PODCAST · arts
Writing Stories
by Brianna Avenia-Tapper
Each episode of Writing Stories features an interview with a contemporary author about how her book went from an idea in her head to an object on a shelf. Join us on Writing Stories for honesty, struggle, and triumph, for writing community, publishing insight, and inspiration to persist in whatever difficult but meaningful journey you've chosen for yourself.
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The Sexiest Form: A Conversation with the Series Editor of Best American Short Stories 2025 and a Featured Author
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Series Editor Nicole Lamy and featured author Jessica Treadway talk about the Best American Short Stories Anthology 2025. The episode covers:Trends among the storiesWho reads the anthology in 2026 and how representation may show up differentlyHow to define a contemporary short story
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Developing the Negatives of a Life: Painter Pat Lipsky on 50 Years of Making Art in New York City
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Pat Lipsky talks about her acclaimed new memoir Brightening Glance and covers:What having a space means as an artist and the discipline necessary to endureHer life in the New York City art scene from 1960s to present day, including accounts of experiences with Tony Smith and Pierre RosenbergThe role Marcel Proust has played in her life and workAnd the experience of entering the publishing world from the perspective of a seasoned painter
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Make More Pots! Marguerite Sheffer on Perseverance and Experimentation.
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Marguerite Sheffer talks about Iowa Short Fiction Prize winning collection The Man in the Banana Trees and covers:the content of Marguerite's wide ranging speculative fiction stories that dive deeply into the practice of making art and some of our most critical justice issues in our culturehow design thinking helped Marguerite get to a place of wildness and fierce play and pleasure with these storieswhat it was like to win the 2024 Iowa Short Fiction Prize and how it has changed her professional lifehow writing groups and community played a role in completing this collectionwhat experimentation and sense of creative destruction can lead to in a creative practice
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To Have No Shame On Your Face -- T Clark's Journey to a Two-Book Deal.
Send us Fan MailIn this episode T Clark talks about All This Want and I Can't Get None and covers:the content of T's feverish and honest short stories about girlhood, shame, want, and choiceshow T found an agentwhat the path to a book deal looked likehow living in a certain place can foster a more balanced writing lifehow writing collaborative plays has informed their fiction
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With My Background in Publishing, I Knew Nothing Was Make-or-Break
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Samantha Browning Shea talks about MARROW and covers:writing her own book as a literary agent for otherswhen her first novel didn't find a publisherwriting with small children writing characters in the context of their relationships worry over whether a book will work find out more about Samantha herepre-order Marrow hereLearn more about the upcoming host of Writing Stories Jessica Kinnison here
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"This is my start" — Lorraine Russell tells the story of Love and Shadows
Send us Fan MailLorraine Russell tells the story of Love and Shadows. Along the way she covers: Self-publishing on AmazonUsing Fiverr to find cover designers and editors Fear of failure Getting yourself into a flow state Working with a writing coachWriting as though telling a story around a campfire Also in this episode: The Long Road to Publishing with Eva Langston Our upcoming new Writing Stories host, Jessica Kinnison (!!!) Catherine Lacey (Catherine Lacey, if you are out there, we love you!) Buy Love and Shadows here
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"I'm not writing just for myself" — Danielle Teller tells the story of FORGED
Send us Fan MailDanielle Teller tells the story of Forged and talks about: success as a writer rule-breaking the pitfalls of newspaper articles in novels Cassie Chadwick All the Ever Afters When your agent can't place your manuscript How her work as a doctor has informed her writing process Learn more about Danielle here buy FORGED here
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“There’s Someone Out There...I just Have to Find Them." — Christine Kalafus tells the story of FLOOD
