THE CIRCUS AT THE END OF THE SEA by Lori R. Snyder

I met Lori R. Snyder at the Annual American Library Association Conference in June, and when I learned the premise of her middle grade book, THE CIRCUS AT THE END OF THE SEA, I had to feature it. Have a look:

Maddy Adriana knows that magic is real. All her life, her heart has pulled her towards things too perfect to be ordinary. One day, that tug leads her to a magical street circus, hidden in plain sight among the canals and boardwalks of Venice Beach.

For the first time in Maddy’s life, she finally feels like she belongs. But the circus is in grave danger. Maddy will need to confront the frightening side of magic, as well as her own deepest fears, if she’s to have any hope of saving the place she dreams of calling home.

This unforgettable debut shows readers the magic of following your heart and finding where you belong.

According to your website bio, you have an MPW (Master’s of Professional Writing) from USC. How did you know you wanted to go to graduate school for professional writing?

I didn’t, really. I was in a different graduate program for marine biology, but it wasn’t quite right for me, much as I loved and still love the topic. So I sat myself down and asked myself where I wanted to be in ten years. The answer was traveling, teaching, and writing — none of which I needed a Master’s degree to do. At the same time, my then sister-in-law was working for USC Magazines, and they had an opening for a business manager — and they would pay part of your tuition if you were in a program that related to your work. And — I wanted deadlines. I had never tried to write a book before, and I liked school, so I figured that would be a good way to make it happen! I found that USC had something called a Master’s of Professional Writing, which I was qualified to apply for without any other classes, and that cemented it.

I got the job and got into the MPW program, and then I had my deadlines. And I also met Hubert Selby, Jr. (aka Cubby) (he wrote Last Exit to Brooklyn and Requiem for a Dream) there, and he became my mentor. He was instrumental in me actually finishing my first book. Which never got published, but it was finished! He passed away before my first book got published, but I owe him a lot. I always got a kick out of knowing that the person who helped me write my books for kids that are filled with delight and wonder is the author of books that are mostly too brutal for me to even get through!

That is certainly ironic! And I love the setting and imagery in THE CIRCUS AT THE END OF THE SEA. How did this story originally come to you?

I wanted to write a love letter to Venice, CA, which is one of the great loves of my life. No joke: I was, quite literally, planning to marry myself to Venice before I met my now husband. I was going to register and have a party and everything. (I supposed I could have still married both Venice and my sweetheart, but that would have been a lot of marriage for someone who had never cared if she got married or not!)

To me, Venice is already a magical street circus, so it wasn’t really much of a stretch to magic it up even more! Whenever I go out to skate, I always say, “I’m going out into the parade!”

I love it! You are also the founder of The Writers Happiness Movement. What have you found most rewarding about being involved with this?

The Writers Happiness Movement, which is soon merging with one of the other things I do, Splendid Mola Retreats for Writers, is my attempt to build a world based on kindness and creativity and not on how much money you do or don’t have. It’s an alternative system of support for writers that looks to separates art — and having the time and energy to make art — from commerce. As such, I offer a slew of free happiness tools for writers, things that help people build a writing community, have time to write, and take care of themselves — things that usually cost money. The Writers Hapiness Movement also offers microgrants and retreat fellowships, supported by writers all over the world who donate $5/month to support each other and make this vision happen.

As clichéd as this sounds, the two most rewarding parts are, first, helping people; and next, having the opportunity every day to choose to walk my talk — especially as the movement is new and not yet supporting itself. I get to recommit to what I care about most pretty much every single day, trusting that the community and financial support for the movement will grow. The goal is to not just cover costs and let me pay myself a living wage, but to also cover residencies for writers, larger no-strings-attached grants, and down the road, retirement homes for writers.

What a necessary community of support! I just joined myself, and I can’t wait to learn more. What are some of your current projects?

Writing-wise, draft two of my next book is currently with my editor, awaiting her feedback. It’s another upper middle grade fantasy adventure, most likely coming out in 2026. And I’m playing with a new idea for an adult urban fantasy book, which is tapping gently at my subconscious. There’s no plot, but intriguing ideas are dancing through my mind here and there.

On other fronts, I’m working with an amazing team to merge everything I offer for writers into one place. I’m designing a bunch of new programs and offerings, and there’s a new website in the works! I’m particularly excited about the Live Writing Containers I’m going to start leading in November, which are month-long online programs where we all gather to write three times a week.

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