Sarah Tomp Biography, Books, and Similar Authors

Interview

In a letter to readers introducing her novel, The Easy Part of Impossible, Sarah Tomp shares a difficult time in her life.

Dear Reader,

When I was in high school, I had a confusing relationship with a teacher. He'd helped me learn something that was hard for me and then made me feel special for being a good listener. He was funny, encouraging, and popular with students and staff. But he had serious problems too. As an adult looking back, I can call our interactions clearly inappropriate, but even now I struggle to define the experience with a recognizable label.

This relationship changed me, mostly because I didn't tell anyone about the rides we took around town, the late night drunken phone calls, the secrets he shared, and the way he cried and raged. I protected him because I felt guilty for letting him think he could depend on me. I couldn't fix him even though I tried. I was ashamed when I unintentionally let his friend and fellow teacher know he'd crossed a line—but I was relieved, too, because that slip finally got me out of a situation I had no idea how to escape.

The Easy Part of Impossible is not that story, but there's a seed of that relationship here, mixed with my realization as a parent that coaches wield far more influence over their athletes than I'd ever expected. Here, my character Ria's school-related insecurities have left ...