What It takes
After wishing for years and talking about it for months, I’ve officially joined YouTube, and more specifically Authortube with the Newbie Tag! Taking the time to look back at my writing journey, inspirations, and dreams for the future allowed me to reaffirm why I love life as a writer.
1.) How did you find out about Authortube?
After grad school, I missed the community I’d formed with other writers. Well before this time, I was already watching book review videos, and especially loved watching Christine Riccio. Somewhere in that time, I started watching more authors talking about their work, and specifically loved Kim Chance, Alexa Donne, and most recently Lindsay Puckett.
As a writer, what I loved most was seeing an author’s journey much like my own, the endless days of writing before getting to the finished book. And it wasn’t until watching the book tour video for Again, But Better that I realized how personally connected I felt to that moment. I’d been watching all the way through Christine’s early days of writing to the title reveal, cover reveal, etc. Seeing her publication journey made me feel proud of her and served as a reminder that it was possible for me as well.
2.) What genres do you write in?
For this question, I will focus on my fiction, though I do write poetry as well. My current WIP is a YA speculative novel. My next project will be a YA fantasy series. I find even when I’m working on realistic fiction in a short story, magic creeps onto the page.
3.) What is your preferred writing tense, point of view, and category of story?
For poetry, I prefer second person point of view, which addresses the narration to “You.” This compliments the stream-of-consciousness style that in most of my poems.
For fiction, I prefer past tense, close third person point of view. While I have plans to write adult fiction in the future, my current passion remains Young Adult literature.
4.) Are you a plotter, panster, or plantser?
Before the pandemic, I was consistently a plotter. However, the ethereal way time seemed to move during quarantine invited me back to the magic of writing, which is often those places of unknown.
I won’t say I was a panster, though, because I did have a basic roadmap of where I was going. I prefer to use the term discovery writing. I allowed myself to live with the characters, to write with a loose destination, but making room for pit stops along the way.
5.) Are you a self-published, published, or yet-to-be published author?
I suppose I’m a little bit of all these things. My debut micro-collection of poetry, These Are the Women We Write About was published in 2018 by The Poetry Annals. Four of my poems were self-published in a collective this year. As the founder and editor-in-chief of Pages Penned in Pandemic, I knew I wanted to add my writing to this time capsule of 2020. This is currently available for purchase and all proceeds are donated to 826 National to support young writers.
For my WIP, a YA speculative novel about dreams, I will be pursuing traditional publishing. The last time I was in the query trenches with this novel was 2018. I took a step back in February of 2019 to overhaul this manuscript. This is the book of my heart, and I can’t wait to finish line edits and prepare to head back into the query trenches with you by my side.
6.) If you’re not yet published, what is your dream publishing house and / or literary agent?
From experience, I know how disappointing it can be to receive a rejection from a “dream agent.”
Approaching the query trenches this time around, I do not have a dream agent or dream publishing house. I am looking for someone who will love this book and champion this book and support my writing career.
When compiling lists, I think we can get close to finding people we might work well with, but ultimately, the magic comes from having conversations, and seeing how well you might pair with an agent or editor.
I will say that I have so many people in my life who support my writing. However, there is one individual who understands the importance of this sometimes dark and often unusual book. If I could clone him as my agent or editor, that would be a dream come true.
7.) What Authortube related videos can we expect to find on your channel?
For my channel, I will be creating a combination of the videos I love to watch on Authortube with videos I am always searching for. What does this mean?
I love videos on writing craft as well as personal process videos. I also enjoy watching writing vlogs, and of course, bookish content always brightens my day. You can expect this content from my channel as well!
As I’ve taken on different challenges and opportunities in my creative life, I found myself searching for videos to help guide me through.
While there are fantastic videos on querying, traditional publishing, self-publishing, and indie author journeys, I craved more videos about literary magazines. How to organize submissions, how to submit to journals and find reputable magazines to entrust your work.
Last year when I founded Pages Penned in Pandemic, I wanted more videos walking through the process of starting a press and publishing work.
All this to say, I will be walking you through the process of my next creative endeavor. After the events in Texas this week, I promised to support women by using my art to speak up.
How will I be accomplishing this? My new collective, The Elpis Pages, will feature work about womanhood by self-identifying women. Upon publication, all proceeds will be donated to the Planned Parenthood Action Fund to support access to safe and legal abortions and reproductive rights.
If you currently have writing that sounds like it might be a fit for this print publication, let me know in the comments below.
As we near publication, I will take you through the process of starting a press or magazine, organizing submissions, cover design, marketing, and final publication.
8.) When did you start writing?
I have a few stories from elementary school, all signed in crayon. But I suppose the moment I really started writing was in seventh grade during our poetry unit.
It wasn’t until my senior year of high school, taking an experimental writing class, when I fell in love with fiction, and I’ve been writing ever since!
