This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
A dozen publishers and over 100 literary agents rejected Darcie Chan’s debut The Mill River Recluse, which sees a reclusive widow bestow her fortune upon a town’s unsuspecting residents. As a self-published author, however, Darcie went on to sell 600,000 copies of the book landing her on both the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists for over seven months. Here, to celebrate the traditional publication of her second novel, The Mill River Redemption, Darcie shares her inspiring journey.
Where do you find inspiration for your books? When you are writing, do you use any famous people or people you know as inspiration?
I draw my inspiration from several sources – but mostly from my family and close friends, and from authors whose work I love. I've often marveled at how so many writers found success even though they started as complete unknowns. The world as we know it would be so different without authors like Laura Ingalls Wilder, Harper Lee, Stephen King, and J.K. Rowling, just to name a few. I find their work, as well as their drive and determination to see it published, very inspirational.
Can you tell us a little about your average writing day?
Well, basically, every day is a juggling act. My husband works crazy hours and has an even crazier commute, so it's pretty much up to me to keep the house afloat. I have a preschool-aged son, which means that there's the shuttling him to and from school each day and "mom duty" when he's not in school. There are the myriad errands and chores that always have to be done, and the social media accounts to keep current. In between all that, I try to get in four to six hours of writing per day, and occasionally more, if I indulge myself by staying up late to write.
What is your favourite Women’s Fiction book of all time and why?
My favorite book of all time is A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, but I think classifying it as only ‘women's fiction’ would be inaccurately narrow. Even though it was published in 1943, the book is timeless. I read it every few years, and I learn something new every time I do. And, while it is a beautiful, heart-wrenching, uplifting story, it also provides a fascinating, in-depth look at a portion of American society of the past. It is written with unflinching honesty. Many of the situations described are difficult to read emotionally, but the rewards of the story are just as great. Francie, the protagonist, is an exemplary role model. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is her survival story, one with lessons that are still relevant today. What Francie achieves in the face of poverty and adversity is inspiring and exceptional.
What female writer has inspired you?
I really love Sara Gruen's publication story. Her incredible bestseller, Water for Elephants, was written as the second book in a two-book contract, but her publisher rejected it and instead asked for a book more similar to her first. (Those two contracted books, Riding Lessons and Flying Changes, are also wonderful, by the way.) A small publisher, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, ended up buying and publishing Water for Elephants, and the rest is history.
Sara's story is inspirational in two ways. First, she never gave up in the face of outright rejection of a complete manuscript – one that surely took her months of work to complete – by her first publisher. Instead, she started writing a new book while her agent shopped the one that had been rejected to other publishers. And second, it shows that sometimes, it takes a while for a book to find a home with a publisher, but such a delay doesn't mean the book isn't good or that it won't resonate with readers in an amazing way.Can you recommend a book you’ve enjoyed recently?
I recently read State of Wonder by Ann Patchett, and I thought it told a fascinating, beautifully-written story. Still Life With Breadcrumbs by Anna Quindlen, was also excellent and made me long for my own little cabin in the woods!
What is your writing process? Do you plan first or dive in? How many drafts do you do?
To date, I've had two books published and have written the first draft of a third. I always have to know how the story will start, how it will end, and a few things that happen in the middle before I feel comfortable starting to write. I do as many drafts as are necessary to make it the best manuscript I can. Other than that, though, each of my three books has been written differently.
With The Mill River Recluse, I was learning as I was writing. It was my first novel, and I was under no pressure to complete it. I wrestled with pacing, character and plot development, setting, voice, and dialogue for the first time. And, since I was working as an attorney and writing only in the evenings, it took more than two years for me to finish the first draft.
The Mill River Redemption seemed to flow onto the page by comparison. Maybe it was because it was my second book, and I'd learned a lot from writing my first. Maybe the fact that the characters in the story seemed so much more fully realized in my mind had something to do with it. I was able to create a detailed outline early on, which is something I didn't do with Recluse, and it was simply a matter of executing the story after that. (I also had a contract deadline for finishing it, so I suppose that probably helped as well!)
The third Mill River book, which is still being shaped into its final form, felt different than the other two. When I started writing, I knew how the story would begin, how it would end, and a few things that would happen in the middle. I had my bare minimum, yes, but that's it. I felt as if I were hiking into the great unknown on a great adventure. I knew where I needed to end up, but I had no idea what would happen along the way.
