When the roots of storytelling are as deep and winding as the Appalachian Mountains themselves, it's no wonder that Melissa Marr has such a profound connection to weaving tales that captivate and enchant. In this episode, we journey through Melissa's life, from her formative years under the influence of her grandmother's stories to her academic pursuits, all of which paved the way to her latest novel, Remedial Magic. We explore how Melissa's narrative prowess transcends genre, her devotion to multiple points of view, and the unmistakable charm of Victorian literature's impact on her storytelling techniques.
The whispers of wild horses in Arizona and the serendipity of a rattlesnake bite converge in Melissa's narrative, illustrating the unexpected paths of dipping her toes into self-publishing and the resilience of an author's spirit. Our conversation then meanders through the verdant valleys of creativity, shedding light on the symbiosis between nature and the written word, and how this bond manifests in Melissa's multifaceted career spanning writing and photography. We also navigate the digital world's choppy waters, where pseudonyms and review scandals can capsize even the most seasoned writers, revealing the importance of author communities as lifeboats amidst the storm of online discourse.
As we wrap up, the spotlight shines on the unlikely transformation from a self-published experiment to a celebrated book deal, a testament to faith in one's work and the magic of happenstance. Melissa's tale takes a full circle, encouraging us to anticipate her upcoming release and beckoning our listeners to join the lively discussion within our podcast community. The episode is a reminder that sometimes, the most enchanting stories are those that emerge from life's most unexpected moments.
Melissa Marr
When the roots of storytelling are as deep and winding as the Appalachian Mountains themselves, it's no wonder that Melissa Marr has such a profound connection to weaving tales that captivate and enchant. In this episode, we journey through Melissa's life, from her formative years under the influence of her grandmother's stories to her academic pursuits, all of which paved the way to her latest novel, Remedial Magic. We explore how Melissa's narrative prowess transcends genre, her devotion to multiple points of view, and the unmistakable charm of Victorian literature's impact on her storytelling techniques.
The whispers of wild horses in Arizona and the serendipity of a rattlesnake bite converge in Melissa's narrative, illustrating the unexpected paths of dipping her toes into self-publishing and the resilience of an author's spirit. Our conversation then meanders through the verdant valleys of creativity, shedding light on the symbiosis between nature and the written word, and how this bond manifests in Melissa's multifaceted career spanning writing and photography. We also navigate the digital world's choppy waters, where pseudonyms and review scandals can capsize even the most seasoned writers, revealing the importance of author communities as lifeboats amidst the storm of online discourse.
As we wrap up, the spotlight shines on the unlikely transformation from a self-published experiment to a celebrated book deal, a testament to faith in one's work and the magic of happenstance. Melissa's tale takes a full circle, encouraging us to anticipate her upcoming release and beckoning our listeners to join the lively discussion within our podcast community. The episode is a reminder that sometimes, the most enchanting stories are those that emerge from life's most unexpected moments.
Melissa Marr
Hi, my name is Mandy Jackson Beverly. Welcome to the Bookshop podcast. Each week, I present interviews with independent bookshop owners from around the globe, authors, publishing professionals and specialists in subjects dear to my heart the environment and social justice. To help the show reach more people, please share it with friends and family and on social media, and remember to subscribe and leave a review wherever you listen to this podcast. You're listening to episode 238.
Speaker 1:Melissa Ma writes fiction for adults, teens and children. Her books have been translated into 28 languages to date and include bestsellers in the US, the New York Times, la Times, usa Today, wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly, as well as various countries overseas. She is best known for the Wicked Lovely series for teens and graveminder for adults and her utter inability to stick to one age, demographic, format and genre. Wicked Lovely, her debut novel, was simultaneously released in the US and UK by Harper Collins in 2007, with translation rights also sold in 20 plus countries. The book debuted as a New York Times bestseller and evolved into a multi-book series with myriad accolades and international bestseller lists. Melissa's latest release is Remedial Magic, a contemporary fantasy novel about an unassuming librarian who discovers she has fallen in love with a witch. Hi, melissa, and welcome to the show. It's lovely to have you here.
Speaker 2:Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1:My pleasure. Let's begin with learning about you being born and raised in the Appalachian Mountains and when you realized you wanted to write.
