314: How to Write a Cozy Mystery (the rules are changing): Episode 314 with Mia Manansala
Shownotes up front—but scroll down, there’s an announcement! Mia P. Manansala (she/her) is a writer and book coach from Chicago who loves books, baking, and bad-ass women. She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness, and her millennial love for pop culture. She is the author of 2 books so far in the Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery series: Arsenic and Adobo (...
45m May 06, 2022
45m
313: One Man's Quest to Find the Next Big Book Idea: Episode 313 with A.J. Jacobs
Jess here. A.J. Jacobs (https://ajjacobs.com/) has long been my inspiration for both writing and writerly mentorship, so I was thrilled when his forthcoming book, The Puzzler: One Man’s Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, from Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life (https://ajjacobs.com/books/the-puzzler/) landed on my doorstep. I adore A.J.’s work and this book might be a new ...
58m Apr 29, 2022
58m
312: Essays that start light, then hit hard: Episode 312 with Mary Laura Philpott
Fave return guest alert! We talked to Mary Laura Philpott in episode 71–#YouandYourBookstore, back when she was a Parnassus Books guru. And then in Episode 150: #NeverReady, when MLP (as we like to call her) launched her first book of essays, I Miss You When I Blink, into the world—and then again, for episode 163 #BookTourReality. And now she’s back with a new book of essays: Bomb Shelter: Lov...
51m Apr 22, 2022
51m
311: Where Should Your Energy Go NOW? Episode 311--everything evolves with Jess and KJ
Where should your energy go? KJ here, and in this episode Jess and I catch up on what’s worth it and what isn’t when it comes to travel, the importance of getting over any (non-pandemic-related) hesitation around taking the time for conferences and work events and also, in our usual digressive fashion, covers, paperback launches and boots. Links from the Pod Sana (https://www.sanastowe.health...
43m Apr 15, 2022
43m
310: Jodi Kantor Chases the Truth: Episode 310 is a Primer on Investigative Journalism
New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/) investigative journalists Jodi Kantor (https://www.nytimes.com/search?query=jodi+kantor) and Megan Twohey (https://www.nytimes.com/search?dropmab=true&query=megan%20twohey&sort=best) broke the story of Harvey Weinstein’s sexual assaults (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/05/us/harvey-weinstein-harassment-allegations.html) in 2017 and harassment and won a ...
38m Apr 08, 2022
38m
309: Nonfiction Masterclass: Combining Narrative Structure, Lived Experience and Geopolitics in Episode 309 with Scott Carney and Jason Miklian.
Like all great stories, The Vortex: A True Story of History’s Deadliest Storm, an Unspeakable War, and Liberation (https://www.scottcarney.com/the-vortex) was born out of writerly curiosity and a deceptively simple question: Why would India build a wall around Bangladesh?  I (Jess) spoke with co-authors Scott Carney (https://www.scottcarney.com/) and Jason Miklian (https://jasonmiklian.com/) a...
49m Apr 01, 2022
49m
308: How to Love Writing What You Can Sell: Episode 308 with Seressia Glass
Urban fantasy. Paranormal romance. Historicals. Plus the occasional billionaire, and now a rom-com, complete with a cute graphic cover that tells you exactly who you’ll be rooting for and what to expect. What do all of these things have in common, besides being written by todays’ guest, Seressia Glass? Two things. First, they’re all—as she says on her website— tales of overcoming the odds to a...
48m Mar 25, 2022
48m
307: How to Be on Bookstagram Episode 307 with #bookmarkedbya
Abby Kincer is a reader and a bookstagrammer, a fun person, an enthusiastic consumer of bookish socks and t-shirts, a user of filters, a wearer of glasses, a possessor of many tote bags and—that’s what I know about her! Because her Instagram is bookstagram through and through, and that’s why she’s here. We asked Abby everything we ever wanted to know about bookstagramming, from how she got star...
46m Mar 18, 2022
46m
306: Does Your Author Website Answer the Right Questions? Episode 306 with Anne Le Tissier
Crew, Anne Le Tissier is a listener with a question: What should I have on my website—and how can I get there without breaking the bank? She’s also the author of six traditionally published inspirational titles, some out of print, a speaker and the creator of a rather genius non-blog blog idea that I may just have to steal for myself. We critique her website and offer ideas for making it more p...
