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Originally
from Texas USA, author and equestrian Mara Dabrishus
now resides in the Buckeye State, Ohio! Mara’s new book Stay the Distance is recommended reading
for every horse-lover!
Mara
grew up in the Arkansas Ozarks, spending a good two decades there before she
started to move around for school and work. After Mara received her Masters in
Library Science from UNC, she moved up to Pittsburgh and finally Cleveland,
where she is a librarian at a small college. This year Mara is doing a bunch of
big life events, like getting married and buying a house, so onward and upward!
Welcome Mara!
Congratulations on your
new book, your upcoming wedding, and a new home!
When was
your first encounter with a horse?
Besides
my trusty rocking horse that I absolutely adored as a tiny child, I have
absolutely no memory of my first horse encounter. I do, however, have
photographic evidence of me when I was quite little sitting in front of my aunt
on her Thoroughbred, an ex-racehorse named Cody. That could have been the first
time. I didn’t have horses growing up, and for the longest time the extent of
my experience was staring at them in awestruck wonder--movies, TV shows,
parades, as we passed them on the highway on family vacations. Of course, I
read about them voraciously. I took lessons off and on, but I had the worst luck!
Barns sold to developers, people moved away, and I eventually stopped looking
for that horse connection until my twenties when I absolutely had to have
horses in my life again. I’ve been riding dressage for nearly seven years and
love every second I’m learning in the saddle.
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What is
the premise for Stay the Distance?
July
Carter’s world is perfect from the back of a horse. From the ground, everything
is a complete mess: her jockey mom ran off for California years ago, her dad
always seems more interested in the horses than in her, and the horse July
wants for herself will never be hers. Even though the New York racing circuit
has taught her not to get attached, July can’t help connecting with Kali, a
hopeless filly that refuses to run when it counts. When bankruptcy rumors start
swirling around the barn, the future is murkier than ever. July can’t stand
losing one more thing, and Beck, the barn owner’s son, knows more about the
rumors than anyone else. July will get the truth, even if she has to pry it out
of him, for Kali’s sake and her own.
Can you
share an excerpt from Stay the Distance?
Yup!
You can read the whole first chapter here:
Are your
scenarios based upon your own personal experience?
For
Stay the Distance, I found myself pulling a lot from my dressage lessons. July
as a character became this multifaceted horse girl: an exercise rider galloping
racehorses, but with a dressage background. I find that knowing those little
details really helps a horse book come alive and connect the reader to the story.
Where do
you like to write?
Generally,
I’m not picky. Most of the time I like to curl up on my sofa, listen to music,
and tap away on my laptop. Usually there’s a cat trying to help, so that makes
things interesting.
How do you
maintain thoughts and ideas?
I
feel so scattered just thinking about this question! I don’t know how good I am
at organizing and maintaining ideas. My process, if you want to call it that,
looks a bit like this:
1.
The Notes and Voice Memos apps on my iPhone for when I am driving or standing
in the produce section of the grocery store when the idea hits.
2.
Dropbox. I have a whole folder of Word documents, each assigned to an idea.
3.
Pinterest. I’m a librarian, and I like to hoard research. I have boards
dedicated to each idea in my Dropbox folder. When I eventually get around to
putting the idea to use, there’s plenty of information to form a story’s
foundation.
What are
you currently reading?
I’m
currently reading Appaloosa Summer by
Tudor Robins. She’s a lovely writer who really gets into those moments with
horses without feeling clinical or overloaded with horse jargon, so you really
feel the emotional connection.
What are
you currently writing?
I
have two projects right now, both young adult books amidst horse racing. The
first— working title is Finding Daylight
(you heard it here first!)— is about a girl trying to juggle life and her burgeoning
career as an apprentice jockey. The second is an untitled beginning for a
series of books I want to write that is inspired by the North American Racing
Academy, which is a jockey school in Kentucky. I’m expecting Finding Daylight to be released at the
end of the year, but the series has a while to go yet.
Do you
have a favorite horse movie/novel?
I
have a soft spot for The Man from Snowy
River, to the point that the sequel does not exist for me. I could play the
theme song on the piano as a kid, and I’m pretty sure that movie was the basis
for my need to visit Australia a few years ago. It’s not a perfect movie by any
stretch, but how can anyone not love that downhill ride? As far as books go, I
adore Kim Ablon Whitney’s The Perfect
Distance for the way it blends horses and young adult themes. No surprise,
I pick a YA book.
What does
horsemanship mean to you?
Whenever
I think of horsemanship I think of that connection between horse and rider. The
communication and understanding going back and forth between two very different
individuals because the trust is so strong is such an amazing thing to
experience. I think it’s that feeling that always has people climbing back onto
a horse even after they might have every reason to walk away. I don’t own a horse,
but I keep coming back and getting on, because that’s just what I need to do.
Connect with Mara…
Website:
www.maradabrishus.com
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