Writer, Writer, Pants On Fire

Today’s guest is J. Ryan Stradal. His first novel, Kitchens of the Great Midwest , was published by Viking in 2015, and reached the New York Times Hardcover Best Seller list. His short fiction has appeared in Hobart, The Rumpus, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Los Angeles Review of Books, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, Electric Literature, and Midwestern Gothic, among others. His second...

Today’s guest is Chelsea Bobulski who graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in history. As a writer, she has a soft spot for characters with broken pasts, strange talents, and obstacles they must overcome for a brighter future. Her debut young adult novel, THE WOOD is available now. Her next release REMEMBER ME releases August 6th. Chelsea joined me today to talk about querying fo...

   Today’s guest is Kelly DeVos whose work on body positivity has been featured in the New York Times as well as on Vulture, Salon, Bustle and SheKnows. Her debut novel, Fat Girl on a Plane, named one of the “50 Best Summer Reads of All Time” by Reader’s Digest magazine, is available now from HarperCollins. Her second book, Day Zero, is coming in 2019 from Inkyard Press/HarperCollins. Kelly joined...

Today’s guest is Lauren Mechling, who has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Slate, The New Yorker online, and Vogue, where she writes a regular book column. She's worked as a crime reporter and metro columnist for The New York Sun, a young adult novelist, and a features editor at The Wall Street Journal. A graduate of Harvard College, she lives in Brooklyn with her husband a...

Today’s guest is Andrea Hannah, an award-winning author, essayist, and workshop leader. She teaches on living a healthy creative life at her Wild Heart Retreats and writes about making art on Twitter and Instagram (@andeehannah). Andrea joined me today to talk using the same process whether she’s writing fiction or non-fiction, and the constant hustle of being a successful freelancer, how her upco...

Today’s guest is Lauren Kate. the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the Fallen novels, the Teardrop novels, and The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove. Her books have been translated into more than 30 languages. Kate joined me today to talk about the inspiration for her newest adult historical, The Orphan’s Song. Also covered: what differences – if any – there are in writing fo...

Today’s guest is Aileen Erin , who is half-Irish, half-Mexican, and 100% nerd—from Star Wars to Star Trek, she geeks out on Tolkien’s linguistics, and has a severe fascination with the supernatural. Aileen has a BS in Radio-TV-Film from the University of Texas at Austin, and an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She lives with her husband and daughter in Los Angeles. Aileen...

Today's guest is Gillian McAllister, a British author best known for her bestselling debut novel Everything But The Truth. Her new US release, The Good Sister, is an electrifying novel about the unyielding bond between two sisters, which is severely tested when one of them is accused of the worst imaginable crime. Gillian joined me to talk about how her background in law helps illuminate her ficti...

Today’s guest is Lori Goldstein, former journalist and current author and editor who has a bachelor's in journalism and previously worked for technology publications in the “East Coast Silicon Valley” city of Boston. Lori joined me today to talk about about how the query process actually works – even though we all know how painful it is. Also, writing loss leaders like prequel novellas and pre-ord...

Today’s guest is Melanie Thorne, who earned her MA in Creative Writing from the University of California, Davis, where she worked with Pam Houston and Lynn Freed. Her thesis there was the first draft of what later became her debut novel,  Hand Me Down ,  which has been widely praised. Melanie joined me today to talk about presenting a memoir through the veil of fiction, and how the reading audienc...

Today brings a special guest to the show. Number one internationally bestselling author Jeffery Deaver dropped by to talk about his newest release - The Never Game - which introduces a new series character, Colter Shaw. Also covered: character as setting, blending the world of survivalism with gaming, and writing a message without hitting your audience over the head with it.   Buy The Never Game N...

Today’s guest is Katya de Becarra, who was born in Russia, studied in California, lived in Peru, and then stayed in Australia long enough to become a local. She was going to be an Egyptologist when she grew up, but instead she earned a PhD in Anthropology and now works as a university lecturer and a researcher. Her debut What The Woods Keep was released in three countries in 2018. Katya joined me...

Today’s guest is Beth Kander, an award-winning playwright and author, the second book in her dystopian epic Original Syn comes out this fall from Owl House Books. Beth joined me today to talk selling a novel to a smaller publishing house on her own, and the risks of writing to the trend, if the trend might stick you in a niche. Also covered: the marriage of business and creativity necessary to mak...

A bonus episode for my listeners! I was recently interviewed by my local radio station, and thought I would re-broadcast for you.

 Today’s guest is Blair Hurley, who received her A.B. from Princeton University and her M.F.A. from NYU. Her stories are published or forthcoming in Ninth Letter, The Georgia Review, West Branch, Mid-American Review, Washington Square, Hayden’s Ferry Review, Descant, Fugue, and elsewhere. She has received a 2018 Pushcart Prize and scholarships from Bread Loaf and the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center f...

Today’s guest is Anne O’Brien Carelli author of Skylark and Wallcreeper, a middle grade story that alternates between Brooklyn in 2012 and the German-occupied town of Brume in 1944. Anne joined me today to talk about writing for children, and the amount of research required to write historical fiction – no matter the age, as well as using incubation and your subconscious to think your way around t...

Today’s guest is Hilary L. Jastram owner of J. Hill Marketing, specializing in copywriting and book editing for entrepreneurs. She is an author and contributor to multiple media as well as the founder of Sick Biz, a non-profit supporting sick and disabled entrepreneurs. Hilary also hosts the podcast Sick Biz Buzz. Hilary joined me today to talk about her own diagnosis, moving past illness as an id...

Today’s guest is Elizabeth Tammi, author of Outrun the Wind which released from Flux  in 2018, and the forthcoming The Weight of a Soul, coming in December of 2019. Elizabeth studies creative writing and journalism at Mercer University, where she works for her college’s newspaper and literary magazine. Elizabeth joined me today to talk about landing a publishing deal without an agent and achieving...

Today’s guest is Anica Mrose Riss i the author of the Anna, Banana chapter-book series , the picture books Watch Out for Wolf! and The Teacher’s Pet , as well as a YA novel, Always Forever Maybe . Her essays have been published by The Writer and the New York Times, and she plays fiddle in and writes lyrics for the band Owen Lake and the Tragic Loves. Anica grew up in Maine and spent many years in...

Today's guest is Sean Petrie, a founding member of the poetry group Typewriter Rodeo and co-author of  Typewriter Rodeo: Real People, Real Stories, Custom Poems (Andrews McMeel Universal 2018). He has six short children's books coming out in 2019-20 for Fountas & Pinnell / Houghton Mifflin. Sean teaches poetry workshops, has an MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and typ...

Capping off 2018 with 10 resolutions for writers in 2019... and 10 things NOT to do in 2019. Support the Podcast Ad Links: Sleight by Jennifer Sommersby How She Died, How I Lived by Mary Crockett

In this episode: How to know when you need to walk away from that draft, steps to take to make sure nothing you write is ever wasted, and some tips for getting unstuck. Also covered: approaches to editing, and when to hire a professional editor. 

Today's topics include inspiration - where does it come from and how does it work? Also, the pros of fan-fiction and how it helps build essential skills, plus how to make the leap from writing it to creating your own works.

Making yourself write - aren't you supposed to WANT to?  Also covered - Top 5 Mistakes When You're New To Querying and Submitting.

Welcome to November and National Novel Writing Month. Today I'm talking about how a program like Nano can be motivating, and how to write from your gut and worry less about craft. Ad Links: Synchro Boy by Shannon McFerran Ten After Closing by Jessica Bayliss