First Draft Episode #290: Loan Le

Loan Le, editor at Simon & Schuster’s Atria Books and debut author of A Phở Love Story.

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• Bringing the Devil to His Knees: The Craft of Fiction and the Writing Life, edited by Charles Baxter and Peter Turchi

• Bringing Down the House: Essays on Fiction by Charles Baxter

• The Art of Subtext: Beyond Plot by Charles Baxter

• Jen Ung, Senior Editor at Simon PUlse and editor of A Phở Love Story

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• Elise Bryant, debut author of Happily Ever Afters.

• Leah Johnson, debut author of You Should See Me In a Crown, and the forthcoming Rise to the Sun.

• Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed, Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Leah on the Offbeat, and co-author of What if it’s Us, and Aisha Saeed, New York Times bestselling author of Written in the Stars and Amal Unbound, teamed up to write Yes No Maybe So.

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Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

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If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

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First Draft Episode #289: Catie Disabato

Catie Disabato, author of adult literary novels The Ghost Network and her newest, U Up?

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• Dan Chaon, author of Ill Will, Await Your Reply, and Stay Awake was Catie’s creative writing professor at Oberlin

• Edan Lepucki, New York Times bestselling author of California and Woman No. 17. Edan’s latest project is Mothers Before, a collection of essays and photographs based on the popular Instagram Mothers Before, which Edan created. She is also the co-host, with fellow writer Amelia Morris, of the podcast Mom Rage.

• The New York Times review of Catie’s debut novel, The Ghost Network

• Kirsten Reach, former editor at Melville House and current fiction editor at the Kenyon Review

• “Catie Disabato’s Novel ‘U Up?’ Renders LA’s Magic In Dark Bars And Chaotic Text Messages,” an interview with Catie by Zan Romanoff in CNMN magazine. Zan Romanoff, journalist and author of A Song to Take the World Apart, and Grace and the Fever, appeared most recently on First Draft to discuss her latest YA novel, Look. Listen to her interview here.

• Cassandra at the Wedding by Dorothy Baker

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• Edan Lepucki, New York Times bestselling author of California and Woman No. 17. Edan’s latest project is Mothers Before, a collection of essays and photographs based on the popular Instagram Mothers Before, which Edan created. She is also the co-host, with fellow writer Amelia Morris, of the podcast Mom Rage.

• Rufi Thorpe, author of The Girls from Corona del Mar and Dear Fang: With Love, and The Knockout Queen.

• Miranda Popkey, essayist and debut author of Topics of Conversation.

🗣️ I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

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✍️ Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

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First Draft Episode #288: Matt de la Peña

Matt de la Peña, author of seven critically acclaimed young adult novels including Mexican Whiteboy and Newbery Medal–winning author of Last Stop on Market Street talks about his newest collaboration with illustrator Christian Robinson, Milo Imagines the World.

This episode is brought to you by Plotting With Revelations, the three-unit online character arc workshop created by critically-acclaimed, Edgar Award-nominated author Erin Bowman (hear her First Draft interview here). Register at embowman.com/workshops by February 7th. and use special coupon code FIRSTDRAFT to save $100.

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

• Maya Angelou, poet and author of memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

• Ball Don’t Lie (movie)

• Elizabeth Acevedo, New York Times bestselling author of National Book Award and Printz-winning The Poet X, as well as With the Fire on High and Clap When You Land. Listen to her First Draft interview here.

• A.S. King, author of Printz-winning novels Dig and Please Ignore Vera Dietz and many more

• Steven Malk, Matt’s literary agent at the Writer’s House literary agency

• The Color Purple by Alice Walker

• Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

• Kadir Nelson, artist and illustrator of A Nation’s Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis and winner of the Coretta Scott King award for writing and illustrating Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African-Americans

• Christian Robinson also wrote and illustrated New York Times bestselling picture books you matter, another, and more

• Stephen Malk also represents Amanda Gorman, National Youth Poet Laureate and youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history, and author of the forthcoming Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem

• Sales of Milo Imagines the World will benefit The unPrison Project's UP with Books program, which purchases, ships, and donates new children’s books to interested prisons, then facilitates a reading day to help incarcerated mothers stay connected and involved with their children on visiting day. The child then takes the book home.

🎙️ Enjoy this episode? Check out…

• Oliver Jeffers, visual artist, illustrator of The Day the Crayons Quit, and author and illustrator of How to Catch a Star, The Fate of Fausto, and Here We Are talks about his newest picture book, What We’ll Build.

• Carson Ellis, author and illustrator of bestselling picture books Home and Caldecott Honor book Du Iz Tak?, talks about her newest picture book, In the Half Room.

• Jon Klassen, Caldecott Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of the I Want My Hat Back series, as well as the illustrator of Sam and Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett; The Dark by Lemony Snicket; House Held Up by Trees by Ted Kooser; Cats' Night Out by Caroline Stutson; and many more.

🗣️ I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

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✍️ Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

🏆 Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

👍 Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

First Draft Episode #287: Elise Bryant

Elise Bryant is the debut author of Happily Ever Afters.

This episode is brought to you by Plotting With Revelations, the three-unit online character arc workshop created by critically-acclaimed, Edgar Award-nominated author Erin Bowman. Register at embowman.com/workshops by February 7th. and use special coupon code FIRSTDRAFT to save $100.

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

• The Bailey School Kids series by Marcia Thornton Jones and Debbie Dadey

• Meg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries series, Size 12 is Not Fat, All American Girl and many more

• Sarah Dessen, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Once and for All, Just Listen, The Truth About Forever and many more. Hear her First Draft interview about The Rest of the Story.

• Megan McCafferty, author of Sloppy Firsts: A Jessica Darling Novel, Bumped, The Mall, and more

• The Animorphs series by K. A. Applegate

• Faye Kellerman, author of the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus novels, beginning with The Ritual Bath

• Sue Grafton, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Kinsey Millhone series, beginning with A is For Alibi

• Even Stevens (TV show)

• Lizzie Maguire (TV show and movie)

• J. D. Salinger, author of Catcher in the Rye

• Jack Kerouac, author of On the Road and Big Sur

• Beat poet Allen Ginsberg, author of Howl

• Gabriel Garcia Marquez, author of Nobel Prize-winning One Hundred Days of Solitude

• Teach For America

• Monster by Walter Dean Myers

• March, the graphic novel by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin

• Jason Reynolds, New York Times bestselling author of critically acclaimed books, including National Book Award finalist Ghost, Newberry and Printz-honored Long Way Down, Coretta Scott King Honoree As Brave as You, and his latest, middle grade Look Both Ways, which was just named to the National Book Award Longlist for Young People’s Literature. Hear his First Draft interviews here and here.

• Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give and On the Come Up talks about her latest book, Concrete Rose, as well as the upcoming Blackout. Hear her First Draft interview here.

• Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin, Dear Justyce, Odd One Out, Jackpot, and Clean Getaway. Hear her First Draft interview here.

• Lamar Giles, author of Fake ID, SPIN, Not So Pure and Simple, and The Last Last-Day-Of-Summer and more

• Madcap Retreats

• Katherine Locke, author of The Girl With the Red Balloon, who offers editorial services

• Taylor Haggerty at Root Literary is Elise’s literary agent

• Leah Johnson, author of You Should See Me In a Crown, and the forthcoming Rise to the Sun. Hear her First Draft episode here.

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• Leah Johnson, debut author of You Should See Me In a Crown, and the forthcoming Rise to the Sun

• David Yoon, debut author of Frankly in Love and Super Fake Love Story

• Christina Hammonds-Reed, debut author of The Black Kids, is in conversation with 2020–2021 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Jason Reynolds

🗣️ I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

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✍️ Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

🏆 Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

👍 Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

First Draft Episode #286: Kristin Cashore

Kristin Cashore is the New York Times bestselling author of the Graceling series, including Graceling, Fire, and Bitterblue, as well as Jane, Unlimited. She has returned to her fantasy world for her newest novel, Winterkeep.

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• The Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene

• Agatha Christie, author of Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, and And Then There Were None

• Dorothy L. Sayers, author of Whose Body?

• Center for the Study of Children’s Literature at Simmons University

• Liza Ketchum, author of The Life Fantastic: A Novel in Three Acts

• Faye Bender, literary agent at The Book Group (Faye has appeared on the Track Changes series, the bonus episodes Publishing in the time of COVID and The Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From Team episodes)

• Kathy Dawson, editor at HMH at the time she bought Graceling, and is currently publisher at Kathy Dawson Books for Penguin Random House

🎙️ Enjoy this episode? Check out…

• Sabaa Tahir, the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling An Ember in the Ashes series, which comes to a much-anticipated conclusion with the release of A Sky Beyond the Storm. Hear her First Draft interview, and hear her answering listener questions in her mailbag episode.

