How The Bright Years Was Paved Through Letters

Sarah Damoff shares how The Bright Years evolved from an epistolary draft into a powerful multi-POV family saga exploring addiction across generations.Every so often, a debut novel arrives so confident and assured it's hard to believe it's the author's first. Sarah Damoff's The Bright Years is one of those rare books. Deeply informed by her work as a social worker, Sarah offers readers an empathetic and profoundly immersive exploration of addiction and its reverberations across generations. Deftly weaving their family's personal history with political and cultural moments creates a layered portrait of a family navigating love and loss through the generations.In this intimate and insightful conversation, Sarah and I discuss:Her savvy and scrappy journey to landing a book deal with Simon & SchusterHow The Bright Years began as an epistolary novel and evolved into a multi-POV sagaThe challenge of writing addiction and redemption with compassionHow setting the story across decades helped her explore shifting perspectives and memory📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: I've curated a list of the best 19 addiction fiction books—featuring buzzworthy new releases and must-read backlist gems. Browse while you listen!🎧 LET'S CONNECT: What's the best fiction book you've read on addiction or recovery? Tap that comment feature on Spotify—I'd love to hear your picks!🗓 BOOK CLUB INVITE: Patrons, check your inbox for a printable version of this list and an invite to our April 25th chat with Lynda Cohen Loigman on The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern. We'll discuss her cozy, feel-good novel about finding love in your eighties. It's a face-hurting-from-smiling kind of read!📝 Love this show? Leave a review on Apple Podcasts—it's a free way to support my work and help other book lovers find us. And to my Book Gang patrons: you've given me bright years I didn't know were possible. Thank you!Meet Sarah DamoffSarah Damoff lives in Texas with her husband and children, where she is a social worker. Her work has appeared inPorter House Review, Ruminate Magazine, and Open Global Rights, among other publications. The Bright Years is her debut novel. Mentioned in this episode:Download Today's Show TranscriptNEW BONUS BOOK LIST: 19 Addiction Fiction Books to Read NowJoin the April Book Club Chat (The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern)The Bright Years by Sarah DamoffYoung ParkThe Best Debut Novels of 2023 with Thao ThaiBanyan Moon by Thao ThaiLost Children Archive by Valeria LuiselliClaire Lombardo A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty SmithLisa GenovaBroken Country by Clare Leslie HallBarbara KingsolverMaggie O'FarrellDani ShapiroBookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches 10% to independent bookstores!Connect With Us:Join the Book Gang PatreonConnect with Sarah on Instagram or her WebsiteConnect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdviceGet My Happy List NewsletterGet the Daily Kindle Deals NewsletterBuy Me a Coffee (for a one-time donation)