DIY MFA Radio

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of hosting author and illustrator Trinka Hakes Noble on the show! Trinka is the award-winning author of over thirty picture books, and has been hailed as the champion of the picture book genre. Her latest book, Rettie and the Ragamuffin Parade , is a historical fiction starring a young girl named Rettie in 1918 America during the deadly influenza pan...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am delighted to have author Zinzi Clemmons on the show! Zinzi's gorgeous debut novel, What We Lose , has already taken the literary world by storm establishing her as a strong new voice to watch. Raised in the Philadelphia suburbs by a South African mother and American father, Zinzi has much in common with the main character of her novel, Thandi, so much so that What...

Hey there word nerds! In today's episode I bring you again live to ThrillerFest 2017! This time I've assembled a panel of authors all published by Quercus books and who all start their very different books with a bang. I am so excited to be speaking with Adam Hamdy, K.J. Howe, and Sam Wiebe, and sharing our panel discussion on the show! Listen in as we discuss the process of writing a high paced f...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am so delighted to have Nancy Pearl on the show! Nancy is a book world legend. From her more than three decades of experience as a librarian and a bookseller, to her worldwide speaking engagements on the importance of reading she has become the go-to person for all things literary. Now with the publication of her debut novel,  George and Lizzie , Nancy throws her own...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am delighted to have Sebastien de Castell on the show! Sebastien is the author of the four part Greatcoats series which includes  Traitor's Blade ,  Knight's Shadow ,  Saint's Blood , and most recently  Tyrant's Throne . Before coming to writing Sebastien bounced around from careers as diverse as archaeologist and fight choreographer, and with the Greatcoats series co...

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of hosting Gina Cascone and Bryony Williams Sheppard on the show! This mother-daughter powerhouse team has co-authored the picture book  Around the World Right Now , a multicultural adventure through our world's 24 time zones. Gina is the author of 30 books in several different genres, and Bryony is a teacher at heart and loves bringing stories to li...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am delighted to have debut novelist Katherine Nouri Hughes on the show! Katherine is publishing her debut,  The Mapmaker's Daughter , at the age of 67. Her book is a remarkable feat not only in its scope, but in its depth. Listen in as we discuss the different and largely unknown (in western culture) historical framework of Katherine's novel, and the craft of writing...

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of having bestselling author Jane Green on the show! Jane has written 17 New York Times bestsellers, and her books have sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. While her latest book The Sunshine Sisters might be pegged as a "beach read" there is a depth and richness to the relationships between the characters that makes it so much more. Listen in...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am delighted to have Joseph Finder on the show! Joseph is  The New York Times bestselling author of thirteen previous novels, including the international bestseller Killer Instinct , which won ITW's Thriller Award for Best Novel in 2006, and two novels-  Paranoia  and  High Crimes - which became major motion pictures. Listen in as we talk about his new book,  The Swit...

Hey there word nerds! In today's episode I bring you live to ThrillerFest 2017 where I have assembled a panel of five, that's right  five , debut authors. Not only are all these fabulous authors debuts, they are also all women and represent different sub-genres in the broad category of thriller. I am so excited to be speaking with Jennifer Soosar, Christina Kovac, Lili Wright, Shelia Sobel, and Al...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am so excited to have Courtney Maum on the show! Courtney is the author of  I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You , and pieces of short fiction an essays that have appeared in places such as  New York Times . Her latest novel,  Touch , is the satirical story of Sloane Jacobson a trend forecaster who sees a move against electronics and toward in-person interaction a...

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of welcoming Ann Kidd Taylor to the show! Ann first broke on to the literary scene in 2009 with the New York Times bestselling memoir  Traveling with Pomegranates , co-written with her mother Sue Monk Kidd. She returns this summer with her debut novel,  The Shark Club , which has received glowing early praise and is available in bookstores now!  List...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am so excited to have bestselling author of contemporary YA, Sarah Dessen on the show! Sarah has twelve previous novels to her name, and discusses with us here her latest teen read,  Once And For All. Listen in as we chat about the ins and outs of Sarah's writing process, and how she keeps her momentum going to create characters and stories that resonate with teens. I...

