Ang Shaef Writes

What made you write a book about grief?  Two reasons... When I started writing The Things They Didn't See , my dad had recently passed away and the different ways everyone grieved impacted me. (He had adult children, young teenage children from a second marriage, a youngish wife and many, many close friends and we have a large extended family.)  I was putting myself in everyone's shoes which made for a very compelling narrative. Additionally, two of my four children were in college and my two other children were young teens at home. I had already learned a thing or two about how important it was to give teenagers independence and respect, but I'd made some mistakes along the way where I focused on worries about misbehaving rather than enjoying who they were. Focusing on the wrong things can quickly turn into regrets, and I wanted to explore the lessons I’d learned. What is your writing schedule? Oh boy, nothing consistent. But my favorite time to write was from 3:00 - 7:00 ...

In the last couple of weeks I went to Portland with two of my four sisters to see Benson Boone. One of my children is a "flipper" which made Benny B's numerous back flips off the pianos even more endearing. He's a fantastic performer! We spent a day shopping and window shopping in Burnside's furniture district, but really it was late afternoon because we spent the entire morning  in our hotel room talking and talking and talking. Do you have sisters? The end of the week my husband and I and our friends closed our Colorado ranch for the winter. I even tossed in a line for the first time in years. The next morning we woke up to this big guy bugling, herding over 80 elk in our yard! After a non-stop spring and summer, I'm organizing drawers, which clears out my brain and getting ready to write again!

It's been a dream come true hosting and "guesting" at book clubs this summer and fall!   Jill, Jake, Matt, Henry and Grandpa are now out in the world and  known and loved by friends, family and even friends I've never met.  Thank you! I didn't get a photo with my church book club  or with the Zoom book club with my dear friends' family book club. But I adore hearing about scenes that resonated with you and  sharing about my writing experience and influences!!