Lucky 13: 13 Tips On Becoming a Stronger Writer by Author Carol Lynch Williams

Happy Wednesday, Everyone! Today I’m excited to have author Carol Lynch Williams here to share her tips on becoming a stronger writer. Carol is also the co-founder of Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers, www.WIFYR.com, which will be having an online fall conference. Carol shares some info about it and a link to register if you’re interested in her post. 

Now here’s Carol! 

 

 

There are lots of things you can do to make your stories stronger and it doesn't take that much effort. 

Lucky Thirteen—Thirteen Tips to Help You Become a Better Writer

Learn to write. People who dash off a story without thought, practice, or effort, clog the market place. You might have a fantastic idea but if you don't know how to write, you're not going to get the attention you could. So learn the craft. Lots of today’s suggestions can help you improve as a writer.

Come to conferences where professionals speak, listen to what they say, use their advice to help you become an expert. And what do you know! This October 24, 25, and 26, Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers is running a workshop with some amazing teachers including editors Joy Peskin and Jill Davis. Agents Stephen Fraser and Amy Jameson will also be in attendance. This 12-hour online intensive will talk about everything from plotting to voice. You can check out the lineup here: https://www.wifyr.com/online-intensive-workshop-2024

Read like crazy. William Faulkner said to read everything you can get your hands on and I almost agree with him 100%. I think you should read the very best books. Bad or weak writing is easy writing and it’s easy to imitate. Make sure the books you read are well-told and well-written. You can learn the craft of writing by reading excellent writers like MT Anderson, Tim Wynne-Jones, Ann Dee Ellis, Martine Levitt, Holly Black--the list goes on and on. 

Write what you know. When I say this, I don't mean you mustn’t write anything you don't know about. Research can make an event live and breathe for you.

When you write what you know (because of experience or research), you put your heart on the page. This connects your character with your reader. They’ll understand what you're saying because you have been there, done that.

Exercise: Take 30 minutes to brainstorm all the things you would love to write. These could be things you want to explore--ideas for books of nonfiction--or things you already know. As you jot down your ideas, write your connection-your heart-and why this idea means something to you.

Show don’t tell. Let's be honest. You can't show everything that happens in a novel. There just isn't time. But it’s important to let your character be a participant in the novel and not a newscaster. Your main character should not tell the reader the story. They should experience the story. Showing important scenes is crucial to the forward movement of the story.

Setting and sense of place. Have you ever read a book and you're not quite sure where you are in time and place? That’s often because the author hasn’t established the setting. We don't need pages and pages of description to let a reader know where they are in our book of fiction. But once we have set up where the book takes place and where our main character is, we must remind the reader. This is when sense of place becomes important. Use all five senses –sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch--to remind the reader where they are. 

There are novels that are written specifically for setting. When you're writing for kids, though, don’t go overboard setting up place. If your main character is in a desert, let us know what they see and feel in that desert. Once you've done that, remind the reader where they are two or three times a page. Yes, every page! They can talk about the heat of the sun. Or how thick the sand is to walk through. Or how it's hard to grow a garden in the desert. This will keep your reader grounded in place.

Exercise:

List ten places you have lived. Give details. Think about the way it felt to be outside, in your bedroom, at school. Use the five senses when describing these places.

For me, emotion is the most important part of a novel. It goes back to writing what you know. If you understand a specific event then you can put the emotion of that event on the page. What is it like to lose someone you love? What is it like to break up with someone you thought you would be with forever? What is it like to laugh so hard you can't breathe? What is it like to be mortified? We’ve all felt these things.

As a writer you do all the work that a camera in a film does. You capture dialogue, place, and emotion. Always ask yourself,  “What does this character feel?”

This means you have to mine the emotion they experience, not to be a surface level writer. Instead, dive into the heart of the event, into the heart of the character. When you do, you connect with the reader.

Exercise: Every day for one month, allow yourself to experience an emotional event from the past. Write about this experience. Put every word, emotion, and etc that deals with this emotional experience on the page. Remember, that later, editing is your best friend. But right now you are just learning how to mine your emotions so that you can write a stronger, richer character.

Make Your Words Work. Every word needs to drive toward the climax of the novel. Anything that is extra, filled with fluff, or is an aside, etc. etc.? It’s time to get rid of it. Structurally, you want to get in, get out, and get it over with. 

