We chat with debut author Meg Long about her upcoming release Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves, which is a captivating debut about survival, found family, and the bond between a girl and a wolf that delivers a fresh twist on classic survival stories and frontier myths. Meg chats all things writing, book recommendations, and more!
Hi, Meg! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! Thank you so much for interviewing me! I’m the author of Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves, which is my debut YA book out with Wednesday Books in early January 2022. On top of being an author, I design content for websites, apps, and games. When not writing or gaming, I’m probably obsessing over Sailor Moon fanart or K-Pop bands.
Welcome to 2022! What are you hoping the year will bring and have you set any goals?
Yay for 2022 – We made it! (I think. 😆) I hope this year brings some much needed calmness to everyone’s lives and my only real goal is to work on a new book idea.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
When I was in middle and high school, my first love was comic books and after that, it was manga/anime, so originally I wanted to write and draw comics. That was the beginning of me coming up with characters and building up worlds around them. But it took awhile to get back to that as I didn’t start seriously writing books until 2016 (nearly fourteen years later).
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
Oh wow, first book? I have pretty strong memories of some early picture, like Put Me In The Zoo and Harold and the Purple Crayon. There were two books that make me want to write YA, Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead and Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas which I read back in like 2012. But there were earlier books, like A Wrinkle in Time and old Star Wars novels that I loved so much, I created my own characters to live in those worlds. I guess I’ve been making up stories for a long time before ever putting any words on paper. And a book I can’t stop thinking about would have to be Crown Chasers by Rebecca Conffindaffer. It’s such a fun, vivid sci-fi adventure story—I definitely wish I could live in that world too.
Your debut novel, Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves, is out January 11th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Only five words!? Um…Girl, wolf, perilous ice race….of doom! Okay, that was more than five. Ignore the last two words! But it doesn’t have the same ring to it without the doom.
What can readers expect?
Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves is a story about finding family when you’ve lost everything and about how bonds with people (or animals) can help you survive even the harshest environments. There’s a cut-throat city on a desolate ice planet. There’s a heart-pounding race and ruthless gangsters. There’s predators and storms and something that could kill you on just about every page. But the core of the story is about a lost girl who is forced to help a feral wolf and how they learn to trust each other and be the family they both need, not just to survive, but to truly live.
Where did the inspiration for Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves come from?
The spark that started the story is actually a tweet thread by Iditarod racer, Blair Braverman. She tells a story of being alone on the sled trail with only her dogs as they’re racing in the dead of night and she sees what she thought was a demon. It was so visceral, so intense that it stuck in my head for a long time. I began to imagine what if there were actually demons in the woods and what would that look like if it were a sci-fi story rather than fantasy. I started reading anything with sledding or wolves in the arctic, like Call of the Wild and Stone Fox and the whole idea snowballed from there.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
Well, when I wrote this I lived in Louisiana where there is no snow nor have I ever been to Alaska in winter and I haven’t been dog sledding (yet!) so I had to really dig deep into researching Iditarod racers and their experiences out there on the trail. I watched documentaries and read first-hand accounts, anything to help me understand what it’s like to survive in these extreme conditions. I sincerely hope that the research rings true when readers get to those particular parts of the book.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I really enjoyed writing the side characters that end up participating in the race and helping Sena, the main character really grow into a leader. She has to take care of this ragtag team of scientists who know nothing about survival but in a way, they also take care of her in the midst of all these wild threats. Also, the wild threats were really fun to write. Nothing is more enjoyable than surprising your characters with giant bears or killer ice demons when they least expect them!
What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?
Like many of my fellow authors, the road to getting published is littered with discarded stories and piles of rejections. I was super fortunate to find mentors through Pitch Wars, an online mentorship program for unpublished writers. While I didn’t find an agent through the program, I did find an amazing group of friends and fellow writers that really helped me when writing or querying was hard. It took six years and many failed book attempts to go from aspiring writer to published author and my journey is short compared to others!
What’s next for you?
I am working on a companion novel to Cold the Night that switches focus from Sena to one of the other side characters. It also features a wild planet but I can’t say much else beyond that yet! But this character is a fan favorite so I’m really excited to dive into a new point of view that everyone loves.
Lastly, do you have any 2022 book recommendations for our readers?
So many! The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder and The Ivory Key by Akshaya Raman are some of my favorite 2022 debuts that are full of heart and adventure! For more books featuring dangerous beasts and competitive races, I’m really excited for Dauntless by Elisa A Bonnin and Monsters Born and Made by Tanvi Berwah.
