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Alice Allan – Author Q&A

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Alice Allan

Alice Allan

Alice Allan grew up in rural Devon but has lived and worked all over the world, writing about a lot of it. She’s the author of three published novels. Her most recent book for young adults is The Whispering Trees (Blue Poppy Publishing). It tells the story of teenage Liv, who hears a voice on a mysterious hill. The nature writer Robert Macfarlane called it “haunting, witty and witchy…a terrific book”

Alice can be found at:
Website: aliceallan.co.uk
Bluesky: @alicemeallan.bsky.social
Instagram: @alicemeallan

Were you a big reader as a child?

I was lucky enough to have a mother who read to me from an early age. By the time I was three, she’d read me all the Narnia books (I remember her doing all the voices and my anxiety when Aslan is strapped to the stone table), and once I got started with reading, I read everything I could get my hands on, some of it age appropriate, some not! From children’s literature, I still retain the shiver of books like Alan Garner’s The Owl Service and Susan Cooper’s The Dark is Rising which feature overlapping, invisible and sometimes menacing worlds, but I also enjoyed the pulpy fun of pony club adventure books, in which children run wild over the summer holidays, discovering mysteries and forming allegiances against dubious adults.

Tell me what inspired you to write your novel?

The Whispering Trees

The Whispering Trees

I first began The Whispering Trees not long after returning from living in Japan. During my 4 years in Tokyo, I hadn’t appreciated how much I would miss the countryside and how homesick I would be for Devon. On return, I was living in London, raising small children, but longing to be back where I had grown up. The book was a way to immerse myself back in the nature and scenery of the most beautiful county in the UK (OK, I’m biased). I returned to re-write the novel more recently, and found that its themes, which include the delicate balance of nature, and the role of farmers as stewards of the countryside, were more relevant than ever. The relationship between Annie and Liv in the book reflects my experience of the wise older women friends and mentors I’ve had in my life.

Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?

Although two of my published books are YA novels with a magic realist twist, my third (and debut novel) is a novel for adults. It’s set in Ethiopia, where I volunteered for 4 years on a neo-natal ward as a lactation consultant. It tells the story of a midwife who falls in love with an abandoned premature baby she does Kangaroo care with, and asks the question, how can you hold a baby next to your skin without it touching your heart? It’s got an element of the magical, seen though the visions of a damaged homeless man, but it’s firmly set in the streets of Addis Ababa, a city I grew to love, despite its chaos. The story is told from multiple perspectives, including that of the newborn baby. It’s this aspect that readers have particularly responded too and several people have told me the book has made them cry and re-evaluate how infants experience the world.

What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?

I’ve had a ‘portfolio career’ to say the least. We’ve travelled with my husband’s career a lot so I’ve had to re-invent myself quite a few times. I began as an actress, then became a corporate trainer. I worked as a lactation consultant for many years, and I now work in public health communications for the World Health Organization and as a narrator. It sort of all makes sense and I really enjoy the way that disparate experiences have come together around a career centred around a thread of communication, both written and oral. With so many words in my work-life, it’s hard to find the space to plot the next book, but everything has its season, and you can’t force it.

Which author(s) inspire you?

I have read everything Elizabeth Strout has written. I find her writing astonishing- the way she is able to draw such meaning from small gesture and detail, the universality of the mundane but powerful emotions she describes. Not much happens in the small community she writes about, but also, everything happens. The plot is incidental; it’s the journey and relationships of the protagonists that draw you in and stay with you. Her understanding of psychology and her confidence with her subject matter is impressive. I’d love to sit down with her for a chat about writing- she makes it look so easy.

What came first the characters or the world?

For The Whispering Trees, the landscape came first. In the book, a mysterious hill asks for help. The characters, Devon in-comer Liv with her stifled dreams of being a vet, and Old Annie Tilke, white witch and guardian of the hill’s secrets, came later.

How hard was it to get your first (debut) book published?

It took me years to get my first book published. I initially found an agent with a (still unpublished) YA book set in Japan. It almost got picked up by a very prestigious publisher, then didn’t. It was then touted to everyone under the sun but didn’t find a publisher. When I branched out to writing for adults, with my novel Open My Eyes, I parted ways with my agent and struggled to get a new one. Fortunately, I met Martin (of publisher Pinter and Martin) at a conference and he loved the book. It went on to win the People’s Book Prize for Fiction in 2018.

How long did your most recent book take to write?

The Whispering Trees took about a year to write, because I had small kids back then. I’d write in snatched moments, as a way to hold onto some of my inner world in a maelstrom of stay-and-plays and changing nappies. I’ve edited it a lot in the intervening years. That’s what takes the time.

What’s the favourite reaction you’ve had to your book?

