Shannon A. Thompson's Blog, page 5

Why I Want to Publish My Stories and Not Just Write Them for Me

Publishing is hard. No matter what type you are pursuing, you will face hurdles. A lot of them. Sometimes, when writers rant to others, especially non-writers, folks will ask why you are putting yourself through all that strife. 

Why can’t you just write stories for you? Why do you want to share them with anyone?

I actually think this is a relevant question. Every writer I know asks themselves this at some point. I mean, gardeners don’t necessarily set out planting, hoping the whole neighborhood will visit. There’s plenty of cooks who make meals for themselves, and artists who create but never share. 

So why do you have to publish your stories? What drives that need?   

For me, I got this answer when I recently met up with two of my writer friends. It was during our conversation that I realized where I got my love for sharing stories, not just writing them. It goes all the way back to elementary school. You see, I moved around a lot. Like, every two years. It was hard to make friends. But wherever I went, I wrote. This ended up being how I made friends. During reading time at school, I would write stories, and often, a classmate would ask me to use their name. (It was the 90’s. I didn’t have the internet in my phone to look up names. But I always had my classmates!) So, I would use their name, write whatever story came to mind, then rip it out of my notebook and give it to them. I had no desire to keep the story for myself. Sometimes, my classmates laughed at the story. Sometimes, they shared their story with a friend. Sometimes it went terribly wrong and no one liked the story, but everyone still had a good laugh. It was watching that joy take place that filled me with something akin to pride.

It was connection. Community. A true sense of belonging within each other’s joy. 

Sharing this childhood memory with my friends reminded me, not only of why I love writing, but why I pursue publication instead of keeping my stories to myself. 

The answer for you may be different, but I encourage you to ask yourself why. 

 Publishing can be a very difficult road. It’s easy to get lost along the way and question yourself. Being able to pinpoint the why for me has helped fuel my dreams. Granted, sometimes that why changes from book to book, but I think deep down, all my whys connect back to those memories of writing stories for others. In fact, when I think about my happiest times with storytelling, there’s always someone else present. Whether a beta reader is leaving hilarious reactions on my manuscript or I’m signing a book for a reader at an event, someone is there, smiling. 

And that’s pretty magical.

~SAT

Revise and Revive: How Taking a Break Can Boost Your Revision Energy

I’m on deadline right now. It’s a self-set deadline, but I take all my deadlines seriously. Knowing my word count, I knew I would have to complete 2,500 words a day to meet my goal. Not a problem. I got this, right? 

75,000 words into a 95,000-word project, and my speed started to slow down. This mostly happened when I got an unexpected elbow surgery, where typing for long periods became difficult. I tried not to beat myself up, but once I took a little break, it was hard to get back into it, even when my elbow no longer hurt. I kept sitting down and typing, but it felt forced and awful. Nothing like the story I was thrilled about weeks ago. 

So what did I do? 

Some folks muscle through situations like this, but I didn’t. I took another break. 

Even though my physical state was better, I realized my mental state still needed to recover, which is why I gave myself permission to work on an outline for a brand-new WIP. I may never pursue it, but I’ve wanted to write in it for a long time. And I had a blast! 

I spent two days writing anything and everything that I wanted to in my WIP. I have a full outline now, character spreadsheets, and a really strong Scrivener setup, so that if I wanted to, I could just jump right in. 

Then, I went back to my revision. 

Not only did I make more progress than ever before, I was actually revising faster, and I felt good about it, too. 

Sometimes breaks–physical, mental, and creative–will actually help you write better and revise faster than before. The simple act of breaking away to be creative is so rejuvenating. 

Give yourself permission to revive while you revise. 

Your work will thank you for it. 

~SAT

What’s the Difference Between Romantasy and Romantic Fantasy?

Since romance is in the air, I thought we could discuss the rapidly growing genre known as romantasy. 

It’s easy to look at the newly coined term and think “Romance” + “Fantasy” = “Romantasy” but it’s not that simple. We already have fantasy with romance in it (and romance with fantasy elements), so how is “romantasy” any different? 

Well, let’s start with Twilight. Though this novel isn’t a romantasy, it will help me explain publishing formulas. For instance, though Twilight is a paranormal romance, it is a romance first; the paranormal aspects are secondary. Therefore, the main plot is a romance, and the subplot is the paranormal world. Edward and Bella’s relationship matters more than if Bella is going to become a vampire. “Paranormal” is describing the “romance” in the term “paranormal romance.”

