Today I welcome the horrific (his writing only, he himself is very nice) Jason Nahrung. Jason’s written some fabulous things – I absolutely loved ‘The Darkness Within’. I know that his journey to publication has had some interesting – let’s say, detours – so he’s got some great words of wisdom to share.
Author name: Jason Nahrung
First novel published: The Darkness Within
Publication date: 2004
Publisher: Hachette
Blurb of first novel:
When photo-journalist Emily Winters receives a mysterious phone call, she agrees to a meeting at an isolated church on the outskirts of Sydney. There, a stranger tells her of a supernatural conspiracy. The women in Emily’s family have been resisting a sacred order of elemental magicians for centuries. And this Cabal wants her power.
With dark forces closing in, Emily has to come to terms with her magical inheritance. One man, Jehail, has the knowledge to help her. But he also has a secret that could be used against her.
Calling on the strengths of her ancestors, Emily must fight to free herself and her family from the evil that has held them captive. On a night of magic and blood, she makes a choice that could save them … or destroy them all.
When did you start writing fiction?
I’ve always written fiction, but in terms of seriously seeking publication, about 1990
When did you publish your first novel?
The Darkness Within came out in 2004
What genre were you published in?
It was a supernatural thriller with a touch of paranormal romance.
What genre did you start writing in?
Dark fantasy.
If you’ve been published in multiple genres, name them.
SF, fantasy and horror, and points between.
How many novels have you written?
6
How many novels have been published?
3 with one to come
How long did it take you to write your first novel? How many times did you edit it before you started to submit it? Did you use beta readers/critique partners/critique group or did you do it on your own?
My first published novel, The Darkness Within, started its life as an email collaboration. From first email to writing ‘the end’ on the first novel-length draft probably took up to 18 months of writing time, on and off.
I took sections of it to workshops in Brisbane where the feedback was encouraging, but it probably had only one edit once I’d expanded it into a full novel before the opportunity to submit to Lothian came up. TDW was the only thing I had that was even near submission worthy.
I was putting all my effort into Vampires’ Bane, which has gone through numerous drafts, my writers’ groups and even my MA cohort before finally arriving at its final destination (it was published digitally in 2012 as Blood and Dust, and is being re-released in digital and paperback next year, with its sequel, The Big Smoke, by Clan Destine Press).
Is the first novel you sold the first novel you wrote? If not, what was the first novel you wrote? Why was it not the first novel you sold?
I’d written a novella in university, and then a rough first draft of another story, then called Vampires’ Bane. The Darkness Within popped up when my girlfriend, Mil Clayton, and I were swapping scenes by email when we were dating cross-country. Later I developed our novella-length story into a full novel. It was the only thing I felt close enough to ready to send to an open call by Lothian Books when they were looking to extend their range into dark fantasy and horror, and The Darkness Within was one of four selected.
How many publishers did you submit to before you finally sold your first novel? If more than one, what convinced you to keep persevering?
Years ago I had sent the uni novella to a publisher, totally wrong for the material – I was naïve and living in the country and hadn’t really looked into it. I kind of lost interest until I moved to Brisbane, went to a Kim Wilkins workshop at Queensland Writers Centre and got inspired to make a serious effort at exploring my enjoyment of writing and putting it out there.
I submitted Vampires’ Bane to two agents who both passed because of its horror content – it was too hard to sell. But the Lothian acceptance reopened that door. And paranormal romance had arrived in a big way by then, too.
I hadn’t had time to get disillusioned, really, and was used to writing for my own pleasure. I also knew enough writers to know that getting an acceptance can take time and perseverance and a bunch of luck.
How did you sell that first novel – an agent, through a pitch at a conference, or did you just submit and hope for the best?
I’ve answered this above, but it’s worth pointing out that I’d been knocking around the scene long enough that when Lothian put its call for submissions out, I had a number of people email me the link. The Aussie spec fic scene is very good at watching each other’s back and cheering each other on.
How did you find out about that first sale and how did you feel?
I got an email, I think, from the publisher when I was at work, having missed the phone call somehow. I was stunned. Nervous, too. I hadn’t expected to succeed with that book given it hadn’t had a lot of love in terms of editing and rewriting, but it sure had a lot in the initial writing.
When/why did you decide to become a published novelist?
The when I’ve written about already, above, but the why … It seemed cool. I liked the idea that I, an avid reader since I could read, might have a book with my name on it on the shelf. It’s a way of leaving something behind, too, of making a lasting mark. And I guess, long-term, there’s the appeal of winning the literary lottery and being able to write stories for a living, but I’m not that big a gambler … or optimist. The other thing that really does appeal, though, and part of the reason I still write, is to feel connected to the community of writers that have taken me in – that took me in even before I’d had anything published, in fact. That and the fact there are some stories knocking around in my head that I’d love to get down on paper, and out in the world.
How did that first publication impact your writing and your career?
It gave me the confidence to keep trying to get another book out, but its sales weren’t wonderful enough to have the publisher knocking at my door looking for another. There was something special about receiving an email from a reader, who wasn’t known to me, saying they’d enjoyed it.
In terms of career, well, I don’t have a writing career. It’s the thing I do when I’m not working to pay the bills, but I will say this for The Darkness Within: the advance did pay for a damn fine party!
And while the Australian edition is out of print now, royalties from the German translation are still buying us the occasional bottle of wine.
For many, getting that first novel sale is all they dream about. Was that the case for you? If so, how did you reframe your aims when it was achieved? If not, how did it fit in with your long-term ambitions?
The first sale sideswiped me. I hadn’t expected to succeed with that book at that stage. It gave me the push to keep writing what I loved, regardless of market forces, and to take everything with a grain of salt.
It taught me that I like seeing my name on stories and I like hearing that people have enjoyed them; it broke the ice but it didn’t really lay a solid foundation on which to build much more than another try, but then, after each sale I make, whether short or long, I kind of feel that I’m starting again, but better armed.
If you had one piece of advice for a writer yet to achieve that first novel sale, what would it be?
Keep trying, educate yourself, don’t expect your world to change. Even if you score big on the first advance or whatever, the fact remains that wherever you go, there you are.
Jason Nahrung grew up on a Queensland cattle property and now lives in Ballarat with his wife, the writer Kirstyn McDermott. He works as an editor and journalist to support his travel addiction. His fiction is invariably darkly themed, perhaps reflecting his passion for classic B-grade horror films and ’80s goth rock. His most recent long fiction title is the Gothic tale Salvage (Twelfth Planet Press), with his outback vampire duology Blood and Dust and The Big Smoke coming in 2015 through Clan Destine Press. He lurks online at www.jasonnahrung.com.
Previous in the series
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