Hear us Roar

285: Carolyn McBride - Author of The Cicada Spring


Listen Later

 This week our guest is Carolyn McBride (The Cicada Spring: A Potomac Shores Novel, indie published, April 2024). Hear how her parents’ dream house finally became reality—in the pages of Carolyn’s debut novel. We discuss the argument in favor of getting an MFA in Creative Writing, how publishing on her own does not necessarily mean not ever pursuing a traditional deal, how personal appearances have proved to be her best sales tool, and how her ritual of reading a chapter from a craft book before starting her writing time helps to keep her immersed in the world of story.

Carolyn McBride's debut novel in women's fiction, The Cicada Spring, is the first in her coming-of-middle-age series set on the shores of the Potomac River. It was recently awarded a 2025 Silver Award for Best Audiobook - Fiction from the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) Book Awards. All of her novels feature women at the helm of their own boats and ultimately their own lives, reviving dreams, rewriting their stories, and discovering the strength that lies within. A former editor and columnist for National Geographic Traveler, she is a graduate of the College of William and Mary and holds an MFA in fiction writing from Lindenwood University. Along with her husband and pets, she divides her time between homes on Virginia's Occoquan River and South Florida's Intracoastal Waterway.

To learn more about Carolyn, click here.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Hear us RoarBy Maggie Smith

  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8

4.8

18 ratings


More shows like Hear us Roar

View all
The Creative Penn Podcast For Writers by Joanna Penn

The Creative Penn Podcast For Writers

605 Listeners

Helping Writers Become Authors by K.M. Weiland

Helping Writers Become Authors

993 Listeners

Well-Read by Ann Cox and Halle Eisenman

Well-Read

220 Listeners

The NPR Politics Podcast by NPR

The NPR Politics Podcast

25,773 Listeners

What Should I Read Next? by Anne Bogel

What Should I Read Next?

5,121 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

110,802 Listeners

Up First from NPR by NPR

Up First from NPR

55,980 Listeners

Writer's Routine by Dan Simpson

Writer's Routine

306 Listeners

Currently Reading by Meredith Monday Schwartz and Kaytee Cobb

Currently Reading

1,694 Listeners

Fiction Writing Made Easy | Top Creative Writing Podcast for Fiction Writers & Writing Tips by Savannah Gilbo

Fiction Writing Made Easy | Top Creative Writing Podcast for Fiction Writers & Writing Tips

1,432 Listeners

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

The Shit No One Tells You About Writing

767 Listeners

Essential Guide to Writing a Novel by James Thayer

Essential Guide to Writing a Novel

355 Listeners

The Career Novelist™ Podcast With Camille Pagán by Even Better Co.

The Career Novelist™ Podcast With Camille Pagán

56 Listeners

The Whole Writer by Nicole Meier

The Whole Writer

41 Listeners

Best of Book Marketing by Lainey Cameron and Paulette Stout

Best of Book Marketing

14 Listeners