Literary Agent Interview: Lindsey Aduskevich and Query Critique Giveaway

Today I’m thrilled to have agent Lindsey Aduskevich here. She’s a literary manager at Martin Literary Management. 

Hi­ Lindsey! Thanks so much for joining us. 

Hi Natalie! Thank you so much for having me. 

About Lindsey: 

1. Tell us how you became an agent, how long you’ve been one, and what you’ve been doing as an agent. 

Great question! I have been interested in agenting ever since my first SCBWI regional conference in 2019 where I attended as a picture book writer. After honing my writing craft for a few years, I began to apply to agent internships in 2022. Trying to get an agent internship felt just like being in the query trenches. The next three years I got a lot “no’s” and “almosts.” Finally, in the beginning of 2025 I got my “yes!” from senior Literary Manager Kristen Terrette. Kristen spent six months teaching me everything she knows, and it was in October that I received an email with the subject line “Let’s Chat” from Vice President Jen Newens. Very shortly after our meeting, Jen and Sharlene Martin, the president of Martin Literary Management (MLM), offered me a position with the agency. I have been doing my dream job ever since. 

As for what I’ve been doing, I am connecting with editors and reading manuscript after amazing manuscript in search of the ones that won’t let me sleep at night. I made my first offer of rep in December (which I did not get by the way), my second offer in January (which I did get!), and my third in February (which I also got!). I am currently preparing an incredible historical fiction middle grade for submission and plan to go out with another historical fiction in the fall. 

About the Agency: 

2. Share a bit about your agency and what it offers to its authors. 

MLM prides itself on considerate management, meaning we aim to be respectful, kind, nurturing, and communicative. Our agency has been championing books into the world for 23 years now, and thanks to Sharlene Martin’s connections in the film industry, many of those books became documentaries, movies, or series. When I joined MLM as an intern, I was struck by how warm and friendly everyone was. When I joined as an agent, it truly felt like family. We are all here to support each other, answer questions, help with clients’ work, contracts, proposals, submission lists—anything we need from each other. What that means for authors is all the agents here have an incredible support system. With MLM, you don’t just get one agent rooting for you—you get an entire team!  

What She’s Looking For: 

3. What age groups do you represent—picture books, MG, and/or YA? What genres do you represent, and what are you looking for in submissions for these genres? 

I represent picture books, middle grade, young adult, and new adult. I am open to fiction, informational fiction, and non-fiction. 

For picture books, I love humorous, lyrical, hard topics, silly, serious, prose, rhyme (as long as you know what you’re doing because I don’t!), holiday, dark humor, spooky, historical…pretty much anything. But there is one key ingredient I absolutely must have: heart…and the heart has to be big. I want the whole emotional experience. Send me your manuscripts that will make me laugh, cry, or race to tell my critique partners that I just read the most amazing story! 

For middle grade, pacing and stakes are key here. I am looking for phenomenal voices that keep me on the edge of my seat. I want escalating tension, standout characters, and fresh topics. I am open to paranormal, contemporary, spooky, mystery, horror, or magical. 

For young adult, I would love to see romcoms, romantasy, historical fiction, fantasy, horror, paranormal, and even some genre mashups. Think paranormal romance, romcom thriller, etc. My true love is a really good historical fiction, but I’m very selective in this area. 

In new adult, I like college campus settings or just starting out in the work force. The same genres for young adult apply here, too. 

4.  Is there anything you would be especially excited to seeing in the genres you are interested in? 

I would love a good YA horror. One with emotionally complex characters and a swoon-worthy romance. I am also highly interested in a picture book that tugs on my heart and begs to be read again and again. 

What She Isn’t Looking For: 

5. What types of submissions are you not interested in? 

If I had to list a few things that interest me the least, it would be books about gaming and saving turtles eggs. I promise I’m not a monster! I love all animals, including cute, adorable turtles. I think it’s just an overdone concept for me. But as of right now, I am not closed to anything. If the story is good, I’m game! 

Agent Philosophy: 

6. What is your philosophy as an agent both in terms of the authors you want to work with and the books you want to represent? 

