Episode Summary

In this episode, Sanhita discusses how her travels have inspired her writing and how she manages to stay focused as she frequently moves. 

 Highlights

• Sanhita has lived most of her life in India and draws inspiration from the atmosphere and culture there.
• Sanhita lives a nomad life and has moved frequently. All she needs is her laptop and a good space and she is ready to write.
• Her job allowed her to travel frequently, and she found inspiration from all over while traveling.
• Ernest Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea was inspirational for Sanhita.
• The story that you start with usually ends up being something different than you expected when you finish.
• Sanhita designs her book covers.
• For new writers it’s important to know that self-publishing requires much work.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Carlyle discusses her inspiration for writing, how she manages her schedule around her busy family life, and why she loves fiction writing.

Highlights

• When on safari with her family she was inspired by a tree, and she started writing poetry.
• When she was young, she wrote in her diary religiously.
• Carlyle wrote her first book in 4 weeks.
• Carlyle has a writing room that was recently renovated.
• She can write anywhere if needed but she prefers to be in clean, modern, and pretty space.
• Coffee is a requirement when she writes, and she enjoys a double espresso.
• When not writing she loves swimming. When she has writers block, she will swim.
• Carlyle writes when she can fit it in while managing the family schedule.
• There are 2 family dogs that sometimes inspire non dog characters in her writing.
• Carlyle was inspired by a book that she read in school. Child in Darkness inspired her to write science fiction.
• She brought African elements into her science fiction writing.
• Carlyle needs a deadline even though she isn’t the best at meeting them.
• If Carlyle was casting for her book, she would choose Jensen Ackles as the lead.

Episode Summary

In this episode, John discusses the importance of knowing character well enough to allow them to help write the story. He talks about how poetry helped him refine his writing and why it is critical to be in critique groups.

Highlights

• John writes at a cluttered desk in his study and always has coffee nearby.
• He feels more productive in a quiet space where nothing but writing can take his focus.
• John’s wife is a writer as well and sit’s across from John. They often write together in the mornings.
• John loves to spend time at the beach swimming.
• Pat Conroy is John’s favorite author.
• When John was young, he read The Comancheros and that caused him to start thinking about becoming a writer.
• His profession as a doctor and raising a family had him put writing on the backburner for quite some time.
• During one of his courses John fell in love with poetry and published Heart Murmurs.
• Writing poetry helped him learn to write succinctly and in ways that weren’t standard.
• John uses his knowledge of his characters to allow the story to unfold as he writes.
• John believes that being part of a critique group of like-minded writers is critical.
• John does not set deadlines for himself. 

Episode Summary

In this episode, Alexandra discusses how she balances her career as a professor with her love of writing. She discusses her love of kids and why she includes them in many of her stories. She talks about her love of action movies and how they can influence her writing.

Highlights

• Most of Alexandra’s novel are interracial romance.
• Her day job is a college professor.
• Alexandra’s favorite place to write is in her office.
• She has a bowl of fidgets in her office that helps her while she is working.
• In her spare time Alexandra enjoys reading, taking walks, and going for a drive while listening to audiobooks.
• She loves kids and often includes children in her story.
• The Brotherhood of the Rose changed how Alexandra viewed the world.
• Alexandra loves action movies, and her writing is influenced by them.
• She is currently binge-watching Yellowstone.
• Her advice is to write any story ideas down so that you do not forget them.
• Alexandra keeps a journal book for each story.
• If she could cast her characters she would pick The Mandalorian as the hero and Halle Berry as the heroin.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Marie discusses her background as a divorce attorney and why she decided to write her book, How to Divorce a Narcissist and Win.

 Highlights

• In addition to being a divorce attorney and author, Marie is a divorce coach.
• Marie works from home most of the time and has difficulty finding time to fit writing into the day. 
• She tends to write after midnight in her home office.
• She likes to have her dog with her and/or a cup of coffee when she is writing.
• Marie likes to try different types of coffee.
• Her German shepherd is named Athena.
• Marie’s Christian faith is very important to her.
• Marie wrote How to Divorce a Narcissist and Win because she felt like many people didn’t understand what a narcissist truly was, how to recognize one, or how to deal with them in a divorce.
• Marie mostly reads case law and work-related material.
• Marie was intrigued by The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene.
• Even though her book is non-fiction, Marie believes that it could be turned into a movie or TV series.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Lyn discusses her mother-daughter collaboration on the Mae December series, her transition to solo writing, and where she finds inspiration for her writing.