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of hosting Karen Dionne on the show. Karen was the first author I ever interviewed on DIY MFA Radio, and is now the first author that I've brought back for a second solo interview because she's just that awesome. In this episode we discuss Karen's novel The Marsh King's Daughter , the very book she was working on way back in 2014 when I first intervi...

Hey there word nerds! Today I'm so excited to have middle grade author and fellow New School alumni, Lisa Preziosi on the show. In our interview, Lisa and I talk about nesting stories within stories, and the various craft elements—such as setting and theme—that make up the fairy tale framework. Listen in to hear us geek out over how to craft a fairy tale for modern middle grade readers.   In this...

Hey there word nerds! Today we're doing something a little different.  I have here with me in person, author and DIY MFA Romance columnist, Robin Lovett! Robin is the author of two dark, sexy, romance novels, and is a super advocate for the romance genre.  Her next series, of three dark stalker suspense romances,  releases this summer through St. Martin's Press Swerve, beginning with Stranger . In...

Hey there word nerds! Welcome to the 2017 Epic BookExpo Recap episode. If you don't already what BookExpo is, it's the big industry trade show that takes place in the United States every year. This year, things at BookExpo were a little bit new and different so I wanted to give you a rundown of what's new, what's still the same, and what I think all these things say about the book industry as a wh...

Hey there word nerds! Today I'm delighted to have literary agent Mark Gottlieb on the show!    Mark is an agent at Trident Media Group, where he has worked with the agency's chairman.  He is now working on building his own client list because he wants to help manage and grow authors' careers using the amazing resources Trident has available. In our interview, Mark and I discuss the topic that both...

Hey there word nerds! Today I am so excited to have Jay Swanson on the show. Jay is the creator of the world's first real-time fantasy blog, Into the Nanten , and has written a handful of other fantasy and science-fiction novels along the way. He's also a daily vlogger and has been posting a photo per day for the past six and half years! In our interview we dive into the creation of Into the Nante...

Hey there word nerds! Today we're doing something a little bit different. I have the pleasure of interviewing both a debut author, Jenni Walsh, and the editor who helped bring the book to life, Bess Cozby!  Bess may be familiar to some of you in the word nerd community, since aside from being an editor at Tor/Forge Publishing Bess is also the web editor at DIY MFA. Today this awesome author-editor...

Hey there word nerds! Today I'm delighted to have K.M. Weiland on the show. K.M. Weiland is an award winning and internationally published author with a passion for helping writers become published authors. Through her award winning website, Helping Writers Become Authors, she has mentored numerous writers. She is also the author of several books on the craft of writing. In our interview, we dive...

Hey there word nerds! Today I'm pleased to have Katherine Neville on the show. Katherine's colorful, swashbuckling adventure novels, in the epic "Quest" tradition, have graced the bestseller lists in forty languages. In fact, her works—including The Eight which we discuss in the interview—have "paved the way" for books like the The Da Vinci Code and others in that genre. In our interview, Katherin...

Hey there word nerds! This episode is brought to you buy our amazing word nerd fans and supporters on Patreon. If you'd like to help support this show, hop over to patreon.com/DIYMFA Today I'm thrilled to have Herb Freed on the show. Herb started his adult life as an ordained rabbi and became the spiritual leader of Temple Beth Shalom in Lake Mahopac, New York, at the same time producing and direc...

Hey there word nerds! Today I'm pleased to have K.J. Howe on the show. K.J. is the executive director of Thrillerfest, the annual conference of International Thriller Writers. This is one of my favorite genre conferences and I look forward to it every year. Today I'm talking to Daphne du Maurier Award winner, K.J. Howe about her debut thriller,  The Freedom Broker  and how to craft a strong female...

Hey there word nerds! Today we'll be doing something a little bit different on the show. I am so delighted to welcome Kathleen Audet. Kathleen is a brilliant image consultant and is president and owner of Your Authentic Image. She is also a good friend and someone who has helped me turn my own mindset about clothing and image upside down (in a good way). Today we'll be talking about how to use com...