I am looking for authors who are kind, understanding, and have an open heart. I prefer voices and stories that are uplifting. I want to represent books that foster empathy, shine light on new experiences, teach readers information in exciting ways, and/or help readers escape into a fantastical world. 

Editorial Agent: 

7. Are you an editorial agent? If so, what is your process like when you’re working with your authors before submitting to editors? 

I am! I will always give my clients both line comments and my overall thoughts. I will focus on assessing character arc, structure, pacing, tension, stakes, grammar, etc. Once I have organized my feedback, I will send it to the author and wait for the revisions. We will go back and forth until we both think the manuscript is perfect. But one quick note: for grammar, commas never landed with me. As hard as I tried, that is my one weakness. That and rhyme. Okay, I have two weaknesses. 

Query Methods and Submission Guidelines: (Always verify before submitting) 

8. How should authors query you and what do you want to see with the query letter? 

I would love for authors to query me via my Query Manager. Please do not send queries to my email. 

Regarding query letters, we all know writing is HARD! There are so many rules. For some of us, (me for sure!) it takes years to hone our craft. And we don’t just have to learn how to write a story, we have to learn how to write a query letter. A well-written query letter tells me that you have spent time on your craft, and that you are invested in your future as an author. I love a well-written query letter. Don’t be afraid to let your personality shine, but don’t stray too far from the structure. 

What I personally like to see is the hook, book, and cook technique all on one page. 

1.     Start with a few lines about why you are querying me (not always necessary but appreciated).

2.     Give me your pitch—bonus points if it is in the voice/tone of your manuscript.

3.     Comps, themes, and why this book is needed in today’s market.

4.     Bio. Don’t forget your bio! I love a good, succinct bio. 

All of these things are what make a great query letter, but don’t stress too much about them. If one or more of these areas are stressing you out, do your best and that’s good enough! 

9.  Do you have any specific dislikes in query letters or the first pages submitted to you? 

I don’t have dislikes, but I do have things that will make me hesitate. If a query barely resembles what a query should look like, then I don’t feel as connected to the author and (not willingly) find myself less invested. 

As for the first pages, again, no dislikes, but try to stay away from overdone scenes. Waking up in bed and stretching is an overdone opening scene (though I’m not saying this won’t work!), and so is “once upon a time” and “there once was a little boy who…”. Challenge yourself to find something unique that will set your book apart from all the others. 

Response Time: 

10. What’s your response time to queries and requests for more pages of a manuscript? 

Right now, I am aiming for three weeks or less for queries. As I build my list, I know this will not be feasible. For those I request more pages from, sometimes you will hear from me in about a week or so. Longer manuscripts could take up to a month. If it’s been over three months, absolutely nudge. But please know I will always try to respond as quickly as possible. A month tops would be my goal. 

Self-Published and Small Press Authors: 

11.  Are you open to representing authors who have self-published or been published by smaller presses? What advice do you have for them if they want to try to find an agent to represent them? 

I am definitely open to authors who have self-published or been published by smaller presses. This should never make a writer hesitate to query me as long as it’s new work. My advice to self-pubbed or small press pubbed authors is to keep writing amazing stories and getting them out there. 

Clients: 

12. Who are some of the authors you represent? 

Right now, I have two clients who I am still pinching myself over. Mengxi Seeley is an incredibly talented author who writes novels inspired by historical research, with fantastically happy endings. And Victoria Winterhalter Brame who writes exceptional middle grade and young adult novels focused on hidden histories and characters discovering their self-worth.

I am eagerly searching for more talented writers to join our team, and I hope to sign some soon! 

Interviews and Guest Posts: 

13. Please share the links to any interviews, guest posts, and podcasts you think would be helpful to writers interested in querying you. 

I’m going to skip this question since this is my first interview. 

