88 Cups of Tea

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

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Did you know we collaborated with VCFA's MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults to curate a thoughtful series of intimate essays and podcast episodes so you can feel empowered throughout your writing journey? Click here to explore the published pieces.

Vermont College of Fine Arts is a global community of artists continuously redefining what it means to be an arts college. They're accredited by the New England Commission on Higher Education and offers the Master of Fine Arts degree in a variety of fields, including Writing, Writing for Children & Young Adults, and Writing & Publishing, along with an International MFA in Creative Writing & Literary Translation. With low-residency and fully residential options, VCFA has the graduate program to fit your needs. Be sure to learn more about VCFA by clicking here!

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This episode contains content and discussion about suicide. If this topic is triggering or upsetting for you, please skip this episode. Thank you.

Curious about crafting your stories with vibrancy? Ever wondered what kind of work goes into building powerful vignettes? How about the role that community serves in your creative pursuits? We talk about it all and much more with An Na.

Na is the author of "The Place Between Breaths", "The Fold", "Wait for Me", and "A Step from Heaven", which was a National Book Award Finalist and won the Michael L. Printz Award. Her honors include the International Reading Association Award and the Parents Choice Gold Award. Her books have been named as ALA Best Books for Young Adults and a New York Times Notable Book. And she also teaches at Vermont College of Fine Arts in the Writing for Children and Young Adults MFA.

In her episode, Na shares how she fell in love with storytelling, giving us a peek into her childhood, and the heartwarming impact that representation has in the world. We dive into her writing process for vignettes and how she builds upon emotions and feelings to craft her scenes. She shares her experience serving on the National Book Awards committee and what the selection process looks like behind the curtain. She tells her story of grief and heartbreak that inspired her novel "The Place Between Breaths", we discuss the harmful narratives created around mental illness, and she stresses the importance of mental health resources. We then continue to dig into her experience writing for TV, the steps you can take to break into TV writing, and the important role that community serves in your creative pursuits and how you can find that through an MFA experience.

Say 'Hi' to An Na on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anwriting/

Head over to Na's shownotes page at https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/an-na/ to find all the resources and books mentioned in her episode, tweetable quotes, and the timestamps of highlights throughout the entire conversation.

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If you enjoyed this episode and would love to support our show, Patreon is the best way! Patrons at certain tiers get early access to extended interviews with Rachel Hawkins and New Leaf literary agent JL Stermer this month along with a collection of fantastic extended interviews from previous podcast episodes! If you're not yet a Patron and you'd love early access to these interviews in addition to other cool benefits (snailmail, Storyteller Welcome Box, livestream hangouts with bookhaul and mystery box giveaways, etc.) head on over to patreon.com/88cupsoftea to sign up!

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

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Did you know we have a Patreon page!? Right now all Super Storytellers signed up at our "Silkie Chickens with Balloons" or "Snails with Mail" tier over in our Patreon get early access to interviews with Rachel Hawkins and literary agent JL Stermer this month! So, if you're not yet a Super Storyteller and you'd love early access to these interviews in addition to other cool benefits, head on over to patreon.com/88cupsoftea and become a Patron at the "Silkie Chickens with Balloons" tier or our "Snails with Mail" tier.

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For today's new episode, we've partnered with Four Sigmatic. Four Sigmatic is a superfood company whose mission is to take over the world with their delicious coffees, teas, and cacaos that are all made with functional mushrooms and adaptogens.

Head over to foursigmatic.com/88cupsoftea to learn more and get 15% off your order. Thank you to our listeners for supporting a brand we love and a brand that believes in the work that we do here at 88 Cups of Tea. A special thank you to our sponsors and collaborators who help keep our show running!

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Are you curious about sustaining career longevity in your creative pursuits? How about ways to evolve your craft from story to story? Or how to develop strong romantic arcs? We talk about it all and so much more with Sarah Dessen!

Sarah is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of over a dozen novels for teens, which have received numerous awards and rave reviews. Her books have been published in over thirty countries and have sold millions of copies worldwide. She's the recipient of the 2017 Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association for outstanding contribution to young adult literature for her novels like Keeping the Moon, Dreamland, This Lullaby, The Truth about Forever, Just Listen, Along for the Ride, What Happened to Goodbye, and more.

In our conversation, we dive into how Sarah fell in love with storytelling and how her writing has evolved throughout her career. We discuss what it's like to write for yourself versus writing to please others, and how her mother-daughter relationships in her books are inspired by her relationship with her own mother and daughter. She shares how embracing both the good and bad parts of ourselves in our writing can help us begin to heal, and the importance of seeking help when we need it. She then talks all about her most recent novel, The Rest Of The Story, and shares a behind the scenes look into the writing and publishing process. And later in our conversation, she walks us through her experience of changing publishers, shares tips on crafting romantic arcs, talks balancing finances and your craft, and how to overcome writer's block.

