Where did the idea for this book come from?
The idea for The Story Thief came in 2014 during my mature-age Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Creative Writing, when we read Henry Lawson’s ‘The Drover’s Wife’ in class, along with some of its best-known retellings. Right from the start, I fancied the idea of throwing my own hat into the ring with a feminist angle. Although the drover’s wife is clearly portrayed as the heroine of Lawson’s story, she is only ever defined in relation to her husband. It bothered me that Lawson chose to leave her unnamed in his story, as well as her two daughters, whilst naming the two boys – Jackie and Tommy – and even the family dog!
The drafting phase
I was not in a position to officially ‘start’ the novel until after finishing my degree. By that stage I had a very comprehensive plan all mapped for a multigenerational female saga spanning well over 100 years of history. Whatever was I thinking?!
The first year, I was so overwhelmed by the task of research and outright afraid to start writing that I pretty much went around in circles with little progress. The second year I booked myself into a hotel for a week with strict instructions from my family not to let me come home without a first chapter. That’s when I finally started!
The research and drafting phase took four years: 2018-2021. For the first couple of years, I wrote two days per week while my children were at school, and then for the second couple of years I switched to writing as close to full-time as I could manage, albeit still only within school hours. I fell down countless enjoyable research rabbit holes and wouldn’t describe my writing process as economical or efficient! I am a perfectionist, which is not great if you’re trying to complete a novel in a reasonable timeframe.
How many drafts did you end up writing?
I can’t put a number on the drafts I completed because I constantly edited as I went, redrafting at the paragraph, scene and chapter level before starting the next chapter. I did have a couple of friends who read some or all of the MS and gave advice, mostly at the line edit level.
By the end of 2021, seven years after the initial idea came to me, I typed ‘the end’ and went to Office Works with a 200,000-word manuscript in hand, to print and bind the thick two-volume set.
Sending out the ‘finished’ draft
I submitted the work to an agent as a family saga consisting of two books with a possible third to follow, using a personal introduction from a friend. The agent described my idea as very ambitious but rejected the manuscript, stating that the writing did not sufficiently grab her.
At the time, I was utterly gutted. In hindsight, I can see that my 200k MS would have rung major alarm bells, suggesting that the MS was not ‘ready’ for publishing and that I had not yet done the work necessary.
On the advice of my friend Liane Moriarty, I had the full manuscript assessed. London-based Philippa Donovan of Smart Quill, was very positive about the work I’d done and said that the task now was to ‘carve the marble’, and either cut the MS in half or split it into two narratives.
Finding a publisher
While the manuscript was with Philippa, I signed up for the ASA’s Literary Speed Dating in May 2022. I pitched to two publishers, including my preferred publisher, Affirm Press. Both gave me the green light to submit sample chapters. With the feedback from Philippa, I requested more time to refine my MS. The second publisher wanted sample chapters sooner rather than later, but the response was that it was too literary for their list. Affirm Press were happy to wait until I had developed the work further.
Then I contacted you, Laurel, and sent you the first 50 pages, plus a chapter outline. After your excellent report, we met in person and brainstormed ideas for reshaping the full manuscript and finessing the submission for Affirm.
In late 2022, whilst we were still working together, the idea came to me to switch the POV voice of my protagonist Lillian from third person to first person. It was immediately obvious to both of us that the novel was so much more engaging. I reworked my sample chapters and submitted them to Affirm Press on 1 November 2022.
The very next day I received an emphatically positive reply from Affirm’s CEO, which began with the words ‘I’m hooked’ and asked me to send the rest of the MS without delay! Receiving Martin Hughes’ email remains a top 5 life moment.
I then had to ‘confess’ that the MS was currently 200,000 words and that I was still in the process of converting from third to first person. By late November, I gave them around 60,000 words in first person.
Affirm’s commercial publisher Kelly Doust contacted me in late January with a formal offer and contract. I engaged the ASA Legal Service to provide a review and we signed the contract in February 2023.
Working with the publisher’s editors – cutting 100K words
Although I had harboured hopes of splitting my 200,000-word MS into two books, Kelly told me to forget about a second book and tasked me with cutting down my 200,000 words into a target 100,000-word MS within four months. I nearly fainted!
I began by identifying an earlier endpoint in the novel and put away the last 40,000 words for a rainy day. Working full-time over several months, I then whittled the remaining 160k words down to 130k, whilst also converting to first person. At that point, I threw up my hands and asked Affirm to weigh in.
Affirm provided their structural edit about two months later, reducing the MS to 105k words by cutting out a lot of the early chapters and compressing the timeframes into a clearer three act structure. At the same time, they asked me to write new material in certain timeframes and for certain characters.
It was EXTREMELY difficult for me to take in the suggested cuts and edits. We went back and forth for several weeks, negotiating some of the changes, and I then got on with the task. I worked full-time, seven days a week, up to 16 hours per day. There were times when I was not sure if I could sustain the mental or physical energy needed to see it through.
After implementing the agreed changes, the MS was back up to 130k words, which my editor didn’t love but accepted. The MS then went straight to copyediting, with further cuts suggested. I accepted some but not all of the changes, and the final MS ended up at 126k words. By the time we finished in late November 2023, my MS was in an excellent state ready for typesetting and printing, but healthwise I was not!
Ironically, getting a publisher was probably easier than I expected, but the editing process was definitely much harder.
What it takes to be a published writer
To see an idea through to execution over ten years you have to be absolutely committed, dare I say obsessed. People say you can’t choose who you love, and I would suggest the same is also true of novel ideas.
Based on my experience, I advise other writers to be realistic about your chances of publication and of ‘success’, whilst simultaneously allowing yourself to dream big. Manifestation and hard work go a long way, and if you don’t believe in yourself no one else will!
Surround yourself with a supportive circle of writing buddies, including at least one person who is already published so you can see it’s possible. Identify your specific writing weaknesses and do short courses or bring in a mentor to address those weaknesses. This may also include perfectionism.
What next?
From the very beginning I only ever dreamed of writing ‘a novel’. But now that I have, everyone expects me to write another one (except my dad who thinks I’d be crazy to do it all over again). I was on the fence for quite a while about this but am starting to feel excited about my idea for a second book. I make no promises about timing though!
LC: Many thanks to Kyra for taking the time to answer my questions and share her journey to publication. The Story Thief is a great read. Armed with this backstory, I encourage you to track it down. You can find out more about Kyra here: kyrageddes.com, including links to her Instagram and Facebook.
