The Storyteller: Rachel Lynn Solomon
The Storyteller: Rachel Lynn Solomon
Hi and welcome to Issue #18 of The Storyteller!
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Today's guest is Rachel Lynn Solomon from Seattle, Washington. Rachel is a seasoned Young Adult writer whose first foray into adult contemporary romance is the recently released The Ex-Talk. We talk about switching genres, writing rom-coms, the day-to-day challenges of writing, the publishing process, and more.
Anu: Can you talk us through your reading and writing journey from childhood to now and how you got to where you are now? Did you always want to be a writer?
Rachel: For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a voracious reader, and while I wrote as a kid and into my teens, I assumed it was an unrealistic career goal. I didn’t take it seriously until after college—and I’d studied journalism, so I was still writing, but I was so focused on school that I didn’t write fiction for about five years. After I graduated, though, I started writing again, and it took five manuscripts before one found a home at a publisher!
Anu: What does a typical writing day look like for you?
Rachel: Pre-pandemic, I’d hole up in my favorite coffeeshop that also made their own truffles. I’d place one at the edge of my table and use it as motivation! These days, I do half my writing in a home office I share with my husband and the other half on the couch. I’m much more productive in the afternoons and even more so when it’s rainy or gloomy outside—maybe it’s because I’m a Seattleite, but sunny days make me feel guilty for staying inside!
Anu: You’ve recently released your first adult novel, The Ex Talk. What was different about the process? What did you enjoy, what did you find challenging? How did you handle this shift in your writing, thinking, and planning of the story?
Rachel: The biggest difference was the amount of independence my main characters have. In The Ex Talk, the protagonist can easily get herself from place to place, owns a house, and is (mostly) financially independent. As an adult millennial, she also has a completely different relationship with her mother, and as she pursues a romance, the obstacles in her way are a bit different. There’s the added stress of work, and questions of “Am I doing things right as an adult?” and “Is this what I’m supposed to be doing with my life?” come up a lot. The romantic stakes are also a bit higher, since moving in, marriage, and/or kids are all things a protagonist might be thinking about with regard to the future of the relationship.
I love YA and adult and hope to continue writing both as long as I can!
Anu: Why romantic comedies as your mode of storytelling? What draws you to write the stories that you do? Any obvious inspirations or influences?
Rachel: As a kid, I devoured romantic comedies of the late 90s and early 2000s—How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Never Been Kissed, The Devil Wears Prada. Of course, a lot of these movies don’t entirely hold up underneath a 2021 lens, but they remain great sources of comfort for me. I’m very interested in combining modern sensibilities and more equitable gender dynamics with classic romcom setups.
Anu: What do you want readers to take away from your books?
Rachel: Mainly, I hope my books bring readers joy. The pandemic has really hammered home for me how valuable that is, and it’s such a privilege to be able to provide an escape for someone. My main characters are often messy and still figuring things out, so I hope readers see that and know it’s okay to be a work-in-progress, even as an adult.
Anu: You’ve mentioned that it’s important for you to write female characters who are sex positive. Could you talk a little more about that?
Rachel: Sex positivity is especially important to me as a romance and YA author, and often I’m writing to counter negative, harmful views on sex and desire I encountered as a teen. With YA especially, there’s an opportunity to place my female main characters in positions of confidence and power that we don’t always see in other types of media. Not all of them start out comfortable with their sexuality, but for every character I write, it is a crucial part of their journey.
Anu: How has your background in journalism and your work/experience in public radio shaped your fiction writing?
Rachel: I was always drawn to the storytelling aspect of journalism. For every piece, I’d try to find a human angle, and I’d usually start even my news stories with an anecdote about one of my sources. So I think it was a very natural transition! I consider my stories much more character-driven than plot-driven—I want my readers to care about the characters so that they can then care about what happens to them.
Anu: How was your experience with querying and finding an agent? Has your experience of publishing changed over the course of four books? Is there something about publishing that surprised you once you became a part of the industry?
Rachel: I queried two books before signing with my first agent on my third book. She pitched that book and two more (a fourth and fifth) to editors before we parted ways, and then I queried that fifth book because it had only been seen by a handful of editors. I signed with my current agent in March of 2016, and she sold that book, You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone, in a two-book deal in May 2016. I bring up those dates because I think it’s important to see that even the things that appear to happen quickly in publishing often have a lot of buildup. No two journeys are similar, I’ve found, and very few (if any) are a straight line.
One thing that surprised me is that the goalposts are always moving. I focused so much on getting an agent, and then once I had an agent, I was focused on selling a book. Then selling another book, and other various milestones. I was always so focused on the next thing, I wish my past self had lingered more in those victories instead of anxiety-spiraling about when I was going to reach the next step of my career.
Anu: Your work features strong musical elements. Do you have a musical background? What are the ways you explore it through your writing?
Rachel: I do! I played piano and guitar as a kid and teen, and I also wrote songs and sang in an all-girl punk rock band in high school. I love writing artistic characters, and especially musicians, because I think music gives them a unique lens through which to view the world. Exploring a character’s creativity is exciting for me as an author.
Anu: What are some of the things you enjoy doing outside of writing?
Rachel: Tap dancing! I’ve been dancing and performing with the same studio for about seven years, and I’ve missed it dearly over the past year. I’ve always loved old movie musicals—Singin’ in the Rain is my all-time favorite movie—and that was what initially sparked my interest in tap. But it’s so versatile, and you can tap to modern music as well.
Anu: Do you have any go-to tips for refilling that creative well?
Rachel: I’ll either take a step away from the book and try to do something completely different to find inspiration again—usually art or exercise. If I’m on a tight deadline, I’ll brainstorm with my editor or with my critique partners! Sometimes, another person can point out a solution that seems extremely obvious, but I was just too close to the book to have seen it.
Anu: What do you love about writing? What do you find difficult? Has either changed over the years?
Rachel: I love revising. My first drafts are extremely messy—they’re essentially very detailed outlines. Revising is where the book really comes to life for me. I’m also a huge fan of details, and while I’m revising, I learn exactly what music my characters listen to, what they wear, their relationship with their bodies and self-image, their deepest fears and why, most importantly.
On the flip side, a blank Word doc is incredibly daunting. Every time I start a new draft, I find myself wondering, can I really write a whole book? I fast-draft, and I especially try to get from zero to 10K as quickly as I can. I think I’m racing through it to convince myself I can write another book! And I’m always reminding myself that a first draft doesn’t need to be good—it just needs to exist. As soon as I have something book-shaped, I can start my favorite part of the process (revising).
Anu: What’s your favourite non-writing part of the publishing process?
Rachel: It’s so hard to pick a favorite, but I really love the business side of being an author! Brainstorming ways to promote my books, creating swag, posing my books as artfully as I can—which was admittedly a bit of a steep learning curve!—I’ve had a lot of fun with that.
And I absolutely love hearing from readers. It’s still feels surreal, and I am so honored and grateful when someone sends me an email or tags me in a post. Whether they’ve connected with something on a personal level or the book simply brought them joy—it means the world to me.
Anu: What has it been like having a book out during a pandemic?
Rachel: It’s been tough, but there have been some silver linings, and I’m so, so grateful to my publishers for getting my books out there—there’s been a lot of innovative promo and marketing. I love that virtual events are so accessible for anyone in the world, though I miss connecting with readers in person. The first bookstore events we’re able to safely have again are going to be so, so emotional.
Anu: Is there any advice you wish you’d gotten when you first started out? Or just any advice for aspiring authors from your own experience, something that’s really helped you in your writing and publishing journey so far?
Rachel: Always be working on your next book. I truly believe stubbornness and success are closely linked in this industry, and the only way to ensure you have more chances to get where you want to be is by having another book ready to shop around if the one you’re currently querying isn’t getting the response you hoped for. Publishing is a marathon, not a sprint—as mentioned above, my debut novel was my fifth completed manuscript!
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1. What's the last book(s) that you read that you'd recommend and why?
Meet Me in Paradise by Libby Hubscher, a stunning women’s fiction novel that made me weep. It’s about an extreme introvert tricked into an island vacation by her sister, and it has the best meet-cute I’ve maybe ever read? The main character is hurled into the lap of a gorgeous stranger during some airplane turbulence, and he is not happy about it.
2. What's the last TV show or movie you watched that you'd recommend and why?
I’m probably the last person on the planet to watch it, but I marathoned all of Lost a few months ago, and the character development and storytelling are just PHENOMENAL. I had no idea it would make me cry as much as it did.
3. What's the last song you listened to that you'd recommend and why?
“Think About Things” by Icelandic musician Daði Freyr. I became obsessed with the video early on in quarantine and it still brings me so much joy!
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As always, I've included both mine and Rachel's social media links below. There are buying links as well, which include links through my own online affiliate shop for Bookshop.org, which supports independent bookstores. I have a separate section on there titled "The Storyteller newsletter" so you can access the relevant buying links for all the authors I've had on here so far.
In Issue #19 heading your way on March 15, you'll be meeting Jahnavi Barua, an author from Assam now settled in Bangalore, who has published two novels (her latest is the 2020 release Undertow) and a short story collection to critical acclaim, including making the shortlist for the Man Asian Literary Prize and the Commonwealth Book Prize.
If you enjoyed this and know someone who would, as well, please forward this to them! I'm also always up for a book (or general) chat so feel free to turn this into a conversation at any time by replying to the email, even if just to let me know your thoughts on an issue or if you have any feedback, but also if you must share with someone how awesome something is that you've recently read, watched, or listened to.
Thank you and until next time!
Anu
Currently reading: The Ruin of Delicate Things by Beverley Lee (The Storyteller alum from May 2020 - if you missed it, read her interview here.)
Currently watching: This is Us (season 5), Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (season 2), One Tree Hill (season 4 rewatch)
Latest writing: Recently shared an edited version of an old poem originally published on Five2One journal, which you can read here.
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