9.) What was the first story you ever wrote?
In that experimental writing class, I’d worked on poetry and satire and flash fiction. But my first story was called “Through.”
For our final project, we were able to work on whatever we wanted. My best friend suggested I write a story about fairytales, or rather, fairytale characters. This was well before Once Upon a Time.
I loved that story. And I still love this story. I went into grad school with that manuscript and I have plans to return to that series after my current WIP.
10.) What authors have inspired your writing most?
There are so many that it would be difficult to name them all.
I’ll start with J.K. Rowling. After reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone at the age of eight, I knew I wanted to write stories of my own.
For this current WIP, my early inspiration came from Sylvia Plath, both The Bell Jar and Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams. I also owe much of the darkness and human authenticity in my book to Fell of Dark and Ten Miles One Way by Patrick Downes, Away We Go by Emil Ostrovoski, and We Are Okay by Nina LaCour. Others include the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, The Wicker King by Kayla Ancrum, The Riverman series by Aaron Starmer, Wild Awake by Hilary T Smith, The Giver by Lois Lowry, On Immunity by Eula Biss, Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl, and both The Song of Achilles and Circe by Madeline Miller. Greek mythology plays a large role in this WIP.
11.) Do you schedule your writing sessions or simply get to writing whenever you can find the time?
While I am a very organized person, it has become increasingly difficult to schedule writing time. I always know I have thirty minutes or so to work on my writing during my lunch break, and most of my weekends are spent either writing content for my blog or working on line edits.
However, as I take on this next creative endeavor with The Elpis Pages, I know how important it is going to be to schedule in this time to make sure I can write every day. And this doesn’t mean whole pages or cutting 2,000 + words, as thinning down my WIP is the current goal of line edits. Sometimes this means writing a poem, or a few lines of dialogue.
I do have a full-time day job, which has become more demanding in the past few months. Though time can be fleeting, I know I need a moment of writing to maintain my mental health.
12.) Do you type on a computer, typewriter, or write everything out by hand, or use a blend of both?
I would say 90% of my writing happens on my computer. But if I’m writing a poem or dialogue between characters (this often happens to me at the grocery store or on the road), I will use my phone.
For poetry, I solely write in the Bear app. When working on chapter notes or scene ideas, I write these in the Notes app on my phone or if I’m driving, I will use Voice Memos. I do keep a written journal, which is more for brainstorming. No concrete writing really happens here.
13.) What are you most looking forward to now that you’re part of Authortube?
First and foremost, I would say community. So much of writing is solitary, but my time in grad school, in writing group, and in collecting Pages Penned in Pandemic, these experiences have all taught me the value of staying connected, of finding a community to offer and receive support, and to feel understood.
I am also looking forward to having a tangible record of this next year as I work on The Elpis Pages and prepare my WIP to reenter the query trenches. There are so many milestones and roadblocks on the way to my dreams, and I don’t want to forget what it takes to get there.
Don’t forget to like and subscribe on Youtube! And remember, no matter where the day takes you, dream big!
The Write Place
Through the years, I’ve become someone who can write anywhere. I do believe there is a benefit to adaptability when it comes to finding time for words. But there is something to be said about a place dedicated specifically to the craft and growth of writing.
For me, this is my writing cave, which exists in the corner of my room as a sanctuary for stories. Sleep has often been sacrificed to spend time here. Whole worlds have been born from the ether of the universe in this space. I have grown as a writer and a person at this well-worn desk.
I suppose there are places that feel more comfortable than others because they allow us to be exactly as we are. Even as the world asks us to be different versions of ourselves daily, there is a magic to finding the you in a space.
However, I must admit this desk and the writing cave disappeared beneath paperwork and books and disorder during the last few months. In that time, I’d forgotten how much I loved this tiny corner of my world. And though we all exist in spaces differently, for myself, I know that a cluttered room leads to a cluttered mind.
I needed my space back. I kept planning to reclaim this corner, but alas, time felt fleeting. While we can and should make plans, sometimes life has different intentions. And as life is wont to do, it threw some disruptions my way, most notably by flooding my closet earlier this month. I didn’t plan for it, but it forced me to clear out and clean up the mess.
This opportunity was the nudge I needed to tackle my writing cave. And now that this space has returned to stillness and solace, capturing its importance here feels necessary.
The space:
As previously mentioned, the writing cave exists in a small corner of my room. It contains my desk, an alcove, a craft stand, and a bookshelf. So what makes this space special?
In part, I think it’s the careful curation of everything that makes me feel connected to stories. It’s history and memories and nostalgia and possibility. Among these treasures, you’ll find antique teacups, vintage books, typewriters, lighthouses, honeybees, pens, planners, and more. Perhaps this is the closest you’ll get, dear reader, to understanding my composition as a writer at the molecular level. This microcosm of personhood remains clear on the days when I feel lost.
