Diy Mfa Radio

Today, Lori is interviewing Mary Pascual. They’ll be talking about her debut novel, The Byways, and creating multi-dimensional characters. Mary Pascual is a writer and artist who believes finding magic is only a matter of perspective. She loves stories about characters with heart and fantastical settings that are more than meets the eye. She grew up in California and enjoys reading, art, traveling, exploring outside, and building elaborate stage sets for Halloween. Writing has taken her on a number of unexpected adventures, including working in high tech, meeting psychics, interviewing rock bands, and even once attending a press conference for Bigfoot. She got hooked on reading adult science fiction and fantasy in the fifth grade—so in retrospect, much of her reading material was completely inappropriate (which probably explains a few things). She lives with her husband, son, and assorted demanding cats in San Jose, California.   In this episode, Mary Pascual and Lori discuss: Finding the inspiration for a

Today’s episode is our monthly Craft Jam. This is a new feature at DIY MFA, where once a month, Lori and I will be jamming about the craft. In these episodes, we’ll be doing a deep dive into various craft topics like character development, story structure, world building and more.  This month’s episode is a deep dive into how to create compelling characters.   In this episode Lori and I discuss: Using method writing to get inside your characters’ heads. How to create balanced scenes using the TADA! method. The different types of voice and how to use each. Plus, our #1 reading recommendation on compelling characters. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/464

Today, Lori is interviewing Daniel Weizmann. They’ll be talking about his neo-noir mystery, The Last Songbird. Daniel Weizmann got his start at 13 under the nom de plume Shredder, writing for the legendary Flipside Fanzine. He went on to write for the LA Weekly, LA Times, Billboard, the Guardian, and others. He contributed to several books, including Drinking with Bukowski, Hardcore California, Too Cool, Timothy Leary's last work, and DeeDee Ramone's autobio. He has also written volumes for Def Jam rappers, standup comics, Mad Libs, and more. The Last Songbird is his debut mystery. You can find him on his website or follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.   In this episode Daniel Weizmann and Lori discuss: Why you should resist the urge to explain yourself in your writing. How to use the negative space to maximum effect. The role of music in his process and its impact in his novel. Plus, his #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/463

Today, Lori is interviewing Jolene Mcilwain. They’ll be talking about Sidle Creek and centering a short story collection around a place. Jolene McIlwain’s fiction has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and appears in West Branch, Florida Review, Cincinnati Review, New Orleans Review, Northern Appalachia Review, and 2019's Best Small Fictions Anthology. Her work was named finalist for 2018’s Best of the Net, Glimmer Train’s and River Styx’s contests, and semifinalist in Nimrod’s Katherine Anne Porter Prize and two American Short Fiction's contests. She’s received a Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council grant, the Georgia Court Chautauqua faculty scholarship, and Tinker Mountain’s merit scholarship. She taught literary theory/analysis at Duquesne and Chatham Universities and she worked as a radiologic technologist before attending college (BS English, minor in sculpture, MA Literature). She was born, raised, and currently lives in a small town in the Appalachian plateau of Western Pennsylvania. You can find her on

Today, Lori is interviewing Ginny Kubitz Moyer. They’ll be talking about how she started writing her debut novel, The Seeing Garden, with the setting. Ginny Kubitz Moyer is a California native with a love of local history. A graduate of Pomona College and Stanford University, she’s an English instructor and avid weekend gardener.  Her articles have appeared in a variety of publications, including Bella Grace and America Magazine, and she is the author of several books on women's spirituality.  She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, two sons, and one adorable rescue dog. The Seeing Garden is her first novel.  You can find her on her website or follow her on Instagram.   In this episode Ginny Kubitz Moyer and Lori discuss: Why she prefers the term “discovery writer” instead of “pantser.” The importance of reading widely and re-reading books. How she picked up the tone of her novel, The Seeing Garden.   Plus, her #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/461