Spend your words like money. My mom was a writer. She never published a novel, but she wrote like crazy. Often, in her classroom, she would tell her creative writing students to spend their words like money. Imagine you're paying five dollars for every word you put on the page. If you're writing a 40,000 word novel, that means you would pay $200,000 to write the book. Save ‘money’ and your story, but cutting the extra words.

Don’t be preachy. Just tell your story. If there’s a lesson to learn, it’ll come out. I knew someone who wanted to save the world with her writing. She wept when she told me her goal. And I couldn't discount that she really believed what she was saying. But few want to feel like they are learning something when they’re reading fiction.

Kids read for a number of reasons. One of them is to experience something they would never experience on their own and to see a main character survive and do well. No lessons are needed. 

Subhint: Your truth will come out. Write your heart. Make the reader care and do it in as few words as possible. My Book of Life by Angel is a book that does just this.

Ask yourself questions as you write.

Why is this happening?

Why is my character doing this?

Why is this story headed in this direction?

Why am I the best person to write this book?

Ask:

Why do I want to be a writer?

How important is this to me?

What matters most to me when I write?

Keep asking yourself questions through the whole novel.  

       What does my character want? 

       What does she want more than anything?          

       What will she do if? 

       What is the hardest thing for her to lose?

Subhint-Torture your character. It’s your job to make hard things happen. This way your character can change, grow, and prepare to meet the climax of the novel.

Watch your language. Use ‘ly’ words sparingly. :D I'm not talking about words like family, fly, and early but those dreaded adverbs. Often the description is weak. So what can you do instead? The key is to use stronger verbs. ‘He ran quickly’ could be ‘He raced.’ ‘She whispered softly.’ Whispering is soft, isn't it? When I go through my manuscript, I find I can lose almost every single ‘ly’ word

Subhint—The following words can, almost always, be pulled from the text. 

·       Was-ing words can go from two words to one. (I was running = I ran)

·       Start and began —I started to cry = I cried. Just let the action happen.            

·       Words like “that, well, um, just” 

·       I wondered and I thought, especially in a first person manuscript.

·       Sit down, stand up-Unless this is an unusual place, when we sit, we sit down and when we stand, we stand up.

Tags are the ‘he said, she said’ of a sentence. A tag’s job is to let the reader know who’s speaking. Don't use your tag to say somebody spoke quietly. Let your writing do that work instead. Don't use your tag to say someone barked as it is almost impossible for a person to truly bark out words – unless your main character is a dog. They don’t hiss a sentence and they don’t guffaw a sentence. ‘You know what I’m saying here,” she said happily.

 Subhint: Let the scene around your character help set the stage. Let your writing--those perfectly crafted sentences--do the hard work.

Make time for what you love. Some writers won't allow themselves the opportunity to write until after they have done every other chore/job they have in a day. I've been like this, too, for the last five years with my full-time job.

This means I'm not giving my best time to what I love to do most. That’s changing for me now. For the next few weeks I’m renewing an old habit I had: writing first thing in the morning.

On October 12, 2024 we have a free online event with a class on writing every day. www.wifyr.com/wifyrwrimo

 My friend Scott Rhoades has written every day for more than six years. I’m six years behind and I won’t catch up, but I’ll be writing again and what’s better than that?

Carol Lynch Williams is the author of more than 30 books for young readers including Waiting, Messenger, and The Chosen One.  She teaches creative writing at a local university and is a mentor. Carol is also the co-founder of Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers, www.WIFYR.com. The best part of her life are her five daughters and her incredible Baby Bubs.

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops

Monday, September 23rd I have an interview with debut author Dionna Mann and a giveaway of her MG Mama's Chicken and Dumplings

Wednesday, September 25^th I have an agent spotlight interview with Amy Thrall Flynn and a query critique giveaway

Tuesday, October 1st I’m participating in the Scaredy Cat Giveaway Hop

Wednesday, October 2nd I have a guest post by author Tracy Bilen and a giveaway of her YA thriller Whisper and my IWSG post

Saturday, October 5th I’m participating in the Howl-O-Ween Giveaway Hop

Monday, October 7th I have an agent spotlight interview with Leslie Zampetti and a query critique giveaway

I hope to see you on Monday!

