First Draft with Sarah Enni

Tochi Onyebuchi is the author of Beasts Made of Night, its sequel Crown of Thunder, War Girls and its forthcoming sequel, Rebel Sisters (out in October), and his adult fiction debut Riot Baby, published by Tor.com in January 2020.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

• The Life Cycle of Software Objects by Ted Chiang

• Great Work of Time by John Crowley

• Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series

• The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor Lavalle

• Succession (TV show)

• The New Yorker

• The Nation

• Tochi's appearance on The Daily Show, and the T-shirt he wore on the show (designed by John Karel and sold by Dusty Cat merchandise)

• Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

• A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James

• As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

• A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

• Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse (movie)

• Burning (Korean film)

• Watchmen (TV show)

• A Black Lady Sketch Show (TV show)

• Queen and Slim (movie)

• Goliath is one of Tochi's next two books with Tor Dot Com and it sounds amazing!

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Cassandra Clare is #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Shadowhunter Chronicles, the forthcoming Sword Catcher duology, and co-author of the Magisterium series. Her most recent Shadowhunter novel, Chain of Gold, kicks off the Last Hours trilogy.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• A Little Princess and The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

• Noel Streatfeild wrote a prolific series of books for young readers, kicking off with Ballet Shoes and including Dancing Shoes, Theater Shoes, and Skating Shoes.

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

• From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg

• Cassie went through a British obsession where she read all of the Brontë sister's works (best typified by Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre) and all of Jane Austen (including Pride and Prejudice and Emma)

• Cassie's interview on 88 Cups of Tea

• The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

• Holly Black, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Cruel Prince, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, and The Spiderwick Chronicles (listen to her First Draft episode here)

• J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy

• The Shannara books by Terry Brooks, which kicks off with The Sword of Shannara

• Tad Williams, author of the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series, which kicks off with The Dragonbone Chair, and the Shadowmarch series

• Guy Gavriel Kay, author of Tigana and (my personal fav), Under Heaven and its sequel, River of Stars

• Annette Curtis Klause, author of Blood and Chocolate and The Silver Kiss

• Ellen Kushner, author of Thomas the Rhymer and Swordspoint.

• Terri Windling created the "Bordertown" shared world urban fantasy series. In 2011 she initiated a YA revival of the series Welcome to Bordertown co-edited with Holly Black.

• Robin Wasserman, author of Girls on Fire and the forthcoming Mother Daughter Widow Wife (listen to her First Draft episode here)

• Tamora Pierce, author of Alanna and Wild Magic

• Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld

• A High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes

• The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Kristen Meinzer and Jolenta Greenberg, co-hosts of the By the Book podcast and co-authors of How to Be Fine: What We Learned from Living by the Rules of 50 Self-Help Books. They also co-host the We Love You and So Can You podcast.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before and The Four Tendencies. Kristen previously produced Gretchen's Happier with Gretchen Rubin podcast!
• The Movie Date podcast that Kristen co-hosted
• Marie Kondo, author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
• The Dance of Anger by Harriet Lerner
• The Goodreads study about who writes self-help books (men) and who reads them (people who identify as women)
• Why Good Things Happen to Good People by Stephen Post, Jill Neimark, and Otis Moss
• So You Want to Start a Podcast, Kristen's book about, duh, how to start a podcast!

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Erin Lee Carr is a director, producer, and writer whose upcoming four-part docuseries How to Fix a Drug Scandal will be released on Netflix on April 1st. Carr has also directed At the Heart of Gold, about the USA Gymnastics scandal, and I Love You: Now Die, about the Michelle Carter murder-by-texting trial, both for HBO. Her first feature length film was Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

• The Witches by Roald Dahl

• Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV show)

• Pleasantville (movie)

• Moulin Rouge (movie)

• David Carr, legendary New York Times journalist and author of memoir Night of the Gun

• James Frey is the author of A Million Little Pieces which raised a massive public debate about truth in memoir after it was revealed that portions of the book was fabricated or wildly embellished, and Oprah confronted him. She has since apologized for that confrontation.

