Tiny Ghost Press Newsletter 2.0, Issue #7, August 31, 2024
Hey Tiny Ghosts!
As August comes to a close, Summer vacation comes to an end. Soon the weather will get colder, days will get shorter, and autumn leaves will begin to fall. But for now, it's time to go back to school.
If I could give my younger self advice about school and growing up, I would say this:
Back to school season can be scary and nerve-racking, but it can be exciting too. And a great excuse to buy some new books!
A lot of people say that you should treat people how you want to be treated, a sentiment that for the most part, I have come to agree with. You never know what someone is going through, what invisible battles they are fighting, and a small act of kindness or compassion can go a long way.
Sometimes you're going to fail. Sometimes you’ll make mistakes. And that's okay! It's not the end of the world, it's just how life works. Hannah Montana said it best, “Nobody’s perfect, you live it you learn it.”
Your school years are a time to experiment and figure out who you are and what you like. So try that new hobby, join that extracurricular, make that friend. Don’t be afraid. Be yourself, and own it.
Wishing you the best of luck this school year.
Stay in school, stay safe, and stay scary!
Tom
P.S. Spooky season is almost upon us, how exciting?!
Tiny Ghost Author Deep Dive
We're asking our authors some probing questions to get to know them a little better!
This week, to celebrate the release of her upcoming novel, we spoke with author of Haunting Melody, Chloe Spencer!
TGP: Hi Chloe! Could you introduce yourself and your Tiny Ghost book?
Chloe: Hi there! I'm Chloe Spencer, a neurodivergent bisexual filmmaker, game developer, and author. My upcoming book is Haunting Melody, which is a genre-blending sapphic mystery fantasy story that centers on a ghost hunter named Melody who has to team up with a musically talented ghost named Cyrus in order to solve the mystery behind a series of deaths in their small island town.
TGP: Where can our readers find you for more?
Chloe: My main website is www.chloespenceronline.com but I'm most active on TikTok and Instagram @heyitschloespencer. I also have a Twitter account which is @chloespencerdev.
TGP: What is your favorite scary movie?
Oooh this is such a good question and honestly, my answer will change depending on my mood, but probably Jennifer's Body. I love, love LOVE anything by Diablo Cody, and Karyn Kusama is one of my favorite directors. My other favorite is The Shining, because it's a gorgeous film and has a great story.
TGP: What has your publishing journey like?
Chloe: Long and complicated, haha! I started my writing career in comics, actually--I used to write and draw a lot of comics, and when I wasn't working on that, I was working on horror shorts for different anthologies. I did write a handful of spec-fic books for a smaller press called JMS Books, but my first passion project was Monstersona. I wrote Monstersona when I was doing my MFA in Film and Television production at SCAD, and after finishing that, I went on to write several other novels and novellas! Fun fact: I finished Haunting Melody almost immediately after Monstersona was published.
TGP: When did you first have the idea for Haunting Melody?
Chloe: Oooh gosh, this is such a good question. I think that this came to me honestly when I was rewatching Danny Phantom (I have the box set on DVD, please purchase physical media!) and hanging out with my friend and watching cozy, Halloween-themed Disney movies. I love stories that involve ghosts teaming up with normal people, and I was thinking about it, and I realized that I don't think there are many YA stories about kids that are specifically ghost hunters. It's mostly that they come across a ghost by accident. I started to imagine a world in which ghost hunters existed but weren't so niche, and what that world would look like. That's how Haunting Melody was born.
TGP: As spoiler-free as possible, what is your favorite part of the book?
Chloe: The scene in the playhouse that's in the woods.
TGP: What’s your favorite line from your book?
Chloe: Ugh, I can't say my favorite line from Haunting Melody because that'd be spoilerific, but it's definitely from the scene mentioned above!
TGP: Do you have any moments or experiences in your life that inspired a part of your book?
Chloe: Yeah, for sure! So, Haunting Melody was written after my PTSD diagnosis, and I realized that there weren't that many YA stories that specifically dealt with what it was like to have PTSD and navigate it. There are certainly characters in the YA genre that can be inferred that they have PTSD, but it's not usually explored in detail or explicitly named. That recovery process can be brutal in many ways, and learning to cope with triggers and this as a mental illness can be really difficult, in some ways that I thought were impossible. I think a lot of people with PTSD feel like their illness is insurmountable and all-consuming (it is also technically a disability, so that's understandable.) It impacts my ability to go places and function in social settings. But I wanted to show a character that was navigating her illness and incorporating coping mechanisms; wanted a character that would show, "Yes, there's a point where things get better."
