PODCAST · arts
#AmWriting
by #AmWriting with Jess & KJ
Entertaining, actionable advice on craft, productivity and creativity for writers in all genres, hosted by Jessica Lahey (freelancer, essayist and NYT best-selling author of "The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Children Can Succeed", KJ Dell'Antonia (NYT contributor and former editor; her novel, The Chicken Sisters, debuts in June 2020, How to Be a Happier Parent is available now) and Sarina Bowen (USA today best-selling author of more than 30 romance novels).
Episodes
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495: Hot Seat Coaching: Producer Andrew Parrella Steps Out From Behind the Mic
Jennie Nash launches a brand-new Hot Seat Coaching series on the podcast—real, on-air coaching sessions where listeners get to hear a story develop in real time. In the first episode, Jennie brings #amwriting podcast producer Andrew Parrella out from behind the microphone as he begins work on his...
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494: "I Had the Full Heart of the Question In My Hand."
It’s very rare for me to demand that the readers of my #AmReading substack pre-order something. And the bar to be my “Just One Book” is high. But here we go: The book is The Fountain—debut speculative fiction from Casey Scieszka—and you’ll want to read it, but even more, you’ll want to hear us…
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493: Write the Book Readers Can’t Stop Recommending(Write Big, Ep 14)
In this Write Big episode, Jennie Nash is joined by AJ Harper, author of Write a Must-Read: Craft a Book That Changes Lives—Including Your Own, to talk about a more meaningful way to define success as a writer. AJ shares her concept of writing a “Top Three” book—one that becomes a reader’s…
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492: Ep 492: What book format benefits authors most?
Hello and welcome to Nerd Corner with Sarina and Jess! I love these episodes because I will never, ever know as much about the publishing industry as Sarina Bowen, and I learn so much from her. This week, she answers a question she got from a listener, paraphrased thusly: Dear Sarina, I want to...
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491: What Finishing a Book Teaches You About Showing Up (Write Big, Ep 13)
In this Write Big session, Jennie Nash talks with podcast co-host Sarina Bowen about what it really feels like to finish a book—especially the anxiety and pressure that can come with “finishing energy.” Sarina shares a powerful mindset shift: there is no summit in a writing career. You may reach...
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489: Quit Laughing at My WOTY It's Not Funny.
Our Goals for 2026: Jess is gonna finish a novel. Sarina is going to figure out what she wants a long haul writer career to looks like. KJ is going to write this book as hard as she can and for as long as it takes. Jennie is going to claim her authority in the writing space. Our Words of the Year...
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488: Why A Growth Mindset Matters In The Writing Life (Write Big, Ep 12)
In this short Write Big session, Jennie Nash unpacks the power of a growth mindset—an idea popularized by psychologist Dr. Carol Dweck—and why it’s non-negotiable for anyone who wants to keep learning, keep creating, and keep going when writing gets hard. Mastery isn’t about talent you’re born...
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487: How to Take the (long, elegant) Gloves Off and Write Like You
Anyone who ever listened to Jenna Blum do interviews on the A Mighty Blaze podcast will not be one bit surprised to hear that we had a great time talking all things writing but most specifically writing BIG—which Jenna has absolutely done with her current book, Murder Your Darlings. Murder Your...
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486: You have To Tell Everybody It’s The Best Damn Book in the World and They Need to Read It (Write Big, Ep 11)
Welcome to writer/publicist Jessica Cozzi’s world. This is her pub week for her YA romance, We’ve Hit Turbulence, and, in her words: “I want to soak in every moment of this.” Writers, we’ve never interviewed anyone who was at once so practical and realistic about this industry—she is a publicist...
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485: Reclaiming Your Rights and Your Legacy (Ep 10)
In this Write Big session of the #amWriting Podcast, Jennie Nash talks with author and book coach Janet Fox about a powerful decision: buying back the rights to her first novel and reissuing it on her own terms. Janet shares her journey through traditional publishing, what it took to reclaim...
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484: Turn Toward the Work That Lights You Up (Ep. 9)
In this Write Big episode, Jennie reflects on the winter solstice as a powerful metaphor for the writing life. Using the natural turning of the year—from darkness back toward light—she explores what it means to keep choosing your work, especially when fear, rejection, discomfort, or uncertainty...
