Write The Book: Conversations on Craft

Vermont Author Nathaniel Ian Miller in a conversation about his novel, The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven (Little Brown) . This week’s Write the Book Prompt was generously offered by my guest, Nathaniel Ian Miller, who recently heard someone extoll the virtues of writing about one’s work. Nathaniel commented that he liked this idea, and that he would like to see more of it. The supposedly mundane aspec...

Award-winning Vermont Author Brad Kessler in conversation about his 2021 novel, North ( Overlook Press ). One review of Brad Kessler’s work, a blurb by the author Chris Abani , mentions  the way that Brad lets his characters’ dignity lead the story. I love this observation, and have been thinking a lot about it. This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to consider the dignity of your characters, no ma...

British Author Caroline Lea , whose new novel is PrizeWomen (Harper Perennial).  This week's Write the Book Prompt was suggested by my guest, Caroline Lea. It's an assignment she sometimes gives to her students. Go somewhere you wouldn't normally go, and write about it. (Don’t get arrested, she says. Or if you do, don’t blame her!) Her students have visited cemeteries, they've gone to other dorms...

An interview from 2015 (with our old music!) with literary agent Emily Forland, of the Brandt Hochman Agency  in New York.  This week’s  Write The Book Prompt is to write about a season you are not presently experiencing. Is it warm where you are? Write about the cold. Is spring coming on? Write about the fall. Work from memory, as much as you can, and then in revising, allow yourself to look at p...

Vermont Author Annie Seyler , whose debut novel is The Wisdom of Winter ( Atmosphere Press ).  This week's Write the Book Prompt was generously offered by my guest, Annie Seyler. Identify a moment from your childhood that shaped you somehow and write it out as a scene, but with a different ending or outcome than the way you lived it. Good luck with your work in the coming week, and tune in next we...

Olena Kharchenko and Michael Sampson, co-authors The Story of Ukraine ( Brown Books Kids ). We have two Write the Book Prompts this week.  Michael Sampson offered one that seemed rather dark, so he turned it on its head and offered another that’s more upbeat. First, describe a nightmare you’ve had, including setting and details that explain why it is so terrifying. Second, look into the future and...

Award-winning science writer and journalist Jessica Nordell , author of The End of Bias: A Beginning ( Metropolitan ).  This week's Write the Book Prompt was generously suggested by my guest, Jessica Nordell, who points out that observing our own bias can be a challenge. She suggests considering, What would you write if you could be certain that you had infinite love and acceptance - if you didn't...

  Fall 2022  Green Mountain Book Festival panel on Mysteries and Thrillers, moderated by Rachel Carter and featuring  authors Miciah Bay Gault ,  Margot Harrison , Sarah Stewart Taylor , and Sarah Strohmeyer . This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to play two truths and a lie with a few writing friends. Think of the three scary stories to tell: two that are true and one, a lie. Let the game with fr...

Vermont Author Erika Nichols-Frazer , speaking about her new memoir, Feed Me: A Story of Food, Love and Mental Illness ( Casper Press ). This week's Write the Book Prompt was generously offered by my guest, Erika Nichols-Frazer. Feed Me is all about memories and food. Think of a food that holds some emotional significance: a pie you used to bake with your grandmother, something that you eat on spe...

Vermont Author Andrew Liptak , whose recent book is Cosplay: A History: The Builders, Fans, and Makers Who Bring Your Favorite Stories to Life ( Saga Press ). This week’s first Write the Book Prompt won’t surprise you, if you listened to the interview. Dress in costume and write about the person you see yourself representing. If you have a costume that works for a character you’re working on, grea...

Fall 2022 Green Mountain Book Festival panel on Nonfiction, moderated by Shelagh and featuring  authors Brian Michael Murphy , Sandra Matthews , Jessica Nordell , and Erik Shonstrom . This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to try your hand at writing a nonfiction essay about something that has lately been on your mind: perhaps a news item, a weather event, or a personal experience. Include details a...

An interview from the archives with cancer survivor, yoga teacher and author Tari Prinster . We discuss her 2014 book Yoga for Cancer:  A Guide to Managing Side Effects, Boosting Immunity, and Improving Recovery for Cancer Survivors ( Healing Arts Press ). This week’s Write The Book Prompt is to spend five-to-ten minutes focusing on your breathing before you begin work. Breathe in through your nos...