On Continuing to Write and Publish New Books: Interview with Sally J. Pla and Invisible Isabel Giveaway

Happy Monday Everyone! Today, I’m thrilled to have author Sally J. Pla here to share about her newest MG contemporary, Invisible Isabel. Sally is an award-winning author. Her newest release sounds like a book that many middle graders and some adults (including me) can relate to. I’m really looking forward to reading it.

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads:

In this illustrated middle grade novel by Schneider Award-winning author Sally J. Pla, introverted Isabel Beane learns how she can speak up to help quiet the worries she feels. For fans of Elana K. Arnold and Leslie Connor.

Isabel Beane is a shy girl who lives in a home full of havoc and hubbub and hullabaloo. With five siblings, there is too much too much-ness.

At the same time, there’s a new girl at school who is immediately popular, but she’s also not very nice to one person—Isabel.

Isabel has never felt more invisible. She has so many fears: being abandoned by her old friends at school, having to speak to strangers in public, taking the upcoming Extremely Important standardized test. Her fears feel like worry-moths that flutter in her belly. With every passing day, it seems like they get stronger and stronger. How can Invisible Isabel make people listen?

Hi Sally! Thanks so much for joining us.

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

Like Isabel, I didn’t have much success with “talking” as a means of communication, when I was an undiagnosed autistic kid, back in the 1970s. So, writing things down, scripting out conversations in advance, making up stories to either prepare for something or assess how something went wrong  – “writing” was crucial to me for survival. 

As I got older, things got easier. I became a journalist, a business magazine editor, a freelance corporate writer. But I always yearned to write meaningful, artful fiction. Two things finally made it happen. 

(1)  I became a library aide in my neurodivergent sons’ school, and realized there were NO books that respectfully represented their different brain wiring, their lived realities. No respectful disability books at all, really. No true modern representation. I started dreaming about how I might fill that need.

(2)   I got a cancer diagnosis, which made me reevaluate priorities. I decided my life’s legacy was not going to be a pile of downstream marketing reports. I needed to give myself permission to dream bigger. So, I started a fiction-writing career in middle age. 

2. I’m sorry you were diagnosed with cancer, but it’s great how you decided to focus on what’s really important to you. Where did you get the idea for Invisible Isabel and how much did you draw on your own experiences in middle school in creating your story? 

Isabel is very much me. The story idea grew from the notion of butterflies. 

I’d dreaded school as a child. It was a perfectly decent suburban school, with kind teachers. But I was super-sensitive, so school was a cacophony of screeching bells and flickering lights and shouts and noises and startling movements and bewildering expectations. 

On the bus each morning, I’d get anxiety palpitations, as if something was tumbling and fluttering in my chest. I told my grandmother, who tried to dismiss it. She said, “Oh, pshaw, that’s just a regular old case of the butterflies.” 

But it didn’t feel like “butterflies.” Butterflies were delicate and pretty. This felt more like big, scary, heavy, dusty worry-moths flapping around inside me! And that’s what I imagined they were. I scared myself with my own imagination. Isabel does the same. In the book, it’s humorous—but the sensations of fear are real, as anyone with anxiety knows. 

Anxiety is on the rise. Learning to name and tame your anxiety, and to understand your mind-body connection, learning to face fears: these are all parts of Isabel. 

3. I so agree with you that more kids and adults are anxious these days. What made you decide to write this story as a novel in verse and what were some of the challenges you faced in writing it in verse rather than prose? 

I wanted to lift the subject matter with a light touch, with simple, wry, quiet humor. Spare text. I wanted the illustrations to do some of the lifting. (Tania de Regil did the lovely illustrations). Verse forced me to be economical, to keep to the important bits. I loved the discipline of that. 

Your Writing Process and How You Continue to Write and Publish New Books 

4. What is your plotting process like, and how has it changed since you wrote your debut book, The Someday Birds, in 2017?

I haven’t really changed my “technique” (I use that term loosely) since The Someday Birds.

I start plotting by spilling out a rough summary, everything I can think of, start to finish. Then I look to see where it could divide into acts. It always seems to naturally fall into 3 or 4 acts. Then, I more properly think through the scenes needed in each act. I revise and finesse those scenes. And through all this, I know it all might drastically change. 

Then, I call a friend of mine who’s a screenwriter and a whiz with structure. She helps me with my projects and I help her with hers. I highly recommend finding an “idea-sparring partner” friend like this. We laugh, argue, shout, point out problems and pluses, laugh some more. We get really excited! It’s always a super fun conversation and leaves me stimulated and full of ideas and eager to start. 

