Happy Wednesday Everyone! Today I'm excited to have debut author Addie Thorley here with her agent Katelyn Detweiler here to share about Addie's upcoming YA historical fantasy AN AFFAIR OF POISONS that will be released February 26, 2019. It's about a major murder scandal in Paris in the reign of King Louis XIV. It sounds fantastic!
But before I get to our post today, I have my IWSG post. And I'm excited to be a co-host for the first time.
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
The co-hosts this month are: Raimey Gallant,Natalie Aguirre, CV Grehan, and Michelle Wallace!
Optional Question: Besides writing what other creative outlets do you have?
I never saw myself as very creative until I started writing. It's one of the reasons that I enjoy it. It lets me express a party of myself that I didn't know existed. My only other creative endeavors are backstage work on community theater productions. There is some creativity to it, but it's also a lot of grunt work.
What about you? Do you have other creative endeavors?
Now onto my post by Addie and Katelyn. Here's a blurb of AN AFFAIR OF POISONS from
Goodreads:
After unwittingly helping her mother poison King Louis XIV, seventeen-year-old alchemist Mirabelle Monvoisin is forced to see her mother’s Shadow Society in a horrifying new light: they’re not heroes of the people, as they’ve always claimed to be, but murderers. Herself included. Mira tries to ease her guilt by brewing helpful curatives, but her hunger tonics and headache remedies cannot right past wrongs or save the dissenters her mother vows to purge.
Royal bastard Josse de Bourbon is more kitchen boy than fils de France. But when the Shadow Society assassinates the Sun King and half the royal court, he must become the prince he was never meant to be in order to save his injured sisters and the petulant Dauphin. Forced to hide in the derelict sewers beneath the city, any hope of reclaiming Paris seems impossible—until Josse’s path collides with Mirabelle’s, and he finds a surprising ally in his sworn enemy.
She's a deadly poisoner. He's a bastard prince. Together, they form a tenuous pact to unite the commoners and former nobility against the Shadow Society. But can a rebellion built on mistrust ever hope to succeed?
Here's Addie and Katelyn!
Addie’s questions for Katelyn –
1. Katelyn, you're a literary agent AND a YA author, which means you’re basically Superwoman (I don't know how you have enough hours in the day!) How do you balance both careers and how do you feel they compliment one another?
Ha! Superwoman. I wish! Honestly, I’m the kind of writer who goes days/weeks/months sometimes without actually writing—I don’t need to do it every day, and I usually can’t do it every day. I have swirls of writing where I’m really caught up in a project and it feels great, and then times where I value TV binges and human interaction and reading other people’s words way more. But hard deadlines always take priority, whether it’s a time sensitive read for a client, or a submission that requires all my energy and attention, or a revision due date for one of my own books. That’s when sleep might take a hit! But that doesn’t happen too often—I’m usually pretty decent at compartmentalizing and making sure my work days are agency focused, and my nights and weekends are for writing and reading (…or Neflix). Personally, I think the two jobs go hand in hand well and it’s hard at this point to imagine one without the other—being an agent and reading so many other words makes me a better, more aware writer, and being a writer makes me a more understanding and sympathetic part of the process for my clients. The insider publishing knowledge also came in handy when writing my latest book, out this July, The Undoing of Thistle Tate, about a bestselling teen “author.” (Quotation mark use very intentional. ;))
2. I love the fact that you're both an agent and an author because you really understand the struggles and anxieties that come with querying, being on sub, and the revision process. What's one thing you wish authors/querying writers knew about agents? If you can, give us a peek behind the veil into some agent insecurities or things we might not know that effect whether or not you decide to represent an author.
I definitely understand those struggles and anxieties! Honestly, I feel all the same emotions for
my author’s submissions as I do my own. It’s hard not to feel those rejections on a deep personal level—I love the projects I send out, and I know all the tears and sweat authors have poured into their work. We agents may act cool, but we’re feeling all the feelings right there with you. And that goes for the good stuff, too! All the big and little victories. We truly are in it together.
I also truly feel the pang of sadness whenever I reject a submission I’ve received. I know the kind of love and time and determination that went into those words. Please know—it’s never easy to press send on those kinds of emails.
3. Since you have experience on both sides of the author/agent relationship, what would you say are the most important factors in a successful partnership? What do you look for in a client, and as an author, what do you expect of your agent?
COMMUNICATION. Definitely communication. Always. As an agent and as an author, I think transparency and honesty and openness are essential in a healthy, productive relationship. I really value an author’s opinions every step of the way, from what revisions to make, what the submission list will look like, what deal points matter most. I always want it to feel like a true partnership, like we are both sharing our insights and coming to the strongest possible strategy from there.
4. You represent authors of all genres and age categories, is there anything on your wish list that you're especially eager to find at the moment?
Honestly, I never know what I’ll love until I’m reading it. It’s all about the quality of the writing and the voice itself—does it feel fresh, unique, inspiring? I’m a sucker for a good retelling, using an old story and giving it an inventive twist that makes it feel totally new. And I’m always looking to read about different cultures, different places, perspectives outside of my own lived experience. Overall, I’m all about balance, as an agent and as a reader—fantasy and contemporary, adult and children’s, a little of this, a little of that. It keeps things interesting!
Katelyn’s questions for Addie –
1. Was becoming an author always the dream for you, or were there other career paths you had in mind? Was there a moment where it really clicked—that feeling that writing was your path, that you just had to do it, no matter how long/hard the journey to publication might be?