Links and Contact Info: 

14. Please share how writers should contact you to submit a query and your links on the Web. 

QueryManager: https://QueryTracker.net/query/4083

Website: https://lindseyaduskevich.com/

X: @LAduskevich

Bluesky: @laduskevich.bsky.social

Insta: @lindsey_aduskevich 

Additional Advice: 

15. Is there any other advice you’d like to share with aspiring authors that we haven’t covered? 

You’re never going to get your “yes” if you give up. Writing may be a rollercoaster, and gosh darn those “ups” are high and those “downs” are low, but if you give up…it will never happen. And always remember, not every story will land. In fact, most of your stories may not. But don’t forget, you write because you love it. You love the community, you love putting your emotions down on paper, you love creating characters and situations that are going to resonate with readers. Just because a story you wrote doesn’t land with your critique partners, an agent, or an editor, doesn’t mean you didn’t create something special. Something that, hopefully, brought you joy, exercised your writing muscles, and led you to the path you are currently on. If you are in that boat where your stories aren’t landing (and so many of us are!), give yourself a moment to feel those feels, but then pick yourself up, dust yourself off, write something new (or revise something old), and get yourself back out there. Because…your “yes!” can only come if you don’t give up! 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Lindsey! 

Giveaway Details 

­Lindsey is generously offering a query critique to one lucky winner. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment through March 21st. If you do not want to enter the contest, that’s okay. Just let me know in the comments. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address.

If you follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. This is an international giveaway. 

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops

Monday, March 16, I’m participating in the Chasing Rainbows Giveaway Hop 

Monday, March 23, I have a guest post by Aaron Starmer and a giveaway of his MG You Are Now Old Enough to Hear 

Wednesday, March 25, I have an agent spotlight interview with Rob Broder and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, March 30, I’m participating in the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop 

I hope to see you on Monday! 

Have any experience with this agent? See something that needs updating? Please leave a comment or email me at natalieiaguirre7@gmail.com 

Note: These agent profiles and interviews presently focus on agents who accept children's fiction. Please take the time to verify anything you might use here before querying an agent. The information found here is subject to change.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author Interview: Ciera Burch and Olivia Gray Will Not Fade Away

Happy Monday, Everyone! Today I’m excited to have Ciera Burch here to share about her MG contemporary, Olivia Gray Will Not Fade Away. It sounds like a compelling middle grade story that explores sexual identity, and I’m looking forward to reading it. 

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads: 

A middle schooler navigates the challenges of feeling invisible—literally and figuratively—as she comes to terms with her asexual identity in this poignant speculative novel perfect for fans of Ellie Engel Saves Herself and Jennifer Chan Is Not Alone.

Seventh grade has just started, but Olivia Gray already knows this year is different. Her brother ignores her for his crush, and all her friends talk about is who likes who, something Olivia has never cared about—even when Robbie, the most popular boy in school, asks her to the fall formal. After unknowingly rejecting him, Olivia goes viral on the social app KruShh. As the chatter about Robbie and dating grows, Olivia starts to feel left out to the point of feeling invisible—literally.

Seen only by her new librarian and a friendly kid named Jules, Olivia flickers in and out of sight whenever the topic of romance comes up. As she begins to realize she might be asexual, Olivia struggles to actually use the label because of the negative perception behind it. All she wants is to be normal, but can she really fit in without disappearing completely? 

Hi Ciera! Thanks so much for joining us. 

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer.

Thanks for having me! I’m a huge reader, lover of ice cream, a big Dungeons and Dragons nerd, and, of course, a writer. It’s hard to think of a time when I wasn’t a writer, honestly. Not in the professional sense, of course, but in terms of actually writing. I’ve wanted to tell stories from the minute I learned how to read them. 

How I became a published writer, though, was a little different. I’d been writing all my life and ended up in grad school for my MFA. After I finished my thesis, during the pandemic, I had plenty of time to keep writing and to polish it, so…I did. But even before I had an agent or published books or anything of the sort, I always considered myself a writer.  