Finally, I open a nice fresh word doc and start. I spend an inordinate amount of time finessing the first 50 pages until everything feels right—character, voice, setting, pacing, action, inner and outer conflict. Like ‘locking in the coordinates’ of the ‘battleship’ of the book, getting the prose pointed in the right direction. 

Or does that sound too clunky or mechanical? What all this is for, what I want the book to feel like, is organic: a symphony that starts with the hum of a single mysterious note and then grows in waves of interweaving harmonious/dissonant strands. And now maybe that sounds pretentious, haha. I know I may never accomplish this! But it’s what I want... 

5. How awesome that a friend and you help each other out. Since The Someday Birds released, you’ve published three middle grade novels—Stanley Will Probably Be Fine, The Fire, The Water, and Maudie McGinn, and Invisible Isabel—and two picture books—Benji, The Bad Day, and Me, and Ada and Zaz. How long did it take you to write these books, and what is your writing schedule so you continue to produce so many picture books and middle grade novels? 

It takes me the better part of nine months to a year to write a roughly 55,000-word MG novel draft. I have contracts now so I have to be expedient. I usually know well in advance what my next story will be about. 

Honestly, if I am not working in some way on a story, I feel at a loss. My brain loves the structure and focus of a gainful project. I like to stay occupied. I like to have part of my brain always living in a story world. Having a place to dream is what helps me cope with the world-world. 

6. What’s your advice to other writers on how to keep getting published after a debut book and how to write fast enough to keep having books to sell? 

What is your compelling reason? Why do you write? Identify that. What do you care about, what do you want to convey? What are you trying to say? Do you have a platform of some sort? Are you filling a need or a want in some unique or meaningful way, or in a fun entertaining way? What’s the goal? Know this, and writing toward this, helps define you and your readership and your ‘niche.’ 

For me, my mission is to populate children’s literature with as many natural, nuanced, authentic, neurodivergent characters as I can, so that more young readers can see themselves authentically and genuinely reflected in a story. Representation matters. I believe in this passionately. I care deeply about our children with extra challenges. 

There is such a need. Disability representation as a whole, according to the CBCC’s last data, was at about 3 percent of books published. Neurodiversity is even less—maybe somewhere around one percent. I want these children to see themselves in stories. I want to represent the unrepresented. 

Your Journey to Publication 

7. Wow! That’s such great advice. You’re represented by Sara Crowe Literary. How did you get your agent and what was your road to publishing your first book like? 

I adore not only the amazing Sara, but so many of her writer-clients! I love nuanced, sensitive, intelligent stories of contemporary realism, and Sara represents some of the top such writers working today! I came to Sara via Pippin Properties, and before that, Full Circle Literary. I’ve had to change agents in the past because they’ve moved on to different careers, or I’ve moved, or situations just changed. This happens. It’s a tough business, and important to be flexible, as well as philosophical. And to try to be kind, and treat everyone respectfully, and never burn bridges if you can help it. 

My road to publishing my first book (The Someday Birds) was quick and exciting. I was lucky. It sold fast and there were bids. 

8. Has the submission process changed at all over the years for you? If so, how? 

Starting out as a debut, you must cast your submission net very widely. But if you are lucky, after a while, you might find a “home:” a stable editor-author relationship at a publishing house you love. And then the submission process becomes more customized. 

I think I have finally found that with my wonderful editor, Alexandra Cooper. She is the best. I’m so grateful to her and Exec VP Rosemary Brosnan for their warm support at Quill Tree Books (HarperCollins). Quill Tree lifts up underrepresented voices. I love this imprint, and adore its team of brilliant and dedicated people. I hope I can work on many more books with them, even as I acknowledge that publishing is TOUGH, and full of changes no one can predict.  

Promoting Your Book 

9. How are you planning to promote Invisible Isabel? How has your marketing of your books changed since you were a debut author and why did you make those changes? 

As a kid, I quit Girl Scouts because I could not handle selling cookies. Just so you know: I am not a seller! 

So I did not do much marketing for my first two books, beyond throwing a launch party (which was fun!) and doing just a few events and online guest posts. I did work hard to build my connections with educators and booksellers. I think this is very important. Help the teachers find your book, and offer them whatever help you can, if they decide they want to use it in their classroom. I prioritize that. 

