Interview with Sue Copsey

I don't know what it is but scary stories told about your own backyard are so much more scarier than those told of far off places. I'm glad there are authors like Sue Copsey who are bringing the ghost stories home.

Tell us about your latest novel.

A junior fiction novel set in Fiordland, featuring New Zealand’s ‘interesting’ (weird) birdlife and a wee laddie on holiday from Scotland.

What got you started writing?

Enid Blyton, and my first ‘page a day’ diary.

What challenges did you face when you first started writing?

When I began writing fiction, I knew how difficult it would be to get published, because I work in publishing! Also the cliché writer problems of confidence and imposter syndrome. Those never go away.

Gosh Darn I hoped that went away after a while. I think Imposter Syndrome is probably all our downfalls.

Do you ever get the opportunity to travel for your writing? Either to market or to research.

Well yes of course – “research trips” are obligatory when you live in a place as beautiful as NZ! For Our Children Aotearoa (2012), I travelled all over the country photographing and interviewing children from different backgrounds – from a farm boy in Southland to a Maori lad from the Far North. For my ghost story The Ghosts of Tarawera, I took the family on holiday for a week to the central North Island, and for The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek I took a research trip to Queenstown and walked part of the Moonlight Track. I think I’ve seen more of New Zealand than most native New Zealanders! But seriously, if your setting is an integral part of the story, you’ve got to go there, to experience it properly, otherwise it won’t be authentic.

That sounds magical.

Who in your life is your greatest cheerleader or support in your writing?

My husband. Always honest, but always kind. My kids (age 20 and 16) are always honest, sometimes not so kind.

What is it like writing in New Zealand that would be different if you lived anywhere else? Because the children’s writing community here is so small, you soon get to know your ‘tribe’. I think I’d have given up long ago without them. The financial rewards are so minuscule, it’s more about doing something you love, with a community of fellow writers who know what it’s like. In the UK it’s not so easy to link up with fellow writers. You can do so online, of course, but there’s really no substitute for getting together over coffee to give each moral support.

Where do you get your ideas?

Is there anything about New Zealand that has inspired you to write? All of my books are set in New Zealand. This is currently not recommended, if you’re looking to be published by one of the big publishers, as they prefer books they can sell overseas and apparently ‘local’ means unsaleable. I’m waiting for publishers to realise that having a book set in New Zealand is a good thing, to be pushed as a point of difference. We’ll get there! When I started writing my ghost story series I wanted to send a message to Kiwi kids that they live in an awesome place with some pretty interesting history. Adventure stories featuring ghosts seemed a good way to do this. The Ghosts of Tarawera was inspired by the legend of the phantom canoe of Tarawera, and my most recent title, The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek, was inspired by the tales of the gold miners who came to NZ during the gold rush – and also by the filming of The Lord of the Rings. My work in progress is inspired by New Zealand’s unique and remarkable bird life and landscape – it aims to teach kids (in a fun way) about their environment, and if just one kid goes on to help preserve that in some way, job done!

A good mission to have in life. I do think the big publishers are short sighted. There is definitely a place for more diverse stories.

Who is your favourite New Zealand author and why?

My favourite NZ children’s author is Jane Bloomfield, who writes the Lily Max series. (Disclaimer - I’m her editor!) Her writing is so exuberant, full of fun, warmth and heart, and very ‘Kiwi’ yet with universal appeal. I’m waiting for someone in the UK to discover her. I wish they’d hurry up! I find a lot of NZ writing too dark and gloomy, to be honest, probably because I’m not a native New Zealander. My favourite NZ adult author would be Mandy Hager. I recently read Heloise, which is outstanding, beautifully written with so much depth. Whenever I read Mandy, half of me is thinking “You need to try and write like Mandy” and the other half is thinking “Just give up now.”

I think all authors at one stage do that. I still tell myself to write like one of my favourite authors and when I read over the manuscript it isn't even close. No problem it just means you have your own voice.

What advice would you give for other writers in New Zealand?

It’s so very competitive now, so hard to get published. You need to master the craft of writing – the ‘rules’ – before you start submitting, even if you have oodles of talent. So take a creative writing course, find a mentor, join a critique group, and have a manuscript assessment. Or some combo of the above. Get feedback, in other words, from people with experience. This applies whether you’re submitting to agents and publishers, or self-publishing. Today, publishers are so squeezed they don’t have the resources to take on a manuscript that might have great promise but still needs a lot of development and editing. So get that done before you submit and you’ll up your chances. It’s not enough to be a good writer with a good manuscript. You have to be stand-out.