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483: Blueprint for Revision: The System That Makes Revision Finally Make Sense
Most writers start revision by re-reading their manuscript from page one — but that’s the least effective way to improve a book. In this episode, Jenny explains a clearer, more strategic way to revise using the Blueprint and the 3D Revision Process. You’ll learn how to step back, see your book…
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482: An Invitation to the January Blueprint!
It’s on again! The Blueprint is one of our most popular offerings—Our 10 step plan to help you define the book you want to write before you write 100k words in search of it—but this time we’re going in fast and we’re knocking this puppy out in just 6 weeks. Starting January 12 and rolling though...
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481: How to Write the Book Only You Can Write
Rachael Herron’s latest: The Seven Miracles of Beatrix Holland, is, truly and in so many ways, the book only she can write. It pulls from every part of her life: identity, spirituality, a love of what’s magical in the world, her joy in crafting and her understanding of community and family. I, of...
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480: Pulitzer Winner Jennifer Senior on Knowing Your Voice (Ep 8)
In this Write Big session of the #amwriting podcast, host Jennie Nash welcomes Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Jennifer Senior for a powerful conversation about finding, knowing, and claiming your voice. Jennifer shares how a medication once stripped away her ability to think in metaphor—the…
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479: Playing Big Means Treating Your Writing Like a Business (Ep 7)
In this Write Big session, Jenny Nash shares a story from her business mastermind about what it looks like to “play big.” From asking for help to boldly joining the conversation, Jenny shows how these small but brave moves apply directly to the writing life—and why writers need to see themselves…
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478: Thanksgiving Gratitude
Hi all! In honor of Thanksgiving, we decided to share what we’re doing to get MORE of what we’re grateful for in our writing lives—as in, try not just to give a nod to gratitude but actually increase the things we do to feel it. Enjoy! Are you staring down a holiday shopping list with a haunted...
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477: How to Write What You Love and What Readers Want (Ep 6)
Jenny Nash builds on her conversation with Mary Laura Philpott to highlight a crucial truth: writing for yourself and writing for readers are two very different things—and they need to happen at the same time. Start from passion, but bring market intention in early, because it shapes everything...
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476: Trusting Your Gut with Mary Laura Phillpot (Ep 5)
In this #amwriting podcast Write Big session, Jennie Nash talks with author Mary Laura Philpott about the surprising choice she made after her acclaimed book Bomb Shelter—to stop writing on purpose. Mary Laura shares how, after pouring everything into that project, her gut told her she didn’t…
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475: Ep 475 Publishing Nerd Corner: How Audiobooks are Made
Jess here. Sarina and I discuss audiobook narration this week and explain how narrators get hired, paid, and dish some inside baseball on audiobook production.
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474: How to Make a Big Move When You’re Stuck in the Muddy Middle
In this Write Big Session, Jennie and KJ dive into what it really means to “write big” when you’re deep in the messy middle of a novel. KJ shares how she’s tackling her new book by working backward from the ending—mapping out the emotional and plot arcs for each character to keep herself focused...
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473: How Writing Big Shows Up on the Page (Ep 3)
In this #amwriting podcast episode, Jennie Nash talks about what it means to “play big” on the page. Using Ian McEwan’s choice to write his latest novel without research as an example, she shows how true impact comes when a writer fully owns their story and brings it to life with depth and...
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472: Ep 472 Publishing Nerd Corner: Earning Out
Sarina and I both love these episodes where we, two certified nerds, get to hang out with likeminded individuals and dish. This week, we are going to talk about one of Jess’ most niggling worries: what does it mean to a publisher and an author to “earn out” a book advance and what does it mean to...
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471: How to Make a Quiet Novel Roar
You kids I can’t even with Catherine Newman right now because I am a Wreck and a Sandwich myself at the moment but wow, she’s a good writer, so honest it’s like there’s no skull between her mind and the readers. We talk about what it means to use yourself and your world in your fiction and what...
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How Writers Play Small Without Even Realizing It (Ep 2)
In this episode, Jennie digs into the sneaky ways writers “play small”—circling endlessly around an idea, polishing the same chapters, getting lost in research, or waiting for perfect timing instead of taking real action. With stories from her years as a book coach, including one writer who…
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The Bold Shift That Changes Everything (Ep 1)
In this episode of the Write Big series, Jennie unpacks what it really means to “write big”—not chasing bestseller lists or movie deals, but making the bold internal shifts that bring your truest work to the page. Through stories of writers daring to name their ambition, rebuild drafts, honor...
