Tue, 23 December 2014
Boisterous, eloquent, and just the tiniest bit zany, Cynthia Leitich Smith, New York Times best-selling author of TANTALIZE and RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME, took me out for tacos and taught me a thing or twelve. I loved hearing her wise words on diversity in YA, paying it forward with newer writers, and writing 200 drafts of a single picture book.
Cynthia Leitich Smith Show Notes Ming Doyle, illustrator for Cynthia’s graphic novels Deborah Noyse at Candlewick press (editor) SANTA KNOWS illustrated by Steve Bjorkman (edited by Mark McVeigh at Dutton) FROM THE MIXED-UP FILES OF MRS. BASIL E. FRANKWEILER by E.L. Konigsburg
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Tue, 16 December 2014
Myra McEntire, author of the HOURGLASS series, is as refreshing as a cool glass of sweet tea, and it was a joy to sit with her and talk British TV, living with intention, and handling life’s unexpected curveballs.
Myra McEntire Show Notes Trixie Belden series Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris WTF With Marc Maron (podcast) Stuff You Should Know (podcast) Stuff You Missed In History Class (podcast) The Spy Museum podcast, SpyCast Mental Illness Happy Hour (podcast) The Domestic CEO (podcast) Get It Done Guy's Quick Dirty Tips (podcast) The Savvy Psychologist (podcast) Welcome to Night Vale (podcast) SIMS homeless blog, Alice and Kev, The Story of Being Homeless in The SIMS 3 Keeping Up Appearnces (BBC sitcom) Kevin Williamson (writer for VD) SUPERFUDGE by Judy Blume THE SHADOW GATE, Myra McEntire’s middle grade series on Storybird with Molly O’Neill CJ Redwine, Jodi Meadows, MG Buehrlen, Courtney C Stevens (hear Court's podcast interview here!) |
Thu, 11 December 2014
The delightful Alison Cherry, author of RED and FOR REAL (out December 9!) talks traumatic revision experiences, life foreshadowing, “guerrilla friending” — and her cats give us some all-star background purring.
Alison Cherry Show Notes Literary agent Holly Root Strauss opera, Die Frau ohne Schatten (The Woman without a Shadow) CHAOS WALKING trilogy by Patrick Ness Wendy Loggia, Executive Editor at Random House Children's Books/Delacorte Press Caela Carter, MY BEST FRIEND MAYBE Kara Thomas (Taylor) Maureen Johnson, "Don't be afraid to suck."
Holly Root, "Keep your eyes on your own paper." |
Tue, 2 December 2014
Talking with the wise and lovely Courtney C. Stevens, author of FAKING NORMAL and THE BLUE-HAIRED BOY, about building a writing community, writing how rock climbing made her a better writer. Courtney C Stevens Show Notes Ruta Sepetys and Sharon Cameron Harper Impulse series |
Thu, 20 November 2014
Talking to Kaitlin Ward, whose debut novel BLEEDING EARTH is due out in Fall 2015, about the SIMS, teen horror, how she recovered from losing her first agent, and what video games inspire her.
