Welcome to episode 39 part 2, How Tiffany Yates Martin Writes. So last week we had the first part of this interview with Tiffany, where Tiffany and I discussed really like the, building blocks and the fundamentals of what you need to look for when you're hiring an editor. Tiffany is an absolute, complete total expert in that field. This week's episode is the second part of the interview, where we talk more about how as writers, we can kind of write as an editor think as an editor and the big thi...
Aug 13, 2020•36 min•Ep. 39
Welcome to Monday Motivation - Learning how to Learn So, today I want to talk about a superpower for writers. As I continue to interview and study more and more successful authors, I'm also making notes of the common practices and characteristics of these amazing people. One thing that has stuck out to me, and something I've experienced first hand in my life, is the superpower of learning how to learn. All of the super successful people I've interacted with in my life share this trait. They have...
Aug 10, 2020•10 min
Welcome to Episode 39, Part 1 - How Tiffany Yates Martin Writes... or is it edits? So, this is a special episode. Tiffany is a world-class development editor and author of a wonderful new book named Intuitive Editing. The interview is broken up into two sections that I'm going to air in two parts. In today's episode, Part 1, Tiffany and I dive into the world of development editing and I tried to cover every question I could possibly think about. Tiffany shares SO MUCH value here. So much. In par...
Aug 06, 2020•47 min•Ep. 39
Welcome to Monday Motivation- How to get through a dry spell I am in a really interesting spot in my writing life and I want to share my journey with you, as well as some thoughts on how I am addressing this... uh... interesting time in my life. So I've had a real season. Like a lot of you, COVID has been nuts, I've moved across the country, started a business and we're right now cranking on getting out a truly transformative product for writers. More on that later, but, the end result when you ...
Aug 03, 2020•11 min
Welcome to Episode 38, How Daniel Handler Writes This week's episode is really fun. I got to interview Daniel Handler, who you may also know as Lemony Snicket. Oftentimes, I pinch myself when I get to ask amazing authors any question I want, but I am always blown away by the generosity and openness of the show's guest. Daniel fully embodied these attributes. I want to say thank you to Daniel again for his time and sharing so much with me. And so now, without any further ado, here is the intervie...
Jul 30, 2020•47 min•Ep. 38
Welcome to Monday Motivation - It Starts with a Seed I am sooooo excited to be back here recording a fresh Monday Motivation. I feel as if I've escaped the black hole of moving and it is just so good to be back here with you. This is my happy place. So, as I was driving through Nebraska, I had this powerful thought that unfolded over the course of a few hundred miles of open road. As some of you know, when you drive through the middle chunk of the country, there are long stretches where all you ...
Jul 27, 2020•6 min
Welcome to a special replay of episode 11, How Madeline Miller Writes. I am so excited to share a replay of this episode from January of 2020. Interviewing Madeline was such a blast, both because of Madeline's amazing openness and the wisdom she shared, but also because I love talking about the ancient world just about as much as I love talking about anything. Please enjoy this interview with the wonderful Madeline Miller. Support the show...
Jul 23, 2020•57 min
Enjoy this special recording of Kurt Vonnegut's lecture, "The Shape of Stories." Support the show
Jul 20, 2020•20 min
Welcome to Episode 37 - How Susan Wiggs Writes Now, when this podcast airs, I will be somewhere in between New York City and Colorado so I am gonna keep this intro nice and short and sweet. I loved interviewing Susan. She was just a well of knowledge of the writing life and what it takes to be a pro. I found myself scribbling all sorts of notes and I just love going back through the episode and listening over and over and over again. I am sure you'll feel the same way I wanna say a quick thank y...
Jul 16, 2020•51 min•Ep. 37
Welcome to Episode 36 - How James Wade Writes I had so much fun interviewing someone who is so aligned with the mission and philosophy of How Writers Write. In a lot of ways, I felt as if I was interviewing a philosopher-writer, someone who writes beautiful stories, but also deeply engages with the writing life. James is someone who has such a rooting in himself and his writing that when we ended the interview, I felt some of that same energy transfer to me. Thank you again to James for such a f...
