Author to Author interview with Heidi Sand-Hart, author of Home Keeps Moving
I came across Heidi’s memoir only two weeks ago. Home Keeps Moving is about how her life as a Third Culture Kid (TCK) and Missionary Kid (MK) has shaped her identity and affected her life in ways many find the words to describe. I was immediately impressed. Not many people in their twenties write books based on their lives. Many wait until their forties or beyond before they feel they have enough to say. But Heidi has plenty to say. This book is theory in action. It as, as the Families in Global Transition conference likes to say ‘where research comes to life’. Indeed, Heidi was inspired by the work of Ruth van Reken and Dave Pollock and their seminal book, Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds.This TCK MK writes beautifully about her experiences as the child of Scandinavian parents, pingponging between England and India. By examining her own experiences on themes such as rootlessness, restlessness and unresolved grief she is frank about how life was for her.
I believe that any twenty or thirtysomething ATCK (that’s a TCK who became an adult) will find support and resonance here. Speaking as one who did not live abroad until I was an adult, I am in awe of her resilience and her objective accounts of a very unusual life. She is perceptive and her descriptions leap off the page.
Peppered by writings from her peers and the experts, this is a great companion to Ruth and Dave’s book. I admire Heidi, as someone whose education was ‘patchy’ as a result of her nomadic upbringing, to have been brave enough to put her words on paper and then fight to find a publisher. It is with pleasure that what follows is my recent interview with her:
HSH
My name is Heidi Sand-Hart and I am an Adult “Third Culture Kid” (TCK) who grew up in India, England and Norway. My father is Norwegian, my mother Finnish and they were missionaries in the UK and India, hence we moved a lot! I myself have done plenty of travelling and voluntary work, particularly in Asia. I currently live in London with my Kiwi husband.
JP
Tell me about your book. What is it about? Can you describe it in just a few
sentences? To show that a book has focus it is vital that it can be described
briefly and succinctly.
HSH
“Home Keeps Moving” tells the story of growing up in many worlds due to moving frequently throughout my childhood. It gives a lot of insight into the many struggles and challenges that “Third Culture Kids” face with constantly leaving friends, homes and their familiar surroundings – of those trying to grasp an understanding of who they are and how they fit into their current society.
JP
Why did you write “Home Keeps Moving”?
HSH
I actually started writing this book ten years ago but realised the task was too overwhelming for me at the time. As I’ve gotten older, I have realised how exciting, colourful and unique my own childhood was and I wanted to share that with others. Last autumn we returned to London from living in Thailand and I struggled to find a job…I realised the time was right to give this book another go.
JP
Why do you think your book needed to be written? What will your book do for other people?
HSH
In my search for more personal literature on the topic of cross-cultural upbringing and TCKs, I realised there were hardly any books out there. It is my hope that people with traditional upbringings will understand TCKs a little better through my book and I really wanted to give validation to my fellow TCKs. (in many ways, a forgotten tribe).
JP
Who do you think will read your book? What made you think that there was a market for it? Now that it’s been out for a while, what proof do you have that you were right?
HSH
In this global and transient age, I thought it was more important to have literature out there for people to grasp and empathise with TCKs, since cross-cultural living is becoming more common day by day. This topic is receiving far more exposure and media attention these days so I felt the timing was right. I have already received feedback that Home Keeps Moving has triggered thought and self-realisation in people.
JP
It does not matter how good a book is, or how good your writing is if no one knows about it. What steps have you taken or do you plan to take to promote your book? Are you a speaker or trainer? Do you have a blog? A website? A newsletter? Do you use Facebook, Twitter or other social media tools? What about press releases and sending out review copies and free articles? Have you had any other ideas? Which methods do you think work best and can you give me any examples?
HSH
I set up a blog at http://homekeepsmoving.blogspot.com/ and e-mail account ahead of the book’s release and joined all the social networking sites to create “hype”. I researched all the websites and magazines interested in TCKs specifically and targeted them, spreading the word. I have spent huge chunks of time doing viral marketing – sending out press releases and following up with phone calls. I have done a radio interview and have two more lined up. I’ve written articles for free which have been published by The Telegraph and other online magazines. I have approached major and local bookshops in the UK. I have asked Missions Agencies, Expats, Member care organisations and International Schools to help me promote the book by featuring it on their websites and in their publications. I have also sent out lots of complimentary review copies and am trying to get the book reviewed or mentioned in as many publications as possible.
JP
How did you publish your book? What was your route to publication?
HSH
As I was approaching the final stages of Home Keeps Moving, I started to send out sample manuscripts to publishers who had previously released books with a similar content. I also happened to have an acquaintance whose book on hot and cold climates (Foreign To Familiar by Sarah Lanier) was along similar lines to mine and she got me in touch with her publisher. I received my fair share of rejection letters and found the process extremely hard especially since many publishers refuse to accept unsolicited manuscripts and I didn’t want to go down the agent route. Luckily for me, Sarah Lanier helped open a door that might otherwise have remained closed.
JP
Self-belief can be a big problem for writers. How did you manage to stay confident in your ability and remember that you were good enough to write your book? How did you cope with the days when you thought you could not do it and that it was rubbish?
HSH
Those days continue to come and go, even now! I have to say that the support and encouragement received from close friends and family is what spurred me on. My husband patiently assisted me in editing and perfecting the book. For me, the main target was just to complete the book that had been hanging over my head for ten years and I tried not to rush ahead of myself too much and allow worries of not getting published to overshadow things. On the days that inspiration didn’t come, I didn’t push myself…I just tried to take it in my stride and monopolise the good days. As the release date approached, I became slightly anxious about how it would be received since I was “putting myself out there” – divulging personal stories and also opening up to possible criticism. I haven’t even read my book since it’s been published because I had to go over it so many times in the run up to printing!...
Read full interview at: Jo Parfitt's website
No comments:
Post a Comment