Several mothers and teenage daughters have told me they’ve been fighting over their copy of The Whispering Trees- it’s great that it’s got that broad appeal.

How much (if any) say do you have in your book covers?

I was lucky to be given a lot of say in the cover of The Whispering Trees. It’s a lino print by Cornish artist Claire Armitage, and it perfectly expresses the landscape in which the book is set. The publisher and I worked with her to develop the image through a series of sketches. Then she went off and cut and printed the final design. She’s exceptional talented and I love her work.

Do you have a favourite bookshop?

I’m currently loving our local charity bookshop, the Sam Beare Bookshop in Egham, Surrey. It doesn’t feel like a charity shop- it’s well themed, there’s a great choice of books in good condition and so much attention is put into the displays. It’s a welcoming place too, with regular events and workshops that make it a bit of a cultural hub.

Do you have any rituals when writing?

I need silence, a clear desk and a whole day ahead of me in which to dream and scribble.

How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?

About 10. I’m half way through a number of books right now that I can’t make head-way with. My eyes are bigger than my stomach when it comes to finding the time and capacity to read.

What is your current or latest read?

I’m re-reading JA Baker’s The Peregrine. It’s so densely beautiful and inspirational that it is taking me some time.

Any events in the near future?

I’m running a nature writing workshop in my local bookshop tonight. My office is full of stones and bracken and pine cones which I’ve gathered as writing prompts!

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Nicole M. Wolverton – Author Q&A

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Nicole M Wolverton taken by Heather McBride Photography

Nicole M Wolverton taken by Heather McBride Photography

NICOLE M. WOLVERTON grew up in the rural hinterlands of northeast Pennsylvania, wondering what lurked in the cornfields outside her bedroom window. Her curiosity about what terrible things might lay in wait in the dark only deepened after moving to Philadelphia after high school—to the point where she and her husband led their wedding guests on a ghost tour of Old Fort Mifflin during their reception.

Today, Nicole is a fear enthusiast and Pushcart-nominated writer of (mostly) speculative and horror fiction. She is the author of A MISFORTUNE OF LAKE MONSTERS, a young adult speculative novel due out on July 2, 2024 (CamCat Books), and THE TRAJECTORY OF DREAMS, a 2013 adult psychological thriller (Bitingduck Press). She also edited/curated the 2021 anthology of short fiction BODIES FULL OF BURNING (Sliced Up Press), exploring horror through the lens of menopause—the first of its kind. Her short fiction, creative nonfiction, and essays have appeared in over forty anthologies, magazines, and podcasts.

She lives in the Philadelphia area—in a creaky and mysterious hundred-year-old house—with her long-time and long-suffering husband and a sweet, goofy rescue dog. Nicole earned a B.A. in English from Temple University and a Masters of Liberal Arts in storytelling, horror, and society (with a creative writing certificate) from the University of Pennsylvania. She is an elections official, assistant magazine editor, and speechwriter, as well as a travel enthusiast (24 countries to date) and dragon boat steersperson, paddler, and assistant coach.

Nicole can be found at:
Website: www.nicolewolverton.com
Mastodon: @nicolewolverton
Instagram: @nicolewolv214

Tell me what inspired you to write your debut young adult novel?

I was the chief dishwasher in my family—and I know how random that sounds in response to the question. I grew up in a small, rural town in northeast Pennsylvania, and my childhood home was on the outskirts of that rural town. One of my chores was washing the dishes after dinner, and so I would stand there are the sink, look out the window at the lake about a mile behind my house, and fantasize about what might be lurking in its depths. There was never much of anything to even when I wasn’t washing dishes, so that’s how a lot of my ideas were born—I’d zone out, wondering what lived in the cornfields next to my house… or have a dream that our high school football team’s winning streak was assured by a local necromancer. But for A Misfortune of Lake Monsters, it was all about that lake and about wondering what else was out there in the world that was bigger than my experiences as a rural teen.

What came first the characters or the world?

The world, absolutely. Devil’s Elbow, Pennsylvania—the setting of A Misfortune of Lake Monsters—is based in many ways on my hometown. It is geographically in just about the same location, and the town is just as strange as I felt my town was during my high school years. Of course, my hometown is not a tourist mecca with a resident lake monster!

The characters in Lake Monster, while they came later, arrived in my head nearly fully formed… likely because I could see so clearly who Lemon Ziegler and her grandparents had to be. The owner and operators of Ziegler Ferry Tours—and the perpetrators of a generations-old fake lake monster—had to be tough old birds, the type who could raise a granddaughter who would be incredibly loyal and caring, yet tough in her own way. Troy and Darrin showed up next, but again—they had to be exactly who they are. I was lucky enough to be part of a small group of tightly-bonded friends in high school, and Lemon, Troy, and Darrin are modeled on that type of ride-or-die friendship.

