10 WOW Wednesday: Suzanne Young -- What a Ride!

What a Ride

by Suzanne Young

I used to write short stories. That’s how I got started in publishing. Not short stories for magazines or newspapers, stories for my friends. I never dreamed of writing a novel.

Then one day about two years ago, a short story I was writing went crazy and ended up being about 90,000 words. And all of the sudden… I wrote a novel. Whoa…

Of course, the hard part came after. I spent several months looking for an agent and continued writing. I wrote three more books until I finally got my first agent. Phew. Well glad I was done with that…

Nope. My book didn’t sell after being on submission with editors for nine months. WHAT? That’s not supposed to happen! Well, I decided to keep writing and soon I had another book. What a relief. Guess it was time to sub again…

Then I got dropped by my agent. Devastated, I did what authors are never supposed to do—I sent my book to editors directly. But here’s the crazy part, four weeks later I got a two-book deal with Razorbill/Penguin.

And then two more.

I honestly think I was successful because I didn’t give up. I couldn’t! I wanted to write. I wrote seven books before my first book ever sold. I’ve written fourteen complete novels in the past two and a half years. That’s my motto—KEEP WRITING.

Recently I got a brilliant agent and a new two-book deal with Balzer and Bray/Harper Collins and I continue to write different types of stories and stretch myself as a writer. I enjoy what I do and I’m eager to keep going.

I never intended to write a novel, but now I can’t imagine ever doing anything else. And the only real advice I can offer is… Keep writing!

Suzanne Young
http://www.suzanne-young.blogspot.com/
THE NAUGHTY LIST-available now
SO MANY BOYS-available now
A GOOD BOY IS HARD TO FIND-11/25/10
A NEED SO BEAUTIFUL-Summer 2011
DELINQUENTS-Fall 2011