Peg Cheng

This month, I had the pleasure of interviewing Sandra Evans, author of the delightful middle-grade novel, THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY. Sandy and I met through our mutual friend, the writer Tamiko Nimura, who knew we both wrote middle-grade novels and thought we might hit it off. She was right. The first time I met Sandy at Corina Bakery in Tacoma, Washington, we talked for hours like we’d known each other for years. She is a kind soul, a kindred spirit, and a talented and tenacious writer. It’s my distinct pleasure to share with you how Sandy got to where she is today, and what keeps her motivated after more than thirty years of writing.

Peg: When did you first start doing creative writing and what inspired you to do it?

Sandra: I started writing poetry when I was in middle school. I wasn’t a big talker and I was pretty shy. I think it was a way for me to process my feelings at a time when I didn’t have anyone to tell them to and I wouldn’t have known how to if I had.

P: How and when did you know you wanted to be a novelist?

S: I can’t think of a time in my life when I didn’t want to be a writer. From the youngest age, I’m sure. My parents love books. They read to me all the time. Creating one has always seemed like the greatest good.

P: In addition to writing, you’re a mom, and you teach French at a high school. How do you balance writing, working, and home life?

S: I don’t. It’s pretty messy and sometimes a little depressing. Sometimes I feel like I fight for every minute that I take to write—I’m fighting myself as much as everyone else.

This year I’ve gotten in a rhythm of dropping my son off for school and then heading to the coffee shop for an hour before I go to school myself. It’s tempting to go straight to work instead. Students always need more time—that’s an abyss. You’ll never climb out of it. There’s always another stack of papers to correct. There’s always a handful of kids that make you lose sleep. My classroom always needs cleaning. I could spend an hour a day making photocopies, another hour writing emails to parents, and another harassing counselors and admins about kids that are freefalling through the cracks.

So I try not to be a perfectionist. In theory I’m part time and so I try to work within the six hours a day I get paid for.

On the weekend I try to get in at least three or four hours at a time. That way I can get my head around the whole story.

I work out at least four times a week now that I’m at a gym that has classes on a near hourly basis. It gives me headspace to think about scenes and gets rid of all the stress of my work day. Also, there’s something about learning how to push through discomfort physically that has really helped me deal with the frustration that sometimes come with writing, and the eternal and never-ending self-doubt.

My house and garden take the biggest hit. I try not to dwell on it.

A friend recently described me as very disciplined. It kind of startled me. I don’t think of myself that way, but maybe it’s true. I try not to be rigid. I just know that if I want to do something, I’m the only one who can make that happen. Nobody else can do it for me, and nobody is really going to go out of their way to make it easy for me.

P: Thanks for being so honest. It’s refreshing to hear you admit that you don’t balance it all—that it can get messy and a little depressing. What inspired you to write THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY?

S: My son, for sure. I wanted to write a book for kids like him—who like science, and myths, and animals. I wanted to make a story that would give kids some of the emotional vocabulary that we don’t always learn. I think the sooner we can describe how we feel, the sooner we can figure out who we are and what we want and what we need.

P: Couldn’t agree more. How did you come up with the title?

S: It was originally titled A Secret You Must Keep. An agent who had requested the first 50 pages in response to my query wrote back with a little note saying, I’m not looking for werewolf stories. Or something along those lines. I tossed the returned pages onto my dining room table and said out loud to the empty room, Didn’t she even read it? This is not a werewolf story! And then I realized that was the perfect title since it would tell future agents that there might be a whiff of werewolf within these pages.

P: I read on Query Tracker’s interview with you that you’d been writing books for twenty years before you sold THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY to Simon & Schuster. How did you stay motivated all those years?

S: At a certain point I decided that whether or not I could ever sell a novel, I would always be writing one. The time I spend writing is like exercising or eating right or traveling or continuing education—it’s part of being happy and healthy. As a parent, I think it’s a good attitude and behavior to model—creative expression is an end in and of itself.

