M. K. Lobb on The Inspiration for "Seven Faceless Saints"

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. 

Today’s guest for the WHAT is M.K. Lobb, author of Seven Faceless Saints, dark fantasy with a murder-mystery twist, which releases on February 7, 2023

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?

It’s funny, because I didn’t have a concrete plan for this book. I knew I wanted it to be a little creepier than my previous stories, and I knew I wanted to write a murder mystery. I actually started by writing a chapter in the middle of the book with absolutely no idea what the context was, and I build the story from there. I’m a big fan of historical fantasy, so initially I decided to create a world based on the 7 major guilds of Florence, Italy. Between the 12th and 16th centuries, guilds essentially controlled much of Florence’s economy. The first drafts of Seven Faceless Saints were heavily based on this, but rather than the guilds being associated with various trades, they each corresponded to a different form of magic. The saints came next, because I can’t resist those cryptic religious vibes. In the end, however, almost all of the historical elements ended up getting cut—my agent and I decided the world building was too dense and confusing. The book became a straight-up fantasy, though I still love to explain the historical inspiration behind the world building choices! 

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

Once I had the world building more or less ironed out, I had to set up the mystery. I’m absolutely not an expert on this (though I love reading and watching murder mysteries), so it took some trial and error. I was also juggling two POV characters, so I needed to ensure they both had their own narrative path. I wish I could tell you I used a bunch of fancy plotting tactics, but tragically I am a pantser at heart. I almost always start out with a draft that makes very little sense. It took a lot of editing to make all the pieces fit, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned about writing a murder mystery, it’s this: No matter how you resolve things, there will always be some people who a) think the culprit was far too obvious, or b) think the culprit was so obscure as to be unguessable. Once I reached a middle ground I was happy with (thanks beta readers!) I went in on building the characters and their relationships. 

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

Oh my goodness, yes. Like I said, I’m more of a pantser (when I can get away with it, at least). I mentally plot a couple of chapters ahead at a time, and that tends to shift as I’m writing. With this book, the characters changed almost as much as the plot. I started off with 3 POVs, and only Roz (my female main character) remains in the final version, though her characterization is completely different. I’m very impressed with people who create in-depth outlines for their books and manage to stick to them—that is definitely not me! 

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

I wouldn’t say ideas come to me often. Rather, I tend to imagine a certain character or world, and then I have to build a plot around that. For example, Seven Faceless Saints started off as “murder mystery + security guard + rebel” (as you can see, I do my book plotting very efficiently). I also read random historical tidbits to inspire me. Nothing helps me build a world quite like—you know—the actual world. Even if the final product doesn’t end up looking anything like the inspiration, it’s a starting point!  

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

Honestly, once I have an idea I like, I tend to really hone in on it. It’s not as though I have a bunch of ideas kicking around that I need to choose from! That said, I do tend to write the next “logical” thing. For example, I’m currently working on an adult fantasy because I know we can pitch that simultaneously alongside my YA novels. First I decide what makes the most sense to write, and then I come up with the story. 

I have 6 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?

Six cats!? You’re living my dream life. I have two cats, and while both are extremely needy, one in particular seems to have separation anxiety. If she’s not on my lap (or trying to get on my lap), you can assume she’s nearby! In fact, she’s sitting beside me right now, having formed a perfect loaf atop a copy of The Stolen Heir.

M.K. Lobb is a fantasy writer with a love of all things dark—whether literature, humor, or general aesthetic. Seven Faceless Saints is her debut novel. She lives in Ontario with her partner and cats. She invites you to visit her online at mklobb.com and follow her @mk_lobb.

Jumata Emill on Managing Your Expectations on Submission

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 Jumata Emill, author of The Black Queen, which releases January 31, 2023

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

Fairly a good amount. One, I had author friends who schooled me on their experiences, what to expect and how best to get through it. And two, my agent and I had a pretty frank conversation about his approach before and him talking me through my expectations and communication needs before things started. 

Did anything about the process surprise you?

Not really. Mainly for the above mentioned reasons and I did a lot of research about the process beforehand. Interviews like this one with authors talking about their submission fails and successes shaping much of that. 

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

When my agent shared the submission list with me I definitely Googled them. I wanted to understand why he picked those specific individuals and what books they had worked on. I recommend everyone doing this. Ultimately, this is YOUR career. You should be in the driver’s seat of who you’ll work with, or want to work with. At the very least you should ask your agent why he or she is submitting to specific editors and why. 

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

It was honestly all over the place. Here’s the thing: I went out on submission twice. My first MS with my agent didn’t sell. The Black Queen was our second outing. So, I’ll go with my first. Some editors got back to us in a week. Others took nearly a year. This is one area where you really have to lower your expectations. Nothing is concrete. There are so many factors that determine when editors will read and get back to you. So average? Let’s just say at least a month, or two. 