Say 'Hi' to Sarah Dessen on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarahdessen.

Head over to Sarah's shownotes page at https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/sarah-dessen/ to find all the resources and books mentioned in her episode, tweetable quotes, and the timestamps of highlights throughout the entire conversation.

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If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes, which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support!

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

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Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, share your wins and join in on 88 Cups of Tea related discussions! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!

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For today's new episode, we've partnered with Four Sigmatic. Four Sigmatic is a superfood company whose mission is to take over the world with their delicious coffees, teas, and cacaos that are all made with functional mushrooms and adaptogens.

Head over to foursigmatic.com/88cupsoftea to learn more and get 15% off your order. Thank you to our listeners for supporting a brand we love and a brand that believes in the work that we do here at 88 Cups of Tea. A special thank you to our sponsors and collaborators who help keep our show running!

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Curious to know how novels are adapted for TV and film? Or what book packaging is and how it fits into the publishing process? How about best practices for creative collaboration? We dive into it and more with Sona Charaipotra!

Sona is the author of her upcoming solo debut, Symptoms of a Heartbreak, and the co-author of Tiny Pretty Things and Shiny Broken Pieces. In addition to writing novels, Sona also worked as a celebrity reporter and editor at People and TeenPeople magazine and contributed to publications like the New York Times and TeenVogue. She's also the co-founder of CAKE Literary, a boutique book packaging company.

In our conversation, she shares how she came to be a storyteller through screenwriting and fiction writing. We dive into how she adapts novels for film and TV along with a peek into her screenwriting process. She shares her thoughts on how our streaming culture creates space for YA and diverse content to thrive and reach wider audiences. We unpack CAKE Literary, from discussing what book packaging is and where it fits into the publishing process, to digging deep into CAKE's mission on creating organic diversity through high-concept reads. Further into our conversation, we talk about best practices for listeners interested in co-authoring and seeking writing partners. Sona also gives us a snapshot of her highly anticipated novel Symptoms of a Heartbreak, and shares her best tips on overcoming writer's block!

Say 'Hi' to Sona Charaipotra on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sona_c

Head over to Sona's shownotes page at https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/sona-charaipotra/ to download a writing prompt she created just for 88 Cups of Tea listeners! You'll also find all the resources and books mentioned in her episode, tweetable quotes, and the timestamps of highlights throughout the entire conversation.

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If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support!

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

---------------------------------------

Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, share your wins and join in on 88 Cups of Tea related discussions! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!

---------------------------------------

For today's new episode, we've partnered with Four Sigmatic. Four Sigmatic is a superfood company whose mission is to take over the world with their delicious coffees, teas, and cacaos that are all made with functional mushrooms and adaptogens.

Head over to foursigmatic.com/88cupsoftea to learn more and get 15% off your order. Thank you to our listeners for supporting a brand we love and a brand that believes in the work that we do here at 88 Cups of Tea. A special thank you to our sponsors and collaborators who help keep our show running!

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Have you ever wondered what it takes to become a literary agent? Or how a literary agent sells a manuscript? How about tips on improving your query letter? We discuss these topics and much more with Thao Le!

Thao is a literary agent at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. She represents Children's books and Young Adult across many genres, and in the adult realm represents romantic leaning Fantasy and Light Science Fiction. Thao's clients include NYT bestselling fantasy author Roshani Chokshi, NYT bestselling contemporary Young Adult author Sandhya Menon, Indie bestselling picture book author-illustrator Jessie Sima, and many more.

In our conversation, we dive deep into how Thao found her passion for stories and the steps she took to become a literary agent. We discuss how she learned to sell manuscripts, we walk through different kinds of book deals, get into details like what sub rights are in contracts, and shine some light on the financial side of being a literary agent. We talk about commercial hooks in query letters and her experience as a marginalized literary agent and a champion for representation. And Thao unpacks some of her favorite query letters and why they stood out to her. (P.S. You can download these query letters on her shownotes page!)

Special note about this episode: A lot has changed from the time of the original interview back in January to the time of the release of Thao's podcast episode in May. As of March this year, Thao has changed to full-time agenting and no longer handles royalties for the agency. Everything in Thao's episode is accurate for when our interview took place. ENJOY!

Say 'Hi' to Thao Le on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThaoLe8

Head over to Thao's shownotes page at 88cupsoftea.com/podcast/thao-le to download three of Thao's favorite query letters that caught her eye! You'll also find all the resources and books mentioned in her episode, tweetable quotes, and the timestamps of highlights throughout the entire conversation!

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If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support! You can click here to go directly to our iTunes page!

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

---------------------------------------

Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, share your wins and join in on 88 Cups of Tea related discussions! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!

---------------------------------------

For today's new episode, we've partnered with Four Sigmatic. Four Sigmatic is a superfood company whose mission is to take over the world with their delicious coffees, teas, and cacaos that are all made with functional mushrooms and adaptogens.

Head over to foursigmatic.com/88cupsoftea to learn more and get 15% off your order!

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Curious to know what goes into building vibrant worlds? How about crafting bold characters? Or where to find inspiration for your stories by combing through your day-to-day? We discuss these topics in detail and explore even more with Naomi Novik!

Naomi is the Nebula-award winning author known for her novels Uprooted and Spinning Silver and her Temeraire Series. She is also a founder of the Organization for Transformative Works and the Archive of Our Own website.

In our conversation, she shares her love for the Fandom Community and how it helped her discover her passion for technology and writing. We dive deep into how she weaves together computer programing and storytelling to create her art, how she tackles her writing process to help her worlds come alive, and she gives us an inside look into her research process for historical fiction. She also shares her invaluable 3 cardinal rules for writing to help you improve your craft. And at the very end of our conversation, she chats about the exciting project she's currently working on!

Say 'Hi' to Naomi Novik on Twitter: https://twitter.com/naominovik

To access Naomi's shownotes page to find all the resources and books mentioned in her episode, shareable quotes, and the timestamps of highlights throughout the entire conversation go to https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/naomi-novik/

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If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support! You can click here to go directly to our iTunes page!

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

---------------------------------------

Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, share your wins and join in on 88 Cups of Tea related discussions! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!

---------------------------------------

For today's new episode, we've partnered with Four Sigmatic. Four Sigmatic is a superfood company whose mission is to take over the world with their delicious coffees, teas, and cacaos that are all made with functional mushrooms and adaptogens.

Head over to foursigmatic.com/88cupsoftea to learn more and get 15% off your order!

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What are some resources to visit to help towards healing and recovery from sexual violence? How do we discover strength through our writing process and use kindness in our revision process? What are some ways to approach sensitive topics during the research process? We take a deep-dive in our conversation with Laurie Halse Anderson.

Laurie is an award-winning young adult author widely known for her novels Speak and Chains, both of which are National Book Award finalists. In her newly released poetry memoir, Shout, she shares deeply personal stories to advocate for survivors of sexual assault and highlight how little our society has changed to help combat sexual assault and support victims.

In our conversation, we discuss the importance of community and creating a safer culture, how we can work towards healing from the damages from sexual violence, and the ways sharing your pain and emotional truths can give you strength. Further into the episode, we talk about writing and the difference between inspiration and craft and how she uses kindness in her revision process. We dive into censorship and why it's crucial for stories like Shout to be available to younger audiences, ways to approach sensitive research topics, and strategies on grappling with rejection.

Say 'Hi' to Laurie Halse Anderson on Twitter: https://twitter.com/halseanderson

To access Laurie's shownotes page to find all the resources and books mentioned in her episode, shareable quotes, and the timestamps of highlights throughout the entire conversation go to www.88cupsoftea.com/podcast/laurie-halse-anderson

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If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support! You can click here to go directly to our iTunes page!

Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!

---------------------------------------

Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, share your wins and join in on 88 Cups of Tea related discussions! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!

---------------------------------------

For today's new episode, we've partnered with Four Sigmatic. Four Sigmatic is a superfood company whose mission is to take over the world with their delicious coffees, teas, and cacaos that are all made with functional mushrooms and adaptogens.

Head over to foursigmatic.com/88cupsoftea to learn more and get 15% off your order!

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Curious about breaking into Hollywood as a screenwriter? Or how to best co-author a novel? How about crafting a sound story architecture to free yourself from writer's block? We talk about it all and much more with Alfred Gough and Miles Millar!

Alfred and Miles are screenwriters and showrunners who've worked extensively in film and television. This iconic duo is known for creating the TV series Smallville and their latest show, Into the Badlands, on AMC Network and The Shannara Chronicles. They've also worked on films like Spider-Man 2, I Am Number Four, Lethal Weapon 4, and many more. More recently, Alfred and Miles have paired up to co-write their first novel, Double Exposure, which was released last month.

In our conversation, we talk about how Alfred and Miles came together as a writing pair and sold their first screenplay. They share what they've learned about navigating the film and screenwriting world and how they landed their agent. We dive deep into the importance of learning how to take criticism and surrounding yourself with a network of honest people you trust. We get a sneak peek into their co-authoring writing process and learn character building tips that will help you elevate your genre.

Say 'Hi' to Alfred Gough on Twitter:https://twitter.com/TheRealAlGough Say 'Hi' to Miles Millar on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MilesMillar

Be sure to head over to their shownotes page for all the resources and time stamps of highlights mentioned throughout the episode: https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/alfred-gough-miles-millar/

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If you enjoyed this episode, I'd really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. These specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support! You can click here to go directly to our iTunes page!

If you'd love to keep 88 Cups of Tea going strong, please consider supporting us through our Patreon membership. We added EARLY ACCESS TO INTERVIEWS for our Super Storyteller patrons in the $8.88 tier. Your kind support at any level of our tiers is so helpful. A heartfelt thank you in advance.

https://www.patreon.com/88cupsoftea

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How do you define success as a writer? What does it mean to trust your gut during your revision process? What are some ways we can create an impact with our stories? We talk about it all and much more with A.S. King!

Amy, also known as A.S. King, is the critically acclaimed and award-winning author of Please Ignore Vera Dietz, Ask the Passengers, Still Life With Tornado, I Crawl Through It, and her newest, and very anticipated, novel Dig which will be released on March 26th, 2019.

In our conversation, we talk about balancing humility and ego, defining success, and finding confidence as a writer. She dives deep into what it means to be privileged and how we can be an ally to those whose experiences are different from our own. She shares powerful crafting advice on building out strong characters and trusting your gut during your revision process. And she gives us a sneak peek into her newest novel Dig and the history that sparked its inspiration.

Say 'Hi' to A.S. King on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AS_King

To access A.S. King's writing prompt, the list of all the books and resources mentioned in her episode, along with the timestamps for each highlight, head over to the shownotes page: https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/as-king/

If you'd love to keep 88 Cups of Tea going strong, please consider supporting us through our Patreon membership. We added EARLY ACCESS TO INTERVIEWS for our Super Storyteller patrons in the $8.88 tier. Your kind support at any level of our tiers is so helpful. A heartfelt thank you in advance.

https://www.patreon.com/88cupsoftea

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For today's new episode, we've partnered with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. They're producing Bookish in the 'Burgh, the Northeast's newest teen book festival on March 23rd and 24th.

Head over to TrustArts.org/bookish to learn more!

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Have you ever struggled with juggling a full-time job and staying inspired to pursue your creative goals? Or how about keeping yourself disciplined to reach your writing goals? We talk about it all and so much more with Kelsey Ford!

Kelsey is the creator of Bookish in the 'Burgh,' Pittsburgh's first teen book festival, a production of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. She is also a contemporary fantasy author represented by Jessica Mileo at InkWell Management and one of our very own Storytellers and listener of 88 Cups of Tes for over three years.

During our conversation, Kelsey shares her journey as a writer, her experience querying and getting a literary agent, and how she balances her full-time job with her writing all while sharing amazing crafting advice. She also talks about Bookish in the 'Burgh" and gives us a behind-the-scenes look into what inspired her to create the festival, the planning and research behind it, and what events will take place during the festival.

Say 'Hi' to Kelsey Ford on Twitter: https://twitter.com/kelseylynnford

Be sure to head over to her shownotes page for all the resources and time stamps of highlights mentioned throughout the episode: https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/kelsey-ford

If you'd love to keep 88 Cups of Tea going strong, please consider supporting us through our Patreon membership. We added EARLY ACCESS TO INTERVIEWS for our Super Storyteller patrons in the $8.88 tier. Your kind support at any level of our tiers is so helpful. A heartfelt thank you in advance.

https://www.patreon.com/88cupsoftea

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For today's new episode, we've partnered with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. They're producing Bookish in the 'Burgh, the Northeast's newest teen book festival on March 23rd and 24th.

Head over to TrustArts.org/bookish to learn more!

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Have can we use storytelling to heal when grieving? What does it mean to own your writing and find confidence in your unique writing voice? We dive into it and much more with Sarah Enni!

Sarah is the author of TELL ME EVERYTHING and her short story THE BLESSING OF LITTLE WANTS featured in the New York Times bestselling anthology, BECAUSE YOU LOVE TO HATE ME. Sarah is also the host of the podcast FIRST DRAFT where she shares meaningful conversations with other storytellers about their unique perspectives on the creative process, and to provide more transparency about the professional side of artistic endeavors.

In our conversation, we talk about vulnerability and finding comfort and strength through stories. We dig deep into Sarah's writing process, where she draws inspiration from, the importance of humility as a writer, and tips on managing your time. And we discuss the development process of her debut novel TELL ME EVERYTHING.

Say 'Hi' to Sarah Enni on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarahenni

Check out her podcast 'First Draft Podcast' on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/FirstDraftPod

To access Sarah's writing prompt, the list of all the books and resources mentioned in her episode, along with the timestamps for each highlight, head over to the shownotes page: https://88cupsoftea.com/podcast/sarah-enni