• Leigh Bardugo, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Shadow and Bone series, the Six of Crows duology, and the King of Scars duology, discusses her first adult novel, Ninth House. Hear her initial First Draft interview about Six of Crows and her most recent interview about Ninth House.

• Susan Dennard, the New York Times bestselling author of the Something Strange and Deadly series and The Witchlands series. Hear her First Draft episode here.

🗣️ I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

🤳 Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

In Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

📫 Sign up for the First Draft Newsletters

✍️ Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

🏆 Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

👍 Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

First Draft Episode #285: Angie Thomas

Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give and On the Come Up talks about her latest book, Concrete Rose, as well as the upcoming Blackout.

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• Richard Wright, author of novel Native Son and memoir Black Boy, among many other works, was born in Mississippi

• Passions, soap opera 1999-2008

• Pete Rich, Emmy-winning writer on many soap operas, including Passions

• The Angie Thomas Writers Scholarship at Belhaven University

• Howard Bahr, author of The Black Flower: A Novel of the Civil War, and Angie’s professor at Belhaven University

• Brooks Sherman, literary agent at Janklow & Nesbit Associates

• The Writer’s Voice and #PitMad are both off-shoots of Pitch Wars

• Brenda Drake, New York Times bestselling author of Thunderstruck and Analiese Rising, and founder of Pitch Wars and #PitMad

• Russel Hornsby portrayed Maverick Carter in the movie The Hate U Give

• Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Belles series and co-author of Tiny Pretty Things with Sona Charaiporta (listen to her First Draft interview here), which is now a Netflix TV show! Listen to Dhonielle’s First Draft interview here and here.

• A Tough Act Productions

   

🎙️ Enjoy this episode? Check out…

• Jason Reynolds - New York Times bestselling author of critically acclaimed books, including National Book Award finalist Ghost, Newberry and Printz-honored Long Way Down, Coretta Scott King Honoree As Brave as You, and his latest, middle grade Look Both Ways, which was just named to the National Book Award Longlist for Young People’s Literature.

• Becky Albertalli - New York Times bestselling author of Simon Versus the Homo Sapiens Agenda and Leah on the Off Beat and co-author of What if it’s Us WHAT IF IT’S US, with Adam Silvera and Yes, No, Maybe So with Aisha Saeed (listen to their First Draft interview here)

• Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin and Dear Justyce, Odd One Out, Clean Getaway, and Jackpot

🗣️ I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

🤳 Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

In Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

📫 Sign up  for the First Draft Newsletter

✍️ Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

🏆 Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

👍 Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

First Draft Episode #284: Koa Beck

Koa Beck, former editor-in-chief of Jezebel and co-host of “The #MeToo Memos” on WNYC’s The Takeaway, discusses her debut non-fiction work, White Feminism: From the Suffragettes to Influencers and Who They Leave Behind.

This episode is sponsored by Revision Season, the seven-week, virtual master class in novel revision led by award-winning author Elana K. Arnold. The Winter 2021 session runs January 17 – March 4, with Week Zero work arriving January 10. Check out more details about Revision Season and sign up at www.elanakarnold.com.

Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode:

• Toni Morrison, author of Beloved, The Bluest Eye, Sula, and many more

• Jezebel - the website where Koa served as editor-in-chief 

• Feministing

• Harvard Kennedy Shorenstein fellowship

• Michelle H. Mulligan, Koa’s editor at Atria Books

• Wall of Moms, which was formed in Portland and re-formed under Black leadership in August 2020, according to Vox

🎙️ Enjoy this episode? Check out…

• Anne Helen Petersen author of Can't Even: How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation. (Apple Podcasts | Spotify)

• Let's Get Political (A Mighty Blaze Panel) featuring a conversation between Jennifer de Leon, author of Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From; Sarah Watson, author if Most Likely; Kim Johnson, author of This is My America; Christina Hammonds-Reed, author of The Black Kids; and Natalia Sylvester, author of Running. (Apple Podcasts | Spotify)

• Track Changes: Inequality in Publishing 🔍📚 How bad is structural inequality within the U.S. publishing industry, how did it get that way, and what can we do to make it better? Industry experts and activists contextualize, illuminate, and identify some of the key inflection points that perpetuate inequality and get into what every book lover can do to enact change. (Apple Podcasts | Spotify)

🗣️ I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag@firstdraftpod.com !

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    💌 Free Monthly Newsletter for a monthly roundup of episodes and news

    💌 Weekly Newsletter ($5/month) for essays, interviews, industry analysis & more.

✍️ Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series.

🏆 Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

👍 Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

First Draft Episode #283: Dylan Meconis

Dylan Meconis, cartoonist and writer, talks about her middle grade graphic novel Queen of the Sea. Its sequel, Prince of the City, will be out in 2022!

This episode is sponsored by Revision Season, the seven-week, virtual master class in novel revision led by award-winning author Elana K. Arnold. The Winter 2021 session runs January 17 – March 4, with Week Zero work arriving January 10. Check out more details about Revision Season and sign up or Apply for 5 scholarships being offered through We need Diverse Books at www.elanakarnold.com.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice

• A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

• Raina Telgemeier is the #1 New York Times bestselling, multiple Eisner Award-winning creator of graphic memoirs Smile and Sisters, and the creator of Drama, which was named a Stonewall Honor Book, as well as Ghost.

• Vera Brosgol is an Eisner Award and Harvey Award winning cartoonist, and Caldecott Honor winner for Leave Me Alone! and the graphic memoir Be Prepared.

• Jen Wang, Eisner Award-winning author and illustrator of The Prince and the Dressmaker, In Real Life, and Koko Be Good stops by to talk about her new middle grade graphic novel, Stargazing. Listen to her First Draft episode here.

• Terry Jones’s Medieval Lives (the book) and Medieval Lives (the TV show) by Terry Jones, a former member of Monty Python

• Karen Cushman is the Newbery Award-winning children's book author of The Midwife's Apprentice, Catherine Called Birdy, and The Loud Silence of Francine Green.

• Monica Furlong was a British author, journalist, and activist, and author of award-winning novels Juniper and Wise Child.

• Susan Cooper is best known for her acclaimed five-book fantasy sequence The Dark is Rising, which won a Newbery Medal, a Newbery Honor Award, and two Carnegie Honor Awards. Her picture book The Shortest Day WAS illustrated by Carson Ellis, author and illustrator of bestselling picture books Home and Caldecott Honor book Du Iz Tak?, talks about her newest picture book, In the Half Room. (Listen to Carson’s episode of First Draft here.)

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag @ firstdraftpod dot com!

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Jason Reynolds; Leigh Bardugo, author of Ninth House and the Grishaverse series; Creator of Sex and the City Candace Bushnell; YouTube empresario and author Hank Green; Actors, comedians and screenwriters Jessica St. Clair and Lennon Parham; author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast Linda Holmes; Bestselling authors and co-hosts of the Call Your Girlfriend podcast, Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow; Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish and co-host of the Sciptnotes podcast; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series, and sign up for the Track Changes weekly newsletter.

Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

First Draft Episode #282: Matthew Burgess and Cátia Chien

Matthew Burgess and Cátia Chien, artist and illustrator respectively, of picture book The Bear and the Moon. Matthew is a poet, picture book author, and Assistant Professor at Brooklyn College. Catia is a visual artist, illustrator, and founder of A Thousand Worlds, a picture book directory that connects readers to beautiful picture books written and illustrated by BIPOC authors and illustrators.

This episode is sponsored by Revision Season, the seven-week, virtual master class in novel revision led by award-winning author Elana K. Arnold. The Winter 2021 session runs January 17 – March 4, with Week Zero work arriving January 10. Check out more details about Reivsion Season and sign up or Apply for 5 scholarships being offered through We need Diverse Books at www.elanakarnold.com.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Monica by Mauricio de Souza

• Cátia’s interview on PBS NewsHour

• Poet Frank O’Hara

• Poet John Ashbery, whose collection Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror won a Pulitzer Prize, among other accolades

• Teachers and Writers Collaborative

• Kate Sullivan, previously an editor at HMH and currently Senior Content Development Manager for New Leaf Literary & Media. She appears in the Track Changes podcast series (in Selling Your Book: Part 2 and Contracts).

