Literary Prospects

Author Virginia Trench talks with Kelley Vick about her debut thriller, Our Secrets Were Safe , why thrillers are the perfect outlet for female rage, why we need more bad women in the thriller genre, navigating an author career as a mom, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, totes and gifts, a...

Author Brooke Lea Foster talks with Kelley Vick about her new novel, Our Last Vineyard Summer, the vacation that inspired the novel, writing in dual timelines, how to make a story addictive for readers, pushing through self-doubt, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, totes and gifts, and othe...

In honor of our 85th episode, we went back through the archives to bring you advice for aspiring authors from six critically acclaimed authors of literary fiction. Chelsea Bieker, Kimberly King Parsons, Samuel Kolawole, Marcy Dermansky, Jon Hickey and Cynthia Weiner all share their wisdom. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *F...

Author Jessica Berger Gross talks with Kelley Vick about her debut novel, HAZEL SAYS NO, what draws her to exploring family dynamics in her work, constraints in crafting memoir vs crafting fiction, the importance of cultivating and trusting our own taste as writers, and much more.   *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For lite...

Author Lori Gold talks with Kelley Vick about her new novel, Romantic Friction , the real-world publishing experiences that inspired the novel, AI’s changing role in the creative writing space, how big books become big books (and what authors with smaller marketing budgets can do to get their work out there), why writers need to be a little bit arrogant, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects...

Author Jon Hickey talks with Kelley Vick about his acclaimed debut novel, BIG CHIEF, the yearning for belonging at the heart of this political thriller, the power of patience in writing, balancing the art of writing with the business of selling a novel, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, to...

Author Daria Lavelle talks with Kelley Vick about her debut novel, AFTERTASTE, the connection between food and ghosts, what draws her to speculative fiction, balancing joy and humor with grief and longing, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, totes and gifts, and other tools for writers, chec...

Author Anna Mitchael talks with Kelley Vick about her new book, They Will Tell You the World is Yours, the little rebellions that make our lives, finding creative inspiration outside of outlines and routines, publishing a novel in vignettes, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, totes and gift...

Author Christina Li talks with Kelley Vick about her adult fiction debut, THE MANOR OF DREAMS, our cultural obsession with haunted houses, how the sordid history behind the founding of her alma mater, Stanford University, inspired the novel, how she cultivated her own writing education (and got an agent at 16!), and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and...

Author Jessie Rosen talks with Kelley Vick about her sophomore novel ALL THE SIGNS, why writing this novel was the most powerful creative experience of her life, finding “star twins,” the writing hacks that helped her finish her second novel in a year (after taking nearly a decade on the first one), and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing th...

Bestselling author Sarah Penner talks with Kelley Vick about her latest novel, THE AMALFI CURSE, how she chose the magical setting for the new book, why she loves to write in dual timelines, making the leap from corporate finance to full-time author, and much more.   *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, tot...

Bestselling author Alka Joshi talks with Kelley Vick about her latest novel, SIX DAYS IN BOMBAY, the unsung Hungarian-Indian painter whose mysterious death inspired the book, writing an accidental trilogy, the 2 mistakes beginning authors make, how she persisted for 9 years to get her first novel published (which became an international bestseller), and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patr...

In a special bonus episode of Literary Prospects, author Holly Kennedy discusses her new novel, The Sideways Life of Denny Voss, how she developed Denny’s unique voice, writing a cross-genre novel, and much more. She also shares heart-stopping stories from her real life that inspire her work. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members!...

Author Abbi Waxman talks with Kelley Vick about her new novel, One Death at a Time , how she finally sold the feel-good murder mystery she’s always wanted to write, growing up with an author mom, writing a series, and much more. *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only for members! *For literary shirts, totes and gifts, and other tools for write...

Author and publisher Laura Stanfill talks with Kelley Vick about her new craft book Imagine a Door: A Writer’s Guide to Unlocking Your Story, Choosing a Publishing Path, and Honoring the Creative Journey ; how distribution works and why authors should care; creating a literary community, and much more.  *Join the Literary Prospects Patreon for extra content on querying and publishing that’s only f...

Author Roohi Choudhry talks with Kelley Vick about her debut novel Outside Women; her long road to publication, braded narratives, uncovering joy amidst migrant women’s struggle, special tricks for getting “unstuck” and writing emotional scenes; and much more. *Learn all about Roohi’s experience in the University of Michigan’s MFA program and her tips for querying over on the Literary Prospects Pa...

Author Karen Thompson Walker talks with Kelley Vick about her new novel The Strange Case of Jane O, her obsession with time, the POV decision that made the new book fall into place, transitioning from book editor to author, teaching in a writing program, and much more. * To hear Karen’s favorite writing exercise and her advice on querying a novel, head over now to the Literary Prospects Patreon  ...

Author Marcy Dermansky talks with Kelley Vick about her new novel, Hot Air, the silly writing prompt that started the book; how she knows when to continue working on a project, and when to let it go; writing multiple points of view; swimming pools; and much more. *Hear Marcy’s tips for building a community of writers, as well as the major “do’s” and “don’ts” of querying agents over on the Literary...

Author Josh Duboff talks with Kelley Vick about his debut novel, Early Thirties , his journey from senior writer at Vanity Fair to novelist, getting his dream cover interview with Taylor Swift, balancing humor and darkness in writing, finding creative flow, his best advice for aspiring authors, and much more.  * To hear the dirt on Josh’s worst celebrity interview, along with his tips for conducti...

Author Angela Brown talks with Kelley Vick about her sophomore novel, Some Other Time , what draws her to including speculative elements in her work, how years spent teaching rhetoric to high school students influences her writing, imposter syndrome, and much more. *To hear more specific tips from Angela on writing a great query letter, head over to the Literary Prospects Patreon   *For literary s...

Author Jane Tara talks with Kelley Vick about her new novel, Tilda is Visible , the devastating diagnosis that inspired the book, how her regular meditation practice informs her writing, finding the courage to put more of herself into her fiction, publishing her first novel in the United States (after many others in Australia), and much more. *Hear Jane’s top tips and tools (and a secret trick) fo...

Author Holly Brickley talks with Kelley Vick about her celebrated debut novel, Deep Cuts; why a desire to explore her envy of musicians led to writing the book; how, post-MFA, she found her way to writing the stories she feels she’s meant to write; the unusual (and super fun!) job that originally took her away from writing, and then led her back; and much more.  *Join the Literary Prospects Patreo...

Five New York Times Bestselling authors: Emiko Jean, Fiona Davis, Julia Bartz, Marissa Stapley, and Lisa Barr, share their specific paths to publishing their first novels.   *For literary shirts, totes and gifts, and other tools for writers, check out our new Literary Prospects Shop . *For books featured on the podcast and other curated booklists, check out our online store at Bookshop.org,  Liter...

Lexi Rosen, Co-Founder and Poetry Editor-in-Chief of Silly Goose Press, talks with Kelley Vick about starting and running a literary magazine, the importance of finding literary community, what it's like to work with close friends, being the only romance writer in an MFA program, and much more. *Silly Goose Press: https://sillygoosepress.com/   *For literary shirts, totes and gifts, and other...

Memoirist Wendy Dale talks with Kelley Vick about her new craft book, The Memoir Engineering System, the difference between a formula and a system, why most “tried and true” writing tips out there are wrong, the two principal components of a memoir, how memory can actually get in the way of a great story, how “show don’t tell” can destroy a book, and much more. *For literary shirts, totes and gift...