Behind the Scenes of Damsel Distressed

Thursday, 10 October 2013

Behind the Scenes gives you a closer look at the process of writing a manuscript. This edition features Kelsey Macke and her manuscript Damsel Distressed. Kelsey has been creative for as long as she can remember. Her formative years were a swirl of bad poetry, journals full of songs, and absolutely TONS of jazz hands. Her debut, Damsel Distressed (Spencer Hill Contemporary) is being presented with Imogen Unlocked, a full album of original songs inspired by the book and performed by the band Wedding Day Rain.

Inspiration for the manuscript:

tech theatre (specifically the "soundies"), self-image problems as specifically experience by young people who are overweight, a positively swoony best friend who wears tragically hilarious t-shirts, musical theatre (Rent is a favorite), hot pink, mental health (and ending stigmas related to it), graffiti walls, & Cinderella

About the manuscript:

"My book, Damsel Distressed doesn't come out until about 1 year from now. It's a multi-media project that includes the book (obviously) which is sprinkled with illustrations which hide QR codes that readers can use to visit a website with exclusive bonus content - specifically, the songs from the book's soundtrack, Imogen Unlocked. It's awesome because I get to tell Imogen's story through words, and also through music alongside my Wedding Day Rain bandmate and husband, Daron."

A piece of Kelsey's writing process:

"One important part of my writing process is bouncing ideas off of my friends, family, and CPs. I don't believe that any book really exists (or is written) in a vacuum. I know that my book is only as strong as the conversations that I have with others. Sometimes, I ask them questions as members of a certain demographic, other times, I offer them two options and ask which resonates most with them. I am part of a rare breed of writers... extroverts. As such, I love bringing other people into the creative process for real collaboration."

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Behind the Scenes of Life By Committee

Friday, 27 September 2013

Behind the Scenes gives you a closer look at the process of writing a manuscript. This edition features Corey Ann Haydu and her manuscript Life By Committee. Corey Ann Haydu is a young adult novelist living in Brooklyn. She earned her BFA in theatre from Tisch School of the Arts and her MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. Corey loves writing in cafes, reading in bars, and walking all over New York City. She is also passionate about cheese, pilates, and feminism. Her first novel, OCD LOVE STORY, came out in July 23rd from Simon Pulse. Her second novel, LIFE BY COMMITTEE, comes out Summer 2014 from Katherine Tegen Books.You can read Corey's humiliating teenage diaries at formerselfproject.blogspot.com and more info on Corey and her books at coreyannhaydu.com. Follow her on twitter (@CoreyAnnHaydu), where you can watch her struggle with the writing of her next novel.

Inspiration for Life By Committee:

The film Love Me If You Dare, mountains of Vermont, used books, mismatched tables and chairs in cafés, lattes, red Mary Janes, the blue glow of a computer screen, Belle and Sebastian's "Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying," and The Secret Garden.

About Life By Committee:

"My next novel is Life By Committee. It’s my second contemporary YA novel, this time narrated by Tabitha, a Vermonter with a case of serious loneliness after having been ditched by her friends who think she’s “changed” too much in the last few months. Tabitha’s loneliness drives her to do a lot of things she doesn’t understand—things that aren’t all that nice and things that aren’t all that safe. Secret things. But it’s when she joins a mysterious online community that her life truly becomes not her own. Her deepest, darkest secrets might get exposed, her behaviors get more unpredictable, and to protect herself she has to commit fully to a new way of life and her new online friends. A story about looking for community, fighting loneliness, taking risks, and the intense need to keep your secrets."

A piece of Corey's writing process:

" For me, the key to a successful writing life is getting out of my apartment. I have a great apartment. And a cute dog. And an office, even, where I planned on doing lots of work. But. The reality is, I can’t work from home. Not successfully, not regularly, not enjoyably. I get distracted and bored in my home. I let myself off the hook. I watch terrible reality TV. I play with my dog and eat lots of cheese. I do not write. I do not get in the zone. So I’ve learned that I have to write at cafés. Once I’m out of my apartment, I actually get work done, I’m suddenly accountable. Not to mention I can listen in on strangers' conversations when I get bored, or imagine that all the other writers in the Brooklyn cafés I frequent are noticing every time I glance at twitter instead of my latest manuscript. I can imagine that something interesting might happen (and it’s New York! If you’re out of your home, something interesting really MIGHT happen!) and I can feel like I’m part of the world, even though writing is actually a pretty lonely pursuit. Lots of afternoons I wish I could stay home. Especially when it’s raining or snowing or worst of all at 99% humidity. But I’m not that writer. And accepting what kind of writer you are, what kind of tools, however strange and annoying they may be, you need, is a huge step in being a successful, productive writer. Or artist of any kind, I’d imagine."

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Behind the Scenes of The Trial

Friday, 20 September 2013

Behind the Scenes gives you a closer look at the process of writing a manuscript. This edition features Erica Cameron and her manuscript The Trial. Erica Cameron (www.ericacameron.com) knew that writing was her passion when she turned a picture book into a mystery novella as a teen. That piece wasn’t her best work, but it got her an A. After college, she used her degree in Psychology and Creative Writing to shape a story about a dreamworld. Then a chance encounter at a rooftop party in Tribeca made her dream career a reality. Sing Sweet Nightingale, the first book of The Dream War Saga, will be published in March 2014 by Spencer Hill Press. It is her first novel. A short story set within the Dream War universe released in August. It’s called “Whatever it Takes” and is included in the anthology Doorways to Extra Time.

Inspiration for the manuscript:

aggression, isolation, struggle, revenge, magic, family, weapons, the desert, distance, & trust

About the manuscript:

"The book I’m working on now is unlike anything else I’ve written thus far. Right now it doesn’t have a title. Or, it does, but I don’t like it... The title may be lacking, but the book itself is… kind of epic.

Sabre and her twin brother Arrow have grown up on an island where everything can kill you. The animals, the plants, the people — death could strike at any second. Their parents both fell in a raid when they were young, and it’s been up to Sabre to protect Arrow for the past eight years. But they’re almost sixteen and about to face a right of passage every member of their clan has to go through alone. If they survive, they’ll come into their magic and be welcomed as full-fledged citizens and soldiers of the clan. If they fail, they die.

All Sabre wants to do is find a way to help Arrow survive this trial, but spying on the rite before her time shows her there’s a third outcome. When you walk in to meet the Council, you will either live, die, or disappear. Sabre and Arrow watch a girl named Dart get knocked unconscious by a spelled red cord tied around her wrist before the Council takes her into a hidden chamber. Arrow is determined to rescue Dart, so Sabre agrees to help. And that’s when things really get interesting..."

A piece of Erica's writing process:

"During BEA 2013, I listened to Neil Gaiman speak (I highly recommend it if you get the chance). Before the event began, we were able to write down questions and submit them and at the end of the lecture he answered mine. I asked him if every book was its own discovery or if he had developed a process over the years that worked similarly for each story. He said each book was most certainly its own discovery, which made me feel a lot better. Mine definitely are. I’ve written ten complete books so far — three of them co-authored. I have about thirty others in various stages of completion. Some books I write straight through, getting sucked into the world so fast it seems like it’s over before it began. Sometimes I write while watching movies I’ve seen a hundred times. Sometimes I listen to music. Often, I’m curled in an armchair at Starbucks, people watching over the top of my Surface with unplugged earbuds stuffed into my ears. I don’t have a place or a process or a structure. Each book is different and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s one of the reasons being an author is so fantastically interesting."

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Behind the Scenes of Ditching the Playbook

Thursday, 12 September 2013

Behind the Scenes gives you a closer look at the process of writing a manuscript. This edition features Sarah Henning and her manuscript, Ditching the Playbook. Sarah is a mystery writer, recovering newshound, and word nerd of the highest order (aka copy editor) for Spencer Hill Contemporary and various freelance clients. She is represented by Rachel Ekstrom of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency and can be found making noise far too often on Twitter (@shhenning). When she’s not hunched over her computer or curled up with a good book, Sarah is probably running ultramarathons, playing with her cherub-cheeked kidlit, or nagging her husband to eat more kale.

Inspiration for Ditching the Playbook:

Homer Simpson-style doughnuts, Varsity Blues, Friday Night Lights,
"Pink Houses" by John Mellencamp, The Steubenville rape case, Yoda, The Sopranos, & pigs.