This time around, I’ve spent some of my advance to hire local book publicists at Blue Slip Media, and they’ve been lovely to work with. They are putting together a little media kit for Isabel – it will even have a little felt “worry moth” that my artist-friend Emily is making. 

Will this move the needle of sales at all, for Isabel? Probably not. But it’s fun, and it will bring some smiles. 

My publisher submits my books for trade reviews and distributes advanced review copies (sometimes hard copies, sometimes only electronic), and they focus on school and library, which is wonderful. I’m the one who’s responsible for guest posts, social media, school visits, book tours, other appearances, etc. I am doing as much of that as I can. 

I don’t travel much, as I have some physical disabilities, plus it is a sensory burden, and I feel badly about that – that I don’t have the resilience to travel more right now. Connecting with young readers in person is the best part, and sadly, the rarest part of my job right now. But I am always available if an educator wants a virtual classroom visit. 

10. It’s good to know that you can figure out a way that works for you to market your books. What advice do you have for authors, especially those who are starting their author career, about marketing their books? 

The most important thing you can do is to write an absolute stunner of a great book. The best, most perfect book you are capable of. Seriously. 

All the other things, the guest posts, the social media outreach, the bookstore visits, etc etc – these things may not move the needle as much as you first think. I’d say, just relax, and do what you can. Go for it, if that’s your thing – but don’t feel guilty, if it’s not your thing. 

If you can maintain the mindset that this business isn’t really about just selling units, but about making connections and serving young people in some meaningful way, then I suspect you will be happier with your children’s writing career in the long run! Anything else is pure gravy. 

11. What are you working on now? 

A new upper middle grade tentatively titled Rowan and Gemma. Two 9^th graders fall innocently in love in the high school special ed room, unbeknownst to their parents, who are starting a petty political war, splitting the once-harmonious town of Friendship Prairie, and setting neighbor against neighbor. It should be out sometime in 2025! 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Sally. 

Sally J. Pla is a San Diego-based autistic children's author and advocate whose 2023 novel, The Fire, The Water, and Maudie McGinn, won the  ALA Schneider Award for its literary depiction of disability. Her 2024 novel, Invisible Isabel, pubbed July 9.  Find out more about her at sallyjpla.com. You can find Sally at: 

sallyjpla.com (author website)

Instagram  (@sallyjpla)

anovelmind.com (resource website)

https://linktr.ee/SallyJPla  (media links, more) 

Giveaway Details 

Sally’s publisher is generously offering a hardback of Invisible Isabel 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 August 3rd. If your email is not on 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 your blog and/or follow me on Twitter or follow Sally 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 U.S. 

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

Monday, July 29th I have an agent spotlight interview with Sheila Fernley and a full picture book or three-chapter MG or YA critique and a one-hour Zoom call giveaway 

Thursday, August 1st I’m participating in the Apple a Day Giveaway Hop 

Wednesday, August 7th I have an interview with co-authors Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows and a giveaway of their YA My Salty Mary 

Monday, August 12th I have an agent spotlight interview with Erica McGrath and a query critique giveaway 

Friday, August 16th I’m participating in the Old School Giveaway Hop 

Monday, August 19th I have an interview with author Julie Abe and a giveaway of her MG Tessa Miyata Is So Unlucky 

I hope to see you on Monday!

 

On Plotting Out and Marketing a Paranormal Thriller: Interview With Stacy Stokes and The Darkness Rises Giveaway and IWSG Post

Happy Wednesday Everyone! Today I’m excited to have author Stacy Stokes to share about her new YA paranormal thriller The Darkness Rises. I love thrillers and fantasy/paranormal stories set in a contemporary world like Stacy’s new book, and I am looking forward to reading it.

Here’s a blurb of Darkness Rises from Goodreads:

A gripping speculative thriller perfect for fans of Lauren Oliver and Ginny Myers Sain, about one girl with the power to see death before it happens--and the terrible consequences she faces when saving someone goes wrong.

SOMEONE WANTS REVENGE…

Whitney knows what death looks like. Since she was seven, she’s seen it hover over strangers’ heads in dark, rippling clouds. Sometimes she can save people from the darkness. Sometimes she can’t. But she’s never questioned if she should try. Until the unthinkable happens—and a person she saves becomes the perpetrator of a horrific school shooting.