Do you get to network or meet up with other New Zealand authors?

it’s worth joining local writing groups and societies, e.g. your local branch of The New Zealand Society of Authors, as networking is incredibly important in New Zealand. It won’t get you published, but you’ll learn things like which publishers are open to submissions, which genres are being actively searched for by which publishers, which agents are worth approaching, that kind of thing. And also, take advantage of workshops in your area, as you’ll meet other authors who write in your genre/market.

What was the first thing you did after your first book was published?

I couldn’t stop googling it!

Funny you should say that. I still chronically google my books. A terrible habit on my part.

Do you read your book reviews? How do you handle the good and the bad ones?

Some authors never read their reviews, I don’t know how they can be so restrained. I find I have to read a review several times before I can be objective about it. I tend to obsess about one tiny thing that might be critical, rather than the good stuff in there. I’ve only had one iffy review, which was from a 14-year-old on a teen book review website, who said The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek was ‘weird’. But now I’ve decided that’s quite a good thing.

I never though about reading them over and over. I might do that myself.

It seems like everything has Easter Eggs (surprise reference to your other work) do you have any Easter Eggs in your books?

In my WIP, my 10-year-old protagonist is going to be reading one of my ghost stories.

How long does it take you to write a book? Do you have any secrets to productivity?

I have a full-time day job editing other people’s books, so usually I don’t really want to be writing before and after that. I do sometimes, when I’m on a roll, but I end up feeling like my eyes have been sandpapered. Therefore I tend to write in the summer holidays, blocking off January in my diary. And most importantly … writers’ weekends! These are awesome. I have two children’s writer buddies, both with families and jobs and little spare time. So we organise once or twice a year to run away to a bach somewhere remote (but not too remote - cooking is banned so we have to be near a café) and we write from first thing in the morning to about 11pm at night, with breaks for food and short walks (and gossip). I wouldn’t have got the second and third in my ghost story series written without these weekends. As to how long I take to write a book, my first drafts are pretty quick compared to many authors. I get the idea, make notes, and do research – that goes on for several months before I write anything. Then once I start, I usually manage about 2,000 words/day. And when I’m mid-book, I’m always ‘writing’ in my head. The plot advances and comes together mostly when I’m in the shower, doing housework and cooking, and gardening. After I’ve finished the first draft, I spend many weeks redrafting and editing, and most importantly of all, let the book ‘rest’ for a few weeks before doing a final edit. Then it’s off to my beta readers, and more rewriting. All in all, about 6-8 months for a novel.

Do you have any writing rituals?

None! When you have a full-time job and a family, it’s all about adaptability.

Ah, a person after my own heart. I shocked a fellow writer once when I was writing while waiting for parents at a parents teacher interview night.

What is your best experience meeting a fan?

Children make the best fans, because you know when they say they enjoyed your book, they mean it. It’s especially lovely when they say “It’s the best book I’ve ever read!” even though you know they actually mean “… this week”.

If any of your books was to be made into a film, which one would you pick and who would you have play the main characters?

The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek. I’d have Tom Cruise as the film star character Craig Hardman, Jennifer Lawrence as the film star Jessica Bilton-Hayes, and Peter Jackson playing himself as the director Roberto Johnson. For the children, I’d have to ask my own children who would be good play those as I’m out of touch. I’d need the biggest American brat star for Anastasia.

How important do you think marketing is for authors today?

For children’s authors, someone once told me that there are two types of promotion: traditional, and playground.

It’s very difficult marketing children’s books as your target market isn’t on social media. So you’re trying to get your book in front of librarians, teachers and parents. But sometimes what they think is ‘good’ is different to what children enjoy. Some adults worry that my books will be ‘too scary’ for littlies, but they’re not at all scary - just a little spooky! I therefore tend to rely on children telling other children they’ve enjoyed my books, i.e. ‘playground’ promotion, while at the same time doing marketing that I hope will attract the eye of teachers and librarians. My book The Ghosts of Tarawera was featured by the NZ Readaloud teachers’ group last year, and that was a fantastic experience for me as it enabled me to connect directly with kids and teachers all over NZ at the same time. I’ve also been experimenting with advertising on Amazon, and that’s getting me noticed by Goosebumps fans. Yay!

Do you have any book you have written that won’t ever see the light of day and why?

I wrote a couple of picture books that have been rejected. I think they’re good, but probably not good enough. That’s a very particular skill that I’m still trying to improve on.

Often writers get to approach some serious subjects. Which serious subject are you most proud to have written about or was the hardest to write about?

In The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek I touch on how badly the Chinese gold miners were treated during the gold rush. I wanted to put in a subtle anti-racism message for kids, one about inclusion. This was also the reason I wrote Our Children Aotearoa, to promote understanding of different cultures while showing that kids are basically the same, no matter what their background. What I’ve learned, though, is the problem is mostly the adults, not the kids!

I remember being very influenced as a child by what I read. Thank you so much for sharing your insights with us.