Ang Shaef Writes

Two days in San Diego with one of my best friends culminating in joining her book club to talk about The Things They Didn't See!   We started the morning hiking the beautiful sandstone cliffs at Torrey Pines State Reserve. We didn't get a picture of the landscape, but here's a stock image. Meanwhile, I got a text from my mom in Portugal.  Look how similar our two vistas are on either side of the planet! After our hike we went to Coronado Island and rode bikes, then had lunch at the Hotel Del. Dinner at scrumptious Din Tai Fung, and I can't wait to take my family in New York! It was so good! Book club was the perfect end to a beautiful day.

How did you come up with the title, The Things They Didn't See ?  My first chapter was an assignment for a Novel Writing class. I dashed off a title: Finding Paradise (it couldn’t be Paradise Lost, obviously), never thinking it would be permanent for the next six years. I liked the idea of alluding to a broken family finding happiness again.  Years later, the first time I thought my novel was finished, I hired a developmental editor who (among so many very helpful critiques) said she didn’t think the title fit the story. By then the theme of misunderstandings was clear and everything I brainstormed was about not seeing or saying.  The Things They Didn’t See came pretty quickly. I love that it encapsulates all they didn't physically see: Jill and her dad can't see each other on either side of the boat; Connor disappears from Roger's view in the water; Jill and Matt both in anguish over what they physically didn't see at the accident. And also the emotional turmoil ...

  Do you have a favorite morning spot? With the addition of new bookshelves, my sunroom is now complete.   What had been missing, was a place to put all of my  sunroom  books.  While the world outside the windows is just becoming light, I start my day with a blanket, a cup of ginger honey tea, and a stack of books that are inspiring, hopeful, or thought-provoking.  Books that are so uplifting, you need to keep them close, even after the last page.

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!!