SARAH SPEEDIE “Take the time to feel sad about a rejection, then pick yourself up and write another brilliant manuscript.”
Kelly’s Writerly Q&A June Author is Sarah Speedie, a Melbourne-based children’s author whom I had the pleasure of meeting at her joint book launch with Dani Vee back in 2022. It was so fun, and when Sarah and I got talking we discovered our mutual connection with Fiona from Beyond Words Literary Agency. Meowster Chef was the feature back then but today Boss Cat is in the limelight!
Kelly: Hi Sarah, thanks for taking the time to answer some writerly questions. Congratulations on publishing your third picture book, Boss Cat, what’s it about?
Sarah: Hi Kelly! Thank you. I am really looking forward to our chat!
BOSS CAT is a very fun story about a cantankerous cat who isn’t impressed when her family bring home a new puppy. Boss Cat is used to ruling the family home and she doesn’t want to share it with a slobbering, jumping, chewing pest, so she sets out to show the canine intruder exactly who’s the boss of the house!
The extremely talented illustrator, Tom Jellett, has done an amazing job of bringing grumpy Boss Cat and her antics to life. Her facial expressions are brilliant!
Kelly: Thank you for sending me an ARC, it’s an adorable book! How long does it take you to write each picture book?
Sarah: It varies from book to book. Some picture books flow onto the page within a day or two and others take weeks or months to complete. I wrote BOSS CAT quite quickly, I was definitely on a roll. Once I had the idea, I had written the first draft within a couple of days. Of course, that doesn’t include the time I spent going back over the story and editing it. It takes time to edit a manuscript and get it ready for submission.
Kelly: It must be amazing when the words flow quickly, but whether each story is formed fast or slowly, I love that you remind us about the time it takes to edit and prepare a manuscript for submission. What does your typical day of writing look like, has it changed from when you published your debut, Mozzies Vs Flies?
Sarah: I don’t really have a typical writing day. I work three days a week in my day job, so the other two days I try to spend on writing and writing-related pursuits, such as school and library visits and other promotional activities. The percentage of my writing time spent on actual writing compared to other bookish activities, varies from week to week. For example, because I have two books being released over the next couple of months, I will be spending a lot of time promoting these books and I therefore won’t have much time for writing. Luckily, I thoroughly enjoy all aspects of being an author, so whilst I love writing, I am also very happy visiting bookshops, schools and libraries.
Kelly: Bookish activities and writing time are two different practices that are both wonderful, but I do find writing time is often less than expected.
Kelly: Let’s go back to where it all began, how did you connect with Fiona from Beyond Words Literary Agency?
Sarah: Well, my author journey began in 2020, when my debut picture book, Mozzies Vs Flies was picked up from the slush pile by James Layton at Larrikin House. I connected with Fiona in early 2022, just before my second picture book, Meowster Chef, was released. I’d submitted a few stories to Fiona and was very happy when she reached out and said that she would like to represent me. Since joining Fiona at Beyond Words Literary Agency, I’ve signed four picture book contracts with different publishers, the first of those being BOSS CAT.
Kelly: I love Mozzies Vs Flies, what a battle! It’s funny how when we met was not long after you had signed with Fiona and during that time I was doing an R&R for Fiona, so when you kindly asked me about my writing, we discovered our connection. Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Sarah: My main piece of advice for aspiring authors is to believe in yourself and don’t give up. Keep writing, keep working on your craft, keep learning as much as you can about the industry and keep submitting. It is a very hard industry to crack and you need to have a thick skin and realise that rejections and silences are a big part of the journey for most authors. For each of the six manuscripts that I’ve had accepted by publishers, there have been plenty of manuscripts that weren’t. This could be for a multitude of reasons. I am still receiving more rejections than yeses, and they definitely do hurt. However, I have become better at not taking them personally and instead focusing on the next story. Take the time to feel sad about a rejection, then pick yourself up and write another brilliant manuscript.
Kelly: Yes! Thank you for reminding us that although you have had publishing success, you also have manuscripts that were rejected and we need to talk about those rejections more. If we do that, then we normalise accepting that some manuscripts don’t sell and that’s okay. All writers need to do is keep going, like you said and write another brilliant manuscript! Golden advice! So, what can we expect from you next?
Sarah: For the next couple of months you can expect to see a lot of me as I promote my two new releases, BOSS CAT (HarperCollins, June 2024) and WILD ABOUT BOOK WEEK (Larrikin House, July 2024). At this stage I can’t tell you too much about the picture books coming in 2025 with CSIRO and New Frontier, however, I can say that they are both going to be beautiful books.
Kelly: So exciting! I can’t wait to find out more about what’s to come! You have been so kind and generous. I wish you all the best with the Boss Cat celebrations and your writing. Let’s speak again soon. Thanks so much for your time.
Boss Cat is a fun read featuring the cutest and feistiest feline. Check out my review here.