About Ditching the Playbook:

"DITCHING THE PLAYBOOK is about a big-deal New York sports writer named A.J. Beckett, who inadvertently quits her job in a power-play gone wrong and ends up boomeranging back to her very first writing gig: Covering high school football in her Nebraska hometown for $50 a game.

When the local high school’s backup quarterback ends up face-down in a creek, A.J. goes searching for answers and soon finds the rosy glow of memories she has surrounding her childhood influencers — from the legendary football coach to the editor who hired her a second time — is blinding her from a very ugly truth.

Basically, I wanted to explore a few ideas with this manuscript. What it’s like for a successful person to have to hit the “reset” button. How influential adults change into real, live human beings(!) once we grow up and become adults ourselves. And the privileged atmosphere of elite high school athletes and how perceived talent can throw consequences out the window."

A piece of Sarah's writing process:

"I’m a huge believer in listening to your brain. Whether you’re a plotter or a pantser or a hybrid like me, listen to your brain. Listen to your instincts. I can’t tell you how many times my brain has goaded me into adding details that end up being significant, even if they didn’t seem important or make sense early in a draft.

I think this is especially important in writing mystery. I want to leave the reader needing to turn that page and plow toward the big reveal. So, sometimes things I haven’t plotted or didn’t see coming happen at the end of chapters. Even if I didn’t expect something to fall out of my mind and onto the page, I let it be, because I know my brain is taking me somewhere important, even if I’m super surprised myself at where I’m going."

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Behind the Scenes of The Gateway Through Which They Came

Thursday, 5 September 2013

Behind the Scenes gives you a closer look at the process of writing a manuscript. This edition features Heather Marie and her manuscript, The Gateway Through Which They Came. Heather Marie is a YA writer of horror and supernatural. She lives in Northern California with her husband, their tortoise, and a round, fluffy cat named Jill. You can find Heather on Twitter at @xHeatherxMariex.

Inspiration for The Gateway Through Which They Came:

"First and foremost, my lack of a religious background. I really wanted to bring this sensitive subject up in my work, because I feel it's important for people to see a character struggle with his faith. You don't see that too often, at least I don't think you do. It's not a religious book, by any means, but that has a small part in it.

"Horror movies, of course! Where would I be today without Nightmare on Elm Street? [It was] my first ever horror movie and it definitely set the bar. Horror in general has changed throughout the years, and not necessarily for the better. Everyone is all about shock factor now which I find disappointing. I miss the scares that left it to your imagination."

"My own personal experiences with the supernatural. Now, I haven't seen dead people all bloodied and cut in half before, but I've definitely witnessed some very interesting stuff. I find the idea of ghosts fascinating. The idea that people still linger around after death is kind of incredible. I'd love to investigate a haunted castle someday. I'm sure it'll completely creep me out, but it will be so worth it!"

About The Gateway Through Which They Came:

"The Gateway Through Which They Came is a YA horror with supernatural elements. It follows the story of Aiden Ortiz, who is a Gateway that allows the dead to walk through him in order to crossover. Things begin to change for Aiden when he becomes infected by a Rogue Bleeder, one of the dead who refuses to cross, and he is left battling a part of himself he never knew existed, something dark and evil living inside of him. As if that's not enough, Koren Banks, the girl who went missing months before, mysteriously shows up and acts as if nothing is amiss, but there's something very different about her this time around. Along with Koren's reappearance, the dead begin to gather in droves to seek out Aiden in order to be free––but they're nothing but puppets in the Dark Priest's plan; his plan to resurrect his Brethren of Shadows, leaving Aiden to not only fight a battle within himself, but a battle of good vs evil to save the world."

A piece of Heather's writing process:

"When it comes to writing, my biggest thing is that it needs to be absolutely quiet. It works out well when I'm home alone and have several hours to get the words down. I used to do writing sprints all the time, but I realized it didn't help my writing for the better, and have since decided to take my time. Sometimes I'll write a few hundred words and stop, check Twitter, then write some more. Twitter can definitely be super distracting, but also very motivational. Also, I'm a pantser all the way. Outlining is not my friend, though it would be helpful if I did some type of outline. I often forget little details about my characters and have to go back and search it out. Very time consuming. But it's all part of the process.

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