Writer at Random: Camy Tang Interview!

Today, as promised, we welcome debut Zondervan author Camy Tang, as she talks about her book Sushi for One? (see the link in my sidebar).

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Myra: Wow, when I did an internet search for Sushi for One? and "Camy Tang," I got pages and pages of results! This is your first book in print. With your name and face suddenly all over the internet, you could almost be described as an "overnight success." Does it seem that way to you, or has the road to publication been circuitous?

Camy: It totally does NOT seem like an overnight thing. I worked for years on my craft to get it to the point where an agent offered me representation. I wrote five manuscripts before I sold--yup, count 'em, FIVE. (I know other writers who wrote even more than that.) It seems like I've been working forever to get to this point where my first book is coming out. Nothing seems sudden or "overnight."

I'm extremely grateful to all that my publisher is doing for me. I know it's not typical of what publishers do for debut novelists, and I feel incredibly blessed. It also makes me want to improve my craft more, do more marketing, do all I can to live up to my publisher's faith in me.

It also doesn't feel like an overnight thing because I've been blogging for years, and I've had blog readers who knew me "pre-sale." It's been soooooo exciting and encouraging to have them along for the ride with me.

Myra: You mentioned you've been blogging awhile, and I know your Story Sensei blog is filled with advice and tips for writers. Tell me a little about how you got started as a freelance editor and dispenser of "writerly" advice.

Camy: I kind of fell into it. People started asking me writing questions, and I kept hearing the same types of writing questions. I love the blog format and thought it would be great to post my writing tips on a blog, a few tips a week, so I started the Story Sensei blog.

I also have several critique partners, and one of them--Marilyn Hilton--is herself a freelance editor. She mentioned to me that I had a good eye for large-scale structural problems in a novel, and she said I should seriously consider becoming a freelance editor.

I prayed about it and took the plunge. My freelance business has grown slowly, but I'm very glad for it--it leaves me time for my writing and my other things, like the Genesis [ACFW's annual contest for unpublished writers], my blog, oh, and my husband. :)

Myra: I'm sure your critique and editing experience has propelled your personal growth as a writer. In what areas have you seen your own writing skills develop most since you wrote that very first book manuscript?

Camy: Structure and conflict.

Story structure is the skeleton of a book. I've discovered that if I have good structure, the story flows so much better, so I've worked at improving my story structure. I've worked on classic Scene and Sequel (a la Dwight Swain) and striven to improve it in my own writing. I've also started to pay more attention to rhythm, cadence, and flow.

One of the best workshops I took was one by New York agent Donald Maass, and he impressed on everyone the importance of conflict. He said to have conflict on every single page, preferably every single sentence, because conflict and tension are what keep readers reading.
I've taken his words to heart and have tried to infuse some sort of tension or conflict--whether internal or external--in practically every sentence when I do my rewrites. The difference in the Before and After is amazing. I feel like it's made my writing stronger.

Myra: Considering everything else you do besides writing, including making time for (and with!) your husband, how do you keep a balance? What's a typical working day like for you?

Camy: I'm terrible at discipline, but I'm getting better at it, especially as I write more manuscripts. I'm a night owl, so my most productive working hours are between 10 pm and 2 am. Since I'm able to write full time (at least for now), and since I don't have children, I'm able to stay up writing and wake up in the late morning.

I TRY to have the discipline to exercise first thing, but that doesn't always happen. : I do my quiet time, and then I'll check email. That can take anywhere from one hour to three, and during the crunch time for the Genesis, that's almost all day.

Then I screw down and write the rest of the day. My productivity varies depending on what I'm doing. When I'm plotting and doing characterization, I do a lot of ruminating and stewing in my head over my story. I do this plotting for several months before I start on the actual writing. When I'm writing, I can do about 3000-5000 words a day.

My husband comes home later in the evening, and I spend time with him until he decides to watch his Mixed Martial Arts programs or ESPN SportsCenter. Then I leave him to it and do more work. He goes to bed earlier than I do, so I get a few good hours of quiet in during my prime time of 10-2.

Myra: Sounds like you're more of a plotter than a "seat of the pants" writer. Do you outline, create and shuffle scene cards, fill out detailed character charts? And how much of the story do you need to know before you begin the actual writing?

Camy: I use Randy Ingermanson's Snowflake method. I also use archetypes for characterization and the heroine's journey (I use 45 MASTER CHARACTERS by Victoria Lynn Schmidt for both of them). I spend anywhere from 2-5 months doing the plotting and characterization work (although I'm trying to get that down to 2 months max).