Speaker 2:Well, at the time we didn't have television, and so for me I started reading before I went to kindergarten. So I was always a voracious reader, and so much so that, despite the absolute beauty of the Appalachian landscape, my mom would have to kick me outside, take my book and kick me outside, because I'd rather be reading than anything else. And so I think I've always it's always been about story, less about writing, but more about story. And when you grow up in the kind of culture that isn't television centered, you tend to think about how do we? You know, how do we tell stories? You know, how do we tell this story in a way that's super engaging? So it's very, very hands moving, very much a case that folklore was part of that, so it's just always been sort of the way things were handled. Story is everything.
Speaker 1:Do you go back to the Appalachian Mountains at all?
Speaker 2:I don't anymore. It's been a few years. I think some of there were some political difficulties and things have changed.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's heartbreaking that issues such as political divide, diversity and inclusivity are tearing this country apart. It's so sad and disappointing.
Speaker 2:It is, it very much is, and I miss it. You know that was home it's. You know I find other mountains, other spaces. I'm actually headed to the Ozarks next week, despite the winter, because I still need that sort of green overdose.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I understand I'm the same way. In your informal bio on your website you write, quote as a teen, I spend a lot of time in trouble with principles, grounded and high not ideal, but a combo of issues with authority and a rape meant I was a difficult child and teen. End quote Was there a turning point for you, or a person or a specific moment that helped you move forward?
Speaker 2:I think for me oddly it was it was never a thing that meant that I didn't have a plan. My plan was always I always wanted to teach. I wanted to teach literature in particular, and so even when I was in trouble all the time, I still kept the grades. I kept between a three, five and a four O through high school. I graduated college with a three eight, so I kept focused on academia. So for me it was less about a person changing it than this drive. And I found that drive in books. I haunted the library, I read voraciously and I knew that if I could just hold it together long enough, I could get to college and from college graduates, going from there to teach. And so it was really this master plan that came from inside and that was encouraged by my grandmother. She was, she was my life line, she was everything.
Speaker 1:So in your case, a person was there for you, but in a sense, your innate sense of love for reading and story also became somewhat of a character. For instance, sometimes when we're reading a story the author has presented, a piece of geography, like a mountain or a river or a house, becomes a character, and I get the sense that that is how story was for you as a child.
Speaker 2:Very much so, and part of that was my grandmother. She was born in 1906. And she was able to graduate high school up until she passed. She was actively reading. She actively followed politics in the news. I still have one of her childhood books that she gave me, and so that sense of story mattering was something she gave me. You know, it was very much. There's this whole world and all you have to do is crack a book to get there and it can change your life, and so she fostered that thing in me that caused the drive that led me to where I am.
Speaker 1:It warms my heart to hear stories like this and the fact that she was born in 1906. Wow, 2023 was a busy year for you regarding writing and teaching. Your new novel, remedial Magic, will be published in a few days, on February 20th, and you've already submitted the sequel. Remedial Magic is written in multiple POVs, as are many of your stories. Why did you choose this particular style of writing for Remedial Magic?
Speaker 2:Actually I think almost everything I've written has been multiple point of view. I had one exception. I did a series, the Wicked and the Dead that was singular point of view and that's the only one in 18 years of publishing novels. The Victorians are my fixation, and so there is a theory where you're talking about Robert Browning, the ring in the book and he talks about the story happening between all these narratives and that sort of imprinted upon me and from there I went on and I did my graduate work on William Wagner. So narrative theory is sort of a fixation of mine.
Speaker 2:When we look at how anything happens, whether it's story or politics, the truth is never contained in one voice. The truth is the thing that happens in the spaces between people's stories. And so when I write I really do start meaning to write one point of view. Almost every book I intend to write one point of view, but the more I see that point of view, the more I understand that I need to hear from other people to understand it. To be honest, that's how I approach politics and social issues. I don't read a news source, I read from multiple news sources. When I do research I look for multiple publications, Because what I want is I want that thing that slips in and out between different voices and stories, Because I think that's where the heart of things are. Sorry, I sound super passionate about that. It's a sort of lifelong fixation.
Speaker 1:Oh, my goodness, please don't apologize for being passionate about a subject especially to do with writing. I think it's about finding the gray and understanding the grain between the black and the white. I wish more people in the world would think about this concept, and it's an interesting way in relating to multiple POVs. I'm just turning it all over in my mind.