This goes to say that this formula is very important in publishing, and subtle differences can give way to whole new genre models, where readerships have expectations for the stories claiming that label.So, when we see a new term emerge such as “romantasy” we need to make sure we are using it correctly. Granted, this genre is still developing. I imagine we will see “romantasy” break up into various subsets of itself. For now, though, this is what we know:

Romantasy is a romance/fantasy blend, where romance and fantasy elements need to have an equal presence. In other words, romance isn’t the main plot, and neither is the fantasy. It’s both the main plot and the subplot. That means the romance is too much of a focus to be considered a subplot. Neither element can exist without the other. This is a very difficult thing to do successfully. Most stories are balanced by a main plot and a subplot, so it takes a lot of effort to make sure these elements are equally intertwined without bogging down a story. 

If you’re interested in reading books like this, there’s been a huge wave of very successful adult romantasies lately: From Blood and Ash by Jennifer Armentrout, The Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, and the ACOTAR series by Sarah J. Maas.

But couldn’t these books be called romantic fantasy?

Maybe. 

Lots of folks will have different opinions on what makes a romantasy differ from a romantic fantasy or fantasy romance (and these definitions will continue to morph overtime), but in my opinion, a romantic fantasy is a fantasy first, romance second, while a fantasy romance would be a romance first, fantasy second. (Just like the formula I mentioned above for a paranormal romance.) The right term is dependent on which plot is most prevalent. Based on that, genre expectations develop. For example, a Happily Ever After (HEA) must exist in a romance, but a romantic fantasy only requires romantic elements. This means its version of a HEA could differ. It’s anyone’s guess! 

My guess is that we’re going to see romantasy continue to boom. It’s the perfect bridge for readers who don’t feel like they’re connecting with teen protagonists in the YA sphere anymore but also struggle with finding a foothold in the adult SFF market. I say this while acknowledging that most of these romantasy books are shelved in the adult SFF space. But the adult SFF has catered to a certain gaze for a very long time. We’re just now seeing a new emergence of voices being welcomed into the space. There’re exceptions to this, of course. But now I’m getting into the nitty gritty. Granted, getting into the details is important. If we don’t, we may not see the genre solidify its expectations and therefore lose potential readers due to mass confusion on what, exactly, these labels mean. 

How does this happen?

Well, BookTok and social media algorithms make it very tempting for an author to use a trending term to reach new readers, especially when there’s natural crossover. I, myself, have used the term “romantasy” to describe the Timely Death trilogy because the readership is very similar. But as I’m seeing the definition solidify, I am less likely to use it. Why? Because readers will start to develop expectations for books that are using the term, and if they continuously pick up books dubbing themselves “romantasy” when they’re not, it could only hurt the trust that reader has for the author or publisher using the term incorrectly. 

Basically, we have a responsibility to continue to define this term and be aware of how it should be used to connect readers with the right books. The definition will continue to evolve, of course, but it must be done thoughtfully.

I look forward to seeing how it develops (and I absolutely can’t wait to read more romantasy)!  

In the meantime, I hope this helps you explore it more. 

What are your thoughts on romantasy? Do you have any book recommendations? I’d love to hear them! 

~SAT

When Revision Feedback Makes You Think “But I Did Do That!”

Imagine this: You’ve written an entire novel and found critique partners. Then you get the feedback, and some of the notes confuse the hell out of you because they’re asking you to do things you’ve already done. For example, someone highlights a paragraph of world building and asks you to clarify the different types of magic in your system. When you scan the page, the definitions are literally three paragraphs earlier. You may be tempted to ignore this comment—telling yourself they weren’t reading carefully—but I would caution you not to. Their comment, though not entirely accurate, is still telling you something:

Your writing was unclear. 

Maybe the information is in the wrong place. It could come too early, too late, be separated by too much dialogue or space. 

That said, this is why having numerous beta readers is so important. I recommend 3-4. If 2 are pointing out similar things, then you probably have an issue. The other 2 should give you some insight. For instance, in the case that 2 people highlight the same paragraph, but the other 2 don’t, have a conversation. Ask them how they interpreted the information. I love talking with my critique partners because our conversations often show me how differently a scene can be interpreted, even though they’re all reading the exact same words. For example, a character frowning at another’s character’s dialogue could be taken many ways: Is the character mad? Frustrated? Concerned? It has the potential to be unclear. 