I will plot out absolutely everything, down to what will happen in each scene, before I start writing. I like knowing the scene direction so that when I start laying words down, I can follow a path I've drawn. Sometimes it veers, and that's okay, but I need that roadmap to start off with.

Myra: A "snowflaker," huh? Randy would be proud, Camy! In addition to 45 MASTER CHARACTERS, what are the top 5 books you believe are vital for a writer's bookshelf?

Camy:
1. TECHNIQUES OF THE SELLING WRITER by Dwight Swain (however, he's a bit hard to read, so I usually recommend...)
2. PLOT AND STRUCTURE by James Scott Bell
3. GETTING INTO CHARACTER by Brandilyn Collins (she has the best method for characterization out of all the writing craft books I've read. Her method is unique and it applies to all types of writers, whether plotters or pantsers.)
4. SELF-EDITING FOR FICTION WRITERS by Renni Browne and Dave King
5. WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL by Donald Maass

Myra: And while we're talking books, can you pinpoint a particular novel or author that lit your own inner fire to write fiction?

Camy: Um ... no.

I liked reading as a child, and I think that most writers are voracious readers, as well (although not all readers want to be writers, obviously). Every writer has a shelf-full of favorite books.
I loved Little House of the Prairie and A Little Princess.

Currently, I've been reading a lot of New York Times bestselling novels, especially any that happen to be debut novels. It's been interesting to read the various styles (mostly literary fiction, which is not my forte) and to try to understand what made the book a bestseller. Plus, they're mostly just great stories, which are a delight to read.

Myra: From both a reader's and a writer's perspective, are there specific factor(s) you've zeroed in on that bestsellers have in common?

Camy: Conflict and mystery.

Not all of the books I've read have a good pace--in fact, I almost didn't finish one book because it started so slowly that I was bored by the end of chapter three. But I skimmed ahead and it sounded more interesting, so I went back and kept reading. (I don't usually skim ahead--if I book doesn't hook me by the end of chapter three, I won't finish reading it.)

But all the books that I've finished have both conflict and mystery to keep me interested. Many books are more literary style novels, so the conflict is largely internal at the beginning, and then a more external conflict appears a couple chapters into the book. But the internal conflict keeps me reading until the external conflict is introduced.

The external conflict is usually extraordinary and intriguing, which is what keeps me reading to the end of the book. No cliché external goals--the bestsellers I've read recently all have very unique external goals for the characters.

The internal conflict is also usually intriguing and original. No characters always get along--there's a constant form of some type of tension. That constant tension keeps the relationships interesting. If they got along, the story would be boring and I wouldn't finish reading the book.

The complete uniqueness of the external conflict and the internal conflict of the books I've been reading have been what make the stories compelling for me.

Myra: I agree, conflict is essential to hold the reader's interest, and I assume by "mystery," you mean anything that keeps the reader guessing. I'm sure those key elements are skillfully woven into SUSHI FOR ONE? (fantastic cover, by the way!). What sparked the idea for your novel?

Camy: I played coed recreational volleyball for several years, but when I started writing, I'd torn my ACL (ligament in my knee) and had surgery. I had read several chick lit novels, both in the Christian market and the general market, and I thought it would be unique to have a chick lit heroine who was a jock. And what better way to release my angst about not being able to play volleyball because of my surgery than to have a character who was a top-notch volleyball player?

I thought up Lex's character first, and then the storyline unfolded as I made her more complex and understood her fears and spiritual struggles. Grandma Sakai's character is a conglomeration of my friends' mothers, grandmothers, and aunties, exaggerated to the tenth degree.

Myra: I understand SUSHI FOR ONE? is the first in a series. Can we expect to see more of your SFO characters in upcoming novels, and is there a tentative release date for book two?

Camy: Yup, the cousins reappear in the other books in the series. ONLY UNI is scheduled to release February 2008 (a nice romance for Valentine's Day), and Trish stars in that novel. The third novel will release around September or October 2008, tentatively titled THE LONE RICE BALL, and it's Venus's story. Jenn's story hasn't been contracted yet, but keep your fingers crossed. Her story involves a bad boy in black leather ...

Myra: Thanks for spending some time with us today, Camy. God's best on what is sure to be a longstanding career as a successful Christian novelist!