Speaker 2:Well, some of it's about liminality. I was very feminist and I grew up in a very rural background. I grew up in a place where being a lesbian was not the norm, and my drive for children which probably came from where I grew up was to the point that I literally risked death to carry a child to birth, and so that kind of two things pulling on you when you grow up liberal-minded and Appalachia, that's going to happen, and so I think it stays and it influences how you create that liminality does.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's interesting and sadly true. I'm originally from Australia and lived in England before I came to California. I've lived longer now in the States than I have in Australia and I have a liberal way of thinking. So when I go back to Australia it can be difficult, mainly due to some of the politics, and there is still an unexceptance for diversity in certain areas of the country. But I go back because a lot of the country and a lot of her people I cherish and miss dearly. It's difficult, as I'm sure you know.
Speaker 2:I do know there's still beauty in it and I think that's something that we have to remember. I still recognize the beauty in those rural spaces and that sense of community and the love of family, and I took that away and I carried that with me too. So it wasn't just in response to the negative parts. There's definitely beauty and it's finding ways to represent both which, honestly, is part of what's going on in remedial magic. Crenshaw is that space where you have those conflicting tolerance as well as a thread of people who want to destroy it.
Speaker 1:And that is an excellent segue into my next question. After I'd read remedial magic, I started looking at interviews you had done. I started reading interviews you'd done and it dawned on me that the theme of remedial magic is that witches must save the world of Crenshaw from pollution which has made it unlivable for witches. And I'm guessing your love and respect for nature goes back to the appellation mountains of your youth. In hearing past interviews it seemed to me you're a positive person, seeing the glasses half full. Does walking in nature and photography help support your optimistic outlook?
Speaker 2:Very much so. I mean, I don't think you can fall in love with nature and not believe that nature is magic. When I moved to the desert, I'd been in and out of the hospital a lot in 2016. And I moved here and I discovered that there was a band of wild horses, and so I started walking with them, I started kayaking among them, to the point that my blood pressure and my cholesterol were improved. I no longer needed medication.
Speaker 2:Nature literally healed me, and I find that that is for me. That comes through in everything I do. I didn't mean to in my accidental book, but I took a bunch of pictures of the horses and photography is part of how I capture nature for the days that I'm in the house and so I took pictures of the horses and my editor my children's editor saw them, and we ended up releasing a book of my photography of loud horses with a poem of mine about the horses that Dolly Parton, her charity, bought 300,000 units to give to children across the nation. So my love of nature was put into form, into physical form and given to children, and if that's not magic, I mean I don't know what is. You know that nature love just drives everything and it heals me, it heals all of us.
Speaker 1:And it definitely came through in remedial magic.
Speaker 2:I think it's fascinating to me to realize how much that comes through. My eldest son was a biological conservation major. My daughter works for a climate change group of scientists from different disciplines. She's an archaeologist, so she works in South Africa, attached to university in Norway, and she's working with this cross disciplinary group of marine biologists and climatologists. And all this and I don't think I've ever really intended to say look, nature, is it, nature is is religion is is is everything. But somehow, through just the things we did naturally with them growing up, they captured that and they've chosen it as their career in both cases, which is just phenomenal to me. Doesn't that warm your?
Speaker 1:heart it does. It's just attributing your love of nature to the next generation. I mean that's magic within itself, right?
Speaker 2:Motherhood man it is. It is my personal drive.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that umbilical cord never really detaches in my world. It's always there tugging, tugging, tugging.
Speaker 2:Definitely.
Speaker 1:Now, during the pandemic, you self published books. What made you decide to self publish and how was this experience for you?
Speaker 2:So I had a rattlesnake bite.
Speaker 1:Oh, my goodness.
Speaker 2:Which I don't recommend, just absolutely don't recommend. You know, the universe gives us things. There are reasons and I didn't know it. In 2019, when I had the rattlesnake bite, I was kayaking, the wild horses stampeded, I got flipped onto a rattlesnake. The rattlesnake and I were together under the water. The current ripped us apart, but I still had enough venom that it was very painful and I had a lot of nightmares and so I coped with them, as I have coped with everything, from the rape forward, from everything in my life.