Jul 09, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 36
Hi my friends-- So, between my crazy move, some equipment problems, already packing the rest of my equipment, and general moving insanity, I could not get the episode done this week. :-( Taking a mulligan this week, and I'll be back next week with a great inspirational author speech. Support the show
Jul 06, 2020•1 min
Welcome to episode 35 -How Michael Elias Writes It isn't every day that I get to interview such a veteran writer. Michael Elias has written for just about every medium - film, TV, fiction, and theater. I am so grateful to share his insights into the writing life, his process, and some lessons he's learned along the way. Thank you again to Michael for his time and sharing his story with me. And now, without any further ado, here is the interview with Michael Elias! Support the show...
Jul 02, 2020•45 min•Ep. 35
This week I am playing you one of my ALL TIME favorite writing motivations. As I pack up and move to Denver, please enjoy Neil Gaiman's "Make Good Art." Support the show
Jun 29, 2020•22 min
Welcome to Episode 34 - How Francesca Serritella Writes I hope everyone is having a good week of writing as we dig into the dog weeks of summer. Here in NYC, we are enjoying a Phase 2 Opening as finally, playgrounds are open. So, it is with this happiness that I get to intro this week's wonderful guest, Francesca Serritella. Francesca is the author of a series of non-fiction books that she co-wrote with her mother, Lisa Scottoline as well as a debut novel, Ghosts of Harvard. This interview was s...
Jun 25, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 34
Hello and Welcome! This isn't going to be a Monday Motivation per se, more of a general catch up episode. There are so many changes happening in my life and for HWW that I wanted to take a week to just communicate them all at once. So first, some personal news. In about three weeks my family and I will be relocating to Denver, Colorado. Even before COVID hit, we had eyed moving back to sunny-ol Colorado. While we will miss our Brooklyn life and friends, it feels like we are stepping into a beaut...
Jun 22, 2020•8 min
Welcome to Episode 33 - How Sofia Segovia Writes I love the opportunity to interview authors on the bigger picture stuff, like where do stories come from and how or where do characters live? I find myself drawn to those topics because I have so many questions. Do stories exist outside of us? And if so, where? What about characters? Are they real or part of our imagination? I could disappear for days in those thoughts. I am so grateful that I was able to explore those questions with Sofia. This i...
Jun 18, 2020•54 min•Ep. 33
Welcome to Monday Motivation- Get Small At one point in my life, I was living in my brother-in-law's basement with my wife and newborn. I'd been trying to get a job for six months after my start-up failed, but I was struggling to land on my feet. I was down to just a couple hundred dollars, and my relationship with Jennifer was strained to the point of failure. It. Was. Awful. I found it was so easy to let my mind run into a grim future. So easy that I internalized a belief that the future would...
Jun 15, 2020•6 min
Welcome to Episode 32 – How Lily King Writes Before we get started with this episode, I want to share a quick word of encouragement to the writers out there. I know times are crazy. I believe in times of crisis, stories and storytelling becomes even more important, because often a good story reminds of the truth we already know: that we are all the same on the inside. A good story refreshes and encourages. It transports you to a place of hope, even if the story ends in tragedy. This interview wi...
Jun 11, 2020•50 min
This week has been remarkable in so many ways. In my neck of the woods in Brooklyn, thousands of protestors walking down my block, down the main arteries of my neighborhood, is a daily occurrence. I’ve been able to participate in the protests. The memory of the black, brown, and white faces will forever bring a smile to my face. Wherever you live in this country or the world, I’m sure you’ve seen and hopefully participated in peaceful protests against this country’s systemic brutality against Bl...
Jun 08, 2020•28 min
Welcome to Episode 31 – How Catherine Bybee Writes For those die-hard How Writers Write fans, do you remember how I intro’d last week’s episode? I said it doesn’t matter how you write, just so long as you get the work done. This interview with Catherine is the juxtaposition of the highly organized Andrew-Mayne method. Catherine highlights the “pantser” side of the pantser/plotter spectrum. And you know what? It works. I am so happy to have these interviews back to back, both because Catherine wa...
