting to get out. I ended up meeting awesome memoirists who have inspired and continue to inspire me, and from them I learned about IMWA and became a member. Now I’m in a Read & Critique (R&C) group, where I get feedback and learn new things every week. I highly recommend joining and participating in IMWA events—it has helped me grow in so many ways.
2. When did you begin to write, and what was your first project?
LOL! I NEVER intended to write, write a book, or be an author. It was after my mother died that our family’s oral tradition and many stories about my mother kept waking me in the night. I would ruminate on them and get up exhausted in the morning. It was actually my husband who encouraged me to write them down so I could go back to sleep. He measured my night table for a glass top and handed me several Sharpies. I didn’t even need to turn on the light—just grabbed a pen and wrote down words I wanted to use or key phrases. Then I was able to go back to sleep and address the stories when I chose. They sat around for a while, and then, when I got connected to Marni and Tracy, I realized I might have some essays I could submit to magazines and such. But Marni and Tracy gave assignments, and before I knew it, I had a volume of stuff. I’m fond of saying, and it’s true, that I wrote my memoir five pages at a time—to meet the assignment requirements for the memoir class. It just all snuck up on me. One Saturday afternoon after class, I tried to organize what I had just because that’s my nature, and I realized how much I had, and that it made a memoir. When COVID came, I decided I had no excuses (couldn’t say I had no time—time was all we had), so I fleshed it out. It was never intentional until then.
3. Who are your favorite authors?
E. B. White, William Carlos Williams, Langston Hughes, Barriss Mills, e.e. cummings… I could go on. I do love to read and do it quite intentionally. I read all genres but love poetry, can you tell?
4. What’s your favorite memoir?
I’ve read so many, and each has been a window on the human condition. I can’t name one. However, I do love the memoirs of my Wrighteous Sisters, like Leslie Ferguson, Jennifer Gasner, Vincentia Schroeder, and Laura L. Engel—and I’m looking forward to more that are coming out from that R&C group. They are inspiring. I feel like the memoirs give windows into their souls. I so appreciate their vulnerability in writing them.
5. Please tell us about your new memoir, its launch, and what you’ve learned as a memoirist.
My debut memoir is about my mother’s struggle with Alzheimer’s and my struggle losing my mother to Alzheimer’s. It covers the time from the day I took my mother to memory care until she died. It’s a beads-on-a-string memoir with flashbacks that tells our story. It’s about grief, anger, frustration, and love. I’m hoping it brings some solace to those going through this season with their own folks and lets them know they are not alone. I’ve learned to allow myself to be vulnerable, and I’ve learned that my family means more to me than I thought it did.
6. Any advice for new writers?
Get connected with International Memoir Writers Association, San Diego Writers, Ink, Marni, Tracy, and good people in classes. Take one-offs and longer classes when you are ready. Keep a pen by the bed, and a tiny notebook in your pocket.
7. Where to find Sarah:
Website: www.SarahVosburgh.com
Email: email@SarahVosburgh.com
Facebook: Sarah Church Vosburgh
Instagram: @scvosburgh
X: @SCVosburgh
TikTok: @SarahVosburghAuthor