At the end of the day, other people have taken a lot of time out of their day to read your work and share their thoughts with the intentions to help you. That is a HUGE gift, one that should be accepted graciously and thoughtfully. I encourage you to approach any feedback you receive with an open mind and the commitment to make changes. That doesn’t mean you have to take every little note as fact. But it does mean that you should consider their comments with the same amount of care as they took to make them. That often means trying to see your work through their eyes. 

My favorite revision tip is from Neil Gaiman: 

“Remember: when people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong.”

I think of his advice often when I’m considering my critique partner’s notes, and it’s helped me tremendously, 

~SAT 

When a Book Finds You

Sometimes you come across a book that stops you completely. You open it with no expectations, and then there are feelings, not pages, just pure humanity and empathy and profound gravity. I recently found that in FLORIOGRAPHY CHILD: A MEMOIR IN POEMS by Lisa C. Krueger. I cannot recommend it enough, especially if you or a loved one has experienced chronic or invisible illness. More specifically, this poetry collection based on true events follows a mother who is helping her daughter cope with illness in a medical system that systematically denies women proper treatment or trust. It’s heartbreaking, beautiful, and empowering.

“Once I asked a friend who was going

through cancer treatment if there was

something I could do for her. Yes, she

said, you could get cancer, too, so I

wouldn’t feel so alone.

Sometimes I wish people could have

just one day—or one hour—of my

daughter’s life. I wish I could hear what

they would say. It’s real. It’s actually real.”

Unfortunately, I had a lot of health issues last year. Between healing from my emergency C-section and a hospital stay caused by CDiff, I experienced our broken medical system firsthand. Even worse, though, was how my community began to treat me differently. This collection spoke to me in ways I needed at one of the lowest parts of my life.

Thankfully, I am doing much better now. This book was part of that healing.

To be honest, I found this memoir by accident. I was searching for “Floriography: An Illustrated Guide to the Victorian Language of Flowers” by Jessica Roux, a current bestseller. Meanwhile, FLORIOGRAPHY CHILD has two reviews on Amazon and has got to be one of the most beautiful books I have read. It was exactly what I needed. It found me. I am forever grateful.

“Some say time heals. Yet maybe the

body holds what happens forever. The

way earth holds us.”

Please pick this one up, and tell me about a book that found you in the comments below.  

~SAT

A Sneak Peek of the Free Writing Classes I’m Teaching This Month

I’m teaching two free, virtual writing classes this month! I know how signing up for an educational event can feel daunting…or just plain time consuming. Which is why I thought I’d give you all a sneak peek of what’s coming up. That way, you can make a more informed decision on if the content is what you’re looking for to help with your writing goals in 2024! If you attend the programs, you will get a free copy of the slides for your personal use. 

First up is Flipping Tropes on Friday, January 19 at 7 PM EST. It is part of the OCLS Writers Conference, which you can view and register for here. In Flipping Tropes, I’m going to be talking about how to use a trope effectively, how to flip one to freshen up your work, and a list of resources to get more familiar with tropes. I’ll also touch on the differences between archetypes, cliches, and tropes, while steering the conversation toward concrete examples that you can then adapt for your own writing. You do not have to have an Orange County Library card to attend.

On Thursday, January 25 at 6:30 PM CT, I’ll be teaching Starting a Writing Project at The Story Center in a hybrid format. You can attend online or in-person! With lots of fun and engaging writing exercises, I’m going to do a deep dive on creative inspiration and share tricks that will help you avoid writer’s block. I’ll talk about how I approach novel writing by breaking my stories up into parts, including a section where we focus on the importance of strong dialogue. We’ll then set realistic goals so that we can stay on track this year. Resources will be provided. It’s free, and you do not have to have a Mid-Continent Public Library card to attend. More information and registration can be found here. 

Again, you can register for the programs here: Flipping Tropes and Starting a Writing Project. I also encourage you to share them with others! Various classes have helped me fine-tune my writing over the years. It’s a joy to be able to give back from the other side.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

I hope to see you there!

~SAT

P.S. I was recently featured in VoyageKC magazine, as one of Kansas City’s most inspiring stories. You can read the article here. As someone who hasn’t had a novel come out in years, it’s so encouraging when I learn that my community is still so interested and hyped for what’s to come. Thank you, Kansas City!

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone has a wonderful year.

One of the hardest parts of pursuing traditional publication is not being able to talk about everything you’re going through (until you can), and I hope this year, I finally get to share some news with everyone. Most of all, I wish for good health and more smiles, great sunsets and better sunrises, the perfect batch of chocolate chip cookies, and the biggest hugs.

