We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful S.g. Prince. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with S.G. below.

S.G., thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you tell us a story about a time you failed?

I think people might be surprised to learn that it took me two years and over 150 rejections to land my literary agent.

For those who are unfamiliar with the process, it works something like this: you spend a year or more writing a book, polishing each page, hammering it into perfection. You create a query letter, which is a 300-word pitch and more difficult to write than the book itself. You spend hours researching agents who are accepting queries at this time (many aren’t), who represent books in your genre (many don’t), who want a work of fiction in your tone, in your style, by someone like you. You personalize the letter for each individual agent, naming books they’ve previously represented, comparing those novels to your own, all while trying to strike the right tone between “I am humbly at your service” and “you’d be lucky to have me.” You send these letters off, one by one, each with a little jolt of nervous energy. And then you wait eight to twelves weeks (yes, two to three months) in hopes that maybe, possibly, someone will reply with interest.

And then no one does.

So you spend another year writing another book, and the process starts again.

I didn’t query my first series (The Elvish Trilogy) at all. Instead, I skipped straight to self-publishing, and I think that was the right choice for those books. After, I wrote and queried To Poison a King, exhausting my entire list of possible agents, and no one wanted it. It was a failure if ever there was one, at least in a sense. If you’re an author hopeful in a similar position, take it from me – literary agents are working within narrow margins, and just because your book doesn’t get picked up doesn’t mean it’s bad. I went on to self-publish To Poison a King, and the book still did well all on its own, both in terms of sales and reviews (people seem to like the book, which I’m forever so grateful for).

After To Poison a King, I went on to write my fifth book (title to be announced), which was the one that did finally land me my agent. It was a good moment, made better by how difficult it was to achieve.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a character-driven fantasy author who’s constantly fighting to rein in my creativity. I was born in Ohio, spent a few childhood years in Missouri, grew up in Florida, and have since lived in Fort Worth, Seattle, San Francisco and now the East Bay. I bake sourdough on Wednesdays and dessert on Fridays. I’m a hobby photographer. I have two distinct writing styles, one serious, one goofy, which basically reflects who I am as a person. My favorite words are always, surrender and headlong. S is my least favorite letter.

As for how I got into writing, I just started writing. I have a degree in Economics from the University of Florida (go Gators), which has nothing to do with anything. I always knew I was going to write books. I think I got the degree because it was expected, or as a backup plan, though even that seems absurd because in no universe would I have ever become an economist.

To date, I’ve published three books: The Elvish Trilogy (Elvish, Elder and Ember) and To Poison a King. There are more on the way.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Shut Up and Write is an excellent organization that helps bring authors together. You should look up the one in your area, or join online (they have virtual meetings as well). Essentially, you and some number of others get together, shut up, and write for an hour. You don’t have to be an author to join, as long as you have something you’re working on writing: poetry, a blog, homework, that kind of thing. It’s also a really great way to meet other writers in an industry that can sometimes be isolating. I found my critique partners through the Shut Up and Write organization, and the three of us have been meeting twice a month for something like four years now.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

It’s so incredibly rewarding to put in the work day after day and watch a manuscript turn into a book. Sometimes, especially when you’re deep in revisions, it’s hard to feel like a novel will ever be finished. I’ll spend hours hammering away at a single paragraph and make just the most pathetic amount of progress. But I do it, again and again, and eventually (sometimes when I’m not even looking), I’ll blink and the book is finished. It’s always worth the time, struggle, and heartache it takes to get there.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sgprince.com
• Instagram: @sgprince.books