Trailer

Credits

Made by: Tailored Media
Model: Alina Gromova
Voice: Liz Fitzgibbon

Donne

I'm done! Done with Finals. Done with university. Done with Donne.

You said it, Benedict. 

So I've finally come to the end of my time at Oxford. I'm staying here for another month, until the end of term, but there's no more work to do for my degree. I can't believe how quickly the end has come. It's a wonderful feeling to be sitting here blogging, with no more exams ahead of me – although after being in education for most of my life, it's a bit strange not to have an "exam target" of some kind. As a kid you work towards your SATs; as a teen you're aiming for GCSEs and A-Level; late teens and early twenties, you're working on your degree – but for me, it's definitely time to go now. I've run out of study steam. I'll miss being immersed in the beautiful old books I've been able to discover here, but there comes a point when you can just do one too many exams. It's been a wonderful few years, and I feel very fortunate to have had them. 

Summer begins now. I'm going to give myself a few days to just come down from the exam cloud, read a few books – real, exciting books, completely unrelated to exams! – and hang around in the sun, but I'm going to start refining my plans for the second book in the Bone Season series tomorrow evening. (Or it it the Scion series? Goodreads has hijacked the series name! And it's actually ... better than mine...) I've yet to give Book 2 a title; I suggested one to Alexa, but as her response was "might be too weird", I may need to amend it. I'm incredibly excited about being able to write again; I've been on a very long sabbatical to concentrate on Finals, which has caused a long, unpleasant withdrawal. Not writing makes me a little bit insane. I have my usual flesh-and-bones structure laid out for Book 2: I know what's going to happen in the beginning, middle and end, but I'll be letting Paige guide me through the rest. I had 50,000 words done, but I've decided to scrap them and start again – it feels like such a long time since I worked on them in the summer, and as they were written during the editing stage of The Bone Season, there are lots of little inconsistencies. I need to shake off the dust and get back into Scion mode. My approximate deadline for the first draft is December, so I have a lot of work to do. 

I'm also overwhelmed that The Bone Season has finally got its first readers, and I'm getting my first reviews. This is possibly the most terrifying part of being a début author: waiting to see if readers are going to like your work, knowing that some of them won't, and accepting that as part of the process of being published. Thank you so much to those of you who have left reviews on Goodreads or your personal sites.

Next Thursday I'll be getting ready to fly to New York for BookExpo America 2013. Apart from the Winter Institute, which was solely for trade, this is my first really big public event with The Bone Season. I'm looking forward to meeting lots of bloggers and booksellers, particularly the ones I've already 'met' on Twitter. If you're attending BEA and want to say hi, please do! Here are the events either myself or the book will be attending. 

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FRIDAY 31 MAY

10:00: Downtown stage. I won't be at this event, but Bloomsbury USA editor-in-chief Nancy Miller will be on the Fiction Mini Buzz Panel to talk about The Bone Season. 

11:30 – 12:30: Twitter chat. I'll be answering questions live from the Kobo booth (Booth #1067); tweet your questions to #KoboBEA13. 

2:30 – 3 pm: I'll be signing gallies on Autographing Table 22.

SATURDAY 1 JUNE 

11 – 11:30: Midtown stage. “New Adult Crossover: From YA to adult and back again”. I'll be talking on a panel with Sarah J. Maas, author of the Throne of Glass series, about crossover between adult and young adult books. We'll be joined by our lovely editors, Rachel Mannheimer and Michelle Nagler. 

12 – 12:20: Live online video chat with ShinDig Events (Booth #2135). Sarah J. Maas and I will be talking about our books and about writing fantasy. You can book here. 

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Also, some Big News for tomorrow: at 11AM (EST), Entertainment Weekly will release the official book trailer for The Bone Season. I don't want to spoil it, but the creative team behind it, Tailored Media, have done an amazing job. I was worried about a live-action trailer, thinking it might damage the milieu, but I think it works brilliantly and still allows the reader to imagine their own settings and characters. Keep an eye out and let me know what you think!

I'll be updating again from this Sunday, as usual. Great to be back!

Just let go

I'm still on blogging sabbatical, but I just had to share this. This is what your editor will be silently screaming when you send corrections after the date you were supposed to send all the corrections. 

News from World Book Night, seeing my finished hardback jacket, and other shenanigans on my return. Yes, I am studying. Yes, I am fine.

Totally got this under control. 