How hard was it to get your first (debut) book published?

A Misfortune of Lake Monsters has been through two agents and a handful of close calls… so it’s been a slog. Horror as a genre is really interesting—there’s some absolutely great horror being published by the Big 4, but in more recent years it seems like the place to be for horror is smaller publishers. I keep hearing that for the big New York publishers, horror (particularly YA horror) is a tough sell—yet independent publishers are taking chances and producing extraordinary work. Take a look at the Stoker Awards and the Locus Awards, for instance: the big guys are well-represented, but so—too—are smaller operations. While it took some time for Lake Monsters to find the right home, I think in the end it landed in exactly the right place with a smaller publisher.

How long did it take to write?

A Misfortune of Lake Monsters

A Misfortune of Lake Monsters

Which time?! A Misfortune of Lake Monsters has been through a few versions—it started out as a third person, dual POV story. I think the first draft might have taken only six months, perhaps. After all the tinkering, re-drafts, developmental edits, etc, well… I’m not sure I can lay an accurate number of months or years on it.

Do you have a writing playlist? If so do you want to share it?

Rather than a writing playlist, I have plotting playlists. Listening to music is hard for me when I write because my brain tunes into it, and I want to sing along or thing about the lyrics—so it’s more distraction than helpful. But in the plotting phase (and I am an aggressively organized plotter) it’s very helpful. I do a lot of thinking while lying in bed because I have long-term chronic insomnia… I’ll wake up at three in the morning and not be able to sleep, so I put on the playlist for a specific novel, get in the right frame of mind either through the sound or meaning of songs, and let my brain wander into the plot. Sometimes I add to playlists after I’ve plotted and written, simply because a song reminds me of a character or scene, though—like A Misfortune of Lake Monsters’ playlist has a few songs that came out long after I’d already finished the book.

How many publishers turned you down?

I’m not really sure! The agent who took A Misfortune of Lake Monsters on submission kept track of that, and I tried to stay positive by tuning it out as much as possible, waiting for that YES. It also helped that for at least some of that time, I was writing short stories that were getting acquired—so I had a distraction. Pursuing publication means generating coping mechanisms to help deal with rejection. Ha!

What kind of reactions have you had to your book?

Very few people have read A Misfortune of Lake Monsters at this point—my critique partners, my former agents, my editors at CamCat Books. I’ll be able to update you on this after early review copies go out in a few months.

What’s the favourite reaction you’ve had to your book?

Something that tickled me—one of my critique partners said that Lake Monsters was as if Clown In A Cornfield had a baby with Jaws in Welcome to Night Vale. High praise indeed!

What can you tell us about your next book?

Keep in mind that this novel hasn’t been acquired yet, but if you enjoy accidental-slash-unintended cannibalism and ride-or-die friendships, it might be the book for you. It was a very personally satisfying book to write for me, which sounds strange, I know.

I can also tell you that it, too, is set in Devil’s Elbow, Pennsylvania, the setting for A Misfortune of Lake Monsters, and that is by design: ever since I started reading Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad series, I’ve been enamored with the idea of building a world and situating a raft of standalone books within that world. With Devil’s Elbow, I’m able to do that, and it’s incredibly fun.

Do you take notice of online reviews?

Sure—but I also have enough of a thick skin that if someone doesn’t like something I’ve written, it doesn’t bother me. My work is not for everyone. It does make great reviews all the sweeter, and I’m so appreciative of those who read and take the time to leave reviews or contact writers to say nice things.

Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?

I will always think of myself as a horror/speculative writer first, both adult and young adult—but I’ve had a few more literary-type short stories published, including one in the Saturday Evening Post. I also dabble in creative nonfiction and memoir, owing to several classes I took during my masters program in those areas. There’s something magical about mining your past for vividly painful incidents and turning them into something insanely weird or funny. I’m not afraid to write what appeals to me in the moment, regardless of the genre. Plus, I think of horror very, very broadly—I doubt most people consider the film Titanic as horror, but I absolutely do: nearly everyone dies horribly in the end.

What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?

I spent most of my adult life working as a nonprofit fundraiser in the Philadelphia area, and I’m currently an associate director of communications and assistant editor of a magazine at a university. In everything I’ve ever done in my career, storytelling has been a huge part of it.

Which author(s) inspire you?

I earned a masters degree in horror and storytelling in May 2023, and my program was filled with tremendous writers that have been incredibly inspirational to me. Nova Ren Suma taught the very last class I took during my masters program, a YA writing course. I’ve been reading Nova’s great and eerie work since her first book came out, and she is a tremendous educator—very enthusiastic and supportive, but she’s also someone that can coax a good story out of you. I also had other professors who are not steeped in horror—Elysha Chang, Sunita Prasad, Kitsi Watterson, Ricardo Bracho, and Melissa Jensen—all of whom are incredible writers, incredible teachers, and incredible people.