Highlights

• Lyn wanted to be a writer but took a different path. Then when she retired, she started writing again.
• Lyn writes “cozy mysteries”.
• Lyn writes with her daughter, Lisa under the pen name Lia Farrell.
• Lyn has a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Desi.
• Lyn has an office space that she uses almost exclusively to write in.
• She has a nice window view in her office to help with creativity and focus.
• Lyn finds inspiration in nature. When she needs some inspiration, she will take Desi out to a park.
• Lyn is a master gardener and is in a local gardening club.
• She is the chair of the Michigan State University writers’ group.
• Lyn finds it challenging to grow vegetables. 
• In 2020, Lyn started with the pen name Lyn Farrell and started a new series that she was writing on her own.
• The first book in her new series is The Blind Switch
• After 9 books, Lyn still feels like she is learning.
• Lyn likes Mark Wahlberg for the role of Detective Nichols.
• Blind Split is Lyn’s newest book and is released in January 2022

Episode Summary

In this episode, Julie discusses what it’s like to try and balance her career as a high school teacher and her writing. She talks about how she frequently injects things that she loves from her real life into her writing as well as how she had to adjust to Covid.

Highlights

• Julie lives in Canada.
• She writes romance, romantic comedy, and contemporary romance.
• Julie enjoys teaching high school.
• Julie pulls from her real life for much of what she writes.
• Julie uses her summers off to write as much as possible.
• Teaching is demanding and it can be difficult to find time to write.
• Julie likes to write in bed.
• Julie likes to use Discord and a writer bot to help her keep focused.
• Covid gave many writers more time, but it took a while for Julie to optimize her schedule around that time.
• Describing things is a challenge for Julie.
• Julie got her start writing fan fiction.
• Peanut butter is Julies favorite food.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Regina talks about the inspiration for her books and how she hopes that they inspire children and families to find healthy connection.

 Highlights

• Regina is a dedicated children’s author
• Regina lives in Iowa and has a music studio where she teaches.
• She is also a life coach and that overlaps well with music instruction.
• Regina loves learning and is a lifelong learner.
• She had a rough childhood.
• Writing happened accidentally and combined all of her passions.
• She prefers to be cozy when she writes.
• She finds that a lot of inspiration comes at inopportune times.
• She will use her phone to record in those moments when she isn’t in her cozy space.
• Regina enjoys time at the gym and lifting weights.
• Regina has three Pomeranians.
• Covid forced Regina to look for ways to work with small children online and that eventually lead to her writing.
• Dark chocolate is Regina’s favorite food.
• Regina loves Mr. Rogers and would choose him to sing her songs if it were possible.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Leslie reveals the books and authors that inspired her the most. She discusses what she likes in a heroin character. She explains her style of “going there” to help her maintain focus and write.

Highlights

• Leslie writes in her own home office and has a sign on the door that qualifies entry during writing.
• When Leslie writes, she transports herself mentally into the story. She refers to the technique as “going there” and she can maintain focus and lose track of the real world. 
• Sewing, painting, jewelry crafting, and beach walks are some of Leslie’s favorite hobbies.
• She finds the ocean calming and she loves how it clears her head. 
• Leslie has an 11-month-old Doodle named Josie.
• Leslie reads two to three books a week.
• Salem’s Lot was a very influential book for Leslie. After reading it she knew that she wanted to write.
• Kathleen Woodiwiss was also a large influence for Leslie.
• Leslie isn’t comfortable writing in first person.
• Leslie has published 16 books.
• Love in the Mix is a cookbook for romance readers. Top romance writers contributed recipes and anecdotes. 100% of the profits are spent for Pro Literacy.
• Leslie finds the middle of the story the most difficult to write.
• Appropriate and accurate research is critical in Leslie’s mind.
• Favorite food: chocolate.
• Leslie highly recommends Pinot noir and chocolate cupcakes.

Episode Summary

In this episode, Evan discusses how J.R.R. Tolkien inspired him and ultimately lead him to epic fantasy as a genre. He outlines his strategy for shorter episodic books in a large fantasy world and why he prefers that style. 

Highlights

• Evan was inspired by JRR Tolkien and that lead him to Norse fantasy.
• His genre is epic fantasy.
• Evan writes part time but works in IT as a day job.  
• Evan enjoys IT but he would be happy to write full time.
• He likes to write an hour or two early in the morning and then later in the evening review and strategize his work.
• Endless coffee is a requirement for writing sessions.
• Gardening and carpentry are two hobbies that Evan enjoys.
• He enjoys the perspectives that his hobbies give him and feels like it helps him write.
• His wife reads his book and gives him honest feedback that is incredibly helpful.
• Evan has two dogs that he doesn’t intend to make it into his writing.
• Karik’s First Battle takes place in an epic fantasy world but each book will be an episode that has an ending.