Monthly Archives: November 2013

004. Why I Write

Hey Guys!

I actually wrote two versions of this post. The first draft was a bit light-hearted and this one, the one you’re currently reading is honest draft. I hope you all enjoy it.

I spent most of last week worrying about perfecting my query but over the weekend–thanks to my majorly awesome friends Ash, Mary and Kai–I had the opportunity to see Justin Timberlake perform live in Columbus.

My Tour Shirt (photo by me)

The concert was amazing and it was a BIG deal for me. See, Justin Timberlake was an important part of my late childhood and adolescence. Very important. No, it’s not because of those big blue eyes or the bleach blonde Ramen hairstyle he sported during his tenure as a member of the best boy band ever, NSYNC. Yeah, he was one of my first celebrity crushes but the reason why Justin Timberlake was so important to me is because back then his music along with a notebook were all I had.  And it’s largely tied into my motivation to write as well as the reason I write the stories I write.

The answer to the question of why I write is fairly simple. I write for me. No, not for the adult who knows just how real the Scrivener Struggle is but for the brown-skinned girl who loved to read and watch TV. The girl who could spend hours in a Waldenbooks if her parents let her or who could quote lines from “Serial Mom” or “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” with ease. Unfortunately, that same girl was bullied for liking things she was told Black girls shouldn’t. As a result, that girl withdrew a bit and spent many Saturday nights in middle and high school scribbling down stories in notebooks because she felt there was no one who understood and had no one to talk to about it.

Like this one (this is an actual notebook filled with my writing from middle school)

Like this one
(this is an actual notebook filled with my writing from middle school)

I’m not here to go on about how many times I’ve been called an “Oreo” or a “white girl” for liking the stuff that I like. I’m not talk about how much bullying sucks. And  this isn’t going to be an “I’m a special snowflake for being different~” post because this isn’t a Donald Glover song. What I know now that I didn’t know back then is that I’m not the only Black girl who loves sci-fi, fantasy, horror and paranormal fiction. There are tons of us out here consuming it. But one thing  I noticed then that I continue to notice now is that we’re underrepresented in the genre. Especially in YA. Growing up, I had a hard time finding a book that featured a protagonist that looked like me that faced issues in a setting that was so vastly different from everyday life.

If you walk into your neighborhood Barnes & Noble (or B&N equivalent), you’re bound to come across an endless amount of books featuring white girls in prom dresses in the young adult section. Even if they aren’t in prom dresses, many of the covers still prominently feature white girls. Because most of the books are about a white protagonist. And those that are about people of color either have ambiguous covers designed not to scare off potential readers or are shelved in the book store equivalent of Antarctica. All of this prompted me to write Dia of the Dead. I felt it was time for a non-white character to be the lead in a story that would usually revolve around a pale, brown-eyed girl with dark hair. Dia– one part Buffy Summers, one part Moesha Mitchell with a dash of Taina Morales– is the protagonist I wanted when I was younger. I felt it was time for something different so I wrote something that was a twist on something I love.

Dia of the Dead is paranormal YA and though it’s not paranormal romance, I might be extremely tardy to the party. Dia is just one of many stories I have about young adults of color roaming around in my head. If nothing comes from it, that’s fine. I’m not going to stop. It’s honestly time to change the face of young adult literature and I’m going to do my part, one story at a time.  So this is why I write. I write for myself as well as our tweens and teens of color who want to see themselves represented in a genre where we’re almost invisible.

003. The Next Step

Hi there!

I hope everyone’s still enjoying NaNoWriMo. I know week two’s a doozy but you all can do it. You’ve got this. I believe in you!

I bet you’re wondering why I’m being so encouraging and not mentioning how I’ve been fairing in my own mission to write 50,000 words in a month. Well…as what’s beginning to become a tradition, November has gotten the best of me. I was so swamped with paperwork that I was pretty much dead to the world when I came home from work last week. I was so tired that I could barely keep my eyes open long enough to set my alarm for the next day. As a result, I didn’t get much writing done so my current word count is a little less than 2,000. I don’t want to be completely defeated by NaNo so I’m going to attempt reach 25k by the end of the month. Even though I won’t technically “win,” I will have a solid start on a new project.

