C.W. Rose's Blog, page 2

Podcast Guesting: Bookshop Chats, July 19, 2024

So I’ve been a guest on a couple podcasts lately, which for me, is a big deal. I’m awful with public speaking and automatically get nervous and shaky when I’m in an interview-like situation, or have to speak in front of an audience. But, it turns out being a podcast guest is a lot of fun! Come join me on this episode of Bookshop Chats with Victoria Hopkins, as we talk about writing, inspiration, and Oceansong! You can listen to it directly from Buzzsprout, but if your source for podcasts is different (personally, I use Apple Podcasts), there are links to listen to it on there.

https://bookshopchats.buzzsprout.com/1952942/15303914-episode-seven-c-w-rose-oceansong

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Author Interview with Starlight Book Tours

Starlight Book Tours did a beautiful cover reveal tour for me, and I also had the opportunity to answer some thoughtful interview questions with them. Some of these really made me think, but ultimately, I had a ton of fun answering them. Please see link below for full interview!

https://starlightbooktours.blogspot.com/2024/07/oceansong-author-cw-rose.html

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Author Interview with Eliza Stopps

I had the privilege of being interviewed by author Eliza Stopps this month! I talk about romantasy, my inspiration behind my debut, OCEANSONG, and what’s coming up next!

Link on Eliza’s website:

https://elizastopps.com/author-interview-with-c-w-rose/

OCEANSONG

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romantasy

Release Date: August 27, 2024

Publisher: Hey Hey Books

ISBN: 979-8-218-43034-4 (print)
979-8-218-43412-0 (ebook)

BLURB:

OCEANSONG is an Adult Contemporary Romantasy that is an Asian Romeo & Juliet meets The Little Mermaid, set in the grittiness of the real world.

Fish are mysteriously disappearing, starving the people in Angie Song’s Alaskan hometown. Angie, an aspiring marine biologist and dock worker, enthusiastically joins the hunt to find out where the fish are gathering. When her family and the villagers discover that merfolk are responsible, they vow to destroy every last one. In the midst of the conflict, Angie faces off with a merman and fails to pull the trigger.

Inquisitive Mer-Prince Kaden is just as snarky as Angie, but he’s willing to talk and stop the brutal massacring of his people. The two form a cautious alliance to broker peace between the humans and mer before any more of them die.

As tensions clash between the two races fighting to control the sea’s resources, Angie and Kaden’s forbidden relationship ignites. And as she learns about the mer’s mysterious  world and the reason why the fish are gone, Angie starts to question who the true monster is, and where her loyalties lie. Taking the wrong side means choosing between family and her job, or the man she’s fallen for and the merfolk she’s come to respect—or losing it all. 

Spice Level: 3/5 (two open door scenes, sensual)

Tropes: Enemies to lovers, Forbidden Romance, Grumpy (female) x Sunshine (male), Fairytale & Mythology Retelling

Content Warnings: Parental death (mentioned), violence, imprisonment and torture (off-screen) of mythical creatures, blood

Guest Blog Post, Part 2 (Coffee, Book & Candle) – March 2024 – My Writing Process & Inspirations

Welcome back! I’m so happy you’re here to (hopefully) check out part 2 of my two-parter guest post for the wonderful people at Coffee, Book, & Candle.

I’ve always been interested in other authors’ writing processes, and how they vary so widely, but yet we all have a way that works for us. There’s certainly no one size fits all here, and I’m convinced that anyone who says otherwise has no idea what they’re talking about.

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In this post, I’ll delve into more of how Oceansong began (as a romantic tragedy novella, no less), some of my inspirations behind it, my chaotic drafting process that somehow makes sense for me, and finally, how much research I actually had to do to make the story as authentic as possible.

If all this sounds interesting to you, here’s the link to the guest post:

https://www.coffeebookandcandle.com/post/inspirations-behind-oceansong

Guest Blog Post, Part 1 (Coffee, Book & Candle Blog): Feb 2023 – The Romantasies That Inspired Me and OCEANSONG

So this week, I had the honor of writing a 2-part guest blog post for the lovely Coffee, Book & Candle blog!

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Part 1 (posted here) is all about romantasy recommendations. In celebration of Romantasy Month on the blog, I’ll talk about the books & movies that got me into (and hooked on) the romantasy genre, which ones inspired my upcoming debut, Oceansong, and of course, the comp titles I used, and why.

