Samantha Verant on Raising the Stakes In A Sequel

In 2020, author Samantha Vérant dazzled readers and critics with her debut women’s fiction novel, The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux, the story of a young female chef who journeys to France with aspirations of earning a coveted spot in an elite kitchen and earning her Michelin stars―even though only 1% of chefs who are bestowed the honor are women. Now, Vérant whisks readers off to Paris in her delightful sequel, SOPHIE VALROUX’S PARIS STARS (Berkley Trade Paperback; on sale October 19, 2021).

In Vérant’s second novel, readers are transported back to the French countryside to be reunited with Chef Sophie and a vibrant cast of supporting characters – and then, off to Paris for an unforgettable adventure! Readers will adore a trip through the pages to the City of Lights as Sophie takes on new culinary challenges. Vérant’s stories offer a perfect escape, with all the tastes of French cuisine to make the reader feel as though they are basking in the sunshine at a French chateau, or lounging along the Seine.

When working on a series, how do you decide which threads or characters to pull forward from the first? 

I always intended to carry on Sophie’s story in a second book. In act one, she gets over her insecurities, becomes a comeback chef, and inherits a fabulous château in France. For book two, with a devil on my shoulder, I asked myself what’s the worst thing that could happen to a chef on the rise? Alas, she loses her senses of taste and smell– a pretty timely subject. In Sophie Valroux’s Paris Stars it was important for me to give enough back story from The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux so it could also be read as a stand-alone novel. All of the characters from the first book live on in this second book (some through spirit)—and there are quite a few new ones– namely the villain Nicolas de la Barguelonne. I stole this last name from my cat, whose full name is name is Juny de la Barguelonne. We call him Juju and there is little chance he can sue me. He’s a cat and he can’t read. But I digress. The threads I pulled from the first book are fighting for dreams, no matter the obstacles, and cooking your heart out– maybe falling in love with yourself along the way.

At what point do you start diverting your energies from promoting your debut to drafting your sophomore creation?

Great question! I’m still promoting my debut—it’s been a consistent ride, good news for me! It did take time, dedication, and sitting my butt in a chair to write Paris Stars, but I already had the concept in mind. And I also had a 2-book contract. Let’s just say I work best under pressure. Most people shy away from deadlines. I’m not one of them. I live in southwestern France and writing is my day job. After I turned in Paris Stars, I immediately began working on a third novel. Can’t say much about it now, save for it is another food focused book and it has nothing to do with Sophie. Stay tuned!

Is there a new balance of time management to address once you’re published?

I write lists. Without them I wouldn’t get anything done. There are always tasks that creep up on you– like providing a beta read or a blurb. I think it’s extremely important to support other authors. As for my family, they do get fed because I test recipes on them. A win-win!

You're operating deeply inside the foodie community. Do you utilize that audience through your social media and book promotion?

I’d say I’m more steeped in the expat community–specifically writers who lived or live in France. It’s like one degree of separation. I’m blessed to have connected with Ann Mah (author of Mastering the Art of French Eating, among other amazing books), Janine Marsh (author and purveyor of The Good Life France), Mardi Michels (In the French Kitchen with Kids), and Janice MacLeod (Paris Letters), among others. So many amazing people I can’t list them all! Through books, I have made more connections. Social media is a different beast and I adore establishing one-on-one connections. So. Yep. I’m trying to break through the clutter and not scream into the wind. Which has me asking myself: Why, oh why, am I even trying to do TikTok videos? I might dip in with a few random videos and cooking demonstrations. We shall see.

Samantha Vérant is a travel addict, a self-professed oenophile, and a determined, if occasionally unconventional, at home French chef. She lives in southwestern France, where she's married to a French rocket scientist she met in 1989, a stepmom to two incredible kids, and the adoptive mother to a ridiculously adorable French cat. When she's not trekking from Provence to the Pyrénées or embracing her inner Julia Child, Sam is making her best effort to relearn those dreaded conjugations.

Rebecca Kim Wells On Balancing Promotion Versus Writing Time

Today’s guest for the SNOB is Rebecca Kim Wells whose debut novel Shatter the Sky was a New England Book Award Finalist, an Indies Introduce selection, and a Kids’ Indie Next Pick. She is also the author of Storm the Earth (October 2020) and Of Blood and Briars (2021), published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. She holds a BA in Political Science from UC Berkeley and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Simmons College.

Whether you’re under contract or trying to snag another deal, you’re a professional now, with the pressures of a published novelist compounded with the still-present nagging self-doubt of the noobie. How to deal?

 Is it hard to leave behind the first novel and focus on the second?

