Today we’d like to introduce you to Stacia Deutsch.
Hi Stacia, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
When my kids were little, we’d pile into one bed at night, and I’d read them stories. We devoured picture books like The Napping House or Hop on Pop, graduating to The Magic Tree House and later the Hobbit and Harry Potter. It was a wonderful time for us all and full of incredible memories. One night, I had an idea. I’d never written a book before but thought, “Wouldn’t it be great to do a time travel story where kids meet famous people in American History?” My friend, Rhody Cohon, a computer engineer at the time, thought we could do it! We stayed for a weekend in a hotel and dissected all those books we’d been sharing with the kids. We focused on The Magic Treehouse because it seemed to be the right age and structure for what we wanted to do. And then, we wrote three unique titles.
After they were done, we had a lot to learn about getting an agent and how publishing works. We met good people who guided us and joined the Society of Children’s Book Publishers and Illustrators. Nothing was easy, but we eventually sold an 8-book series called Blast to the Past to Simon and Schuster. The editor there asked if we wanted to do a movie novel tie in project, and we said yes. The truth is, from the moment we were published, we always said “Yes.” The movie novel was Batman the Dark Night, and that led to about 10 more movie-related books. We were passed around the publisher, amassing titles and experience, mostly now in licensed property, meaning we were writing in worlds created by others. I loved it. Rhody decided after about 40 books and two New York Times Bestseller distinctions that she wanted to do something new – and I went on alone.
I currently have about 350 books under my belt. I write for movies and create original tie-in novels for television shows like Spirit:Riding Free. I have ghostwritten for a very popular girls’ mystery series and launched the newest Boxcar Children books called The Jessie Files. Recently, I was back on the NYT bestselling list for The Friendship Code, which is a Girls Who Code original novel. I am grateful for this career and am honored to have written for most every large publisher and many smaller ones. My favorite new projects are stories and activity books for LEGO: NINJAGO. I also do freelance ghostwriting on the popular site – Reedsy.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Is anything ever a smooth road? Early on, I wrote an original novel and sent it to an editor who circled all the instances when I started a sentence with the word “He…” then rejected it. Those lessons are hard to swallow but forced me to take writing classes and grow.
I am constantly growing as a writer. Rejection is part of the process and never gets any easier. It’s hard for new writers to get their foot in the door, and believe me, it’s hard for established writers to keep plodding forward as well. We develop tough skin. Process the criticism. And force ourselves back down into the chair with fingers on the keyboard.
A few years ago, I decided to go back to school for an MFA, Master’s in Fine Arts, with a focus in Genre Writing. Yes, I’d already established myself in most genres from fantasy to horror, but going back to school made me refresh my skills and regain the enthusiasm that drove me in the first place.
Writing is a tough career, and I am lucky that this is my job. Every setback makes me first think I should quit, and then, I dig in and move forward. I still have goals I want to achieve, and when I do think about quitting, I ask myself what else would I do? I can’t think of anything else. When we have the drive to write, nothing is going to stop us from putting words on paper.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
For many writers they come up with an idea, draft it out, write the story, then try to either get an agent and sell it to a publishing house or independently publish themselves. I work on original Stacia Deutsch books, too, but for the bulk of my writing career, my path took a left turn from the usual road.
I am mostly a write-for-hire author. I am hired by the publishing houses to write the books that they need written. Novels based on movies are popular. So, when I was hired to write Batman The Dark Knight as a Junior Movie Novelization, that meant I was hired by the publishing house and given the script. I turned the dialogue and action into age-appropriate prose for young readers. Sometimes, it’s like that, but other times, I am creating new stories based on other people’s properties. When I wrote 7 titles for the Netflix show Spirit Riding Free, I was asked to come up with story ideas that would happen between the streaming episodes. That’s a different creative muscle.
I tend to say yes to projects with the hopes that I can figure out what to do. Recently, I have been taking adult regional spooky stories and turning them into books for 3-5th grade readers. Or I have “ghostwritten” for many, many mystery series. Your kids may have read my books and never knew that I was the writer behind the novel. I sometimes get my name on books, and sometimes don’t. Funny thing, when I take a job, I often forget to ask if the project will have my name on it or a ghost name or a pseudonym.
I love what I do. I get excited every time a new project comes across my desk, and I adore digging into the magic of storytelling. I am most proud that I have been on the New York Times Bestsellers list three times. That’s a dream come true!
Who else deserves credit in your story?
I advise new writers all the time – go and tell everyone that you are writing a novel! Seriously. I find that people really want to help each other. My first agent came out of a dinner with an older couple. I said that I had just finished the first draft of my first book, Blast to the Past, and they replied that their nephew was a literary agent. He wasn’t. But he worked with a lot of literary agents, and he passed my book to a colleague. The rest is Simon and Schuster history. Every project since then is because someone suggested my name and said I could do what they needed. I can’t even list all the people who have recommended me or have had hands on my back when I was down or those who pointed me in a new direction when I needed it most.
With that, when I moved to Temecula a few years ago, I was really lonely. I needed to find people who shared common goals and dreams. It just happened that I found two other writers and together, we started the Temecula Valley Writers and Illustrators, a group that meets in person once a month and shares personal news on our Facebook page. We have a website at www.temeculavalleywi.com, and here’s where I have found new friends, great advisors, and a supportive writing and artist community in the Temecula Valley. I’m not lonely anymore!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.staciadeutsch.com
- Instagram: @Staciadeutsch_writes
- Facebook: staciadeutsch
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sfdeutsch/
- Twitter: @staciadeutsch
- Other: For Ghost Writing I’m on Reedy: https://reedsy.com/Deutsch-Stacia
Image Credits
Melissa Jacobs
