David Estes Fans and YA Book Lovers Unite! discussion
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Cat Winters
Author Q&A
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Cat Winters (Author of In the Shadow of Blackbirds) Q&A Event--Jan 5-8th
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Wow, lots of great stuff! And I just added The Uninvited to my tbr list.
Jenny wrote: "I love gothic novels. I also love mysteries! Probably why I love your books then ;) "Thanks, Jenny. :) I've always found Gothic novels and mysteries--and Gothic mysteries--delightfully entertaining and gripping.
Harlee wrote: "Wow, lots of great stuff! And I just added The Uninvited to my tbr list."Thanks for adding it, Harlee!
Another question if that is okay... How difficult is it to get published? I would imagine it takes a long time even when you have an amazing manuscript.
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Do you have any favorite fan moments?
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How difficult is it to get published? I would imagine it takes a long time even when you have an amazing manuscript."
Of course that's okay! Ask all the questions you want :)
I have heard a lot of authors say that they don't write the story, the characters do...is that something you hold true as well? Or did you occasionally have to help the story along? (Thanks for being here, by the way!!!)
I am loving this Q&A! I've got one more question: get any good books for Christmas? :)
Kate wrote: "Another question if that is okay... How difficult is it to get published? I would imagine it takes a long time even when you have an amazing manuscript."
Getting published is definitely a challenging endeavor. Here's the timeline of my own personal journey to publication (but not all authors take quite this long).
1994: Started writing the first book that I would submit to literary agents. It was an adult historical novel without any paranormal elements.
1998: Signed with my first literary agent.
1999: Agent submitted the manuscript to publishers, but the book was swiftly rejected because historical fiction was "dead" back then.
1999-2007: Gave birth to two kids, quit day job, did freelance work, and continued writing new manuscripts.
2007: Signed with my current literary agent because of an adult contemporary suburban vampire satire.
2009: My agent was unable to sell my suburban vampire novel. We regrouped, and I proposed writing a YA novel set in 1918 America.
October 26, 2011: I sold In the Shadow of Blackbirds to Amulet Books.
April 2, 2013: In the Shadow of Blackbirds was first published.
David wrote: "Awesome questions and answers so far, thanks so much, Cat! My question is Do you have any pets? If so, do they ever try to distract you when you're working?"Yes! Pet distraction is actually a big problem I'm having right now. We had a dog for 16 1/2 years, but he passed away last May. He would distract me sometimes, but he had become so mellow during his last decade that it wasn't a constant problem.
In July, however, we welcomed a new puppy into our house. He is not interested in letting me work and is still a bundle of puppy energy, so on days when I'm rushing to meet deadlines, I do take him to a puppy daycare across the street. I'm really hoping this will only be a temporary arrangement and that he'll soon calm down enough to be my writing sidekick.
The fish don't mind me working at all.
And also another question: how did you feel when you won an award (sort of) from your debut?
Karen wrote: "Love that you have a koala bear on your laptop! Is there a story there?Do you have any favorite fan moments? "
To answer your first question, Karen, my daughter gave me the koala bear for Mother's Day a few years ago because it was cute and little and within her price range. Unbeknownst to her, I had a koala exactly like it as a kid. My friends and I all had them back then. The arms clip onto books or folders or, nowadays, laptop computers.
As far as favorite fan moments go, I love receiving letters from teens. Their messages are typically long and heartfelt and extremely honest.
One email that stands out, though, came from a man in his 60s over in the UK. He sent me a note saying how much he enjoyed In the Shadow of Blackbirds, and he included a photograph of a young woman from the early 1900s who reminded him of my protagonist. He told me the name of the girl in the picture and mentioned she eventually married a Harvard president. Oddly enough, I'm related to that Harvard president! I told him about the coincidence, and we both got chills over the idea that he sent me an old forgotten photo of an American cousin-in-law that somehow ended up in England.
Melissa wrote: "I have heard a lot of authors say that they don't write the story, the characters do...is that something you hold true as well? Or did you occasionally have to help the story along? (Thanks for bei..."You're welcome, Melissa. I'm happy to be here.
Yes, I'd say the characters do definitely take over my books pretty often. I typically map out scenes in my head before I write, but oftentimes I sit down and find my characters saying or doing something I never expected of them, but it feels right. Sometimes they reveal information I hadn't planned to reveal until the end of a book, but I realize, "Oh, yeah. That would be much more powerful to have that tension already out in the open." Very rarely do I need to change those spontaneous decisions, because they're what rings true for the character.
