Sarah Milne is a mum, entrepreneur, and author of the best-selling book Kiwis and Koalas. Sarah lives by the sea in Christchurch, with her daughter and chocolate Lab – her inspiration behind the main characters, Lily and Woof.
The Kiwis and Koalas series was born out of a need to bring the people and places we miss together on the page, and she’s now followed up her successful debut with a sequel: Kiwis and Koalas: Bridge to Anywhere. We spoke to Sarah about her books.
So, this is your second book?
It is! In fact, It’s the sequel to ‘Kiwis and Koalas’. After the first book I had lots of people say that it had sparked a conversation in their own families about where in the world they would like to build a bridge to; But it was the booksellers themselves who were requesting another book, one that travelled not just to Australia but around the world. So, it was a very organic sequel.
The first book was written around the time of Covid when no one could travel – is this an extension of that? The realisation that we are so geographically far away from so many places around the world?
It’s funny because I wrote the first one during Covid, but I’d had this idea for so long, and when we were all working from home during that time, I just decided to put pen to paper. The idea came a long time before Covid and of course during the actual time of the lockdowns it gave it a greater resonance for lots of readers. There’s a lot of people who are only just now beginning to see family overseas again. We haven’t been back to Australia for a long time ourselves.
It really had such an impact, didn’t it? I think we’re still coming to terms with what that meant for us all, but I think your book would have been very helpful for lots of kids who were apart from family overseas.
It gave children, and adults, something tangible to wrap around those feelings of missing people. For children it’s also about offering their imagination a way to bridge that gap, so to speak. It was also used by adults as a card or a letter almost, something they could send over to their families that said everything they were feeling themselves during that time “I miss you; I wish I could build a bridge straight over to you”
Was ‘Kiwis and Koalas’ your first time writing a book?
I had written a lot of poetry during my teenage years and entered some short story competitions while studying via correspondence with the New Zealand School for Young Writers, but I was so painfully shy and as a teenager and I don’t think it was really until I was in my 30s and a mother that I finally had the confidence to pursue it.
So, what was the process of getting the story actually published?
Google and a pile of my daughter’s books. I literally googled “how to get published” and then I emailed the publishers of all of the New Zealand books that we loved the quality of.
I also spoke to people in my network who had either been published themselves, knew of someone who had been or worked for different organisations who had that industry experience. Gathering all of that knowledge and expertise helped me narrow the publishing list down to what would suit this story, and us.
The first book really did connect with people – do you think that was because you put so much of yourself into it?
I wrote Kiwis and Koalas because it was a story we needed to have on our own bookshelf. I think when you write from that place, you’re naturally going to offer that connection for others. When you have lived overseas you realise that you will forever have two homes, you will forever be a little bit homesick for one, when in the other. So, I think writing not just for children but adults too is why it works. I’ve had people reach out and say ‘I was wondering why my mum gave this book to me for Christmas and then I read it and couldn’t stop crying because it was basically about me’ – I think that’s why it has done, and continues to do, as well as it has.
Being a writer can be very isolating, so knowing you’ve created something that’s made an impact on others must be very satisfying…
It is. It’s so beautiful. Something that isn’t mentioned in the book is that Lily, the protagonist, is deaf and wears hearing aids. When I wrote the first book one of the best reviews – which will stay with me forever – was one from a mother on the other side of the world. Her and her children were in the car waiting for her husband to return with their takeaways. She was on Instagram and had googled the hashtag #cochlearimplantkids because her daughter was deaf. Her daughter leant over from the backseat and said “Mommy, that’s me”. I sent her a book and she messaged me to say that her daughter had fallen asleep cradling it. That was the moment I thought “that’s it, if I get no other reviews, I am happy, if I have made just one child feel seen- then my job is done.” Subtle inclusion was so important to me, you may even notice that Lily’s family is made up of just her, her mum and their dog.
Apparently, a quarter of New Zealanders are foreign born, so your new book ‘Bridge to Anywhere’ will hopefully have an audience just waiting!
When I hear accents, I just want to blurt out: ‘I have a really great book for you!’ Lol! Knowing how much joy this book has already brought families who have loved ones overseas, I would love Bridge to Anywhere to be sitting on bookshelves all over the world.
Laura Bee has done all the illustrations in the two books… tell us about your relationship?
She is incredible. Kiwis and Koalas was the first picture book for both of us, so it was such a special experience. We worked really collaboratively throughout the process and now consider ourselves friends. We won’t always work together but we do have another special story we would LOVE to have published.
I know you’ve spent a lot of time in Australia – but how much inspiration do you take from being in Christchurch?
I write from an internal space firstly, which is about what is driving my emotions and getting those creative gears churning, and obviously missing people and places overseas does that for me – but the next part of the story writing process is taking those emotions and turning them into something for others to enjoy. To do that, I took huge inspiration from what was around me. There is so much native goodness around us, if you look at lily’s garden, I hope you recognise plants from your own backyard. In Christchurch we can spend the morning skiing and the afternoon surfing, we call walk around the botanic gardens and then through the arts centre and be transported to times and places we have visited overseas. How lucky are we?!
What books resonated with you growing up or as a writer?
I grew up on all of the iconic New Zealand books, old English tales, along with Australian classics like gumnut babies. So for me as a writer (and a reader) of children’s books I search for and enjoy writing those longer more whimsical stories – ones where you can enjoy pouring over beautiful pictures together, have the older kids still snuggled in the crook of your arm for a longer story and for the over 8’s to be challenged enough to still enjoy reading a picture book.
What’s next for you?
I have lots of stories to tell. Nothing set in stone yet, but I have lots of ideas. I want to always stay true to my way of storytelling, that whimsical spirit I talked about. But yes, I definitely have some beautiful stories in the pipeline.
Kiwi and Koalas: Bridge to Anywhere by Sarah Milne & Laura Bee is published by Beatnik Publishing, RRP $30.00