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

Do whatever will get your mind off of it the most. Whether that’s only checking email once a day, writing something new, whatever. Protect your mental health, that’s most important. Because stressing about it isn’t going to move the needle one way or the other. For me, I wrote something new, which turned out to be the book that sold after my first one didn’t. 

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

If there was feedback and/or critiques included my agent and I would discuss them, I’d process what was said and then move on. You’re going to hear this A LOT: Publishing is a subjective business so you can’t let the opinions of others destroy your confidence. You got an agent, that’s a MAJOR first step so you know you have the talent. Don’t let a “no” make you second guess yourself. It just wasn’t a right fit. That’s what I told myself. And not every rejection is a complete door slam to the face. My editor now was one who initially rejected my first book, but she saw potential in my writing. So much so she told my agent she wanted to see anything else I wrote. And guess what, she was top of the list when we went back out on submission with my next book and low and behold, she made an offer on it! 

I will say the rejections on submission are a little tougher to swallow because this is the last final step toward publication and it sucks to get so, so close and yet be far away.  They’re gonna sting a bit more compared to agent rejections. But again, dust yourself off and keep going. No one accomplishes anything in life because they’re afraid of hearing a  few “no”s. 

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

Like one of the greatest accomplishments in my life. Especially because my YES came after I had done an intense R&R following an initial rejection. I had worked so hard on addressing the weaknesses my editor called attention to, so getting that validation that I had shown her I listened and knew how to incorporate editorial feedback into my work was everything.

The news came in an email, which I opened just as I was getting ready to take my first bite of breakfast that morning. Yeah, I never ate that food. I was too busy crying and jumping up and down. 

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

I was able to announce two weeks after we accepted the offer. I know that varies. There are authors who had to wait almost a year before they could publicly talk about their book sales. That would have killed me. I don’t understand why some publishing houses do this part faster and others don’t. I’m just glad my editor was like, “Let’s tell everyone now about this great book.” Ha! 

Jumata is a journalist who has covered crime and local politics in Mississippi and parts of Louisiana. He earned his B.A. in mass communications from Southern University and A&M College. He’s a Pitch Wars alum and member of the Crime Writers of Color. When he’s not writing about murderous teens, he’s watching and obsessively tweeting about every franchise of the Real Housewives. Jumata lives in Baton Rouge, La.

The Saturday Slash

Don't be afraid to ask for help with the most critical first step of your writing journey - the query.

I’ve been blogging since 2011 and have critiqued over 200 queries here on the blog using my Hatchet of Death. This is how I edit myself, it is how I edit others. If you think you want to play with me and my hatchet, shoot me an email.

If the Saturday Slash has been helpful to you in the past, or if you’d like for me to take a look at your query please consider making a donation, if you are able.

If you’re ready to take the next step, I also offer editing services.

My thoughts are in blue, words to delete are in red, suggested rephrasing is in orange.

Fate cannot be avoided. This principle at the base of Greek tragedy is the leit-motiv Are you going to be using phrases like leti-motiv within the book itself? If not, don't use it here. The voice, flow, and feel of the query should be similar to the book itself luring Not sure of this word use... do you mean lurking? at the background of “THE WEAVING SEA”, a 98,000 new adult, that's a pretty high word count for a debut new adult. 85k is considered high end for that age category. I would try to get that down before querying mythology retelling I like to call “The Iliad meets the Little Mermaid”. Quick note, punctuation like periods or commas go inside of the quotation marks, but also - you don't need the quotation marks.

At “almost-seven-years-old” Not sure why this is in quotes, but also, if this is new adult, why does the story start with him at 7? Opening the query this way makes it seem as if we're going to be spending quite a bit of time with a 7 year old version of the character Achilles is a mischievous and curious child who’s always lived in the sea with his godly mother, Thetis, determined to shelter her son from the mortal world and gives him his rightful place among the gods.

But Achilles longs for the adventure, wishes to become a hero and above all wants to meet his estranged father.

And the more Thetis tries to keep him in a gilded cage, the more he tries to escape.

In the end, some things are simply bound to happen, like Achilles’ meeting with Patroclus and the his? love for him, no matter the troubles and misunderstandings along the way.

Right now, this is just reading as a summary of the story of Achilles, and a pretty bare bones one at that. You need a lot more detail, and more importantly, you need to exhibit how your version does something different than the original - or any other retelling since then. This is currently way too vague : there was a guy who had a helicopter mom, he got away from her and fell in love, and faced trials along the way, but that's fate. There's nothing specific to your manuscript here, and only speaking in generalizations isn't doing you any favors. I also don't understand how The Little Mermaid would come into this.

Classicist at heart, I had a classical formation in a specialised high school and then proceeded to graduate in Economics for Arts, Culture and Entertainment.

Born and living in Northern Italy, I have been honing my writing craft for the past 10+ years, writing fictions both original and in the fandom ambience. Not sure about the word choice here In 2011 I won a prize in a literary contest. That's cool, but you definitely need to state which one.