Kaitlin Ward Show Notes WHEEL OF TIME series by Robert Jordan THE GIVER by Lois Lowry THE GOLDEN COMPASS by Phillip Pullman REDWALL by Brian Jacques MRS. FRISBY AND THE RATS OF NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien ERAGON by Christopher Paolini TWILIGHT by Stephenie Meyer THIS IS NOT A TEST by Courtney Summers (and the sequel, PLEASE REMAIN CALM) Goosebumps, Fear Street, Christopher Pike Michelle Schusterman (listen to her First Draft interview here!) ANIMAL FARM by George Orwell |
Wed, 12 November 2014
I meet up with Stephanie Kuehn at a lovely holiday retreat in Vermont, where she set her Morris-award-winning debut, CHARM AND STRANGE. Steph is deeply thoughtful and incredibly silly in equal measure, which makes her simply delightful. As we sat on a back porch with kids playing in a nearby hammock, we talked about Steph’s boarding school days, romanticizing Vermont, movie making, how starting to run gave her the confidence to start writing, and the experience of winning the Morris Award. I also refer to Mark Zuckerberg as a “millionaire.” Sorry for the downgrade, Zucks. Stephanie Kuehn Show Notes THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt COMMITTING JOURNALISM by Dannie Martin and Peter Y. Sussman The Wicker Man (film) The Conformist (film) Vertigo (film) |
Fri, 7 November 2014
The conversation continues, with Libba Bray, Printz award-winning YA author of THE DIVINERS and GOING BOVINE, discussing how she came to children's literature, the struggle to balance honesty with self-preservation, and writing with depression. Libba Bray Part 2 Show Notes Aaron Zimmerman, New York Writers Coalition SAVE THE CAT by Blake Snyder Save The Movie, by Peter Suderman in Slate (the "why are all movies the same?" article) "Miles and Miles of No Man's Land," Libba Bray’s post about depression Stephanie Perkins' blog post about depression "The Shame of Depression," by Myra McEntire HELTER SKELTER by Vincent Bugliosi, Curt Gentry
CARRIE by Stephen King |
Tue, 4 November 2014
The only thing better than getting to chat with YA icon Libba Bray (author of New York Times best-selling series A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY, Printz award-winner GOING BOVINE, and genuinely terrifying historical paranormal THE DIVINERS, among others) about writing was getting to chat with her about life. Libba is as hilarious as she is wise, and our conversation was so fun, I decided to cut it into two parts rather than leave an hour or more on the cutting-room floor. In this episode, Libba talks about having her rock collection stolen as a kid, that one time Wes Anderson helped stage a play she wrote, and talks about how growing up in Texas set her head at a certain tilt. Libba Bray Show Notes Seven Samurai, directed by Akira Kurosawa CHARLOTTE'S WEB by E.B. White I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS by Maya Angelou THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD by Zora Neale Hurston FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS by Ernest Hemingway THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH by Norton Juster Neil Simon plays Agent Sarah Burnes HOW TO SAY GOODBYE IN ROBOT by Natalie Standiford Fitness Focus Form and Function with Marky Mark Peter Marks, theater critic of the New York Times and the Washington Post |
Mon, 20 October 2014
Meeting with Natalie Standiford was like stepping into a world where all my teen fantasies about what life as a writer would look like (amazing NY apartment, effortlessly chic clothes, a separate office with built-in shelves and a bass amp in the corner). It was only made better by the fact that Natalie’s books - HOW TO SAY GOODBYE IN ROBOT, THE BOY ON THE BRIDGE, CONFESSIONS OF THE SULLIVAN SISTERS and so many more - are beautiful, thoughtful, and filled with quirky nuance, just like the books I dreamed (dream!) of writing. Natalie is so sweet and welcoming, and had wise, wise words about building up an immunity to writer’s block, writing about real-world fairylands, and finding creative release outside the written word.
Natalie Standiford Show Notes FEAR STREET (THE CHEATER; LIGHTS OUT; THE SECRET; THE BURNING; THE FEAR STREET SAGA) Sarah Burnes, agent at The Gernet Co., who represents Natalie (and me!) Annie Hall, film Jane O’Connor, FANCY NANCY Hilary Knight (illustrator of Eloise) GOSSIP GIRL by Cecily von Ziegesar THE CLIQUE by Lisi Harrison THE DATING GAME by Natalie Standiford Disney ELLE WOODS books Harold and Maude (movie) BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore and her blog post about starting over Darcey Steinke, adult novelist David Levithan, author and editor at Scholastic, the “camp counselor of the YA writers.” Dan Ehrenhaft (Editorial Director, Soho Teen, guitarist of Tiger Beat) Libba Bray (novelist, lead singer of Tiger Beat) Barnabas (Barney) Miller (author, drummer of Tiger Beat)
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Thu, 16 October 2014
Q&A Show Notes NAME OF THE ROSE, Natasha Romanov comic by Marjorie Lu BookPeople in Austin The Strand in NYC Parnassus Books in Nashville The Last Bookstore in LA Politics and Prose in D.C., and Modern Times coffeeshop NIMONA by Noelle Stevenson (aka Gingerhaze)
HYPERBOLE AND A HALF by Allie Bosh |