Our second NaNoWriMo check-in of the month is a conversation with Vermont Author Reina Pennington , military history expert and former Norwich University Professor.  This week's second Write the Book Prompt comes from Reina Pennington, who suggests writing with the same implement that your character might have written with. Not all the time, but at least once, give a quill a try. A fountain pen. A...

Vermont Poet and Publisher Samantha Kolber, of Rootstock Publishing .  One of this week's Write the Book Prompts comes from Samantha Kolber, who suggests writing for seven minutes without stopping. Put your pen to the page or your fingers to the keys, and have at it for seven minutes straight. Samantha loves this exercise and finds she comes up with great material by doing this: a draft poem that...

Angela Palm moderates this Fall 2022 Green Mountain Book Festival panel on Memoir, featuring fellow Vermont Authors Jay Parini, Brett Ann Stanciu , and former Governor Madeleine May Kunin.  This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to write a short memoir containing three things: the story of how you came to have your name, a recent dream you’ve had, and the way a certain color features in your life ri...

Local author and professor Dr. Millicent Eidson , who writes a series of novels concerning the work of fictional CDC veterinarian Dr. Maya Maguire. A regular NaNoWriMo participant, Millie spoke with me live on WBTV-LP about that experience. This Write the Book Prompt was generously suggested by my guest, Dr. Millicent Eidson, who reminds us that conflict and challenges are important in our work. A...

Live radio interview with Roseanne Montillo , author of Deliberate Cruelty (Atria Books).  Roseanne Montillo was kind enough to offer a Write the Book Prompt during our conversation. Keep a journal, recording both the trivial and mundane observations, but also details about your travels, your memories, your interpretation of favorite books.  Good luck with your work in the coming week and tune in...

Author Thomas H. McNeely , whose new collection is Pictures of the Shark: Stories ( Texas Review Press ).  This week’s Write the Book Prompt was generously suggested by my guest, Thomas H. McNeely, and it is drawn from our conversation. We talked about the objects that writers bring into stories, and the power that objects can hold. This week, consider doing one of two things as you work. First, w...

Writer, speaker and storyteller Gareth Higgins , author of how not to be afraid: Seven Ways to Live When Everything Seems Terrifying  ( Broadleaf Books ).  Gareth Higgins was kind enough to allow me to share one of the invitations in his book, how not to be afraid, as this week’s Write the Book Prompt. The invitation is shared in full at the end of the podcast (as is a breathing exercise from the...

Vermont author and poet Rebecca Valley , author of the chapbook The Salvageman , whose new book is Curious Cases: True Crime for Kids - Hijinks, Heists, Mysteries and More ( Bloom Books for Young Readers ). This week’s Write the Book Prompt was generously suggested by my guest, Rebecca Valley. Let a main character or a community about which you are writing grapple with an unsolved mystery. This my...

An interview from the archives with veteran Boston Globe Reporter Stephen Kurkjian , author of  Master Thieves , the story of the the largest art theft in history, published by  PublicAffairs . This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to write 300 words about a theft that goes wrong in some way. The stolen items could involve art, jewels, people, pets, or even just penny candy. Who steals what and why...

The editors of Vermont Almanac discuss their work. A recording of a Green Mountain Book Festival panel discussion featuring Virginia Barlow, Dave Mance III, and Patrick White.  This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to write about an insect or arachnid. We aren’t all as focused on insects as Virginia Barlow, but they are vital. This is a quote from the Florida Museum at the University of Florida: a...

Guest Interviewer Kim MacQueen speaks with John Killacky, author of Because Art , and Mark Redmond , author of Called , both published by Onion River Press .  Last week the Green Mountain Book Festival came to Burlington and it was a fantastic event! I'm on the board. As the festival plans for next year, we'd love to hear ideas for panels. So your Write the Book Prompt this week is to write to me...

Writer, editor and photographer Kimberly Garrett Brown , whose new book is Cora's Kitchen ( Inanna Publications ).  This week’s Write the Book Prompt is to consider an unlikely friendship. Who are the individuals and why would a friendship between them be unexpected? How do they meet? Are they in the same town, on vacation, at a rest area, in a nursing home? Do they hit it off from the start, or d...

A new interview with Vermont author Doug Wilhelm about his nonfiction book, Catalysts for Change: How Nonprofits and a Foundation Are Helping Shape Vermont's Future ( Rootstock ).  This week’s Write the Book Prompt was kindly suggested by my guest, Doug Wilhelm, who thinks about stories all the time. Find one observation: something you’ve overhead or seen, and make a story from it. This can be a p...