We fiction writers never sound like the sanest of people when describing our processes, but that's what happens when one's imagination is the driving force of a career. The characters do become extremely real when you're working so deeply inside their heads. I feel bad for what I make most of mine endure. :)
Harlee wrote: "I am loving this Q&A! I've got one more question: get any good books for Christmas? :)"Thanks, Harlee! I love being here.
For Christmas I received and already read and loved Wendy Webb's Gothic page-turner The Vanishing. I also received The Luninaries by Eleanor Catton, a huge novel that I'm going to have to push off for a couple months because I'm working on revisions for my 2016 YA novel. Research books typically replace my fiction reads when I'm in this stage.
Ryan wrote: "And also another question: how did you feel when you won an award (sort of) from your debut?"The awards, nominations, and accolades I've received for In the Shadow of Blackbirds has blown me away, and the recognition still feels surreal. If you've checked out my publication post up above, you'll see that it took me nearly 20 years from the time I sat down and seriously started writing for publication to the point where I held one of my published novels in my hand. The award attention, especially learning that my debut novel was a Morris Award Finalist, made me feel as though I was on the right path all along, even though there were times when I wondered if I was wasting my life by chasing my publication dreams.
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Do you have any favorite fan moments? "
To answer your first question, Karen, my daughter gave me the koala b..."
WOWZA...what an amazing story! Isn't life crazy sometimes? The world is so small!
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The awards, nominations, and accolades I've received for In the Shadow of Blackbirds has ..."
What a validation that must have been! I'm not surprised by the "awards" for lack of a better turn, though, it is an amazing book!
If you could live during any time period (excluding the time period of your books and the present), what time period would you choose and why?
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And your fan moment gave me goosebumps!! Amazing!
What are you currently working on? Can you spill the beans about your 2016 YA?
Hi- I was just wondering what genre of books you read when you were younger.
Cat, thanks for joining the group for a Q & A! Loved your book In the Shadow of Blackbirds, it was one of my favorite reads of 2014. My question for you is what were your five favorite books read in 2014?
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Today is the last day to get your questions in and be entered for the giveaway!
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Jenny wrote: "Cat wrote: "Ryan wrote: "And also another question: how did you feel when you won an award (sort of) from your debut?"The awards, nominations, and accolades I've received for In the Shadow of Bla..."
Thank you, Jenny!
Xandra ~ saving my heart for someone that's worth dying for wrote: "If you could live during any time period (excluding the time period of your books and the present), what time period would you choose and why?"The 1920s. I love the fashion, music, and cultural revolution that occurred during the time period. It was a better time to be a woman than many other eras of the past several centuries, although life certainly wasn't completely equal or perfect.
I suppose I'm cheating a little with my answer because I'm currently writing a book set in 1923, and you asked to pick an era that wasn't used in one of my books. However, that novel focuses on some of the darker aspects of the 1920s. If I were to time travel for a short stay in the past, I'd probably choose to visit 1920s authors and artists who were celebrating life in New York City around the middle of the decade.
Karen wrote: "Ohmygosh Cat! I remember those clip on koala bears! I think I had one (or two). And your fan moment gave me goosebumps!! Amazing!
What are you currently working on? Can you spill the beans abou..."
I'm happy to hear you remember the little clip-on koalas, too, Karen!
All right, here's a little scoop about my 2016 YA novel, The Steep and Thorny Way, which is the project I'm actively working on at the moment. It's a Hamlet-inspired tale set in the backwoods of Oregon in the year 1923, when Prohibition and the KKK deeply affected the state. The protagonist, a biracial girl named Hanalee Denney, lost her father when he was hit by an intoxicated young driver a year and a half earlier. She now lives with her mother and new stepfather, and the ghost of her father is rumored to wander the road outside her house.
The book opens when the boy accused of killing Hanalee's father returns from prison and claims that Hanalee's stepfather is the real man who murdered her father.
Amulet Books, the same publisher who released my other YAs, will be publishing the novel in Spring 2016.
Anne Marie wrote: "Hi- I was just wondering what genre of books you read when you were younger."Not surprisingly, considering what I write, I fell in love with ghost stories and historical fiction from an early age. Some of my favorite books as a kid were A Little Princess and The Secret Garden, both by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and The Ghost Next Door, by Wylly Folk St. John. I also devoured the novels of Judy Blume, and I became fascinated with Agatha Christie mysteries in the later years of elementary school.
Thanks for asking, Anne Marie.
Sherrie wrote: "Cat, thanks for joining the group for a Q & A! Loved your book In the Shadow of Blackbirds, it was one of my favorite reads of 2014. My question for you is what were your five favorite books read i..."Thank you, Sherrie! I'm so happy In the Shadow of Blackbirds was one of your favorite reads of 2014.