P: I love that. Creative expression is an end in and of itself. What tips do you have for debut authors trying to find an agent?

S: Don’t worry about doing extra research in order to personalize your query letters. That never worked for me, and I think trying to make some kind of emotional connection actually creates one on your part but not necessarily theirs! So, you lose time and you get too invested. I found two agents, for two different novels, through QueryTracker, without personalizing the query letters to either. I mean, obviously, use their name! And if you are truly contacting them because you love authors they represent, then include that. But don’t spend an hour or two combing through their list. Don’t force anything ever. Be honest.

Don’t query too soon—the novel should be the best you know how to make it. But don’t wait forever either. A lot of agents aren’t looking for perfection—they’re looking for a spark, a voice, a hook that makes them light up a little.

Query in small batches—five to ten at a time, one day a week. It’s a little soul crushing—the burst of hope that follows sending a query and then the silence. If after a few weeks you’ve gotten a few nibbles (as in, requests for partial or full manuscripts), then have faith in what you’re doing. If you’re getting nothing, then pull back and revise your pitch. Also, start working on a new story as soon as the querying begins.

P: This is great advice. I wish I had known to do small batches one day a week when I started querying. You grew up on U.S. Navy bases from Florida to Hawaii. Did growing up in lots of different places influence your writing?

S: Yes. It made me very shy, and in turn, that made me a huge reader as a kid. In middle school—the loneliest time—my mom would take me to the library every two weeks and hand me two grocery sacks to fill with books. Everyone does need friends but, in the meantime, books will do.

Most of my life, I’ve always felt slightly out of the loop, slightly out of step. I always thought I felt like an outsider because of moving so much and always being the new kid. As I get older though, I see that most of us feel that way at least some of the time. It’s just part of being human. I do think identifying yourself as an outsider helps in writing middle-grade fiction. It’s an age that is practically defined by the feeling of being overlooked, awkward, and excluded. Well, it was for me anyway!

P: I can relate to that. It’s probably why I love reading and writing middle-grade novels. What are you currently working on?

S: Agh. That question always makes me feel like Charlie Brown when Lucy swipes the football away. I knew it was coming and I’m never ready. Here goes.

I am finishing up a second draft of a side-quel to THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY. It follows Mary Anne during the summer that Raul has disappeared. On her last day of school before summer, Mary Anne unwittingly unleashes something—and someone—entirely unexpected in White Deer Woods. The magic follows her when she is sent to stay with Dean Swift’s friends in Paris, the last of the Lusignan dynasty. In their marvelous Parisian hôtel particulier, Mary Anne stumbles on secret after secret, until finally she comes to understand her own role in the mystery.

P: I’d buy that book in a hot second. Is there anything else you’re working on?

S: I have a lot of side projects—a couple romance/mysteries, a couple adaptations of medieval epics, a rambling coming of age novel about waitressing in Seattle in the 90’s.  Eventually I’ll have time to work through each. Right?

P: Right! Thank you so much, Sandy, for taking the time to answer my questions, and for being so open, honest, and encouraging. I loved THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY and highly recommend it to anyone who likes animals, misfits, and magic (a fantastic combination). I wish you all the best with your current projects and eagerly await the release of your next novel.

Sandra Evans is a writer and high school teacher from the Pacific Northwest. Her middle-grade novel, THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY (Simon & Schuster, 2016), was inspired by her favorite 12th century French tale, Bisclavret, by Marie de France. Sandra holds a Ph.D. in French Literature from the University of Washington. Over the years, she has taught courses on medieval literature as well as French language and culture at the University of Washington, the University of Puget Sound, and the Université de Paul Valéry in Montpellier, France. She shares her free time with her husband, son, and her dog Bingo—walking on the beach, playing tennis, going to the YMCA, hanging out in bookstores, playing cards in coffee shops, and wandering through museums. To learn more about Sandra and her book, visit her site and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

Peg Cheng is the author of The Contenders, a middle-grade novel that asks, can enemies become friends? She is currently querying a novel that is a re-imagining of the Snow White fairy tale set in 1980s Seattle. Peg is also the creator of Fear & Writing, a workshop for procrastinating writers from all walks of life.