Speaker 2:I wrote and so I wrote this book and in the book I was dealing with the fact that, you know, we have all these romances and we have all these stories about vampires and they're so sexy and they bite you and it's beautiful and magical and erotic. It is not at all fabulous to have fangs in your body, so I would have these nightmares. I wrote this book, but it isn't the kind of book I usually write. It's very much a woman fighting the monsters, single point of view. It's not the same as my usual books.
Speaker 2:And then the pandemic came and my regular books were delayed publication because you couldn't browse for children's books because everything was closed and my partner had to give up her job because they wouldn't let her work from home because she investigated financial crimes and they were high dollar crimes so she couldn't work. So suddenly my releases were delayed and she was not working and I had this book and I thought, well, I'm not going to try and shop it in this situation. So I published it and then I published several more and I had a prequel to Wicked Lovely that I published and it was just fabulous. You get paid monthly, which you know is not how it works in traditional, and I ended up turning my website into a bookstore. So I was selling signed copies of my books through my website because I couldn't go anywhere to events.
Speaker 2:So it ended up being a blessing that a rattlesnake bit me, which is not a sentence I ever would expect to say, but because of the rattlesnake I wrote the book and the timing was such that suddenly I was in lockdown and a pandemic. So I ended up doing this trilogy and self-publishing and it was fabulous, fun and it was a great way to turn something that, quite honestly, gave me the sort of nightmares that I slept with the light on for months. I was just so concerned that there was going to end up being a rattlesnake in the house, which is not rational. It's not. But I just I would dream about the snake and it was horrible. It was the muscle decay. The muscle rotting was so extreme that I went from I was doing Pilates and hanging upside down to I couldn't use the arm correctly because the biceps muscle had brought it, there was a hole in it and so it was really. Self-publishing was a great asset to me, as accidentally, was a rattlesnake.
Speaker 1:See, the glass is half full.
Speaker 2:The glass must be half full.
Speaker 1:I'm guessing it helped that you were already an established author before you self-published. Were you able to reach out to your readers through newsletters and social media? And, of course, at that stage that first part of the pandemic people were hungry for books to read.
Speaker 2:Definitely and I do think some of that was a factor I didn't actually have a newsletter at that point. Because of my health I had withdrawn from publishing so I had no newsletter. I did have social media and I was fascinated to find that a lot of my diehard, my core readership that has stayed with me all these years they were there. But in a short period of time I started hearing from readers who found me through the indie book and then went and found my backlist. It was fascinating to see it go the opposite direction. So I had some of the core wicked, lovely GraveMinder readers move into the indie books and then I thought had people that found me through those indie books that then went and bought my backlist. So it was a really interesting cross-pollination that happened.
Speaker 1:Did you self-publish wide or just focus on Amazon?
Speaker 2:I do wide. Barnes, Noble has been so good to me, Indie bookstores have been so good to me, and libraries. I mean when you grow up a poor kid in rural Appalachia you don't have bookstores, you have librarians. And so as much as I understand the pool that some people have towards doing KU, I think that for me I've seen such amazing support from so many corners. I can't fathom limiting that way.
Speaker 1:And I truly appreciate hearing your words because, as you know, I'm a huge supporter of independent bookshops and libraries and I encourage authors who are considering self-publishing to go wide. Which means you not only distribute through Amazon or Kindle Unlimited, you can use IngramSpark to distribute to bookstores and libraries. Okay, moving back to your books, you also write adult romances under the pseudonym Ronnie Douglas. What brought that on?
Speaker 2:So back gosh, a forever ago, a decade or so ago, there were a group of writers and we would do these writing retreats Actually, we did them here in Arizona before I lived here, and at one of the retreats, after dinner, we were talking about self-publishing and our curiosity with it. And so we decided this group of 10 writers, 10 women writers that we were going to pick pseudonyms and we were each going to write a book from the same group of characters, and so we had like a concept at the beginning, which was that this first character, who was my character, was working at the coffee shop and all these people came in and a guy came in and he had a trunk full of money, and so they were going to divide this money between the group of them and then each go their own separate way and never cross paths again. So I wrote this book called Undaunted, which I published as Ronnie Douglas. My mother is Scottish and her clan is clan Douglas, and so I went with Douglas because she'd been nagging me for years to write a romance, and so I ended up writing this book and I had great fun sending it to my mother and not telling her. It was me and she was like I love this, why can't you write like this? And I was like, are you serious? So that was super fun for me as like a gift to my mom, but it was an experiment, right.
