190 episodes
The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Bianca Marais, Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra
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4.9 • 491 Ratings
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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.
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Creating Conflict For Your Characters
In today’s episode, we’re rolling out a new format wherein our guest authors will help Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique submissions. We’re starting with Carly’s client, Mai Nguyen, author of Sunshine Nails. In this episode, we discuss great query letters; YA word count ranges; world building and personal experience with the built world; creating conflict for characters; character motivations; passion vs ambition; creating books that can cross borders in terms of setting; the right place to start; emotionality vs narration; knowing where to add lots of detail and where it’s not necessary; and anticipation in the character.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
More information about Mai can be found at https://www.mainguyen.ca/. She's on Instagram @bymainguyen and Twitter @bymainguyen.
Go to HelloFresh dot com slash tsnotyaw16 and use code tsnotyaw16 for 16 free meals plus free shipping!
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Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy -
May Bonus Episode: All the Romance & We Answer Your Questions & Give You Comps
Today's episode is sponsored by HelloFresh. Go to HelloFresh dot com slash tsnotyaw16 and use code tsnotyaw16 for 16 free meals plus free shipping!
In today's bumper Bonus Episode, we chat with two internationally bestselling authors in the romance genre before taking your questions and giving you comp titles.
CeCe kicks us off by interviewing Carley Fortune, author of Meet Me at the Lake, about planting curiosity seeds; the editing process; the struggle with negative self-talk when writing; the development of Carley's characters; and creating chemistry amongst characters.
After which, Carly chats with Emily Henry, author of Happy Place about dialogue; facets of success; masculinity in literature; healthy conflict with characters; her book covers; and her potential involvement in the film adaptations of her books.
Carly and CeCe then take all your questions!
Finally, Bianca chats with Emilie Sommer from East City Book Shop and RJ Witherow of Parnassus Books as they give comps recommendations.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
More information about Carley can be found at www.carleyfortune.com. She’s on Instagram @carleyfortune
More information about Emily can be found at www.emilyhenrybooks.com. She's on Instagram @emilyhenrywrites.
Parnassus Books can be found at www.parnassusbooks.net and on Instagram at @parnassusbooks
Emilie can be found at @emiliegsommer on Instagram and East City Book Shop can be found at www.eastcitybookshop.com.
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy -
Writing Dream Sequences That Work
Today's episode is sponsored by HelloFresh. Go to HelloFresh dot com slash tsnotyaw16 and use code tsnotyaw16 for 16 free meals plus free shipping!
In today’s Books With Hooks segment, Carly and CeCe each critique two submissions, discussing query length; having enough of a hook; writing style in a query letter; confusion vs curiosity in a query letter; explanatory vs curiosity seeds; putting the hook up higher in a query; starting with dialogue; and fantastic first lines and opening pages.
After which, CeCe chats with Chanel Cleeton, author of The Cuban Heiress, about POV; being a plotter or pantser; Chanel's different phases of writing; the research process; and writing successful dream sequences.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
Chanel can be found at www.chanelcleeton.com and on Instagram at @chanelcleeton
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy -
When Not to Give Up!
In today’s Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe are joined by special guest, Traci Thomas from The Stacks podcast for a special segment focusing on non-fiction. During the segment, they discuss surprising readers in the first chapter; specificity in memoir; comping non-fiction and memoir; the use of humor in an overview; and the general layout of an overview.
After which, Bianca chats with Meg Tady, author of Super Bloom, who reads the query letter that landed her own agent. Meg also reads and critiques a listener's query, discussing stakes and specificity; making main character's likeable enough for readers to root for them; the art of description; writing a book within a book; and telling yourself 'yes' every day.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
Traci can be found at www.thestackspodcast.com and on Instagram at @thestackspod
Meg can be found at www.megantady.com and on Instagram at @megtady
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy -
Special Episode: Her Name is Coceka Lubobo
In this short bonus episode, Bianca pays tribute to the bravery of Coceka Lubobo, a young woman who ended a serial killer's reign of terror in Orlando, Soweto.
Special thanks go to:
the immensely talented English actress, screenwriter and film producer, Katharine McEwan, for narrating this episode.the brilliant singer and songwriter, Daphne Willis, for composing the music for the piece.the incredible South African artist, Manuela Gray, for composing the art work.
You can find them on Instagram at:
@kathatinemcewan
@daphnewillismusic
@manuelagray
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Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy -
Being Intentional With Your POV Characters
This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/WRITING and get on your way to being your best self.
In today’s Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe each critique two submissions and cover topics like voice-y queries; using direct and specific terms in a query letter; selecting the right comps for the right reasons; having the query letter match what’s in the opening pages; close third-person POV; having a short and tightly written query; dual timelines vs backstory/flashbacks, series; sneaky prologues; passive framing of the hook; activating your story; and synopsizing the manuscript in the query letter,
After which, CeCe chats with Jenny Jackson, bestselling author of Pineapple Street and Vice President and Executive Editor for Knopf. During the segment, they discuss Jenny's choice of POV characters; writing backstory; the use of a prologue and an epilogue; being an editor and an author; and Jenny's advice for emerging writers.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Websites: www.theshitaboutwriting.com, www.biancamarais.com, www.carlywatters.com and www.cecilialyra.com
Jenny can be found on Twitter at @JennyeJackson and on Instagram at @jennyjacksonpineapple
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
Customer Reviews
I’ve learned so much!
Thanks to the ladies for their generosity in sharing all sorts of tips, tricks and valuable information and feedback on all things writing, querying and publishing!
This Podcast is AMAZING!
I stumbled onto this podcast and boy am I glad I did!! This is absolutely one of the best writing podcasts I've found. The advice Bianca, Cecelia and Karly share mixed with the incredible interviews with authors and editors is FANTASTIC!! Love it!
Helpful Insight
TLDR: The expertise offered from the hosts is absolutely outstanding. I’ve learned a lot from their on air manuscript critiques and their interviews with other authors and publishing professionals. I think this a great podcast for a very particular demographic of writers: authors interested in traditional publishing and have a manuscript that is about ready for querying.
More details: It’s a podcast geared very much toward traditional publishing. There’s a heavy focus on querying, which is definitely helpful for querying authors but not so much for writers who are taking a different publishing path or writing as a hobby. There’s very little content related to alternative publishing options, like self publishing or hybrid publishing. Or even submitting to literary magazines.
The episode descriptions seem to over promise and under deliver. I’ve chosen old episodes based on the descriptions only to find that the hosts will spend a minute or two on the topic before moving on.
The episodes are long so they’re great for long commutes or a road trip but take a while to finish if you listen is shorter chunks.