Tiana Smith: Publishing Is a Weird Game of Skill and Luck

November 4, 2024

Tiana Smith is a web designer turned novelist who grew up in the Rocky Mountains. She graduated from Westminster University with double degrees in Honors and English with a focus in creative writing. In her spare time she’s learning sign language with her hard of hearing husband and she volunteers with special needs individuals attending the biweekly activities for Utah County’s SNAP program. Follow her on X (Twitter) and Instagram.

In this interview, Tiana discusses how her husband’s disability helped inspire her new romance novel, Mr. Nice Spy, her hope for readers, and more.

Name: Tiana Smith
Literary agent: Eric Smith at P.S. Literary
Book title: Mr. Nice Spy
Publisher: Berkley
Release date: November 5, 2024
Genre/category: Adult romance
Previous titles: The Spy and I; Match Me If You Can; How To Speak Boy
Elevator pitch: When a pyrotechnic engineer discovers her biological father is an international criminal, she must work with a sexy CIA agent to take him down in this thrilling adventure rom-com.

Bookshop | Amazon
[WD uses affiliate links.]

What prompted you to write this book?

I’ve always loved spy stories. When it was time for me to write the second book in the My Spy series, I knew I wanted to delve more into the character of Chan, who was introduced as a side character in the first book. Chan is hard of hearing, and so is my husband. I wanted to write a book where that could be an asset, and showcase a love interest who was kind, smart, and had a disability. I had so much fun writing Mr. Nice Spy and including all the things I love when reading—suspense, action, romance, and humor.

How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?

The first draft of Mr. Nice Spy took almost 10 months to write (which is on the long side for most traditionally published books). Edits took another couple of months if you include all the various rounds. Then all my work was done but not for my publisher, who does a lot of the marketing and promo between when my edits were done and publication. From idea to publication, I’d say it took around two years.

The idea as a whole didn’t change very much during the process, but specific scenes and plot points did. I removed a subplot about a double agent and changed the ending during edits (for the better!) My editor is great at helping me see areas that didn’t work or spots that needed more time and attention.

Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?

With every book I write, I’m always in awe at how much goes on behind the scenes in publishing. So many people are involved in publishing a book and I’m grateful for each and every one of them. For this book, I was lucky enough to get notes back from a few additional people (such as a sensitivity reader and proofreader, in addition to my editor and copy editor), and I loved hearing all the different perspectives and things people questioned or liked.

Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?

I was on a new migraine medicine while writing and editing this book, and I found that it changed my process quite a bit. Rather than writing chronologically, I would often jump all over a scene or chapter. This made it difficult for me to keep track of where I was in the story, but my mind just wasn’t wanting to work chronologically anymore. But it also allowed a lot of magic to happen, because a new idea for a character and subplot opened up that I hadn’t thought of previously, all because I could see things in a non-linear fashion.

What do you hope readers will get out of your book?

I hope they’ll get a fun escape, with high stakes that will keep them turning pages to find out what happens next. I hope they’ll enjoy the disability representation for those who are hard of hearing. And mostly, I hope they’ll have a good time escaping reality for a moment.

If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?

Don’t give up! Publishing is a weird game of skill and luck, and you never know when your break will happen. My other piece of advice is to read as much as you can (as trite as it sounds), so you can subconsciously figure out what works and what doesn’t.

With a growing catalog of instructional writing videos available instantly, we have writing instruction on everything from improving your craft to getting published and finding an audience. New videos are added every month!