My #1 goal in 2024? Lean into the good, harness gratitude and grace, and live.

What are your goals this year?

What are your dreams?

Tell me in the comments below.

I know I’m dreaming big! I hope you are, too.

~SAT

2023: A Whirlwind Year

At the end of every year, I write a reflection post about where I’m at, not just in my writing life, but also in my personal life and how it all correlates. 

I’m dubbing 2023 a whirlwind year, because oh boy, was that a lot. 

In my writing life, I finished writing a young adult novel in verse, then completed a new adult dark academia monster fantasy that’s been my side project for years. I started so many other novels that I can’t even begin to list them without my eyes glazing over. They are all so fun that I’ve never been more grateful to have GZLA backing me up and pointing me in the right direction. We have some amazing plans for 2024! I was also incredibly lucky to work with Marie Rutkoski on my historical fantasy novel. It was a dream. Another dream was finally getting a proper writing space in my house again. (If you recall, I turned my previous writing office into my daughter’s bedroom last year.) It was both a joy and a bummer, so it meant the world to me that my husband found a perfect nook for my desk, so that I can continue to write in a space designated for my creativity. It did wonders for my writing!

I also had the utmost joy of seeing three novels that I beta read get published! Sandra and I mentored Miranda Sun in Pitch Wars, and her novel, IF I HAVE TO BE HAUNTED, released this year. I also beta read Justine’s THE OTHERWOODS, a middle grade fantasy with the cutest cat ever and the spookiest of woods. Last but not least, my long-time friend and critique partner, Angela Cervantes, released A CURSED MOON, such a fun and spooky MG. Sandra’s novel, RELIT, releases in 2024, so make sure to grab it!

Aside from all the novels in my life, I taught numerous classes this year: Starting a Writing Project, My Process on Writing a Novel-In-Verse for SCBWI, Revising Your Manuscript, NaNoWriMo Prep: How to Write a Book in a Month, and How to Write a Book Series. I hope to teach even more in 2024. It brings me a lot of joy. First up is Flipping Tropes for the OCLS Conference. 

In my personal life, 2024 had some of the highest highs and lowest lows. I started the year out with Winnie being a three-month-old potato, and now she’s a walking/talking toddler with a sense of humor and too much charm. (She gets away with everything.) I absolutely love being a mom, and I love Winnie more than I could ever imagine, but adjusting to full-time work with a baby who still doesn’t sleep through the night is hard. Even harder is the amount of illness we went through due her daycare during the first few months. It’s better now, but damn. Sickness rocked our household all year. Once we got past the daycare waves, I caught COVID in July, which turned into pneumonia, which gave me CDiff, which put me in and out of the hospital for a very long time. Obviously, my writing floundered there for a while. My family also rescued Mallow the cat and suffered the unexpected loss of my brother-in-law in late October. Times are tough, y’all. Hold each other tight. 

In 2024, I have a goal of making more time for joy.

I also want to be better about putting down books I’m not vibing with in favor of finding another book that I am (for both reading and writing). I’m aiming to study books more, too. As writers we always hear that we should be reading widely, but I’ve learned that understanding a book’s structure and what makes it successful is more important than upping my “read” list. 

Ultimately, I want to be kinder to myself and truly believe that I will reach the dream. 

I want to be able to call 2024: My Dream Year. 

~SAT

Want to see what’s happened throughout my years of blogging?

2022: My Complete Year2021: The Year of Dramatic, Unfinished Change2020: The Strangest Writing Year (Hopefully?)2019 reflective: 2020 Author GoalsSetting 2018 Writing Goals2017 Wasn’t My Writing Year2016: Dear Writers, 2017 can be your year!

My Favorite Books of 2023

As per tradition, I am back from hiatus to share my favorite reads of 2023. Before I jump into it, though, I wanted to mention a few caveats. I’m hoping to return to my regular blogging schedule, but there’s a lot going on in my life. Unfortunately, we had a loss in the family, and catching up on writing and work has me busier than ever before. For my newcomers, I post writing and publishing tips every first and third Monday (with the occasional extra post in-between). If you want to see a full list of everything I read this year, visit my Goodreads. To add one last stipulation: these are books that I read in 2023, not necessarily books that released in 2023. I hope you find something to read. Feel free to share your favorites in the comments below! I always love suggestions. 

Now without further ado:

My favorite books of 2023! Favorite Debut

Forget Me Not by Julie Soto: I’m not usually one to snatch up a second-chance romance, but this wedding designer pairs up with her ex florist for an influencer’s wedding story was amazing. 

