Interview with Sophie Crockett

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!

I have a fantastic addition to the SAT (Successful Author Talk) here with us today. Born in 1969, SD Crockett was brought up on a yacht as her parents circumnavigated the globe. After graduating from London University’s Royal Holloway and Bedford New College with a degree in Drama and Theatre Studies, she spent time living in Russia, Turkey, Eastern Europe - and in Armenia as a timber buyer. Yeah, that's right. And she's one hell of a writer too.

Her debut novel AFTER THE SNOW is set in 2059, the new Ice Age. Born after the snows, fifteen-year-old straggler kid, Willo Blake, has never known a life outside hunting and trapping in the hills.  When his family mysteriously disappears, leaving him alone on a freezing mountain, Willo sets off into the unknown to find them. AFTER THE SNOW will be available March 27th, 2012 from Feiwel & Friends

Are you a Planner or Pantster?

I wouldn’t say I’m a planner, no. I have tried it, plotting out 3-6 chapters at a time, but in every case it has meant the future culling of thousands and thousands of words. I like the story to unravel in a fictional version of ‘real-time.' Each to their own. But I do think a lot about where the grand story arc is going, getting inspiration from so many things outside of the work I’m doing. That’s the real planning for me.

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

About a year. I’ve got a two-year-old child around, so that probably influences the time it takes.

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

See above!  One project at a time for me. The other projects I might think of are shelved fairly brutally for a future date.

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

Yes. Fear of having no direction in life. Fear of running out of money. Fear of wasting my time with this writing lark. I carried a proverbial bucket of sand around and stuck my head in it regularly.

How many trunked books (if any) did you have before you were agented?

Two. One was a learning curve of editing, and the other not ‘big’ enough for me to really try punting it around.

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

Yes. The first book. I finished it, but quit on it after 14 rejections. But I had two requests for a full, and that gave me the confidence to carry on. I was pragmatic.

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

My agent is Julia Churchill of The Greenhouse Literary Agency, which has a base in the UK and the US. I sent my query to Julia, and she responded in three weeks asking for a full submission; she took me on after reading it. It was a traditional query: letter, synopsis and first chapter.

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

I think you have to be pragmatic. Work on those first few chapters until your fingers bleed. If you think they’re good, do the same for every block of three chapters in the book. Treat each block like you’re sending only that out, because if someone does request a full, it will be very disappointing if they don’t take you on because you haven’t carried on the spark that interested them in the first place.

Most agents have a massive workload, they don’t have time to hold your hand. And I also think that having angry vitriol for agents and the publishing industry if/when you get rejected, is a very negative and unattractive thing. They have a business to run, and your part of that business is writing well and solidly and crossing your fingers that what you’ve done is what is needed. Don’t chase a dollar, chase a dream of perfection in your work and don’t be lazy. There are a lot of writers out there who aren’t.

But remember. Agents and publishers need great books. If no one likes your baby after a number of queries (your call on what that number is) then accept the inevitable and write something new. And then send that out, learning from your mistakes.

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

Pretty humbling and emotional but the beginning of a new mountain to climb.

How much input do you have on cover art?

Zero. But if you have a good suggestion - make it but don’t push it.

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

That I was more patient than I thought, and that I was capable of writing a book.

How much of your own marketing do you?

I’m a bit of a luddite (google it!) I didn’t have a website until very recently. And now I have a blog too. Which has been more fun than I thought. I’m very lucky that my publisher has arranged a lot of the marketing for my book and I try to do everything I can to help them and make myself available.

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

I think you should write and think about that after someone likes your work. But as I said I’m a luddite, and you have writers like Amanda Hocking who give that sentiment a good kick up the …!

Do you think social media helps build your readership?

Probably.  Undoubtedly.

How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love Social Networking

Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest. Tumblr. Blogging.

You just stabbed yourself in the face, didn't you?

It's OK, I wanted to do that at one point in my life too. Luckily, I did not. I learned that I was looking at the entire experience of social networking in the wrong light. I thought I didn't have anything to say. I thought nobody would care. I thought my follower list would be small and that would be embarrassing.

Here's the thing. If you want to make a big bang, it takes time. Building relationships in the e-world is no different than in the real world. You can't be pushy. You can't always talk about yourself. You have to make it clear you're interested in the actual person, and what they have to say. There's a great way to learn about social networking, and have a built in follower base before you even jump into the larger world of social networking.

Join a writer's forum.

Oh yeah, sure, one more thing I have do to, right? I'll tell you flat out I wouldn't have a decent query, an agent, or a deal, without the spectacular community over at AgentQuery Connect. No, really. I wouldn't. I learned so much over there, I can't even begin to break it down. These are the people that helped make my query better as a group. This is where I met my crit partners who helped mold my novel into something attractive to an agent. This is where someone finally said, "Dude, start a blog already."