When I was young, I was determined to become a racehorse jockey. (I was absolutely obsessed with the Thoroughbred series!) Unfortunately, I grew waaaaay too tall (I’m 5’ 9’’) so when that dream died, I decided to become a journalist/reporter instead. I worked in radio and television news before becoming a YA author, and while I’ve always loved writing, I did not love writing hard news. It was just so dry and depressing. When my husband suggested I try my hand at fiction, I laughed and insisted I could never write anything as long as a novel. Fast forward seven months, and I’d written my first rough draft (which clocked in at 112k, so I clearly didn’t struggle in the length department!) It was such a fun and freeing experience. I could have as many opinions as I wanted! It could have magic! And kissing! I knew then that this was the career for me, no matter how long it took. And it took a looooong time! An Affair of Poisons is the fifth novel I’ve written. The other four will never see the light of day!
2. AN AFFAIR OF POISONS is one of the most wildly creative spins on a true historical event I’ve ever read. What was the inspiration behind the novel? What piece of the story came to you first? A character, a scene, the idea of alchemy, the time period?
This sounds totally creepy, but I have always loved poison. Something about smoky laboratories and bubbling cauldrons and dangerous, colorful bottles really calls to me, so I devoured every poisonous book and movie I could get my hands on. When I eventually began writing novels of my own, I knew I wanted to write a poison book. I just wasn’t sure who or what it would be about. One day, while doing research for a different project, I happened to read about the sorceress La Voisin and the scandalous event known as L'affaire des poisons (here’s a quick run-down: basically, members of the French nobility began hiring witches and poisoners to get rid of their bothersome husbands and rivals at court. It turned into a huge scandal that reached clear to the king’s inner circle.) I immediately felt that spark; I had found my poisoner at last.
I dove head first into research and was even more fascinated by the underground network of poisoners, magicians, and alchemists that La Voisin managed. I had a very clear picture in my head of a girl with crazy hair running around a laboratory, trying to make her mother, La Voisin, happy. The rest of the story spiraled out from there. One funny fact: in the first draft, Mirabelle made a love potion in the opening scene…which didn’t set the right tone AT ALL.
3. I must admit, I know very little about this period of French history—and I’m all for learning some of the basic elements with a little alchemy and magic and, of course, swoony romance! Has history always been a passion of yours? What was the most interesting part of your research?
Yes! I’m a total history nerd. As a kid, I ran around dressed like an orphan straight from the gutters of Victorian London (complete with the British accent!) and I could often be found scaling the rock walls in our backyard, pretending to cross the Rocky Mountains with a wagon train. (According to my sister, I was a horrible embarrassment.) I was just certain I had been born during the wrong time period; the past felt so much more magical and compelling. As I grew older, I immersed myself in historical fiction, biographies, and documentaries, as well as some truly stellar TV shows (Shout out to White Queen and The Tudors!)
Research is one of my FAVORITE aspects of writing historical fiction, and I learned SO MUCH while working on An Affair of Poisons. I think I enjoyed studying alchemy/herbalism most, though. I read alchemy books, of course, but I also read about 17th century medicine, and wiccan spell work, and poisons, and the medicinal and spiritual properties of plants. I wish I could be an actual alchemist.
4. As noted in the previous question: SWOONY ROMANCE. You wrote such a convincing, layered love story here, and somehow managed to do it without ever taking away from all the brilliant scheming and plotting and magical drama surrounding Mirabelle and Josse. Did you always know it would be a dual POV story? What was the hardest/easiest part of putting their love story on the page?
Ahhh I’m glad you think the romance is swoony! It only took me a million drafts to get it right. I knew from the get go that I wanted this to be a dual POV story, and I specifically crafted Josse and Mira’s characters so that they would challenge each other—both in good ways and bad. They are wildly different people, and certainly know how to push each other’s buttons, but they still have enough common ground to connect on a deep, emotional level.
Getting that deep connection to come across on the page, however, was probably the hardest part of bringing their love story to life. I knew in my head why they were perfect for each other, but slowing the plot down enough to let them have those moments to really connect was something I had to work on during edits.
The easiest part was definitely their snappy banter. There were so many times while drafting and editing when I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Thanks so much for all your advice, Addie & Katelyn! You can find them at:
Addie’s Links:
Katelyn’s Links:
Addie has generously offered a pre-order of AN AFFAIR OF POISONS and Katelyn is offering a query critique for a giveaway.
To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through February 23rd. If you do not want to be included in the critique giveaway, please let me know in the comments.
If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments to enter either contest.
If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This giveaway is International to anywhere that the Book Depository ships for free.
Here's what's coming up:
Monday, February 11th I have an interview with debut author Astrid Scholte and a giveaway of her YA fantasy FOUR DEAD QUEENS
Tuesday, February 12th I'm participating in the Romance Is in the Air Giveaway Hop
Wednesday, February 13th I have an agent spotlight interview and query critique giveaway with Amy Stapp
Monday, February 18th I'm off for President's Day
Monday, February 25th I have a guest post by Mary Kole who has her own editorial service
Wednesday, March 6th I have an interview with debut author Gail Shepherd and a giveaway of her MG contemporary THE TRUE HISTORY OF LINDIE HAWKINS
Monday, March 11th I have a guest post by debut author Victoria Lee and her agents Holly Root and Taylor Haggerty with an ARC giveaway of Victoria's YA fantasy THE FEVER KING and a query critique giveaway by Holly and Taylor
Monday, March 18th I have an interview with debut author Sabina Khan and a giveaway of her YA contemporary/multicultural the love & lies of rukhsana ali
Hope to see you tomorrow!
