Happy Wednesday Everyone! Today I’m super
excited to have debut author Matt McMann here to share about his debut MG
monster mystery books, Escape From Grimstone Manor and The Snatcher of Raven
Hollow. I’ve never read a book that combined monsters and a mystery, and I’m
really looking to start this series.
I’m also excited to have Matt here because
his wife is Lisa McMann who has published 29 books, including the awesome
Unwanted series and Map of Flames. Many are on the New York bestseller list. In
addition, his daughter, Kennedy McMann, is the star of the Nancy Drew series on
CW. I love this series and am so sad that this is the last season. I really recommend
you watch it if you haven’t started it.
Here's a blurb of Escape From Grimstone Manor from Goodreads:
Here's the first book in a new series of terrifying tales that combine monsters + mysteries, perfect for fans of Goosebumps.
"Spine-chilling and creepy!" --Max Brallier, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Last Kids on Earth
In a mansion on a hill,
lived a man no one could kill.
Raised the dead with magic dark
to rule the world and make his mark.
Zari has always been fascinated by creepy stories about Hezekiah Crawly, the real-life inspiration behind her local amusement park's haunted house attraction, so she's thrilled when her friends Mateo and Taylor agree to go on the last ride of the day before the park closes.
But when the ride breaks down, the three get trapped inside the haunted house for the night! As if that weren't scary enough, the kids stumble onto a hidden staircase leading to a dark, cobwebbed crypt that doesn't seem like part of the ride--and by the looks of it, they aren't alone down there. Is it possible the stories about Hezekiah Crawly and his monstrous experiments are true? And if so, can Zari, Mateo and Taylor make it through the night in one piece?
Before I
get to Matt’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: Joylene Nowell Butler, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Meka James, Diane Burton, Victoria Marie Lees, and M Louise Barbour!
Optional Question: When you're working on a story, what inspires you?
That's a tough question for me because I don't get super excited about my writing anymore like I used to when I first started. Revising as I write new chapters helps me keep going when I'm struggling to write new words, which is almost a slow process for me. I also feel good when I see myself growing as I rework chapters and see them improve.
And I do get into a really good mindset when I'm working on a chapter. It can lift my spirits if I'm having a bad day.
Writer Tip
And here's a cool Writer Tip I shared on Monday in case you didn't see it. Hana Lee, a traditionally published
author, has created When do I
earn out?, a free web-based calculator. It will give you an estimate of how
many hardbacks, paperbacks, ebooks, and audiobooks you have to sell to earn out
your advance and also shows how much a publisher would earn in revenues. It’s
an eye-opener and a very helpful resource.
You can find out more about Hana and her
books on her website or on Twitter or
Instagram at @K_Hana_Lee on Twitter.
Interview With Matt McMann
Hi Matt!
Thanks so much for joining us.
1. Tell us
about yourself and how you became a writer.
Thanks so
much for having me! I grew up the youngest of three kids on a dirt road in
rural Michigan, met my wonderful wife Lisa in college, and we have two awesome
artistic kids—our son Kilian McMann is a freelance illustrator and graphic
designer and our daughter Kennedy McMann is an actor.
I wanted to
be an author since I won my 7th grade creative writing contest, but
I caught the music bug in high school, got my degree in Vocal Performance, and
was a professional musician for twenty-six years. When I burned out on music,
my wife suggested I return to my childhood dream of writing. We went to a
nearby hotel for the weekend, and she said we couldn’t go home until I wrote my
first chapter! That started me on a long journey of honing my writing, studying
the craft, and learning about the publishing industry. After years of
rejection, I got my first book deal, which was a lifelong dream come true.
2. Where
did you get the idea for Escape From Grimstone Manor and this series?
My author wife Lisa McMann (The Unwanteds series, The
Forgotten Five series) was reading an article aloud and mispronounced the word mysterious,
saying monsterious instead. I said, “That would be a great middle grade
book title,” and she replied, “No, it’s a whole series, and you should write
it.” I loved the idea of writing books that combine monsters and mysteries, so
I developed an anthology style series that can be read in any order, with each
book as a stand-alone spooky adventure with a unique cast of kid characters who
solve a mystery centered around monsters.
