Sarah McGuire On Getting Past "I Suck"

I'm lucky (or cunning) enough to have lured yet another successful writer over to my blog for an SAT- Successful Author Talk. SAT authors have conquered the query, slain the synopsis and attained the pinnacle of published. How'd they do it? Let's ask 'em!

Today's guest for the SAT (Successful Author Talk) is Sarah McGuire, author of up the upcoming VALIANT. Sarah loves fairy tales and considers them the best way to step outside of everyday life. They’re the easiest way, at least: her attempt at seven to reach Narnia through her parents’ closet failed. She lives within sight of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, where she teaches high school creative writing and math classes with very interesting word problems.

Are you a Planner or Pantster?

Both. Right now, I write fairy tale retellings. I need to have a sense of what’s going to happen, and what parts of the original tales I’ll keep vs. those I’ll change. So before I start writing, I’ll have a page’s worth of scrawl about major plot points and characters. And then, I launch myself towards those points, trusting I’ll find the story as I go. 

How long does it typically take you to write a novel, start to finish?

I suppose it depends on whether you’re talking about a first draft or something a bit more refined. 
I wrote the rough draft of Valiant over a summer. (I’m a teacher- it’s when I had the time to do it!). However, I took a few months to revise Valiant before I sent it out. So the time from when I started writing it to when I signed with my agent was a year. 

And we won’t even discuss how many years I spent on the novel before Valiant, the one that will probably never see the light of day. ☺

Do you work on one project at a time, or are you a multi tasker?

So far, one at a time. I don’t know how this will be in the future, but so far, I’ve discovered that just about the time I’m having to really dig into the hard revisions on the novel, my mind starts going to the next story. So I’ll be wrestling with a particularly knotty issue, and then I’ll be taunted with lovely, shimmering fragments from the new story. I’ve learned to jot down notes of the ideas, but to keep at my old story. So far, it seems like sometimes the new story does well if I actually let it sit for a while. 

Did you have to overcome any fears that first time you sat down to write?

Oh good grief, yes! I still do. They normally run along the lines of a really sad grammar exercise, like I’m conjugating the verb ‘to suck’. As in, I suck. You (other writer who I admire) never suck. We (as in every bit of writing I’ve ever attempted) suck. It sucks. You get the idea. 

Have you ever trunked anything? Have you ever quit on an ms, and how did you know it was time?

I’m going to combine these two questions, if I may. I trunked one manuscript: another fairy tale retelling. I’d spent four years working hard on it, and for most of that time, I was applying every new bit of writing craft I’d learned. Finally, though, I hit a point when I didn’t know how to make it better, even though I knew it needed to be better. And I just knew it was time to set it aside. (It’s actually a long-ish but cool story that involves opera, of all things. If you’d like to read about it, you can go here.

Who is your agent and how did you get that "Yes!" out of them? 

My agent is Tracey Adams. I’d met her at the Nevada SCBWI Mentor Program maybe three years before I queried Valiant (before I wrote Valiant, actually!). We were FB friends and over the years, I had a chance to see how cool a person she was. However, I didn’t really think seriously about querying her till a crit partner suggested it. So when Valiant was ready, I sent a query out to Tracey and another fabulous agent who’d seen pages of Valiant and wanted the manuscript when it was ready. (I should say here that I did NOT shoot Tracey a FB message about the query! I submitted it through her website. And despite the fact that she knew me, her lovely then-assistant read Valiant first. ) 

Anyway, the other agent asked to talk, and suggested a spot-on revision, which I began to work on. Though Tracey had originally shown interest, I didn’t hear from her for a while. But then, after spring break, Tracey emailed and said she was still liking Valiant. She emailed again a little later and asked if we could talk the next day. I pretty much blathered my way through the conversation. It couldn’t have been too bad, however, because Tracey offered representation. And then the other (fabulous!) agent offered representation. 

In the end, I chose Tracey, and it’s been a wonderful relationship. 

Any advice to aspiring writers out there on conquering query hell?

Keep at it! Don’t give up, but be willing to revise and revisit your work- especially if you’re getting consistent feedback about a certain aspect of it. But, if you’re like me, I’d say don’t let your fear of doing it wrong keep you from the attempt. You’ll make mistakes, but that’s okay. 

How did it feel the first time you saw your book for sale?

I have to say that getting the author copies was a pretty amazing experience. (This was after Egmont USA had closed, and I had no idea when (or if!) the author copies would arrive. I came home late one evening after a series of meetings, and was opening a box, thinking it might be a late batch of ARCs. Instead, it was … my book!

I was on my landlady’s front porch, keys in hand (I’d used them to slice open the box). I stood there and, in that mixture of dusk and porchlight, I saw Valiant for the first time. I couldn’t move for a moment. 

I had a whole series of Golum, my-preciousssss, moments when I sat on my sofa a few minutes later and actually held my book. And it had a smell! Did I mention that?? My story had a book-smell and I realized it was actually real. 