• ArtCenter, the school where Cátia studied art and design

• Enormous Smallness: A Story of e e cummings by Matthew Burgess, illustrated by Kris Di Giacomo

• Drawing on Walls: A Story of Keith Haring by Matthew Burgess, illustrated by Josh Cochran

• Roald Dahl Boy (and its sequel, Going Solo)

• Make Meatballs Sing: The Life and Art of Sister Corita King by Matthew Burgess, illustrated by Kara Kramer

• Enchanted Lion Books

• The Brooklyn Museum Children’s Book Fair

• A Boy and a Jaguar, written by Alan Rabinowitz, illustrated by Cátia Chien

• The Truro Bear by Mary Oliver (poem)

• William Steig is the author and illustrator of the Caldecott-winning picture book Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, as well as Shrek!, Dominic, and Newberry Honor book Abel’s Island

• Smudge, the moon bear

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag @ firstdraftpod dot com!

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Jason Reynolds; Leigh Bardugo, author of Ninth House and the Grishaverse series; Creator of Sex and the City Candace Bushnell; YouTube empresario and author Hank Green; Actors, comedians and screenwriters Jessica St. Clair and Lennon Parham; author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast Linda Holmes; Bestselling authors and co-hosts of the Call Your Girlfriend podcast, Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow; Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish and co-host of the Sciptnotes podcast; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Track Changes

If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series, and sign up for the Track Changes weekly newsletter.

Support the Show

Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft.

Rate, Review, and Recommend

Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

First Draft Episode #281: David Levithan

David Levithan is editorial director at Scholastic and the author of many young adult novels, including Boy Meets Boy, Every Day, and co-author with Rachel Cohn of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist and Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares.

Sips By is the only mutl-brand, personalized monthly tea subscription box, which makes discovering tea fun and affordable! Use the code “firstdraft” for 50% off your first Sips By box at www.sipsby.com.

On the Remember Reading podcast, discover the tales behind these beloved children’s book classics. Hear from award-winning authors like Meg Cabot, Katherine Paterson, and Tiffany Jackson, and guests as they uncover the unique story behind each story.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• The Babysitters Club series by Anne M. Martin

• David launched PUSH, the Scholastic imprint still there today

• Jean Feiwel, Senior Vice President and Publisher, Feiwel & Friends, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, Swoon Reads, Square Fish

• Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

• Dan Ehrenhaft, author of The Last Dog on Earth, Friend is Not a Verb, and That’s Life, Samara Brooks

• Sarah Mlynowski, author of Just a Boy and a Girl in a Little Canoe, I See London, I See France, and co-author of Upside-Down Magic

• The New York City Teen Author Festival

• Nancy Garden, author of Annie on My Mind, The Year They Burned the Books, and Endgame.

• Francesca Lia Block, Francesca Lia Block, author of more than 25 books, including seminal YA novel WEETZIE BAT, talks about her most recent book, THE THORN NECKLACE, a memoir-driven guide to healing through the craft of writing. (listen to her First Draft interview here)

• Jacqueline Woodson, National Book Award and Newberry Honor winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Another Brooklyn, Miracle’s Boys and many more

• Brent Hartinger’s Geography Club

• Bermudez Triangle by Maureen Johnson, New York Times bestselling author of of several YA novels, including 13 Little Blue Envelopes, Suite Scarlett, The Name of the Star, and Truly Devious: A Mystery. She has also done collaborative works, such as Let It Snow (with John Green and Lauren Myracle), and The Bane Chronicles (with Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan). (Listen to my interview with Maureen Johnson here)

• Lauren Myracle’s Kissing Kate

• Alex Sanchez’s The Rainbow Boys series

• Sara Ryan’s Empress of the World

• David edits Suzanne Collins, author of The Hunger Games

• David edits Garth Nix, author of the Sabriel series, Angel Mage, and many more

• Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (movie)

• Bill Clegg, a literary agent formerly with WME and now at The Clegg Agency

• Gingerbread by Rachel Cohn

• Will Grayson, Will Grayson which David co-wrote with John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars and Looking For Alaska

• You Know Me Well with Nina LaCour (listen to her First Draft episodes here and here)

• Maggie Stiefvater, author of the The Raven Boys series, Shiver, and The Scorpio Races

• Alex Gino’s Stonewall Award-winning George

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag @ firstdraftpod dot com!

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Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Jason Reynolds; Leigh Bardugo, author of Ninth House and the Grishaverse series; Creator of Sex and the City Candace Bushnell; YouTube empresario and author Hank Green; Actors, comedians and screenwriters Jessica St. Clair and Lennon Parham; author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast Linda Holmes; Bestselling authors and co-hosts of the Call Your Girlfriend podcast, Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow; Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish and co-host of the Sciptnotes podcast; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

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