The idea for the first book, Escape from Grimstone Manor,
came from a photo I saw of a gargoyle statue advertising a spooky ride in an
amusement park. A haunted house theme park attraction sounded like a fun
setting for a Monsterious book, so I imagined what would happen if three
friends were trapped overnight in a spooky ride and discovered the monsters
were real. That became the jumping off point for the story.
Your
Writing Process
3. I love
how a photo gave you the idea for your first book. Are you a plotter or panster
or a combination of both? Share about your plotting process and tips for
writing a series like yours.
I’m still
figuring that out! I’ve written books both as a plotter and a panster, and
consider myself a combination of both who leans toward plotter. For the
Monsterious series, I outlined three of the four books I’ve written so far and
pants the fourth.
My typical
process begins with finding a catalyst idea for the story. For example, Monsterious
book two The Snatcher of Raven Hollow came from seeing an empty stroller
alongside the highway. My wife said, “What if there was a baby in there?” That
sparked the story of two friends who find an empty stroller and discover a
monster is behind the infant kidnappings in their small town—but no one
believes them.
Once I have
the big idea, I brainstorm possible scenes, plot points, jokes, bits of
dialogue, action sequences, anything I can think of related to the story. Then
I write a one-paragraph story pitch to show my agent and editor. Once they sign
off on a concept, I begin to build an outline. For the Monsterious books, I use
a method I learned from R. L. Stine’s writing course on MasterClass.com, and
write one summary paragraph per chapter. With the outline in place, I start the
first draft, writing at least 1000 words a day, six days a week. I start each
day’s writing session by editing what I wrote the day before, which gets me
back in the flow of the story, and by the time I’m done, I’ve already completed
my first edit.
Once the
first draft is finished, I do multiple self-edits passes to work on pacing,
plot holes, underdeveloped character or theme arcs, overall tightness and
punchiness, etc. When I’ve gotten it as clean as I can, I give it to my wife
Lisa to read. Once I make all her edits, I send it to my editor at Penguin Random
House. Before my book deal, my agent would also read and provide edit notes to
help me get the manuscript in shape for submission.
As for tips
on writing this type of series, a few things that early readers have enjoyed
about the Monsterious books are the quick pacing and short chapters, each
ending with a mini cliff hanger. Along with a dash of humor, those elements
really drive the story forward and keeps people turning pages.
4. I’m part
pantser/plotter too. I’m going to try some of your plotting techniques with my
next manuscript. I love mysteries and Escape From Grimstone Manor sounds like a
creepy one. How do you tackle the mystery aspect of your story to plant clues
but leave readers wondering till the end of the story?
That’s not
easy! Since Monsterious books are a combination of action / adventure and
mystery, my first consideration is getting that balance right, one that differs
from book to book depending on the premise. For example, the single location
setting and survival focus of Escape from Grimstone Manor (book 1) makes
that story heavier on action than mystery. In The Snatcher of Raven Hollow
(book 2), the focus is on discovering who is taking babies and why, which makes
that story heavier on mystery than action.
What works
best for me is starting with a clear picture of how I want to story to end.
That enables me to write toward it and think of clues and revelations to plant
organically throughout the book. That was a mistake I made in my first
unpublished manuscript—I hid too much from the reader along the way and had a
big info dump at the end, something my agent appropriately had me fix.
Once I’ve
completed the first draft, I go back and look at the clues and revelations. Are
they in the right places? Did I give not enough or too many? Is the solution to
the mystery too obvious or too obscure? My goal is to have the reveal be a fun
surprise for the reader yet one where they look back and think, “Oh, I see it
now!”
5. I read
in an interview that your wife is your writing coach. How awesome! How did
working with her improve your first book in this series?
I can’t
credit Lisa enough for the impact she’s had on my growth as a writer. It started
with me being actively engaged with her career over the last fifteen years,
reading all the edit letters she received, and having countless conversations
with her about plot and character development in her books. I learned so much
about the craft by osmosis. Then when I decided to start writing novels myself,
she edited all my early manuscripts, patiently coaching me on voice, pacing,
character depth, you name it.
