Sara Polsky

My debut novel, THIS IS HOW I FIND HER, comes out September 1—but there’s a chance to read it early. Young Adult Books Central revealed the book’s wonderful cover this week and is offering a signed ARC—the advanced copies that are sent out to reviewers and booksellers—to one reader. Head on over to YABC to enter.

In honor of National Novel Writing Month, I have an essay up at The Awl about an early, failed novel writing:

My first serious attempt to write a novel was, somewhat unfortunately, inspired by The Da Vinci Code. I was a college sophomore when I decided to try NaNoWriMo, and a few months into a busy school year, The Da Vinci Code and its cousin The Rule of Four were probably the last books I had read for fun. I was a medieval history and literature major particularly obsessed with England, and my moment of book inspiration came while thinking about the 12th-century murder of Thomas Becket: then archbishop of Canterbury, soon-to-be saint, and obviously the perfect fulcrum for a novel.

While wandering through the history section of Barnes & Noble, I had seen a book called The Quest for Becket’s Bones: The Mystery of the Relics of St. Thomas Becket of Canterbury. I hadn’t read it, but a mystery about a saint’s bones—a saint killed violently after a king’s tantrum about him—seemed (probably only to me) like a perfect seed for a modern mystery with medieval parallels. So I ordered the book and, without reading it, began planning my own. The King’s Evil, the title I gave my novel, was actually a phrase used to describe scrofula, a kind of tuberculosis, and had nothing to do with Becket or anyone connected to his story. I just liked the way it sounded.

The rest is here.

On October 23, I’ll be teaching an evening class at Brooklyn Brainery on publishing for novel writers. Here’s a bit of the class description:

So, you’ve written a novel. Now what do you do with it? This class is an introduction to the publishing process for fiction writers. We’ll discuss what happens to a book between the time the writer finishes it and the time it appears on shelves, with a particular focus on how to find and sign with a literary agent who will submit your work to editors.

We’ll talk about what literary agents do, how to find one who might be a fit for you and your book, and how to write a query letter that will entice an agent to take a look at your manuscript. Then we’ll break down a few successful query letters to see why they work.

Sign up here.

I’m so pleased to announce that Albert Whitman will be publishing my debut YA novel in fall 2013.

Thanks to my wonderful agent Suzie Townsend for finding the book a home.

Hi! I’m a writer of YA fiction, articles, essays, and other things.

My Twitter feed can be found here.

My writing is represented by Suzie Townsend.