SHAUNAVON — “I Think We’ve Been Here Before” is the third published novel by Regina-based author Suzy Krause. Krause grew up in Frontier and is the daughter of Joel and Liz Christensen.
Last year Krause visited the Shaunavon Library for an author presentation on her first two novels, “Valencia and Valentine” and “Sorry I Missed You.” The past year has been a whirlwind since the release of her new book with presentations taking her to Toronto, around Saskatchewan and to her hometown of Frontier. “I was so nervous when I came to Shaunavon last year," admits Krause, "but I soon realized that people weren’t there to judge, they were so supportive and wanted to connect. The Frontier presentation last month was so fun! My Grade 2 teacher, Mrs. Swarbrick hugged me and told me she was so proud of me. It was great to be surrounded by such support.”
Krause admits that her rural upbringing has influenced her writing, settings and characters. In her latest release, locals will recognize several references to Frontier landmarks including the mural at the bowling alley in the Frontier Rec Centre; and, coincidentally, the book ends on page 296 (the Frontier phone number prefix). “Growing up in Frontier we had a tiny library so I would re-read the same series of books over and over.” She confides that the series on her childhood bookshelf was ‘Nancy Drew’. “I loved reading and I wrote a lot. In a small community, I think everyone gets to know more people much better than in the city. I knew older people and younger people. You get to study people and their quirks. Some of my characters are inspired by real-life people I knew growing up.”
Krause shares that one of her favourite characters she’s written to date is from the new novel. “Petra is a stereotypical, brusque and somewhat abrasive German woman. She’s fascinated by the world ending and feels so lucky to be alive during this time as she thinks about the science and physics of it. Her reaction is not something I can relate to at all (I would be freaking out), so it’s fun to explore that alternate response through one of my characters.”
The plot of “I Think We’ve Been Here Before” was inspired by a recurring dream Krause was having about the world ending. That seems like heavy content, but she describes a feeling of peace she had in the dream, saying, “In the dream, I know that we are all going to die, but I’m surrounded by family and everything has been settled and it felt OK. A dream analysis indicates that this type of dream is common when a big change is occurring and is really a subconscious way of reassuring you that everything is going to be fine. It may have been telling me that something good is coming!” It seems that much was true given the traction that her book is getting in the literary world. Krause’s sweet, kind and humble demeanour seems in stark contrast to the book’s apocalyptic theme. However, Krause wants readers to know that the book is really intended to help people examine their responses to the worst possible thing and realize that it’s OK. Her Instagram story promotes this as a Christmas book, clarifying, “Like, apocalyptic Christmas, but very wintery, very cozy,” adding, “It’s the only Christmas story with a higher body count than Die Hard.”
Regarding the title of the novel, Krause indicates that it will make sense to readers by the end of the book and that all of the characters experience intense deja vu at some point, with many synchronicities in the plot. Krause feels the book will have broad appeal based on our shared human experience of the pandemic and big political things that have been happening. “I think people are looking to make peace with each other and want to explore these hard topics and times we’ve been through. My book depicts what could be the worst-case scenario but leaves readers with a sense of peace about all of it.” The book’s characters each embark on their own art projects in response to the inevitable events surrounding them. Krause says, "Art-making is a natural human response to big life events and is about connecting with other people." She admits that this book may be part of her artistic response to difficult world events.
“I Think We’ve Been Here Before” is currently being pitched as a TV show or movie by a producer who has the rights to shop it out to actors, studios and other producers. Krause hopes to have further news about that development by the end of the year.
A long-time participant in the Shaunavon & District Music Festival during her childhood, Krause was teaching piano before broadening her creativity into a writing career. She indicated that her dream job might also include film-making. For now, it seems that writing will keep her full attention as the book continues to sell and resonate with readers. Her musical background plays an intriguing role in her writing as she has also compiled a playlist to accompany each of her novels. Readers can listen to a suggested song before/after specific chapters which creates a soundtrack for their experience. Her playlists are curated on Spotify.
Suzy Krause can be found on Instagram and a link to her blog, newsletter and information on her novels can be found at suzykrause.com. Her new novel is available at booksellers everywhere.