Now Whitney will do anything to escape the memory of last year’s tragedy and the guilt that gnaws at her for her role in it. Even if that means quitting dance—the thing she loves most—and hiding her ability from her family and friends. But most importantly, no one can know what really happened last year.

Then Whitney finds an ominous message in her locker and realizes someone knows her secret. As the threats pile up, one thing becomes clear—someone wants payback for what she did. And if she’s going to survive the year, she must track down whoever is after her before it’s too late.

Before I get to Stacy’s interview post, 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: Victoria Marie Lees, Kim Lajevardi, Nancy Gideon, and Cathrina Constantine!

Optional Question: How do you deal with distractions when you’re writing? Do they derail you?

Before I answer the question, I want to share some news about my job. A miracle occurred a few weeks ago and I got a raise after 10 years. I write on contract for this web marketing firm, so I know contractors don’t get raises often or at all. I’m grateful that I got one because I can make a decent hourly rate writing now. And even though it isn’t as creative as writing stories, I’ve already made over $100,000 over the years at my job where I get to write almost all of the time. The raise has made me feel a lot better about my job.

Since I live alone and work at home, I don’t really have that many distractions unless I create them. I learned long ago as a busy lawyer not to get distracted when I’m working. So it’s not really a problem for me. Once I get going on writing an article for work or work on my manuscript, I can stay pretty focused. y bigger problem is volunteering too much with the community theatre group I'm on the board of and not leaving enought time for my writing and myself. 

Interview With Stacy Stokes

Hi Stacy! Thanks so much for joining us.

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

First, thank you so much for having me! I’ve been a longtime follower of your blog and am thrilled to be here. Your agent spotlights were such a tremendous help to me when I was querying—thank you.

As for me, I grew up in a house full of readers. My mom was never without a book (she used to carry paperbacks in her purse) and as a kid much of my summer was spent inside the library. I started writing stories when I was six, and when I was in sixth grade tried my hand at writing my first novel. It was terrible and I don’t think I made it past a few chapters, but it was the beginning of a lifelong quest to write and publish books.

My mom’s favorite author was Stephen King and I was waaaaaay to young the first time I poked my head inside the book IT after finding a dog-eared copy on the coffee table. It scared the crap out of me, but it also sparked an interest in thrillers and stories with paranormal bends. When I discovered the YA shelf at the bookstore it was like I’d come home—I read every single Christopher Pike and R.L. Stine book I could get my hands on, so it’s probably not a huge surprise that my preferred genre is speculative and paranormal thrillers.

After starting and stopping many an unfinished manuscript over the decades, in 2010 I finally completed one that I thought had publishing potential and made my first dive into the query trenches. It ultimately wasn’t the book that landed me my agent, but it was the book that taught me about revising and the importance of having good beta readers. From there, I joined a critique group and kept at it, and finally in the spring of 2021 my debut Remember Me Gone released with Penguin Random House. The Darkness Rises is my sophomore book with them.

2. I’m so glad to hear that Literary Rambles helped you in your agent search. Where did you get the idea for The Darkness Rises?

The initial idea for The Darkness Rises came when I was cleaning my apartment. Out of nowhere a line popped into my head: I was seven the first time I saw the darkness.

I knew immediately that I wanted to write a story about a girl who saw death before it happened in the form of a rippling black cloud, warning of danger. But beyond that initial nugget-of-an-idea, I had no idea how Whitney’s story would take shape.

Around the same time I was drafting the concept, news of another tragic school shooting broke. It was horrible, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. It started to creep into my story and made me wonder about Whitney and her gift. What would have happened if she had been at that school the day of the shooting? Could she have saved her classmates? What if she knew the shooter? From there, the rest of the story started to fall into place.

Your Writing Process and How You Plot Out a Paranormal Thriller

3. It’s awesome that a random thought was the spark of inspiration for your story. I love that you’re combining two genres—thriller and paranormal. How did you decide on the paranormal elements to add to your story?

I usually start with the concept for a story first, and for my paranormal stories that always involves a vision for the primary magical element. I knew that Whitney’s power would involve seeing black clouds hovering over people’s heads, warning of danger, before I had anything else figured out. Once I had that initial idea, I started to think about interesting situations to put Whitney in that would test her ability and make her question her worldview.