Which genres do you read yourself?

It should go without saying that I read a lot of horror and a lot of YA books—but I read a bit of everything, from cozy mysteries to literary fiction to history to memoir. I like other peoples’ worlds, both real and imagined. If you visited my house, you probably wouldn’t know my favorite genre until you walked into my office (most of my horror books are in there, plus a lot of horror-y art).

What is your biggest motivator?

I have stories in my head, and if I don’t get them out on paper it becomes a preoccupation. I also have a pretty decent memory for dialogue and little details, so writing makes a good outlet for that; otherwise, I’m just some weird woman with a brain full of useless observations. I genuinely don’t mind being considered weird (hey, badge of honor), but I aim for usefulness. I’m sure that has something to do with being raised by farmers/former farmers/factory workers.

What will always distract you?

Music…and certain films. If I’m scrolling, and I see it, for instance, So I Married An Axe Murderer—I’m stopping whatever I’m doing and watching it.

How much (if any) say do you have in your book covers?

Very little.

Were you a big reader as a child?

A thousand percent yes. I’m very lucky that I had grown-ups around who liked to read to me, and after I learned to read I was always at the library or scrounging what little pocket money I had to buy a new book (the closest shop to my house was probably 45 minutes way, and the Internet had yet to be invented). Among my earliest reading memories is reading The Outsiders (SE Hinton) at my grandmother’s house—I always had a really strict bedtime, but I was so into this book that I barricaded myself in the bathroom and shoved a towel along the bottom of the door, so the light wouldn’t show through. In the wee hours of the morning as I was finishing the book, I was sobbing my little eight-year-old heart out, hoping my grandmother wouldn’t hear me. That’s when I knew reading is powerful—and to this day I’m grateful that no one cared what I was reading…they were more concerned that I was reading.

What were your favourite childhood books?

I loved those Time-Life books about the supernatural. I could not get enough of them. It makes a certain amount of sense, all things considered.

Do you have a favourite bookshop? If so, which?

That’s so tough—I love all the independent books shops in Philadelphia and the burbs equally. There is one, though, that feels extra magical to me. Garlands of Letters on South Street in Philadelphia is a new age bookshop, so they wouldn’t sell my book, for instance, but I love being there. Even just walking into the shop, past the big lion statue, and into the ever-present cloud of incense… browsing the tarot card selection and the crystals… it’s the kind of the place where it wouldn’t seem out of place if an elf popped out of a cabinet and kicked me in the shins. I wrote a novel some years back that was shelved—it included a scene in a bookshop based on Garlands of Letters.

What books can you not resist buying?

My weak spots: hauntings and minimalist covers that are colorful. I have a tough time saying no to novels that feature ghost stories. I just do and always have. And I know there’s that old saying about not judging a book by its cover, but I have a massive appreciation for simplicity in design and typography when it comes to book covers. I will snap up a book that wows me with cover design in a heartbeat, and I’m seldom steered wrong.

Do you have any rituals when writing?

I’m an aggressively organized plotter, so having a detailed outline is my ritual: I generally don’t start writing anything without a plan. A big part of that is superstition about writer’s block. Hey, if I have a roadmap, I never get lost!

How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?

Well over a hundred. I keep trying to make a dent, but then a friend or an author I admire has a book event in the vicinity and, well… I buy more books. I’ve vowed to STOP buy physical books a billion times, but it’s tough.

What is your current or latest read?

I just finished Nova Ren Suma’s book A Room Away From the Wolves last night, which is—as I’ve come to expect from Nova—gorgeously and lushly written. I’m also in the middle of Women and Children First, Alina Grabowski’s debut novel that’s coming out in May 2024 (also fabulous, and you should have it on your radar).

Any books that you’re looking forward to in the next 12 months?

Jenny Adams’s A Deadly Endeavor (March 2024) is one I’ve recently just finished, and I’m looking forward to seeing it debut—it’s set in Philadelphia, and I have such a weakness of Philly-set books. That’s just one of many 2024 debut novels; I’m in a group of 2024 debut-ers, some of whose novels I’ve read and some I’ve not yet gotten to, but they all sound amazing.

Any plans or projects in the near future you can tell us about?

I’m currently writing a novel I started in Nova Ren Suma’s course in spring 2023—a YA horror novel set in a grocery store. A strong element of the story is a particular Catholic saint, a patroness against—among other things—diabolical infestations. I have a weird habit of visiting churches to see religious relics and the bodies of incorruptible saints when I travel (it’s extra weird because I’m not Catholic, nor have I ever been Catholic), and so I’m very much trying to get to Cairo, Egypt to make a pitstop in a church that allegedly holds the preserved right hand of this particular saint.