What was your journey to being a published author?
I have wanted to be a writer since I was a little girl. In middle school, after winning a school writing contest, I rushed home with my little trophy and announced to my parents that I wanted to be a writer when I grew up. Later on, after finishing college and law school and settling into a legal job I loved, I finally decided it was time to attempt a first novel.
Like so many other aspiring writers working on their first books, I poured my heart into mine. When I felt the manuscript was ready, I was lucky enough to find a wonderful literary agent who was willing to shop it around – to take a chance on it, and me, despite my story being a “quiet” one and me being completely unknown as a writer. Unfortunately, as is the case with many first novels, mine didn’t find a home with a publisher at that point. I saved the file to my hard drive, and life went on.
Several years later, I began reading articles about the popularity of eBooks and how it was suddenly possible for writers to make work directly available to readers. My first novel was still languishing on my computer, and I felt I had nothing to lose by releasing it electronically. In fact, when I uploaded The Mill River Recluse to various eBook retail sites in May and June 2011, it was done as an experiment with two goals in mind. First, I wanted to see what sort of feedback I might get on my story, since I could use that feedback to improve my writing. And second, I hoped that, over time – what I expected to be months and probably years – I might gradually be able to introduce myself to readers. If readers liked my novel, maybe I wouldn’t be completely unknown by the time I’d finished a second book.
At that time, I had absolutely no idea what was in store for me.
During the first month my novel was available, I sold around 100 copies. I was so excited – to think, 100 people had my book! My husband, son, and I did a happy dance in our kitchen! But from then on, the sales figures exploded, and we were shocked as we realized what was happening.
Within three months of hitting the “upload” button, The Mill River Recluse had sold nearly 100,000 copies and landed on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists, where it remained for the next seven months. I started receiving emails from readers praising my novel and asking when it would be made available in print or when I might have a second book available. In December 2011, The Wall Street Journal ran a feature on my novel and my self-publishing experience.
By the spring of 2012, just a few weeks shy of the one-year anniversary of my novel’s upload date, my life had changed completely. More than 600,000 copies of my first novel had sold. I’d left the legal job I’d held for more than a decade – the job at which I’d expected to work until retirement – to write full-time. The Mill River Recluse had been picked up for publication in several markets, including by Sphere, a division of Little, Brown UK, for publication in the United Kingdom, and I’d signed a contract for two new Mill River novels with Ballantine Books, a division of Penguin Random House. Ballantine eventually picked up the rights to The Mill River Recluse for publication in the U.S. and Canada as well.
Although my journey to publication took one of those new paths and was far more unusual than any scenario I’d ever imagined, I’m thrilled to be where I am today. The release of my second novel, The Mill River Redemption, is imminent, and I've also finished a first draft of the third Mill River novel. I’m a writer. It still feels exciting and a little strange to say that, but I’m incredibly grateful to have had my childhood dream come true.
What do you think is the biggest myth about being a novelist?
That it's an easy lifestyle, or a cushy one. Don't get me wrong – there are advantages. It is wonderful to be able to work from home and to have good flexibility in my schedule. But, most writers aren't rich, and writing a book takes a lot of time and effort. Sometimes, the words flow onto the page easily. Sometimes, they don't. The manuscript still has to get finished, though, so it takes lots of self-discipline and mental focus to crank out quality pages. And, that's just the writing process. There's still the editing process and the publicity push for a book's release, both of which require additional time and effort (often simultaneously with the writing of a new book). I never would have guessed it would be the case, but there are days when I work more hours as a writer than I did when I was an attorney, and it can be just as mentally exhausting.
What advice can you give to our readers who want to write a novel of their own?
Write for yourself first. Think up a story you care about, one that makes you excited to sit down and write. Don't force the material out; take it as slow as you need to and let ideas and emotions develop. Write every day if you can, even if it's just a page. And, when you have a complete manuscript, polish it well, seek out and take to heart constructive criticism, and prepare for rejection. The road to publication is paved with rejections. It is important that you believe in yourself enough to keep going and never give up!
What are you working on at the moment?
I'm juggling publicity assignments for The Mill River Redemption for both the U.S. and the U.K. editions. In addition to that, I'm putting the finishing touches on the manuscript for the third Mill River book, which I will be sending to my editor at the end of August.
Thanks, Darcie!