Unfortunately, I didn't read nearly as many books as I wanted in 2014 because I had to write two different contracted novels for publishers. Here are the five books I enjoyed the most last year:
Charm & Strange, by Stephanie Kuehn
Hook's Revenge, by Heidi Schulz
I'll Give You the Sun, by Jandy Nelson
The Vanishing, by Wendy Webb
A Cold Legacy, by Megan Shepherd
And now that we're in a brand new year, I'll mention that I'm currently reading Orphan Train, by Christina Baker Kline, which is actually one of the best novels I've read in a long time.
Jenny wrote: " What under-the-radar book did you love that you think deserves more love and hype?"Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross. The novel was a fellow Morris Award Finalist last year with In the Shadow of Blackbirds, but I had actually read an advance reading copy of the book a year before the award celebrations. It's the story of a "plain" girl in 1890s Paris hired out as a companion to make other girls appear more attractive to wealthy suitors. The problem is the girl she's hired to accompany believes she's indeed a real friend, not someone her mother acquired from an agency that represents plain women.
I just love the book and feel it's so clever and moving . . . yet so unknown by many readers. I highly recommend it.
Cat wrote: "Sherrie wrote: "Cat, thanks for joining the group for a Q & A! Loved your book In the Shadow of Blackbirds, it was one of my favorite reads of 2014. My question for you is what were your five favor..."You're welcome, Cat! I'm going to have to check out some of the books on your top five list. I'm planning on reading the Orphan Train in the upcoming months! I actually met Christina Baker Kline at an author event at my local library back in the fall. Do you have any plans to come to Maryland in the future? :)
Sherrie wrote: "Cat wrote: "Sherrie wrote: "Cat, thanks for joining the group for a Q & A! Loved your book In the Shadow of Blackbirds, it was one of my favorite reads of 2014. My question for you is what were you..."I'm jealous you got to meet her! I bet she was fascinating to listen to.
I was actually just in Maryland for a conference in November. I don't think any of my publishers have plans to send me there in the near future, unfortunately. I'd love to go back again.
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Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross. The novel was a fellow Morris Award Finalist last year with In th..."
Oh cool, thanks! I just checked it out, I guess I already had it on my TBR! Might have to move it up :)
Writeon wrote: "Question for Cat: Have you ever completely changed/scrapped a character or plot concept while in the middle of writing?"Yes, definitely! I change and scrap characters and plot points all the time, and I'm currently doing it for the book I'm revising at the moment.
The most major character deletion occurred with my 1918-set YA novel, In the Shadow of Blackbirds. Someone suggested that I omit a major subplot consisting of a family of German immigrants. I agreed that the characters drew away from the main plot and slowed down the pace of the book too much, so I made the change before the book sold to Amulet Books. However, I ended up using all that research I conducted on 1918 German-Americans, as well as the deleted characters' last name, in my upcoming adult novel, The Uninvited.
Jenny wrote: "Cat wrote: "Jenny wrote: " What under-the-radar book did you love that you think deserves more love and hype?"Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross. The novel was a fellow Morris Award Finalist last yea..."
Wonderful to hear, Jenny! I hope you enjoy it.
Cat wrote: "Thank you for all of your questions! I'm thrilled to be chatting with everyone this week. I'll try to answer all of the questions soon, but I'll start right now with the first two.Sherry wrote: "..."
Thanks for sharing, Cat.
Sherry wrote: "Thanks for sharing, Cat."You're welcome. I've enjoyed chatting with everyone!
Definitely BIG Thanks Cat! It was so cool to chat with you and get a glimpse of your inspiration!! :-)
You're welcome! Thanks for all of the wonderful questions.
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THANK YOU so much, Cat for hanging out with us all week! Its been a lot of fun!
THANK YOU everyone else for your awesome questions! You guys ROCK!
Harlee says: Yay, congrats Kate and Ryan :)Thanks so much Harlee! I appreciate it :D
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And congrats to our winners, enjoy your prize!
David said: Wow, this Q&A was SO amazing, a HUGE thanks to Cat for taking so much time to answer all our questions so thoroughly! And congrats to our winners, enjoy your prize!
Thanks David!!
Thanks so much for hosting me here! Congrats, winners!
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And big thanks to Cat! This Q&A was absolutely amazing!! :)
David Estes Fans and YA Book Lovers Unite!
Books mentioned in this topic
Belle Epoque (other topics)The Steep & Thorny Way (other topics)
The Steep & Thorny Way (other topics)
The Uninvited (other topics)
Slasher Girls & Monster Boys (other topics)
More...
I really love your off-the-wall characters in these books.
What has been your favorite character to write..."
I really loved her too :)