Any events in the near future?

I’ll be telling ghost stories at the Strong Women, Strange Worlds Holiday Extravaganza on December 2, 2023, and I’ll be on the Shining Moon speculative fiction podcast sometime in December 2023. A little further out, I’m scheduled to appear at the Scary Stories Book Fest on October 12, 2024 in Asbury Park, New Jersey.

and finally, what inspired you to write the genre you do?

There are three things that unhinged me as a kid and made me prone toward writing horror. 1] My grandmother used to read fairy tales to me—the super violent original versions that weren’t sanitized as lovely bedtime stories. My favorite was one that involved people being cut into tiny pieces. It’s stuck with me to the point that I wrote a memoir piece about it for Bookends Review (published October 2022). 2] My father, who was a terrible parent, took me to see The Exorcist at a drive-in when I was about five years old. 3] I talked about this earlier, but there’s not much to do in rural Pennsylvania, and rural settings are inherently creepy—what else did I have to do but imagine the worst? That it has resulted in A Misfortune of Lake Monsters feels… destined.

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Katie Munnik – Author Q&A

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Katie Munnik

Katie Munnik

Katie Munnik is a poet and novelist living in Wales. Her poems have been featured by Poetry Wales, the Cardiff Review and Bywords and longlisted for Nine Arches Primer and the CBC Poetry Prize. Her debut novel The Heart Beats in Secret was a USA Today Bestseller, and her most-recent novel, The Aerialists was Waterstones Welsh Book of the Month. Katie is represented by Evan Brown at Transatlantic Agency.

Katie can be found at:
Website: www.katiemunnik.com
Instagram: @KatieMunnik
Twitter: @messy_table
Facebook: facebook.com/katie.munnik/

What kind of reactions have you had to your book?

The Heart Beats in Secret

The Heart Beats in Secret

My readers tell me they enjoy how I describe place, and I’m thrilled about that as landscapes are vital to me in how I approach storytelling. I want to know where my characters are and how the land makes them feel. To hear that readers feel immersed in these places through my writing is wonderfully encouraging. That’s a moment when storytelling works.

I also have readers who respond to my work by offering their own fantastic stories. After reading The Heart Beats in Secret, one woman got in touch to tell me about her mother’s pet – a paralysed pigeon – who used to go on family camping trips. An amazing detail, isn’t it? Story-worthy, to be sure.

What’s the favourite reaction you’ve had to your book?

I was once offered a pair of bloomers at a reading. The real deal, Victoria bloomers with buttons and lace detailing. (I said yes.) Admittedly, the offer was in context and appropriate. I had just read a passage from The Aerialists in which my central character climbs across a rooftop in search of lost undergarments.

How hard was it to get your first (debut) book published?

I wrote my first book during a mentorship through the Humber School for Writers in Toronto. When I was finished and happy with it (or rather, ready to stop editing it for a while), I spent about a year sending it out to agents, getting silence, then getting feedback, trying rewrites and trying again. Then I spotted a post on Twitter about an open submission contest for unagented writers that the Borough Press was running. So, I entered and was delighted to win. The result was a book deal and representation from a topflight agent. It felt a bit like an arranged marriage after a long spell of dating, to be honest, but worked out well as the Borough Press went on to also publish my second novel.

What can you tell us about your next book?

I’ll simply say briefly that it is about early 20th C expat women artists living in Paris. And parrots.

How much (if any) say do you have in your book covers?

The Aerialists

The Aerialists

With my first novel, I officially had a vote, but in actual fact, it was in the hands of my publisher. Which was fine. As a writer, you think you know what your book should look like, but it’s important to remember you are a writer, not a book designer. There are professionals who know about these things.

I did have more influence with my second novel, which was lovely. I wanted to include some of the Victorian newspaper illustrations I found in the archive, and the designer incorporated them beautifully. We had a good back and forth about that cover. One version ended up being quite Monty Python steampunk, which I loved, but it really didn’t fit the literary novel I had written. What we settled on is absolutely perfect for the story. I’m thrilled with it.

Were you a big reader as a child?

I’m honestly not sure I had any other personality. Always had a book under my arm or my pillow. And it could be pretty much anything. Adventure stories, classics, fantasy, sci-fi, poetry, murder mysteries. I spent one summer inseparable from the complete libretti of Gilbert and Sullivan. (I am a middle child…)

Do you have a favourite bookshop?

As a child, it was a small shop called the Bookery in downtown Ottawa. An exclusively for-children shop. I’d timetravel there now, if I could.

