August 29, 2024

How Scent Played an Integral Role in ‘The Scent Keeper’

The author of February’s book pick shares with us how she brought scents to life in “The Scent Keeper”.

Story By: Erica Bauermeister

How Scent Played an Integral Role in ‘The Scent Keeper’

The author of February’s book pick shares with us how she brought scents to life in "The Scent Keeper". Story By: Erica Bauermeister

We have a million ways to talk about what we see, or touch, or hear. But smell? It’s the stealth sense, hard to describe. Most of its adjectives are borrowed from the thing itself— something smells smoky, or fishy or spicy. It’s a take-a-noun-and-add-a-approach. Functional, but hardly inspiring.

Writers often turn to metaphor and poetic language, which have all kinds of added benefits. When you stop worrying about what something is and think instead about what it feels like, the world becomes a huge and beautiful thing. Scents can whisper, move, have heat and stories and emotions. They come alive on paper.

When I was creating “The Scent Keeper that skill became crucial, because I was working with a handicap. Just as I was starting to write the book, our family went on a backpacking trip on the wild west coast of Vancouver Island. It’s a magnificent, treacherous hike, full of old trees and endless ocean, muddy trails and ladders and tides that can catch you unaware. And bears. I really don’t like bears.

We had a can of bear spray, and at one point it accidentally went off in the tent. Think mace, a jet-propelled cloud of cayenne pepper. Half a second, but that’s all it took. My kids and husband missed the worst of the blast, but my lungs and nose were on fire.

For weeks, everything smelled like bear spray, and even afterwards, any scent seemed to come to me through a layer of wool. A daunting problem for someone writing about a girl with an extraordinary sense of smell. So I ordered a range of single-scent essential oils. I chose one a day and put a drop on my left wrist. I would let the scent sink in, noting how it changed with the warmth of my skin. I kept a journal and imagined what that scent would be if it was music, weather, a person, a landscape, a color, a tree, a voice, and so on.  I tracked how it affected my mood, and it was astonishing how much one drop could change how I felt. Citrus made me happy, light and uncomplicated. Labdanum was soft and calm and made me feel as if nothing bad could happen. Galbanum, however, put me in such a grumpy mood that my husband begged me to scrub it off.

Drop by drop, I got my sense of smell back. But in the process, I got something more. I had done my research before I started writing, and I knew how marketers and doctors and even teachers are using scents to influence our moods and choices in ways that can seem almost magical. But now I believed it in my body as well as mind. As I worked with my own scent bottles, reality and metaphor fused. Scents became movement, music, emotion, and Emmeline’s incredible talent began to feel like something any of us could achieve, if we only paid attention. That experience infused “The Scent Keeper in a way that never would have happened otherwise.

I guess in the end I need to thank the bears—even if I will never touch bear spray again.

We’re taking our copy of Gone Before Goodbye on a little coffee date this weekend ☕📖 
Link in bio for book tour tickets and to get your own copy!

Where are you reading yours this weekend?
Had the most amazing time connecting with the Reese’s Book Club community IRL at #ShineAway2025 last weekend! ✨ @RaeganRevord and @TembiLocke picked up some incredible book recs that we are immediately adding to our TBR. Drop your must-reads below!
This Thursday's coffee and current read is an iced matcha and our new favorite eco-fiction mystery, Bog Queen by @AnnaNorthBooks. Talk about a perfect combo!
Bog Queen is now available, including at our link in bio.
We’re incredibly lucky to have the incomparable and inspiring @Malala join us on Bookmarked, the Reese's Book Club podcast. 💛

She's a powerful voice for so many—championing causes like girls’ education and women’s rights. In her new memoir Finding My Way, Malala Yousafzai turns inward, exploring the messy, beautiful journey of rediscovering yourself after the world has already decided who you’re supposed to be.

In this episode, @DanielleRobay and @Malala's conservation has all the heart—and then some. Listen now on the @iHeartPodcast app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you love to listen. 🎧
Did not see that coming! Gone Before Goodbye by @ReeseWitherspoon & @HarlanCoben is here and you don't want to miss another second. 

Start reading at our link in bio.
Diving back into the brilliant Anita de Monte Laughs Last after hearing @XochitltheG’s powerful conversation with @DanielleRobay at Shine Away.

Feeling deeply inspired by the vibrant storytelling and the beauty woven into every word.
Sorry, we're booked.

It's official! Pick up your copy of Gone Before Goodbye by @ReeseWitherspoon & @HarlanCoben at our link in bio.
Shop the Reese's Book Club Space with us at #ShineAway2025! ☀️@ZibbysBookshop brought the perfect vibes and of course, so many fantastic reads to add to our TBRs.

Which three books would you chose and why?
Today we honor Indigenous voices like our September Pick author @ElianaRamage. ⭐

With honesty and heart, To The Moon and Back shows us what it means to search for a sense of self—and emerge proud.