2. Where did you get the idea for Olivia Gray Will Not Fade Away? 

Oh, gosh. I have so many ideas floating in my head at once, often, that it can be hard to remember the seeds of them, sometimes! In trying to put together some pieces about younger me—why, even in my 20s, I didn’t care about dating and no longer had the excuse of school to give people when they asked—I found Olivia in my head: a young girl who doesn’t understand the suddenness with which everyone at school starts not only liking each other, but focusing solely on ither people, her best friends included. I love writing speculative fiction and so I wanted something to really represent how Olivia was feeling, and how I felt in 7^th grade, too, and decided invisibility was a perfect metaphor for everything I wanted to talk about. 

3. It’s great that Olivia was in your head long before you wrote her story. How did you plot out this story? Was the process different than for other stories you’ve written? 

I had to make the pitch to my agent, first, so it was a little different to how I’d done things for Finch House and Camp Twisted Pine. I tend to have bullet points and little snippets of things—dialogue, description, character information—that I know I want to include and then start writing and see where I end up. This time, I needed a synopsis, so I had to know how I’d get from point A to point B, with everything at least partially fleshed out in between. But before I finished it, I wrote the first few chapters so both I and my agent, Trinica, would have some sense of the voice and the characters, to see if it was something I actually wanted to keep writing. 

From the first few sentences, I’d convinced myself. Then, it was only a matter of trying to put the pieces together and letting Olivia’s voice guide me. 

4. That is a different way of writing your story. You had to have a good sense of it to write the synopsis. In Olivia Gray Will Not Fade Away, Olivia grapples with being asexual and feeling and becoming invisible. How did you tell these parts of your story without sounding preachy?

Like with anything else I write, I try to stay true to the character. How she’s feeling, how she’s experiencing and interpreting things. Olivia is having a hard time with it, so I let her have a hard time. I didn’t make her jump to any conclusions or to acceptance right away. I gave her mentors and people who might relate and people who loved her no matter what and trusted her to navigate her way through. I also had a fictional self-help book in the novel if I did feel the need to be more explanatory when it came to certain definitions and specifics, especially since, as these things are new to Olivia, they’ll likely be new to my audience, too. 

5. What was a challenge you faced when writing this story or working on it with your editor? How did you overcome it? 

I didn’t really have any challenges with my editor, Kate, because she’s lovely. But in terms of challenges I faced while writing, I worried about getting the definitions about asexuality and aromanticism correct, but not bogging down the story with technicalities, and that I was also making things clear, understandable, and genuine when it came to how Olivia was dealing with everything. I also worried that just the word asexual, because it has ‘sexual’ in it, might worry some parents or readers. 

6. I can see why you were worried about those things. You’re a former assistant editor at HarperCollins. How did that strengthen your writing in general and in writing this book? 

Ha, is it bad to say that it didn’t? Writing and editing are such separate skills for me and I find that if I get too bogged down with focusing on one while I’m doing the other, I’ll get overwhelmed. I do write pretty clean drafts and tend to edit lightly as I write, but if I do it to the level of actually editing, I’ll second guess my word choices or story beats or pacing and will get stuck writing and editing the same chapter for ages. 

I think what I did learn while at Harper, and at HMH before that, is how an editor looks at things; the specifics I might not think of as the writer. It also keeps me grounded whenever an edit letter comes in! My feelings aren’t hurt by suggested changes or cutting certain plot points, for example, because I’ve been on the other side and I know it’s all in favor of making the story the greatest it can be, not trying to nitpick me or change who I am as a writer. 

7. Share how you got your agent, if any, and your first book deal? 

I mentioned it a little before, but I finished my MFA thesis in 2020, right at the start of the pandemic, and decided that once I finished my full novel and got it to a place I felt was good enough, I’d start querying agents, since I’d been laid off from the bookstore I worked at and had plenty more time to write, suddenly. I’d had interest from an agent after my short story was picked as Boston’s One City, One Story but hadn’t had anything to show her and promised I’d send something once I did.  

Once I sent my manuscript to that agent, I realized I might as well send it to others. I’d had a spreadsheet I’d been building all through grad school with the names and information of agents who represented my favorite authors and books, and decided I’d go in rounds. I only got through the first round before I got a few requests for full manuscripts and the next thing I knew, I was talking to Patrice on the phone about how much she loved and connected to my book, and was signing with her. 