Check out the post, and the rest of their fun blog, where they talk about book reviews, writer tips, bookish life, and book marketing tips, below!

https://www.coffeebookandcandle.com/post/romantasy-recs-with-cwrose

December 2023 Guest Blog Post – thoughts on fairytale retellings and my inspiration for my debut, OCEANSONG.

Guest Post: CW Rose, Author of OCEANSONG

From Query to Book Deal, and the (almost) six rollercoaster years in between.

Introduction

In January 2018, I sent my first ever query. Five and a half years later, in October 2023, I signed a book deal! And what a long, winding trip it’s been. I’m going to share my journey in the hopes that it can inspire others in the same boat, so, buckle up. This is going to be a long one, and as my mind works, perhaps meandering here and there. Disclaimer that the actual timeline of everything is a bit fuzzy to me, but I’ll do my best. Final query stats at the end of the post.

Some super quick backstory first. I wrote my first “book” in third grade, a picture book about fish species. I then graduated to Disney fanfiction as a preteen. This evolved to short stories, some of which became novelettes, and some became novels.

I’m that person that reads EVERYTHING: the backs of ketchup bottles, every single piece of backstory in the RPGs I play, and every word of a wall of text email (although I much prefer paragraphs. Please.). To say I adore the written word is an understatement.

Part I: NIGHTSWORN

I wrote my first novel in high school, NIGHTSWORN. Through the next decade, through college, graduate school, and my first jobs, I would turn this into a 5-book series.

At the time, I was still writing for fun with publishing as an afterthought. Though I still scoured the internet for, well, how to get published, learning what a query letter and synopsis was, and how to write one. All the while endlessly revising NIGHTSWORN to something that I believed was publishable.

I didn’t get any beta readers for it (I didn’t know what they were at the time. And side note…don’t do this. Get beta readers. The right ones make all the difference), nor any critique on my query and synopsis. I didn’t even have comp titles. I literally thought ‘oh this story is great, it’ll get picked up quickly!’ (Ha ha, joke’s on me. Spoiler, it didn’t get picked up at all. More below.).

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In January 2018, at the encouragement of some friends and family who had read my work, I finally decided to bite the bullet and send out my first query. NIGHTSWORN was an adult contemporary fantasy with elements of romance. The form rejection came quickly, but undeterred, I sent out roughly ten more. I got back all form rejections, or silence. So, I kept tweaking my query and synopsis while sending out a gradual trickle of queries in the meantime and participating in Twitter pitch contests with no luck. Except for a single agent like in one #PitMad. I submitted to her with high hopes. I got form rejected a month later.

Fast forward to July 2019. I attended the Writers Digest Conference in NYC, and participated in Pitch Slam. It’s where you pay a little extra for an hour to pitch in person to as many agents and editors as you can. I researched the industry pros and prepared a pitch. I was so nervous, I was shaking when I approached my first agent. Fortunately, he was friendly, approachable and encouraging. And he asked for a partial!

I pitched 2 more agents and 1 editor, and got another partial request. My first ones! Another agent told me that this book would sell, even though it wasn’t right for him. I was elated and walked out of the conference feeling on top of the world. My little book might actually have a chance, I thought.

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One requesting agent suggested I change my age group to YA because she believed it would have a better chance in that age group. So when I got home, I did just that. I submitted the original (adult) query package to the other agent who requested. He gave me a polite form rejection.

But, I hadn’t lost hope yet. I still had the agent who suggested the age group change, and she seemed so interested when we spoke. I spent 3 weeks rewriting the manuscript, and submitted to her.

I never heard back, even after a nudge. Disappointing, but I started querying it as YA. I re-did my query multiple times, again, and I found some comp titles.

I still got rejections, but this time, I was getting some more personalized ones. This kept me going. There was also PLENTY of silence from “no response means no” agents.

Over the next 3 years, I queried on and off, agents as well as some small presses, while participating in various Twitter pitch parties. At the same time, I constantly made revisions to the novel and submission package. I was getting a little more agent and small press interest with my updated pitches and queries. I got 1 partial request from a pitch like, which ended up as a rejection.

I didn’t write anything new, because I was going through some personal issues at the time. Oh, and the pandemic hit. I applied to Pitch Wars 3 times, and never even got a request for more material. I also entered RevPit in 2022, making a single editor’s longlist.

