DIY MFA Radio

Today, Lori is interviewing Neely Tubati Alexander. They'll be talking about Love Buzz and the importance of listening to your intuition when crafting a novel. Neely Tubati Alexander is a first-generation Indian American mother of two. Originally from the Seattle area where Love Buzz, her debut novel, is largely set, she seeks to tell lighthearted, female-driven stories with diverse characters and...

Today, Lori is interviewing Anne Marie Wells. They'll be talking about her poetry collection, Survived By: A Memoir in Verse, and using poetry as a method of dealing with heavy emotions. Anne Marie Wells (She | They) is an award-winning Queer poet, playwright, memoirist, and storyteller navigating the world with a chronic illness. She is a faculty member for The Community Literature Initiative thr...

Today, Lori is interviewing Donnaldson Brown. They'll be talking about Because I Loved You, and about how her background in screenwriting has influenced her prose. Donnaldson 's debut novel, Because I Loved You, is due out in April 2023 with She Writes Press. An attorney and former screenwriter, she worked with Robert Redford's film development company for several years. Her spoken word pieces hav...

Today, Lori is interviewing Leslie Karst. They'll be talking about weaving past experiences into your writing and her new book Justice is Served.  The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karst waited tables and sang in a new wave rock band before deciding she was ready for a "real" job and ending up at Stanford Law School. It was during her career as a research and appellate attorney...

Today, Lori is interviewing Danielle Mitchell. They'll be talking about the methodology of writing and reading poetry. Danielle Mitchell (she/her) is an intersectional feminist, poet, and teaching artist. She is the Founding Director of The Poetry Lab, an online learning platform that rallies in service of working-class writers around the globe. Danielle is the author of Makes the Daughter-in-Law...

Today, Lori is interviewing Patricia Leavy. They'll be talking about her book, Hollyland, and the science behind the art of writing. Patricia Leavy, PhD, is an award-winning, best-selling author. She was formerly Associate Professor of Sociology, Chairperson of Sociology & Criminology, and Founding Director of Gender Studies at Stonehill College. She has published more than forty books; her work h...

Today, Lori is interviewing Jinwoo Chong. They'll be talking about themes of loss and disconnection and how they relate to his book Flux . Jinwoo Chong is the author of the novel Flux , coming March 21, 2023 from Melville House. His work has appeared in The Southern Review, Chicago Quarterly Review, The Florida Review, CRAFT, and Salamander. He received the Oran Robert Perry Burke Award for Fictio...

Today, Lori is interviewing Laurie Buchanan. They'll be talking about Impervious and the mechanics of writing a series. Laurie writes the Sean McPherson novels—fast-paced thrillers set in the Pacific Northwest featuring a trifecta of malice and the pursuit and cost of justice. As a photographer and avid reader, she carries a laptop, book, and camera with her wherever she goes. Growing up, she want...

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Steven James. We'll be talking about his multifaceted storytelling framework, and his book The Art of the Tale. Steven James is the bestselling, critically acclaimed author of eighteen novels that have won or been shortlisted for more than a dozen national and international awards. His thrillers have been praised by Suspense Magazine, Booklist, and the Ne...

Today, Lori is interviewing Sorboni Banerjee and Dominique Richardson. They'll be talking about collaborating on their book, Red as Blood, and the sisterhood they found. Dominique Richardson and Sorboni Banerjee are the coauthors of THE EVERBEACH SERIES—a young adult, romantic suspense series pitched as "Riverdale" meets fairy tale. Full of forbidden romance, deadly twists, and scandalous secrets,...

Today, Lori is interviewing Thien-Kim Lam. They'll be talking about writing romance with depth and spice. Thien-Kim Lam writes stories about Vietnamese characters who smash stereotypes and find their happy endings. A recovering Type-Asian, she guzzles cà phê sữa đá, makes art, and bakes her feelings to stay sane. Her books Happy Endings and Full Exposure are steamy romances that will make you hung...

Today, Lori is interviewing Courtney Maum. They'll be talking about honesty in memoir and her book The Year of the Horses . Author of five books, including the game changing publishing guide Before and After the Book Deal and the memoir, The Year of the Horses , (chosen by The Today Show as the best read for mental health awareness), Courtney is a writer and book coach hellbent on preserving the j...