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470: Write Big: Welcome to the Write Big Sessions (Ep 0)
Jennie kicks off the new Write Big series with a conversation about what it really means to stop playing small in your writing life. If you’ve ever felt the tug to bring more of yourself to the page—or wondered why your words aren’t landing the way you want—this episode will spark reflection and...
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469: On Interviewing Kids
Kate Rope’s new book, Strong as a Girl is not only well-written and thoroughly researched, it includes the voices of so many girls and young women. In this week’s episode, Jess talks with Kate about how she managed to secure interviews with these girls, get permission to use their voices, and...
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468: The Scammer's Guide to Writers
THE SCAMS. They’re getting wilder and wilder, and harder and harder to spot up front or even before you hand over the cash, if the scammer is faking a service you’d have to pay for. We’re all getting these endlessly in non-writing life too, the ticket you didn’t get, the recruiter who isn’t one……
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467: When You’ve Written the Right Scene in the Wrong Place
Every draft gets messy. Characters show up too early, reveals happen too late, and suddenly nothing’s where it “should” be. In this episode, Jennie and KJ talk how to tackle the chaos and keep your words flowing. Episode is free for all and romping through podplayers everywhere. Transcript is...
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466: Publishing Nerd Corner: Your Copyright and the Anthropic Settlement
Hey ho, welcome to the Publishing Nerd Corner, where we dive into the more technical aspects of authorship. Jess here. I love it when Sarina schools me on all things publishing nerdery, so we decided to make it official and create a whole new series. I have a long list of things I want her to...
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465: Interviewing with Jeff Selingo
Jess here. My guest this week is Jeff Selingo, an author and speaker I’ve admired for a long time. His work on college, college admissions and the transition to work and life in emerging adulthood are essential reads for anyone looking to understand what want and need in higher education and…
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464: The Beauty in Writing About Tragedy
Guests: Rossana D’Antonio – Author of 26 Seconds: Grief and Blame in the Aftermath of Losing My Brother in a Plane Crash Marty Ross-Dolen – Author of Always There, Always Gone: A Daughter’s Search for Truth Two authors, Rossana D’Antonio and Marty Ross-Dolen, each faced the unimaginable loss of...
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463: Find Your Voice, Write Your Genius
This week’s episode explores how to tap into your unique creative genius and align it with your values to become the writer you were meant to be. Jennie Nash and Dr. Diana Hill, a clinical psychologist, dive into the Wise Effort Method. Hear about Diana's journey of overcoming her book writing...
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462: Writing Thrilling People & Places: Jess and Sarina talk with Tess Gerritsen
Jess here! A while back, Sarina and KJ talked about how much they enjoyed Tess Gerritsen’s novel, The Spy Coast, and Sarina reassured KJ she’d enjoy book two of the series even more. I had never read a Tess Gerritsen novel, and while I’d heard her name before and vaguely understood she wrote...
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461: Karin Slaughter Does it Again
Hey writers! Sarina here! I have never been quiet about how much I enjoy Karin Slaughter’s work. So when the opportunity arose for me to read her brand new book, We Are All Guilty Here, and then interview her about it, I raised my hand faster than an extra in a deodorant ad. The new book is a...
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460: How to Deliver Both Feels and Fun
How dare you? That’s the first question KJ asked Ally Carter, whose name is “synonymous with hilarious action and heart-pounding romance” (TRUE). Is KJ outraged? Hell no. It’s a legit question. Ally’s books are so so much fun, with wild action scenes befitting a Bond movie (or a Jason Bourne,...
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459: A Deep Dive Into Genre
Sarina’s second thriller is now out. It’s a twisty thriller with a single-mom protagonist and some deep, dark secrets. It’s called Dying to Meet You and it is creepy in the best possible way. In this episode, Jennie interviews Sarina about the new book, and about the difference between writing...
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458: How to Take a Break
Jess, Sarina, Jennie and Jess are all here to talk about taking a break from various angles: the mechanics angle, the guilt angle, the fear angle, the identity angle and inspiration angle. Mechanics. Leave yourself notes about the project when you leave off, for example, “The next thing that…
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457: Stephanie Pao has the job we all want. She owns a romance bookstore on wheels.
