Write Or Die Podcast

S. Jae-Jones was born and raised in sunny Los Angeles, where she spent summers on the beach and winters on the slope until she was convinced by Sesame Street (and university) to move to New York City. A native Angelena and a New Yorker at heart, she now lives in Dixie, where she is comfortably growing fat on grits and barbecue. When not writing, she can be find rock-climbing, skydiving, taking photographs, drawing pictures, and dragging her dog on ridiculously long hikes. Follow JJ online! Twitter Facebook Tumblr Instagram http://www.publishingcrawl.com/ Buy WINTERSONG & SHADOWSONG!  Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorD

Kat Cho used to hide books under the bathroom sink and then sneak in there to read after bedtime. Her parents pretended not to know. This helped when she decided to write a dinosaur time-travel novel at the tender age of nine. Sadly, that book was not published. She currently works in NYC as an editorial assistant. Kat’s YA contemporary fantasy debut, WICKED FOX, comes out with Putnam Books for Young Readers/Penguin in 2019. Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

More about Karen Strong: Born and raised in the rural South, Karen Strong has a passion for writing for kids and teens — focusing on black girls who explore the realms of adventure and mystery with a dash of spooky. Add JUST SOUTH OF HOME on Goodreads! Follow Karen Online! More about India Hill: A 26-year-old Southern Belle who came back down south after living in NYC and working at HBO. My day job is in Social Media, and my passion is writing. I LOVE to write – I’m agented and am working on a couple of fiction projects. I’m a Freelance Writer as well – my words have been in Teen Vogue, Essence, Sesi Mag, and The Everygirl. Add THE FORGOTTEN GIRL on Goodreads! Follow India Online! Join the WRITE OR DIE Community on Facebook!  Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodre

Ryan Douglass is an author and freelance writer with a BA from Hofstra University. His debut YA novel, Jake in the Box, is forthcoming from Putnam/Penguin in the Spring of 2020. He lives in Atlanta, GA. Follow Ryan online! Ryan’s website On Twitter @ryandouglassw Add Jake in the Box on Goodreads! Join the WRITE OR DIE Community on Facebook!  Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

Summer Heacock is an author of women's contemporary fiction, mom to two scampy kidlings and wife to an amazingly understanding husband. THE AWKWARD PATH TO GETTING LUCKY (7/25/2017, MIRA) is her debut novel. Follow Summer Online: Twitter: @Fizzygrrl Facebook Goodreads Buy her books!  Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

Leatrice “Elle” McKinney, writing as L.L. McKinney, is a poet and active member of the kidlit community. She’s an advocate for equality and inclusion in publishing, and the creator of the hashtag #WhatWoCWritersHear. She’s spent time in the slush by serving as a reader for agents and participating as a judge in various online writing contests. Elle’s also a gamer, Blerd, and adamant Hei Hei stan, living in Kansas, surrounded by more nieces and nephews than she knows what to do with. Aside from rockin’ the Favorite Aunt thing, she spends her free time plagued by her cat–Sir Chester Fluffmire Boopsnoot Purrington Wigglebottom Flooferson III, esquire, Baron o’Butterscotch or #SirChester for short–or defending the realm from the enemies of Azeroth. FOR THE HORDE! A BLADE SO BLACK is her debut novel. Follow Elle online! On Twitter Instagram Website Youtube Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com

Rachel is a Seattle native who loves rainy days, tap dancing, and red lipstick. In high school, she sang and played keyboard in an all-girl band, and she was once part of a group of people who broke a Guinness World Record for the most natural redheads in one place. She has written for newspapers, produced a radio show that aired in the middle of the night, and worked for NPR. Currently she works as a freelance editor. These days, she writes young adult novels about ambitious, complicated, sometimes unlikable girls who are trying their best. Representation: Laura Bradford of the Bradford Literary Agency Rachel’s Books: You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone Our Year of Maybe Follow Rachel online: On Twitter On Instagram Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Go

Akemi Dawn Bowman is the author of Starfish (a William C. Morris Award Finalist) and Summer Bird Blue (out September 11th, 2018). She’s a proud Ravenclaw and Star Wars enthusiast, who served in the US Navy for five years and has a BA in social sciences from UNLV. Originally from Las Vegas, she currently lives in Scotland with her husband, two children, and their Pekingese mix.  Buy STARFISH Pre-Order SUMMER BIRD BLUE Add HARLEY IN THE SKY on Goodreads!  Follow Akemi online! http://akemidawnbowman.com/ Twitter: @akemidawn Instagram: @akemidawnbowman/ SFF PIT Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie com

Find out how author Sonia Hartl found a literary agent, and a book deal after years of rejection and disappointment. More about Sonia’s upcoming book HAVE A LITTLE FAITH IN ME: Ashley Hearn at Page Street has bought Sonia Hartl’s debut contemporary YA novel, Have a Little Faith in Me, pitched as Firsts meets Saved! When CeCe’s born-again boyfriend dumps her after they have sex, she follows him to Jesus camp to win him back, though she knows nothing about Christianity. But when he shows up with a new girlfriend—a True Believer—she must face the truth about her feelings, and about the night she lost her virginity. Publication is set for fall 2019; Rebecca Podos at the Rees Literary Agency brokered the deal for world rights. Add HAVE A LITTLE FAITH IN ME on Goodreads Follow Sonia online! Twitter: @SoniaHartl1  Website: http://www.soniahartl.com/ Add HAVE A LITTLE FAITH IN ME on Goodreads Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelo

Tochi Onyebuchi wrote about fifteen books in just as many genres before he found his way to publishing success. Come listen to our chat, learn how his book BEASTS MADE OF NIGHT came to be and more! Follow Tochi Online! Twitter: @TochiTrueStory Preorder CROWN OF THUNDER! Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

This week I interview my agent Suzie Townsend and ask her ten listener questions, find out what she’s looking for in her inbox and what to avoid when querying agents! Prior to joining New Leaf, Suzie graduated film school, earned her Masters of Education, taught high school English, and coached a swim team. In her spare time, she read everything she could, which prompted her move to publishing. She got her start as an intern at FinePrint Literary Management where she was hired as an assistant before making the move to literary agent. She’s been part of the team at New Leaf Literary & Media since its inception in 2012. Suzie represents all brands of children’s and adult fiction. She loves women’s fiction, all subgenres of romance, fantasy, and crime fiction. On the children’s side, she particularly loves YA and MG. Suzie loves strong characters and voice-driven stories that break out of the typical tropes of their genres, and she’s always looking for unique new voices in stories. Follow Suzie online! Twitt

Rena Barron got over twenty revise and resubmits and way more rejections on her road to finding success during Pitch Wars. Find out how she went from the query trenches to having two series deals after ten years of querying and learn more about her young adult fantasy debut THE LAST WITCH DOCTOR and her middle grade MAYA AND THE RISING DARK! Follow Rena Online! Twitter: @renathedreamer Website: renabarron.com Instagram: @renathedreamer Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

After seven years of false starts and rejections, find out how Jennifer Dugan beat the odds, learned to embrace her bisexual identity in her writing and got a book deal for her upcoming debut, HOT DOG GIRL! Follow Jennifer online! Add Hot Dog Girl to Goodreads! Twitter: @JL_Dugan DVpit https://absolutewrite.com/ http://pred-ed.com/ http://pitchwars.org/pitmad/ Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

Join me and this week’s guest Phil Stamper as we talk Zelda fan fic, leaving your first agent, taking down Lani Sarem and his upcoming debut THE GRAVITY OF US! Follow Phil on social media! https://www.wattpad.com/user/stampepk https://philstamper.com/ Twitter: @stampepk Facebook: @authorphilstamper Instagram: @stampepk Goodreads: @philstamper Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

Roselle Lim wrote seven manuscripts before she felt ready to query but when she finally did, publishing took her on a roller coaster ride to hell. Find out how she queried over two hundred agents and then went on to sell her debut NATALIE TAN’S BOOK OF LUCK AND FORTUNE at auction to Penguin/Berkley! Follow Roselle online! Add Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune on Goodreads!  Roselle’s Twitter Roselle’s Instagram www.rosellelim.com/ Brenda Drake DVPIT Follow Beth on Twitter Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

BRUJA BORN is out June 5th but before Zoraida Córdova found success writing about witches, she had to traverse publishing in the days before We Need Diverse Books and deal with frustrating rejections. Listen to her journey here (she’s written SO MANY BOOKS OMGOSH) and get a Write or Die exclusive about a secret middle grade project! Links: Zoraida Córdova’s Website Follow Zoraida on Twitter Zoraida’s Instagram Get the Brooklyn Brujas Series!  BELLES & BRUJAS TOUR Victoria Schwab Dhonielle Clayton WNDB Cake Literary Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

Mark Oshiro’s book ANGER IS A GIFT came out this week from TOR TEEN but before he had a publishing deal & a great agent, he had to revise an entire book on a flight, overcome an agent disappearing on him and crush a complete overhaul and genre change of his novel. Hear his story and listen to me laugh way too much in this week’s episode! Please remember to subscribe and leave me a review!!! Buy ANGER IS A GIFT!  Follow Mark on Social Media: Twitter Website Youtube Mark Does Stuff Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

Ryan La Sala recently announced a two book deal including his 2019 YA debut REVERIE! Find out how he queried and got a book deal all while dealing with a chronic illness. PLUS learn some exclusive info about his second book coming from Sourcebooks! Links: Add Reverie on Goodreads!  Ryan’s Website  Follow Ryan on Twitter   Follow Ryan on Instagram Follow Kosoko Jackson on Twitter Ryan’s Sailor Moon Fan Fic Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community! 

After years of rejection and almost giving up, to a success story that’s good enough to be a fairytale, Julie C. Dao‏ shares her uphill climb to getting one of my favorite YA books FOREST OF A THOUSAND LANTERNS published. Links: juliedao.com Follow Julie on Twitter  FOREST OF A THOUSAND LANTERNS Pre-Order KINGDOM OF THE BLAZING PHOENIX  Pumpkin Patch Princess Pitch Wars Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community!  For anyone wondering who the mysterious Patrice is we talk about around the 38 minute mark Patrice Caldwell is definitely someone you should be following! Follow her! 

Find out how author Isabel Sterling got a deal for her witchy book series despite parting ways with her first agent, writing a buttload of books that went nowhere and almost losing all hope! Oh and her dog ate all her socks. WTF! Links: Follow Isabel on Twitter  Isabelsterling.com  Add THESE WITCHES DON’T BURN to Goodreads Dear Martin Nic Stone Long Way Down Jason Reynolds American Panda Gloria Chao Unspoken Sarah Rees Brennan Follow Claribel Ortega online: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube Order GHOST SQUAD Add FRIZZY on Goodreads www.claribelortega.com Follow Kat Cho online: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok Order WICKED FOX! Order VICIOUS SPIRITS (sequel to WICKED FOX) Add ONCE UPON A K-PROM on Goodreads www.katchowrites.com Follow Write or Die online: Twitter | Instagram  Write or Die Podcast Website Join our WorDie community!