So imagine that same reaction when I see Valiant on a bookstore shelf. I still can’t quite believe this is happening. 

How much input do you have on cover art?

Very little. But Egmont, and the wonderful artist Shobhna Patel, did a fabulous job anyway. 

What's something you learned from the process that surprised you?

I thought I knew this, but it was driven home again and again: the people who create and publish children’s books are an incredible community. I’m ridiculously grateful to be part of it. 

How much of your own marketing do you?  Now that’s a story. I expected that I would do as much marketing as the next debut author. However, when Egmont USA closed, I did a lot of work with Egmont’s Last List, the Egmont authors who banded together to help with each other’s releases. 

When do you build your platform? After an agent? Or should you be working before?

I may change my mind about this when I’ve had more experience in the industry, but it seems to me that the best platform I can build as a novelist is made of . . . novels. (Platform is a different beast for nonfiction writers.) While I want to be savy– or at least not stupid– about marketing, I think the best way to keep people interested is to write really good books. Lots of them. 

Do you think social media helps build your readership?

To be honest, I don’t think that my tweets have had much to do with building my readership. However, I know that social media helped the reading and writing community rally around Egmont’s Last List. So much of our support came through social media.

Chelsea Pitcher On Letting The Rejection Hurt... Then Moving On

If there's one thing that many aspiring writers have few clues about, it's the submission process. There are good reasons for that; authors aren't exactly encouraged to talk in detail about our own submission experiences, and - just like agent hunting - everyone's story is different. I managed to cobble together a few non-specific questions that some debut authors have agreed to
answer (bless them). And so I bring you the submission interview series - Submission Hell - It's True. Yes, it's the SHIT.

Today's guest for the SHIT is Chelsea Pitcher. Chelsea is a karaoke-singing, ocean-worshipping Oregonian with a penchant for wicked faerie tales. She began gobbling up stories as soon as she could read, and especially enjoys delving into the darker places to see if she can draw out some light. She is the author of THE S-WORD (Simon and Schuster), THE LAST CHANGELING (Flux), and THE LAST FAERIE QUEEN (Flux 2015).

How much did you know about the submission process before you were out on subs yourself?

Almost nothing! I knew publishing houses would be considering my work, but I was fairly clueless about imprints, second reads, acquisitions, etc. Luckily for me, I enjoy a good investigation, so I learned a lot while I was on sub. (And it never hurts to have author friends who’ve been through the process!)

Did anything about the process surprise you?

Oh, definitely. The timeframe can be hard to handle at first. Especially when some people get deals within three days, and others, three years! That’s why it’s so important to be doing other things while you’re on sub. If you put all your focus into one project, it will drive you up the walls.

Did you research the editors you knew had your ms? Do you recommend doing that?

I’ve peeked a little bit. I mean, what’s the harm in a simple Google search? A couple of minutes reading interviews? Checking a Twitter feed? Hopping over to Absolute Write . . . Yeah, it’s really easy to fall down that rabbit hole. And the farther you fall, chasing one particular editor, the more a rejection will feel like a piano falling on your head.

So search cautiously, my friends! I’m definitely a fan of being informed, but once you get that fluttery “OMG, WE WILL WORK PERFECTLY TOGETHER” feeling, run away. Because at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if their Twitter feed is hilarious, you love the same band, and can both quote The Little Mermaid in its entirety. What matters is that they fall head-over-heels in love with your manuscript.

What was the average amount of time it took to hear back from editors?

It really varies. The average would be maybe two months. But I’ve received responses within two weeks, or after six months. It all depends on the editor’s workload, their level of interest in your premise, and a myriad of other factors (is it conference season? Are they finishing a deadline of their own? Did they just request eight manuscripts?) Still, when you’re on sub, it’s hard not to check your email every few hours!

What do you think is the best way for an author out on submission to deal with the anxiety?

First and foremost: start working on your next book! Falling in love with a new project can so lessen the anxiety. But there are lots of ways to cope with the stress of submission (chocolate and margaritas are two suggestions I’ve heard, and I’ve certainly tried both!) But the truth is, what works for one person won’t always work for everyone.

For me, I’ve found that working out a lot helps lessen the stress of submission. I’m not exactly a person who works out regularly, but the first time I went on sub, it helped me a lot. So now it’s a part of my process (and that’s probably a good thing, considering how much time I spend sitting in a chair, typing away!)

If you had any rejections, how did you deal with that emotionally? How did this kind of rejection compare to query rejections?

Best advice for dealing with rejection? Don’t try to use logic to talk yourself out of an emotional reaction. Sure, you know it’s just one person’s opinion. Sure, you know reading is subjective. Still, rejection hurts. So allow yourself to grieve, cry if you want, feel angry if it helps you. And then, once you’ve let out all those negative emotions, you really will feel better. And all that logical “it’s just business” stuff will sink in.

As for querying vs. submission, it felt different at first. When you’re on sub, you feel so close to everything happening, and all you need is one yes. So each rejection felt like a door closing. Now, though, I’ve realized that “yes” is only about halfway up the mountain (because next you need good marketing, good reviews, good bookstore placement…) so agent and editor rejections feel much more similar. In both cases, it’s all about finding the person who can’t stop thinking about your work, who reads passages of your book out loud to their colleagues, who can’t stop taking about your writing. And if you found an agent who feels this way, that editor “yes” could be right around the corner!

If you got feedback on a rejection, how did you process it? How do you compare processing an editor’s feedback as compared to a beta reader’s?

When a beta reader says something that really resonates, you can dive into edits right away. With an editor, it’s trickier, because you’re already out on sub, and what one editor dislikes, another might love. It’s really best to wait for three (or more) editors to say the same thing, and then think about revisions.

Another thing to consider is, while beta readers will tell you what isn’t working in a story, editors might reject a story that is working for personal reasons. Maybe the book just didn’t resonate with them, or maybe they just bought something with a similar premise. And because they’re so busy, they can’t necessarily list all the reasons they have for rejecting a project. That’s why it’s so important to give your projects to betas before you go on submission. They’ll help you hammer out all the plot issues, the pacing, the characterization, so once your book lands on an editor’s desk, they’re less likely to reject your book because there’s something wrong with it.

When you got your YES! how did that feel? How did you find out – email, telephone, smoke signal?

It was surreal, shocking, startling, amazing! Both times, I got the news over the phone. And the first time, it just felt like a whirlwind, because we’d gone through second reads and acquisitions over the winter holiday, and I didn’t know about it. So when my agent called to give me the news, she didn’t just say they were passing the book up the chain; she said the book had reached the TOP!

Did you have to wait a period of time before sharing your big news, because of details being ironed out? Was that difficult?

Yes! We had to wait about two months (between verbal offer and written contract). Most authors I know have experienced the same thing. Even though a verbal offer is taken very seriously, there’s so much more to consider (advances, world rights, film rights, option clauses) and publishers often want all of this hammered out before anything is announced. And yes, it can definitely be hard to wait, but most people tell their close family members before they tell the world. So really, you get to reveal your news two times: once to the people closest to you, and once to everyone in the book world. Which makes for two celebrations instead of one!

Shannon Grogan On Inspiration... From A Commercial

Inspiration is a funny thing. It can come to us like a lightning bolt, through the lyrics of a song, or in the fog of a dream. Ask any writer where their stories come from and you’ll get a myriad of answers, and in that vein I created the WHAT (What the Hell Are you Thinking?) interview. Always including in the WHAT is one random question to really dig down into the interviewees mind, and probably supply some illumination into my own as well.

Today's guest for the WHAT is Shannon Grogan, a second grade teacher who writes at night (and while her kids are at ballet and baseball) in a small logging town east of Seattle. She holds degrees in education, and graphic design/Illustration. When she isn’t writing, she's baking, reading, watching scary movies, and wishing she were at the beach.

Ideas for our books can come from just about anywhere, and sometimes even we can’t pinpoint exactly how or why. Did you have a specific origin point for your book?

When I got the idea for FROM WHERE I WATCH YOU, I was revising another story. The only thing I had in place was a MC who wanted to be a baker. Then I was driving down the highway and a Campbells Soup commercial came on the radio. By the time it was done I was pulling over to jot down notes. By the time I pulled back onto the road I had my MC’s mother (a crazy lady who thinks her pea soup was blessed by Jesus and has healing powers) The rest of the story came from this point—my MC who wanted to become a baker and also wanted to escape her life and her crazy mom.

Once the original concept existed, how did you build a plot around it?

I figured my theme was leaning in the direction of escape, so I added in the baking contest, which if she won she’d get a scholarship to culinary school, and away from her mom. I also wanted something ghostly, so I decided to have her dead sister hang around so she’d want to escape this and the bad memories associated with her. I love contemporary and focused first on the betrayal, and ultimately, the forgiveness within her family, but I also love scary thrillers, and romance. So I added those elements in along the way: a stalker to escape, and a boy to love and push away/escape from (also betrayal and forgiveness).

Have you ever had the plot firmly in place, only to find it changing as the story moved from your mind to paper?

I usually have the main plot really solid in my mind and it pretty much comes out on paper the same, mainly because I use a quick visual plotting method to help me. But the subplots change the most, and/or are added/deleted.

Do story ideas come to you often, or is fresh material hard to come by?

I seem to have times where story ideas come one after the other. I write them on index cards and file them away. Most of the ones that come that are total crap on their own. But one idea might combine with another idea or two to form a good story idea. When they do I give them their own page in my book idea journal.

How do you choose which story to write next, if you’ve got more than one percolating?

Ooh, this is happening to me now and I’m leaning towards the one I enjoy writing down notes on the most.

Given the choice of losing your feet or your hands, what goes?

Feet. I need my hands to type and write and draw. And eat. And hug my kids.