Today, Lori is interviewing Jenna Miller. They'll be talking about her publishing experience as a debut writer with her book Out of Character. Jenna Miller writes Young Adult books about fat, queer, nerdy girls who deserve to be seen and have their voices heard. When she's not obsessing over words, she can be found making charcuterie boards, befriending people online, cross stitching, or adventuri...

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Monte Schultz. We'll be talking about his book Metropolis , and the intricacies of writing alternative history. Monte Schulz received his M.A. in American Studies from University of California, Santa Barbara. He published his first novel, Down by the River, in 1990, and spent the next twelve years writing a novel about the Jazz Age. Monte is also a compos...

Today, Lori is interviewing Jumata Emill. They'll be talking about exploring social justice through multi-cultural experiences and his book The Black Queen . Jumata is a journalist who has covered crime and local politics in Mississippi and parts of Louisiana. He earned his B.A. in mass communications from Southern University and A&M College. He's a Pitch Wars alum and member of the Crime Writers...

Today, Lori is interviewing Jumata Emill. They'll be talking about exploring social justice through multi-cultural experiences and his book The Black Queen . Jumata is a journalist who has covered crime and local politics in Mississippi and parts of Louisiana. He earned his B.A. in mass communications from Southern University and A&M College. He's a Pitch Wars alum and member of the Crime Writers...

Today, Lori is interviewing Kendare Blake. They'll be talking about her new book One Girl in All the World and writing a reboot series . Kendare Blake is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Three Dark Crowns series, the Anna Dressed in Blood duet, All These Bodies, and others. She lives and writes in Gig Harbor, Washington, from under a pile of dogs and cats. You can find her on her w...

Today, Lori is interviewing Iris Yamashita. They'll be talking about how her experience as a screenwriter helped her create tension in a closed setting. Iris Yamashita is an Academy Award–nominated screenwriter for the movie Letters from Iwo Jima. She has been working in Hollywood for fifteen years developing material for both film and streaming, has taught screenwriting at UCLA, and is an advocat...

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Mary Robinette Kowal . We'll be talking about challenging your default assumption about the world and her latest book The Spare Man. Mary Robinette Kowal is the four-time Hugo, Locus, and Nebula Award-winning author of The Glamourist Histories series, Ghost Talkers , the Lady Astronaut Universe, and The Spare Man. She is a cast member of the award-winning...

Today, Lori is interviewing Amy Christine Parker. They'll be talking about coming up with unsettling ideas and Amy's book, Flight 171 . Amy Christine Parker is the author of the critically acclaimed young adult thriller novels: Gated , Astray , Smash & Grab , and most recently the horror novel, Flight 171 . When she is not busy dreaming up unsettling stories, Amy loves to read, go to the movies, a...

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Terena Elizabeth Bell. We'll be talking about experimental fiction and her book of short stories, Tell Me What You See . Terena Elizabeth Bell is a fiction writer. Her debut short story collection, Tell Me What You See (Whiskey Tit), publishes Holiday 2022. Short stories, poetry, and journalism work have appeared in The Atlantic, Playboy, MysteryTribune,...

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Heloisa Prieto. We'll be talking about all of the puzzle pieces in her book, The Musician . Dr. Heloisa Prieto is one of Brazil's most celebrated children and YA authors. She has sold over two million books in her native country. Her Mano series of YA novels inspired the Time Warner movie The Best Things in the World. She recently published 1,002 Ghosts,...

Today, Lori is interviewing Deeba Zargarpur. They'll be talking about family trauma and her book House of Yesterday. Deeba Zargarpur is an Afghan-Uzbek American. She credits her love of literature across various languages to her immigrant parents, whose eerie tales haunted her well into the night.  If given the choice, Deeba would spend her days getting lost in spooky towns with nothing but a note...

Today, Lori is interviewing Fran Hawthorne. They'll be talking about her new book I Meant To Tell You and Broad Topic. Fran Hawthorne has been writing novels since she was four years old, although she was sidetracked for several decades by journalism. During that award-winning career, she wrote eight nonfiction books, mainly about consumer activism, the drug industry, and the financial world.  Eth...

Today, Lori is interviewing Carolyn Hays. They'll be talking about the freedom that can be found in a pen name and her new book A Girlhood: Letter to my Transgender Daughter . Carolyn Hays is an award-winning, critically acclaimed, bestselling author who has chosen to publish A Girlhood: Letter to My Transgender Daughter under a pen name to protect the privacy of her family.  Her novels have been...