144 episodes

Publishing pros give writing advice and first chapter critiques to aspiring writers.

Lit Service Caitlin Sangster, Kristen Evans, Cameron Harris, Aliah Eberting

    • Education
    • 4.9 • 34 Ratings

Publishing pros give writing advice and first chapter critiques to aspiring writers.

    Character Building with Holly Black

    Character Building with Holly Black

    Caitlin chats with Holly Black about building characters and her newest book The Prisoner's Throne.
    Holly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy novels, including the Novels of Elfhame, THE COLDEST GIRL IN COLDTOWN, the Spiderwick Chronicles, and her adult debut, BOOK OF NIGHT. She has been a finalist for an Eisner Award and the Lodestar Award, and the recipient of the Mythopoeic Award, a Nebula, and a Newbery Honor. Her books have been translated into 32 languages worldwide and adapted for film. She currently lives in New England with her husband and son in a house with a secret library.
    You can find the special editions set of the duology here.

    • 18 min
    How to Start Writing a Second Draft

    How to Start Writing a Second Draft

    What do you do once you've finished your first draft? Immediately send it to every agent and publisher you can find contact info for? Put it in a drawer? Maybe something in between. Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen chat about how they approach a second draft.
     
    Don't forget to check out Caitlin's newest release, He Who Breaks the Earth

    • 12 min
    How to Write a Killer Ending

    How to Write a Killer Ending

    Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen chat about how to approach writing a satisfying and exciting ending. 
    Don't miss Caitlin's new release from Simon and Schuster, He Who Breaks the Earth 

    • 11 min
    Characters We’d Die For with Martha Wells

    Characters We’d Die For with Martha Wells

    Martha Wells joins to podcast to chat about how to write characters your readers will love. Martha has been an SF/F writer since her first fantasy novel was published in 1993, and her work includes The Books of the Raksura series, The Death of the Necromancer, the Fall of Ile-Rien trilogy, The Murderbot Diaries series, media tie-in fiction for Star Wars, Stargate: Atlantis, and Magic: the Gathering, as well as short fiction, YA novels, and non-fiction. She has won Nebula Awards, Hugo Awards, and Locus Awards, and her work has appeared on the Philip K. Dick Award ballot, the BSFA Award ballot, the USA Today Bestseller List, and the New York Times Bestseller List. She is a member of the Texas Literary Hall of Fame, and her books have been published in twenty-five languages. Her newest book, Witch King is out now (find it here!).

    • 12 min
    Raising the Action, Raising the Stakes with Margaret Owen

    Raising the Action, Raising the Stakes with Margaret Owen

    Margaret Owen joins Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen to chat about how to help your action to rise naturally and how to raise stakes. 
    Margaret is the author of The Merciful Crow, The Faithless Hawk, Little Thieves, Painted Devils which releases May 16th, and A Grimoire of Grave Fates which releases in June.
    The "How Dire Is It" chart Margaret mentions can be found here.

    • 16 min
    What Needs to be in the Middle

    What Needs to be in the Middle

    Kristen, Caitlin, and Aliah chat about what goes into the middle of a book.

    • 11 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
34 Ratings

34 Ratings

Tara-writes ,

Fun and informative

So many craft and industry tips here! I love the playful approach in every opening, and the first chapter critiques at the end. So useful — I’ll be recommending this show to writer friends!

RachelAGreco ,

So Fun and Helpful!

This podcast has helped me think much more about the craft side of my writing and opened my eyes to areas of potential growth. Also, it’s just plain fun, and it’s so sweet of them to offer critiques to budding authors!

lotsofunwriter ,

Fantastic Thoughtful Fun!

This is a great podcast for writers, especially those preparing for or in the querying trenches!! It’s entertaining, informative, and smart. Love the guests they have had! And so awesome that they give back by doing critiques, too. My only complaint... that the episodes aren’t more frequent. Well done LitService!!!

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