TGP: How has your life changed since becoming a writer and getting published?
Chloe: Gosh, this is a good question! I guess that I've written more.
TGP: When did you realize you wanted to become a writer, and what were some of the books that made you want to become a writer?
Chloe: I've wanted to be a writer since I was old enough to sit in front of my parents' computer and type stories on the keyboard. Writing has always been a fundamental part of my life; a way that I both entertained and expressed myself. When I was a kid, I devoured books written by authors like Ruth White, Michelle Paver, or the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. I wanted to write epic stories with complex, ever-changing characters--often times with a lot of violence and a little bit of drama, as those books had!
TGP: What are some things that inspire your writing?
Chloe: My own life experiences have influenced a lot of my writing.
TGP: Tell us a little bit about your writing process.
Chloe: A lot of the times, it's just me acting on random thoughts that come into my own head, usually ones that I get after watching a movie or finishing a book for the first time. Sometimes it's not even really related to the thing I've just watched or read. If I recall correctly, the idea for Monstersona came to me after watching Jennifer's Body, a film that doesn't have anything to do with giant monsters or dinosaurs... I was first more fascinated by the idea of teenage girls as monsters, and then thought about how the size of the monster could represent the chaos of the emotional state. That's how the tie-in to the Godzilla influences happened, actually. I say this to sort of illustrate the disjointed ways that my ideas come to life.
I'd then try to take this initial idea and morph it into a logline, or a single sentence that would summarize what the book is about. This comes from my background writing film and television scripts, where a logline is often a part of the pitch--I'm pleased to say that the same is helpful for books. The logline essentially explains the premise of the story: the main character, the inciting incident, their goal, and the obstacles that they face. So for Haunting Melody, the logline that I used on my submission was: "A disgraced ghost hunter must capture the ghosts responsible for mysterious deaths in a sleepy island town in order to redeem herself, but after finding an unlikely musically talented ally, discovers there's something more sinister going on." The thing about a logline is that it doesn't have to be super rigid, you can change it in a lot of ways.
Once I'd have that little one sentence summary, I'd dive into writing. For the longest time, I was a pantser and not a plotter, so I would have this basic idea of where I wanted the story to go, and what scenes I'd like to include. Sometimes I don't write linearly, I'll write the scene that I want to include the most, and then thread in the plot and other scenes in between. I've found that this method prevents writers block, because it makes the project seem less insurmountable. On occasion, I'll work with betas once I've got a finished draft, but that wasn't the case for Haunting Melody or Monstersona.
TGP: What’s your favorite spot to write, and do you have a go-to writing snack?
Chloe: My favorite spot to write is probably a well-lit area far away from noise and other distractions. I'm not the type of person that needs to sit rigidly at the same place every single day in order to write, but I definitely need to be away from a TV, and not be in a space where I'm glued to my phone. At best, I might have some music going when I'm working, and ideally, something that corresponds to the mood/tone of the current scene I'm writing. So if I'm writing a chase scene, I'm probably turning on orchestral score from a thriller, or some sinister synth-pop. I don't actually have a go-to writing snack, but I do have an emotional support water bottle (1/2 gallon!) that I depend on for energy.
TGP: Speaking of, what are some of your current favorite movies and songs?
Chloe: Jennifer's Body, obvi. My favorite film is Goodfellas, though. I have a running joke with my friends that I think it's the best movie of all time and is better than The Godfather. (Because it is better than The Godfather.) I will never apologize for that. I will break out an entire 22 slide Powerpoint explaining why Goodfellas is objectively a better movie. My favorite songs... I absolutely love Springsteen, Beach Bunny, Bleachers, and anything from Janelle Monae's Dirty Computer album. Also love Chappell Roan's The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, every song on that album is a banger. She's a fantastic artist who gives back to every single community when she tours, gosh, I just love her. Noah Kahan is also fantastic, as is Jessie Reyez. I personally think Jessie Reyez is the most underrated artist in the industry right now, and that she's possibly one of the best lyricists working in music today.
TGP: Do you have any tips for fighting writer’s block and what do you do when you’re stumped?