The first
book in my series, Escape from Grimstone Manor, was actually the fourth book
I’d written. By then, most of Lisa’s lessons had sunk in which made that book
much cleaner, sharper, and well developed than my previous attempts.
6. You have
these two books being released on May 9th and Terror in Shadow Canyon being
released on August 22nd. While your books are a little shorter than some middle
grade books, it’s still a lot of hard work to get three books written and ready
for publication in your debut year. How did you write your manuscripts so fast?
What tips do you have for slow writers like me?
I learned from watching the best! Lisa is
a really fast writer, having published 30 books in 15 years. Having her as a
model helped me approach writing in a similar way, with the same expectation
for myself.
In terms of practical tips for writing
quickly, I think outlining really helps. It takes more time in the beginning,
but then the drafting goes much quicker. Using a daily minimum word count gives
me a clear goal and allows me to plan how long it will take to complete a
draft. For example, the target length for Monsterious books is 25,000 words, so
if I write at least 1000 words a day six days a week, I know I can complete the
first draft in a month. Finally, dedication to a routine is crucial for me.
Allocating the best part of my work day, the mornings, to my most important
task, writing, keeps me on track with my rapid publication schedule.
Your Road to Publication
7. Michael Bourret, who is also your wife’s agent, is
your agent. Share how he became your agent and what the process of going on
submission was like for you.
While
I was drafting my first book, Lisa and I were planning to meet Michael, already
her long-time agent, for dinner during a trip we were taking to Los Angeles.
Before we left, Lisa said, “Listen. We’re going to have dinner with Michael. At
some point, he’s going to ask you what you’re doing these days. You’re going to
tell him you’re working on a middle grade book, and you need to have a pitch
ready.” Taking her advice, I worked hard on a tight 15 second story pitch and
memorized it.
At
dinner, everything played out just as Lisa predicted. Michael asked what the
book was about and I gave my pitch. He said it sounded interesting and asked me
to send it to him. After he read the manuscript, he called me and said it had
potential but needed a lot of work. If I was willing to do the work, he was
willing to read it again. He then very graciously took an hour explaining all
the problems he saw. I took copious notes, made all the changes he suggested,
and sent it back. After the second read, he signed me as a client.
My
submission journey was a rocky one. Michael sent my first book to an editor as an
exclusive, meaning she had the first shot at it. She liked it but had some
issues, saying if I would work on it, she’d read it again. I made the changes
she requested, and she felt good about her second read and took it to her team.
I was thrilled. This was going to happen! And then it didn’t. Her team didn’t
buy in, and she decided to pass. Michael then sent the book out on a first wave
of submission to about a dozen editors. Then a second wave. Then a third. It
was out for submission for a year and everyone passed.
During
that painfully slow process, I wrote a second and third book. Michael stopped
sending book one, sent out book two, and gave me extensive edit notes on book
three. Book two got another long list of rejections. It was during all this that
I came up with concept for the Monsterious series. Given my previous experience
of rejections, I knew I wanted to pitch this idea differently, with a focus on
the series as a whole vs. a single book, so I wrote one full manuscript, two more complete outlines,
and five additional ideas for potential books in the series. Michael loved it,
stopped sending out book two, and presented the whole Monsterious “pitch
package” to Penguin Random House. They bought it immediately in a four book
deal. After years of rejections, it was a dream come true!
8. Your experience is definitely a lesson
on how perseverance pays off. I also read in an interview that you had to make
significant edits to your manuscript before Michael became your agent. Was the
process of making his recommended changes easy or hard for you? How did the
revisions make your stories stronger?
I honestly thought my first manuscript
would be a practice novel that I’d throw away, so when Michael thought it had
potential, I was more than happy to do the hard work of extensive edits. It was
a steep learning curve, but he has a strong editorial sense which gave me great
clarity on what needed to be done. The specific changes included adding about
15,000 words as he felt it was too short for fantasy adventure, having the
protagonists struggle longer to overcome the obstacles in their journey, and
spreading the revelations throughout the story vs. cramming them all in at the
end. Those revisions were what got the book in shape for submission.
Marketing
9. How are you planning to market Escape
From Grimstone Manor and The Snatcher of Raven Hollow? What advice do you have
for other authors about marketing their debut book?
