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Episodes
Writers talk craft, agent hunt, query trenches, publishing industry, and more. Hosted by Mindy McGinnis.
Episodes
Monday Jun 26, 2017
Monday Jun 26, 2017
Today’s guest is Jessica Strawser, editor of Writer’s Digest, and author of ALMOST MISSED YOU, which was named to the March 2017 Barnes & Noble Best New Fiction List. Jessica joins host Mindy McGinnis to talk about how her career in journalism led to a position at Writers Digest, and how that informs her fiction writing, as well as her novel, ALMOST MISSED YOU, which deals with miscommunication in relationships, the all-encompassing love of motherhood, and the question of if we truly know our significant other.
Episode Links:
Monday Jun 05, 2017
Monday Jun 05, 2017
Michelle Gagnon, author of the Kelly Jones mystery series, the YA tech-thriller Persefone trilogy, as well as her newest, a Jane Eyre retelling titled Unearthly Things, joins host Mindy McGinnis to talk about the process of acquiring an agent, the hard truth about discovering your agent is a bad fit after the fact, and the unique differences in screenplay writing versus fiction. Also covered: jumping from adult to YA audiences and reading Jane Eyre as an adult and discovering that Rochester is… kind of a creeper.
Links:
Monday May 15, 2017
Monday May 15, 2017
Guest historical fiction author Alyssa Palombo speaks with host Mindy McGinnis about her novels, The Violinist of Venice and The Most Beautiful Woman in Florence. Alyssa also shares about querying a novel that wasn't ready yet, immersing herself in the time period of her characters, the shifting standards of beauty from age to age, and how to balance blogging and writing fiction.
Links:
Writer's Digest Guide to Literary Agents
Monday May 08, 2017
Monday May 08, 2017
Writer, Writer, Pants on Fire welcomes Kurt Dinan, author of the YA novel, DON’T GET CAUGHT, which was recently nominated for YALSA’s Teen Top Ten. Kurt joins host Mindy McGinnis to talk about how querying is like taking a stick in the eye every day, and how writing short stories helped him be a better novelist. Also covered: how mashups not only help pitch a book, but can also help the author find a key to unlocking their project, as well as the specific struggles of writing humor, and every writer’s worst enemy – procrastination. Lastly, Mindy tries very hard to wheedle him into using social media more, and they talk about things you didn’t know were poisonous, as well as their porn names.
Links:
Monday Apr 10, 2017
Monday Apr 10, 2017
Middle Grade author Janet Sumner Johnson talks about her debut novel, THE LAST GREAT ADVENTURE OF THE PB&J SOCIETY, as well as the challenge of writing for middle graders, the assumption that books for children are somehow lesser than books written for adults, as well as the question of what content to include for younger readers.
Links:
Dee Romito's Query Sign Submit
Janet Sumner Johnson:
Monday Apr 03, 2017
Monday Apr 03, 2017
Guest Lydia Kang, author of SciFi YA titles CONTROL & CATALYST, talks with host Mindy McGinnis about writing across multiple genres (Lydia also has an adult historical and a non-fiction title on the way), the amount of research required in order to get details right - and how mistakes are inevitable, regardless.
Links:
Lydia's Books -
QUACKERY: A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE WORST WAYS TO CURE EVERYTHING
Lydia's Social Media -
Sunday Mar 19, 2017
Sunday Mar 19, 2017
M-E Girard, author of GIRL MANS UP, joins host Mindy McGinnis to talk about the amount of research involved in the agent hunt, different stages of the authorial journey, writing queer YA, a day in the life of the successful and (not-so-beautifully) tortured artist, and the worries of setting a book in Canada when writing for the US audience.
M-E’s Book & Social Media
Monday Mar 06, 2017
Monday Mar 06, 2017
Guest Sci-Fi author RC Lewis author of Stitching Snow and Spinning Starlight talks with host Mindy McGinnis about how she got her agent and the writing forum that they both credit with helping start their careers. Also, the pros and cons of pitch contests, finished books that remain unpublished, the always changing world of publishing, and the importance of critique partners - how to get one, how to be one, and how to process their criticism.
Episode Links:
RC’s Books & Social Media:
Links In this Episode:
Monday Feb 27, 2017
Monday Feb 27, 2017
In the first episode, host Mindy McGinnis talks with author Kate Karyus Quinn about her journey from aspiring to published author. From the query process to professional jealousy, the life of a writer is not all wine and roses.
Links for this episode:
Books by Kate Karyus Quinn: ANOTHER LITTLE PIECE, (DON’T YOU) FORGET ABOUT ME, DOWN WITH THE SHINE, AMONG THE SHADOWS: 13 STORIES OF DARKNESS AND LIGHT
Kate’s Blog, Twitter, & Instagram
Kate’s Manuscript Critique Services
BNCWI Buffalo Niagara Children's Writers and Illustrators
THE HIDDEN MEMORY OF OBJECTS by Danielle Mages Amato Kate’s PitchWar’s mentee)