This episode with Liara Tamani first aired on October 31, 2017. In this episode, she was the debut author of Calling My Name . Her newest book, All the Things We Never Knew , is out now! Liara Tamani Show Notes The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison Girlfriends (TV show) Courtney Summers (listen to her First Draft episode here or read the transcript ) The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros Maud Martha by Gwendolyn Brooks SOLD by Patricia McCormick The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon (listen to ...
Jun 09, 2020•54 min
Dr. Somaiya Daud is the author of Mirage and its forthcoming sequel, Court of Lions (out August 4, 2020). Check out the cover reveal from Court of Lions and read an excerpt at Tor.com, as well as a conversation between Somaiya and I about how the theme of lost cultures functions in the series. Somaiya has also answered questions on a February 28, 2020 mailbag episode , and was featured on the July 5, 2014 episode (the very first First Draft episode ever). Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episo...
Jun 09, 2020•1 hr 7 min
First Draft Episode #214: Jason Reynolds Jason Reynolds is the New York Times bestselling author of the Ghost series ( Ghost , Patina , Sunny , Lu ), When I Was the Greatest , The Boy in the Black Suit , As Brave As You , Miles Morales: Spider Man , Long Way Down , For Every One , Look Both Ways , and co-author of All American Boys (with Brendan Kiely, listen to his First Draft interview here ) and Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You (with Ibram X. Kendi),. In January, Jason was named the seve...
Jun 08, 2020•1 hr 37 min
Track Changes: Selling Your Book (Part 2) Listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , or Stitcher Read the transcript In the second look at how books get sold, former Little, Brown and Delacorte senior editor Kate Sullivan , Senior Content Development Manager for New Leaf Literary & Media , walks us through all the steps an editor takes between receiving an agent’s pitch and signing a deal memo to acquire a book. Acquisitions meetings, P&L statements, and TI sheets, oh my! This e...
May 28, 2020•36 min
First Draft Episode #254: L.C. Rosen Lev A.C. Rosen , author of Depth and Jack of Hearts (And Other Parts) , talks about his latest young adult novel, Camp . This episode is brought to you by Highland 2, the writing software made by writers, for writers. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar Phylicia Rashad , actress Dan Chaon , author of Among the Missing: Stories , and You Remind Me of Me David Walker playwright instructor Oberlin Lev teaches at Gotham W...
May 24, 2020•51 min•Ep. 254
Pseudonymous Bosch, the pen name for Raphael Simon, is the New York Times bestselling author of The Name of This Book is Secret and the Secret series, Bad Magic and the Bad series. Shane Pangburn is a writer and illustrator and producer of YALLWEST (hear his First Draft interview here ). Simon wrote, and Pangburn illustrated, The Unbelievable Oliver and its sequel, The Unbelievable Oliver and the Sawed In Half Dads . Pseudonymous Bosch, Shane Pangburn, and Melissa de la Cruz are joining forces f...
May 19, 2020•51 min•Ep. 253
Track Changes: Selling Your Book (Part 1) Listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher Read the transcript Literary agents Holly Root , founder of Root Literary, and Seth Fishman with The Gernert Company return to lead us through how an agent prepares a manuscript for submission, how they choose which editors to approach with a manuscript, and how they negotiate common types of book sales. We get into what a writer can expect during this notoriously nerve-wracking process. This ...
May 14, 2020•22 min
First Draft Episode #252: Candace Bushnell Candace Bushnell , #1 New York Times bestselling author of Sex and the City , Lipstick Jungle , and The Carrie Diaries talks about her newest book, Rules For Being a Girl , which she co-wrote with New York Times bestselling author Katie Cotugno . This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2 , made by writers, for writers. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Four Blonde s by Candace James Truman at Details Magazine ( a profile of Truman from The New Y...
May 12, 2020•58 min•Ep. 252
Track Changes: Publishing in the Time of COVID Publishing experts discuss how the global pandemic, and widespread shelter-in-place laws have changed their jobs, how publishers have responded to the uncertain retail market, what books are more or less likely to sell in this climate, and what all writers should be focused on during this time. The following agents were interviewed for this episode: Faye Bender , partner and founder of The Book Group, who represents authors such as Courtney Summers ...
May 07, 2020•22 min
First Draft Episode #251: John Hodgman John Hodgman , comedian and author of The Areas of My Expertise , More Information Than You Require , and That is All , as well as collections of humorous essays Vacationland: True Stories From Painful Beaches and Medallion Status: True Stories From Secret Rooms . John is also the host of the Judge John Hodgman podcast as well as I, Podius with Elliott Kalan . This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2 , a better way to write, and T he Life and (Medieval) Tim...