Send us Fan MailChristine tells the story of FLOOD and talks about: Westport Writers Workshop Christine PakkalaCopy editing your own work Thinking about text structure like architecture Agent shenanigans Woodhall Press Shampoo and sugar as essential writing tools Combatting perfectionismJaclyn Gilbert and Drift(less) Literary Poets and their memoirs Learn more about Christine hereBuy FLOOD here
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Two Things That Are Anathema in Publishing — Deesha Philyaw tells the story of The Secret Lives of Church Ladie
Send us Fan MailDeesha Philyaw tells the story of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies Along the way she covers: Being in the Norton Anthology of Literature Jamaica Kincaid's story Girl The ways Church Ladies is proudly Black Ways white supremacy shapes the stories we read and tell Misconceptions about race in publishing Revision for her novel Boundaries Her brilliant agent and unorthodox publishing moves Learn more about Deesha hereBuy Secret Lives of Church Ladies here
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"Your Life Can Be Set Up Like An Artist's Residency" — Sasha Hom tells the story of Sidework
Send us Fan MailSasha Hom tells the story of Sidework. Along the way she covers: ProfluenceIncluding multiple nows in your writing Making appreciation a disciplinePolyphonic nature of restaurants and motherhood (especially when living in a tent!) Living life as an artist's residency Black Lawrence Press (Immigrant writing series) Learn more about Sasha here or here Buy Sidework here
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A Safe Place to Explore — Jennie Case tells the story of We Are Animals
Send us Fan MailJennie Case tells the story of We Are Animals. Jennie talks about: - control, safety, and risk in the creative process - speaking to the current moment - how to gesture toward the place beyond concepts in writing - agent troubles - writing a letter to your book - publishing with a university press (Trinity)Find out more about Jennie hereBuy We Are Animals here
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"Are You All In?" — Rebe Huntman tells the story of My Mother in Havana
Send us Fan MailRebe talks about: querying (and querying again!) hiring a publicistwriting about grief art vs archiving enjoying the ride the changing publishing industry Monkfish Press Find out more about Rebe hereBuy My Mother in Havana here
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The Dignity of Small Things — Libby Maxey tells the story of Indwelling
Send us Fan MailLibby Maxey talks about: - using sonnets to put the pandemic in a box - writing 'off of' other writers - the ancient tradition of starting a book with an author's address to the book - poetry land vs. fiction land, and how time doesn't matter- editing other poets' poems- giving dignity to small things - being 'bad' at 'pub days' Learn more about Libby here Buy Indwelling here
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Have The Audacity — Dori Lumpkin tells the story of Antenora
Send us Fan MailDori Lumpkin talks about: Comp titles and queriesCreature Publishing Religious tea drinking Setting up a book signingMethod writing (like method acting) Book tattoosLearn more about Dori here Buy Antenora here
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"I Learned the Hard Way" — Emma Pattee tells the story of TILT
Send us Fan MailEmma Pattee talks aboutPostpartum creativity Writing by hand Navigating the distance between one's own vision and feedback and finding one's breaking point with a project Confusing a desire to make art and a desire to be famous Going on sub for only 24 hoursHelen Phillips The Need Julia Phillips Margaret MaloneLidia Yuknavitch and Reading the Waves Buy TILT here
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"Charge into the Messiness" —Wayne Scott tells the story of The Maps They Gave Us
Send us Fan MailWayne Scott talks about Writing well-rounded characters that can surprise us Trying to sell a book that publishers don't think will sell to women Marriage as a storyEM Forrester's Aspects of the Novel Publishing a Modern Love piece, getting an agent and then having your agent lose steam Memoir as coping strategy Rayhané SandersCorporeal Writing Tin House residency Christie Tate GROUP Black Lawrence Press and Diane Goettel Molly Roden Winters MoreGina FrangelloLeslie Jamison Buy The Maps They Gave Us here
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"It's really annoying to write a novel" — Mariam Rahmani tells the story of Liquid
Send us Fan MailMariam Rahmani talks about: Preserving voice How to know when you are ready to bring editors and other readers in to your processRacialized pay gaps and racialized double-standards in publishing Streamlining of stories in publishing Putting a manuscript of 7 years aside Challenges of short story versus novel Danielle Bukowski (agent) and Evan Hanson-Bundy (editor) Buy LIQUID here
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Do what you have to do to get the work done — Cally Fiedorek tells the story of Atta Boy
Send us Fan MailCally talks about: Hardware and software in a story A need to detox from the marketplace Woeful inefficiency in the writing processZadie Smith and 'obsessive perspective disorder ' Furious throat-clearing Pregnancy creating writing urgency Sewanee review Keeping a manuscript under wraps and writing as solitary The sense in which approval is contagiousIowa University PressBuy Atta Boy here
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Questioning Assumptions — Nicole Graev Lipson tells the story of Mothers and Other Fictional Characters
Send us Fan MailNicole Graev Lipson tells the story of Mothers and Other Fictional Characters. Along the way we talk about: Sexism in publishing The 'mother shelf' Microscopic truth and Brenda Ueland Writing from "low-grade embarrassment" and "both-and-ness" Growing up with with the belief that you can be anyone you want to be and do anything you want to do (and how that might affect the ways you construct the challenges of motherhood in your thinking and writing) Maternal Thinking by Sara Ruddick Publishing with Chronicle Prism Buy Mothers and Other Fictional Characters here
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Once I found the voice and the mode of the narrative, I could just PLAY — Shubha Sunder tells the story of Optional Practical Training
Send us Fan MailShubha Sunder talks about: Constructing a narrative through the things that people say to the main characterCharacterization as a "portrait in the negative" Writing through divorce and Covid lockdownWriting from an immigrant perspective and immigration as a step in one's path to becoming an artist Characters as caricatures and the ways some caricature can strengthen a narrative How long it took for 'the gate to open' for Ursula LeGuin's writing Buy Optional Practical Training here
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"I DO belong over here on this side" — Nanda Reddy tells the story of A Girl Within A Girl Within A Girl
Send us Fan MailNanda Reddy talks about: Deadlines and focus Manuscripts in drawersQuerytracker critiquematch.comAccepting previously rejected parts of ourselves as part of the process of writing fiction Assimilation BelongingIdentity BookPage review by Stephanie Harrison
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Don't Revise, Explode — Elyse Durham tells the story of Maya and Natasha
Send us Fan MailElyse Durham talks about: Remaining open and flexible in the process Following your fascinations Focusing Most adorable book deal celebration Ballet, Greek Orthodoxy, and the body Historical fiction Writer to agent AWP Alison Hunter Trellis Literary Cameos from Brianna's kiddo Andy (he would like you to know that he DOESN'T have candy) Find out more about Elyse here!
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"Oh, you want a plot? I'll GIVE you A PLOT" — Emily J. Smith tells the story of Nothing Serious
Send us Fan MailEmily J. Smith talks about: Graphing plot points and clues That whole job/money/housing/social class/art tangle Validation, connection, tech, and writing Bouncing back from failureBringing an engineer mindset to writing and bringing a tech mindset to publishing "Prestige thrillers" Writing friends Interesting theory about relative challenges of agents and editorsFind out more about Emily here
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"Take Your Time" — Olufunke Grace Bankole Tells the Story of The Edge of Water
Send us Fan MailOlufunke covers: - Tin House -The importance of the relationships in the process of publishing your work -Elizabeth Demeo (editor) -Danya (agent) -What makes her a 'real' writer - Savoring -How good feedback can shift your relationship with your own writing Learn more about Olufunke here More Writing Stories here
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"You Don't Suck" — Lidia Yuknavitch tells the story of Reading the Waves
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Lidia talks about -story-telling space as a magical shape-shifting place of healing and growth-how to talk to yourself when your writing is lousy- pillow forts - creative coping strategies-being trained to retell the same story -how we and our stories change over time -writing a fable from something that happened to you Find out more about Lidia here More Writing Stories here
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"It Took 8 Years To Write" — Susan Barker Tells the Story of Old Soul
Send us Fan MailWhy write 'bad' characters? Why write 'bad' female characters? Being patient and having faith The line between good and evil exists within every man Stephen King and kinds of fear It Follows directed by David Robert Mitchell (film about sexually transmitted haunting!) Dracula Picture of Dorian Gray (please excuse my terrible pronunciation of 'macabre'!!! )More about Susan Barker hereSign up to join a free writing feedback group
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"Please Stop Me if This Is Going Terribly" — Erika Swyler tells the story of We Lived on the Horizon
Send us Fan MailAlong the way, Erika covers: Pacing Best moment of the book making processEditing that works with an author's vision Adrian Tchaikovsky and Service ModelAtria (publisher) Michelle Brower (agent) Loan Le editor Icky-post-pub emails Treadmill desk
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"Making art is a lot like making a kid—It is just this really intense expression of being alive"
Send us Fan MailSeason 4! Coming up! You'll hear from Erika SwylerEmily J SmithDeesha PhilyawLidia YuknavitchSusan BarkerNicole Graev LipsonJennie CaseEmma PatteeElyse Durham Shubha SunderDori LumpkinSasha HomCally FiedorekLibby MaxeyGrace Bankole Nanda ReddyWayne Scott
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RERELEASE! A Major Problem with Publication
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Yael Goldstein-Love talks about The Possibilities.We cover:Heretic barbiesPutting away ten years of work on a manuscript (possibly the best thing you've ever written)'A genteel form of homeless'Genre and its discontentsFeedback and recognizing a need for a POV shift in a draftHow women are socialized to prioritize others' perceptions of themBenefits of a really great editorHow publication can shift you out of your richest creative modeYou can buy The Possibilities here.You can find out more about Yael on her website here.You can peruse previous and future Writing Stories guests here.
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RERELEASE! The most hardcore writing hack ever
Send us Fan MailElle Everhart talks about Hot Summer. Along the way, Elle covers: Hinge A particular kind of single parenting experienceThe most dangerous writing appWriting as a way to try on alternative selves Collaborating with agent and editor on a contracted second book Romance novelsSomething Borrowed by Emily Giffin (My dog Pretzel makes an appearance.)Buy Hot Summer here. Learn more about Elle here Find out more about Writing Stories hereFollow Writing Stories here
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RERELEASE! Shannon Sanders talks about her award-winning story collection Company
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, I talk to Shannon Sanders about her linked short story collection, Company. We talk about:- writing your own murder mystery parties- writing through your feelings about others' offhand comments- signing with an agent a week before COVID lockdown- persisting in your writing through the birth of twins- finishing your book while raising three children under three- resisting, as a writer of short stories, the pressure to turn them into a novel- trusting your own aesthetic judgement- toddler responses to mom's book- LeVar Burton!You can find Company here.Also check out The Office of Historical Corrections and Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self by the author Danielle Evans who is mentioned in the episode ( Shannon is a fan! ).
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RERELEASE! Letting Go of What You Can't Control
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, I talk to Christina Consolino about her most recent novel, The Weight We Carry.We discuss:- NaNoWriMo- Prioritizing writing- The oozing guts of dead things- Controlling what you can and letting go of what you can't- The idea that not all characters are capable of substantial change- Publishing with a small, independent press- Trusting your book will find an audienceYou can find Christina's novels The Weight We Carry and Rewrite the Stars here!
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"The Blank Space Became the Book" — Amy Wilson Tells the Story of Happy To Help
Send us Fan Mail'Burn charts' for writing Linking essays the way one links chapters in a novelWriting and mom guiltBoundaries (and the lack thereof) as they relate to gender socialization Letting a manuscript dieSarina Bowen #AmWriting podcastWhat Fresh Hell podcastZibby Books Andrea Robinson — developmental editor When Did I Get Like This Jenny Nash's Blueprint for a Nonfiction Book Buy Happy to Help hereLearn more about Amy Wilson hereFollow Writing Stories here
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RERELEASE! "I Had to Do Whatever Was Necessary to Communicate"
Send us Fan MailElizabeth Hilborn tells the story of her memoir Restoring Eden. Along the way she covers:Moving from scientific writing to memoirNotes and research for nonfictionHoney bees, pesticides, and environmental degradationMindfulness and writingJill Rothenberg - editorDinty W Moore and the river of the storyFind out more about Dr. Elizabeth Hilborn hereBuy Restoring Eden here
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"Traditional Publishing Industry Bullshit" — Amanda Fields tells the story of My Caesarean
Send us Fan MailEditing an essay collection Organizing an essay collection Literary Mama C-sectionsBlurbsWorking with mothersJulie Stevenson (agent) Labor Day (collection of birth stories including one from Cheryl Strayed) Writing your spouse (or not) launch parties The Experiment pressBuy My Caesarean hereLearn more about Amanda hereFollow Writing Stories here
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"If You're Not Getting the Dopamine Boost, Then Why Bother?" — Terese Svoboda tells the story of Roxy and Coco and The Long Swim
Send us Fan MailThe key to being able to write a lot YADDO and writing 50 pages a day (????)What makes a 'real' writerWriting groups that last 40 yearsIn-person author events and signings"The sad wilderness of selves calling out for publication"Launch pad from The Authors Guild Getting an editor on Reedsy Learn more about Terese hereBuy The Long Swim hereBuy Roxy and Coco here Follow Writing Stories here
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This Very Sacrificial Thing — Jaclyn Gilbert Tells the Story of Late Air
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Jaclyn tells the story of Late Air. Along the way she covers: goal orientationRunningDriftless Literary upcoming course on navigating the indie publishing landscapeDavid Ryan (and his revision ideas)the denial of painMarya SpenceBuy Late Air hereLearn more about Jaclyn here
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"What If We Free Ourselves?" — Vera Blossom Tells the Story of How To Fuck Like A Girl
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Vera Blossom tells the story of How To Fuck Like A Girl. Along the way she covers: Gender/genre crossover Diary writing Dopamine PressQueer zine cultureBuilding a queer utopia How great editors are like spiritual teachers and therapists Publishing as a trans writer in today's political climatePEN America fellowship and TanaïsLearn more about Vera here Buy How to Fuck Like A Girl Here
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"Too Many Emotions and No Tranquility" — Jessica E. Johnson Tells the Story of Mettlework
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Jessica E. Johnson tells the story of Mettlework. Along the way she covers: Agent troubles Her poetry collection MetabolicsA need for more poetry about motherhoodConnections between form, content, and 'material conditions of creation' in her work Gathering your mentor texts The inheritance of motherhood and the self-sacrificing mother mythMary Ardery's review of her book Emma Copley Eisenberg and HousematesLearn more about Jessica here Buy Mettlework here
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"A Dream Come True" — Polly Rosenwaike tells the story of Look How Happy I'm Making You
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Polly tells the story of Look How Happy I'm Making You. Along the way she covers: - When your conversation partner for your book launch cancel at the last minute- Bathttub stories- Going to auction- Keeping your expectations low- Making Shapely Fiction by Jerome Stern - Finding an agent in Poets and WritersFind out more about Polly hereBuy Look How Happy I'm Making You here
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Writing From Post-Election Anxiety — Danny Goodman Tells the Story of Amerikaland
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Danny Goodman tells the story of Amerikaland. Along the way he covers:- Anxiety as writing fuel- how sports can be literary, romantic, uniting, and a useful literary tool - writing a different gender - writing pro athletes- Leftover Books - Being married to a brilliant editor - Antisemitism Learn more about Danny here Buy Amerikaland here
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Wonderful and Terrible — Jazmina Barrera Tells The Story of Linea Nigra
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Jazmina Barrera tells the story of Linea Nigra. Along the way she covers: World-altering experience of becoming a parentGendered double-standards in terms of what topics are worthy of booksRadical empathy Publishing a book in translation, working with a translatorTwo Lines PressForeign Body Linea NegraEdiciones AntílopeLearn more about Jazmina Barrera Buy Linea Nigra here
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"No One Can Read It If It Doesn't Get Published" — Kate Brody tells the story of RABBIT HOLE (Paperback out Tuesday!)
Send us Fan MailKate Brody tells the story of Rabbit Hole. Along the way she covers: Choosing a genre container to move her plot alongSelling fast in one country and slow in anotherSelling a book while in labor with her second childWriting a book while teaching and parenting Writing a second book when the first didn't sell Commercial ambitions and related feelings Dorland Arts ColonySOHO Press, Bloomsbury Find out more about Kate hereBuy Rabbit Hole here (PAPERBACK COMES OUT TUESDAY)
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"Nobody Can Write A Book Everyone Loves" — Brittany Means Tells the Story of Hell If We Don't Change Our Ways
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Brittany tells the story of Hell If We Don't Change Our Ways. Along the way she covers: - Taking care of yourself when writing hard things- The best way to protect yourself from post-publication despair and Zibby Books- The power of a good writing teacher- Complicating the popular 'homeless-to-Harvard' narrative- Why the submission process made her feel like a 'ferret with fleas'- Studying nonfiction at Iowa - Writing as coping mechanism - Kiese LaymonFind out more about Brittany hereBuy Hell If We Don't Change Our Ways here
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Moving from Doubt to Self-Belief — Kate Weinberg tells the story of There's Nothing Wrong With Her
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Kate Weinberg tells the story of There's Nothing Wrong With Her. Along the way she covers: why it is hard to live with a writer Stamina and persistenceHaving your book go to auctionThe emotional and financial uncertainty and fluctuation in an artist's lifeChronic illnessThe importance of celebrating writing winsThe TruantsBuy There's Nothing Wrong With Her hereLearn more about Kate hereFind out more about Writing Stories here
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Memoir as an Exercise in Perspective — Cheryl Klein Tells the Story of Crybaby
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Cheryl Klein tells the story of Crybaby. Along the way she covers: Big Feelings and sexism in our beliefs about what is worthy of big feelings Memoir as coping mechanismPresenting the self in memoir Publishing a memoir when you are living through the sequel MiscarriageBaby envy MUTHA MagazineBrown Paper PressZoe Norvell Dani Shapiro The Commuters Lilac Mines Buy Crybaby hereLearn more about Cheryl Klein here
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The Power of Lemon Cake — Marie Mutsuki Mockett tells the story of The Tree Doctor
Send us Fan MailIn this episode Marie Mutsuki Mockett tells the story of The Tree Doctor. Along the way she covers: The ways women are and are not allowed to write about sexThe depression that can follow publishing a book and how to overcome it (hint: lemons and sugar are involved)Differences in Japanese and American perspectives on the body Embracing one's creative range and curiosity Graywolf Press and editor Ethan Nosowsky The Tale of Genji The End of the Affair Marie's previous books: Picking Bones from Ash, American Harvest, Where the Dead Pause and the Japanese Say Goodbye Learn more about Marie hereBuy The Tree Doctor here
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"Writing is a place I love to come back to" — Rebecca J. Sanford tells the story of The Disappeared
Send us Fan MailRebecca J. Sanford tells the story of The Disappeared. Along the way she covers: The Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo in Argentina A new querying technique Being on submission for a year Finding an agent who understands your vision Buy The Disappeared hereFind out more about Rebecca hereFind out more about Writing Stories hereFollow Writing Stories here
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I'm Choosing This — Elle Everhart tells the story of Hot Summer
Send us Fan MailElle Everhart tells the story of Hot Summer. Along the way, Elle covers: Hinge A particular kind of single parenting experienceThe most dangerous writing appWriting as a way to try on alternative selves Collaborating with agent and editor on a contracted second book Romance novelsSomething Borrowed by Emily Giffin (My dog Pretzel makes an appearance.)Buy Hot Summer here. Learn more about Elle here Find out more about Writing Stories hereFollow Writing Stories here
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People Think That When You're Not Published, You're Not Working
Send us Fan MailAida Zilelian tells the story of All the Ways We Lied. Along the way she discusses: - writer's block- the value of touchstone texts and poetry - agents (the good, the bad, and the why) - how to know when to let go of a project - the Armenian genocide - The Stranger by Camus - Anjali Singh (agent) - book coach Karen Clark - The Goldfinch and The CorrectionsFind out more about Aida hereBuy All the Ways We Lied here
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Each episode of Writing Stories features an interview with a contemporary author about how her book went from an idea in her head to an object on a shelf. Join us on Writing Stories for honesty, struggle, and triumph, for writing community, publishing insight, and inspiration to persist in whatever difficult but meaningful journey you've chosen for yourself.
HOSTED BY
Brianna Avenia-Tapper
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