At the end, this manuscript ended up with just one full request with a cold query, which was also rejected.

In the fall of 2021, I made the decision to shelf it after 60+ queries. Which, looking back, wasn’t a ton, but my heart wasn’t in it anymore. I had revised this MS to death, I didn’t know what to do anymore, and I didn’t have anything new written.

It was a tough decision, and self-doubt kicked in. No matter how hard I tried, how many times I revised, it wasn’t good enough. Maybe I wasn’t good enough to be published. Maybe, just maybe, that agent who told me the book would sell at Pitch Slam, was just saying that to be nice.

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I started working on my contemporary romantasy, OCEANSONG, somewhere in fall-winter 2021, and completed the first draft in mid-2022. This time, I got betas, found appropriate comp titles, and wrote a much stronger query letter and synopsis from everything I learned while querying NIGHTSWORN. I entered RevPit, where I made one editor’s longlist and another’s shortlist.

Armed and ready, I participated in more pitch contests. My pitches got the attention of multiple agents and/or editors each event and I met so many amazing authors along the way, several who I’m now honored to call my friends.

I sent out my first queries for OCEANSONG at the end of August 2022 to requesting agents from #DVPit and #SFFPit. My first batch of 5 queries came back with 4 full requests and 1 rejection. I thought it would be smooth sailing from here on out.

Nope.

They all came back as kind rejections, and two were personalized, but didn’t provide actionable feedback. One full MS was rejected in less than 24 hours. I was absolutely crushed.

While I queried on and off for the next few months, I got more beta feedback. I made more changes to the story. Got more rejections, more silence, and more partial and full requests that turned into rejections. Maybe I had become numb to it at that point, and desperation kicked in to find someone, ANYONE, who would like my work enough to give me a chance.

By mid-2023, I was up to around 100 queries, all ultimately rejected. Then, it happened. In July 2023, an agent who had my full, wrote back.

Expecting another rejection, I didn’t open the email for two days to mentally prepare myself. But then I finally did. She loved OCEANSONG and wanted a call! I was sitting in my car after getting to work early and let me tell you, I was walking on AIR the rest of the day. We set up a call for that Friday, three days from the email. I prepared myself on what questions to ask, including specific ones to ask as a BIPOC author, and counting down the days. I reached out to a couple of her clients, who all had wonderful things to say about her.

Finally, FINALLY, after 5 years, it was happening!

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And then the agent unexpectedly left her agency the day before our call. She was lovely, and I truly wish her the best of luck in finding a new agency more deserving of her.

I was tossed back into the querying trenches. But now I felt renewed. If one agent loved it, surely, another would. Another 90 or so queries later, this time querying both agents and small presses, the same cycle repeated. I was still getting a few full and partial requests, so I just kept going, hoping to find my champion.

Somewhere in there, I got a lengthy full rejection from an agent who’d had my manuscript for 8 months. And another partial rejection from a virtual pitch session. But this time, both gave me actionable feedback that really resonated. Both suggested that I bring the POV closer to the protagonist, and tell the story from her eyes in a more subjective manner. They also recommended that I make my protagonist more active.

I had queried close to 200 agents/small presses at this point and wondered, even if I implemented those changes, would it even matter? I had exhausted the majority of my query list. But I did anyway, intending to query whoever was left on my list, and circle back to agents who rejected my full/partial to see if they would reconsider.

Part 3: Finally, an offer!

A week later, in mid-September 2023, I went to visit my aunt in Singapore, my childhood hometown, and sent a small handful of queries while there. Another week later, the day before my flight home, I got a message from an editor at a small press, who I had submitted to almost 2 months before. She requested a call. My heart nearly stopped.

We arranged to meet when I returned stateside, and though I was jet-lagged to the Hells and back from the 12-hour time difference, it was a wonderful call and she made an offer! I was in complete disbelief. After hearing over 200 ‘no’s at this point, hearing that ‘yes’ didn’t feel real. My voice shook the entire call. I was still struggling to process what was happening. I asked for the industry standard 2 weeks to close out my remaining queries.

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I then set off to alert the remaining 20 agents and editors with my submission materials. I got another offer from a small press, and awaited word from the others during the consideration period. 8 agents and editors gave me kind step-asides. One agent with my full and one with my partial were unable to meet my deadline, but both were so sweet and congratulatory. I never heard back from the last 10, some who had my fulls and partials. I do feel a certain way about those, but that’s a conversation for another time.

