Inspiration & Imagining 2030 with Michael R. French

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 Michael R. French, whose work includes several best-sellers, and has been warmly reviewed in the New York Times and been honored with a number of literary prizes. His new book Cliffhanger: Jump Before You Get Pushed imagines the year 2030 — viruses, spy drones, terrorism, and joblessness have eroded American optimism. People want something to believe in. As demonstrated in a Midwest high school election, politics have taken on the inflexibility and dogma of a new religion. Only true believers will survive and prosper. Or so they think.

How does inspiration usually find you?

Whether it's a lightning bolt or a slow-simmering memory, something that initially burns brightly in your imagination doesn’t necessarily age well on the page. For example, the allure of a plot or theme or characters  may fade by the middle of the book, and then you have to figure out why you’re no longer excited, and god forbid, what will the reader think?

Can you successfully rethink your initial inspiration, or should you go on to another story? Tough call, but to me if you struggle too much on a draft, best to park it on your hard drive for a while. I have a lot of false starts in my document file. Most of these die there. Miraculously, however,  some come back to life and you finish a book that exceeds your initial expectations.

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

Well, sometimes the original concept is the plot, a well-built one too. It’s like giving birth to a fully-developed baby after one trimester. A small miracle. So you end up spending most of your time on the characters who inhabit your plot. Don’t limit your imagination by thinking there’s only one way to finish your book.  The possibilities can be diverse. Putting together a finished novel is no less complex than a building a house from scratch. Neither are modest undertakings.  

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

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It’s a good idea to know where you think your plot is heading, but don’t be in a rush to the finish line. Insights unavailable to an author in the beginning of a story suddenly appear in the middle or end. Your characters should come to life with quirks and actions that surprise you. Be sure to consider building on them.  

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

I had an imaginary gopher when I was five years old, and it dug imaginary holes in the family lawn. Thankfully my parents never doubted  my claims. If you give your imagination, curiosity and fantasies carte blanche at a young age, you may grow up to  be a pretty decent storyteller.  

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

Writers I know sometimes feel plagued by too many stories percolating at once. Hopefully, one particular story feels so urgent that it demands to be heard first. Sometimes you have to exorcise it, like a wild animal has taken over your mind and won’t leave you in peace.

I have 5 cats and a Dalmatian (seriously, check my Instagram feed) and I usually have at least one or two snuggling with me when I write. Do you have a writing buddy, or do you find it distracting?

I love animals, but  when working I prefer to put myself in solitary. No distractions. The great author John Cheever once said that even a sip of sherry  in the evening can cause disaster in your writing.

In for the Long Haul - Kathleen Basi On Querying 4 Books Over 12 Years

by Kathleen Basi

I’m here today to talk about persistence.

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From the day I entered the community of fiction writers, I heard again and again that traditional publishing is not a business for the faint of heart. This is a long-haul endeavor. But let’s be honest—we all think we’re going to be the exception to the rule. Right?

I didn’t expect to be the exception, but, well… I did hope. I knew I was a good writer. I had a lot to learn, but I had utter faith in my ability to do so.

The first book I wrote never saw a query trench, because as much as I loved it, I knew it was a mess. Novel Zero taught me that I wasn’t actually sure what kind of stories I was writing. They didn’t seem to fit anywhere. I liked a good love story, but I didn’t think my stories were exactly “romance.”

So first, I set out to determine if I could write a bona fide romance novel. The answer, it turned out, was “no.” I craved the emotional journey. Novel #1 definitely had strong romantic elements, but it couldn’t sell as romance. I workshopped it a little, then sent out my first-ever queries. “It’s well written,” one agent said, “but there’s nothing new here.”

Ouch. Still, I could see the justice in the critique. By then, I’d discovered the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, and I finally knew where my stories belonged. For Novel #2, I revisited the characters from Novel Zero, determined to avoid past mistakes. With a hooky, compelling story question (well, in my mind, at least) and a wine country setting, this story, I was certain, would be The One.

But my protagonist turned out to be too wishy-washy, the story too broad. I placed third in a competition, and the prize was a full manuscript read and a followup phone call with a literary agent who said, “This is not women’s fiction, it’s family saga. And you have problems with likability.”

I took her at her word and didn’t query anyone else—just shelved the book until I could figure out how to fix it. I already had another book chomping at the bit to be written. And this time, I was going to make sure I ticked all the boxes.

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Book #3 had a big hook, a strong lead character, and a compelling conflict that was incredibly relevant for the modern world. I also created a secondary character--an adult with Down syndrome, a nod to my journey into special needs parenting with my “chromosomally-gifted” daughter. This time for sure!

Alas, no. I got eight requests—one of them an R&R, even!—but still, no dice.

By that time, I was working on Book #4, which is now launching as A Song For the Road. From day one, my critique partners said, “I really think this might be the one.” I remember replying, “If this one can’t get published, I might as well just pack it in, because if this one can't be published, nothing can.”

Of course, I was never going to quit. Writing is too much a part of me. But still. It was often hard to keep faith.

Novel #4 took on the query trenches hard: four major rounds of querying, for a total of 100 queries—and at the end, at last, I had a literary agent in my corner. At times, I was complacent: Yes, I’m going to break in, it’s only a matter of time. But other times, it felt hopeless—even after clearing that hurdle. Imagine going on submission to publishers with a book about someone who lost her entire family… WHILE A PANDEMIC IS GOING ON.

It’s been twelve years since I sent my first query letter. More than once, my husband questioned whether it was worth it—the time investment, yes, but especially the emotional roller coaster.

The takeaway of this story, as I said at the beginning, is persistence. But persistence doesn’t mean “beat your head on a brick wall.” With every failed manuscript, I absorbed what went wrong, and I was intentional about applying those lessons going forward. Every book I have written has reached a higher peak than the one before it. Honestly? I’m still committed to getting Book #3 out into the world. But when I set out to rewrite it, I will do so carrying the wisdom I’ve gained by revising… and re-revising… and re-re-revising… A Song for the Road.

On the far side of this marathon, I’m actually grateful for it… mostly. If I’d gotten a lucky break early on, I would have missed many opportunities to grow as a writer. My stories would likely be less polished and less profound.

So my word of encouragement for today is: persistence. But persistence with purpose.

Author and liturgical composer Kathleen M. Basi is mother to three active boys (read: always breaking something) and one chromosomally-gifted daughter. Her nonfiction has appeared in a number of magazines, Chicken Soup for the Soul and on NPR’s All Things Considered. Her fiction is represented by Sonali Chanchani and Claudia Cross, and her novel, A SONG FOR THE ROAD, is scheduled for debut in May 2021 with Alcove Press.