Sara Ackerman’s first historic novel, set here on Hawai’i Island, was published in 2018 (“Island of Sweet Pies and Soldiers”), and today, just six years later, her sixth novel, “The Unchartered Flight of Olivia West,” debuted in February.
“I have been writing poetry since I was 11 when our sixth-grade teacher had us create a book of poems – I still have it somewhere,” she says. It was more than a few decades later that Sara, now 57, began writing her first novel in 2012.
“When I finally sat down to write that book, I had no idea what I was doing! But somehow six months later I managed to finish it,” Sara says. “Since then, I’ve learned a few things thanks to constructive criticism from friends, a few key books on writing and writers’ conferences I’ve attended.”
Sara also had a great foundation in writing as she studied journalism at the University of San Diego and later received a graduate degree in psychology at the University of Hawai’i Manoa which undoubtedly helped fuel her skill in developing engaging and believable characters. Still, it took five years before she finished the book to secure a publisher contract.
Now a best-selling author, accolades for her books include Amazon selecting “Radar Girls,” the fourth of six novels, as its book of the month, and New York Times bestselling writers Katie Quinn and Madeline Martin praising her novels as “fresh, delightful and brilliantly written.”
From the start, Sara says, her mantra has been “patience and perseverance” and to this day a post-it note with the phrase is attached to a door frame in her home where she says she typically writes 700 to 1,000 words each day, while taking a day off when she feels the need.
“I require time to brainstorm about work on my books in progress. That’s when I take time out to take a walk with my dog, swim, paddle, hike, take a drive, or watch the sunset. I love these islands and I love nature. Hopefully, my books help inspire others to feel the same and, perhaps, feel moved to help protect their corner of the world. We each have stories of our place and people that can resonate around the globe,” she says.
An Oahu native, Sara moved to Hawai’i Island’s upcountry Waimea in 2015. She’s quick to point out, however, that she has been a frequent visitor here her entire life. “My grandfather, who was born in Napo‘opo‘o, was a principal at Honoka‘a High and Elementary School, and my grandmother was a teacher there. Growing up, I spent all my holidays and school vacations visiting with them here – I absolutely loved it,” she says.
During those visits, she says, she was captivated by her family’s stories about living in Hawai’i during World War II. “They talked about U.S. Marines camping out in their living room on the weekends, of nearly being shot for walking down the street at night, of the African lion that lived with the troops, and of hiding out in a lava tube when they first heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor.”
In fact, Sara’s first five historic novels pull from these shared memories, shining a light on ordinary people doing extraordinary things, taking readers back to a time when fear and paranoia prevailed in the islands, but so did hope, she says.
Animals also play a pivotal role in all of Sara’s books – dogs, cats, donkeys, horses, and even a featherless chicken among other lovable creatures. A self-professed lover of all animals, she says she can’t imagine her life – or her books – without them.
Her sixth book, published in February, stays with the historic genre and island location, however, it is set in even earlier times here. In “The Uncharted Flight of Olivia West,” Sara tells the real-life story of a female aviator who embarks on an adventurous air race (sponsored by Dole) from the mainland West Coast to Hawai’i in 1927. While the heroine was not considered for a spot as a pilot – she was a woman, after all! – she did succeed in clinching a seat as a navigator on one of the competing planes. The 2,500-mile race across the Pacific was one of her most daring dreams. In reality, it turned into a harrowing journey that some didn’t survive. Thrills and mystery unwind over sixty years as details of what happened unwind.
With that novel published early this year, Sara already has completed her seventh, “The Maui Effect.” Set to be released in November, the book is her first to be set on Maui. It tells the story of a conservationist who falls in love with a big wave surfer from the mainland. “Touching on environmental issues that the island faces, I finished writing it just before the Maui fires in 2023; it now feels like my ode to Maui,” she says. “It also delivers an important lesson, never fall in love with a surfer.”
And she has the “creds” to make that statement, having lived for several years on Oahu’s legendary North Shore, home of big wave surfing with its accompanying carefree, laid-back lifestyle. At the time, she was teaching and working as a school counselor there, taking time out to slay some waves as well.
Sara is now working on her next project, a novel based on a mystery about poisoning at the Moana Surfrider Hotel on Oahu in 1905. It will be released in the summer of 2025. As with all of her previous books, it will be published by Mira, a division of HarperCollins.
“I believe the world needs uplifting and heartwarming stories now,” she says. “I see no end to Hawai’i’s untapped stories. There are so many curious and beautiful and heartbreaking experiences in this life that are worth sharing.”
While she loves telling her stories, Sara says she is also a firm believer that stories write themselves. From the time she develops a plot and starts her first draft, there are always twists and turns, unexpected, unplanned things, and characters that pop up along the way. “And that’s fun! As writers, we just help the stories along and of course revise and edit again, again and again.”
When she’s not writing or out enjoying nature, she’s reading. Among her favorite Hawai’i authors, she says, are Kiana Davenport (“Shark Dialogues”) Amine von Tempski (“Born in Paradise”) and John Devoran (“The Last Volcano: A Man, a Romance, and the Quest to Understand Nature’s Most Magnificent Fury”).
For those dreaming of publishing a novel themselves, Sara recommends these books on writing: Stephen King’s “On Writing”; Anne Lamott’s “Bird by Bird”; Sol Stein’s “Sol on Writing”; Constance Hale’s “Sin and Syntax”; and Lisa Cron’s “Wired for Story.”
Sara’s books may be found on Amazon, locally at Kona Bay Books in Kopiko Plaza, and Kona Stories in the Keauhou Shopping Center. Currently, her novels include: “Island of Sweet Pies and Soldiers”; “The Lieutenant’s Nurse”; “Radar Girls”; “The Codebreaker’s Secret”; “Red Sky Over Hawai'i”; and “The Uncharted Flight of Olivia West.”
If you want to learn more about Sara Ackerman's books, schedule a video call for your book club, or connect with her, visit AckermanBooks.com.
I have been writing poetry since I was 11.
I believe the world needs uplifting and heartwarming stories now.