I loved the gentle mystery of this book, motivated by the very real possibility of losing home and friends when a girl and her brother's father's company is bought out by a mysterious investor with one goal: to shut down their father's designs.
Twelve-year-old Chinese American Ellie Wei Pettit only hears whispers from her parents, but it's enough for her to put two and two together: her father's design company is going to be bought out by a Chinese investor in a week, and it's going to put her dad out of a job.
They'll lose everything: the house, the California neighborhood she's growing up in, her friends – everything!
So when her mother plans a trip to Hong Kong, the same city the investor's company is headquartered, Ellie and her lacrosse-obsessed brother Kipp decide to go along too and try to find this mysterious investor.
She's encouraged by her YMCA instructor, who seems to have the inside scoop on the company and CEO's motivations behind the impending purchase. But he's cryptic and drops out of communication before Ellie can ask all her questions.
Ellie's directionally challenged, shall I say, and getting around Hong Kong, on public transportation (when she's been shuttled around by parents her whole life), while only minimally speaking Chinese, despite tons of classes, is an obstacle! Especially when her teacher leaves her clues she has to decipher to get to the next meeting place.
She's not entirely sure what she'll do to persuade the CEO to let her dad keep working on his designs. But she's not going to lose everything without trying! She taps into courage and resolve she didn't know she had.
Enjoy this gentle middle grade mystery, which touches on sports (lacross and softball), traveling to another country, navigating new expectations and different transportation systems, and practicing another language.
This interview is part of a new series of interviews with successful small press published authors, hoping to shed some light on the small press publishing path to publication.
10 Question & Answer with Lee Y. Miao, author of MG contemporary, Wei to Go!
1. What was your inspiration for writing Wei to Go! ?
When my kids went overseas for the first time, they faced customs and habits that are quite different from American ones. Navigating mass transportation, dining out, or even crossing the street were formidable or comical obstacles, even for adults. I thought it’d be fun to write a few chapters of siblings going on an overseas adventure, but I didn’t want it to be a travelogue. Instead, I couched the story in a mystery of sorts regarding international business, which experience I had in a prior career.
Asian Americans books or pop culture are sometimes misrepresented. The sibling characters in my novel don’t fit the stereotypes. Ellie, the main character, isn’t always obedient. English is her forte, not math and science. Her brother Kipp is sports crazy and also probably invented the word “play dates.” I had fun portraying these kids while reflecting on my own zany middle-school years.
2. What were your most significant challenges when writing Wei to Go! ?
I had never written middle-grade fiction, so focused on attending many craft workshops, mostly with SCBWI. However, I became flustered with many different approaches on first page, characters, plot, etc. Beyond the basics, I ultimately had to decide the perspective I wanted to pursue. Some of it was accidental, some was by design. Hopefully, both worked!
Beyond that, at times I got caught up on the nitty-gritty. I felt I wasn’t up on contemporary kids’ lingo as my kids and their friends were already adults. Using jargon from ten years ago seemed so yesterday. On the other hand, some kids’ lingo is so up-to-the minute, I ran the risk of no one understanding them. In the end I decided to make fun of certain phrases by having the parents say outmoded phrases while the kids rolled their eyes. That’s something everyone identifies with, right?
3. Wei to Go! is published by &MG, an imprint of Clear Fork Publishing. How did you find this publisher, and what about it attracted you to submit your manuscript?
I had doggedly, in an unorganized manner, sent inquiries to agents for almost two years while writing a related middle-grade novel. After a few requests for the first 50 pages or full manuscripts, nothing happened. When I heard other writers with agents sometimes waiting multiple years before finding a publishing home or not even finding one, I was worried. Yet, I was wary about approaching editors at small presses, and sought advice from a writing instructor to approach a few. Luckily, a critique partner told me about a temporary “Above the Slush” query opportunity at Clear Fork, so I took the plunge. I was flabbergasted when she offered me a contract and haven’t looked back since.
4. Can you discuss some of the challenges and positives of the small press publishing process? What was most difficult and why? What was a positive experience, and why?
One positive of having a book with a small press is not having to run things by several intermediaries. However, I’m one of many books put out by my publisher who wears multiple hats, so I’ve learned to be patient. If I have something urgent, I send both an email and a direct message to follow up.
