244 episodes

This is a podcast for emerging writers who want to improve the quality of their work and learn more about the publishing industry. Your one host, Bianca Marais (the bestselling author of 'The Witches of Moonshyne Manor') interviews authors, agents, editors and just about anyone and everyone who's involved in bringing a book to market. She's joined by her cohosts, literary agents Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra from P.S. Literary Agency, who read and critique query letters as well as opening pages in their Books with Hooks segment. Expect good advice, honest insights, and a few laughs along the way.

The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Bianca Marais, Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra

    • Arts

This is a podcast for emerging writers who want to improve the quality of their work and learn more about the publishing industry. Your one host, Bianca Marais (the bestselling author of 'The Witches of Moonshyne Manor') interviews authors, agents, editors and just about anyone and everyone who's involved in bringing a book to market. She's joined by her cohosts, literary agents Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra from P.S. Literary Agency, who read and critique query letters as well as opening pages in their Books with Hooks segment. Expect good advice, honest insights, and a few laughs along the way.

    Defining Book Club Fiction

    Defining Book Club Fiction

    In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss keeping your author bio paragraph concise; the need for causality in a plot paragraph; paying attention to the language you use in a query so you don't create confusion surrounding the book's premise; knowing who your protagonist is and highlighting their interiority and inner life over other characters'; the stakes in rom-coms; centering your protagonist's experience; making plot details realistic so your readers are on board with them; avoiding pages that seem crafted for the reader; and the 'blank canvas protagonist' issue.
     After which, Carly interviews award-winning journalist and bestselling author, Jo Piazza. They discuss Jo's upcoming novel, The Sicilian Inheritance; how she decided on a dual POV/dual timeline structure; whether Jo is a plotter or a pantser, and how she approaches her first draft; mirroring current themes in historical fiction; what a 'book club' book is; weaving elements of personal life into her work; how Jo views herself as a creator; the idea of letting fiction lead the way; the process of film and TV adaptations; and Jo's advice for emerging writers.
     Find us on our socials:
    Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_shit_about_writing/
    https://www.instagram.com/biancamarais_author/
    https://www.instagram.com/carlywatters/ https://www.instagram.com/cece_lyra_agent/
    Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TSNOTYAW
    Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
    To ask a question, go to: https://sayhi.chat/TSNOTYAW
    Bookshop.org affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/theshitnoonetellsyouaboutwriting
    More information about Jo can be found at https://www.jopiazza.com/
    She's also on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jopiazzaauthor
    and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/jopiazza


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    • 1 hr 1 min
    March Bonus Episode

    March Bonus Episode

    In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca interviews game designer, curator, and writer, Holly Gramazio to discuss her debut novel, The Husbands. The two discuss Holly's journey to publication; the novel’s inspiration and genre; how game design lends itself to novel writing; how she structured the novel; the importance of causality; Holly's approach to POV; and whether she feels pressure to write future novels in the same genre.
    After which Emilie Sommer of East City Bookshop provides the invaluable service of suggesting comp titles to our listeners.
    If you’re looking for our usual Q&A segment, that now gets published as part of our end of the month Substack newsletter. Subscribe to get access to that, and so much more, for free: https://theshitaboutwriting.substack.com/
     Find us on our socials:
    Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_shit_about_writing/
    https://www.instagram.com/biancamarais_author/
    https://www.instagram.com/carlywatters/ https://www.instagram.com/cece_lyra_agent/
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TSNOTYAW
    Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and  www.cecilialyra.com
    Bookshop.org affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/theshitnoonetellsyouaboutwriting
    To ask a question, go to: https://sayhi.chat/TSNOTYAW
    To connect with Emilie Sommer go to https://www.instagram.com/emiliegsommer/ and you can find East City Bookshop at https://www.instagram.com/eastcitybookshop/
    More information about Holly can be found at https://www.hollygramazio.net/
    She's also on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/holly_gramazio/
     and Twitter at https://twitter.com/hollygramazio


    Our Sponsors:
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    • 52 min
    How Research Should Inform a Novel Without Leaving Too Many Fingerprints

    How Research Should Inform a Novel Without Leaving Too Many Fingerprints

    In today's Books with Hooks, Carly, CeCe, and Bianca are joined by Ron, to discuss his query submission. They chat about Ron's curiosity-inducing first query paragraph; the line between giving away too much plot and sharing just enough in a query; how subjective agents’ opinions can be; the right emotional calibration within your characters; the issue with having too many names in opening pages; ways authors share the socio-emotional frameworks of their characters; balancing interiority with explanation and exposition; the difference between emotionality, interiority, and 'telling'; and the idea of putting characters in situations that will reveal the right things about them.
    After which, Bianca interviews Garrard Conley, professor, and New York Times bestselling author of the memoir, Boy Erased. They discuss All the World Beside; the letter to the reader in the advanced copy; Gerrard's unconventional journey to the publication with Boy Erased; the role of luck in the industry; whether Garrard had a large platform/following when he published his memoir; subjectivity of agents and publishers; Garrard's process in writing his latest book; the benefits of researching, even when some of the information doesn't make it into the final work; the number of edits Garrard went through before he produced his final draft; and the idea of 'jazz hands writing' versus simplistic emotional truth.
    Find us on our socials:
    Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_shit_about_writing/
    https://www.instagram.com/biancamarais_author/
    https://www.instagram.com/carlywatters/ https://www.instagram.com/cece_lyra_agent/
    Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TSNOTYAW
    Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
    To ask a question, go to: https://sayhi.chat/TSNOTYAW
    Bookshop.org affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/theshitnoonetellsyouaboutwriting
    More information about Garrard can be found at: https://garrardconley.com/biography
    He's also on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/gayrodcon/
    Twitter at https://twitter.com/gayrodcon
    and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/garrardc/


