Breaking In: January/February 2024
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Rebecca Boyle
Our Moon: How Earth’s Celestial Companion Transformed the Planet, Guided Evolution, and Made Us Who We Are
(Nonfiction, January, Random House)
“Our Moon is a history of humanity’s relationship to Earth’s satellite, showing how the Moon has influenced everything from the length of the day to the evolution of life to the origins of human culture, religion, and science.”
Writes from: Colorado Springs, Colo.
Pre-Moon: I am a science journalist, and I often write about planetary science and astrophysics for magazines. I realized I had a lot more to say about the Moon than I could fit into articles, so I developed a book proposal with the help of my wonderful agent. My existing writing career definitely helped sell this book and, more importantly, helped me write it.
Photo credit: Randall Kahn
Time frame: This book would probably have been done two years earlier if not for the COVID-19 pandemic, especially with the fact that I had a baby during the pandemic. I was lucky that I traveled a lot in 2019, and reserved 2020 for most of the writing. But when the world shut down in March 2020, my then-preschooler was sent home indefinitely. I wrote the first draft during times when I had a babysitter to play with her outside and worked a lot of nights. By the time my editor sent her feedback on my initial draft, I was six months pregnant. I took a long time with revisions after having my baby. Trying to simultaneously raise an infant and finish a book was extremely hard. But I’m glad it happened because this book needed time to marinate before I could finish it; and of course, I am beyond grateful for my daughters.
Enter the agent: My friend Peter Brannen connected me with his agent, Laurie Abkemeier, who is outstanding and the reason this book happened.
Biggest surprise: I learned that writing a book is not like writing magazine features, no matter how skilled you think you are at doing that. I was surprised to learn that writing a book with children at home is possible, although—and this is something I did not want to accept, and which may be unpopular, but it’s true—this combination of roles is far more difficult for mothers and primary caregivers. I learned that a book will never feel done, and in my deadline-driven journalist mind, there’s always something more I could say.
What I did right: I have kept my head down and my eyes up throughout my career. I started out as a newspaper reporter, but I have been a freelancer for 15 years, so I am always working and always looking for the next story. It was also crucial to build a support network. Writing is often described as a solitary, soul-sucking craft, but no one actually does it alone. Toni Morrison once said she hated hearing stories of writerly suffering, and I try to remember that. Being miserable and lonely does not elevate writing; it actually hurts the process of making the art. Build a community and help other writers; be curious and supportive.
What I would have done differently: I would have enjoyed the process more instead of being so worried about what came next. I would apply this to my entire life, not just my writing life. “Enjoy the journey,” as the knick-knacks say in gift shops. My wonderful editor kept advising me not to worry and to have faith in myself, but it’s in my nature. And if I could go back in time, I would have not written this book’s first draft during a global pandemic.
Platform: I am an award-winning journalist, I am on the masthead at Scientific American magazine, and I have a regular column at Atlas Obscura (though that happened after my book deal). I had a decent platform on X (Twitter) but I have largely stopped using that, so I’m trying to rebuild it on Instagram and Bluesky. I am starting a new newsletter, too.
Advice for writers: Write what you want to know. I think this is as valid for a nonfiction journalist as it is for a novelist. Do you want to know more about wildebeest migration, homesickness, or how granite is formed? Are you curious about how water treatment systems work, or what kind of plants grew in 18th-century Missouri? Go find out; go write about what you find, and what it means to you. These are all examples of things I have wanted to understand better, so they are subjects I have written about for magazines, or in my book.
I know writers are often advised to write what they know or to draw on their own experience, but to me, this leaves out way too many opportunities for discovery and creativity, not to mention empathy.
Next up: I am continuing to write a lot of magazine articles about astronomy, astrophysics, the Moon, and biology. There’s always so much going on, it’s easy to stay busy. I am also developing another book idea, but it’s too early to say anything about that yet!
Website: RebeccaBoyle.com
Avery Cunningham
The Mayor of Maxwell Street
(Literary historical fiction, January, Hyperion Avenue)
“When a rich Black debutante enlists the help of a low-level speakeasy manager to identify the head of an underground crime syndicate, the two are thrust into the dangerous world of Prohibition-era Chicago.”
Writes from: Memphis, Tenn.
Pre-Maxwell: Historical Fiction has always been my preferred genre. When deciding to tell a story about the original Black elite, 1920s Chicago seemed an ideal setting. The cultural, social, political, and economic changes that define this country in the modern era rose out of the Roaring ’20s, making it fertile ground for this type of narrative. Prior to The Mayor of Maxwell Street, I was halfway through an ambitious four-year project revolving around hoodoo culture in Jazz Age Memphis.
Photo credit: Andrea Fenise
Time frame: From outline to completion, the timeline was about 10 months, which was daunting for a muse-driven pantser like myself. There were very early mornings, very late nights, and some hellish combinations of both. Often, my dog would find me crouched over my computer at 2 a.m., mumbling to myself. I owe so much to the support of my family, my editor, my agent, and the writing community. This experience confirmed for me more than anything that writing is not a solitary act. It takes a village to tell a story.