I think it’s always a little difficult to finally close the door on a book. Shatter the Sky is my debut, so it will always have a special place in my heart. I worked on it for about three years (from the first draft to when it went off to the printer), and I definitely got a little emotional thinking about not working on it anymore. But it wasn’t too devastating—since my second book Storm the Earth is a direct sequel, I didn’t have to say goodbye to the story or the characters. (Now that Storm the Earth is off to the printer, I am getting super sad and scheming ways to return to that world, but that’s another story!)

At what point do you start diverting your energies from promoting your debut and writing / polishing / editing your second?

A lot of people (myself included) don’t realize how much non-writing work is involved in being an author until they’re actually doing it! For Shatter the Sky, I found myself pitching author events, doing interviews, learning basic graphic design, feeling obligated to spend time on Twitter, Instagram, and other social media… Time can get away from you so quickly. 

That being said, I got pretty lucky with timing. I sold Storm the Earth (book two) to my publisher at the end of 2018, after most of the writing work for Shatter the Sky was done. In the spring of 2019, I spent most of my time working on the first draft of the second book. I turned in the first draft of Storm the Earth at the beginning of June 2019, and then had most of June and July to promote Shatter the Sky, which came out at the end of July. Then my editor sent edits back to me toward the end of August, so flipping back to work on the second book came very naturally. Most of the difficult revision and polishing work on Storm the Earth happened last autumn and winter, once I had finished the bulk of my promo work for Shatter the Sky.

The state of the world is vastly different from what it was at this time last year—a lot of things I learned from my experience don’t necessarily apply right now. But one thing I would still say is, whether you are using social media for promo or just to hang out (or both!), try to be intentional when it comes to the amount of time you spend on it. I certainly wasted a lot of time on Twitter because I felt like I “had” to be there, and only had emotional ruts at the end of the day to show for it. 

Your first book landed an agent and an editor, and hopefully some fans. Who are you writing the second one for? Them, or yourself?

I’m so grateful for the people who have read and loved Shatter the Sky, and I appreciate all the readers who have taken the time to tell me how much they enjoyed it. That being said, ultimately, I have to write for myself. Obviously I want readers to be happy—that’s what books are all about! But I’ve learned over the years that I can’t really make progress in my work unless I tune out outside voices completely and try to focus only on what is right for the story I’m telling. I do the best I can, and all I can hope for is that readers find the same satisfaction in reading my books as I aim for while writing them.

Is there a new balance of time management to address once you’re a professional author?

Absolutely! I touched a little on this while talking about switching between promotion for Shatter the Sky and the work of writing Storm the Earth, but it bears repeating and elaborating: If you are an author, especially if you are writing one book per year, your responsibilities are going to overlap and exponentially increase as promotional work comes into play. I’m not sure what I would have done if the timing hadn’t worked out such that I could mostly trade off the writing and promoting work. For anyone gearing up to do this, I would suggest making a promo/marketing schedule for yourself—perhaps set aside one day per week to take care of email pitches, interviews, designing graphics, scheduling Instagram posts, etc. Then (ideally) you’ll be done and you won’t have to worry about it while you’re writing! 

What did you do differently the second time around, with the perspective of a published author?

Okay, so…I would say that these are more things I intend to do differently this time around—we’ll see if I actually can keep those promises!

I want to spend less time on social media, honestly. I do find value in it, but it stresses me out so easily and can really cast a pall over the rest of my day. I’m going to try to schedule my social media time and not exceed it.

At the same time, the bulk of my promo work will likely be online for the next…while. I’m planning to go to a craft store and stock up on a few pretty fabrics and knick-knacks for photo shoots. (Keep the receipts to write off of taxes!) I’ve been making do with what I have around the house, but there are some people on Instagram who have gorgeous feeds, and it pays off. I’m moving soon, and I also plan to stage a bookshelf to use as a background for virtual events or shooting videos.

This is something I have been doing: For those intending to do author appearances or readings (virtual or otherwise), I’d recommend attending a few events and taking notes on what worked for you and what didn’t. Preparing for events makes them way less stressful. 

And lastly, I’m spending more time supporting other books and authors I love—buying books, checking books out from the library, retweeting them, commenting on/liking posts, shouting about them online, signing up for newsletters, posting reviews and pictures… Publishing and authoring is a very odd business to be in, and kindness and enthusiasm go a long way.

Lindsay Wong On Writing One Book While Touring For Another

Welcome to the SNOB - Second Novel Ominipresent Blues. Whether you’re under contract or trying to snag another deal, you’re a professional now, with the pressures of a published novelist compounded with the still-present nagging self-doubt of the noobie. How to deal?

Today’s guest for the SNOB is Lindsay Wong, the best-selling, award-winning author of the memoir The Woo-Woo: How I Survived Ice Hockey, Drug-Raids, Demons, and My Crazy Chinese Family, which won the 2019 Hubert-Evans Prize for Nonfiction, and was a finalist for the 2018 Hilary Weston Prize for Nonfiction and was defended by Joe Zee on Canada Reads 2019.