At this point, I was at a crossroads: whether I wanted to sign with one of the two small presses, or turn them down and keep trying for an agent with my overhauled manuscript.

I ultimately signed with Hey Hey Books in early October 2023. The editor’s enthusiasm for OCEANSONG was infectious and we got along right from the first few minutes of the call. They were a new publisher, but I did some research and weighed my options. They just felt right to me, and I followed my heart.

OCEANSONG is scheduled for release in the summer of 2024.

Part 4: Final thoughts and insights

If you made it all the way to the end, THANK YOU! I’m so excited that you shared my journey with me.

Lessons learned…your time will come. Keep learning and keep writing. Keep drawing. Keep CREATING. The world needs your work. There is no single avenue to publishing.

Find your tribe! I spent my first 4 years querying going at it alone, and it was lonely.

And it truly only takes one yes. Don’t give up, don’t ever give up your dreams. Take a break if you need to, for your mental health. But you will find your champion. I believe in you.

The next photo is literally me when I see good things happening to my friends:

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NIGHTSWORN:

Queries sent: 60

Rejections/CNRs: 60

Full/Partial Requests: 2

Offers: 0

**

OCEANSONG:

Queries sent: 190

Rejections: 132

CNRs: 55

Full/Partial Requests: 25

Offers: 3

If you enjoyed this blog post and would like to know more about my upcoming releases and querying / publishing journey, please consider subscribing to my mailing list! You’ll get cover reveals, new character art and new book announcements before they’re officially announced, and there will be giveaways and content (such as deleted and unreleased scenes) exclusive to my subscribers. I promise to never spam you.

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2022 – Year End Wrap Up & More Lessons Learned

You. Are. Enough.

Three words I wish I had heard when I was younger. At the risk of getting off-track about writing and books, this post will be entirely personal.

I spent decades believing I wasn’t good enough. Perhaps it was my upbringing, and always being told I wasn’t good enough. That I wasn’t worthy, and my thoughts and ideas weren’t worthy. It took me over thirty years to realize that I was. I’m worth it, and so are you.

I do believe we should always strive to be better. But know your limits. Know when you need to take a break. Self-reflect, and let go of anything, and anyone that is not serving you.

I believed I shouldn’t have standards for jobs, or even relationships and friendships. I believed in the past, that I should take what I could get.

I spent years in a job and in relationships where my coworkers, bosses, and partners did not respect me, because I did not respect myself.

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It wasn’t until I met my best friend three years ago, who had gone on a journey of discovering her self-worth years ago. She asked me once, when we were just starting to get to know each other: “You have a great career. You have your own car. Your own apartment. But you’re a doormat. You need to believe you’re worth more than you think you are.” She aspired to be in my position one day, and she told me so, that I was her role model.

And then I got my dream job, the one I spoke about in my 2019 post. In the past three years, I’ve grown so much. I was forced to confront all my fears, and be better. I was too insecure to supervise before, and now I had students I was responsible for. Public speaking was never my forte (and literally to the point where I would be scared shitless. My hands would tremble, I’d start stammering, I’d sweat, and the anticipation was so, so stressful. I truly believed no one would care what I have to say), yet I was forced to give presentation after presentation, and now, four years later, I am no longer nervous, and instead, am excited about presenting my knowledge.

I never thought I’d be in a position where I’d be taken seriously as a leader. Yet, here I am in a leadership program, and put in charge of a project of my choosing, and where I would be responsible for making a change. For the first time in my life, people wanted to listen to what I had to say. My ideas are valued, and I’m slowly developing my assertiveness skills and coming into my own.

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Finally, turning this back to writing. I started the year querying a revised YA contemporary fantasy manuscript. I had sent it to 60+ agents over the course of 3 years and dozens of revisions. I had one partial request, one full request, and the rest were rejections or no responses. Some personalized, most form. I probably could have cast a wider net, but at the same time, I was completing a project I was so, so excited about. And truly, I wasn’t feeling my querying manuscript anymore. So, I shelved it.