Speaker 2:And then people responded well, it did well. And so HarperCollins was like would you like to write romances? So I ended up doing these two romances as Ronnie. But you know, things being as they are, harpercollins has, if you'd like to know more about Ronnie Douglas, go to melissamarcom, right. So my cover was blown instantly and I felt super uncomfortable because I was writing like YA and middle grade and, you know, very PG, pg, 13. And you know those books weren't terribly raunchy or anything. But I was trying to separate because you know, again, I'm a mom and I didn't like the idea of readers of my younger fiction picking this up and going, oh okay, I like her. So I think I was a little bit more self-conscious about that, making sure I didn't cross contaminate my young readership with my adult readership. But you know, my plan was immediately blown to pieces, but it was a lot of fun.
Speaker 1:And your mom got a great book because you wanted to write something for her.
Speaker 2:She thought that was hysterical.
Speaker 1:That's a really sweet story. Okay, let's talk about Goodreads. December 2023 brought to light review bombing from fake accounts on Goodreads. According to NPR LAist quote, author Kate Corrain was dropped by Delray Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House, after she admitted writing fake Goodreads reviews, louding her own book and exorniating works by other novelists. Corrain's literary agent also cut ties with her end quote. Now, like many authors, I stopped visiting Goodreads years ago because it's almost like a free bullying platform Now. You wrote about the importance of authors supporting authors on Facebook in answer to your friend Janine Frost's post about Kate Corrain. What are your thoughts on Goodreads, specifically their inability to curb review bombing?
Speaker 2:I have very mixed feelings about Goodreads. I agree that they need to do more about the review bombing very much so I don't think they take it seriously enough. At the same time, one of my books was a Goodreads choice finalist and other of my books was a Goodreads choice winner, and through those things I've connected with a lot of great people, including staff at Goodreads, and I've connected with other authors, lots of readers, and so initially I loved Goodreads and I love the connections that any of these literary communities offer. But I think that we live in a society where we have clickbait headlines. We live in a world where people want that adrenaline rush of conflict, and so I think the motivation to stop that sort of thing is at war with any. Businesses will just say desire to get clicks, and so I don't think they're the only guilty parties, I just think they're the most obvious party in this, and I think that we've seen this.
Speaker 2:Whether it's Instagram, tiktok, bloggers, there's always a contingent of people who believe in using negativity to get attention. As you mentioned, I am very much a half full kind of person. My glasses is never empty and that kind of negativity just confuses me, just flat out confuses me. I don't understand it. I don't, as when I talk to young authors, especially when I teach through the MFA program, I strongly suggest that they don't read those reviews. They don't go there. So I could be review-bombed right now and I wouldn't know about it. I understand that urge to just get attention through negativity. It's children acting out and I think this was an extreme case.
Speaker 2:I think this was a case where some authors believe that Some people believe that it's necessary to hurt others in order to uplift themselves. Quite honestly, what I told Janine when we spoke about it, what I've told several people, is where were her friends? Where were the people telling her? What are you doing? That was my question, because Janine and I talked about it and I believe she addressed Ileona in that same post Ileona Andrews, we've known each other for 18 years.
Speaker 2:The author network is about also holding your friend's hand and saying, yes, this thing was done and it hurts. Don't be stupid. Don't let that anger turn into lashing out. I just don't think this author had that and she should have. Well, I think what she did was horrible. What I think Goodreads is not doing is problematic. I also really just feel like having those authors, those embodies that are your close people is another lesson we need to think about with this. When you are creative, you are emotionally volatile at times and you need to have people that have your back. I focused more on that than the negativity, because that's my brain.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think it's really sad because she had an agent, a book deal with a major publisher and I think about the insecurities she must have felt to think that she had to hurt other authors in order to make her book look good. It's just tragic.
