Keeping Young Readers Engaged (with Alyssa Colman)
Fall is upon us and a new school year has begun. Kids are lining hallways and rushing to class, clutching their school work, and new books to read. Between independent reading and required reading, keeping young readers engaged with reading helps build lifelong readers from the start.
In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," middle-grade author Alyssa Colman sits down to discuss how to keep young readers engaged, how writing what she wanted to know more about kept her engaged, and her new historical fiction, Where Only Storms Grow, now available.
--------
38:31
--------
38:31
Meet Cutes, Miscommunication, and Queer Romance with Chip Pons
The conversation around publishing journeys is often binary: You either try traditionally publishing or choose self-publishing. But the reality for many authors is a combination of both. Author Chips Pons self-published his debut novel, You & I, Rewritten, in 2022. Now, he returns to bookshelves with her second novel, and first traditionally published, Winging It with You.
In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," we chat with Chip about all things romance, from writing the will-they-won't-they scenes to infusing genuine miscommunication that everyone can relate to.
--------
39:35
--------
39:35
Tackling Historical Nonfiction (with Robert Fieseler)
When you tackle historical nonfiction, you're offering doing more than simply putting to paper the events of the past. In author and journalist Robert Fieseler's experience, it meant hunting down sealed documents from a state that never wanted this history exposed, and it meant uncovering hundreds of names redacted from records and conducting countless hours of interviews—all before the actual writing takes place.
In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," editor Michael Woodson sits down with Robert to discuss his new book American Scare: Florida's Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives (on sale today), his process as a writer, how and if he employs fiction craft in his writing, and more.
Buy the book here:
Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/a/14625/9780593183953
Amazon: https://amzn.to/4e83Wt9
--------
1:04:47
--------
1:04:47
Writing Fiction Based On Your Life (with Jessica Berg)
How do you write what you know? By writing fiction based on your life. This doesn't mean writing memoir or simply changing the names of the people in your life: It could be a passing comment you hear at the bus stop, or someone's missing shoe you notice in the street, or it could even just be a feeling from a time in your life..the list goes on and on!
In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," editor Michael Woodson sits down with author and literary agent Jessica Berg about how to write fiction based on your life, how you can find inspiration everywhere, how to mine your life for story ideas in real time, and more.
--------
33:56
--------
33:56
BONUS EPISODE: Writer's Digest is Going to England!
Writer's Digest is heading to England! From September 12-20, you can join managing editor Moriah Richard and literary agent Amy Collins in London and Bath for the writing retreat of a lifetime! Listen here as they are in conversation with editor-in-chief Amy Jones about what to expect on the retreat, what they're most looking forward to, and more!
Writer’s Digest Presents is the official podcast of Writer’s Digest, where we’re writers helping writers since 1920. Hosted by the editors of Writer’s Digest, this monthly podcast features interviews with writing and publishing experts whose insights will help ignite your creative vision, hone your skills, build your platform, and get your work out into the world. Join us on the third Tuesday of each month for conversations, interviews, book recommendations, and a writing prompt connected to our episode theme.