A book launch for junior Sydney Schmied ’28 and her new book, The Darling’s Daughter, was held in McCartney Library’s West Reading room on September 30. The Geneva community celebrated the inaugural publication of the first book in The Majestic Theater Series through the traditional publishing house Wild Hearts Books.

Daniel Williams, PhD proudly introduced Sydney, saying that her work is the embodiment of the goal implicit in the C.S. Lewis paraphrased quote, “The world does not need more Christian literature. What it needs is more Christians writing good literature.” He further described Sydney’s Christian historical fiction as having “no preachiness or moral snobbery,” however “Christ is the warmth running through Sydney’s stories.” He described her as an “exceptionally hard worker for the Lord…who writes wonderful stories.”

Once Sydney reached the podium, her author’s journey became the topic of discussion.
“I didn’t know I wanted to be a writer until it snuck up on me. I just knew I hated math,” said Sydney to a round of chuckling.

“Writing became a creative outlet, and I haven’t stopped,” continued Sydney. “I don’t believe in writer’s block. You sit down and write even if you don’t want to. Sometimes I go back and delete a bunch of stuff; I have some good writing sprints.” She and Williams together relayed an analogy comparing writing to a sandbox through a quote by author Shannon Hale: “I'm writing a first draft and reminding myself that I'm simply shoveling sand into a box so that later I can build castles."

Describing her process, Sydney detailed that she’ll spend a month researching a time period, compiling up to 27 pages of research before she begins her eight-month long process of writing and editing a novel. “I don’t always know what story I’m going to write. Sometimes I just start with a problem. For example, in The Darling’s Daughter, one character’s problem is: ‘I know God forgives, but how do I stop trying to pay a debt that Jesus already settled, and trust in Him enough to let go of my guilt?’"

Sydney was mentored by author Rachel Scott McDaniel who suggested she publish and guided her how to write a query letter. “I got 28 rejections,” said Sydney. “My parents encouraged me to not quit because I had worked so hard. A lot of people get more than 28 rejections. I sent batches of 10 query letters at once, which helped me not get my heart set on any one.”

Upon her signing a contract for publication by Wild Heart Books, she had to balance the work of a full-time student and a working author. This came down to time management, and the grace that her publisher allowed her to choose her own deadlines within a given timeframe. A few of these publishing deadlines over various academic breaks, such as spring break.

The second book in her series, The Playwright’s Masquerade, releases on January 26, 2027. You can learn more about Sydney at her website sydneyschmiedbooks.com or on social media @sydneyschmiedauthor.

Sydney Schmied writes sweet and intriguing Gilded Age historical romances with a whole lot of faith. She is a 2023 ACFW First Impressions Contest finalist and a 2024 Genesis Contest Semi-finalist, as well as a Scrivenings Press Get Pubbed Finalist. When she is not writing, she enjoys reading, painting, and a good cup of coffee or a London Fog.