I’m Sarah–the voice behind Sincerely, Sarah May. So glad you found me! I’m a writer by trade and a romance loving, glitter enthusiast who happens to have type 1 diabetes. I created the idea for this blog while I was in a MFA creative writing program. While there, I wrote a novel (which collects dust on my book shelf–hoping to see the light of day) as well as an MFA thesis on the voices of chronic illness in YA literature.
Unfortunately, what I found was a lot of disappointment–not in the content itself — but in the fact that no female lead, not once, got her insulin pump tubing stuck on a doorknob while trying to impress a potential partner. I know, crazy right? It’s the first thing everyone looks for in a romance novel.
But that had happened to me! And I was determined to create that scene for another diabuddy out there who had experienced it, too. And I was going to do one better–I was going to write about my life and how being a Type A-perfectionist with diabetes can be messy and weird and downright cringe-worthy when you throw in life. But then COVID happened.
All I could think about was how I wanted a Pinterest-worthy wedding to my college partner and best friend. And naturally, the emotional response to this was to put Sincerely, Sarah May on hold.
And I thought I could be content with things. I work full time in digital marketing creating content for clients. Shouldn’t my writerly itch be cured?
Oh, no. No it was not.
I still wanted to share my stories and experiences. Except now I wanted to talk about being a glitter fanatic who had to transform her entire wedding into a backyard affair all the while attempt to not catch a virus we knew minimally of. And oh yeah, keep my blood sugars in check long enough to say, “I do.”
So, Sincerely, Sarah May is here. The vows have been said, the top layer of wedding cake sits in our freezer waiting to be consumed on our first anniversary, and my blood sugar is still being a pain in the… pancreas. But, this will not just be a diabetes blog. I don’t want to be my illness. I never have. But I do want to talk about it. It’s part of me. Not all of me.
We have many more adventures–but I want to share my whole story with you along the way.
I hope you’ll laugh with me as we go through the moments, both of the past and as they occur, and I hope you’ll share your own as we get to know each other. My novel may sit on a shelf, but consider this my unofficial memoir. I’m an open book, baby. Get ready to turn the pages.
Sincerely, Sarah May