For the first time in ten years, I completed my first new manuscript – my adult fantasy romance with mermaids. I knew adult fantasy was a competitive market (well, I suppose in 2022, the majority of markets are competitive with more queries being sent out than ever), but I wanted to throw my hat in the ring. I hope everyday that this book will find its champion. But regardless of what happens, I’m proud of myself for finishing a new manuscript. For starting to draft another.

Always celebrate your wins. Mourn your losses, but know that this too, shall pass. Learn from your mistakes. You can always be better. Finally, chase your dreams, and never be afraid to improve. Remember, you can always do more than you think you can, and more resilient than you think you are.

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Happy holidays, everyone!

Embracing the Devil You Don’t Know

 

2019 was a year of…change. I got a new job where I’m actually respected and matter. I became single for the first time in thirteen years. I also got my motorcycle license, purchased my first bike (a beautifully used 2010 Yamaha V-Star 250), and got scuba diving certified.

Why is all this a big deal? Well, I spent well over ten years absolutely terrified of bicycles and pretty much anything on two wheels. I had never felt steady on two wheels, and I got into a nasty bike accident in my early 20s, resulting in my flying off my bike, smashing my (thankfully helmeted) head against someone’s brick wall, and chipping one of my front teeth. Still, wanting to join my then-boyfriend with motorcycle riding, I decided to tackle my fears head-on. It took me a good three or four months of private lessons, falling off my bike, dropping my bike, stalling it, and failing my licensing test the first time around because I was just a terrible motorcycle rider. Still, I kept practicing and learning, putting myself in uncomfortable (but not dangerous) situations. And while I’m not Rider of the Year, I’m much more comfortable now, and I can say I’ve fallen in love with my motorbike.

Even though I grew up swimming and all around loving the water, I never took up scuba diving because I was told I couldn’t, due to my having asthma. I’d snorkel, always sit back, envious of divers who got to swim with the fish and rays and sharks above them, rather than having to look at them from above. After a scuba event at my job, I decided to take the plunge and get certified. Scary and unfamiliar at first, I got the hang of it, and now, I’m itching to go on dive trips when the weather warms up.

I also left a job of four years, where I was relatively comfortable, but not so much appreciated, for a job where I feel so much more respected and actually have a voice. Plus, I get to work in aquatics, always one of my dream environments to work in. I’ve been here a year, and already, I feel more comfortable, outspoken, and heard than any of the previous three jobs I worked at. I learn and grow to appreciate so much of life working with disabled veterans, and it makes me grateful every single day for the little things. Like my health and my ability to walk and move around freely, without any restrictions.

Finally, I left a relationship first of seven years, and then another of one year. I could speak so much on this, but the lessons that I’ve learned are for another post. I knew early on that both men were wrong for me, that I wouldn’t be happy with them in the long term. Still, I stayed with them because in my twisted mind, it was better than being alone and having no one. I became so much more invested than they did, leading to me just holding on tighter, digging in my nails, refusing to let go even when the red flags were practically stabbing me in the eyes. After much deliberation, mental gymnastics, and convincing myself that everything was okay (no, it wasn’t), both relationships ended. And I found myself single and scared that I was alone, and who would I do things with and what would I do in my spare time? In the past two months, I’ve reconnected with many of my friends and family and cultivated my relationships with them, took the time to self-reflect on what I could have done better, and really looked into myself, see why I attracted the sort of men that I didn’t want. Nowadays, I’m getting to watch shows I want to watch, my time is now mine (except when it’s my friends’ and family’s), and I’m finally remembering to take care of myself, physically, mentally, and emotionally. And I’ve never felt better.

Still, even though I’m finally taking steps toward my best self, I resisted all of it. My family and friends’ goodnatured advice and pleads that I deserved better, to try new things, fell on deaf ears. I wanted to remain stuck where I was, because I was comfortable. And because I was afraid. Afraid of what I didn’t know, afraid to be alone. Most of all, afraid that I couldn’t do better than I was doing. Even though I was unhappy, bordering on miserable, convincing myself. Why? Because it was better to deal with the devil you know, than the devil you don’t.

Lessons learned here? If something isn’t working out for you, whether its a job, a relationship, a friendship, or, well, anything really, just rip off the band-aid. As my father always told me, short term pains are better than long term ones.

But, we have to learn to embrace that devil we don’t know. It may lead us down a confusing path, one that will make us question why we decided to change things in the first place. Yet oftentimes, the results will be damn worth it, and something beautiful to behold.