087: Multiple Paths of a Writing Career - Interview with Jen Calonita

Hey there Word Nerds! I'm so glad you can join me for today's interview with Jen Calonita. Jen is a YA and Middle Grade author, and in this episode, she and I talk about writing what you know (and what you don't know) and also how to make the shift from one writing niche to another. We dig into the various twists and turns of her writing career and discuss Charmed, the next installment of her Fairy Tale Reform School series and also her new contemporary middle grade series called VIP. The first book I'm With the Band, is out now. Embed Episode Here In this episode Jen and I discuss: Switching from magazines to fiction. Getting connected with other authors. Writing series for middle grade versus YA. Keeping the story fresh.   Plus, Jen Calonita's  #1 tip for writers. About Jen Calonita It's no secret how Jen knows the inside scoop on Hollywood. As a former entertainment editor at a teen magazine, she started her career chronicling backstage life at Justin Timberlake concerts and interviewing Zac Efron on film sets. This work inspired her first series, Secrets of My Hollywood Life which has been published in 9 countries. Jen tackles worlds she finds familiar, from summer camp stories like Sleepaway Girls and Summer State of Mind (she was a camp counselor as a teen), to reality TV (which she also covered in magazines) in Reality Check. But it wasn't until she wrote Belles (about two polar opposite girls who share one life-altering secret) that she entered a world different from her own. It was so much fun creating a new world that Jen jumped into the fairytale world and wrote middle grade novel, Flunked. To find out more aboutJen Calonita follow her on Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, GoodReads, Pinterest, and Facebook, or visit her website: jencalonitaonline.com.     For more info and show notes: DIYMFA.com/087