My name is Sarah Bates. You can call me Sarah, Sayrah if you’re Southern, or Bates. I was born in Alabama in 1983. I grew up in a small town called Fort Deposit, where my father works as a cattle and turkey farmer, and my mother works in insurance. My paternal grandfather owns the turkey farm, and it’s a multiple generation family business known throughout the Southeast for their turkeys, and known within the small town for our many idiosyncrasies.

I went to a small, private school from 1st-12th grade. I can probably still tell you the birthdays and middle names of my entire graduating class of forty-four. From September 2002-June 2007, I studied Motion Graphics, Graphic Design and Creative Writing at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA.

In November 2007, I moved back to Alabama to look for work while I lived rent-free with my parents. I applied for twelve MFA Creative Writing programs, promptly getting waitlisted at one and rejected from eleven. In June 2009, I started a job as the Graphics Manager for a trivia newspaper. Six months into this job, though I can’t quite recall the details, I ended up going from junior designer to Lead Writer (i.e., only writer) and Managing Editor (i.e., the one who got angry emails.) In July 2009, I quit because I hated the two hours of daily commuting and the eight hours at a job that made me miserable, even if I learned that animals have penile bones called baculum, and that Japan has the longest suspension bridge in the world.

In August 2009, I visited Savannah on a whim. Two of my friends were moving back, and encouraged me to visit. Armed with one interview outfit and a duffel bag full of jeans and t-shirts, I crashed on my friends’ couch for a week, interviewed everywhere, and started looking for apartments. By September 2009, I was in a new place with a new job. I was also volunteering for Deep.

Nearly three years later, I am the Programs Manager for Deep. I love what I do. I can pay the bills, and my job is flexible and keeps me fulfilled. I spend my days either teaching Savannah youth about creative writing, or writing myself. Currently, I am working on two novels and a collection of short works. My office is my local coffee shop, and yes, I drink copious amounts of hot (now herbal) tea.