Jun 04, 2020•50 min•Ep. 31
Monday Motivation – What vs How This is a special Monday Motivation for me. I’ve been working a lot a lot a lot behind the scenes to define what is this thing called How Writers Write. When I launched this project six months ago, I really had no idea what would happen. I’ve said this before, but I had no clue if anyone would listen to this podcast or be into my message. But listen they have, and it feels as if I’ve hit on something in the writing life that is both under served and super importan...
Jun 01, 2020•6 min
Welcome to Episode 30 – How Andrew Mayne Writes One of my favorite parts of this podcast is highlighting the different ways that writers write. The takeaway is so critical FOR ANYONE in the writing life: how you do your work doesn’t really matter. Doing the work is what matters. This interview with Andrew highlights his unique style on writing novels. I had played around in this intro with highlighting some of my favorite parts, but I think it is best to just experience it with me. I want to say...
May 28, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 30
Now, that is a really fancy title for a simple yet profound decision. It is a cornerstone of being a writer. Not just writing a book or working a project, but becoming someone who is a writer from the inside out. The willful disregard of rationality is the way in which, as a writer, you look at a project that by all measurements should be impossible for you to complete, and yet… you decide to do it anyway. As writers, we feel this impossibility at the onset of each new project. When you first st...
May 25, 2020•5 min
I’ve had this series of interviews where we get started with our warm-up questions and then poof, all of a sudden we are at the end of our recording time. I felt this way with Jennifer. This is a special interview where we dive into some of my favorite writing topics. It really was such a blast to interview Jennifer. And so now, without any further ado, here is the interview with Jennifer Probst. Support the show
May 21, 2020•53 min•Ep. 29
To take steps towards your imagined future, there are some questions to ponder: 1. What do you imagine as your ideal self? What are all of the good things you want from your life? From your writing? From your relationships? Body? 2. Now, in the same way you’d create a character for a story, how do you construct the person who you’ve imagined in step one? Here are some additional question: a. What does this person do every single morning? b. And before bed? c. How does this person deal with failu...
May 18, 2020•7 min
Welcome to episode 28 – How Amy Sue Nathan Writes If you could learn just one skill that would be the backbone of your writing life, more than learning how to plot or build characters… more than any specific craft skill, it would be learn how to work. I’ve said this so many times. You can be the best writer in the world, but if you aren’t putting your story onto the page, it doesn’t matter. So, if you need help putting the wheels on a writing routine, TONIGHT IS THE NIGHT. I’m hosting a live wor...
May 14, 2020•43 min•Ep. 28
Last week, I discussed the overall concept of the inner critic. If you missed that podcast, I’d highly recommend going back and getting the basics down. But, if you are too lazy or you need a refresher, here are a few important points. 1) Your inner critic is trying to keep you “safe” by keeping you from doing anything that is risky or has the chance of failure 2) Everyone has an inner critic and 3) to write, you’re going to need to learn how to write through or around the inner critic. The tag ...
May 11, 2020•8 min
I want to make a special announcement that I have been WAITING to tell you. On June 1st, I’ll be launching a new program called “the 21-day MFA.” This new program is a series of online courses that teach writers one MFA-level skill in 21 days. This is a brand-new way to learn how to write. I’m packing literally ten years of study, an MFA from NYU, and thousands of hours of tinkering to offer hyper-specific, experiential learning courses. Now, instead of going through a two-year MFA program and s...
May 07, 2020•47 min•Ep. 27
Welcome to Monday Motivation – Your Inner Critic, Part 1 Hello and welcome my friends. I hope everyone is having a wonderful week of writing. By far, the most common thing I coach writers – and this is writers from all backgrounds, projects, and level of accomplish (I’m talking brand new to #1 NYT people) – is their relationship with their inner critic. We have ALL heard this term – the inner critic – and like a lot of really important things, we’ve heard about that inner critic so much that it ...
May 04, 2020•8 min
Welcome to Episode 26 – How Kelly Harms Writes I knew I was onto something good when I did my research on Kelly. On her website, she has this great section on books for writers, and one of the books she lists is one of my all-time-favorites, a book I’ve referenced a zillion times—Deep Work. For me, Kelly is a model of what a writer can be. She has built an inner game along with her skill, so that she writes from the inside-out. It was such a pleasure to interview her and try to parse out some of...
Apr 30, 2020•46 min•Ep. 26