My first book deal actually happened pretty quickly! It’s still all a bit of a blur, but I think everything, from submission to author calls, to signing a contract, happened in about a month or so. Once Patrice, my then-agent, decided to take a step back from agenting, her assistant, Trinica, asked if she could represent me and as I already knew—and loved—her and working with her, I was happy to agree. 

8. That’s a cool story about getting your agent and publishing contract. It sounds like everything fell into place easily. You’ve published two young adult and two middle grade novels since your first book was published in 2023. Besides writing good stories, why do you think you’ve been able to sell so many books in such a short time period? 

Oh, gosh, I’m still asking myself that question, honestly! I think it’s a blend of hard work, having an amazing agent and team, some amount of luck, and plenty of time spent staring at words on my computer trying to get them all to come together. 

I’m a pretty fast writer, which is part of things. I can usually knock out a first draft in a couple of months and move onto something new while that one is being read and/or edited. I was also lucky that I had two separate two-book deals, which meant I didn’t have to worry about going on submission again, just getting the interest and approval of my current editors. 

  

9. From your bio, it looks like you write full-time now. What made you decide not to have a day job, too? What advice do you have for other writers thinking of making this decision? 

 I did, and then it got a little unsustainable and I missed having a true routine and going outside and talking to people. Writing full time was a lot of sitting in my apartment alone and writing, which isn’t always great, even for an introvert like me. Even though I’d been working from home before I started writing full time, I missed the communication of meetings and emails (the horror, I know!) and having a set time when I started working and when I ended it.  

Since I’m not a massive New York Times bestseller or anything, I didn’t always have too much to fill up my days, especially when I was waiting on manuscripts to come back to me from my editors, so I felt a little lazy at times. But the initial decision, I think, was the freedom and the excitement of writing full time. It had always been my dream and it was something I could have fully realized in my 20s, so I felt the urge to, well, try it out. 

For other writers, I’d say make sure you have a safety net. Things really pile up when you have a set amount of money coming in based on your contract and life is expensive! It’s so different from having a biweekly paycheck. Have some sort of routine so you don’t drive yourself crazy trying to fill your time or feeling guilty for not writing for 8 hours a day. Also, if you’re American, figure out what you’re going to do about health insurance. 

10. Yes, health insurance is important. What are you working on now? 

I’m trying things out in the adult romance sphere currently, since I’m a big romance novel reader, and I’m having a lot of fun trying something new! 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Ciera. You can find Ciera @cierasurch on Instagram or at cieraburch.com. Book buy link: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Olivia-Gray-Will-Not-Fade-Away/Ciera-Burch/9781665972628 

About Ciera:

Ciera Burch is a lifelong writer and ice cream aficionado. She has a BA from American University and an MFA from Emerson College. Her books include the middle grade novels Finch House and Camp Twisted Pine, and young adult novels Something Kindred and Out of Step, Into You. Her fiction has appeared in The American Literary Magazine, Underground, Five Points, Stork, and Blackbird. Her work was also chosen as the 2019 One City One Story read for the Boston Book Festival. While she is originally from New Jersey, she currently resides in Washington, DC, with her stuffed animals, plants, and far too many books. Visit Ciera at CieraBurch.com. 

Giveaway Details

Ciera’s publisher is generously offering a hardback of Olivia Gray Will Not Fade Away for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower of my blog (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment by March 21st. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address. 

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites and/or follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or follow Ciera on her social media sites, mention this in the comments, and I'll give you an extra entry for each. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This book giveaway is US. 

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is hosted by Greg Pattridge. You can find the participating blogs on his blog.  

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Wednesday, March 11, I have an agent spotlight interview with Lindsey Aduskevich and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, March 16, I’m participating in the Chasing Rainbows Giveaway Hop 

Monday, March 23, I have a guest post by Aaron Starmer and a giveaway of his MG You Are Now Old Enough to Hear 

Wednesday, March 25, I have an agent spotlight interview with Rob Broder and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, March 30, I’m participating in the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop 

I hope to see you on Monday!