Today, Lori is interviewing Neely Tubati Alexander. They’ll be talking about Love Buzz and the importance of listening to your intuition when crafting a novel. Neely Tubati Alexander is a first-generation Indian American mother of two. Originally from the Seattle area where Love Buzz, her debut novel, is largely set, she seeks to tell lighthearted, female-driven stories with diverse characters and strong women who pursue both love and careers. If she's not tucked away at the little desk in her bedroom writing, you can find her at some kiddo activity, drinking wine, or watching reality TV, usually the last two together. She lives in sunny Arizona with her family. You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads.   In this episode Neely Tubati Alexander and Lori discuss: Pansing your way through drafts to gain a deeper understanding of your characters. How to tease out secrets and set pacing based on your intuition. Creating a rich cast to support your main cha

Today, Lori is interviewing Anne Marie Wells. They’ll be talking about her poetry collection, Survived By: A Memoir in Verse, and using poetry as a method of dealing with heavy emotions. Anne Marie Wells (She | They) is an award-winning Queer poet, playwright, memoirist, and storyteller navigating the world with a chronic illness. She is a faculty member for The Community Literature Initiative through the Sims Library of Poetry and Strategic Partnership Fellow for The Poetry Lab. She earned the 2021 Peter K. Hixson Memorial Award in Poetry, the 2020 Wyoming Writers Milestone Award, and was a 2021 Wyoming Woman of Influence nominee in the arts for amplifying the voices of the LGBTQ and disabled communities with her writing. Her first full-length collection of poetry, Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems, debuts with Curious Corvid Publishing on April 30, 2023.  You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook and Instagram.   In this episode Anne Marie and Lori discuss: Choosing poems for a

Today, Lori is interviewing Donnaldson Brown. They’ll be talking about Because I Loved You, and about how her background in screenwriting has influenced her prose. Donnaldson 's debut novel, Because I Loved You, is due out in April 2023 with She Writes Press. An attorney and former screenwriter, she worked with Robert Redford’s film development company for several years. Her spoken word pieces have been featured in The Deep Listening Institute’s Writers in Performance and Women & Identity Festivals, and in the Made in the Berkshires Theatre Festival in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. She’s been awarded several residencies. A longtime resident of both Brooklyn, New York and western Massachusetts, Ms. Brown grew up riding horses on a family ranch in East Texas as well as in her native Connecticut. She is a facilitator and trainer with The Equus Effect, offering somatic based experiential learning with horses for veterans, first responders and others struggling with ptsd, and is also certified to teach meditatio

Today, Lori is interviewing Leslie Karst. They’ll be talking about weaving past experiences into your writing and her new book Justice is Served.  The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karst waited tables and sang in a new wave rock band before deciding she was ready for a “real” job and ending up at Stanford Law School. It was during her career as a research and appellate attorney in Santa Cruz, California, that she rediscovered her youthful passion for food and cooking, at which point she once again returned to school—this time to earn a degree in culinary arts. Now retired from the law, Leslie spends her days penning the Sally Solari culinary mystery series, as well as cooking, gardening, cycling, and singing alto in her local community chorus. She and her wife and their Jack Russell mix split their time between Santa Cruz and Hilo, Hawai’i. You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.   In this episode Leslie Karst and Lori discuss: Letting go of ego

Today, Lori is interviewing Danielle Mitchell. They’ll be talking about the methodology of writing and reading poetry. Danielle Mitchell (she/her) is an intersectional feminist, poet, and teaching artist. She is the Founding Director of The Poetry Lab, an online learning platform that rallies in service of working-class writers around the globe. Danielle is the author of Makes the Daughter-in-Law Cry, winner of the Clockwise Chapbook Prize (Tebot Bach, 2017). Her poems have appeared in Hayden’s Ferry Review, Vinyl, Four Way Review, Transom, New Orleans Review, Nailed Magazine and others. Danielle has received scholarships to travel to Patmos Island, Greece to study poetry, as well as grants from Poets & Writers and the Ashaki M. Jackson No Barriers Grant from the Women Who Submit. She is the inaugural winner of the Editor’s Prize from Mary Magazine and the Editor’s Choice Award from The Mas Tequila Review. She has performed on stages all over Southern California including the Segerstrom Center for the Art

Today, Lori is interviewing Patricia Leavy. They’ll be talking about her book, Hollyland, and the science behind the art of writing. Patricia Leavy, PhD, is an award-winning, best-selling author. She was formerly Associate Professor of Sociology, Chairperson of Sociology & Criminology, and Founding Director of Gender Studies at Stonehill College. She has published more than forty books; her work has been translated into many languages, and she has received more than forty book honors. She has also received career awards from the New England Sociological Association, the American Creativity Association, the American Educational Research Association, the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, and the National Art Education Association. In 2018, she was honored by the National Women’s Hall of Fame and SUNY-New Paltz established the “Patricia Leavy Award for Art and Social Justice.” You can find her on her website and follow her on Facebook and Instagram.   In this episode Patricia Leavy and Lori disc

Today, Lori is interviewing Jinwoo Chong. They’ll be talking about themes of loss and disconnection and how they relate to his book Flux. Jinwoo Chong is the author of the novel Flux, coming March 21, 2023 from Melville House. His work has appeared in The Southern Review, Chicago Quarterly Review, The Florida Review, CRAFT, and Salamander. He received the Oran Robert Perry Burke Award for Fiction from The Southern Review and a special mention in the 2022 Pushcart Prize anthology, as well as recognition from The Sewanee Review, Tin House and Zoetrope: All-Story. He received an MFA from Columbia University and is an editorial assistant at One Story. You can find him on his website or follow him on Twitter and Instagram.   In this episode Jinwoo Chong and Lori discuss: Immigration as synthesis. What it means to blend speculative fiction and neo-noir genres How the immigrant experience helped to shape his book.   Plus, his #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/454

Today, Lori is interviewing Laurie Buchanan. They’ll be talking about Impervious and the mechanics of writing a series. Laurie writes the Sean McPherson novels—fast-paced thrillers set in the Pacific Northwest featuring a trifecta of malice and the pursuit and cost of justice. As a photographer and avid reader, she carries a laptop, book, and camera with her wherever she goes. Growing up, she wanted to be a magician, international spy, and mad scientist. There’s still time! She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her pilot-husband, Len, where she enjoys yoga, bicycling, and camping. She loves to travel and take walks—long walks! She walked across Scotland, a 211-mile journey from the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. At the mid-point, she climbed Ben Nevis, the highest point in the British Isles. You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.   In this episode Laurie Buchanan and Lori discuss: The nuances of writing respectfully outside of your own experience. Pantsing t

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Steven James. We’ll be talking about his multifaceted storytelling framework, and his book The Art of the Tale. Steven James is the bestselling, critically acclaimed author of eighteen novels that have won or been shortlisted for more than a dozen national and international awards. His thrillers have been praised by Suspense Magazine, Booklist, and the New York Journal of Books and received starred reviews from both Library Journal and Publishers Weekly, who called his work “thought-provoking” and “riveting.” He has also written two award-winning books on the craft of writing, Story Trumps Structure and Troubleshooting Your Novel. When he’s not writing, he teaches storytelling at events around the globe and hosts the weekly podcast, The Story Blender. You can find him on his website or follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.   In this episode Steven James and I discuss: The importance of what is, not what appears to be. Giving readers what they don’t know

Today, Lori is interviewing Sorboni Banerjee and Dominique Richardson. They’ll be talking about collaborating on their book, Red as Blood, and the sisterhood they found. Dominique Richardson and Sorboni Banerjee are the coauthors of THE EVERBEACH SERIES—a young adult, romantic suspense series pitched as "Riverdale" meets fairy tale. Full of forbidden romance, deadly twists, and scandalous secrets, this series is sure to keep you turning pages into the night. It's perfect for fans of INHERITANCE GAMES, CINDER, GOSSIP GIRL, and PRETTY LITTLE LIARS. The first book in the series, RED AS BLOOD, comes out February 28, 2023.    You can follow both Dominique and Sorboni on Tiktok.   Dominique Richardson was raised between Jamaica and the United States, and her biracial heritage finds a home in her books. She spends her free time passing on her love of unicorns to her twin boys, running in the Florida heat, and drinking all the coffee. Dominique is the Young Adult columnist for DIY MFA. She now lives in Tampa, Florida

Today, Lori is interviewing Thien-Kim Lam. They’ll be talking about writing romance with depth and spice. Thien-Kim Lam writes stories about Vietnamese characters who smash stereotypes and find their happy endings. A recovering Type-Asian, she guzzles cà phê sữa đá, makes art, and bakes her feelings to stay sane. Her books Happy Endings and Full Exposure are steamy romances that will make you hungry.Thien-Kim is also the founder of Bawdy Bookworms, a subscription box that pairs sexy romances with erotic toys. She’s been featured on Jezebel, NPR, BBC America, and Glamour.  You can find her on her personal website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and here is the link to her book coaching site. She can also be found on Bawdy Bookworms’s Instagram.   In this episode Thien-Kim Lam and Lori discuss: Balancing a love story with conflict. Sex education and sexuality as empowerment. Creating banter that isn’t forced.   Plus, her #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/45

Today, Lori is interviewing Courtney Maum. They’ll be talking about honesty in memoir and her book The Year of the Horses. Author of five books, including the game changing publishing guide Before and After the Book Deal and the memoir, The Year of the Horses, (chosen by The Today Show as the best read for mental health awareness), Courtney is a writer and book coach hellbent on preserving the joy of art-making in a culture obsessed with turning artists into brands.  A nominee for the Joyce Carol Oates prize and the host of the monthly “Beyond Fiction” conversation series at Edith Wharton’s The Mount, Courtney’s essays and articles on creativity have been widely published in outlets like The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Guardian, and her short story This is Not Your Fault was recently turned into an Audible Original.  A frequent interviewer of high-profile writers such as Anne Perry, Ottessa Moshfegh, and Edouard Louis, Courtney is also the founder of the learning collaborative, The Cabins.

Today, Lori is interviewing Jenna Miller. They’ll be talking about her publishing experience as a debut writer with her book Out of Character. Jenna Miller writes Young Adult books about fat, queer, nerdy girls who deserve to be seen and have their voices heard. When she’s not obsessing over words, she can be found making charcuterie boards, befriending people online, cross stitching, or adventuring in the Minneapolis area.  You can find her on her website or follow her on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.   In this episode Jenna Miller and Lori discuss: The complexities of writing a parent / teen dynamic that resonates with today’s YA audience.  How NanoWriMo positively influenced her authorial career. Transcending the traditional love triangle trope with nuance.   Plus, her #1 tip for writers. For more info and show notes: diymfa.com/448

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Monte Schultz. We’ll be talking about his book Metropolis, and the intricacies of writing alternative history. Monte Schulz received his M.A. in American Studies from University of California, Santa Barbara. He published his first novel, Down by the River, in 1990, and spent the next twelve years writing a novel about the Jazz Age. Monte is also a composer, songwriter, and producer whose most recent album is titled “Seraphonium.” In 2010, he became the owner of the Santa Barbara Writers Conference. Monte is endlessly curious and well versed in world history and theology. He is fascinated by the style and use of innovative language, and can be caught engaging in provocative, philosophical conversations about big, far-reaching, imaginative ideas and worldly perspectives. His father is the late cartoonist Charles M. Schulz. He lives in Santa Barbara, CA. You can find him on his website or follow him on Facebook and Twitter.   In this episode Monte Schultz and I discuss:

Today, Lori is interviewing Jumata Emill. They’ll be talking about exploring social justice through multi-cultural experiences and his book The Black Queen. Jumata is a journalist who has covered crime and local politics in Mississippi and parts of Louisiana. He earned his B.A. in mass communications from Southern University and A&M College. He’s a Pitch Wars alum and member of the Crime Writers of Color. When he’s not writing about murderous teens, he’s watching and obsessively tweeting about every franchise of the Real Housewives. Jumata lives in Baton Rouge, La. You can find him on his website or follow him on Twitter and Instagram.   In this episode Jumata Emill and Lori discuss: The importance and long-term effects of character representation in YA novels. Making social justice a relatable topic for young people through engaging and thought provoking prose. How the influence of real life experiences and conversations have woven together to create inclusivity in his work.   Plus, his #1 tip for wri