For second-hand books, I’d need to say all of Hay-on-Wye. A charming book town on the Welsh border, rabbit-warrened with bookshops. It would be easy to spend a year lost there and utterly happy.

But I’m also a sucker for a huge North American big box bookstore. Last summer, I was particularly impressed with the well-organised poetry section at Chapters Indigo in Toronto’s the Eaton Centre. A hard place to leave emptyhanded. (I didn’t.)

Any books that you’re looking forward to in the next 12 months?

I’ve been saving Anne Michaels’ Held until I hit my next deadline. I can hear it waiting for me.

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Laurie Ann Thompson – Author Q&A

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Laurie Ann Thomas

Laurie Ann Thomas

A former software engineer, Laurie Ann Thompson now writes for young people to help them understand the world we live in so they can help make it a better place for all. She strives to write nonfiction that encourages imagination and fiction that reflects universal truths, as seen in Emmanuel’s Dream, a picture book biography of a man who changed his country’s perceptions of disability (winner of the ALA Schneider Family Book Award, an ALA Notable Book, a CCBC Choice, and a Bank Street College Best Book of the Year, among dozens of other accolades); Be a Changemaker, an inspiring how-to guide for teens who want to change the world; and the Meet Your World series (illustrated by Jay Fleck), which encourages young readers to learn about a familiar animal by pretending to be one. She lives near Seattle, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest, USA. Learn more at lauriethompson.com.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauriethompsonauthor/
Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/LaurieThompson
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurieannthompson/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/lauriethompson.bsky.social
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LaurieThompsonAuthor
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lauriethompson1/

What kinds of things do you like to write?

I mostly write nonfiction for kids, everything from board books for the littlest readers to a young-adult how-to guide. Anything that catches my interest is fair game, but lately I’m feeling especially drawn to STEM and social-emotional learning (SEL) topics.

What inspired you to write the genre you do?

I am super curious and love learning new things! And if I’m going to take the time to learn about something, I might as well share that knowledge, right?

You Are A Garter Snake!

You Are A Garter Snake!

Tell us about your current book.

My newest book is You Are a Garter Snake! It’s the fourth book in the Meet Your World series, which encourages very young readers to learn—through gentle interactivity and pretend play—about the animals who share their world. It was a real challenge to get inside the mind—and body—of a snake, especially since I’ve been irrationally terrified of them my whole life! But it was a great learning experience. My hope is that kids when kids see how much we all have in common, they’ll be inspired to care for and protect not only garter snakes, but the environment and each other, as well.

You Are A Garter Snake!

You Are A Garter Snake!

What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?

I have a degree in applied mathematics and was a software engineer before starting my second career as an author. I took some time off work to raise my children, and while reading to them I rediscovered how much I love children’s books. It took a lot of hard work and patience, but I eventually found a path to publication… and I haven’t looked back! Most people are surprised to hear about my analytical background, but I feel like coding and writing are very similar processes for me. They both involve breaking an idea down into manageable parts, putting those parts in the right order, and then using language to achieve the desired outcome. Plus, rarely is either endeavor right on the first try, with both taking multiple iterations to perfect. Both feel like puzzles to me, and I love solving puzzles!

Were you a big reader as a child?

Yes, I read literally everything I could get my hands on! My parents were very supportive, and they let me read whatever I wanted, so I was exposed to a bit of everything.

What were your favourite childhood books?

I spent a LOT of time just browsing through our set of encyclopedias. I was fascinated with the idea of trying to take all of the knowledge in the world and condense it all in one place. Of course, that’s impossible, but growing up in the pre-Internet days, the encyclopedia was an absolute treasure trove. My all-time favorite story book, however, was Judith Kerr’s Mog the Forgetful Cat. I felt a lot like Mog, always making mistakes and not quite sure why the people around her weren’t pleased with her behavior.

Which genres do you read yourself?

It’s probably no surprise that I read a lot of nonfiction on a wide range of subjects. And, of course, I read a lot of children’s books. But my favorite escape has always been fantasy novels! Lately, I’m really enjoying the “new” sub-genre of cozy fantasy, such as Travis Baldree’s Legends and Lattes.

Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?

Yes, I’m actually working on a middle-grade fantasy novel! Writing long-form fiction is a very different process from writing picture books or nonfiction. I loved the drafting phase, but I’m still trying to wrap my head around how to approach a revision.

What will always distract you?

The crow that lives in my backyard. Whenever it sees me working, it comes and sits right outside my window and stares at me until I deliver peanuts.

How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?

I think you mean how many shelves full of books are in my physical TBR pile. More than a few, that’s for sure!

What is your current or latest read?

Right now I’m reading Starter Villain by John Scalzi and The Ends of the World: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earth’s Past Mass Extinctions by Peter Brannen. Both are very good!

