Have you been dreaming big? Have you gone forth and queried? Conquered? Feeling inspired this week by those who've suffered, er, endured this long and twisty road toward publication?
I will be featured on Lisa and Laura Roecker's blog today! Please go check out mine--and all the posts--because you never know who's going to say exactly what you need to hear to keep moving forward.
Today I've got the sistahs Lisa and Laura Roecker.
LIAR SOCIETY in a tweet: When Kate gets an e-mail from her dead best friend she decides to channel Nancy Drew. A hotter, bitchier Nancy Drew, but you get the idea.
Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
Our first attempt at a novel was pretty wretched, but there were a handful of agents who found our voice intriguing enough to give us real feedback. When we finally laid that craptastic manuscript to rest (RIP The North Shore) we were so, so tempted just to throw in the towel, but we loved writing together too much. So, we gave it another shot and finished our next project within a few months. That project turned into LIAR SOCIETY. [Elana interrupts to say they only had to query for like, a day--so not fair. And they got three offers, and are repped by Catherine Drayton at Inkwell Management.]
What has been the hardest part of your road to publication so far? And why?
The hardest by far was being on submission to editors. It was hell. We basically spent 5 months living on pins and needles. We suck at waiting and that’s pretty much all there is to do while you’re out on submission. That and obsessively check Stat Counter. [Elana interrupts--ooooh! Stat Counter! Shiny...]
What's your best advice to aspiring authors?
Keep writing, keep reading, spend time getting to know other writers, find an amazing beta reader and never say die.
Super Secret: If you could meet anyone, alive or dead, who would it be?
This is such a hard question and we always over think it because let’s face it if you go with a famous author or historical figure or whatever, chances are it’s going to be totally awkward, you know? I mean what the hell would we have in common with Marie Antoinette aside from a shared love of cake?
So, you know what? We’re going to say Libba Bray because we’ve already met her and we think she’s AWESOME and maybe if we start stalking her, we’ll all magically become besties.
This week I'm bringing in the big guns: People who've traveled down this long and winding road toward publication. Some of them already have book deals. Some have agents. Some have both. They've "made" it. Join us this week for 75 (yes 75!) success stories! Then dream big. Go forth and query. Conquer.
I will be featured on Lisa and Laura Roecker's blog this Friday (and just so you know, Lisa and Laura are still beauty-queen geniuses). Please go check out all the posts this week, because you never know who's going to say exactly what you need to hear to keep moving forward.
Today I've got the girl-with-the-mojo Heather Petty.
CAMP WYLDE in a tweet: Drew Donovan always wanted Faeries to be real, until they started waking up in the forest surrounding the summer camp where she works.
OR
Kelpies are creepy, Pixies are cute, Prophecies are inexplicable & Dark Elves are hot. LET ME SHOW YOU HOW! #CampWylde #noturmamazsummercamp
Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
I’m not really the “giving up” type. I’m more the “I’ll do it until you SUBMIT TO MY WILL!!!” type. (With or without maniacal laughter, depending on my mood.)
So, really it was never a matter of giving up for me. I had only attempted to query one other project, and once I realized I had no idea what I was doing, I pulled back and did what writers do best… I researched the hell out of the industry.
By the time I was querying CAMP WYLDE, I knew enough about the process and the industry to know that it was going to take time and drive. And I inherited the Drive Gene from my dad, who is a musician and artist. And growing up in an artist’s house, I was told every day that I could do anything I wanted to do, as long as I was willing to put in the work. And I was willing. So I was going to keep going until I died or the Zombipocalypse overtook us all.
I may nor may not be overly stubborn. [Elana interrupts to say that Heather received multiple offers of representation and went with Eleanor Jackson at Markson Thoma Literary. Stubborn? Whatev. More like talented.]
What has been the hardest part of your road to publication so far? And why?
Did I mention I have waiting issues? Because I totally have waiting issues.
I think, though, that the hardest part is hanging onto that spark inside you that really believes in your own talent, no matter what happens or how many stories you read or rejections you receive.
Because really, the number of people who will instantly tell you “No” in this business far outnumber those who will even take a moment’s pause to consider your work. [Elana interrupts to say "Amen!"] You will hear over and over about people who come to the precipice of success only to plunge over the side. You will read of people whose agented books never sold, whose numbers weren’t high enough to sell their next big thing, who eked out a publishing presence over decades before finding any modicum of success. And those stories resonate in any writer’s mind as the agent rejections and editor pass letters pour in.
But you have to believe in your own work to survive it. You have to be able to read your own words and say, “Dear GOD that sucks,” and have that push you to work like you never have before to make it better. But at the same time, you also have to be able to read your own words and think, “My GOD that’s brilliant,” know deep down that others will feel that way too, and then work like you never have before to connect with those people.
Maybe there is a bit of narcissism in every artist. Or maybe the truly successful artist craves the act of their art over the praise of their admirers.
Either way, the hardest part is believing in your work when there’s silence or when the only sound you hear is the echo of a NO. And the best solution I’ve found is to seek out those who can relate and those who will cheerlead you no matter what. Keep equal parts around you at all times and lean on each other. Because as much as writing a book is a solitary act, becoming an author shouldn’t be.
Um… and here’s where the joke goes to lighten the mood. Cuz that was all kinds of serious.
What's your best advice to aspiring authors?
My *cough* 27 words of advice: Read voraciously. Write something every day. Be who you are in every word you put on the page, because kids sniff out fakers like it’s their job.
Super Secret: If you could meet anyone, alive or dead, who would it be?
This is one of those questions like, ‘Who is your favorite musician?’ where I whine dramatically about “SOPHIE’S CHOICE!!” and beg off. I can never pick just one, and I’m sure it changes day to day. But if I’m selecting purely literary types, today my choices would be:
Agatha Christie, Terry Pratchett, and George MacDonald
In fact, I think a dinner party with those three will be part of my heaven.
This week I'm bringing in the big guns: People who've traveled down this long and winding road toward publication. Some of them already have book deals. Some have agents. Some have both. They've "made" it.
I want to spotlight someone each day this week to hopefully inspire you, provide a beam of hope along your way, and really prove that you CAN succeed in this crazy business.
But I'm not the only one on-board this positivity wagon. Join us this week for 75 (yes 75!) success stories! Then dream big. Go forth and query. Conquer.
I will be featured on Lisa and Laura Roecker's blog this Friday (and just so you know, I asked LiLa to do an interview and they had the idea to spread it across the Interwebz. They are genius personified. So yeah). Please go check out all the posts this week, because you never know who's going to say exactly what you need to hear to keep moving forward.
Today I've got the majorly-impressive Beth Revis.
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE in a tweet: Agatha Christie meets Orson Scott Card in a murder mystery…set in space!!
Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
Yeah. YEAH. Actually…with this book. I’ve written other novels. I have more trunk novels than I really care to own up to. I mean…a LOT. But I was also aware that they weren’t my level best. A few of them I only queried a few times before not bothering any more; I knew they weren’t good enough.
But when I finished Across the Universe, I looked at it and thought: I can’t do better than this. I hesitated to send it out—something I had never done before—because the thought of rejections on this one hurt more than the others. I thought if I couldn’t get anywhere with this one, I might as well give up because I couldn’t do better than this.
What has been the hardest part of your road to publication so far? And why?
Dealing with rejection, hands down. It was so frustrating. [Elana interrupts to say that Beth had multiple offers and signed with Merrilee Heifetz of Writer's House. And have you heard her book deal news? Elana's sure you have, but if not...click here.] I’m not afraid to work—but the rejections were so empty. I would look at a form rejection and say, “Why?” Learning to write well was a lot of trial and error—starting with doing everything wrong before I could do anything right.
What's your best advice to aspiring authors?
Practice. Oh, I have 25 words? Then: practice x 25. [Elana interrupts to say she gave her people 25 words to dispel wisdom.]
Super Secret: If you could meet anyone, alive or dead, who would it be?
Martin Luther. (Not the civil right’s leader, though he’s cool—I mean the Protestant Reformer of the Middle Ages.)
This week I'm bringing in the big guns: People who've traveled down this long and winding road toward publication. Some of them already have book deals. Some have agents. Some have both. They've "made" it.
I want to spotlight someone each day this week to hopefully inspire you, provide a beam of hope along your way, and really prove that you CAN succeed in this crazy business.
But I'm not the only one on-board this positivity wagon. Join us this week for 75 (yes 75!) success stories! Then dream big. Go forth and query. Conquer.
I will be featured on Lisa and Laura Roecker's blog this Friday (and just so you know, I asked LiLa to do an interview and they had the idea to spread it across the Interwebz. They are genius personified. So yeah). Please go check out all the posts this week, because you never know who's going to say exactly what you need to hear to keep moving forward.
Today? The amazing Jamie Harrington.
SKETCH MCGEE in a tweet: Sketch McGee's a 16yo SuperVillain that changes the future w/ her drawings. But, she's also a band geek in love. Watch those worlds collide.
(And, I may or may not have spent extra time getting that to equal exactly 140 characters just to prove I am the ultimate twitter queen, but whatevs.)
Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
So many, many times Elana. In fact, let me illustrate this with a handy dandy little time line:
Yeah, it’s pretty much like that. The thing is, I kind of feel like if there weren’t times I wanted to give up, then the wins and successes wouldn’t matter as much, ya know? [Elana interrupts to say that Jamie received like, five offers from agents. She is repped by Victoria Horn at Liza Dawson Associates.]
What has been the hardest part of your road to publication so far? And why?
I don’t even have to think about this one. It’s the waiting. That’s hands down, without a doubt the hardest part. It’s worse than rejection, it’s worse than wrestling with a difficult chapter, it’s worse than running out of snacks mid-edit, it’s the WORST.
What's your best advice to aspiring authors?
I wordled them for you! (ALWAYS put your book through wordle--it’s the bomb!)
Super Secret: If you could meet anyone, alive or dead, who would it be?
I want to say something profound here, really I do—but I think I’m going with the Ask A Ninja Guy:
