The Writer's Story

Episode 19: E.A. Aymar

Kristin shares exciting writing news, and we talk to E.A. Aymar about his new thriller, They're Gone, coming out in November under the name E.A. Barres. Meredith met E.A. at the first DC Noir at the Bar (which he organizes). They discuss thrillers, writing from a multicultural perspective, pseudonyms, and the benefits of writing short fiction and articles in between publishing books.

Episode 18: Meg Medina

Meredith and Kristin visit with Newbery Medal winner Meg Medina about the racy tales of Meg's abuela, "the queen" of her family's unofficial historistas (storytellers), Meg's personal road to becoming an award-winning author, and the incalculable resource of a good librarian. A couple lucky listener/subscribers will receive free copies of the fresh-off-the-press anthology The Talk: Conversations about Race, Love & Truth , to which Meg contributed a chapter. 

Episode 17: Kellye Garrett

Kristin and Meredith talk about how torturing your characters is a must if you want to write a compelling novel. They also chat with Kellye Garrett, who shares her early love of cozies (and why representation matters), gives the origin story for Crime Writers of Color, and talks about how #pitchwars helped launch her career (and the careers of many other writers). Plus, she talks about her newest book and how she got her idea for it.

Episode 16: Sharon Harrigan

Kristin and Meredith talk about writing in the middle of political unrest and tragedy, and talk to Sharon Harrigan. Sharon's debut novel HALF comes out June 9. She talks about writing poetry, memoir and now fiction, her path to becoming a writer, and what it was like write from the point of view of a first-person plural narrator.

Episode 15: Lulu Miller

Kristin and Meredith talk with Lulu Miller about her new non-fiction book WHY FISH DON'T EXIST, about the power (and limits) of words, and how her work in radio (Radiolab and Invisibilia) influenced her project.

Episode 14: Writing During a Pandemic

Kristin and Meredith talk about writing during a pandemic on this episode, and whether anyone is able to concentrate on their creative endeavors these dark days. They discuss tricks they use to jumpstart their rewrites, whether or not anyone will want to read a COVID-19 novel someday, and how important art is for all those quarantined inside their homes.

Stories of Displacement: Virginia Festival of the Book Panel

Meredith Cole interviews Clifford Garstang and Michael Zapata for a virtual version of their scheduled book panel at the Virginia Festival of the Book (canceled for coronavirus): Stories of Displacement: Fiction, Far from Home. They discuss their newest books and how their stories are about displacement, immigration and loss.

The Write Start: Virginia Festival of the Book panel

The Virginia Festival of the Book was canceled this year due to the coronavirus, so the Moseley critique group decided to make their publishing day panel "The Write Start" virtual! In this podcast, Deborah M. Prum, Jody Hobbs Hesler, BettyJoyce Nash and Meredith Cole critique the first 100 words of the 14 anonymous entries they received for the festival. They give the authors feedback on tone, genre, voice, word choice and more.

Find out how to support the Virginia Festival of the Book here.

Episode 13: Katrin Schumann

Meredith and Kristin talk good writerly boosts from both accountability (feet to the fire) and vacation (feet in the ocean). Katrin Schumann joins them to discuss her novel, This Terrible Beauty, love in the midst of war, and how decent people can unintentionally wind up building an authoritarian state. 

Episode 12: Irène Mathieu

Kristin and Meredith talk about New Year’s resolutions (pro and con) and rituals to start the writing year off right. Irène Mathieu, author and pediatrician, joins them to talk about poetry versus prose, having two demanding careers, and using sensitivity readers when writing about cultures and experiences not your own.