An Interview with Saralee Perel: Psychotherapist, novelist, and columnist
Saralee Perel recently won a 2005 humor writing award from the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. Al Speegle, Jr. caught up with her to discuss her writing career.
AS: What started you writing?
SP: I started while I was a practicing psychotherapist. I remember
"writing a novel" was one of those "someday" plans. But then, as I got
older, I realized that way too often, those “somedays” never come. So
with no plot in mind, I sat down at my computer and just started with
one sentence, "My name is Sophie Green." I knew I'd make her a
psychiatrist since that was my profession for 22 years. The cliché is
true. “Write what you know.” But I didn't know the plot; I sort of followed
it while it unraveled itself. My characters just seemed to appear on
their own… blossomed… and I followed them along. As I have told
many patients and friends, just take the first step in any venture. Just
the first.
SP: Yes. Now I have a sequel my agent is trying to place. I’m planning on writing a series of comedic mysteries with the same characters.
AS: I know your novel was selected as a Book Sense Notable. What is it about Raw Nerves that got the attention of Book Sense?
SP: The reviews they received from bookstore owners. Book Sense accepts a very brief synopsis. Here’s what I submitted. “Raw Nerves: A Cape Cod Comedic Thriller” is about a brilliant, endearingly funny neurotic psychiatrist named Dr. Sophie Green. When one of her patients wants her dead, readers ride with her on an emotional roller coaster, as her phobias, compulsive eating and panic attacks escalate with each terrifying threat she receives.
In order to be chosen by Book Sense, a writer has to receive a certain amount of positive reviews. (I don’t know how many.) Then they pick the best one and put it online or in their flyer. The review they picked for mine was, “I loved Saralee Perel’s Raw Nerves. Dr. Sophie Green, a hypochondriac psychiatrist, is being threatened, and there are so many suspects. It is a patient? A colleague? This is a funny, smart, thrilling page-turner, and a great start to a new mystery series.” Jan Warner-Poole, Storyteller Books, Vancouver WA.
It’s an amazing honor to have been picked. Book Sense is like the New York Times bestseller list for independent bookstores. Out of 10,000 novels submitted monthly, 30 are selected and I made it! Plus, it’s the first POD (publish on demand) to ever make it to Book Sense. I knew it was a long shot, but every writer has to take long shots.
What happened after that was just like a fairy tale you read about. Because of the Book Sense Award, a big-time New York City agent contacted me and grabbed me for my sequel. A writers dream come true.
AS: How did you get to the point of becoming a regular columnist?
SP: First I started submitting humor essays to the major national magazines, but they all got rejected. It got depressing getting so many passes in the mail. One day, and I can still picture this, I was sitting on the couch and actually crying, because I was trying so hard to get published and every time the mail came, there was at least one, and often more than one, generic rejection letter from a magazine. So my husband, Bob, suggested I try submitting to our local paper, The Cape Cod Times. I did, and the columns were accepted. I was thrilled! My editor began running them, just on occasion, like every 7 weeks or so. Eventually I really wanted a regular slot. So as a birthday surprise, Bob secretly contacted my editor asking if she’d give me a regular slot. She told him, “Yes.” He put her announcement in my birthday card. Now I’ve been writing for them for 7 years. And I receive tons of! feedback from local readers. When people meet me, they say they feel like they know me. I’m very open in my columns, and I feel a strong sense of connection with my community by writing my columns. Now they’re nationally syndicated through Senior Wire News Service so I receive e-mails from all over the country.
Another big break recently happened. I won an award, in the humor category, in the National Society of Newspaper Columnists’ annual contest. They don’t pick one column in particular. This award was based on a sampling I submitted of three columns. This was another long (and lucky) shot. The NSNC is the largest organization for columnists in the United States.
AS: What do you enjoy the most about your column writing?
SP: I love my readers’ responses. I'm sure it's partly an ego thing, but it's also that sense of connecting with others that feels wonderful. My writing strikes a variety of chords with a variety of readers. It's interesting that in the very same column, the reader will focus on the chord that hits home to them. Sometimes, when my responses come in, either through e-mail or phone, one would never think the readers are reading the same column. Writing my newspaper columns is like eating a hot fudge sundae. I savor every moment, but my one fault, if you can call it that, is I am most critical of sloppiness. I want perfection and I won't settle for a column that's not perfect. That sounds terribly full of myself. But it's true. I won't just pick any word. Each word is carefully chosen.
AS: You’ve written for other markets, magazines?
SP: I'm always submitting essays to magazines. My biggest hurdles have been getting accepted in the national magazine market for essays. I finally made it into Family Circle. I’d say honestly, I must have received over fifty passes before I received a go. I've been published there three times in a little over a one-year period.
AS: Any writer’s tips you’d like to share?
SP: Absolutely. If you’re an aspiring columnist, start locally. Then you’ll have “clips” -- copies of articles to include when you submit to a national market. If you’re an aspiring novelist, I suggest attending writers’ conferences and specifically having what’s called a “manuscript evaluation” with agents and/or editors. Most conferences offer that. That’s how I got my first agent, though she couldn’t place Raw Nerves. On that note, it’s worth getting an agent, even if you have to submit your novel to fifty agents. I was not agented for Raw Nerves. That’s why I went with a POD company. If you have to, you have to. But no chains, like Barnes & Noble, Borders, etc., will stock POD books. There are a lot of reasons for that. One – a POD book doesn’t usually carry as high a regard that a book from a traditional publisher does. Two – a POD book is not returnable, I was so lucky to be ! chosen by Book Sense, because now, I do have an agent who is pitching my sequel to traditional publishing houses. There are very few traditional publishers who will look at an author’s work if it doesn’t come via an agent.
On a personal note, the secret to having satisfied readers, whether it’s for newspapers, magazines or novels, is to be yourself - not someone you'd like to be, but who you are.
I’m severely disabled, but I wouldn’t miss a book signing. And my same attitude applies at bookstores. I never pretend to be who I’m not. Actually, I usually tell people how anxious just being in public makes me feel, which connects me with attendees and makes them laugh and sympathize. By the way, and I know this from my therapy practice, public speaking is the number one phobia. Death is number three! But even though I get incredibly nervous, I wouldn’t let my phobia stop me if Oprah called. (laughs)
Another thing to expect is passes. All writers get passes. I can’t count the number of rejections I’ve received for my essays, in particular. What has motivated me to keep trying is this. I project myself to being 90 years old and pretend to look back at my life and say, "How do you feel about that decision?" When I think of giving up writing, I imagine that scenario and I know for certain that I would feel very badly if I gave up writing.
AS: What would you like writers to remember the most?
SP: You know what I’m going to say. Don’t give up. An editor can reject your work if they’ve had a fight with their husband that day or put on 2 pounds that week. Opinions are just that. Opinions. It’s all subjective. My disability and writing share a common element, ‘Not giving up’. I’m 54. It took me 14 years to get Raw Nerves published. And look at what happened once it did.
© 2005 Al Speegle, Jr. .
