Q&A with Sarah May

 

Photo by Peter Heirendt

 

 

Sarah May is the author of the new memoir She Journeys: A Memoir of Heartbreak and Homecoming. She is also a yoga instructor and Reiki healer, and she is based in Houston and San Diego.

 

Q: What inspired you to write this memoir?

 

A: I’ve loved to write since I was a teenager. I kept a daily journal (I still do) and so writing has long been my way of processing and reflecting. Writing a memoir about my divorce and healing felt more like an inevitable reality. I knew it would be hard, but I also knew it would take me to a deeper level of healing.

 

It took many years for the conditions to be right to write this book; I had to have the time, space, discipline, energy. It took leaving a relationship, quitting three jobs I was working simultaneously, selling everything, moving into a van, and setting out on the road.

 

At first, I envisioned the book would help other women on their journeys, but I quickly realized that the writing process had to be for me. To ask the hard questions, to take responsibility, to revisit a painful past and reconcile everything on an incredibly vulnerable and personal level.

 

Q: How was the book's title chosen, and what does it signify for you?

 

A: She Journeys is about taking both an internal exploration into personal healing and an external adventure in search of self. It was born from my experience after my divorce when I camped, hiked, and backpacked across the country.

 

I was seeking nature and inspiration, but I was also coming home to myself, rediscovering what that meant from the inside out. I was finding a sense of strength and empowerment, along with the inner-work that followed: therapy, yoga, plant medicine ceremonies.

 

She isn’t just me, it’s for any woman who feels like they have lost “everything” and had to rebuild their lives from the ashes.

 

Q: The Kirkus Review of the memoir called it a “likeable and inspiring chronicle of self-actualization.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I think the Kirkus review captures my memoir well. I’m relieved they found it “likeable.” After spending four years pouring myself into the writing (and many more doing the healing work necessary to write), I would be a little heartbroken if the book wasn’t at least likeable.

 

I also hoped it would offer hope to others who have had similar experiences (abuse, betrayal, heartbreak, divorce) so I’m happy to have that feedback.

 

Q: What impact did it have on you to write the book, and what do you hope readers take away from it?

 

A: Writing this book was not only a dream come true, but it was a radical act of self-exploration and self-reflection. I went deeper into forgiveness, into compassion, and into personal responsibility than I ever have.

 

Writing required me to ask the hardest questions I’ve ever asked myself and to get honest about it all. The writing process itself became deeply healing as it brought me clarity, peace, and closure.

 

As an avid reader, I’ve read books that have touched me deeply, felt myself in the bones of others’ stories, seen myself reflected in their words.

 

To me, beautiful writing is like medicine. I truly believe that sharing our stories is important and that doing so is a gift to others. Story reminds us that we are not alone.

 

At the end of the day, I would love for someone to see themselves reflected in my story and to take something that will serve and support them on their own journey.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I’m in the midst of promoting She Journeys and will be for the coming months. As an indie author without much of a platform, it takes a lot of effort to get my book out there.

 

I’m working with a publicist and my husband (also an author - Andrew Singer, Now Is the Time) and I are on a Van Life Book Tour. We’re visiting independent bookstores across the American West, getting our books on the shelves and setting up events.

 

I’m also creating an online Divorce Ritual course that will provide a framework for people to create their own Rituals—an act I found very powerful in finding closure after my own divorce. I also continue to connect with women providing one-on-one healing sessions.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb