Debut Author Interviews

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

• Ruth McNally Barshaw on...First Novels
• Heather Tomlinson on...First Novels
• Carrie Jones on...First Novels
• Paula Chase on...First Novels
• Melissa Marr on...First Novels
• Greg R. Fishbone on...First Novels
• Joni Sensel on...First Novels
• Eric Luper on...First Novels
• Sarah Aronson on...First Novels
• Judy Gregerson on...First Novels
• Jay Asher on...First Novels
• Ann Dee Ellis on...First Novels
• Karen Day on...First Novels
• Jo Knowles on...First Novels
• Marlane Kennedy on...First Novels
• Tiffany Trent on...First Novels
• S.A. Harazin on...First Novels
• G. Neri on...First Novels
• Jeannine Garsee on...First Novels
• Rebecca Stead on...First Novels
• Laura Bowers on...First Novels
• Rose Kent on...First Novels
• Thatcher Heldring on...First Novels

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

My first novel to sell is also the first novel I ever attempted (aside from a 3-page thing when I was 12 years old).

I knew very little about writing novels, and was concentrating on creating picturebooks. Writer friends saw my sketchbook journal online and urged me to try writing a kids’ book in that style, instead, so I did.

It took 5 weeks to write Ellie McDoodle, and I was shocked that not only I loved it, but others did too. Finally I felt my art and writing were in sync with what the universe was looking for.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

Nope. It’s the fourth. Some of us are slower to get in gear!

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

The first novels I wrote were in fifth grade. I wrote them on college-ruled spiral notebooks. I wrote Star Trek novels.
I did not like Star Trek.
I thought that my 24-year-old brother liked Star Trek because he once said, “Captain Kirk is cool.”

So…
I did research.
I watched A LOT of Star Trek for my brother.
Then I wrote the stories 250-300 handwritten pages a piece.
In each one, a beautiful heroine who had brown hair and glasses fell in love with:
1. Kirk.
2. Spock.
3. Dr. McCoy
4. Scotty

I then gave all the stories to my brother for his birthday. He looked at me and said, “Why do you think I like Star Trek?”

My mom tells me that at this point I swallowed really hard and said, “Do you like Dr. Who better?”

I then began to watch and write Dr. Who. All of my stories starred…You guessed it. A brown-haired, eyeglasses-wearing heroine who falls in love with The Doctor.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

SO NOT THE DRAMA was the very first manuscript I wrote. I wrote it over a period of four weeks and was shocked how easily the words flowed. Then reality sank in. It took me two full years of editing before it sold.

As I went through the submission process (to agents) a voice in the back of my head would remind me that not everyone sells their first mss. So there was a part of me that was skeptical that I’d actually sell it. While another part pushed along stubbornly believing it was good enough to get picked up.

:::moment of pure honesty forthcoming::

DRAMA is a great story — says the unbiased author — but I wrote my second mss directly after finishing the first and could definitely see the growth. Even though they were written back-to-back, there are less awkward passages in DON’T GET IT TWISTED. I grew more comfortable in my skin with it.

Thank god for my editor who is helping me whip DRAMA into place.

What my experience showed me was - even if your first mss is acquired, doesn’t mean there aren’t a few kinks to work out. And that story and voice speak pretty loudly. Both my agent and editor had to see the diamond in the rough of my mss. I’m in awe of that still.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

WICKED LOVELY is the second novel I’ve written.

In Jan 2005, I started a MG novel. I finished it 4th of July.

While I waited for replies to my agent queries, I started thinking about a YA. I walked & took photos & jotted phrases to distract myself.

In September, I started writing.
In December, I finished.

In January 2006, I sent queries to agents and started a third novel (INK EXCHANGE).
In February I had offers of representation.
In March I sold SQ, INK (still in progress), & an unwritten sequel to HarperCollins.

The first novel is still sitting on my PC.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

It’s kind of funny… My earliest writings were short pieces and longer stories that went on and on like the energizer bunny. My first novel-length story with a real ending was a superhero spoof about a garbageman who becomes the absolute and uncontested ruler of the world.

I spent the next ten years trying to turn that story into a publishable book. If only I’d realized sooner that the story’s main problem was its lack of penguins…

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

I actually spent about 10 years writing screenplays before I attempted a novel. I can remember actually saying to the people in my critique group, “I don’t think I have that much of a story in me.” Guess I was wrong, but screenwriting was great training. The first novel I ever wrote was actually for adults. (Some nibbles but no sale. I still think it’s pretty decent, though.) REALITY LEAK is technically the second, and it’s based on a screenplay of mine — although it changed quite a lot, including a switch from an adult protagonist to a kid! After beating my head against Hollywood for a while, I decided I’d take rejection from New York instead, and work on children’s books. But New York likes me better. I just sold another novel to Henry Holt (this would be the, um, fifth children’s novel I’ve written — there’s a trilogy in between I’m still trying to sell); I’m marketing another; and just finishing a draft of the most recent. Wish me luck with those!

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

My first full-length novel is still collecting dust on my hard drive (can data collect dust?). In fact, I wrote several pieces for different age groups and genres before I found my voice with BIG SLICK. I think a good writer can be even better in a genre that is attuned to what’s going on in his or her head.

Sure, I could write a romance novel or a gothic horror or a serial killer book, but I don’t think it would ring as true as a humorous YA for me.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

I wrote four “practice” novels before I began writing Head Case. It was only when I focused on the “process” rather than the “product”—when I began to study craft—that I reached this wonderful milestone. (I started writing in 2000!!)

I think new writers should learn to expect rejection as part of the process. Yes, there appear to be many of us who struck gold right away. But for most of us, it takes time. And that can be great. You learn to develop your voice—and much more.

My advice to a new writer:

READ!
Study craft.
Get a group to evaluate your work honestly.
Accept rejection and stay focused. Enjoy your work. Hopefully, you’ll have lots of support. A safe place—a loving family who believes in you—in essential!!!

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

My novel, BAD GIRLS CLUB is probably my third or fourth novel. My first one was really bad and I don’t think it will ever see the light of day. The second one is equally bad, but does have some ideas in it that I’d like to explore in the future. I published a nonfiction book before I sold my novel, so publishing isn’t new to me.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

The first full-length novel I wrote was a humorous middle grade called My Udder Life. That manuscript ended up winning SCBWI’s Sue Alexander Most Promising New Work Award (though under a different title). It earned me a free trip to NYC to meet with editors, landed me a big-name agent, and an editor at a major publishing house took it to an acquisitions meeting. I was on my way!

But that was over six years ago.

Since then I wrote another humorous middle grade that I just knew was going to be my foot in the door. An editor at another major publishing house critiqed the first couple of chapters and made me promise to send it to her upon completion. “Sure,” I said. “No,” she replied, “I mean promise me.” And that promise got me a form rejection letter.

So I wrote a suspenseful YA and here I am.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

My first novel was written while I was in graduate school and it’s called My First Not-Love. It’s about a girl who trusts the wrong guy and ends up in a pretty horrible situation. The format is a combination of instant messages, emails, and journal entries. It was a very emotional book for me to write and I hope that one day it will be published. We’ll see.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

I wrote my first novel when I was 16-years-old. It’s a 200-page book about a 16-year-old girl whose mother has just died. Her father becomes a raging alcoholic. It took me about a year to write and then rewrite. I was a sophomore in high school and I almost flunked biology that year (so much of my time was spent writing, in my room, on a manual typewriter). I sent query letters off to a couple of publishers in New York, and one asked to see it. I can’t remember the name of the house. I sent the book off and three months later it came back with a nice rejection letter. Today that novel sits in the bottom drawer of my desk. Where it will stay. It’s way too melodramatic! But I think about it a lot when I look at the different themes that run through my later work. They are the same now as they were when I was 16!

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

My first published novel is the second novel I wrote. I still dream about the characters in my first novel, probably because they were so closely based on people I knew and loved. And that’s probably why I never sold it. I just couldn’t seem to divorce myself from “what really happened” and what would make the story a good book.

That’s hard.

Maybe someday I’ll brush off the dust and take a peek. Someday.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

I wrote my first novel, a humorous young adult, fourteen years ago. Lots of bites. No takers. Six middle grade novels followed. I garnered a stack of requests and personal responses, but not a single contract. My eighth novel sold to the second publisher that saw it. I am the poster child for persistence (or maybe just sheer stubbornness) :)

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

In the Serpent’s Coils is the second novel I’ve written, but the first YA novel I’ve written. The first novel, an adult Asian-inspired fantasy, took five years and still sits on the bottom shelf of my bookcase.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

No. I had written about a half dozen novel length manuscripts. I consider them my practice novels. I do have one that may have some potential, but it needs major work.

The first time I shared a draft of BLOOD BROTHERS (the novel that sold) with a former critique partner, she called me immediately after reading and shouted, “This is the one!” That made me feel great.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

Actually, my 3rd book is the first full-length novel I ever wrote. The first was a graphic novel, the second, a free-verse novella with pictures. I truly think that were it not for writing books for teens, I never would have written something so long. The idea of writing “The Great American Novel” seemed so remote, it was laughable. But somehow, as I saw others do it, I started to do it too (but first only as an exercize). Now that I’ve done it, it seems anything is possible. Though, in the future, all my books will be under 200 pages!

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

Before/After is actually the fifth novel I’ve written. I wrote a YA trilogy while still in high school (and my parents wondered why I made such lousy grades?) and several years later wrote kind of a gothicky murder mystery. But this is the first novel I even tried to get published. In elementary and junior high school, I’d also do lengthy novelizations of my favorite movies and pass them around to my friends, undoubtedly violating a multitude of copyright laws. :)

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

Yes, FIRST LIGHT is my first novel.

The scary thing about publishing your first book is that you aren’t really sure you’ll ever be able to write another one.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

No, BEAUTY SHOP FOR RENT is the third novel I wrote.

The first was a young adult novel based on my experiences with horses as a teen. While I truly loved the concept and plot, I ended up abandoning the manuscript, because it was difficult writing about my own family. I do plan revisiting it after finishing my current WIPs, however, just this time - I’ll fictionalize it more.

The second novel was a mid-grade called LIGHTEN UP, LILLY. It was an okay book. Not great, just okay. But after gathering a list of publishers, I realized that I had zero passion for the book. I didn’t even like it very much, I was just looking to get published. So I tossed LILLY aside, decided to put passion before publication, and started BEAUTY SHOP soon after.

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

KIMCHI & CALAMARI is the first one to fully bloom in the garden. It was ready.

The one before it is still in the germinating stage, but it still may see the light of day. You know what they say about those late bloomers!

Was this the first full-length novel you wrote, or rather the first that you sold?

No. I completed a manuscript in college. A middle-grade novel about nothing. The last time I came across it I cringed. It was written in third person and loaded with trite sentimental ramblings about childhood. Even worse, I realize now I wasn’t trying to write a novel. I was trying to write the novel. Oh brother. The good thing is I knew if I stuck with something I could find my way to the end. When the opportunity came to write a book I knew would be published, that experience gave me a lot of confidence.