Speaker 2:Yes, I think we can't discount the fact that there was a definite racist element of it. A number of the authors targeted were people of color. I think, again, we're living in a time period where there has been this political rhetoric that allows racist, homophobic, sexist, just so much hate. It allows people to think that that hate is okay. I don't know how to say it politely, but basically I think we need to look at the bigger picture and go back to thinking about each other as individuals and people, instead of embracing this hate. Because, whether it's in politics or at schools, my son has to deal with the occasional hostility from classmates mocking him for having two moms, as if having a spare mom is a bad thing. That hate is so prevalent. I think part of what we saw here was that hate infiltrating the publishing world.
Speaker 1:Yeah, melissa, I agree with everything you've said. Moving forward, we can only hope that Goodreads figures this out and stops people from having multiple accounts specifically to hurt other writers. It's just not okay.
Speaker 2:I mean, I'm sure you can you look at the address from which things are logged in? I'm sure there are apps that would do it. I'm sure there are ways to do it. I have zero doubt that we have the technology to do it, but it's a question of wanting to do it. I mean, we've seen the same thing at Twitter. We've seen the hate just bubble up on there and the only solution is people in power making the decision that we don't embrace hate. It's that simple.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is Just backtracking a little bit about reviews. Every author is going to get a bad review. It's not possible that everyone in the world loves every single book. It's just not possible. But what is interesting is that an author can have 50 great reviews and one bad one, and the bad one is the one we tend to focus on. Our psyche is a tricky little thing. So, yeah, don't read the reviews.
Speaker 2:Well, and I think I'd rather see someone's career get hurt by their own hate coming back at them than seeing someone's career get hurt the people that were review bombed. But what I would suggest to authors is that social media is just such a small portion. We overinflate its importance because we've got the TikTok tables at bookstore or whatever the social media of the moment is. I get ugly reviews, everyone gets ugly reviews, but there are still people that don't see those reviews because they've picked up your book in person. Bookstores, in particular the booksellers that know their audience, that read the books, are going to still hand sell your books. So while the goodreads review bombing hurts, while social media negativity hurts, there are still this whole other segment of the readership that isn't hanging out on TikTok or Goodreads. So we overinflate it because we see it and Melissa, that brings up a really good point.
Speaker 1:I'm always encouraging authors who come to me and say you know, I've been to indie bookshops and explain to them my books, you know, being a number one in a certain category on Amazon, but the bookshop owners still won't put my book in their bookshop. Well, there are a few reasons for that, one being the simplicity of they just simply don't have room on their bookshelves. But there's another reason, and it starts with a question I always ask the author where do you buy your books? Do you have a relationship with your local independent bookshop? Most of the time, the answer is no, and I feel that this is a part of bookselling. As you said, that has nothing to do with social media, nothing to do with Goodreads, nothing to do with reviews. It is about building relationships. Yes, okay, now I would love to hear your publishing story, from your first finished manuscript to landing an agent and publishing deal.
Speaker 2:We're going back 18 years now make me feel old. I wrote A Middle Grade which I self-published. It's not a good book. It's not a great book. It is, however, a book that I self-published because if you read it, you can see all the seeds of Wicked Lovely in it.
Speaker 2:So I wrote this book, and the flaw in this book is that it's YA language with a middle grade plot, and at the time I was a baby author. I didn't realize that that was a thing you can't do. So I wrote this book and I queried. I did all the right things, but while I was writing it because I was an academic while you're finishing one project, waiting on reviews from the conferences or journals you're submitting to, you start the next one, right, you start your class prep for next term while this term is still in session. So I started Wicked Lovely while this book was on query and I started referencing Wicked Lovely in my queries for this middle grade. And I got a letter from an agent saying I'm not interested in the book you finished, but when this one's done, reach out to me. So I had an agent request before the book was written, which was weird, because that's not to happen. So then I sent out queries to that agent who passed ultimately, and about 10 others that I was interested in, and I got back, I think, six requests and again, after I'd had more rejections than queries on the first one because there was an editor or an agent who kept such poor records he rejected me twice.
Speaker 2:I decided, okay, there's all these people interested. I ended up doing phone calls with them. I picked an agent she was a junior agent at a respected agency and I went with her and a matter of weeks later we did some minor revision. She sent it out on a Friday afternoon in March and by Saturday morning we had a call from Ann Hoppe at Harper Collins, who called and left a voicemail saying I must have this book, I will die without this book. And I was like she had its Terry Pratchett and Terry Pratchett was my daughter's absolute favorite author. And so here I am with Terry Pratchett's editor interested in my book, and I was like, okay, she says she's interested, we'll see.
