Writerly Lifestyle David

5 Minute Writer
Article
Last week's interview with Author Aaron Philip Clark
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3 BIG TAKEAWAYS
What agents are looking for in a clientYour first 5-10 pagesWhat it's like working with an agentEPISODE INFO:
Are you looking to land an agent in 2023? 
In this episode, Aevitas Creative literary agent Lori Galvin is going to share the things you need to know if you want to grab an agent’s attention, both in your query letter and bio, but also when talking to an agent, and even those all-important first few pages. 
She even shares something I hadn’t heard before from agents about what they’re really looking for in a client. 
BIO:
Lori Galvin is a senior literary agent with Aevitas Creative Management. Previously she worked as an editor at Houghton Mifflin and America’s Test Kitchen. And, she also survived running a b&b in coastal Maine. She represents fiction (crime and book club) and select nonfiction (true crime, memoir, and food writing). A few of her clients include Kwame Onwuachi, Wanda M. Morris, and Sara Goudarzi.
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5 Minute Writer
Article
Last week's interview with Ausma Zehanat Khan
Aaron's Website
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3 BIG TAKEAWAYS
How to write action scenesUsing our unique experiences to drive our storiesDeveloping your craftEPISODE INFO:
No matter what kind of writing you’re doing, you’re going to use have to write movement into your manuscript. So how do you pull off those all-important action moments in a way that helps to reveal character and inform theme? 
Aaron Philip Clark is here to help us!
BIO:
Aaron Philip Clark is a native of Los Angeles, CA. He is a novelist, poet, and former Los Angeles Police Department recruit. His first novel, THE SCIENCE OF PAUL: A Novel of Crime (New Pulp Press), was published in 2011. The debut was met with interest and acclaim. Clark followed THE SCIENCE OF PAUL with A HEALTHY FEAR OF MAN (Snubnose Press) published the following year. Both novels featured the morally plagued and emotionally damaged protagonist, Paul Little, as he fought to escape the perils of Philadelphia street culture and return to his deceased grandfather’s farm in North Carolina. Inspired by the works of French existentialists, Clark’s prose reverberated with ideas and philosophies put forth by Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean-Patrick Manchette, and Fyodor Dostoevsky.
After leaving his career in law enforcement, Clark returned to higher education and continued his work as an educator teaching college-level English, Creative Writing, and Humanities. During this time, Clark completed THE FURIOUS WAY, a stand-alone thriller, and UNDR COLOR OF LAW, inspired by his experiences with the LAPD. The novel centered on Det. Trevor “Finn” Finnegan, a Black LAPD detective, who is tasked with investigating the murder of a young Black academy recruit amid protests against police brutality and calls for reform. The novel was nominated for an International Thriller Writers Award in 2022, and Clark has more books planned for the series. BLUE LIKE ME, the second Trevor Finnegan novel, will be published on November 8, 2022, by Thomas & Mercer.
Clark is completing ALL THE SMOKE, a modern psychological thriller that explores racial identity, Black male trauma, and psychopathy. The story is set in the music industry and takes inspiration from THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY and other works by Patricia Highsmith.
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Your Free Editing Outline
5 Minute Writer
Article
Last week's interview with Johnny Compton
Ausma's Website
Connect with Ausma on Twitter
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3 BIG TAKEAWAYS
Writing tension into your storyThe author-agent relationship Sharing stories that matterEPISODE INFO:
There are so many ways to write a novel. But the bottom line is this: you just have to find a way to keep readers reading. And that is what my guest today is going to help us with.
Ausma’s novel, BLACKWATER FALLS was able to propel readers through the investigation while always keeping us waiting and hunting for that next clue. 
We talk about outlines, changes in later drafts, and more! 
BIO:
Ausma Zehanat Khan holds a Ph.D. in international human rights law with a specialization in military intervention and war crimes in the Balkans. Blackwater Falls, her new crime novel on racial justice and policing, was published in November 2022 to rave reviews from the New York Times and the Washington Post. Blackwater Falls is also an Apple Books and Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2022 pick. Khan is the author of the award-winning Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty crime fiction series, which begins with The Unquiet Dead, and the author of the critically acclaimed Khorasan Archives fantasy quartet, which begins with The Bloodprint. She is also a contributor to the anthologies Private Investigations, Sword Stone Table, and The Perfect Crime. A British-born Canadian and former adjunct law professor, Khan now lives in Colorado with her husband. 
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Your Free Editing Outline
5 Minute Writer
Article
Last week's interview with Liz Alterman
Johnny's Website
Connect with Johnny on Twitter
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3 BIG TAKEAWAYS
Perfecting your dialogueDeveloping an editing outlineFinding your unique ideaEPISODE INFO:
It’s sometimes hard to notice when you’re reading great dialogue because you end up so sucked into the story that pages and pages go by and you’re just barreling through the story. 
All of a sudden you look up and think to yourself, “Wait, how did that author just do that?” 
Today’s guest is going to spill all his dialogue secrets. 
BIO:
Johnny Compton’s (he/him) short stories have appeared in Pseudopod, Strange Horizons, The No Sleep Podcast and many other markets. He is an HWA member and creator and host of the podcast Healthy Fears. His debut novel, THE SPITE HOUSE is out now!
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5 Minute Writer
Article
Liz's Website
Connect with Liz on Twitter
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3 BIG TAKEAWAYS
Character backstoryHow to find the right communityFinding an agentEPISODE INFO:
The dreaded backstory. 
How much to use? How much to cut out? Are you building character or are you boring readers? 
My guest today is going to help us!
Liz Alterman is an absolute master at developing characters. She is the author of a domestic suspense novel, The Perfect Neighborhood, a young adult thriller, He’ll Be Waiting, and a memoir, Sad Sacked. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, McSweeney’s, and other outlets.
I learned so much about writing by reading her novel The Perfect Neighborhood and by picking her brain about building characters. 
Liz shares how she started writing, why she writes thrillers, and-most importantly-how she writes them. 
We talk about strategic backstory and using it enough to build a character, but not so much as to bore a reader. 
There’s a sweet spot you have to hit. Let’s find out what that sweet spot is!
BIO:
Liz Alterman is the author of a domestic suspense novel, The Perfect Neighborhood, a young adult thriller, He’ll Be Waiting, and a memoir, Sad Sacked. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, McSweeney’s, and other outlets. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, three sons, and two cats, and spends most days microwaving the same cup of coffee and looking up synonyms. When she isn’t writing, she’s reading.
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5 Minute Writer
Elle Grawl Interview

Interviews referenced in this episode:
Editor: Chantelle Aimeé Osman
Literary Agent: Amy Elizabeth Bishop
Literary Agent: Emmy Norstrom Higdon
Author: Rob Hart
Author: Josh Stallings

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