About Ceci Li
Ceci is a first-generation Chinese-American writer, an amateur artist, and a hopeless romantic. She dreams of the day she'd leave an entire shelf of legacy that would embarrass her two kids to no end. Because maturity is overrated, she lives vicariously through her teenage characters in YA contemporary stories.
When she's not writing, she's either sitting on the couch with a great book, painting up a storm, or scrolling her phone for another new recipe to screw up.
She is represented by literary agent Amelia Appel at Triada US Literary Agency.
Q & A
Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?
Yes. Many times. I worked with a book coach while writing my first vomit draft, and she basically served as my therapist. I rewrote the whole book again on my own because I wasn't happy with it, and in that process, I had great support from my accountability partners, or I would've long given up. The writing community I was, and still am, involved in has been very helpful in keeping me afloat in the sea of writer stress as well. I’ve even written a blog about Imposter Syndrome .
Who's your favorite author? Who do you aspire to be?
I absolutely adore every word ever written by Fredrik Backman. I always joke with my friends that I'd read a piece of toilet paper if Mr. Backman had scribbled on it. His Beartown is one of my favorite books of all time. Being a hopeless romantic, I'm head-over-heels smitten with the works of Katherine Center. I'm also a classic mystery fan, and I love any story by the queen of mystery—Agatha Christie. Maybe someday I’ll be smart enough to come up with my own whodunit.
Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?
I don't have a routine. I still have a part-time day job that takes up a lot of my brain energy, so I try to write whenever I can, whether it's at the crack of dawn or while waiting for my kids at the bus stop. If I'm not writing, then I'm thinking about it.
Team Pantser or Team Planner?
Neither! I am a hundred percent Team Plantser, which means I'm half-and-half. I outline my books with a few simple sentences, then deviate from them as I write, LOL.
What advice would you give other querying writers?
Query only when you're ready. If there's something you feel that isn't quite right with your manuscript, don't pitch too early. Fix whatever it is, and it will find its way to the right person. It's worth the work and the wait. And DON'T give up.