Any plans or projects in the near future you can tell us about?

Let the Light In

Let the Light In

I’m really excited about my next picture book, Let the Light In, which comes out in September. It’s a social-emotional learning (SEL) tool full of examples of how we can take care of ourselves when we’re experiencing sadness, grief, or depression. I’ve heard from so many people—young and old alike—who are struggling right now, and I hope this ode to the many forms of self-care can be a balm to those who need it. I’m also putting the finishing touches on an informational picture book about Newton’s Laws Paws, inspired by my cat, who was clearly a physicist in a previous life. I’m working on two different picture book manuscripts about climate change for very young readers. And, I’m researching a more serious middle-grade nonfiction about the Earth’s past—and present—mass extinction events. So, lots of different projects in various stages of development… just the way I like it!

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Steve Spithray – Author Q&A

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Steve Spithray

Steve Spithray

Steve is a music journalist and freelance writer who has written for NARC. Magazine, God Is in the TV and Corridor8 visual arts magazine. Steve’s debut creative non-fiction book, From Shrug to the Moon… The Robert Nichols Story, was published by Sixth Element Publishing in 2021. His second book, How To Build Your Own Record Pressing Plant: The True Story of Press On Vinyl, will be released by Butterfly Effect in October 2023 and will be the first book in the UK published by a record label.

Steve can be found at:
Website: underthehills.net
Twitter: @underthehillss
Instagram: @howtobuildyourown

Tell me what inspired you to write your new book?

People, always people.

What came first the characters or the world?

The characters, the first time I met them I knew the world would easily follow. I realised a while ago I’m really writing about people regardless of the subject matter or context. How To Build Your Own Record Pressing Plant: The True Story of Press On Vinyl is only about the pressing plant on the surface. Really it is about the people that work there, their relationships with each other and how they change over the course of the book.

How hard was it to get your book published?

It was easy to get a publisher interested but then there were some logistical problems along the way. We originally costed the project based on a limited run of high-end hardbacks that would help pay for the bigger paperback run however then the costs of cardboard (particularly the special cardboard we needed to package a free 7” vinyl in the cover) trebled meaning we had to scrap the hardback altogether.

How long did it take to write?

It was written in real time following the first year in business of the record pressing plant, so one year. I wrote it month by month, transcribing interviews and writing around those which then informed the following chapter. Then there was quite a bit of editing which the brilliant Francoise Harvey mostly took care of, so all in about 15 months.

How many publishers turned you down?

One but they signposted me to Butterfly Effect who did publish the book.

What’s the favourite reaction you’ve had to your book?

People from all over the world who have set up similar pressing plants have been keen to read the book to compare experiences. I wasn’t expecting that.

Press On Vinyl

Press On Vinyl

What can you tell us about your next book?

Lol, my girlfriend would kill me if she knew there was a next book!

Do you take notice of online reviews?

The first two or three but after that all publicity is good publicity.

Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?

I’d like to write more and more creatively within the non-fiction genre and see how far I can go with it. I really loved Cuddy by Ben Myers which I consider to be just about still in the creative non-fiction genre.

What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?

I’m a paralegal and freelance writer. If I could successfully combine the two that would be perfect.

Which writers inspire you?

Tom Wolfe, Lester Bangs, AA Gill, 90s music journalists, Maria Sledmere…

How much (if any) say do you have in your book covers?

It’s really important to me and I had the final say on this cover. We chose the designer (Rob Irish) very carefully but having said that we then only gave him the colour bar you can see on the spine as a brief. I love this cover so much. Rob’s a legend!

How To Build Your Own Record Pressing Plant: The True Story of Press On Vinyl

How To Build Your Own Record Pressing Plant: The True Story of Press On Vinyl

Do you have a favourite bookshop? If so, which?

The Book Shop in Wigtown. A timeless treasure trove of books and stuffed animals in the wilds of South West Scotland.

What books can you not resist buying?

Music biographies. My favourite ever is Nick Tosches’ Hellfire about Jerry Lee Lewis. It reads like great post-war American literature.

How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?

I’m always reading two or three at a time but I don’t ever let it get any bigger than that.

What is your current or latest read?

I’ve just finished Alex Niven’s The North Will Rise Again.

Any plans or projects in the near future you can tell us about?

Not really, something very cool (and very me) later in the year maybe but Arts Council dependant at the moment.

Any events in the near future?

Depending when this goes out, I’m doing a book reading at an Industrial Coast experimental noise night on March 2 in Middlesbrough. It’s very niche but a very inclusive little scene of like-minded people from all over the country, while some of the performers are internationally recognised in their fields.

and finally, what inspired you to write the genre you do?

