UNDISCOVERED VOICES INTERVIEWS P. M. Freestone

In this week's Undiscovered Voices writer interview, we're delighted to introduce P. M. Freestone.

Tell us about the book you submitted

Shadowscent is an epic YA fantasy with scent-based magic. It’s told from dual points of view: a girl with a talent for scentlore who is trying to save her dying father, and a devoutly loyal imperial bodyguard who is hiding a debilitating secret. They’ve got nothing in common until they end up fugitives—racing across the Empire to save the crown prince and everything they hold dear.

How did you feel about winning Undiscovered Voices?

Gobsmacked. I was in Australia at the time participants were notified, so when I had an e-mail from Sara Grant letting me know she’d been trying to call, it was surreal — in the best way!

In what ways was the feedback from Undiscovered Voices useful?

First chapters are tricky beasts, especially when you’re inviting a reader to enter an unfamiliar fantasy world. Advice from the judges helped me tweak the balance between plot, character, description and worldbuilding.

Have you had any success with your book as a result of Undiscovered Voices?

I’m incredibly grateful to Working Partners and the SCBWI volunteers who’ve built UV into an initiative that’s so highly regarded across the industry. I was thrilled it led to signing with super-agent Josh Adams from Adams Literary in the US, and my wonderful UK co-agent Caroline Walsh at David Higham Associates.

But that wasn’t the end — Shadowscent had caught the eye of UV judge Lauren Fortune, Editorial Director at Scholastic. When my agents submitted the full manuscript, my now editors felt the same way, and Scholastic will publish Shadowscent in the UK in February and in the US in autumn 2019.
Put simply — UV was the start of a dream come true. If you’re unpublished and unagented, be brave and throw your hat in the ring next time. You never know where it could lead!

If you’d like to find out more, you can visit www.pmfreestone.com, or come say hi on Instagram: @p.m.freestone
Shadowscent is also now available for pre-order in the UK

You can download the Undiscovered Voices 2018 anthology here to read an extract from P. M. Freestone's book.

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Undiscovered Voices is an anthology published every other year by the British SCBWI and aims to help fresh, new voices in children’s literature – both writers and illustrators – find agents, publishers and ultimately readers. Undiscovered Voices has launched the careers of writers and illustrators, who have gone on to publish more than 200 books. These authors have been nominated for, and won, an amazing array of literary prizes: including the Carnegie Medal, Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, Branford Boase Award, Blue Peter Award, the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award, and nearly 30 regional awards. Visit www.undiscoveredvoices.com for all the details and news when submissions will open for the next anthology.