This month, I had the pleasure of interviewing Donna Miscolta, Filipino-Mexican-American author and essayist. I had followed Donna for a while on Twitter when I got the chance to meet her at her Dissolving or Deepening Tension with Humor workshop through the Seattle Public Library’s Seattle Writes Program. I then read her awesome collection of short stories, HOLA AND GOODBYE, and loved the pathos and humor in every story—some of the best I’ve read in a long time. All these things made me want to know more about Donna, how she got to where she is today, and what keeps her motivated after more than twenty years of writing.

Peg: When did you first start doing creative writing and what inspired you to do it?

Donna: I think I always wanted to be a writer. I remember writing a story about a cat when I was in fourth grade. I was quite pleased with it. I knew that producing that story gave me satisfaction.

At some level, maybe I thought about becoming a writer. But at another level, a more persuasive one, I didn’t believe I could become one. But throughout school, including college, I did well on writing assignments, so well at times that when I was studying science as an undergraduate two professors questioned the authenticity of my writing.

Later when I was trying to figure out a career path that would provide an income to help support a family, I took a poetry class, which made me realize it was stories I wanted to write. But I set that desire aside for a later time in my life—for when I retired, I thought. Except that retirement was forever away, and the urge to write seemed to manifest utmost just at the most chaotic time in my life.

My husband was starting a business, I was early in my career as a project manager with a county agency, our daughters were seven and three, and our fixer-upper house was still in need of fixing. And yet I couldn’t ignore the impulse to write. What made me act on that impulse was hearing my friend Kathleen Alcalá read from her first book, a collection of stories called Mrs. Vargas and the Dead Naturalist. I realized how much I wanted to do what she was doing: writing stories and sharing them with an audience.

P: I read somewhere that it took you twenty years to write the stories that went into HOLA AND GOODBYE. How did you stay motivated to keep writing during all those years?

D: During many of those years I was just learning how to write, figuring out what makes a story, and even more, what makes a good story. And while I was writing the stories that would eventually form HOLA AND GOODBYE, I was also writing my first novel WHEN THE DE LA CRUZ FAMILY DANCED, which was also a time of trial and error.

There were long periods of feeling lost and doubts about whether I would have a book published. It helped that I would occasionally get a story published, win a grant, or be invited to do a reading, all of which made me feel as if I was on to something. But I never felt like abandoning writing. Even though there were times when I thought I would never get a book published, I knew I would continue to write, because it’s always been the writing that counted.

P: What does a typical week of writing look like for you?

D: I still have my habit formed many years ago of writing in the evenings. I’m able to spend a couple of hours at my desk, but I’m tired after a day at work, so the writing is slow and intermittent. I’m an old car sputtering down a rutted dirt lane. I do try to write every day. It doesn’t always happen, but that’s okay. Despite my metaphor, writers are people, not machines.

P: How do you balance working at a job, having a family, and writing?

I started writing when my daughters were seven and three, and I had to really compartmentalize my day from morning until bedtime. In addition to setting aside an hour each night after the kids were in bed to write, I also used my bus commute to and from work to write or at least edit, even it amounted to only a paragraph or two. Of course, there was more time once they were away at college, and now they’re off living their own lives, so I have more time to write in the evenings. Now I’m on the cusp of retirement and for the first time in my life, soon I can devote whole days to writing. The balancing act is over.

P: That’s great that you’re close to retirement. Once you’re retired, what does your ideal day look like?

D: My days will be very much like my days when I’m at a writing residency. I get up, work out, eat breakfast, then sit down to write until lunchtime. After lunch, it’s more writing until mid-afternoon when I break for a walk or a bike ride. Maybe a little more writing or some reading before dinner. After dinner, it’s the New York Times crossword online, then a little more writing and reading. Maybe end the day with Netflix. I’m sure I won’t be able to sustain that for more than a week or two at a time. Real life intervenes with all its everyday exigencies.