 

Author Interview: Stacey Lee and Heiress of Nowhere Giveaway and IWSG Post

Happy Wednesday! I’m so thrilled to have Stacey Lee here to share about her new YA historical fiction mystery, Heiress of Nowhere. I’m a huge fan of Stacey’s. Thanks to Stacey’s publisher for providing me with an ARC of Heiress of Nowhere to prepare for this interview. It was a real page-turner that left me guessing until the end. 

Stacey is also so inspiring as one of the founders of the We Need Diverse Books movement. As an adoptive mom of a daughter adopted from China, I really appreciate that there are now books that kids like my daughter can see themselves in. There weren’t any when she was growing up. 

Here's a blurb of Heiress of Nowhere from Goodreads: 

An orphan races to uncover a killer—who may have come from the sea—when she and her beloved orcas fall under suspicion in this “atmospheric…beguiling” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) historical gothic mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of The Downstairs Girl, Stacey Lee.

1918. Orcas Island, Washington.

Lucy Nowhere has spent her eighteen years working on the vast estate of the eccentric shipbuilder who took her in after she washed ashore in a green canoe as a baby. But she has long wished for a life off the island, and in a matter of days, she is set to leave for college—and, for the first time, choose her own future.

Then she finds her employer’s severed head on the beach. Rumors swirl that a mischievous spirit and its minions, the sea wolves, have struck again. Lucy doesn’t believe in myths. She knows that a human—a human murderer—killed him. And when she is unexpectedly named heiress to the estate, she understands the next target is her.

Her closest friend, the estate’s vigilant young guard, begs her to escape while she can. But Lucy knows the only way she can discover who she is, and free the island of its curse, is to find the real killer—before she becomes the next victim.

 

Before I get to Katie’s interview, I have my IWSG post.  

Posting: The first Wednesday is officially Insecure Writer's Support Group Day. 

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!  

The awesome co-hosts this month are: PJ Colando, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, and me! 

Optional Question: What elements do you include in your book launch? Or what do you have in mind for your future book launch? Or what advice do you have to offer to others planning to launch a book? 

While I’ve never launched a book, I’ve interviewed hundreds of authors who have and have watched many of them launch their books. Here are some tips in case they help you: 

·       Don’t try to do it all. You can’t do everything—if you want any time to write. Many authors recommend choosing the activities you enjoy most and focusing on them.

·       Look for new audiences. When going on a blog tour, try to find sites where you’ll reach new audiences. Don’t just go on a blog tour with friends. Some bloggers organize blog tours for a fee. While you have to pay some money, you could reach readers you don’t know. You’ll get more interaction if you pair your blog tour with a good giveaway, like a $50 Amazon gift card. I participated in Sherry Ellis’ blog tour, during which she received over 20,000 entries in her giveaway contest.

·       Band together with other authors. I’ve seen some debut authors form groups to support each other and help market each other’s books. Finding a small group of authors who write in your genre and are publishing books in the same year as you could open new opportunities for you.

·       Connect locally. Reach out to your local bookstores and libraries to see if they’ll stock your book. If you live in a metro area or there are nearby cities, reach out to them, too. You might also want to network with local nonprofits and offer your book as an auction item (maybe in a reading-theme basket) to reach new potential readers. 

Interview with Stacey Lee 

Hi Stacey! Thanks so much for joining us. I’m so excited you’re here. 

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer.

Thank you so much for having me—Literary Rambles was one of my first interviews back when my first book UNDER A PAINTED SKY came out and I’m so glad we’re both still here!

I honestly don’t remember a time when I wasn’t writing. I was a quiet, shy kid who found refuge in books and was always fiddling with a story of my own—whether it was about my sister’s canker sore, the spotty banana in my lunch, or the mean girl who took my cupcake. 

