Alex Thayer's debut, "Happy & Sad & Everything True" ~Christy Mihaly

Alex Thayer

Last month at the inaugural New England SCBWI Acadia Retreat, I had the great pleasure of meeting Alex Thayer. She is delightful and talented, and, if you haven't heard Alex's name yet, I predict you soon will. That's because her new novel is sure to make a splash. 

Happy & Sad & Everything True (Aladdin/Simon & Schuster, Nov. 12, 2024) involves middle grade issues of family, new friends and old ones, true friends and fake ones. The protagonist, Dee, is devastated when she and her best friend Juniper are assigned to separate classes for sixth grade, and she is lonely and increasingly confused about Juniper's odd new behavior. She's also embarrassed about her eccentric single mother and has questions about why her dad left. 

Dee starts hiding in the girls' restroom each day to avoid the dreaded "Snack & Stretch." She discovers that a grate in the wall communicates with the boy's restroom, and before long she is dispensing advice and support through the grate to students with all kinds of worries. Word of Dee's good counsel spreads and more students approach her for advice. Dee enjoys listening and helping people, but meanwhile, her attempts to make a new friend seem to result only in more embarrassment. 

Hurtful discoveries, academic failures, mysterious secret notes, and unexpected treachery all come to a head in a satisfying series of resolutions. Dee realizes her own strengths and gains pride in being herself. I devoured this book (in ARC form) straight through in a day and a half, and Dee and the other characters have taken up residence in my brain. Nicely done, Alex! This is a beautifully engaging novel. I highly recommend it. 

Below, Alex answers some questions I had about her book and her writing (and other) life. So read on!  

GROG: When you began writing, did you know you wanted to write for the middle school crew?

Alex: I love the middle school crew. It’s a time when so many things might be changing. Schools, teachers, friendships, families, bodies, ideas, beliefs… The list of possibly changing things is endless. Which makes it an interesting age to write about.

Alex and friends at the Acadia Retreat last month

GROG: Exactly! An age group that presents rich dramatic possibilities, right? And speaking of drama, your first career was acting, for TV and movies. I happen to know you have some juicy stories from those days. Does that dramatic background affect your writing?

 

Alex: Great question! Absolutely! There’s something in acting called “Method Acting” when an actor stays in character on set. Even when the camera is not rolling, the actor doesn’t break character. I think I might do this as a writer. “Method Writing,” if you will! Sometimes I’ll dress up like my character to get myself going. Sometimes I’ll bake something that my character would love to eat. Sometimes I’ll write in my journal as if my character were writing in her journal. Sometimes I’ll pretend I’m on stage and I’ll speak as if my character’s giving a monologue to the audience. I think the element of play is very important in writing. Play takes the pressure off! Acting is a great way to play around as a writer.

GROG: I love that! Method writing! It seems to have worked for you. Dee comes across as genuine and real.

I'm wondering about the delightfully original premise of Happy & Sad & Everything True. Where did you get the initial idea?

 

Alex: Thank you! I’m glad you like the premise. I wish I could say it was my great idea, but really, the premise came from my main character, Dee. I thought about Dee for a long time before I started writing this book. I knew what she looked like, her personality, what people in her life would say about her. I also knew the things she would never tell anyone. I knew Dee very well, but I felt overwhelmed about writing a whole book. So, I started small. I put Dee in a place, a bathroom, and I listened. I realized other kids come into the bathroom and speak to Dee. I knew Dee would want to help them. Voila! My premise was born.

GROG: Beautiful -- I guess this is how your "method writing" works.

I also love how in the book you gradually reveal the depth of the relationship between Dee and her mother, with Dee's impatience/annoyance/embarrassment gradually giving way to understanding and appreciation of their mutual love. Was that always a main focus of the book?

 

Alex: The mom character really surprised me. When I first started writing this book, I thought the mom was humorous and quirky. But, as the novel moved along, I realized the mom cared deeply about her daughter. I think Dee realized this, too. The arc that Dee and her mom were able to make together was very satisfying to write.

GROG: Which character in Happy & Sad is most like you?

 

Alex reading at her launch,
shortly after publication

Alex: I think all the characters have little pieces of me in them. That said, Dee is probably the most like me. Like Dee, I make lists in my head. Like Dee, I like to help people. Like Dee, I feel insecure sometimes. Like Dee, I love my cat.

GROG: Wonderful! One last question for today:

What did you do on your book’s birthday?

 

Alex: I woke up early and I wrote in my journal. (I do this every morning.) I took my kids to school. I came home and made myself a big bowl of Hot Brown Rice Cereal and topped it with milk and berries. Delightful!

Congratulations and thanks again, Alex, and very best wishes with your beautiful new book.

~Christy

Alex Thayer is a former film and television actress and elementary school teacher. She lives in New England with her two sons. Happy & Sad & Everything True is her debut novel.

Meet Author & Guest Blogger Michelle Garcia Andersen! Find Out How YOU Can Become a Guest Blogger, Too! by Kathy Halsey

The GROG is excited to have guest blogger Michelle Garcia Andersen with us today. Michelle will post occasionally on a variety of topics throughout the year. Michelle and I met via a mutual author friend, Sherry Howard.