P: I saw on your web site that you grew up in National City, California, with a Filipino/Mexican family. How did your heritage and/or your hometown influence your writing?

D: My first book was about a Filipino American family. My second book was about a Mexican American family. They’re both set in a place called Kimball Park, which is a fictional stand-in for my hometown of National City, California. Almost all my other fiction is set in Kimball Park as well. And I’ve written an essay about National City. So, yes, my heritage and my hometown have played a significant role in my writing.

I recently attended the NonfictioNOW Conference. One of the panels I attended was called Hauntings in Nonfiction. The moderator, Harrison Candelaria Fletcher, said he was haunted by his home state New Mexico. I think I might be haunted by National City. Or maybe I’m haunted by a lack of imagination. I hope that’s not the case.

I have set an intention of setting my next story in a place other than Kimball Park/National City, though once I complete my two manuscripts in progress, I’ll be working on a series of essays about family which will inevitably mean writing about National City. Let’s say sometime in the future I will stop writing about my hometown.

P: Can you tell us about the projects you’re currently working on?

D: I have a collection called Angie Rubio Stories that’s done and twiddling its thumbs hoping someone will see fit to publish it. Each of the stories is a lesson about life, race, and identity that Angie Rubio learns in school. A couple of the stories have been published, one in The Adirondack Review and one in Santa Ana River Review. I’ve been submitting the finished manuscript here and there whenever I have time. This is the painful part. The rejection-filled part. The part where you think no one will ever love it enough to put it out in the world. The part where you begin to doubt your love for it. The part where you have to hang on and believe.

I’m hoping to finish by the end of the year another project, tentatively titled Ofelia and Norma. I’m taking the characters from “Strong Girls,” one of the stories in my collection, HOLA AND GOODBYE, and following them into young adulthood as they grapple with issues that can complicate and even nearly destroy lives—issues such as body image, eating disorders, and gender and racial stereotypes. I think I might love these characters more than any I’ve created previously. I want readers to have a chance to love them too.

P: They will! Ofelia and Norma were two of my favorite characters from HOLA AND GOODBYE too. Last question: what advice would you give someone in their 40s, 50s, or 60s who says they’ve always wanted to write but fear that they are “too old” to start?

D: I think that if you really want to write, at some point the impulse will become too strong to resist. So however old you are when that happens, go at it with the belief that this is what you were meant to do. And if you get discouraged and feel that the words you’re putting on paper or typing on the screen have no value, remember what Cynthia Ozick says, “Play what feeble notes you can and keep practicing.”

P: Such great advice! Do what you can and keep practicing. Thank you so much, Donna, for taking the time to answer my questions, and for being so honest and encouraging. I’m looking forward to reading your next two books when they’re published.

Donna Miscolta’s short story collection HOLA AND GOODBYE won the Doris Bakwin Award for Writing by a Woman, the Independent Publishers gold medal for Best Regional Fiction, and an International Latino Book Award silver medal for Best Latino Focused Fiction in English. She is also the author of the novel WHEN THE DE LA CRUZ FAMILY DANCED, and her stories and essays have appeared in a number of journals including The Adirondack Review, Calyx, Cha, Connecticut Review, Moss, Raven Chronicles, and Waxwing. Donna is a two-time recipient of an Artist Trust Fellowship, has received awards from 4Culture, the Bread Loaf/Rona Jaffe Foundation, and the City of Seattle, as well as residencies from Anderson Center, Artsmith, Atlantic Center for the Arts, Hedgebrook, Ragdale, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and Mineral School, amongst others. To learn more about Donna and her books, visit her site and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

Peg Cheng is the author of The Contenders, a middle-grade novel that asks, can enemies become friends? She is currently querying a novel that is a re-imagining of the Snow White fairy tale set in 1980s Seattle. Peg is also the creator of Fear & Writing, a workshop for procrastinating writers from all walks of life.

Photo of Donna Miscolta by Meryl Shenker.