Emily Ziff Griffin, author of LIGHT YEARS, on being happiest when writing

by Jocelyn Rish

We’re thrilled to have Emily Ziff Griffin stop by to tell us more about her debut novel, LIGHT YEARS.

Emily, what was your inspiration for writing LIGHT YEARS?

I was inspired most directly by the two devastating losses I’ve experienced—that of my father from AIDS when I was nearly fourteen, and that of my long-time business partner and friend Philip Seymour Hoffman. I wanted to talk about grief, art, media, technology, emotion, spirituality, and my own quest for metaphysical and existential meaning, but I wanted to do it through a page-turner adventure story with a super strong girl at the center.

What book or books would most resonate with readers who love your book–or visa versa?

One of the biggest inspirations for me in writing Light Years was A Wrinkle in Time. I think Madeleine L’Engle was interested in a lot of the same themes that I am—the nature of humanity, the universe, the effect of dark forces on culture, on individuals. And I think Meg is such a strong, unique female protagonist which I believe Luisa is too. I wasn’t thinking of that book early on in writing, and then started reading it aloud to my five-year-old at bedtime. I hadn’t read it since childhood, but I found myself continuing on long after my daughter had fallen asleep because I realized the impressions the book had made on me as a child were coming out in my conception of Light Years. It was like seeing an old friend after thirty years and realizing you have more in common than you ever realized.

How long did you work on LIGHT YEARS?

It’s been roughly four years since I began through to publication. Four years!

What did this book teach you about writing or about yourself?

The book literally taught me how to write. I was not a writer before I wrote this book and I worked my ass off to become one by doing it. I was also fortunate to have amazing collaborators and input from so many generous souls. I worked early on with a packaging company called In This Together Media who helped me to shape the book, and then I had extraordinary editors, both professionally and personally who taught me so much through really intelligent critiques. Overall what the process taught me is that I am happiest when I am writing and creating and that I have a lot to say!

What do you hope readers will take away from LIGHT YEARS?

That their emotions are their superpower and that they can choose to be light, to give light. They can choose hope.

How long or hard was your road to publication? How many books did you write before this one, and how many never got published?

This was my real, true, first book. There’s not another one in a drawer somewhere. But it was a long road to find the perfect home. There were disappointments and a lot of hard work. But as with pretty much all things in my life, I can now look at the journey and see that I wouldn’t have wanted it to go any other way because there were unexpected gifts at each turn.

What advice would you most like to pass along to other writers?

That the best creative work is deeply personal, but it is most often (except in the case of memoir, and even then….) not literal. Your whole self should be on every page, but you have to find a way to transmute the literal “what happened” into narrative that connects to people in a bigger way (I’ve actually developed a workshop on this because I’m obsessed with this idea).

ABOUT THE BOOK

Light Years
by Emily Ziff Griffin
Hardcover
Simon Pulse
Released 9/5/2017

As a mysterious virus infects the world’s population, a girl embarks on a quest to find a cure in this thrilling debut from Emily Ziff Griffin.

Luisa is ready for her life to start. Five minutes ago. And she could be on her way, as her extraordinary coding skills have landed her a finalist spot for a fellowship sponsored by Thomas Bell, the world’s most brilliant and mercurial tech entrepreneur. Being chosen means funding, mentorship, and most importantly, freedom from her overbearing mother. Maybe Lu will even figure out how to control the rare condition that plagues her: whenever her emotions run high, her physical senses kick into overload, with waves of color, sound, taste, and touch flooding her body.

But Luisa’s life is thrust into chaos as a deadly virus sweeps across the globe, killing thousands and sending her father into quarantine. When Lu receives a cryptic message from someone who might hold the key to stopping the epidemic, she knows she must do something to save her family—and the world.

Suspenseful, lyrical, and thought-provoking, Light Years features a remarkable heroine on an intensely physical and emotional quest for hope and existential meaning.

Purchase Light Years at Amazon
Purchase Light Years at IndieBound
View Light Years on Goodreads

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Emily Ziff Griffin lives in LA where she writes, produces, teaches, daydreams, and mothers two young kids. When she was 25, she co-founded Cooper’s Town Productions with Philip Seymour Hoffman and produced the Academy Award-winning film, ‘Capote,’ along with Hoffman’s directorial debut ‘Jack Goes Boating,’ and John Slattery’s ‘God’s Pocket.’ She’s run three marathons, slowly, and holds a degree from Brown University in art-semiotics, the study of how images make meaning. She believes children are way more sophisticated than adults typically give them credit for and writes for the teenager who is ready to claim their own worldview and be grounded in their own power. ‘Light Years’ is her first novel. Find her at www.emilyziffgriffin.com

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Have you had a chance to read LIGHT YEARS yet? Has a book from your childhood influenced your writing? Do you put your whole self on every page? Share your thoughts about the interview in the comments!

Happy reading,

Jocelyn, Anisaa, Sam, Martina, Erin, Susan, Shelly, Kelly, Laura, Emily, and Lori Ann

Jocelyn Rish

Jocelyn Rish is a writer and filmmaker who loves researching weird and wonderful animals and sharing what she learns. Her debut was BATTLE OF THE BUTTS, about ten animals that do weird things with their butts. Her latest book is BATTLE OF THE BRAINS, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection about ten animals with mind-blowing brain abilities. When she’s not writing, she tutors kids to help them discover the magic of reading. Jocelyn has won numerous awards for her short stories, screenplays, films, and novels and lives in South Carolina with her adorable dog. Find out more at www.jocelynrish.com.

Post @ Jocelyn Rish and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.

Posted: Sep 9, 2017

Category: Imported from AYAP

Tags: YA Author Interviews

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The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

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