May 05, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 251
We meet Jennifer de Leon as she prepares for the release of her debut young adult novel, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From , on August 4. Though Jennifer has been writing for years, she quickly learns that there’s a lot about Capital-P-Publishing that she doesn’t know. (Hear her First Draft interview here .) We meet Holly Root , literary agent and founder of Root Literary who represents clients such as Victoria Schwab (hear her First Draft interview here ), Jasmine Guillory (listen to her First Draft ...
Apr 30, 2020•34 min
First Draft Episode #250: Rufi Thorpe Rufi Thorpe , author of The Girls from Corona del Mar and Dear Fang: With Love , talks about her new novel, The Knockout Queen . This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2 , a better way to write, and by We Didn’t Ask For This , the newest novel by Adi Alsaid , out from Inkyard Press April 7 (listen to his First Draft interview here ). Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode “ Perversity of Spirit ,” Rufi’s essay about what it takes to be a writer in Poets&...
Apr 28, 2020•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 250
First Draft Episode #249: Opening the Mailbag with Justin A. Reynolds This week is a new mailbag episode, where I--along with a very special guest--will answer listener questions! Joining me today is Justin A. Reynolds , author of Opposite of Always , whose new YA, Early Departures , will be out September 22! 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. Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah E...
Apr 24, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 249
First Draft Episode #248: Claire Comstock-Gay Claire Comstock-Gay is the author of weekly horoscopes for New York magazine’s The Cut , and her debut book about astrology, Madame Clairevoyant’s Guide to the Stars , is out now. This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2 , a better way to write, and by We Didn’t Ask For This , the newest novel by Adi Alsaid , out from Inkyard Press April 7 (listen to his First Draft interview here ). Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode The Boxcar Children by G...
Apr 17, 2020•58 min•Ep. 248
We meet Jennifer de Leon as she prepares for the release of her debut young adult novel, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From , on August 4. Though Jennifer has been writing for years, she quickly learns that there’s a lot about Capital-P-Publishing that she doesn’t know. (Hear her First Draft interview here .) For some publishing basics, we turn to Courtney Maum , author of Costalgere , I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You , and more. Her most recent book, Before and After the Book Deal: A Writer’s ...
Apr 16, 2020•28 min
First Draft Episode #247: Jennifer de Leon Jennifer De Leon is Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Framingham State University, and a GrubStreet instructor and board member. Her debut young adult novel, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From , is out from Atheneum/Simon & Schuster on August 4, 2020. This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2 , a better way to write, and by We Didn’t Ask For This , the newest novel by Adi Alsaid , out from Inkyard Press April 7 (listen to his First Draft interview ...
Apr 14, 2020•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 247
First Draft Episode #246: Edan Lepucki 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 . Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Dan Chaon , author of Ill Will , Await Your Reply , and You Remind Me of Me , was an influential teac...
Apr 09, 2020•55 min•Ep. 246
First Draft Episode #245: Veronica Roth Veronica Roth , #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent series, the Carve the Mark duology, and the short story collection, The End and Other Beginnings , talks about her first adult fantasy novel, The Chosen Ones . This episode was sponsored by HIGHLAND 2 , a better way to write, and by We Didn’t Ask For This , the newest novel by Adi Alsaid , out from Inkyard Press April 7 (listen to his First Draft interview here ). Links and Topics Mentio...
Apr 07, 2020•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 245
Over nine episodes, this podcast mini-series answers the surprisingly complex question: How does a book get published? Track Changes will guide the listener through the idiosyncrasies and traditions of the publishing process, providing context and human voices for every step. Sarah Enni talks to professionals at all stages of the publishing process—from agents and editors to publicity and marketing professionals and more—to give aspiring authors, professional writers, and industry vets alike the...
Apr 02, 2020•2 min
First Draft Episode #244: Zan Romanoff Zan Romanoff , journalist and author of A Song to Take the World Apart , and Grace and the Fever , whose newest YA novel, Look , is out now! Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Listen to Zan Romanoff’s first First Draft interview here , as well as her Mailbag episode where she answers listener questions (you can watch that episode on First Draft’s IGTV, too )! Catie DiSabato , author of The Ghost Network , helped Zan enormously in her capacity as a p...