Speaker 2:So come Monday there were three, maybe four other editors who were interested and Ann hears this from my then agent and says name your price, I must have this book, I will die without this. I of course, knew none of this at the time, because I wouldn't have named the price. My agent did. I would have been, like you know, your Terry Pratchett's agent. That's really enough. Whatever you want to give me is fine. But my agent, of course you know agents, they get 15% of what you make. So she named a much higher price than I would have and Ann Hoppe said yes.
Speaker 2:And so suddenly here I am, school teacher and I get this call and it's been like two days since the book went out. I did not expect this. And I suddenly have a book deal with Harper US and UK jointly acquiring Wicked Lovely and two other books and it's a major deal. And I ended up I was going to Disney with my kids that day because I lived in Southern California. So I was taking the kids to Disney because we had friends in from New York and, like all day, I would periodically call my agent back and say tell me one more time, because there was no way that could be real. I was teaching part-time distance ed, so far and dead. I was looking at this like I didn't have money to buy myself anything as a souvenir from Disney and my big response was I can buy a hoodie. That was my very adult response to my book deal. It was phenomenal. It was absolutely life changing.
Speaker 2:And Ann Hoppe is one of the finest editors in the business. She's phenomenal. She went to the launch of one of the Wicked Lovely books with wings oh how sweet Just. And she is such a supporter of indie bookstores and librarians and, like Ann Hoppe, made that series Retreaters and it was just, she was everything. And she took us to meet Terry Pratchett. She said if you sign with us, you will meet Terry Pratchett. And I was like again, you wouldn't have had to offer money. She took my daughter and I to meet Terry Pratchett at a book event. It was only the second book event I had ever been to in my life and it was Terry Pratchett. It was phenomenal.
Speaker 1:Wow, how exciting for both of you. She's incredible. Let's talk about books. What are you currently reading?
Speaker 2:I read so much nonfiction. I always struggle with this question, but last week I read a book called Decay to God that is coming out the same day as my book, actually by Elizabeth May. It's from Da. I loved it so much I actually wrote her editor. I published my recommendation everywhere. It was a nearly perfect read. I'm sure there's a flaw. If I read it enough times I'd find one, but I couldn't find one on the first read. I read it straight through. It's just a fabulous, rich world building Pacy, Gorgeous to Cajah God by Elizabeth May. So I just read that.
Speaker 2:I'm mostly reading nonfiction books. I'm working on my next passion project and so I've been reading River Kings by, I think it's, Dr Cat Jarmine. I read several books on various women warriors through history. I have a book I think it's just called Valkyrie. So I read a lot of nonfiction. It's actually what I read for fun. I'm actually starting a history master of arts because I read so much history. I do all these historical tours. Why would I not get a degree in it? So my treat to myself is, at 51 years old, I am starting another graduate degree. You read enough nonfiction it happens.
Speaker 1:Oh, I think that's awesome, Doing another degree congratulations. From our conversation, I can't help but keep going back to the fact that when you were thinking about giving up writing, your author friends supported you and encouraged you to pick up that pen again. I just think that's wonderful, because that's what friends are for, right? That's why the network matters. Yes, it absolutely does. Melissa, thank you so much for being a guest on the show and I wish you all the best with Remedial Magic available for readers on February 20th and also with your other books coming out this year.
Speaker 2:Thank you very much. I swear I could talk to you all day. This was a lot of fun.
Speaker 1:You've been listening to my conversation with author Melissa Maher. Her new book, Remedial Magic, is out February 20th. To find out more about the Bookshop podcast, go to thebookshoppodcastcom and make sure to subscribe and leave a review wherever you listen to the show. You can also follow me at Mandy Jackson Beverly on X, Instagram and Facebook and on YouTube at the Bookshop podcast. If you have a favorite indie bookshop that you'd like to suggest we have on the podcast, I'd love to hear from you via the contact form at thebookshoppodcastcom. The Bookshop podcast is written and produced by me, Mandy Jackson Beverly, Theme music provided by Brian Beverly, Executive Assistant to Mandy, Adrienne Otterhan and Graphic Design by Francis Verralla. Thanks for listening and I'll see you next time.