4. How did you plot out Darkness Rises? Would you make any changes to your plotting process? If so, why?

I’ve historically been a panster, so there wasn’t much plotting in the first draft. I usually have a few key scenes that I know I’m writing towards, but beyond that I let the book find me versus spending time outlining.

That process has generally worked for me…until this book. It took me many, many, MANY drafts before I had a fully fleshed out story that worked. If I had to go back in time, I would have spent more time plotting the main beats before drafting. It would have saved me from a lot of floundering. I’m happy to share that with more recent projects I have become an outliner as a result.

5. I’m moving to being more of an outliner too. Thrillers have to be well-plot out, have surprising twists, and be a page-turner. I haven’t really found many resources on how to write one. Share some of your tips for writing a thriller and any helpful resources for learning how to write one.

My first piece of advice is to read as many thrillers as you can get your hands on as if they are textbooks—what works? What doesn’t? This will help you get a sense for pacing and the primary plot beats that work best for the genre.

Where a mystery focuses on a crime that’s already happened, a thriller spends most of the book focused on a crime or threat that hasn’t yet occurred. That means the primary ingredient for any thriller is a sense of impending doom. As the writer, you want the danger to feel ever present, or at least lurking just beyond the boundaries of the page.

A great way to do this is to add some form of a ticking clock. In The Darkness Rises, this happens when Whitney is told to confess by the anniversary of her school’s tragedy, which only gives her a week to figure out who’s threatening her before her secret gets outted to the world. From that point on, both Whitney and the reader feel the creeping sense of urgency as time passes without a clear resolution.

Another important element to thrillers is to have a red herring. I like to do this in two ways. First, I always have an annoyingly obvious red herring—someone who’s so obviously the primary suspect that the reader knows they can’t be the actual villain. Second, I try to make every character just a little bit suspicious.

Having an annoyingly obvious red herring does a few things. First, it gives the protagonist a place to focus their energy so they can start to piece together clues. Second, it can serve as a diversion tactic once the clues start to take shape. There’s always a point in the story when the reader starts to home in on other suspects, including the real villain. This is the moment when you want to point the reader’s attention back to the annoyingly obvious red herring. Drop a clue that puts them center stage as the primary suspect once again. It’s a fantastic “look over here, look over here!” misdirection tactic.

As for making everyone a suspect, it doesn’t take much—all you need is the slight hint of a motive and the readers will fill in the rest themselves. Perhaps the best friend is mad because the main character keeps blowing them off.  Maybe the parent keeps disappearing without explanation, or the beloved dad leaves his bank statement out revealing his money troubles. And why does that favorite teacher show up at the farmer’s market around the same time something sinister happens? Ask yourself: how can you create a moment where each character acts a little sus, thereby making them a potential suspect to the reader? The more suspects you have, the more readers will flip pages trying to piece together the clues before the big reveal.

6. These are great tips. Darkness Rises also deals with issues of gun violence and school shootings. How did you weave these issues into your story without becoming preachy?

I think the first-person narrative helped, because it put the story in Whitney’s voice and forced me to explore her experiences vs. my own opinions about gun violence.  Whitney, at her core, is a brave girl who suffered a terribly tragedy and now must face her worst fears. Except she doesn’t realize how brave she is. She doesn’t understand that she’s recovering from trauma, and that she doesn’t have to suffer alone. It takes her most of the book to finally understand these things, and to realize that she’s forcing herself to suffer by letting her past become a prison. Leaning into her journey is what I think helps the story avoid preachy territory.

I’m also fortunate to have had two amazing editors in Kelsey Murphy and Want Chyi. They saw what this book could be and pushed me to dig deeper and write a story that was both a page-turning speculative thriller and an emotional resonate narrative exploring the impact of gun violence on communities. I’m so proud of this book, and it’s all thanks to their tireless commitment to make it the best story it could possibly be.

Your Journey to Publication

7. Joanna MacKenzie is your agent. Share how she became your agent and your road to getting your first book, Remember Me Gone and The Darkness Rises, published.

I actually queried The Darkness Rises many years before Remember Me Gone. It was a much different book back then and was no where near ready for publication, let alone an agent, but of course I didn’t realize it until the rejections started to pile up. I decided to put that version of The Darkness Rises in a drawer for a while to focus on writing Remember Me Gone.