41m Mar 11, 2022
41m
305: But what if my old boss is pissed? Episode 305: Workplace Memoir with Cate Doty
Y’all, it’s an uber-informative, down in the trenches episode about writing memoir when it feels like your topic is on the lighter side—but of course, no truly successful memoir ever stays on the surface. Cate Doty is the author of Mergers and Acquisitions: Or, Everything I Know About Love I Learned on the Wedding Pages (https://bit.ly/3mn44ZO) . She is a writer and former editor at The New Yor...
1hr Mar 04, 2022
1hr
304: Sometimes You Can't Go with the Flow: Hacking Writing Energies in Episode 304 with Jess and KJ
Here’s the deal: Jess and I (KJ here) have been rolling with different energies lately. She’s letting the spirit move her. Being inspired. Putting time into other creative projects and inviting that to feed her soul. I’m stepping over other projects, telling the spirit I’m not home right now and keeping the spotlight in one place. In this episode, we talk about when you can—and can’t—go with t...
49m Feb 25, 2022
49m
303: Where Do You Get Your Ideas? Episode 303 with Sarina, Jess and KJ
Your first book, we’ve all found, is usually something you’ve been mulling for a while. You second might be the same—so the question, how do you get you ideas, seems both confusing—I don’t know—and unnecessary—I have lots. Nonfiction, essays—when we first get started we’re bursting at the seams. What to write next isn’t a problem—until it is. Or until you find yourself wanting to think about id...
45m Feb 18, 2022
45m
302: Writer De-Snobbification: Episode 302 with Katherine Center
Here’s Katherine Center (https://katherinecenter.com/) , author of soon-to-be 9 bittersweet comic novels that have been described as “the best medicine for human souls,” on her relatively late-in life discover of romance novels: “I felt like I’d discovered chocolate cake after a lifetime of eating boneless skinless chicken breasts.” We dig deep into the process of figuring out what you love in...
41m Feb 11, 2022
41m
301: Do Morning Pages Work? Episode 301: Is this, or is it not, the Artist's Way?
KJ here. Sarina wanted to try Morning Pages, the most famous ritual from Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way—a book that, tbh, has never, ever floated my boat, just as my resistance to morning pages—in my mind, a variation on journaling, which I have also never liked—has been strong. But Sarina wanted to try it. So we did, she in a fairly systematic way and me in what I still have to concede was ...
37m Feb 04, 2022
37m
300: ALWAYS WIPS Episode 300--Podcast #Goals, Translating Earnings, Talking $$ and Craft and Interview Skillz
300 is a lot of episodes, and we have recorded them. Things we’ve learned—the most famous guests aren’t necessarily the one that have the most to teach us—UNLESS you ask the right questions. WOTY Recap: Jess: Evaluate KJ: Play Sarina: WIP Links from the Pod Everyday Calendar (https://www.simonegiertz.com/every-day-calendar) , by Simone Giertz (there is no link on MOMA, sorry!) It was actual...
51m Jan 28, 2022
51m
299: How to Sell Any Book to Any Publisher-- Episode 299: More Info Than You Ever Thought Possible with Multi-genre author and teacher extraordinaire Sue Shapiro
How, HOW has it taken us this long to bring you the amazing Sue Shapiro? Sue teaches what is unquestionably THE class on publishing personal essays (https://www.susanshapiro.net/events.html) —her motto is “Instant Gratification takes too long” and her students’ success record is astounding. She’s the author , co-author or editor of 16 books in genres ranging from memoir to middle-grade and incl...
50m Jan 21, 2022
50m
298: How to Travel for Research (even before you sell the book)--Episode 298 with Sarah Stewart Taylor
“Just a little jaunt to Ireland to research my next book.” If that sounds like a dream to you, we asked Sarah Stewart Taylor—author of The Mountains Wild (https://bookshop.org/a/1183/9781250256430) , A Distant Grave (https://bookshop.org/books/a-distant-grave-a-mystery/9781250256447) and the forthcoming The Drowning Sea (https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781250826657) , all set in Ireland and th...
54m Jan 14, 2022
54m
297: How to Build a Platform in a Zillion (Not) Easy Steps: Episode 297, A coaching call with Alison Zak
Alison Zak has just been “jolted from being a writer to being an author” with the interest in her non-fiction book proposals—but with that interest came questions about… The dreaded platform problem!  That was the subject line of the reader email that caught our attention, and the problem is follows: you’ve got a great non-fiction proposal—but a relatively small existing “platform”. What is a ...
40m Jan 07, 2022
40m
296: [announcer yells] GOALS: Episode 296
Words of the Year from 2021/New words for 2022 Jess: 2021: Organize 2022: Evaluate KJ: 2021: Flow 2022: Play Sarina: 2021 Generous 2022: TBD Links from the Pod: Oh. What. Fun. (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09DKQKY28) by Chandler Baker Jetpens (https://www.jetpens.com/) Scrivener (https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener/overview) Hoopla (https://www.hoopladigital.com/) Libby/Overd...
38m Dec 31, 2021
38m
295: Heck of a Year: Episode 295 is 2021 in review
What did we notice evolving in the industry? What worked and what didn’t in our own writing lives? Here’s our take. We’d love to hear yours—check in via the #AmWriting Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/hashtagamwriting) . Links from the pod Findaway Voices acquired by Spotify (https://blog.findawayvoices.com/spotify-announces-acquisition-of-audiobook-leader-findaway/) Penguin ...
46m Dec 24, 2021
46m
294: Butter Up Your Writing: Episode 294 Using Universal Fantasy to Write Better and Sell More with Theodora Taylor
Who doesn’t want a craft book that’s fun to read and will help you plan your fiction (or memoir), write that fiction, revise that fiction and then sell that fiction? This week we talked to Theodora Taylor, author of more than 50 novels and one brilliant book about writing that made Sarina and I (KJ) go SQUEEEE and then text back and forth frantically for a couple of hours. It’s all about the “U...
42m Dec 17, 2021
42m
293: How to Build a Literary Life: Episode 293 with Zibby Owens
Ever want to know “how she did it”? This episode is our little version of How I Built This, in which we ask Zibby Owens—whose name you surely know by now—about how she turned a desire to be part of the world of books into a one-woman mini book empire. Zibby Owens is the host of Moms Don’t Have Time to Read (https://zibbyowens.com/moms-dont-have-time-to-read-books-2021) , a daily podcast featur...
45m Dec 10, 2021
45m
292: A Busload of Books: Illustrator Robbi Behr and Writer Matthew Swanson Take Their Work and Their Family on the Road in Episode 292.
Can a marriage survive nearly a quarter century of co-writing? I (Jess) present exhibit A on the side of yes, absolutely: illustrator Robbi Behr and writer Matthew Swanson (https://robbiandmatthew.com/) . Robbi and Matthew met in college, have been partners in life and publishing ever since, and they (along with their four kids) are about to embark on their greatest adventure yet.  Robbi and M...
51m Dec 03, 2021
51m
291: How Do You Write a Non-Fiction Book in less than a Year? Episode 291: Coaching Call with Emily Edlynn
Our guest on this episode has a problem—a good problem, yes. An enviable problem even. One that she herself is delighted to have: she’s sold a non-fiction book on proposal. And now she has to write it. 60,000 words, researched, organized and ready for the editor while also fitting in her day job, raising 3 kids with her partner and all of the other curveballs life likes to throw you. In this ...
50m Nov 26, 2021
50m
290: What Not to Do, Self-Pub Edition Episode 290 with Cate Frazier-Neely
Hi all! Jess here. I met performer and voice educator Cate Frazier-Neely (https://www.catefnstudios.com/) through a mutual friend earlier this year, at a Sungazer (https://www.sungazermusic.com/) concert. I was at the concert because my son is a massive fan of Sungazer bassist and YouTuber (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnkp4xDOwqqJD7sSM3xdUiQ) Adam Neely (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn...
40m Nov 19, 2021
40m
289: Why Can't I Finish My Novel? Episode 289: A Coaching Call with Ophir Lehavy
Why can’t I finish my novel? KJ here, and when I saw that heartfelt cry in our Facebook Group, I knew we had to answer. Because finishing is hard, y’all. It’s harder than starting. It’s harder than showing up to the page. There comes a moment in so many projects when the wheels are spinning but the Matchbox car just isn’t going anywhere. Ophir Lehavy is a coach herself, working with students ...
49m Nov 12, 2021
49m
288: Non-Toxic Feedback: Building workshops and writing groups. Episode 288 with Joni Cole
How do I find a writing group and what if they’re mean?  That’s a question we get asked a lot, and we always encourage writers to reach out in our Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/hashtagamwriting) or boldly throw it out there anywhere else online that you hang out and see what happens. You don’t even have to trade pages to be a writing group. You look for the kind of support an...
59m Nov 05, 2021
59m
287: I Have This Idea...Structuring Non-fiction and Memoir: Episode 287 Coaching Call with Emily Henderson
The hardest part about writing a book is … all of it. Or, arguably, whichever part you’re doing. For our guest on this episode, listener Emily Henderson, it’s something like “I know what I want to write about, but I don’t know how. Structuring memoir or non-fiction (or, for that matter, fiction) is hard, y’all. And I think it gets talked about less in many ways that other elements of craft. We...
45m Oct 29, 2021
45m
286: Breaking into Television Writing: Episode 286 with Will Morey
Hello listeners! Jess here.  I had the chance to interview one of my former students, Will Morey, about his career as a writer. He has always been talented, and even way back when I knew him in high school English class (actually, since he was eight) he has dreamed of working in movies and television. We talk through his entire career, from a high school screenplay about vampires to working in...
40m Oct 22, 2021
40m
285: When Agents Ask You to "Revise and Resubmit": Episode 285 with Mindy Carlson
Querying and submitting is a jungle, campers—and yet if it’s done right, it can not only work out happily in the end, but seem as if it were meant to be. “Meant to be” after a year of additional work, anyway. Mindy Carlson has just signed a 2 book deal with Crooked Lane Books. The first, Her Dying Day, comes out June 7, 2022. I asked her to come on to talk about her road to publication--becaus...
47m Oct 15, 2021
47m
284: When Inner Dialogue Isn't "Telling" and When It Is in Memoir and Fiction: Episode 284 with Jess, KJ and Sarina
The whole “am I showing, or am I telling” inner debate can be tough in every part of a novel, memoir or nonfiction-with-elements-of-memoir draft. You don’t want to “tell” about the action. You don’t want to “tell” about the setting. And goodness knows you don’t want to “tell” what the character is feeling. Except when you do. Sometimes a little telling, in the form of inner dialogue, is exactl...
37m Oct 08, 2021
37m
283: Where Do You Get Your Ideas? Episode 283: Turning situations into books with Heather Chavez
Welcome to what I think we’ll designate as a fresh new season of #AmWriting! We are mixing it up a bit this fall. It’s KJ here, and I’ll be doing some great interviews on craft and getting the work done. Jess has some interviews up her sleeve as well, and Sarina will be joining us regularly for what I like to think of as “Masterclass” episodes on craft and process. We’ll also be doing some “coa...
40m Oct 01, 2021
40m
282: Episode 282: 40 Years of Procrastination with Joy Imboden Overstreet
The author I’m interviewing today, Joy Imboden Overstreet, holds the distinction of having procrastinated on writing her first book longer than any previous #AmWriting guest—about 40 years. She is also the writer whose essay on her son’s unusual business venture enabled me, in my role as an editor at the NYT, to publish the paper’s first illustration of a personalized vibrator, and I will forev...
46m Sep 24, 2021
46m
281: Episode 281: Writing with the Door Open (Stephen King May Be Wrong)
Stephen King says: Write with the door closed, rewrite with the door open. In this episode, we dare to ask if maybe that’s not always the case. Does having to put your idea into words and get it into another person’s head weaken it--or force you to make it strong? Links from the pod: The Idea: The Seven Elements of a Viable Story for Screen, Stage or Fiction (https://bookshop.org/a/1183/97817...
42m Sep 17, 2021
42m
280: Book Launching Fun with Jess
By popular request, it’s the 2021 The Addiction Inoculation Launch Story! Jess fills us in on the weirdness and craziness that was a mid-pandemic non-fiction book release. Her advice includes: don’t try to do too much, target your energy—and ask for help making choices when you don’t know what to do when. We talk balancing an outside and an inside publicist, working with local booksellers for s...
42m Sep 10, 2021
42m
279: Episode 279: Collaborating, Revising and Proposing--What We Did On Our Summer Vacations
Jess and Sarina are back! After a hard-working summer and an August of anxiety (don’t tell us you didn’t feel that too), we talk about how we got all the things done and all the things we have planned, with a fun diversion into how and where to end a chapter to create the illusion of a break while keeping the reader hooked. Plus, a summer reading review that will absolutely add to your #tbr. L...
42m Sep 03, 2021
42m
278: Editing
For that moment when you’ve hit the finish line—and now you’re going back to the beginning and starting all over again in a different hat. In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get distracted and just start talking about the topic at hand. Funny, f...
26m Aug 27, 2021
26m
277: Writer Comfort Reads
Sometimes you just need to spend a few hours with someone who really gets you—without actually having to talk to anyone.  In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get distracted and just start talking about the topic at hand. Funny, fresh and full of ...
26m Aug 20, 2021
26m
276: When You Don't Know Why You're Doing This
Sometimes you find yourself asking—over a draft, or a failed draft, or a sagging outline or just during a really long drive—why exactly you do this thing we do. This week, we turn to some favorites to help answer that question. In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until...
34m Aug 13, 2021
34m
275: Writing While White (or otherwise part of the historically dominant paradigm)
Everybody, no matter what box we check or refuse to check on the census, sees life most easily from our own perspective while knowing there are many, many others. How do we write books that reflect the world we live in and all the people we live among—without claiming to speak about experiences we have not and cannot have? In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jenn...
38m Aug 06, 2021
38m
274: Getting Published
Sometimes you just want to make that thing happen. In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get distracted and just start talking about the topic at hand. Funny, fresh and full of frank advice, when KJ and Jennie get going they’re hard to stop. This ...
22m Jul 30, 2021
22m
273: #Writing Books for When You're Stuck
Sometimes writing is hard, y’all. Well, mostly it’s hard (and it’s a fun job and we enjoy it)—but sometimes you’re just really stuck and you don’t know why. You need help—and we’ve got books that offer it. In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get ...
29m Jul 23, 2021
29m
272: Sometimes Writers Need to Up Our Game
KJ and Jennie truly go head-to-head in this one, because KJ loves a book Jennie loathes. Can she talk her around? In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get distracted and just start talking about the topic at hand. Funny, fresh and full of frank ad...
28m Jul 16, 2021
28m
271: #Productivity: Write More Better Faster Yes Please
Who doesn’t want to write more faster and better? And who doesn’t get stuck spinning the old wheels once in a while?  In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get distracted and just start talking about the topic at hand. Funny, fresh and full of fran...
29m Jul 09, 2021
29m
270: #Plotting Your Heart (and Book) Out
You CAN write a book without a plot (check out Anne Tyler’s Redhead By the Side of the Road (https://bookshop.org/a/1183/9780525658412) if you doubt me, I swear to you that the most plotty thing that happens in it is the protagonist making a sandwich and yet you still want to keep reading). But if you’re not Anne Tyler (and I’m not), you ‘re going to need a nice plot arc to keep your pages turn...
32m Jul 02, 2021
32m
269: Finding #Inspiration on the Writer's Bookshelf
Cage match! KJ’s favorite book on finding writerly inspiration versus Jennie Nash’s favorite of same. In our new summer series, The Working Bookshelf, KJ and guest host Jennie Nash pull their favorite writing books off the shelf and debate: which is better and why—until invariably, they get distracted and just start talking about the topic at hand. Funny, fresh and full of frank advice, when KJ...
26m Jul 02, 2021
26m
268: #SummerReading: Whose List Looks Like Your List?
Whose summer #TBR looks like yours?  Call it a game, a competition or just an excuse to talk about books: this week we’re doing something new. Each of us will share 6 summer reading recommendations—some we’ve read, some we’re stockpiling for when our own vacations arrive. Your job is to pick whose list looks most like yours—which of us would you let choose the books for YOUR next vacation? (Fe...
36m Jun 18, 2021
36m
267: #Summer Writing Plans
Summer is… here? Nigh? Here and nigh? The sun is frequently shining, the end-of-year festivities are doing their kinda-post-pandemic-kinda-not thing and soon, if you’re a family type, you’ll have kids home for the duration—and if you’re not, the great outdoors will still be calling, making it harder to work than when you’re hunkered down during a snowstorm. We talk summer writing goals and the...
41m Jun 11, 2021
41m
266: #Sensitivity Readers with Jordan Shapiro and Jazz
Hey all, Jess here. When I agreed to read and blurb Jordan Shapiro’s new book, Father Figure: How to Be a Feminist Dad (https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jordan-shapiro/father-figure/9780316459969/) , I was struck by the attention he paid to inclusivity and the language he used to describe it. When I mentioned it to him, he told me he’d used a sensitivity reader named Jazz to ensure he g...
46m Jun 04, 2021
46m
265: Everybody Suffers, Not Everybody Can #Write About it with Stacy Kim
Stacy Kim is a freelance writer who’s beginning to see some real success in her career, with bylines in Real Simple, The Washington Post, Wired and more. We talked to her about getting started as a writer, finding her topic and her expertise, and learning that it’s not enough to have a story—you have to give the editor a reason to want you to share it, and the reader a reason to want to read it...
44m May 28, 2021
44m