AFTER THE WHIRLWIND: Chloe Savage

Now that the whirling debut dust has settled, Lui Sit invites Chloe Savage
to talk about what she's learnt since becoming a published author.

I am an author illustrator and my debut picture book, The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish, was first published in October 2022. The world was still waking up after the pandemic, and I was personally trying to move past the isolating double whammy of cancer and covid.

I had made the book in the protective bubble of my studio, where I had almost forgotten that anyone would ever read the thing. But publication day comes, the covers are ripped off, and there I was, raw, pink, and sort of ready to face the world.

Chloe Savage holding her book in a bookstore

  
Those first kind reviews are still so precious to me, and I will never forget those people who stepped up to support the book in those first mad weeks. Through a combination of hard work and luck, the first hardback edition sold out very quickly.

This was immensely brilliant and also a nightmare. The goal of the business is to sell books, and there were nearly three months when the only copies available to buy were scattered in the odd Waterstones up and down the country.

Chloe signing her book surrounded by jellyfish cupcakes

I had no idea the restock would take so long. Most of my initial interactions with readers were about helping them to treasure hunt one of these copies, and then protecting myself from being told about disappointed children who now couldn’t receive the book for Christmas. It was an emotional wild west.

Trying to publicise a debut book initially felt like shouting into the void. The world is big, the internet even bigger, and social media fatigue is real. The requirement to build content was not something I had planned for when making the art for the book.

Window display at Tales of Moon Lane bookshop

People love to see process content, but the last thing I am thinking about when I am painting is filming it. There is now a note above my desk to try and force me to remember to gather content as I go, because it’s like social media gold dust when you are trying to make posts about work that you actually created over a year ago. You have to be your biggest advocate, because as a debut author you cannot rely on the hope that anyone else will do this for you.

Publishers in general are very understaffed, the marketing and publicity teams have thousands of books to look after. As their workload increases, their teams grow smaller. They will always prioritise low risk high return established names over debut authors. Without any budget allocated for marketing, the only option is to do it yourself. I thought that if the book was going to fail, I was determined that it wouldn’t be because I had not put in my best effort.

I made my own standee for The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish, printed my own postcards, did heaps of free events in schools and bookshops, and said yes to absolutely everything. Most opportunities which come the way of debut authors are unpaid but on the condition of book sales, which is a long-term view, in a presently stressful financial situation.

Chloe's dog cuddled up with The Search of the Giant Arctic Jellyfish

 

I found as time went on, that paid school visits became frequent, which, coupled with my inability to say no, meant I had to learn the same lesson as everyone else trying to balance PR and making books: that I cannot effectively do both simultaneously.

I had not fully understood that the six weeks around the publication date need to be solely dedicated to getting the book out there in the world. Publicity uses a wholly separate part of my brain, and it takes a few days of rest for me to really recover, and to then switch my brain back into “making mode”. I have learnt that I need to weaponize my rest time. Working as an author is very solitary, and facing the other social extreme at events is surprisingly exhausting. Staving off burn out is as important as clear work time. The trick will be to learn to not feel guilty about taking time to rest. Just because authors work for themselves does not mean that we should work long days every day and in every spare moment. This was a revelation to me, obvious though it may seem to some. The better balance which I have now found is a huge step forward for me.

Chloe holding her Waterstones Prize for Best Illustrated Book 2024

 
Finding this balance has been made so much easier by my exceptional luck in having an agent who prioritises my wellbeing. She lifts the burden, which would by now have swallowed me whole. She protects my creative space by taking on the mental load of seeking out opportunities, organising logistics for events, advocating for myself and my work. She is tireless and deeply reliable. Without her support my job would not be half this wonderful.

Chloe at the Waterstones Children's Book Prize Award Ceremony

                                        
All the things which have made me think everything will be okay didn’t happen until well after my first year of publication. With the paperback release comes new momentum and the honour of awards, like the Waterstones Prize for Best Illustrated Book and the Carnegie Medal shortlist, amongst many others. It has felt like a lot of pressure on a debut book, and also more incredibly joyful than I could have imagined. For all the challenges of being an author illustrator, this job remains the most magical way to be an adult.

Instagram: @chloe.the.savage

Website: https://chloesavage.co.uk

*Header image: Ell Rose and Tita Berredo

*Photos courtesy of Chloe Savage

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Lui Sit writes MG, non-fiction, adult short stories, and memoirs. Her debut MG – Land of the Last Wildcat – is being published by Macmillan Children's Books in May 2025. She is agented by Becky Bagnell of Lindsay Literary Agency. Find her on her website, Instagram or Threads. 

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Ell Rose is the Illustration Features Editor of Words & Pictures. Find their work at www.fourfooteleven.com. Follow them on Instagram and X/Twitter.
Contact them at: illustrators@britishscbwi.org

Tita Berredo is the Illustrator Coordinator of SCBWI British Isles and the Art Director of Words & Pictures. Follow her on Instagram and X/Twitter or www.titaberredo.com.
Contact her at: illuscoordinator@britishscbwi.org