Dashboard Literary Agents Success Story Interviews Samantha Chong

Success Story Interview - Samantha Chong

An Interview with Samantha Chong (samantha_chong on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Larissa Melo Pienkowski of Jill Grinberg Literary Management.

05/09/2023

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?: Samantha Chong:
I've titled this book PRODIGAL TIGER, and it follows Caroline Chua, who returns home to Penang, Malaysia, to find her missing brother—only to realise that if she wants him back, she'll have to go up against the realm of the dead. It's a YA contemporary fantasy that involves ghosts, friendships, and a hefty dash of magic—but it's also a Trojan horse to talk about diaspora, about how you can leave home and come back and realise all the tiny ways in which you do or don't belong.

Like Caroline, I moved to the U.S. from Penang when I was a teenager, and like Caroline, I've always struggled with the idea of feeling like I was the puzzle piece that didn't quite fit anywhere I went—the piece is meant to be part of the puzzle, but the edges are all a little bit sanded down. (Unlike Caroline, and very luckily so, I did not accidentally start a war between the ghosts and the living!) I wanted to explore that feeling of how belonging and alienation could both sit together at the same table. The ghosts were a nice bonus.
QT: How long have you been writing?: Samantha Chong:
I've dabbled in a lot of mediums over the last few years. I wrote poetry in high school as well as some short stories, and I've dabbled in filmmaking and occasional scriptwriting. This, however, is the first book I really sat down and tried to write to industry standards.
QT: How long have you been working on this book?: Samantha Chong:
I started drafting in 2019, and ended my first draft in 2021. Editing took all of 2021, and then 2022 was spent with beta readers and further editing before I queried in late 2022.
QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?: Samantha Chong:
I was lucky to have a circle of really, really excited friends who very gamely asked me lots of questions about the book when I first mentioned I was writing it. I owe a lot to them, because their support kept me going when it all felt so daunting at the beginning—from leaving excited voicemails after reading a draft, to leaving screamed comments in the document, to getting on an impromptu phone call and letting me talk at them about my questions on the draft and giving me the space to figure it out in real time. (If you don't already know it, look up the rubber duck debugging method. It's so incredibly helpful!)
QT: Is this your first book?: Samantha Chong:
Not the first story I've written, but the first full-length novel that was then shaped and edited, yes!
QT: Do you have any formal writing training?: Samantha Chong:
None!
QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?: Samantha Chong:
I work 9-5, so I often take a dinner break and unwind, then start work around 8pm until midnight. On weekends, I try to write in the afternoons and evenings! Often, I write with the help of timed pomodoro sprints (this is my go to video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMPz7Ti-fbA&ab_channel=AbaoinTokyo). Breaking my time into manageable chunks really helps me focus, and doesn't make it seem so daunting.
QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?: Samantha Chong:
It was on its eighth draft by the time I queried agents!
QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?: Samantha Chong:
Yes, I broke it into phases—one in Q1 was tackling big picture questions like worldbuilding cohesiveness and plot, Q2 was for character work. After every round of beta readers, I did a developmental edit, sitting in with the beta readers and getting their feedback against a host of categories, and then I would send it back out to a fresh round of readers. This was before I knew about the concept of critique partners, so my very early beta readers were my friends and family—they ran the gamut from avid fantasy readers, Malaysian friends, non-fantasy readers, and my patient, very supportive parents, who not only read the book, but also endured me asking them many random questions about Malaysia to fact-check myself.
QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?: Samantha Chong:
This book was written without an outline, but about halfway through I sat down and very briefly outlined where I wanted the next few beats to be, and then wrote towards those beats; once I hit those beats, then I outlined the next few. I've described that process once as walking through the dark woods with a lantern—you can see a few feet in front of you, but not necessarily everything else!
QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?: Samantha Chong:
I participated in #Moodpitch in early November and got a few agent likes, so once the book was finished with edits in late November, I sent it to only those agents before I took a break in December, knowing publishing was functionally closed. I really started querying in earnest in January, and got some editor interest and wound up getting an agent in mid-April.
QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?: Samantha Chong:
46.
QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?: Samantha Chong:
I primarily looked for agents who repped both YA and fantasy; once QueryTracker updated the search function, I was able to then also search for contemporary fantasy in particular.
QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?: Samantha Chong:
I began my journey tailoring the query, leaning on how similar my book fit within their MSWLs, but towards the end, I didn't quite tailor it as strongly as I would have before. Some agents I wrote to had very similar comps to my book; others mentioned offhand an element that featured quite heavily in my books (diaspora, fantasy in non-Western settings, etc).
QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?: Samantha Chong:
I used to hate it when people told me this, but about halfway through the journey, I realised it to be true: this is such a subjective process. Every agent is bringing to the table some perspective and opinion, and not all of those thoughts are going to necessarily align with your book, even if they have the perfect MSWL. That's okay, and it's not always a reflection on the book. Your book is yours. The important part is getting it on the page. It's a story that needs to be told, and you're just looking for the right partner to tell it with.

Speaking of partners, I cannot stress the importance of finding a community. I'm lucky to be part of an amazing Discord group filled with incredibly generous writers, who not only cheered on and commiserated with each other, but also were very generous with new writers and offering them query tips and helping punch up query materials / beta read. I also made friends on Twitter in pitch events and intro hashtags! This journey is mostly on you, it's true, but it's made easier when you have other support systems.

Lastly, write while you're querying. Or start another project. Any project. Once I stopped refreshing my email obsessively and focused on my next manuscript, querying got easier to deal with, mentally. Once the book is out in the world, most of your job is done!
QT: Would you be willing to share your query with us?: Samantha Chong:
Of course! Here it is—I've left off my bio.

Success Story Interview - Samantha Chong

Query Letter: