Literaticast

It's the best time of year - HOLIDAY BOOK SHOPPING TIME! I'm joined by author and newly minted bookstore owner Lindsey Leavitt, whose gorgeous store Folklore Bookshop opened just this September. We talk a bit about what it is like to open a bookstore and the special things she and her co-owners are doing to help make their store stand out. More importantly, we give out book recommendations for EVERYONE on your shopping list! If you want to know what it's like to live the dream of opening your own bookstore, start at the top. If you want to dive STRAIGHT into the gift guide, recommendations start around the 21:30 mark.

The number of books being banned and challenged in schools and libraries has increased exponentially in the USA in recent years. These attacks on our freedom to read are not coming just from fringe zealots -- they are being embedded into legislation across the country, and that's a BIG problem for anyone who values public libraries, public schools, education, books, and, yanno... FREEDOM. Authors Against Book Bans is a coalition of authors who are fighting the good fight to help change that, and YOU can help! Authors David Levithan and Maggie Tokuda-Hall are two of the founding members of AABB, and they join me to discuss what book banning even is, why and where the problem is blowing up, and what readers and authors can do about it. Show Notes can be found at: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast  

Author Martha Brockenbrough joins me to discuss her new book FUTURE TENSE: HOW WE MADE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE -- AND HOW IT WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING. We're tackling your burning AI-related questions, such as: Should authors and illustrators be worried about AI? HOW worried? Are there ethical ways to utilize AI technology? How can AI help us, and how can it hurt? If Aunt Gladys won't stop posting weird AI images of big-eyed baby peacocks on her Facebook page, should you un-invite her to Thanksgiving dinner? Should we all throw our phones into the ocean and move to an underground bunker? MAYBE! Tune in to find out! Links to all the books we discussed, and more, can be found in the show notes: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

We're back from hiatus with special guest Brian LaRossa, who in addition to being an Executive Art Director at Scholastic, is an educator, pizza-maker, and all-around mensch. We tackle a variety of topics, like what IS an Art Director, how does the Art Department work with illustrators, what role do they play in the acquisitions process, how do typography and design affect the reading experience, and a whole lot more. It was a fun conversation, I learned a ton, and I hope you will also have fun listening to it! For full show notes, visit: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

Is this the year you've promised yourself you'd finally finish that manuscript, or stop playing on your dang phone so much and get into a healthier writing routine? Author Jami Attenberg joins me to talk about her new book 1000 WORDS: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused and Productive All Year Round, as well as lots of other stuff: The differences between writing fiction and memoir, finding your writing compass, getting motivated when the creative well seems to have run dry, how to start writing again if you've been away from it for a while, the importance of building writerly community, plus the #1000wordsofsummer project, cult documentaries, and more! Links to all the books we chatted about are in the shownotes on my website: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

Happy Holidays! In this episode, I give a bit of an End-of-the-Year rundown -- what sold this year, what good stuff happened, and what's the mood? Then Middle Grade author Alex Gino joins me to chat about their new book, GREEN, out now from Scholastic, and what it is like being a "mid-career" full-time author. From evolving editorial relationships, to finding a writing process that works, to building an author brand; how have things changed for Alex since their shiny debut era?   Show notes, along with links to all the books we chatted about, are available at https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

It's the most wonderful time of the year -- BOOK GIFTING TIME! I'm joined by booksellers Nicole Brinkley from Oblong Books in Rhinebeck, NY, and Cathy Berner from Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston, TX, and we give you 50+ great recommendations for all the readers in your life, or for your own To Be Read pile.  Love these bookseller recs? Support your local independent bookstore! Or, visit Blue Willow Bookshop or Oblong Books! Or, click the links in the show notes to purchase from Bookshop.org and a percentage of the sales goes straight to supporting indie bookstores! Thanks, and happy shopping. :-) For the show notes and links to all the books we chat about in this episode, visit https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

Kid-lit power couple Raúl the Third and Elaine Bay are collaborators in both life and in books. They met in high school, grew into underground artists and zinesters, and in recent years, have become an award-winning and New York Times Bestselling creative powerhouse team. We talk about how they got started, how they work together, and the many (MANY) projects they have out and cooking! Show notes, including links to all the books we talked about, can be found on my website:  https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

The multi-talented Phoebe Wahl joins me to talk about how she got her start in publishing, as well as how she manages to run the cutest online shop in history, do brand collaborations, make films, thrive on social media, raise a toddler and more in addition to her busy career as an author-illustrator of picture books. And Phoebe will tell us all about her latest book - a debut YA novel called PHOEBE'S DIARY, based on her own teenage diaries and fully illustrated. ​We'll also discuss topics like Fat Representation, Shipwrecks, Taxes and Weird Shoes!  The show notes and links to all the books we chat about can be found at: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

Librarian, author, blogger, podcaster -- our guest Betsy Bird wears a lot of hats. She is not only a bona fide children's book expert but also has a great knack for predicting ALA Awards! As the awards are being given out at the end of this month, Betsy's going to take us behind the scenes and talk about the mysterious process of how the awards are even chosen, and what books MIGHT take home some hardware this year! (Will we be right? WHO KNOWS!  But it will be fun to find out!) She also answers some listener questions about library etiquette, book banning, what she'd like to see more of in the picture book space, and more.   Check out the show notes for more information, links to all the books we talk about, as well as a link to the ALA award livestream so you can watch the awards in real time: https://www.literaticat.com/literaticast

Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator and author Cindy Derby joins me to discuss her unusual path to an illustration career, getting inspired, dealing with burnout, navigating social media, what she learned from dog finishing school, and so much more. We also celebrate Cindy's latest picture book, BLURP'S BOOK OF MANNERS, about a sentient ink blot that needs etiquette lessons, which is brand new from Roaring Brook. Show notes and links can be found at www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

The annual Great Big Holiday Gift Guide is BACK, baby! Booksellers Nicole Brinkley from Oblong Books in Rhinebeck, NY and Kassie King from the Novel Neighbor in St Louis, MO are joining to give their recommendations. If you're looking for holiday gifts for the kids in your life (or, for your own cozy winter reading), this episode is a must! Please remember to order your holiday books as early as possible - continued supply chain issues, etc, mean that it might be tough to get some of these at short notice. Please support your local independent bookstores whenever possible. Happy reading! Shownotes with links to all the books we talk about can be found at www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

We're back from hiatus, and excited to chat with Jemiscoe Chambers-Black. Jem is one of the newer agents at Andrea Brown Literary Agency, and a rising star who has had many awesome deals (and even a NYT Bestseller) in her two years at the agency -- especially amazing considering the fact that she started in the midst of the Pandemic. We'll talk about what she's looking for in a manuscript (and a client!), how to establish a great author-agent relationship,  and how she keeps her sanity and focus in a wild time, among other topics.  Show notes and transcripts for each episode can be found on the website: www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

Award-winning YA author (and podcast host!) Sara Zarr joins me to talk about the joys and challenges of crafting a sustainable writerly life.  She has practical and inspirational insights for newbies and mid-career authors alike in her new book, This Creative Life: A Handbook for Writers, from the myth of "genius", to best practices for getting feedback, to the realities of dealing with procrastination and burnout -- and we discuss all of it. We also chat about her brand-new middle grade novel, bonus Pirates, dead eyes, Harry Styles and MORE! Check out the show notes for links (and a special surprise for listeners!): https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast   

New agents can be great to query, as they have a lot of energy and are actively building their lists! Paige Terlip is an Associate Agent at ABLA. She's been an agent for just over a year and she's already making a splash with great clients and sales. Paige and I talk about her philosophy of agenting, her feelings about rejection, and what she is looking for in a client. Plus, she helps me answer some listener questions about everything from query tips to the state of publishing.  Shownotes, with links to more info and the books we discussed: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

My guest today is author Maggie Tokuda-Hall, who writes picture books, graphic novels, YA, fiction, non-fiction... basically a little bit of everything! She talks about her experiences with an MFA program (and questions you might ask yourself if you are thinking of going to such a program). She also discusses how she juggles writing in multiple categories, managing creative ebb and flow, and how (in the words of MT Anderson), "a change of pace is the same as taking a break."  We also talk about her latest picture book, LOVE IN THE LIBRARY, which is especially close to her heart as it is the true story of her grandparents and how they met as prisoners in an Incarceration Camp. She's a genius and I'm so excited for you to get to know her! Show notes (with links to everything we talked about) can be found at https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

My guest for this end-of-year show is Alison Morris. She's a book expert, and the Senior Director of Title Selection at FirstBook, a non-profit that provides literally millions of books to underserved kids (and so much more) -- we'll talk about it, and how YOU can support their vital mission. She's also here to give us a heads up about Books We Might Have Missed while we were all SOMEWHAT busy with other things, like, you know, a global pandemic. I'm going to ask her about trends she's seeing, award predictions, and SO much more. Join us, won't you? Detailed show notes, including links to ALL the books we discussed on this episode, can be found at https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

My guest this month is graphic novelist Gareth Hinds. He's famous for doing amazing Graphic Novel reinterpretations of classics like the Odyssey, the Iliad, Shakespeare, Poe and more... and we'll talk about how he chooses projects, and how he adapts them for modern readers and a graphic format, tips for aspiring graphic novelists, and so much more. We'll also get into his NEWEST project -- a modern classic -- GRACELING, THE GRAPHIC NOVEL, adapted from the YA fantasy by Kristin Cashore, which is on shelves now. For links to all the books we chatted about, go to the show notes: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

It's almost Holiday Time already (yeah, I know, yikes!) - and I want to encourage people to get their bookish gift shopping done early this year, and to pre-order books if you want them before Hanukkah or Christmas. To that end, it's time for the annual Holiday Gift Guide! Bookseller Melissa Posten joins me to give some great recommendations of beautiful Fall 2021 books for giving (or, hoarding for yourself!). Full show notes along with links to every book we chatted about can be found here: https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

Welcome back to the Literaticast! I'm back from hiatus with lots to say - first, about some of the newsworthy books of mine that came out during my absence. Then I'm joined by my friend, the prolific translator and author Lawrence Schimel, coming to us all the way from Madrid. We chat about World Kid Lit Month, and about the importance of books in translation and the International kid's book market. Lawrence tells us fascinating things about translating children's books, and we talk about how two of his new baby books caused an International Incident, just in time for Banned Books Week. And so much more. Plus, find out what we're obsessed with! If you'd like to read the articles we discussed, or purchase any of the books we talked about on the show, head to the detailed show notes:  https://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

My guests are award-winning author-illustrator Grace Lin and editor-in-chief of Little Brown Books for Young Readers Alvina Ling. Both are accomplished children's book pros, lifelong besties, AND hosts of the popular podcast Book Friends Forever. They both have a LOT to say about all things Kids Books. We're going to get into stuff like how the industry has changed over the years, how to confront Burnout, and so much more. Plus, of course, lots and LOTS of book recommendations, and what we're obsessed with. Enjoy it! And, wishing Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and Happy Almost-New-Year to us ALL! 

Guest agent Molly O'Neill from Root Literary joins me and we take it back to basics, talking about query letters and debunking some myths. We also dig into what the pandemic has been like for the publishing industry from our points of view. And Molly recommends some awesome books for your holiday purchasing pleasure! Finally, we get super-over-excited about TV shows: Ted Lasso, The Crown, and Queen's Gambit. 

I check in with my friend Suzanna, the co-owner and buyer for Oblong Books and Music in Rhinebeck and Millerton, NY. She talks about how the bookstore has weathered these wild times, what has changed, and what booksellers have learned -- and together, we give AWESOME BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS! Get your pencil and paper ready and prepare to order awesome gifts for the holidays (and treats for yourself, too!)  

Today we're talking pop culture! If you insert specific pop culture references in your work, how do you walk the line between seeming current now, and possibly making your book seem dated a couple years from now... and how DOES a grownup stay current, anyway? How can 1980's TV inform the way you structure your book, and what can superhero stories teach us about crafting a short pitch? All this and more with my special guest, MG and YA novel writing superstar Lamar Giles!

It's a very special episode: Four amazing authors helped me celebrate the Hudson Valley YA Society's 10th Anniversary and launch Christine Heppermann's new novel in verse WHAT GOES UP, in conjunction with Oblong Books & Music's "Oblong Online" event series. Listen in on this great event with Christine Heppermann, Brandy Colbert, Laura Ruby, and Sherri L. Smith. (And please forgive any technical glitches, this was a live event from five locations and something of an experiment!)

As you may have noticed, the podcast took a little hiatus - but we're back, baby! This episode, I give a little "state of the publishing industry" address, where I answer some burning listener questions about how the pandemic is affecting publishing. My special guest is picture book author Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, who talks about shaking up expectations and other important lessons for picture book authors (and, actually, ALL authors!), and tells us all about her latest picture book, YOUR NAME IS A SONG. Plus, I dig a bit into the results of the latest CCBC Diversity numbers.

Author Rebecca Stead (WHEN YOU REACH ME, LIAR AND SPY, among others) joins me to talk about her creative process -- as well as such important topics as revision with book maps, finding an authentic voice, giving yourself permission to suck, shutting down your inner critic, the annoyingness of the word "tween", and the restorative power of watching other people bake things. I'll also let her tell you a bit about her latest novel, out this week: THE LIST OF THINGS THAT WILL NOT CHANGE!

My guest this week is Hannah Moushabeck, a book marketing wizard from Quarto Books with a life-long history in the book industry. Hannah and I chat about ways for you to get the word out about your book, and what your publisher is doing, as well as social media 101, and so much more. ​PLEASE NOTE: This episode was recorded several weeks ago, in the Before-Time when we still had lively bookstores and libraries. Much of the valuable info herein will still apply, but some of it, well.... bear it in mind for when the "shelter-in-place" orders lift. I'll be updating with "Corona-Time" info as I have it.

My guest is publicist Tracy van Straaten, who will pull the curtain back and reveal everything you've always wanted to know about Book Publicity but were afraid to ask! (Well, maybe not everything. But a LOT OF STUFF!) Including how to best work with your in-house publicist, when hiring an outside publicist might be the right move, and much more.

My guest this week is Kate Messner -- the perfect person to discuss Career Building! Over the past decade she's published over 30 children's books, and has 12 more coming out in 2020 alone. Wowza! We'll talk about how she does it. We also talk about things she WISHES she had known when she was a debut, how to find balance in what can be a wild business, and so much more. 

We welcome the return of the Great Big Holiday Gift Guide, 2019 edition! I interview three independent booksellers from various parts of the country, and we give you our best recommendations for ALL the young folks on your shopping list – and some of the grownups, too. Joining me are Abby Rauscher, from Books are Magic in Brooklyn New York – Cecilia Cackley, from East City Books on Capitol Hilll in Washington DC, and Stephanie Heinz, from Print: A Bookstore, in Portland Maine. Get a pen and paper, you're gonna want to take notes on this one!

My guest Kandace Coston is an editor at Lee & Low, the largest multicultural publisher in the U.S. She is a nonfiction picture book expert, and we'll discuss how to choose a topic, what to include in the backmatter, and how to tackle potentially problematic content in a nonfiction book for young readers. Also, I explore an app that makes me feel EXTREMELY old. Join us, won't you?

Welcome to an all-new feature on the Literaticast: BEHIND THE BOOK, in which we take a deep dive into the backstory behind the making of one fascinating book. Up for discussion today is ROAR LIKE A DANDELION by Ruth Krauss, Illustrated by Sergio Ruzzier, published by HarperCollins. Ruth Krauss was one of the foremost children's authors of the 20th century, and ROAR is a long-lost manuscript that has just been published for the first time. I speak to HarperCollins editor Nancy Inteli, who rediscovered the manuscript; Children's Book Historian Philip Nel, who is an expert on Ruth Krauss; and illustrator Sergio Ruzzier, who brought the story to life. If you like children's book history and the art of the Picture Book, you won't want to miss this episode.

I'm joined by author Stephanie Lucianovic, whose debut picture book THE END OF SOMETHING WONDERFUL drops on September 10. She's dropping some hot knowledge on us about what it is like to navigate the pre-debut time, how to find and utilize mentor texts, winning social media strategies, how to work well with illustrators, and so much more. Plus you'll hear me moan about... cars? Listen, I can't talk about TV Shows on a Book Podcast EVERY time. ;-) Shownotes: JenniferLaughran.com/Literaticast

My guest is Executive Editor of the Abrams Appleseed imprint, Meredith Mundy. We chat about all things "little-kid" book related -- including the different types of board and novelty books, and the joys and challenges of writing and publishing them.

It's a Summertime Bonus Episode! ABLA Senior Agent Jen Rofé joins me to answer burning listener questions about queries, submission strategies, working with your agent, and so much more. Plus we talk about glass-blowing and Russian spies. (Obviously!)

First I talk a bit about the etiquette of leaving your agent and getting a new one -- it's not as scary or weird as you might worry it will be! Then, the fabulous Dahlia Adler joins me to talk about her books, blogging, promoting authors, self-promoting, cutting through the internet noise, avoiding burnout, and being a professional Big Mouth. We also talk about her site LGBTQ Reads, and Dahlia gives us a taste of her favorite queer reads. Get your pen and paper ready so you can jot down these terrific titles!

I sit down with powerhouse editor Namrata Tripathi, the founder and publisher of Kokila Books, a new imprint of Penguin Random House. The first books from Kokila are coming this week, so we have a great discussion about what it is like to start an imprint from scratch, from deciding on the name and logo to choosing the first books to publish; also the importance of diversity in creators, topics, gatekeepers; and what conversation would be complete without mentioning nerdy vampires? 

My guest is Laurent Linn, an Art Director from Simon and Schuster. He'll give us the inside scoop on such hot topics as: What the heck does an Art Director do?! How are book jackets made? What should an illustrator have in their portfolio? What is the "life cycle" of a picture book and why do they take soooo long to come out? And WHO PICKS THE FONTS?! Also we'll talk about vampires and theme parks, obviously.

This episode, I'm pleased to welcome newly minted Newbery Medalist Meg Medina. We chat about world building in realistic fiction, writing large casts of characters, balancing business vs art, tips for debut authors as well as those suffering from "sophomore slump." Oh... and though I promised her I would NOT ask her about "the call" from the Newbery committee.... at the end, she tells a bit of the story anyway! Yesss! Plus we gab about TV shows and Tamales.

I sit down with Lisa Cron, the author of STORY GENIUS and WIRED FOR STORY - she is chock full of advice to make your next novel truly unputdownable. Also, I get a couple of words in edgewise, and talk about my obsession: RUSSIAN DOLL!

I'm getting ready to head to Seattle for ALA Midwinter. So what even IS that? In this episode, I speak to Jenny Choy, the Associate Director for School-Library Marketing for Abrams Books for Young Readers. Jenny tells us the difference between publicity, marketing, and school-library marketing, and gives us the lowdown about what happens behind the booth curtains at a big librarian conference like ALA. What books are on display, and why? Which authors get invited, and why? What does she wish that authors knew about her job? So much great info! Yay!

I chat with four awesome booksellers about their top children's and YA book picks for holiday gift giving (and my own picks, too!) -- some you've probably heard of, but others likely be new to you, and all are well worth checking out. Of course, there's no way that we could get ALL our faves in one little podcast.... but hey, it's a start. :-) 

Martha Brockenbrough returns to discuss her latest book of YA Nonfiction, UNPRESIDENTED, a biography/documentary about the life and times of Donald Trump. We also talk about how you can decide when a story is YOURS to tell, how to deal with bad reviews, how teen readers are the BEST readers, and how to write about current events without having a brain meltdown. Martha gives writerly advice about a variety of craft issues, and we do a switcheroo, where Martha asks ME about Holiday Books! Plus, as always, we discuss what we are obsessed with this week.       

Editorial consultant Emma D. Dryden has a storied career in children's publishing. She sat down with me to talk about revision, as well as the difference between working for a publisher and editing under her own shingle. I asked her a LOT of questions, including, what should an author expect from a Freelance Editor? How do you know if or when the time is right to hire one? What are the most common problems she sees in manuscripts? What is a "Quiet Book"? What's the difference between YA and MG, reallllly? Plus, Emma gives her top tips and tricks for revising, and a whole lot more.

Guest agent Kelly Sonnack joins me to talk about best practices, agent-wise... and WTH are some bad agents even DOING? Also we answer listener questions, talk about query management, vent on the topic of submission do's and don'ts, and we go in deep about our favorite yearly event, the Big Sur Children's Writers Workshop. Oh and obviously we also talk about the Black Death and how it affects caterpillars, among other scintillating topics. Join us, won't you? 

Guest author Lesa Cline-Ransome gets into it about writing nonfiction (particularly biographical) picture books. Like, how does she choose subjects? How does she decide HOW to tell the story, do research, and get a new angle on a topic we might think we already know? Plus, what is it like to have a partner who is also the illustrator for your picture books? Annnnd, we discuss Lesa's brand-new debut Middle Grade novel, FINDING LANGSTON.

Author Debbi Michiko Florence joins us to chat about her winding path to publication, and her awesome chapter book series, JASMINE TOGUCHI, the fourth book of which has just been released. I talk about how to query chapter books, Debbi gives insight into the writing of them, and we both dole out wisdom (??) for listener questions. Plus we talk about ducks, snacks, and cooking shows.

Award-winning author-illustrator Dan Santat joins me to discuss time management, illustrating vs authoring, portfolio-making, the World Cup, killers for hire (again! it's a theme!), and so much more. 

I give some recommendations for my favorite books for writers. Then my guest, middle grade novelist and English professor Erin Dionne, chats with me about revision tips and tricks, plotting vs pantsing, story structure, and more. Spoiler alert: There is no one way to be a writer! Oh also we talk a bit about contract killers and trivia addiction. Obviously.

I'm joined by Suzanna Hermans, from Oblong Books & Music in New York's Hudson Valley. She talks about how she curates the selection at Oblong -- what prompts an "auto-buy" from her -- and when books get returned. We also touch on some hot topics: Does a scandal from an author prompt exclusion from the bookstore shelves? And just how terrible IS Henry Higgins from MY FAIR LADY? (#theworst). Plus, great book recommendations, and current obsessions!