A difficult situation that turned into a positive was discovering an issue with the first draft of my book cover. I was clueless about what to do. Then I remembered my contract had an option to use my own illustrator, which process I knew nothing about. Through some miracle, I found an artist who worked off my basic sketches to produce an appealing cover.
Having my own copyrighted book cover illustration also means more control without going through many layers of cover approval. I was able to then design my own bookmarks and postcard designs on Canva, the free design program.
5. My blog, The Fabric of Words, features books that kids and teens can get through their public library. Was your choice to publish Wei to Go! with Clear Fork Publishing at all influenced by a small press' ability to distribute to libraries? Or was that something you discovered after publishing with Clear Fork?
It’s difficult for small press books to find a home at public libraries because larger publishers may have standing orders. I hadn’t realized this until after publication of my book. Thus, I try to contact public libraries myself, and luckily my publisher uses a well-known distributor, Ingram, which libraries use to purchase the books at a discount.
6. What MG books and/or authors inspired your writing?
My all-time favorite book is A Wrinkle in Time, read aloud by my third-grade teacher over several weeks. I’m not creative enough to write science fiction fantasy, so I was and am still hooked by Madeleine L’Engle’s expert skills in plot, characters, and theme.
Gary Schmidt is one of my favorite authors, and I especially love his book, The Wednesday Wars. The initial contentious relationship between the main character, Holling Hoodhood, and his teacher is priceless. The book is witty, has enviable secondary characters, and makes me wish the story doesn’t end at the last page.
One of the most humorous middle-grade books I’ve read is The Best Man, by the late Richard Peck. He not only inspired me to inject as much humor into my scenes but also to buck conventional wisdom and write about what I don’t know. I recall his words from an SCBWI webinar about placing characters in a totally new environment and seeing what they do. That’s what I tried to do with Wei to Go!
7. What do you hope readers will take away or learn from Ellie's story?
I enjoy telling a story of how children—with help from family, friends, and teammates— discover connections to their cultures from the past while facing contemporary challenges. Ellie and her little brother gain insight on each other’s skills while working as a team to chase down a mysterious mega-corp taking over their dad’s company. I hope readers will enjoy the sports tidbits, humor, and multicultural family dynamics while gaining a sense the kids are beginning to understand a connection to their cultural past.
8. How important are book reviews?
I can’t emphasize enough how book reviews are critical for placement in public libraries and bookstores. Key reviews would include those from Kirkus, Booklist, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and a few others.
Since small presses often don’t have the staff to apply for those reviews, it falls on the author’s shoulders to apply. However, the probability for any book to be reviewed is low. Thus, I’ve tried to stress the importance of customer reviews, particularly on Amazon and Barnes & Noble booksellers.
9. There's already plans for a sequel! Can you share anything at all about it? And how do you (or does your publisher) decide how many books will be in the Ellie & Co series?
When my publisher discovered I was writing about related characters, she suggested making Wei to Go! a series. As I work on final edits for the second, I’m also writing the third. Rather than strict sequels, I consider them as related books. The third novel does feature Ellie’s little brother who plays a prominent role in the first.
The second novel, It’s a RHAP, Cat, actually takes place in the final month of school before the first novel starts. Here’s a description of the book that stars Cat, Ellie’s bestie from the first book.
When nerdy twelve-year-old Cat stumbles upon her double in a sixteenth-century portrait by Raphael, she must uncover puzzling family ties that just might help her win the school’s Renaissance contest with her art history partner (and crush).
10. How can young readers help small press authors like you, especially if they can't buy/purchase your books?
I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania and depended on the library for all my books through high school. As such, I would be grateful if young readers or their parents suggest my book for their libraries. Through this process, the library is able put it in the hands of many potential readers in the community.
BONUS QUESTION
11. If you have any words of wisdom for new/budding authors out there...please share.
Read books to keep abreast of what’s happening in the publishing world, especially in your genre. I like keeping a list to jot down notes of what stands out to me, such as great voice or plot issues.
Writing can be a solitary activity. Make friends—I mean it—with people at workshops and conferences to form critique groups or partners. Initially, I was afraid to reach out, but when I did, other writers helped me tremendously with not only writing advice but opportunities in the marketplace or experience they gained from querying, recommended books, etc. In turn, I’m honored to become their friends and supportive cheerleader in all their writing endeavors.
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