Liminal Spaces: Nicole Melanson

This month’s blog features Nicole Melanson, whose writing talent branches out across poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction. Nicole gives us a fascinating insight into her writing path, and her motivation for returning to the page, despite the difficulties of getting published, will blow your mind.

DESCRIBE YOUR WRITING JOURNEY SO FAR

I’ve written my entire life. It’s the thing that makes me most myself. I can’t imagine who I’d be without a constant ticker tape of words running through my head.

Poetry was my first love and still feels like the most natural expression of my voice. I studied a lot of music as a child and very much “hear” my poems, instinctively knowing how I want each line to sound.

Fiction is far less intuitive for me. I’ve had to retrain my brain to think rather than feel my way through a short story or novel.

Essays are a much more recent interest. I only started writing creative non-fiction a couple years ago.

WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR CURRENT WORK?

Girls on Land is a poetry collection exploring the myriad ways women are represented across history, mythology, religion etc.

The Boy Who Became a Fire Engine is a picture book about a preschool boy empowered by his wheelchair to save the day when disaster strikes.

Ernie Pymble’s Octopus Problem is a middle-grade manuscript about an eleven-year-old boy with anxiety who decides to run for school captain against his best friend.

The Accident is a YA novel about a young woman’s coming of age in the wake of her father’s brain injury, loosely based on personal experience.

People You May Know is a domestic noir surrounding the fallout from a chronically ill, grieving woman’s affair with a local school dad.

WHAT HAS HAPPENED WITH YOUR COMPLETED MANUSCRIPTS TO DATE?

I’ve had lots of encouragement across genres from agents, editors, and publishers alike, but no offers yet. Some of my previous stuff wasn’t commercial enough for an increasingly competitive market, so I’ve tried to address that in more recent projects.

I’m probably also a bit of a packaging problem because my work can come across as too American for Australian publishers, while being an expat makes me ineligible for many opportunities Stateside.

I’m currently sending Ernie out into the world and getting beta readers for People, so fingers crossed those two land on their feet!

WHAT STRATEGIES DO YOU HAVE FOR DEALING WITH REJECTION?

I’m honestly baffled that Girls on Land hasn’t found a home yet because most of the poems in it have been published in reputable journals and/or won prizes, and the manuscript as a whole has been shortlisted in many first book contests. I’m now revisiting what Sarah Holland-Batt helpfully framed as “architecture” to see if there’s a more compelling way that I can rearrange the elements.

The Accident is the only other manuscript I’ve shopped around. Half the agents who requested a full loved the writing but didn’t feel the story was strong enough; the other half thought the execution was good but couldn’t connect with the voice. It’s hard to reconcile such conflicting responses, but voice is largely a matter of taste, so I’ve been concentrating my efforts on overhauling the story. I queried the manuscript as women’s fiction, but am now editing it as YA.

WHAT MAKES YOU RETURN TO THE PAGE DESPITE THE CHALLENGES IN GETTING PUBLISHED?

I love writing.

WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE BENEFITS OF GETTING PUBLISHED?

On a very basic level, I like being able to share my work with friends and family, especially the ones back home. My mom still gets excited every time I publish something and wants a copy for herself, which is lovely. My kids think it’s cool, too.

From a craft standpoint, I learn so much from working with different editors. I also enjoy discovering other writers and seeing what happens when you put our work side by side.

DO YOU HAVE A SENSE OF WHEN TO GIVE UP TRYING TO GET A MANUSCRIPT PUBLISHED?

I’ll submit something 100 times if I believe in it; when I start to feel a bit “meh”, I stop. That “meh” can be code for all sorts of things, but it’s usually a combination of minimal positive feedback, no vision for further edits, and no remaining visceral involvement with the work.

In my drawer of abandoned dreams, I have two fiction manuscripts that were definitely practice novels, some essays that no longer feel relevant, and a handful of poems I’ve simply outgrown.

WHAT HAS WRITING (AND TRYING TO GET PUBLISHED) TAUGHT YOU?

Probably not enough because I’m still doing it! It’s a special kind of madness to set yourself up for a lifetime of rejection in the name of art, but it always comes back to the pleasure of the puzzle for me.

My whole Submittable account could be marked Declined and I’d still keep plugging away. I think most people would kill to feel that much passion for something, so I consider myself lucky.  

WHAT’S ONE PIECE OF ADVICE YOU WOULD GIVE TO OTHERS TRYING TO GET PUBLISHED?

I can’t speak to book publication because I obviously haven’t cracked that one yet, but on a smaller scale, know where you’re subbing, make sure your work suits their ethos, and follow guidelines.

My secret tip? Keep an eye out for theme issues. You might uncover the perfect fit for an existing piece in an unexpected place. Using a call for submissions as a writing prompt can also expand your creativity.

On another note, if an editor rejects something but invites you to submit again, do! They’re not just saying it to be nice; they genuinely want to see more of your work.

FINALLY, WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m halfway through Michelle Cahill’s Daisy & Woolf. I’m a slow reader at the best of times, and the prose in this is so stunning, I keep lingering over individual passages instead of pressing on. Michelle is one of the few writers I know who writes equally well in multiple genres and I’m always trying to figure out how she does it!

The rest of my reading is for work. I mentor NDIS participants in creative writing, so every day brings a different mix of memoir pieces, novel excerpts, and poems. I love the variety in subject matter and syntax, and it’s rewarding to see my clients developing new skills in self-expression.

Nicole Melanson has been awarded Australia Council grants in both poetry and fiction, and was shortlisted for the 2021 Island Nonfiction Prize. She is the founding editor of WordMothers, supporting women’s work in the literary arts. A native Bostonian and former Sydneysider, Nicole now lives in Brisbane with her husband and their five sons.

Find her at www.nicolemelanson.com / www.wordmothers.com / @wordmothers.