Welcome, Michelle! We’re happy to have you join us on occasion to share what’s happening in your writer’s world. It will be refreshing to have a Bend, Oregon contributor tell us about what’s trending with kidlit folks who live on the West coast.

Kathy:  I know you have a teaching background. Tell us what you taught and how that helped you decide to take the plunge into children’s writing?

Michelle: I spent most of my teaching career teaching kindergarten and second grades. My favorite time of the day was always storytime. I read to my students every day, even when I taught older kids. It sounds like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how easily you can get bogged down with tasks, and it’s easy to let that read-aloud slip by.

I’m passionate about children’s literacy and love teaching kids to read. I used to wonder if I could write the types of books I was using in my classroom. When I stopped teaching, I decided to try my hand at it. I studied the educational market and did a lot of preliminary work before sending out any writing samples. Now most days, I’m either working on a personal project or writing an assignment for a work-for-hire job.

If you are curious about work-for-hire, I highly recommend Laura Purdie Salas’s book, Writing for the Educational Market: Informational Books for Kids. I started here and learned a lot.

Kathy:  So you also have substituted in your county library system. What were/are your duties? What is your favorite area to work in? What did you learn that you can share with writers that we may not know about libraries? Did it help you with your writing?

 Michelle: I substitute for my county’s library system and my local school district. Subbing is perfect for me because it allows me the flexibility I need for writing. Also, it gets me out from behind my desk and into my community. As a library associate, I help patrons with their requests and shelve books upon return. My favorite area is the kids’ section because the books have such beautiful and fun cover art, and I usually stand in front of these shelves daydreaming and checking out more books than I put away.

I wanted to work at the library because I love being surrounded by books and ideas. The library is my happy place. Even though I spent a lot of time there before being hired, I was still surprised to learn about the many additional resources the library provides other than just books and computers. 

Libraries service their communities through various programs and numerous outreach events. For instance, are you looking for some work-for-hire and need help updating your resume? Your local librarian will likely know whom to connect you with and how to help. Did you recently purchase a new computer for that novel you’re planning to write? Need some technical assistance? Ask your librarian. They may have a tech service department where you can schedule some one-on-one time. Or maybe you’re writing a cookbook, and you’ve wondered what all the fuss is about regarding those air-fryers? Perhaps your library has a ‘library of things’ where you can check out things other than books and give them a try before you buy. Libraries are amazing! I hope to write a blog post about libraries someday.

Michelle's Debut Picture Book!

Kathy: You write both middle grade and picture books. Tell us a bit about that: how is the process of writing similar/different for those 2 audiences?  What topics are you drawn to for each age range? What’s on your TBR list or a few books you’ve recently read that you’ve enjoyed?

 Michelle:I started with writing picture books, but I always knew someday I’d give middle grade a try. By the end of 2022, I decided to dedicate 2023 to writing the MG that’s been rattling around in my brain for the last few years. 

The most obvious difference between an MG and a PB is the word count. With middle grades, I can write descriptions and a lot more dialogue. But the fact remains—every single word must count, whether there are 500 words or 25,000 words.

I enjoy realistic fiction middle-grade novels and love books that make me laugh and feel. I tend to find the same things funny that most twelve-year-old boys do, so writing for this age group fits me well. I also love humorous and clever picture books. 

My new year’s resolution this year was to read one recently published and one classic middle-grade book per month. One book that I enjoyed was Starfish by debut author Lisa Fipps.  It was my first time reading a novel-in-verse, and it was excellent. I’m interested in learning more about this style of writing.

Kathy:  I understand you’re subbing work now. What’s your submission strategy? Tell us about the difference between querying WFH vs. MG and PB? 

Michelle: I’m not out on submission right now, but I plan to be very soon. My submission strategy starts with a strong cup of coffee. I write my query, pitch, synopsis, and whatever else is required, then walk away. Soon I’ll be back, reread what I wrote, berate myself, drink more coffee, and try again. This process continues until some point I move on from coffee to wine, and by then, I’m so sick of myself that I say a prayer, hit send, and hope for the best.

Check out Michelle's website here!

Meet Michelle's buddy, Archie. Arrooo!

Like Michelle’s muse and sidekick, Archie, you may be wondering, “Why blog? What’s in it for me?”

If you’d like to guest blog on the GROG, you’ll receive the following benefits:

1. A team of folks to amplify your posts & drive traffic to your own SM

2.  A set schedule and built-in audience

3. A community of writers who help each other

4. A talking point when meeting industry folks at conferences and a professional addition to your bio for queries.

We post every Wednesday, are very organized, and have a group calendar on Google. We’re looking for writers and illustrators who create for any kidlit genre or audience - picture book, middle grade, poetry, nonfiction, graphic novel - you name it!

If you're interested in being a guest blogger for the GROG, let us know in the comments and connect with me on twitter. I’ll DM you and we’ll exchange information!

Thanks, Michelle, for sharing your writing journey and writing tips today. Remember, you can join the GROG blog team, too, as a guest blogger. We have slots open from June on! Shoot me your questions in the comments!