This week's indie-author interview features S.O. Thomas, who's now agented and has a book on submission. As a former WriteMentor participant, she provides a window into participating in manuscript mentor contests, and also her experience with Twitter pitching in #PitMad, which resulted in her pitch attracting an agent. She's also been a wonderful critique partner through Inked Voices.
10 Question & Answer Interview with Author S.O. Thomas
1. The Slug Queen was chosen to be mentored in the WriteMentor manuscript contest. Why did you decide to enter it in the contest?
I entered several mentor contests before trying WriteMentor because I'd heard tons of success stories from mentor contests like Pitchwars. One of the things I struggled most with was understanding the industry from the outside, since I learn best by doing. I thought having a mentor would be an invaluable learning experience, not just for my writing but for understanding the industry as well.
2. Can you describe the process of getting your MS ready for that contest? Did you query it first, research mentors, run it by critique partners or beta readers?
I worked with my critique partners and a few beta readers in preparation for the contest. I knew the story itself still needed help, but I tried to make sure the hook was strong and the writing was solid before submitting.
I always researched mentors after the mentor lists went live. In hindsight, I can see the process is a bit like finding the right agents to query. I wanted to find mentors who were looking for the kind of story I'd written but also one whose mentor style matched my needs as an aspiring author. But I was picked by a mentor I didn't submit to and I couldn't have asked for a better fit! So sometimes the universe has other plans and I'm okay with that.
3. What were you hoping you would learn, and your manuscript would get, from the WriteMentor mentoring process?
I was hoping to strengthen my manuscript to a point where it was query ready. What I didn't expect was the confidence that came with having someone believe in my manuscript, and in me by default, enough to choose me as their mentee. I've always been a weak verbal storyteller, and as such, I've always struggled with believing in my ability to tell stories in general. Learning to quiet my inner critic became easier as that confidence grew.
4. Once The Slug Queen was picked for mentoring, what was the process of working with a WriteMentor author / mentor?
Karah, my mentor, read through my manuscript and sent me a detailed edit letter and we talked about possible fixes. Once I started revisions, I realized that I wanted to go the complete opposite direction and she helped me find comp titles to support that decision. Then she read through it again and gave me her final notes. She also helped me work on my query letter and provided advice about the industry along the way.
5. The Slug Queen is indie-published. What led you to go that route, as opposed to traditional publishing?
I tend to choose the indie path more often than not because I've never been very good at fitting into mainstream anything, so I've learned to make my own path. I'm an indie designer, too.
My biggest reason for indie-publishing The Slug Queen was being able to choose the illustrator. When I created Cricket's fictional world, I couldn't see it being brought to life by anyone besides Corina Alvarez Loeblich. I'd been a fan of her work since I was in high school, so almost 20 years. When I approached her about the project and she said yes, there was no going back. Her illustrations are gorgeous and I've never regretted my decision. In a perfect world, she'd be the illustrator for all of my books. That's only a guaranteed option if I continue to indie-publish.
6. The Slug Queen features a neurodiverse, Black main character who battles grim faeries to save her little brother. What inspired you to write this story?
There are not nearly enough neurodiverse characters in MG fiction, and there are even less who are people of color. I wanted to write a story about an autistic black tween facing her fears and saving the day in a fantasy world because that's the kind of book I've been waiting my whole life to read.
As for the grim part, I'm convinced all of my stories will have grim elements. I started reading adult horror at age 13. I started a scary movie fan club at 14 and made it my mission to find a scary movie that scared me and all the members. I don't think we ever found one that scared all of us, but it was fun trying!
Also, for me, tooth fairies were always suspect. What did they want with all of those teeth? Did they work alone or did they take orders from someone else? Where did they live? Who else lived there? And how did they get into your home undetected like Santa? This story answers all those questions.
7. What do you most hope readers will walk away with from reading Cricket's story?
That's a tough question. There are a lot of hopes, but if I had to pick just one I think it would be that young readers walk away with an expanded imagination and a desire to ask what if. The Slug Queen takes popular characters like the tooth fairies and Santa and boogie men and reimagines or recasts them in roles that are unexpected (hopefully!). I started with a simple what if question: what if tooth fairies wanted children instead of teeth and soon a whole new world was born. I want kids to enjoy making their own stories and their own worlds. In my author visits with The Slug Queen, I show them how they can practice by creating their own fractured fairy tales.
8. #GraveyardChallenge is another book you wrote, although in another creator's series / universe. Can you describe what it's like writing for a series like that, and how is that different from writing your own book?
Writing only one book in a multi-book series was an interesting endeavor! Thankfully, I was given loose parameters: specific theme (spooky), specific word count (15k words), and a deadline (I think it was 6 months). We had group meetings to discuss our individual ideas, and then we were paired up with a critique partner. Then we worked with an editor. And then it went to print!
The story idea was mine, so it wasn't too different from writing my own book because the story itself was true to my brand. I did need to work a specific object into the narrative that would be important to the series as a whole, but that was about it.
9. I especially loved the ending of #GraveyardChallenge. It's not an ending I've ever seen before in MG. Do you think there's a bit more freedom in MG horror to explore and do new and different things with your writing than other genres?
For me personally, I was inspired by the spooky TV shows I grew up with. Those shows did a lot of things other shows for kids didn't do, and it worked because the kids who watched those shows were looking for something a little different anyway. They expected the unexpected. I think it's like that with spooky MG.
10. You're agented now. Can you describe a little bit the process you went through to find your agent? Is there anything you'd do differently? Why or why not?
My process differs from the norm a bit because I didn't send any cold queries. I found my agent through the twitter pitch contest #Pitmad. I posted 3 pitches on the designated day, all for the same manuscript, and received several agent likes. After researching all the agents, I sorted the agents into four lists: Absolutely, Yes, Maybe, and No. The goal was to query the agents in batches - a few from the first three lists each time - but I received my first offer from the first batch, so I only queried thirteen agents. I received five offers in total, three of which were from the Absolutely list, so the decision was tough!
My advice for people who want to try the twitter pitch contests: (this is what I did and I wouldn't change anything except maybe waiting to participate when I wasn't working 60 hour weeks)
- workshop your pitches until they sparkle
- take advantage of the maximum amount of pitches you're allowed
- spread your pitches out throughout the day
- team up with other authors to help boost each others' pitches
- comment on other people's pitches and cheer them on (not that this helps your chances, but it reminds you to have fun and that you're not alone)
- have a synopsis ready
- (Most important advice) make sure your manuscript sparkles as much as your pitch!
If at first you don't succeed, try again and again until you do (not just pitch contests, but all opportunities that give you a chance to get your work in front of an agent: pitch contests, mentor contests, workshops, webinars, conferences, etc). And never stop honing your craft!
