Meran Paul
Features Editor
Chloe Wright (C’ 27) is a sophomore at Sewanee: The University of the South. As an English major with a minor in global studies, Wright is already making strides in her dream career: publishing. With three published books—Petrichor (October 2022), Kalder (April 2023), and Alpi (December 2023)—through Crippled Beagle Publishing, Wright’s stories have reached readers in countries like India, Brazil, France, and Germany via Amazon. Additionally, her books can be found in bookstores in the United States, including in her hometown. In our interview, Wright shared the experiences that shaped her as a writer, the challenges of balancing her college life with her writing career, and her vision for the future.
Wright’s writing journey began at an early age. “I started writing as a toddler,” she recalled, saying that her mother used to transcribe for her. Later, her time in middle school and high school became formative years for her creativity. Her discovery of xenofiction — animal-based stories — on the Internet, which she admits she used to spend a lot of time on during her middle school, inspired her to create her own works that would incorporate the same characters and themes. Combined with her creative writing classes in high school, Wright’s passion for writing flourished. “That motivation really pushed me to do what I was supposed to do,” she explained while adding that her parents have been supportive throughout her writing journey. “They were not like, “Oh, you are gonna be a barista!” she said funnily.
When talking about the genre she writes in and would like to write more in, Wright said that she writes young adult right now but doesn’t want to limit herself to one genre. She wants to write stories that anyone from middle schoolers to people in their twenties can enjoy. Her main target audience though is, in her words, nerdy middle schoolers. “Because I was one myself. So, I want to write what I wanted to read as a kid,” she said.
She decided to become a published author before the college admission seasons. “I wanted to seem unique and it appeared to be the optimal time to get a book published.” She had written a draft of what would become her first novel, though she modestly admits it wasn’t great at first. “It was about seventy thousand words and not good at all but good enough to get picked up by my publisher.” This draft was completed on November 28, 2021 and then turned into her first published work.
Having to write consistently while also balancing her college academics has been challenging. Even when she was in high school, the pressure of balancing her busy academic life—filled with honors classes—was intense. “I was one of those kids that would faint if they got a bad grade, even if that bad grade was an A-,” she joked. Despite the workload, Wright found ways to write. She says she “would be hiding in French tutoring and whispering the dialogues and the scene.” Immersive writing playlists on Youtube and using techniques like the Pomodoro method also help her be focused. She admits that these techniques didn’t help her all the time and, in the end, she just had to “sit down and write.”
Her inspirations as a writer range from fantasy to the rom-com writers. One author, in particular, stands out: Tui T. Sutherland, the author of Wings of Fire, a dragon-themed series that’s all about “dragons, prophecies, mysteries and magic” captivated Wright as a child. “I read it all the time as a kid. I cried at some scenes, I lost my mind, I was in that fangroup and that’s where I found my start,” she recalled. Another influence is Emily Henry, known for her rom-coms – a genre she plans on delving into in the future and has “a lot of cute ideas for.”
Her current novel, though, explores deep themes such as religious trauma, the pursuit of truth, questions about trust, and self-discovery. Her main character, Wright tells us, follows her life’s journey. “I was pretty sheltered,” Wright admitted, “I believed the internet to be the gospel. I was gullible and did not know how to read the world and that’s why I am also an IGS major.” Wright wishes to not “live in a bubble” and says that her writing has allowed her to process frustrations of “not knowing things”. In her novel, characters live in a world where dragon gods rule a theocratic society. While not an anti-religious narrative, Wright’s writing explores questions of trust and faith, topics she believes resonate with her core audience: middle schoolers. “It’s important to have these themes because I’m passionate about them.”
Sharing her experiences with publishing as a teenager, Wright feels grateful towards her publisher Jody Dyer. Wright says she always felt publishing would be very intimidating but luckily she said, “Jody has been understanding. She puts things in a way I can understand.” All her books have been hybrid-published and she feels glad she gets a lot of power and say in what happens to her work and how it is presented to its audiences without necessarily having to worry about the marketing.
Looking ahead, Wright has big plans. She’s currently working on the fourth and fifth book of her series, which she plans to complete in 2024. “I need to sit down and start writing,” she says, recognizing the need for discipline amidst her busy college schedule. But once the series is finished, she intends to take a break before revisiting the book to refine and “remaster” them with a fresh perspective. “Fixing plot points makes me excited and not ashamed because I’m not [thinking] ‘Oh I messed up that one time, so I’m never gonna write again,” she said, noting that she sees mistakes as part of the process and an opportunity to grow.
With her eyes set on a future in publishing and a passion for filling gaps in the market, Chloe Wright is a young author on the rise.