Enter the agent: My agent is the fantastic Richard Abate, a man who took a chance on a complete unknown and has shown me nothing but support at every step. We were connected by a mentor of mine, who is also represented by Richard. He offered to represent me in 2020/2021. By 2022/2023, The Mayor of Maxwell Street was under contract with Hyperion Avenue.
Biggest surprise: The publishing industry can seem like a mystifying place where everything happens behind closed doors and the life of your book is decided by faceless executives. That’s why one of the biggest surprises for me has been the faultless support of my publishing team. Led by my editors, Cassidy Leyndecker and Adam Wilson, everyone at Hyperion Avenue has championed this project through each milestone. No door has ever felt closed.
What I did right: For years, I harbored so much self-doubt that when chances to write, to publish, to start my author career came, I turned them away out of fear of failure. The Mayor of Maxwell Street was a risk; however, if I’d allowed fear to prevent me from taking the chance, the book would not exist today.
What I would have done differently: I certainly wouldn’t have tried to do everything at once. The strain of doing it all was deeply detrimental to my mental and physical health, and that type of stress is something all writers should consider when starting the journey to publication.
Platform: When questioning those established in the industry, the resounding sentiment is that audiences build organically. Authors do their best to nurture a platform, but in the end, I must trust that those readers who connect with my work will find me and support me. Today, I post creative, consistent content for a modest audience on the sites I enjoy, even while harboring a dream of waking up one morning to one million views.
Advice for writers: Read your work out loud. Perform it if you can, like a radio drama or audiobook. When performed, a book comes to life and starts taking up sound and space in the physical world, and since the method was first recommended to me by an English teacher, I’ve applied it to everything I’ve ever written.
Next up: Nothing to announce yet, but stay tuned for another sweeping historical epic exploring the many facets of the Black experience in America.
Website: AveryCunninghamAuthor.com
Mariely Lares
Sun of Blood and Ruin
(Adult historical fantasy, February, Harper Voyager)
“The morally upstanding Lady Leonora doubles as the masked vigilante Pantera in 16th-century Spain-occupied Mexico.”
Writes from: San Diego, Calif.
Pre-Sun: Sun of Blood and Ruin is my debut novel and the fifth book I’ve written across different genres. I’m working on my seventh now.
Time frame: The genesis of this story began in 2017. I wrote a lot of it during breaks at my full-time job on my phone. It took about three years and some thousand rounds of edits to polish.
Enter the agent: She [Heather Cashman] followed me on Twitter, so I kept her in mind to query because we had similar tastes for favorite books. I still remember where I was and what I was doing when I read her email saying she loved my book and wanted to see it in every bookstore in the world. For the most part, I had given up on finding an agent after so many rejections and was already working on my next book. I called my mom and bawled my eyes out. I had an offer from another agent, and Heather didn’t have many deals under her belt, but I could tell she was hungry and driven, and we could build a partnership together. I went with her, and I’m so happy I did. She’s the real deal.
Biggest surprise: How much time do you have? I have learned expectations are a guaranteed battlefield. Kill them. There will be fewer disappointments because there is no formula in this industry. Publishing is not a meritocracy. It’s all about hype, and no two author experiences are the same. Rejections and criticism are not a proving ground of self-worth. They say knowledge is power. But I have found that the less I know, the better I sleep. I wish I could just write my stories and stay hidden. I have to do the tough stuff though for the love of books.
What I did right: I’m so glad that I took the time to carefully research Mexican history and Mesoamerican mythology. With so many different perspectives and debates even after 500 years, especially surrounding the conquest of Mexico, it felt like navigating a maze. I don’t know if that helped me break in, but it was important for me to show the truth, even though the story isn’t 100 percent historically accurate, because we can’t honor our past without honesty. Respected educators have praised my book for being one of the few that draws from Mesoamerican culture with respect and deft surety. It’s truly an honor to share it with the world.
What I would have done differently: I probably wouldn’t have started writing before having a clear grasp of the plot. I understood the characters and their motivations, but I didn’t plan the details. I let the story unfold organically, and I imagine I would have saved myself many headaches had I fleshed out an outline beforehand.
Platform: As a debut author, I’m learning what interests me and what is practical/feasible for me right now as I work two full-time jobs. I mostly enjoy writing articles for the media, answering Q&As, interviews, podcasts, book clubs. I’m tragically not very into social media, but I do have a presence. I can’t say I don’t love when readers slide into my DMs and tell me how much they loved my book.
Advice for writers: Write what excites you. Your enthusiasm will come through in your writing and engage your readers. Your first draft will more than likely suck. Channel your inner jazz maestro, let those words groove like a sax solo. And if it’s not sizzling yet, don’t be shy; toss it back in the word oven until it’s as golden and fluffy as a soufflé. More often than not, writing is all about the delicious rewrites.
Next up: The sequel of Sun of Blood and Ruin. A rom-com in the future perhaps.
Website: MarielyLares.com
Writer’s Digest January/February 2024
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