Needham Native Discusses Her New Book ‘Firelink’

"Ten years ago, I would have told you I wasn't a writer," said Sandra DiMartino, a Needham native who graduated from Needham High in 1976. "It was because I'd never tried."

This year, DiMartino, who has taught in the Lexington Public Schools for over a decade, published Firelink, the first of a three-book series called The Firelink Chronicles.

Firelink — perfect for fantasy-loving 13- to 16-year-olds — centers on a magically talented brother and sister, Taryn and Julia, who must stretch the limits of their powers to save their Scotland kingdom from destruction. Taryn and Julia find allies in nature, calling on wolves, hawks and deer to assist them in their battles. Family ties, past tragedies, hidden dangers, hints at romance, fast action and the Scottish landscape itself add depth to the plot. DiMartino has crafted this start to Taryn's and Julia's journey with care.

DiMartino found inspiration for the book in 2004, when she traveled to Scotland with a group of Lexington High School drama students who had been invited to perform in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

As the group explored Scotland, DiMartino said, "A lot of things seemed strangely familiar to me." Upon returning home, she mentioned this to close friend Paul Lowell. The two speculated about whether DiMartino had lived a past life in Scotland.

"It was a fun idea to explore," says DiMartino. She and Lowell, deciding they could have been brother and sister in long-ago Scotland, began dreaming up the story.

With Lowell's assistance, DiMartino started to write. She set a goal for herself of three pages a day. Sometimes, if DiMartino was on a roll, she wound up writing 10 to 12 pages instead.

"The story wanted to be told," says DiMartino. "When I tried to stop writing, the characters started nagging me, popping into my head."

On the other hand, she says, when the author tried to force Taryn and Julia to act in ways that were not entirely true to the characters themselves, "the story would dry up."

Frustration and anxiety ensued when DiMartino began sending her story to publishers. DiMartino notes that she waited for six months per publisher, only to receive word that her manuscript was rejected.

In times like these, we all need cheerleaders. "Paul rooted for the story and rooted for me," DiMartino says of Lowell, one of those to whom Firelink is inscribed. "I bounced plenty of ideas off him."

DiMartino also handed out copies of her manuscript to other friends and continued to revise with their feedback. Finally, DiMartino decided to try her hand at self-publishing. She worked closely with friend Michele Ferra, designer and visual artist.

Ferra, who created the book cover for Firelink, based the cover's Taryn and Julia on what Lowell and DiMartino looked like at the characters' ages. Once the cover and text were uploaded on Amazon's creativespace.com, DiMartino was a published author.

Currently, DiMartino is halfway through writing the third book. She intends to finish writing it by next spring, at the same time she releases the series' second book, The Hollow Bone.

"For me, it's not about making money," DiMartino says.  "It's about bringing the story to completion."

She says she feels grateful not only for the help of her family and friends, but also her Lexington High School students, as she progressed through the book. "Teaching drama, you learn to be creative every day," DiMartino said. "Watching the kids come up with amazing ideas each class really motivated me."

In addition to being a teacher and writer, DiMartino works as a Reiki Master/Teacher and shamanic practitioner. Her experience has made her more aware, she says, of the connection between human beings and nature.

Fun fact: Some of the history and beliefs of the Celtic Way, a branch of shamanism, shape Taryn's and Julia's actions in Firelink.

Sandra DiMartino's book can be found on Amazon.com and at Borders, Barnes & Noble, and other local bookstores.