When Sarina found Stephanie Pao on social media, she knew she had to interview her. Stephanie has the job we all want—she owns a bookstore on wheels. La Fleuria is L.A.’s first mobile romance bookstore, and we are here for it. Tune in to hear our interview with Stephanie. We’re discussing how she...
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456: How to Capture Emotion on the Page
One of the writing skills I am asked about the most is, “How do I get emotion on the page?” People ask this no matter what genre they are writing, because no one wants to produce a manuscript that is flat and unengaging. Emotion is the key, but figuring out how to inspire your reader to feel...
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455: In Search of the Beast in the Clouds with author Nathalia Holt
I’m a big fan of Nathalia (Nat) Holt’s books, and am so excited to have the opportunity to talk to her about her new book, The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers' Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda. I first met Nat when her book Cured: The People Who Defeated HIV came out and…
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454: Ep 454 Mid-Year Check-In
Our goal words, as a reminder Sarina: presence Jess: growth Jennie: Teflon™ KJ: inner compass #AmReading Jess: Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid KJ: The Spy Coast by Tess Gerritsen Jennie: Shakespeare: The Man Who Plays the Rent by Judi Dench Sarina: Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez
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453: The Ultimate How To: Write, Pitch, Maybe Publish with Kate McKean from Agents+Books
This is the how-to book you need right now, the one with “am I ready to query” and “what does my platform need to look like” and “what if no one buys my book” and “what happens if someone buys my book”. We have a great episode, talking about creating this book, writing this book and living this...
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452: The Gift of Failure: Author Version
Karen Dukess’s first book, The Last Book Party, was wildly successful by any measure—sold at auction, Indie Next pick, Discover New Writers pick… you probably read it. The second… Didn’t sell. Not as in, not very many people bought it but as in, no publisher published it. She spent the requisite...
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451: New Series: From Soup to Nuts
Hi! Jess here. As an author and host of this podcast, I hear “I have a great idea for a book!” a lot, and while I believe everyone has a story to tell, I’ve only been knocked over by these book pitches twice. The first was the idea for the book Raising Empowered Athletes: A Youth Sports Parenting...
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450: Shifting POVs, Adding or Subtracting a Body... Writing is Revising with Meg Mitchell Moore
Meg Mitchell Moore is the author of Mansion Beach, a page-turner-y multi POV summer saga with everything you could ask for: a beach, a body, rich people behaving badly but also sometimes not behaving badly, parties, drama and just enough gender-swapped Gatsby to think hard about the meaning of…
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449: Sticking it to the Book Banners: A Glorious Tale of Pyrrhic Victory
Greetings writers! Sarina here. Earlier in May I was surfing social media, as one does, when I came across a story about children’s author Erica Perl and an ill-fated school visit. Her scheduled visit to a school was abruptly canceled. After asking a few questions, it was determined that a single...
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448: How to Focus on Work in a Chaotic World
Hi all, Jess here. This episode was Sarina’s idea, and when you listen you will understand why. It can be hard to focus on the work, whether it’s editing, world building, conjuring meet cutes, or translating research-based hope for the next generation. That said, it’s important that we keep...
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447: Imagining the Life of Jo Van Gogh
Joan Fernandez is a former senior marketing executive and general partner of the financial powerhouse Edward Jones. In 2018, she retired from a 30+ year career to be a full-time writer. Since leaving the corporate world, she’s become a member of the Historical Novel Society, the Author’s Guild…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Entertaining, actionable advice on craft, productivity and creativity for writers in all genres, hosted by Jessica Lahey (freelancer, essayist and NYT best-selling author of "The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Children Can Succeed", KJ Dell'Antonia (NYT contributor and former editor; her novel, The Chicken Sisters, debuts in June 2020, How to Be a Happier Parent is available now) and Sarina Bowen (USA today best-selling author of more than 30 romance novels).
HOSTED BY
#AmWriting with Jess & KJ
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does #AmWriting have?
#AmWriting currently has 500 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is #AmWriting about?
Entertaining, actionable advice on craft, productivity and creativity for writers in all genres, hosted by Jessica Lahey (freelancer, essayist and NYT best-selling author of "The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Children Can Succeed", KJ Dell'Antonia (NYT contributor and...
How often does #AmWriting release new episodes?
#AmWriting publishes regularly with 500 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to #AmWriting?
You can listen to #AmWriting on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts #AmWriting?
#AmWriting is created and hosted by #AmWriting with Jess & KJ.
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