My first followers on my Twitter and my blog are from AQC. And I think that says a lot.

I admit that I love social networking. Love it so much that I am now contributing to three group blogs. The fantastic From the Write Angle - a blog that offers multiple perspectives on writing and publishing industry, The Lucky 13's - a group of MG and YA authors who are debuting in 2013, and launching TODAY is the newest group endeavor of which I am a part. Book Pregnant - a group of 30 debut authors who are dedicated to helping you understand what to expect as you bring that first book baby into the world.

And THEN you know what I went and did? I'm on Pinterest now.

I know, I'm insane. But I do love that bomb.

April Tucholke - The Pantser Who Doesn't Quit

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! April Tucholke is a fellow Lucky13'er - a group of MG and YA authors who will be debuting in 2013. Her debut novel BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA will be released from Dial in 2013.

Are you a Planner or Pantster?

Pantster. Utterly. I like having the merest shadow of a structure before I start--because the best ideas tend to come to me as I go along. I'll get about a third of the way through a manuscript, and then decide that this or that character needs to be an a liar, or secretly evil, or violent, or arrogant, or annoyingly wholesome, or dead. It helps keep things interesting for me along the way.

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

I'm pretty slow. Six months for a rough first draft, a year when all is said and done, maybe. I'm not a writer that enjoys the process--all that time spent in my own head. Ugh. I mean, I dig my characters and love the worlds they live in, but those worlds are usually pretty dark. This is fine short term, but hour after hour of it, every day for months, makes me moody.

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

I prefer to do one thing at a time.  But I'll start a new WIP, and get all caught up in it, and then switch focus to do edits on the old ms, and back and forth.  I'm the kind of person who reads six books at once, though, so I've had practice at holding several plotlines in my head.

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

Oh, heck yeah. I studied writing in college (in the Midwest), and in my program genre writing was scoffed at. Tender, coming-of-age farm stories were the thing--not really my cup of tea. That put me off writing for awhile. And then, when I thought about getting back into it, I was worried it would ruin reading for me--that I would learn too much about publishing, that I would start to notice things I didn't want to notice, like lazy rule-breaking, and too many adverbs, and unnecessary dialogue tags.  I worried that I would never be swept up in a story again. And that did happen, for awhile.  But I got over it.

How many trunked books (if any) did you have before you were agented?

None. I just kept working on the same manuscript until it was good enough, completely rewriting sections until it morphed into something else entirely. Something better.

Have you ever quit on an ms?

No, I guess not. I hate to give up on things.

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

Joanna Volpe at Nancy Coffey. Traditional query process.

How long did you query before landing your agent?

I sent out nine queries for BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA, and queried for two days--Joanna offered less than 24 hours after I sent her my full. That was pretty cool.

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

I've been working on this writing thing for four solid years (not counting my college days). I was repped before, and had two manuscripts not sell. This caused some of the darkest moments in my life--and I'm kind of an optimist by nature. Make sure you really want to do it before you begin. Bad. Because, unless you're very, very, very lucky, writing will make you bleed.

Hmmm…that wasn't very inspiring. OK, how about this:  do whatever it takes to find the best critique partner you can. Because you will need them. You will need them to edit your manuscript, of course, but also just to have someone to talk to about the ups and downs of the querying/publishing world. Your non-writing family and friends probably aren't going to cut it--there's a good chance they'll view writing as an artistic luxury, not a job. That's fine, but really unhelpful when things get tough. I found a brilliant CP, and I couldn't live without her.

And if all else fails, get a dog.  But this is my advice for most things.

How much input do you have on cover art?

AT: I've yet to hear any word on my cover.  But hopefully I'll have some input on it.  I worked in a bookstore for four years and, despite the saying, people happily judge books by their cover, consistently and without hesitation.

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

1. How many people want to be writers. I wanted to be an artist, actually. I used to hang around the art studio in college, lurking in corners and watching the painter kids slap oil onto canvases.  They seemed very exotic to me.

2. How much revising goes into a book, and how wicked hard it is. I went to the new Mission Impossible movie recently, and was sitting there, watching them try to plan an impossible mission, and I thought to myself, yo, try revising a manuscript some time. Absurd, I know. But yeah, that's what ran through my head.

How much of your own marketing do you do?  Do you have a blog / site / Twitter? 

I have a basic website, and have joined the very supportive Lucky 13s. I was on twitter for a few months, and then quit because it sucked a dangerous amount of time--I'm not sure I have the discipline to both write and be on twitter. It's funny, even four years ago when I started writing, there were very, very few YA author blogs (were there any?)…and I don't think twitter even existed.

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

Personal preference, I think. A lot of the authors I know started a blog before they were agented. I still don't have one. How much do you have to say? How much time do you want to spend saying it?

Do you think social media helps build your readership?

I think social media helps writers connect to other writers, which is great. Readership? Maybe. A bit. I think goodreads does what it can.