Tom Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. For me the epilogue is still the benchmark for creative non-fiction.

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Dana Goldstein – Author Q&A

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Dana Goldstein

Dana Goldstein

I began telling stories at the age of 6 when I was punished and sent to my room. My instructions were to not play, not read, not colour – just sit on my bed and think about what I had done. To quell the boredom, I started making up stories, which I told myself – out loud – even though no one was listening.I now have three published memoirs, The Girl in the Gold Bikini, a collection of stories about family and food, Murder on my Mind, a memoir of menopause, and Spent, a collection of stories from retail. My first middle grade novel, Shift, was released in August 2023. My podcast, What Were You Thinking, features conversations with authors about their books and their journeys to publication. I live and create from her home in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Dana can be found at:
Website: danagoldstein.ca
Twitter: @DanaGWrites
Instagram: @authordanagoldstein
Facebook: facebook.com/AuthorDanaGoldstein
Threads: @authordanagoldstein@threads.net
Substack: danagoldstein.substack.com

Tell me what inspired you to write your (debut) novel?

I have two boys who were avid and advanced readers when they were young. When they aged out of books like Diary of Wimpy Kid and Harry Potter, there was nothing for them to read. I vowed that one day, I would write a book (or series of books) that would be the bridge between middle grade and young adult. So that’s what I did. They are 18 and 19 now, so I was a bit late.

How hard was it to get your first (debut) book published?

I am fortunate enough to have an agent who is relentless and truly believes there is a home for every book. It took two and a half years to find a publisher and an additional two years to publication.

How long did it take to write?

I was working on other projects that took priority, but it took me 15 months to write the first draft.

Shift

Shift

How many publishers turned you down?

Four publishers sent rejections. Some were very kind, others, not so much.

What kind of reactions have you had to your book?

I’ve had young readers tell me they got really wrapped up and involved in my main character’s emotions. I’ve had adult readers tell me they wished there was book about how cool science is when they were a kid.

What’s the favourite reaction you’ve had to your book?

That reading it is part of a bedtime ritual for a father and his son.

What can you tell us about your next book?

The next book is book two in this duology. My characters are a year older and they work together to help save and restore health to our oceans.

Do you take notice of online reviews?

Yes.. I’m not yet over the need for people to like me.

Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?

I am already a multi-genre writer. I have three published memoirs, a young adult novel about to go out on submission and I am currently writing an adult contemporary.

What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?

I owned a video production company. I closed it down in January of 2023 to focus on writing.

Which author(s) inspire you?

Anyone who can draw me deep into the lives of their characters. I’m a big fan of Rebecca Makkai (The Great Believers), Clare Pooley (The People on Platform 5), and Ali Bryan (Coq).

Which genres do you read yourself?

It’s easier to answer what I don’t read: mystery.

What is your biggest motivator?

The act of putting words down is what gets me up in the morning. It’s become a morning practice, like yoga, but without the flatulence.

What will always distract you?

Social media. I’ve tried locking myself out, but it never seems to work.

How much (if any) say do you have in your book covers?

For my memoirs, I worked with the designers. For Shift (my middle grade debut novel), I had no input whatsoever. I lost sleep over that, worried that I would hate the cover (I don’t; I’m fully in love with it).

Were you a big reader as a child?

Voracious. My mom took me to the library a few blocks from our house every third Saturday. She stopped taking me because I read through my books too fast and needed to return every second week. I started walking to the library by myself.

Murder on my Mind

Murder on my Mind

What were your favourite childhood books?

I loved Are You My Mother, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and anything by Judy Blume.

Do you have a favourite bookshop? If so, which?

My favourite bookshop is a local independent called Owl’s Nest Books. They are hugely supportive of authors and always invite us to host events at no charge.

What books can you not resist buying?

I borrow almost all my books from the library, so I buy the ones I’ve already read that I can’t stop thinking about.

How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?

18. And I’ve just now noticed one is missing. My kids must have pilfered it.

What is your current or latest read?

Currently reading The Sentence by Louise Erdrich. I kept putting the book down and was going to put it in my DNF pile, but it kept calling to me and pulling me back. I have never experienced that with a book.

Any books that you’re looking forward to in the next 12 months?

Waubgeshig Rice’s Moon of the Turning Leaves. It’s a sequel to Moon of the Crusted Snow. One of my all time favourite dystopian novels.

Any plans or projects in the near future you can tell us about?

I am working on a contemporary adult novel about four women over fifty who find themselves needing to replenish their friends. I’m in the first draft right now, so it’s mostly garbage.

What inspired you to write the genre you do?

My characters manifest in my head and the ones that won’t let me go are the ones I write about. Their ages determine whether they fall into middle grade, young adult, or adult.

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