I grew up wanting to be a writer, but my parents encouraged me to think of it as a hobby rather than a serious career. So I did what many people do: I pursued a practical profession and wrote on the side. I worked as a lawyer for nearly a decade, writing early mornings, late nights, and weekends, sending out manuscripts and collecting rejections, until a publisher finally took a chance on me. Now I write historical fiction for young people, often centering girls who have slipped through the cracks of the historical record—and I’m deeply grateful I didn’t stop writing while I waited for that door to open.

2. Yes, it was a guest post with your agent. I can’t believe how many authors are former lawyers. I understand it as I’m a retired author. Where did you get the idea for Heiress of Nowhere? 

The seed of Heiress of Nowhere began with a question about fate and connection. How much of who we are comes down to chance—where we’re born, who raises us, what we inherit, not just materially but emotionally and historically? From there came the image of a baby arriving by canoe on a remote island, with no knowledge of where she came from, and a young woman who grows up feeling unmoored. Once I placed her on an isolated island and gave her an unexpected inheritance, the mystery followed naturally. Her search for a murderer runs parallel to her search for her own identity. 

3. In your author’s note, you mention that you’ve always written stories that you know, and that Heiress of Nowhere was the first book you wrote where this wasn’t true. Why did you decide to write outside of your comfort zone, and what additional challenges did you face writing this story? 

I never let unfamiliarity with a setting deter me, but with Heiress of Nowhere, I was stepping into unfamiliar territory not just geographically, but tonally. This was my first gothic novel, and gothic thrives on atmosphere, uncertainty, and a quiet sense of unease. 

The biggest challenge was learning to trust that uncertainty—allowing questions to linger and letting folklore and fear exist alongside realism. As a people pleaser, the idea of making readers uncomfortable made me uncomfortable. But I’ve come to believe that a good book should unsettle you just enough—and then reward you with moments of intrigue, beauty, or even delight so you’ll keep turning pages. I had to trust readers to sit with ambiguity rather than rushing them toward neat answers.

4. Well, you wrote a great story. I loved that your book was set in Orcas Island and other nearby islands (some made up) in the Pacific Northwest. What made you choose this setting, and what research did you have to do into the sea life, rare plants, other aspects of the setting, and the 1918 time period?

Setting always goes hand in hand with story for me. I spent time in the Pacific Northwest in my twenties and was struck by how the land and sea feel constantly in conversation with each other. Orcas Island offered isolation and beauty, along with the sense that nature could be both life-giving and capable of swallowing you whole. 

For research, I visited the islands, spoke with historians, naturalists, and artists, and immersed myself in early 20th-century newspapers. I toured a cannery and learned far more than I ever wanted to know about how salmon was processed—knowledge that will stay with me forever, whether I like it or not. I also took educational boat tours focused on wildlife conservation, particularly orcas and marbled murrelets, and learned about native plants and the realities of island life in 1918, including the shadow of World War I and the Spanish flu. All of it helped ground the story in a very specific time and place

5. Wow! That’s a lot of research. Like many of your books, Heiress of Nowhere involves a murder mystery. How did you learn to write them? What advice do you have for other writers wanting to write a murder mystery?. 

I thought it would come naturally because I love reading mysteries. It turns out that reading mysteries for enjoyment and analyzing them to understand how they’re constructed are two very different things. Kill Her Twice was my first murder mystery, and it taught me how to plant clues, build tension, and misdirect without cheating the reader. Heiress of Nowhere pushed those skills further, because the mystery had to operate alongside atmosphere, folklore, and a very isolated setting. 

I’ve learned that a mystery only works if it’s driven by character. The crime has to matter emotionally, not just intellectually. My advice to writers is to work backward—know your ending, understand your characters’ motivations deeply, and remember that suspense often comes as much from what characters fear as from what they discover.

6. I really agree with you that the best mysteries have memorable characters. Not all do. Lucy is a very compelling character that readers can’t help but root for. Talk about how you developed her as a character. Did you pretty much know who she was when you started writing your story?