My “Why Did I Let This Sit On My TBR For As Long As I Did” book

The Girl Who Drank the Moon released in 2016. It’s been on my TBR since then. It won the John Newberry Medal in 2017, so it’s always high up on the children’s lists, and I can see why! It’s so lush. Like taking a bath in magic, it reads like a classical fairytale in the best ways.

That Continuing Series That I Can’t Put Down

Covet by Tracy Wollf: #3 in the Crave series, this book took the series to new heights, twists, heartaches, and magic. I love watching the characters continue to grow and change overtime. If you love paranormal romance tropes, this series is for you. This six-book series is already complete and out! I’m on #5. But #3 was top-notch series writing.

My Friends’ Books!

I loved nothing more than watching my friends’ books release in 2023! I had the utmost joy of reading these books before they released. (Relit: 16 Latinx Remixes of Classic Stories edited by Sandra Proudman releases in February 2024, so there’s still time to pre-order!) There’s something so magical about being part of someone’s writing journey, and I love to share that magic by spreading the word about these fantastic stories.

If I Have To Be Haunted by Miranda Sun is a romantic fantasy about a girl who sees ghosts and the dead boy she’s slowly falling in love with. She was Sandra and my’s mentee in Pitch Wars with this novel back in 2020.

Angela Cervantas, who wrote THE CURSED MOON, has been a long-time friend and critique partner in our Pancake Combo writers’ group here in Kansas City. This book is super spooky, a story about an older brother whose horror stories unexpectedly come to life. There’s a cat, too!

The Otherwoods by Justine Pucella Winans is a fun, spooky portal fantasy you don’t want to miss. Not only is this book so clever and fun (and also has the best cat ever), but the story also has wonderful non-binary rep we need more of in middle grade stories!

My “Must Read Everything on This Author’s Backlist Now” Author

Anything by Claribel A. Ortega, but especially the graphic novel Frizzy and her Witchlings series. Frizzy is about a girl embracing her curly hair—something I desperately needed when I was young—and the Witchlings is a feel-good magical girl series I can’t recommend enough. It’s funny, exciting, and so incredibly addicting. I haven’t gotten to Ghost Squad yet, but it’s on the top of my TBR for 2024.

Poetry

All poetry by Trista Mateer has just been hitting me in the feels. Artemis Made Me Do It and Aphrodite Made Me Do It and Honeybee. WOW. I absolutely loved her latest, Persephone Made Me Do It. I’m LIVING for this poetry series.

Picture Books Because I’m A Mom 

My daughter’s favorite picture books have been anything by Sandra Boynton, but these were my favorites: A Dress With Pockets, Together With You, Big Little Hippo, Mama’s Days, Tiptoe Tiger, The Laugh, and Today is a Me Day.

Most Surprising Favorite

Lucky Red by Claudia Cravens is a feminist reimagining of the Western revenge story set inside the intimate harshness of a brothel run by women. You’ll love this story told from the POV of sapphic whores and gunslingers! It’s so vivid, and the characters are so alive. It’s a must-read. (Westerns aren’t usually my thing, and I absolutely could not put this one down!)  

My Ultimate Favorite

This is the first year I think my #1 lined up with a million other readers. Not going to lie, I DEVOURED this dragon romantasy series.  The Fourth Wing made me feel all the feelings I felt when the last crave hit the book world, the get-swept-up-in-it delight, where you can’t put it down and you can’t wait to talk with other readers about every little thing. I pre-ordered Iron Flame immediately and devoured it just as fast. Now I need book 3…

These were my favorite reads of 2023, but I read lots of amazing stories. What were your favorites?

~SAT

Taking a Hiatus

If you follow me on social media, then you probably already know this, but I am taking a hiatus.

I will be back!

That said, I will be teaching a free virtual webinar on How to Write a Series on Tuesday, November 14 at 7 PM Eastern. We will explore how to use outlines, book bibles, and subplots to keep each book consistent, but also fresh and exciting. Learn more here. (You do not have to have an Orange County Library card to attend.)

If you want some articles to read in the meantime, here are some popular ones:

Tips for Writing Spooky

The Difference Between Querying in 2019 and 2022, and Why Your Well-Intentioned Advice May Be Doing More Harm Than Good.

Shannon’s Top 5 Scrivener Tips

Can Someone Steal Your Book Idea?

Thank you for understanding.

If you absolutely have to get ahold of me, please use my contact form, and I will get back to you as soon as I am able.

~SAT