Every other Wednesday, I’ll be showcasing authors who got an agent in the last couple of years. If you’d like to be a part of this, let me know in the comments or contact me via Twitter @judi__Lauren
Today I’m excited to be interviewing E. Latimer! She’s represented by Silvia Molteni of the Peters Fraser and Dunlop Agency. She has one of the best titles for an MG, The Strange and Deadly Portraits of Bryrony Gray. (It’s an LGBT retelling of The Picture of Dorian Gray). She’s also mentoring Middle Grade with me in the FicFest contest. Welcome, E!
What was the hardest part about writing your book?
Probably the self-doubt. You write every new book hoping it’s “the one” and it’s hard not to lose faith after several books in a row end up flopping. Then again, the actual writing part is so much fun that you keep doing the same thing over and over. Which I think is the definition of insanity?
Something like that.
I feel like a lot of us can totally relate to that. How did you meet your agent?
I created lists of all the best agents from querytracker.
Do you have a rough number of how many queries you sent out before being offered representation?
Hah. For THIS project it was 55. Lets just keep it at that and not mention previous books.
All right, can’t blame you. We’ve all been there. What inspires you to write?
Everything. I sit down and read a book and I want to put it down and write. I watch a movie and it triggers something that makes my fingers start to get itchy, I want to be at my keyboard. It’s something about seeing story in any form that makes me want to create my own.
Can you tell us a little bit about your creative process? Where do you get your ideas and characters?
Each time it’s different, so I’ll share about this book in particular. This one stemmed from a love of all things Oscar Wilde. The Picture of Dorian Gray has always been my favorite, so I wanted to do a weird, creepy MG spin on the story.
Ohhh I love weird and creepy! Many people have jobs along with writing. How do you balance that schedule?
Right now I’m truly blessed/lucky to say I’m strictly a freelance writer at the moment. But with many creative jobs it’s either feast or famine, so it may be I’m back to “honest work” in the next few months, who knows. When I get to just be a writer, I set out a schedule for myself (words per day, written by this time). If I’m working full time AND trying to write, it gets squished into the schedule whenever I have a spare moment to breathe.
I think the last time I found myself working around 50 hours per week including commute, so I ended up getting up an hour earlier each morning to get my writing in.
There’s no balance most of the time, just cramming your writing into your work day with a crowbar. If it doesn’t fit, jam it in anyways.
Is there a fictional character or book you wish you had created? Why?
Harry Potter, for obvious reasons.
What do you enjoy most about writing?
Having written. Also sometimes the actual writing part, if I know it’s going along swimmingly.
Can you describe your MC(s) in three words each?
Bry: Talented, Curious, Searching.
Mira: Rebellious, Eager, Reckless.
Thompson: Nervous, Loyal, Brave.
Before you leave, would you share the first sentence of your query that got you an agent?
Bryony Gray is suffering a number of indignities.
Thanks so much for joining us!
E. Latimer is a YA/MG fantasy writer who was born and raised in Victoria, BC and recently moved to Vancouver. She writes books, makes silly vlogs about writing with the YA Word Nerds, and reads excessively. You can connect with her on her website, Twitter, or Youtube.
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