Marketing is a many-headed beast that can
swallow you whole. It has felt very overwhelming at times. One of the hard
truths to learn is that you can’t do everything. Find things that fit your
schedule, interests, and budget, then work steadily at them over the long build
up to your book launch. If you wait until a month or two before your release,
you’ll be crushed under the weight of it all or simply unable to do much. Here
are some of the things I’m doing:
BOOKSELLERS – I created a bookseller
specific pitch for Monsterious and have given it in person to booksellers from over
100 bookstores in the last year, both during a book conference and on multiple
trips to different parts of the country. I collected their contact info, put
that in a database, then sent follow up emails reiterating my series pitch and
asking if they’d consider carrying Monsterious.
REVIEWERS – Through connecting with
teachers, librarians, and book review groups while sharing about my series on
social media, I’ve been able to schedule interviews (like this one!) and
podcasts. I sent advance copies of my first book to Twitter-based review groups
like #BookPosse and #BookAllies, who post and share their reviews of the book.
You all have been wonderfully supportive, and I’m so grateful!
MODERATING – I’ve built a relationship
with staff at my local indie bookstore Changing Hands and volunteered to
moderate another author who was doing an event there. That led to opportunities
to moderate and participate in author panels at Phoenix Fan Fusion (comic con),
and moderate an event with Shannon Messenger, the hugely popular MG author of
The Keeper of the Lost Cities series. Each event raised awareness of both me
and the Monsterious series.
TOURING – Working from my database of
contacts, in conjunction with my wonderful publicist at Penguin and a freelance
publicist I’ve hired, I’m organizing school visits, bookstore events, and festival
appearances, both in the weeks around my book launch and throughout the summer
and next fall.
SWAG – I’m working with my son Kilian
McMann, a professional illustrator and graphic designer at Great Raven Design
Co, to create a Monsterious trading card game, similar to Pokemon or Magic the
Gathering. I’ll promote these cards at my school visits and give them away to
kids who come to my bookstore events.
10. Thanks for sharing your detailed
marketing plan. It’s giving me a lot of ideas if I ever get published. What are
you working on now?
I recently completed edits on The Beast of
Skull Rock, the fourth Monsterious book and the last one currently under contract,
which publishes in January 2024. I have a lot of ideas for the series, so if
Monsterious finds an audience, there will be more books to come! In the
meantime, I’m focusing on marketing Monsterious and brainstorming ideas for new
books.
11. Can you tell us when we can see your
daughter in a new television show or movie and the details of where to find the
last season of Nancy Drew?
The fourth and final season of Nancy Drew,
starring my daughter Kennedy McMann as Nancy Drew, airs on May 31 on the CW network
and streaming on HBO Max. That show has completed filming, and Kennedy has
landed the lead in a proposed spinoff of the medical drama The Good Doctor
called The Good Lawyer on ABC! It’s about a brilliant young lawyer whose
struggles with OCD impact her personal and professional life. The pilot for
that show aired on March 13 as an episode of The Good Doctor, which streams on
Hulu. We’re waiting now with fingers crossed to hear if ABC will order The Good
Lawyer for its own series!
Fingers crossed for your daughter. Thanks
for sharing all your advice, Matt. You can find Matt at MattMcMann.com,
@matt_mcmann on Instagram and Twitter, and @matt.mcmann.1 on Facebook.
Giveaway Details
Matt’s publisher is generously
offering a paperback of Escape From Grimstone Manor 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 13th. 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 Matt
on his 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
Tomorrow, May 4 I’m participating in the Life’s a Beach
Giveaway Hop
Monday, May 8 I have an agent spotlight interview with Ellen Goff and a
query critique giveaway
Monday, May 15 I have an interview with debut author Jen St. Jude and a
giveaway of her YA contemporary speculative If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come
Tuesday, May 16 I’m participating
in the Mom’s Rock Giveaway Hop
Wednesday, May 17 I have an agent
spotlight interview with Kristina Perez and a query critique giveaway
Monday, May 22 I have an agent
spotlight interview with Natasha Mihell
and a query critique giveaway
Hope to see you tomorrow!
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