    Our Sponsors:
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    Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

    • 1 hr 6 min
    Balancing Curiosity Seeds and Tension Without Making the Reader Feel Cheated

    Balancing Curiosity Seeds and Tension Without Making the Reader Feel Cheated

    In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe  discuss the need for external pressure in your major dramatic question; the three sets of questions that create tension at the beginning of a story; surprising your reader in your first five pages; the accuracy of third party manuscript wishlists; the need for world-building in a fantasy query; being too vague in your query; the concept of the 'new adult' genre; thinking about readers' expectations for certain types of stories; making sure that characters who appear in opening scenes are essential; and the importance of emotionality and interiority in your main character.
    After which, Bianca interviews Johnny Compton about his debut novel, The Spite House. The two chat about the psychology behind reading and writing horror fiction; the heavy-lifting that horror expects of its audience; the world-building that's involved; the idea of not needing an explanation for everything; how Johnny balances curiosity seeds and tension without 'cheating' the reader; the social commentary that Johnny weaves into his novel; and Johnny's advice for writing very young characters.
    Find us on our socials:
    Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_shit_about_writing/
    https://www.instagram.com/biancamarais_author/
    https://www.instagram.com/carlywatters/ https://www.instagram.com/cece_lyra_agent/
    Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TSNOTYAW
    Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
    To ask a question, go to: https://sayhi.chat/TSNOTYAW
    Bookshop.org affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/theshitnoonetellsyouaboutwriting
    More information about Johnny can be found at https://johnnycompton.com
    He's also on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/comptonwrites
    and Twitter at https://twitter.com/comptonwrites


    Our Sponsors:
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    • 1 hr 1 min
    Insights from Acquisitions Editors & Working on Author Collaborations

    Insights from Acquisitions Editors & Working on Author Collaborations

    In today's Books with Hooks segment, Carly, CeCe, and Bianca are joined by two acquisitions editors at Atria Books, Elizabeth Hitti and Melanie Iglesias. Melanie is a senior editor at Atria Books and has worked on various bestselling titles, including It Starts with Us by Colleen Hoover. Elizabeth joined Atria in 2022 and has worked on various bestselling titles as well as The Crescent Moon Tea Room by Stacy Sivinski, a Simon and Schuster Top Shelf Pick for this fall.
    The four discuss the difficulties associated with writing a query with a larger cast of characters; the importance of having an overarching reason for having a large cast and why their worlds are colliding; whether publisher interest in historical fiction is waning; an example of how to make a hook punchier; the importance on having a strong sense of place; and the need for interiority to be realistic to your character.
    After which, Bianca interviews Kate Hilton and Elizabeth Renzetti, co-authors of Bury the Lead. They discuss how Liz and Kate's joint project came about; tackling the challenges of collaborating with another author, particularly when it comes to two established authors; the drafting process; keeping track of details like how characters and settings look; when descriptions are necessary and when they don't make sense; and whether or not Kate and Liz work with separate agents for their collaborative works.
    Find us on our socials:
    Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_shit_about_writing/
    https://www.instagram.com/biancamarais_author/
    https://www.instagram.com/carlywatters/ https://www.instagram.com/cece_lyra_agent/
    Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TSNOTYAW
    Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
    To ask a question, go to: https://sayhi.chat/TSNOTYAW
    Bookshop.org affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/theshitnoonetellsyouaboutwriting
    More information about Elizabeth can be found at: https://www.elizabethrenzetti.com/ 
    She's also on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/lizrenzetti and on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/lizrenzetti/
    More information about Kate can be found at: https://www.katehilton.com/
    She's also on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/KateHiltonAuthor/ and on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/katehiltonbooks/


    Our Sponsors:
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    • 1 hr 10 min
    Being Intentional With Your Novel's Timeline

    Being Intentional With Your Novel's Timeline

    In today's Books with Hooks segment, Bianca, Carly and CeCe discuss the importance of specifying between awards for published and unpublished manuscripts; the difficulty with trying to sell a book whose main character’s race and culture differs from the author’s lived experience; the need for a main character’s interiority to accurately reflect their age; including specifics in your plot paragraph; being explicit with your stakes; including information that shows the relationship dynamics between your protagonist and others; and the need to start your story in the right place.
    After which, Bianca interviews writer and essayist, Maura Cheeks. They discuss Maura's debut novel, Acts of Forgiveness; intentionality with the novel's timeline; Maura's journey to publication; the reasons for the delay in publishing Acts of Forgiveness; the extent to which Maura's submission pitch aligns with the published book; the research process; writing a dual timeline as a debut novel; and incorporating news stories and speeches as exposition.
    Find us on our socials:
    Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_shit_about_writing/
    https://www.instagram.com/biancamarais_author/
    https://www.instagram.com/carlywatters/ https://www.instagram.com/cece_lyra_agent/
    Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TSNOTYAW
    Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
    To ask a question, go to: https://sayhi.chat/TSNOTYAW
    Bookshop.org affiliate page: https://bookshop.org/shop/theshitnoonetellsyouaboutwriting
    More information about Maura can be found at: https://www.mauracheeks.com/
    She's also on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/mauracheeks?lang=en and Instagram at:  https://www.instagram.com/mauracheeks/


    Our Sponsors:
    * Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.com/


    Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

    • 1 hr 1 min

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