The desk:
This is truly one of my favorite finds. In 2014, I wandered into a building near my hometown, which everyone calls The Barn. It is, in fact, a barn filled with items from ceiling to floor with no rhyme or reason. It takes hunting and a keen eye to find treasure. I did just that. I paid $50 for a desk that in perfect condition is worth 20 times this amount.
Alas, my desk is far from perfect. I love it all the more for its scars and history. This antique Limbert Arts and Crafts Library desk was crafted from tiger oak in the mission style during the early 1900s. The drawer has a place for a quill and ink.
Most convenient for an avid reader, this desk provides two sets of shelves on either side. Stored here are more than enough books to fuel my obsession with Grimm’s Fairytales, Greek mythology, and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
The latest addition to the shelves is a canvas print of the Currituck lighthouse, which for those who know the world of my work-in-progress book, DREAM CATCHERS, you know how important this building is to me.
No matter where I go or what story I pursue, I know this desk won’t be far from my journey. We’re kindred spirits, meant to be in each other’s lives for always.
The alcove:
Four years ago, I knew this space needed to be transformed into my writing cave when I saw the alcove built into this corner. You see, dear reader, I’d started my own collection of antique teacups (my great-grandmother collected them first) and I knew this would be the perfect place to showcase them.
And as the years have passed and my collection has grown, my love for these two shelves has not diminished. I’ve added more than just teacups here. There’s vintage editions of Tennyson’s Poetical Works, Euripides, A Wrinkle in Time, Sonnets to Orpheus, Idylls of the King, In Memoriam A.H.H., various works of F. Scott Fitzgerald, Winnie-the-Pooh, The Wind in the Willows, Vanity Fair, vintage writing craft books, the April Poems circa 2020, Far From the Madding Crowd, a first edition collection of poetry by Edna St. Vincent Millay, Paradise Lost, and so many copies of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
A more recent addition to this space is the lighthouse print gifted to me by one of the best friends to celebrate the publication of Pages Penned in Pandemic. Someday, dear reader, you’ll discover why lighthouses are so important to me. For now, I’m still figuring that out for myself.
The craft stand:
For Christmas 2020, my parents gifted me this incredible stand, which now houses my myriad of craft supplies. Whether washi tape or watercolors, I love having the ability to dabble in other creative arts when need be. I’ve utilized the space as much as possible, adding some framed prints of Alice exploring Wonderland (a gift from the other best friend) and some additional teacups!
The bookshelf:
While this is only one of the bookshelves in my room, this one provides so much to love and to feel inspired by when my own words feel more distant than usual.
At the very top, I’ve added some teacups (I now have 37 in total, though I’m starting to run out of room) with my Honeybee Farms sign.
Though the least visually interesting, the binders on the bottom ensure my curated writing throughout the years stays organized. These binders remind me to keep going without giving up. I’ve done it countless times before. I know I can do it again, so long as I try.
As I’m always trying to become the best writer I can be, I find having a collection of craft books to be just as important. This first shelf continues to grow, and so does my passion for my art. To keep myself tethered to where my current work-in-progress began, I keep a framed scrap of paper with an idea that I tied back to Camryn’s story a year after first writing it. It’s something to look back on when the drafts seem endless and the work feels unmanageable.
I know what you’re thinking: what would a bookshelf be without more books? Worry not, dear reader. Below the pens and markers and highlighters is a shelf filled with graphic novels, a beloved quote about brokenness, a beeswax candle shaped into a lighthouse, and a coffee mug with a beautiful origin and characters from a favorite show.
Just below this shelf are books about dreams and mythology and magic with some memoirs for good measure.
The essentials:
No writing cave would be complete without those last few items that make or break a storytelling session. For me, this comes down to eight items. Though water, coffee, and crystals are a MUST, they are not pictured below. The others include:
Macbook Pro
Moleskine journal (current edition adorned with an Ew David sticker)
Archer and Olive Planner
Felix Gray blue light blocking glasses
Headphones
Recently, I’ve been reading back through old blog posts. In doing so, I found one written before I turned 25. And in it, I promised a tour of my writing cave. I realize it’s taken four(ish) years to finally compile this here, but I’m happy I didn’t rush the post. The writing cave has changed, taking on more history and energy and stories than I ever imagined. And I have gone through my own growth since then.
I can’t wait to revisit this years from now in my next writing cave. I imagine it will have even more bookshelves and teacups, that I will still be writing from the same desk, only I will have a view of the ocean from windows that let in the afternoon light. Maybe this is more a dream than anything else, but in case you’re new to this blog, you should know I am a dreamer.
Whether you’re finding yourself out in the world or in a tiny corner of your home, I hope you’re able to be you, whoever that might be.