Little break

Hi guys,

I'm going to be taking a month's break from blogging while I study for my Finals, which start on 13th May and finish on the 21st. This is proving to be quite a hectic time for me, as I've been under the weather for a few weeks and am woefully behind on my work. I like to take my time over my blog entries, and while I'm trying to cram my protesting brain with quotes and dates, that time is eluding me. In the meantime, I'll still be around on Twitter, because I've become utterly addicted and even a degree cannot tear me from my tweeting. 

Some general bookish news for the coming month:

• If you live or study in Oxford, or fancy a quick trip there, I'll be speaking at Waterstones Oxford for World Book Night on 23 April at 6pm. It's a free event and you'll be able to reserve a copy of The Bone Season. And see me stammering my way heroically through one of my first public speeches. RJ Anderson will be launching her new YA novel, Quicksilver, at 5pm.
  


• If you'd like to win a limited edition ARC of The Bone Season, you're in luck! The publicity team are looking for early readers in the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand. All you have to do is email welcometoscion@thinkjam.com with up to 200 words on why you love reading. According to the Facebook page, you'll also get to be involved in "many other great things". Sounds intriguing.


• Finally, if you're attending BookExpo America 2013, I'll be there on Friday and Saturday. I'll be speaking with my American editor on a panel and signing proofs of The Bone Season in the autographing area. It's always been my dream to be an author at BEA; I'm looking forward to meeting lots of fellow bibliophiles. Please come and love the debut author.

Thank you all for your continued support and patience. See you in a month!

Samantha 

Joining the family

Alexa and I have finally finished editing The Bone Season, and it's been sent off to the typesetter to be turned into a hardback. I got a bit shaky before we sent it off – I'll never be able to tweak it again – but there comes a point when you have to let a book go and make its own way in the world. I'm very happy with the finished novel.  

Last Thursday I had tea with literary book bloggers from all over the country, including Karen Howlett of Cornflower Books and Simon Savidge of Savidge Reads. Karen has followed me since my deal was announced, so it was lovely to finally meet her in person. Book bloggers are fantastic people: they work incredibly hard for their passion, largely with no financial reimbursement, and whether positive or negative, their detailed feedback does wonders for both authors and other readers. So thank you, book bloggers, for working as hard as you do.

On the subject of reviews, it was recently announced that Goodreads, probably the most vibrant reviewing community on the Internet, has been bought by Amazon. My heart sank when I saw the GR announcement on their Twitter feed, which seemed to me to be deceptively cheerful, giving the impression that GR is joining the booming Amazon "family". I'm not currently a member of Goodreads – I'm not convinced it's the right place for authors, although I'm still debating – but I do enjoy glancing through reviews on there, and I've always thought it was a great place for readers to get together and discuss what's hot and what's not. Although I have no doubt that the acquisition will bring some benefits to readers (particularly Kindle-using readers), it makes me a tiny bit uncomfortable that another facet of the book industry is hopping into bed with Amazon. Goodreads was never commercial, never a site that sold books; it was a neutral environment in which readers could share opinions. Amazon plays on a different field. GR, for them, will become an invaluable well of data about what people read, and consequently, what they buy. Now the two giants are joined at the hip, I'm not sure Goodreads' neutrality can last. 

I became wary of Amazon after reading about their tax avoidance in the UK. I used to be a regular customer, but I very rarely buy there now. I could just be old-fashioned, but I think that as Amazon tightens an increasingly large fist around the publishing industry, it will drain the life from booksellers and traditional publishers, especially from the indie scene. I value the book industry, its variety and energy, and the discussion and passion that surrounds it. I value the human interaction of bookselling and the teamwork of publishing. I worry for the future with Amazon dogging the industry's footsteps. I also think it unlikely, now, that Goodreads will be able to promote indie booksellers when they could be promoting the Kindle. Otis Chandler said those links would "probably" stay, but I'm not sure I believe it. There could be hardly any change to GR – we'll have to wait and see. 

So that's my little list of initial thoughts. What do you guys think of the acquisition? Do you think this change was inevitable, or should GR have remained independent?      

Updates

Just a short one this week, guys, sorry – I'm snowed under with final proof tweaks and forcing my brain into study mode. Less than two months to go until Finals. *quakes* Once my degree is done I can finally get back to writing...

In Bone Season news, Alexa and I are painfully close to finishing the proofed manuscript: the version of the book that you'll be able to buy in shops, sans typos, with extra embellishments and changes. I've also started working with my Swedish and Hebrew translators. I'm really excited about both of these, as I had various Swedish and semitic influences when I wrote The Bone Season (most notably the Hebrew word "Rephaim"). The word that's given both of them difficulty so far is mime-lord. It's been really interesting to compare linguistic differences and try and create new words that will convey similar meanings to readers outside the Anglosphere. We're also contending with the double meaning in the title, which can only realistically be conveyed in English and one other language, French. My German publishers, meanwhile, have come up with a whole new title for the first book, although they'll be retaining the English series title of The Bone Season alongside it.  