Though I haven’t done much work on my NaNovel, I have done some writing-related stuff this month. Last week, my editor Beth sent back the developmental/copyedits for my manuscript. A single thug tear rolled down my cheek after I finished making the suggested changes. I’ve accomplished a goal I’ve had since I was but a wee lass. I wrote a book. Let me repeat that for the cheap seats. I WROTE A FRICKIN’ BOOK! I still can’t believe it. I wrote something that someone else enjoyed (something that a couple of people enjoyed #actually). I get verklempt every time I think about it.

Once I finished beaming with pride and quit singing a writing-themed remix of Whitney Houston’s “So Emotional,” I knew it was time for the next step. I’ve spent the better part of this year working out the kinks in my manuscript and pestering my critique partners in preparation for this moment. The time to begin the querying process has come. While waiting to hear from everyone, I made a game plan. I knew the first step was to make a list of literary agents who are looking for a story similar to the one I wrote. My process largely consists of utilizing QueryTracker, stalking #MSWL on Twitter, checking the MSWL tumblr and other blogs in search of agents.

This process has been oddly intimidating. Not because I lack faith in my manuscript but because I’m not sure who would be interested in my protagonist. See, much like myself, Dia is a woman of color. She is Afro-Latina and identifies as such but the story is not an ethnic narrative. Dia’s story is YA Paranormal. In my years as a reader, I’ve found that genre works featuring PoC leads aren’t something you find very often in young adult literature. The absence of protagonists that looked like me in genres I enjoy prompted me to write Dia’s story. I will delve deeper into my motivation to write young adult literature featuring people of color in a subsequent blog post.

It seems as though the planets aligned or something because as I was searching for agents who may be a good fit for my work (if they’re interested), I came across the Lee & Low article discussing the diversity gap in publishing. It’s an interesting read. I recommend you take a few moments to check it out and when you’re done, check out Léonicka’s response. She offers up excellent ways to begin addressing the problem. Me while reading it:

Léonicka’s suggestions echo things I’ve said to my writing homies Cat and Cara while discussing our projects. They’re in similar boats with their works. Space Time* and reset. both feature PoC leads. We’re just not sure who may be interested.

Yesterday, I retweeted a link to Léonicka’s article along with some of my fears about Dia being deemed “unrelatable” because she is the other. The response I received was unexpected. I was surprised by the number of encouraging tweets from people who understood where I was coming from and identified with me. I was offered information and links to resources, all of which will be useful on my journey toward publication. I can’t begin to express my appreciation. Knowing I’m alone is making this process less intimidating and more manageable.

So now, I’m preparing for the next step. And that seems to be crying tears of blood while trying to create the perfect query. This should be fun!

-Brit

*Space Time isn’t the actual title of Cat’s book lol.

002. The Time Has Come…

November 1st is tomorrow and everyone in the writing community knows what that means. It’s time for National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo!

Or for anyone who has ever participated in NaNoWriMo before:

Okay, I might be in the minority with that last gif. The purpose of NaNoWriMo is to write a book in the month of November. You have 30 days to write 50,000 words. For anyone with a slow-as-molasses writing process like myself, writing a 50,000 words in a month is a hellacious task.  I’ve been a NaNo participant since 2008 and I have yet to win.  It seems like the universe always has other plans for me during the month of November that leaves me unable to finish my manuscript. However, this year I plan on winning. BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY!

For the first time, I have a  pretty solid idea for my NaNovel. I’ve taken the steps to bother all my writer homies with it to see if it could make for an interesting story. This is a thing that I have to do because my ideas can be a little out there sometimes.  So far, everyone seems to be digging the premise and I’ve received several thumbs up. Soooooo…… I’m ready! I’m actually pretty excited about this story and look forward to writing it.  I plan on utilizing word wars and sprints to meet the daily word goal as well as establishing a set time to write. I’m also interested in going to a few of the write-ins in my neighborhood. I hope these strategies are beneficial so that I can be a NaNo Victor.

Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? If so, what tips and tricks do you plan on using to win?