Mar 30, 2020•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 244
First Draft Episode #243: Opening the Mailbag with Tochi Onyebuchi Tochi Onyebuchi is the author of Beasts Made of Night , its sequel Crown of Thunder, War Girls and its forthcoming sequel, Rebel Sisters (out in October), and his adult fiction debut Riot Baby , published by Tor.com in January 2020. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson The Life Cycle of Software Objects by Ted Chiang Great Work of Time by John Crowley Sea...
Mar 26, 2020•51 min•Ep. 243
First Draft Episode #242: Cassandra Clare Cassandra Clare is #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Shadowhunter Chronicles, the forthcoming Sword Catcher duology, and co-author of the Magisterium series. Her most recent Shadowhunter novel, Chain of Gold , kicks off the Last Hours trilogy. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode A Little Princess and The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett Noel Streatfeild wrote a prolific series of books for young readers, kicking off with B allet ...
Mar 23, 2020•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 242
First Draft Episode #241: Kristen Meinzer and Jolenta Greenberg Kristen Meinzer and Jolenta Greenberg , co-hosts of the By the Book podcast and co-authors of How to Be Fine : What We Learned from Living by the Rules of 50 Self-Help Books . They also co-host the We Love You and So Can You podcast. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Gretchen Rubin , author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before and The Four Tendencies . Kristen previously produced Gretchen’s Happier with Gretchen ...
Mar 18, 2020•52 min•Ep. 241
First Draft Episode #240: Erin Lee Carr Erin Lee Carr is a director, producer, and writer whose upcoming four-part docuseries How to Fix a Drug Scandal will be released on Netflix on April 1st. Carr has also directed At the Heart of Gold , about the USA Gymnastics scandal, and I Love You: Now Die , about the Michelle Carter murder-by-texting trial, both for HBO. Her first feature length film was Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop . Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Alice’s Adv...
Mar 17, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 240
First Draft Episode #239: Ben Blacker Ben Blacker is a writer and producer known for The Thrilling Adventure Hour , Supernatural , Hex Wives , and the new Audible audio series CUT + RUN . He also hosts The Writer’s Panel and Dead Pilots Society podcasts. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Hear Ben’s writing partner, Ben Acker , on his episode of First Draft here! Beverly Cleary, author of Beezus and Ramona , and Ramona Quimby, Age 8 was one of Ben’s early favorite authors Zilpha Keatley ...
Mar 12, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 239
First Draft Episode #238: Sarah Watson Sarah Watson is a television writer, producer, and novelist. She’s the creator of the Freeform series, The Bold Type , and was a Writer and Executive Producer of the critically acclaimed NBC drama, Parenthood . She has also written for About A Boy , Lipstick Jungle , The Unusuals , and The Middleman , as well as other series. Her debut novel, Most Likely, is out now. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Down a Dark Hall by Lois Duncan Sarah basically ...
Mar 10, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 238
First Draft Episode #237: Rebecca Serle Rebecca Serle is a television writer, producer, and New York Times bestselling author of six books, including When You Were Mine , The Edge of Falling , The Dinner List , and her newest, In Five Years , out now. She co-developed the hit TV adaptation of her YA series , Famous in Love . Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Marianne Wiggins , author of National Book Award finalist Evidence of Things Unseen and The Shadow Catcher , and a professor of cr...
Mar 03, 2020•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 237
First Draft Episode #236: Somaiya Daud Somaiya Daud , debut author of YA sci-fi book Mirage , was the very first author I ever interviewed for First Draft Podcast. Her upcoming book, the final book in the Mirage duology, Court of Lion s will be out in fall 2020! Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Self Control , a Mac app, can’t be turned off by restarting your computer, and that is helpful for Somaiya when she’s trying to focus ADHD related time blindness and how seeing and feeling of ti...
Feb 28, 2020•33 min•Ep. 236
First Draft Episode #235: Kate DiCamillo Kate DiCamillo is one of six people to win two Newbery Medals, for her novels The Tale of Despereaux and Flora & Ulysses , and author of Newberry Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie , National Book Award finalist The Tiger Rising , as well as New York Times bestselling novels The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane , The Magician’s Elephant , the Mercy Watson series, and more. DiCamillo was the U.S. National Ambassador for Young People's Literature for 2...
Feb 25, 2020•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 235
First Draft Episode #234: 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 . This episode of First Draft is brought to you by Steven Sater’s Alice By Heart , a debut young adult novel in which the Tony Award-winning co-creator of Spring ...
Feb 18, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 234