I've also started a Pinterest board for The Bone Season here. I'll be pinning pictures to help you get a visual sense of the world of Scion and how the book looks in my head. I think Pinterest is a fantastic resource for writers, especially in terms of world-building – I'd love to have discovered it earlier.

Finally, if you have any questions for a YA editor, do drop me a line – I've organised another Q&A. See you next week!

The mysteries of YA

Before I start my blog this week – I met Neil Gaiman.

Turns out his children's books are published by Bloomsbury, and there he was at a meeting. The BBC Radio 4 production of Neverwhere started yesterday, and it's awesome. And it has Benedict Cumberbatch and Natalie Dormer in it. And Neil signed my copy of the book.

I will stop fangirling and move onto the blog now. Please welcome Kirsty Mclachlan – DGA's film, TV, YA and children's agent!

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Q&A: Literary Agent – YA

Kirsty McLachlan is a literary agent at David Godwin Associates (DGA). Her list includes adult fiction and non-fiction writers and children and YA authors. Her children and YA authors include Alex Campbell, Clémentine Beauvais, Lucy Inglis, Julian Sedgwick, Marcus Sedgwick and Rhian Tracey.  Kirsty also represents film and TV rights for the DGA agency.




How did you become a literary agent? 

I’ve worked in agencies for over twenty years now. I began straight from university through an advert in the Bookseller for an assistant at the Abner Stein Agency. I worked there for 8 years and learnt a huge amount from Abner, before moving to DGA Ltd. to represent the film and TV rights for the agency, and to build my own list.

What makes a query jump out in a saturated market like YA?

For me it’s totally instinctive, there should be just something about the writing that ‘fizzes’. I’m not looking for a trend or a subject matter. I love being told stories, tell me a good story and I’ll sit up and listen. Titles are important – ensure your title really works, and then the pitch must be strong – but it’s the writing that counts. I know within a page or so if I’m going to love something.

What's the hottest trend in YA fiction right now? 

I ignore trends – if they are hot now and on the shelves, you’ve missed the boat. Be aware of the market but don’t try and copy it. In my submissions, I’m getting a lot of trilogies and series submitted still, fantasy novels, dystopian novels, dark fairy tales and books about angels.  Write the book you want to write.

How far is too far with darker themes and adult content?

Never include dark themes or adult stuff, if there is no purpose. There has to be a purpose and a point to your themes and more than that, you need to have something to say about it. That said, I really don’t have a problem with it if it is woven into your narrative brilliantly. YA books should always push boundaries but don’t use content simply to shock, say something with it.

Would you ever respond to a query with advice or a review? 

I tend to avoid giving an author a full review – it can be taken the wrong way over email and anyway, it’s only my opinion. But I do sometimes – if I think the writing is good but just not for me – suggest other agents they should approach.

Do you consider the author's age before you offer representation? 

No. I sold Jade Ngengi’s book to Chicken House last year and she was fifteen (sixteen now). It’s the writing that is important and that I feel I can work with the author.

Why do you think YA books have skyrocketed in sales over the past decade? Do you expect it to continue?

There was an obvious gap between children’s books and adult books which was filled by YA books. But I do think it links into social media and the ability of readers to ‘talk’ to each other – so word of mouth becomes viral. Booksellers have become much cannier at speaking direct to the reader and embracing social media. Of course, there is also the shift of adult readers buying YA books as well – and younger readers (10 plus) who are reading above their age group. I don’t think sales will continue in the same way but there is an established audience now, so this is still a fantastic age range to write for.

Are there ever times when it's okay to query an unfinished MS? 

Most agents would say finish your book first – and I tend to agree. There are many times when a book is finished and the author will go back and make quite major structural revisions. However, last week I made a two book deal for a YA writer I took on, on the basis of 40 pages. The publisher also made the offer before seeing the full manuscript. So it does happen.

Is word count, too high or too low, ever a deal breaker, even if the story and writing are both great?

My heart sinks if a book is too long but if the writing is good, I will always make exceptions. Similarly, for short novels – if the writing is powerful, sparse and written in the way that every word counts, I will make exceptions. Agents like authors, like to break rules, break moulds.

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Thanks so much for Kirsty for taking the time to answer these in detail! I think that last piece of advice is crucial: agents love to break rules. Don't just go with the crowd and follow trends. Write something unique. Let me know if there's anyone else you'd like me to interview from the publishing industry, or if you have any requests for upcoming blog posts.