When Remember Me Gone was ready to query, the first thing I did was pull up the list of agents I had queried with The Darkness Rises since I planned to revise that dusty manuscript. Joanna was on that list, and I remembered that she had sent me a nice, personalized rejection. I also saw from her manuscript wish list that one of her favorite books was Bone Gap, which was a comp title for Remember Me Gone. I sent my first batch of queries to her and eight other agents. She got back to me with an offer two weeks later. After a round of revisions, we went on sub. My editor offered a two book preempt a few weeks after that.

The way it’s written makes it sounds like everything happened over night, but it’s worth noting that I have a pile of unfinished manuscripts, queried two other books and racked up heaps of rejections before signing with Joanna. This business takes hard work and patience—I don’t know any authors who haven’t gotten bumps and bruises in the trenches. For anyone reading this currently slogging through queries and submissions, hang in there. Keep writing. The only way to ensure your dream comes true is to keep going.

8. It’s not always easy to get a second publishing contract and grow your career after your debut book. What do you think helped you publish a second book? What advice do you have for debut authors on growing their career as an author?

I was fortunate that my debut deal included a second book. When my editor offered on my debut, Remember Me Gone, she asked to see a pitch and first pages for any other speculative fiction projects I had available. At the time, I was revising The Darkness Rises, so I polished up my pitch and first two chapters. Thankfully my editor loved the concept, and my debut book deal became a two-book offer with a pre-approved premise for the second book.

Every writer has probably heard the piece of advice that the best thing you can do when querying or on sub is to write the next book. That advice could not be truer, and it’s because I kept writing while in the query and submission trenches that I had a second book to put on the table. So as cliché as it is, I have to repeat the same advice—keep writing. It’s the only way you can set yourself up for a long-haul writing career.

Promoting Your Book

9. What did you do to promote your debut book? How have your marketing plans changed for The Darkness Rises? Why did you make those changes?

For my debut, I joined forces with some of my fellow 22debuts to do group promotion and outreach. By combining efforts we were able to pool our resources and have a broader reach. We also cobbled together a list of libraries, bookstores and book influencers from around the country and reached out to them collectively. We were able to generate early reviews and some good word of mouth that way.

For The Darkness Rises, I decided to partner with a PR team to help with outreach. In addition to writing, I have a toddler and a demanding day job, so I knew that it wouldn’t be possible to do the level of promotion I did with Remember Me Gone without getting some outside help.

10. You also have a career in marketing. How has that helped you develop your social media platform and promote your books?

In truth, my day job and book marketing are very different. That said, there is one universal truth—if people don’t know about your product, they can’t buy it.

With this in mind, I shameless use my personal social accounts to make sure friends and acquaintances are aware of my launches and lean on friends to help post and amplify my messages. I also invested significant time into my website and newsletter as a way to collect emails from interested parties that want to hear about future projects.

The outreach I did for my debut has also turned out to be an effective way to market The Darkness Rises—I’ve been able to follow up to folks who responded to my debut outreach with news of my upcoming release, which will (hopefully) result in some early interest and good word of mouth.

11. What are you working on now?

My current work in process is a middle grade horror book about a murderous shadow and the girl it wants as a playmate. As a kid, I loved scary stories and I’ve always wanted to try my hand at writing something that would have kept ten-year-old Stacy awake into the wee hours of the morning. I’m having a ton of fun trying something new!

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Stacy. You can find Stacy at stacystokes.com and on IG @stacyastokes.

Giveaway Details

Stacy and her publisher are generously offering a hardback of Darkness Rises 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 May 11th. If your email is not on 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 your blog and/or follow me on Twitter or Stacy 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 U.S.

 Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops

Today, May 1st I’m also participating in Come What May Giveaway Hop. My post will be live today at 9:00 am.  

Monday, May 6th I have an agent spotlight interview with Miriam Cortinovis and a query critique giveaway

Wednesday, May 8th I have an agent spotlight interview with Jenniea Carter and a query critique giveaway

Monday, May 13th I have a guest post by debut author Sandy Green and a giveaway of her MG novel in verse Ghost Writers: The Haunting of Lake Lucy

Wednesday, May 15th I have a guest post by Rose Atkinson-Carter, a freelance writer for Reedsy

Thursday, May 16th I'm participating in the Moms Rock Giveaway Hop 

Monday, May 20th I have an agent spotlight interview with Caroline Trussell and a query critique giveaway 

I hope to see you comment on my other post today and on next Monday!