I always begin with a central truth about a character. For Lucy, that truth was that she felt unmoored—she had no knowledge of her origins and was tired of not knowing where she belonged. That feeling isn’t a personality, so as the story unfolded, Lucy revealed herself through her choices. In the first chapter, she’s alone in a canoe sketching an orca—that told me she was observant, bold, and comfortable with risk. I didn’t know everything about her at the start, but I trusted the story to ask questions that would force her to answer them.

Your Road to Publication 

7. Kristin Nelson is your agent. How did she become your agent?

Kristin became my agent after reading the third manuscript I had queried her with, which is to say—it took time, persistence, and a healthy tolerance for rejection. At the time, publishers weren’t especially interested in stories centered on people of color, but Kristin believed the story I was telling deserved to be out in the world and was willing to take that risk with me. What I appreciated right away was her editorial insight and her long-term perspective. She wasn’t just thinking about a single book, but about building a career, and that belief made all the difference.

8. Since your debut book, Under the Painted Sky, was released in 2015, you’ve published nine young adult books and three middle grade books. Besides writing good stories, which of course is always essential, how have you grown your career as an author? What advice do you have for other authors?

Writing good stories is always the foundation, but beyond that, I’ve learned to pay attention to what genuinely sustains me creatively. One concrete example is writing middle grade novels alongside young adult books—not because it was a strategic career move, but because I truly love middle grade. Those books allowed me to lean into wonder, curiosity, and voice in a different way, and they reminded me why I started writing in the first place. 

I’ve also learned that careers grow unevenly. Some books resonate more than others, some risks pay off quietly, and some take time to find their readers. My advice to other authors is to think long-term: follow the work that keeps you engaged, stay open to learning, and don’t measure success solely by immediate results. A sustainable career is built as much on creative fulfillment as it is on external milestones.

Promoting Your Book 

9. That’s great advice. And I can see why also writing middle grade stories would be a strategic move. I saw on your website that you have a book launch and several book festival events to celebrate the release of your book. How were they scheduled? How has your approach to marketing your books changed over the years?

Most of my events are scheduled with the help of my publisher, publicist, and the wonderful booksellers and festival organizers who support my work. Early in my career, I felt pressure to say yes to everything, but over time I’ve learned to be more intentional about how I show up. For example, I’ve discovered that improv-style events—which require quick banter and thinking on your feet—are absolutely not my natural habitat, and I avoid them whenever possible. 

What I do love are quieter, more meaningful interactions: talking with librarians in signing lines, having thoughtful conversations with readers, and visiting schools and libraries where stories are taken seriously. As my approach to marketing has evolved, I’ve learned that the most effective outreach is also the most authentic—focusing on connection rather than performance, and choosing events that don’t require me to pretend I’m someone I’m not.

10. What are you working on now? 

Right now I’m in the imagination-and-research stage—part dreaming, part very practical investigation. I’m trying out ideas, asking what kind of research they’ll require, how accessible that research is, what’s been written before, and what might still need to be told. It’s less about daydreaming and more about actively chasing stories to see which ones can hold up over time. I just ordered a stack of ship diagrams, which feels like a promising sign—or at least an entertaining one. 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Stacey. You can find Stacey at: 

https://www.facebook.com/staceylee.author/

Instagram: @staceyleeauthor

Website: www.staceyhlee.com 

Giveaway Details

Stacey’s publisher is generously offering a hardback of Heiress of Nowhere for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower of my blog (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment by February 14th. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address. 

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites and/or follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or follow Stacey on her social media sites, mention this in the comments, and I'll give you an extra entry for each. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This book giveaway is US. 

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Monday, March 9, I have an interview with Ciera Burch and a giveaway of her MG Olivia Gray Will Not Fade Away 

Wednesday, March 11, I have an agent spotlight interview with Lindsey Aduskevich and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, March 16, I’m participating in the Chasing Rainbows Giveaway Hop 

Monday, March 23, I have a guest post by Aaron Starmer and a giveaway of his MG You Are Now Old Enough to Hear 

Wednesday, March 25, I have an agent spotlight interview with Rob Broder and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, March 30, I’m participating in the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop 

I hope to see you on Monday!