Chloe: Personally, I believe writer's block usually stems from not having done enough "new" things. You probably need to watch a new movie, read a new book, listen to a new song. Our brains develop ideas the more experiences we have and the more we interact with the world around us. If I feel like I'm stuck, it's probably a good opportunity to take a break and read more books, or watch movies I haven't seen before. Maybe visit a restaurant in a part of town that I don't normally visit, simply to try it. The more you stimulate your brain, the better ideas will flow.
But I also think writer's block can come from writers thinking they have to write linearly. Like I said, I'm the type of person that thinks, "MAN! I really want to write this fight scene today but ugh, plot!" And you don't have to do that to yourself. You do not have to suffer through writing plot scenes that you're not motivated enough to write. You can just write the scenes you want and go back later. If you're worried about getting lost, you can do a beat sheet or outline to make sure you've addressed all parts of your story. If you even just write the scenes you want, sometimes that will inspire you on how to write different parts of your outline. Like, "Oh, by writing this kiss scene, I figured out how I want to do to big reveal, when they discover X is the killer." Things like that!
TGP: What’s your favorite genre to read, watch, and write about?
Chloe: Horror. Horror is a chameleon in that it blends with other genres well. It can tackle difficult topics while also challenging and entertaining its audience. I love a good romcom or a drama, but horror always feels fresh to me, even when it's full of tropes.
TGP: What do you look for in a book you read (or any media you consume) and how do you bring those elements into your writing?
Chloe: I generally tend to look for things I haven't read before, and I try to read as diversely as possible. I also try my best to avoid things that are mainstream, not just to be a hipster, but to ensure that I'm not missing out on anything that I'd really love. If I like a certain way a story is formatted, that can find its way into my writing. Or if there's a concept that's addressed in a story--say, misogyny--sometimes that sparks my imagination, and I'll think of different ways to explore that in my own.
TGP: What in your mind makes a good book?
Chloe: Strong narrative voice, good prose, and interesting characters. As far as I'm concerned the plot could be completely nonsensical and I'd probably still read the book and enjoy it, as long as those other elements were present. I'm fortunate in that I tend to enjoy most things that I read. I honestly can't remember the last time I finished a book and said "Wow, I hated that," rather than feeling disappointed.
TGP: Who is your favorite character that you’ve written so far?
Chloe: Out of my Tiny Ghost books, I absolutely love Cyrus. She's the musically talented ghost that's in Haunting Melody, and the love interest for Melody. She's a plus-sized butch character, which I think we rarely see in the YA landscape, and she's just--gosh, she's so funny and delightful. She's got a strong sense of self and confidence, which is different from a lot of other characters I've written. She's the kind of person that you could sit and chat with for hours and never run out of ways to entertain yourself.
TGP: Who would you fan-cast to play some of the characters in your book(s)?
Chloe: For Haunting Melody, that's really hard to say! I honestly think that they'd have to be completely new to the industry. Most butch actors that I know of, which would be needed for Cyrus, are over the age of 30, so that wouldn't work. I guess if there was a teenage version of Sara Ramirez who was more masculine, that could work for Cyrus? (To be clear, Sara Ramirez does not identify as butch; they are trans/nonbinary.) For Melody, I honestly have no idea. But for Jackie (another character in Haunting Melody) she could totally be played by Lexie Underwood.
TGP: How important to you is (queer) representation in books?
Chloe: Very. I need queer rep in my books like I need my daily 1/2 gallon of water, haha. That's also why all my books have queer rep in them. I'm glad that we live in a day and age where finding and engaging with queer representation is so accessible.
Culture We've Enjoyed This Month!
A monthly breakdown of the culture the Tiny Ghost Team has been enjoying and inspired by this month.
Books: Anyone's Ghost by August Thompson
Young Mongo by Douglas Stuart
The Woman In Me by Britney Spears
Heartstopper by Alice Oseman,
Fake Dates and Moon Cakes by Sher Lee
Film: Deadpool & Wolverine
Alien: Romulus
Beetlejuice
TV: Prisma (Italian Series)
wtFOCK, Skam
Interview with the Vampire Season 2
Gilmore Girls
Music: Short n Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter,
Ghost by Teo
Tiny Ghost Press - Word Search
Back To School
Play online here: https://thewordsearch.com/puzzle/7431151/from-summer-to-school/
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