She has a BFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia and an MFA in literary nonfiction from Columbia University, and is now based in Vancouver, Canada. My Summer of Love and Misfortune is her first YA novel. Wong is an adjunct professor of creative writing at The University of British Columbia. 

Follow her on Twitter @LindsayMWong, Instagram @LindsayWong.M or visit her website https://lindsaywongwriter.com. Her email is lindsay.wong@ubc.ca

Is it hard to leave behind the first novel and focus on the second?

My debut was a darkly comedic memoir titled The Woo-Woo: How I Survived Ice Hockey, Drug-Raids, Demons And My Crazy Chinese Family (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2018), and it’s a very different book than my YA debut, My Summer of Love And Misfortune (Simon Pulse), which is a fun, lighthearted summer beach read. I am incredibly lucky to be promoting both of my books, although I have to admit, I’m a little bit exhausted from reading and talking about my memoir.

I’m extremely grateful that people still want to read my debut, but I did 67 readings in 2019 alone, and I’m getting really bored of myself, haha. I’m more excited to talk about Iris Wang, the wild 17-year old protagonist of My Summer Of Love and Misfortune. She’s more impulsive and interesting than me, and she also has way more misadventures! I guess I’m excited to leave nonfiction behind. I keep telling everyone I’ll write another memoir when I’m 70 years old.

At what point do you start diverting your energies from promoting your debut and writing / polishing / editing your second?

I did not plan or manage my time well when writing my second book nor did I really expect to be an author. I thought only five people (including my agent) would read my debut memoir. As a teenager, I wanted to be a writer because I thought this type of adult professional stayed home in her pajamas and ate junk food all day, but it turns out, being an author is such an extroverted role with so much public speaking and networking.

While I was on tour for The Woo-Woo, I was trying to write My Summer of Love And Misfortune because it was due, so I would have to write a bit on airplanes, in the airport, or in hotel rooms. It was a very rushed, stressful experience, and I honestly don’t recommend it if you can help it! Writing while promoting your debut feels a lot like a whirlwind. Personally, I have to be in the right headspace to be grumpily writing vs. feeling social and friendly. I’m very grateful that editor Jennifer Ung gave me the opportunity to write a YA book, and I was so glad I was able to finally complete an entire manuscript.

Your first book landed an agent and an editor, and hopefully some fans. Who are you writing the second one for? Them, or yourself?

I joke that this is the second book that I’ve written for myself. In my dedication for My Summer of Love And Misfortune,  I write: This book is dedicated to the very best and worst disaster that I know: myself! And also to anyone who has ever felt that they never belonged to any particular people, purpose, or place. I see you and I salute you and I promise that you will be 85 percent okay (one day) in this scary, tumultuous and glittering world.

Essentially, the book is for me, but it’s also for all the Irises out there, young people who feel lost and don’t yet know who they are or what they’re supposed to do with their lives.

Is there a new balance of time management to address once you’re a professional author? 

Great question! I am still trying to figure out how to be an author between work, promotion, and writing-time. I’m not one of those writers who are excellent at time management or even very good at finding time to write every day. I do well on deadlines, but I do become stressed and grumpy and no one wants to be near me. Honestly, I’m envious of people who manage full-time jobs and then they go home to write or wake up really early and still manage to produce wonderful books.

During the pandemic, I have been making to-do lists, but often, I find myself only doing 1-2 things/day, whether it’s errands or folding laundry. I also really don’t know how people can manage to keep up to date with their emails. Invoices literally take me hours, haha. I am, however, slowly learning to say no a lot more, despite feeling guilty, and setting more boundaries. I don’t answer DMs on Twitter or Instagram anymore, unless I know the person IRL.

If anyone has the secret to time management and multitasking, especially when it comes to writing, please let me know!

What did you do different the second time around, with the perspective of a published author?

A ton of people don’t know that I’m a very shy, introverted person, and I suffer from stage fright at literary events A LOT. With my YA book, I mentally prepared myself to be able to participate in interviews and speak in front of a medium-sized crowd. Talking to strangers is terrifying for me, so my advice for socially anxious writers, do something relaxing before an event! Say no to large group-dinners that are scheduled before a reading and always, always preserve your energy and never take what readers say personally. Once, during a book signing, a lady waited in-line for twenty-five minutes just to tell me how much she hated my book and how much trauma I had personally given her. It was not fun! 

When the pandemic happened, all the literary festivals either got cancelled or went online, and I have to say, I was seriously made for virtual promotion. I can lie in bed and read my work, and I can even wear my pajamas sometimes. It’s actually very nice not to worry so much about interacting with other human beings or finding a matching outfit in my closet, haha.