• David Carr on The Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert talking about his memoir

• The New York Times Book Review write-up about Carr's memoir

• Page One: Inside the New York Times, a documentary by Andrew Rossi (who is now a mentor to Erin) featured David Carr extensively

• Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room a documentary by Alex Gibney, was an incredibly influential film that made Erin want to pursue documentary fimmaking

• Shane Smith, founder of VICE

• Erin was an office PA for the TV show Girls before she moved on to making videos for VICE

• "How true crime documentaries helped Erin Lee Carr move forward after her father's death," Erin's interview with the Los Angeles Times, interviewed by Amy Kaufman

• Patricia Bosworth, documentarian and memoirist, author of The Men in My Life: A Memoir of Love and Art in 1950s Manhattan, Diane Arbus: A Biography, Montgomery Clift: The Ultimate Insider's Guide for the Budget Savvy

• Sheila Nevins, former president of HBO Documentary Films and currently launching MTV Documentary Films

• National geographic photographer Cory Richards's 2017 SXSW Keynote speech

• Erin's editor Andrew Kaufman

• Cheer on Netflix (which was optioned)

• McMillions

• "The Girl from Plainville," the Esquire piece by Jesse Barron about the Michelle Carter case

• Erin's episode of Dirty Money dealing with the pharmaceutical industry

• Cindy Lee, editor on At the Heart of Gold

• Sarah Gibson was executive producer on At the Heart of Gold

• "Still rendering," Erin's Medium piece which she wrote in the wake of her dad's death

• Mary Karr's books including Lit, The Liar's Club: A Memoir, and The Art of Memoir

• Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp

• In an interview with Caryn Ganz for the New York Times, Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino talks about coming to the decision to be sober. I also liked how Jenny Slate spoke about her choice to stop drinking—at least temporarily— in The Cut on Tuesdays.

• Erin on Fresh Air with Terry Gross

• Erin loves the Fresh Air episodes featuring Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Howard Stern

• Erin recommends watching documentaries every night for a month, and diagramming them. Then, she suggests, also go ahead and diagram the careers of some of the greats, including: Liz Garbus (director of There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, What Happened, Miss Simone? and more); Alex Gibney (director of Going Clear: The HBO Special and The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley); Andrew Jirecki (director of Capturing the Friedmans); Amy Berg (director of The Case Against Adnan Syed and Janis: Little Girl Blue); Erroll Morris (director of The Thin Blue Line and The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara)

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Ben Blacker is a writer and producer known for The Thrilling Adventure Hour, Supernatural, Hex Wives, and the new Audible audio series CUT + RUN. He also hosts The Writer's Panel and Dead Pilots Society podcasts.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Hear Ben's writing partner, Ben Acker, on his episode of First Draft here!

• Beverly Cleary, author of Beezus and Ramona, and Ramona Quimby, Age 8 was one of Ben's early favorite authors

• Zilpha Keatley Snyder, author of The Egypt Game and The Famous Stanley Kidnapping Case was another early influence

• Three's Company

• The Love Boat

• Ben wrote fanfiction for the TV show Scarecrow and Mrs. King

• Francine Prose, author of Reading Like a Writer: A Guide For People Who Love Books and Those Who Want to Write Them, told Ben Blacker he would never become a writer

• Ben and Ben wrote two spec scripts for Buffy the Vampire Slayer as some of their first collaborative

• Ben wrote a spec script for Mad About You and his teacher at Emerson (who wrote for Roseanne) sent it to Paul Reiser

• Dharma and Greg

• Meanwhile, Ben Acker was working as an office PA for Will&Grace

• Marc Evan Jackson, Paul F. Tompkins, and Paget Brewster were part of the constant cast of Thrilling Adventure Hour

• Ben's interview with Traci on The Stacks Podcast is great and you should listen to it! In fact, you should listen to all of The Stacks Podcast because it's ALL great and Traci rules.

• Len Wein who created Wolverine, Swamp Thing, editor of Watchmen, and more

• Bewitched (TV show)

• In this episode of Comic Book Commentary, colorist Marissa Louise explains her process for coloring Hex Wives to Ben

• Hear director Maggie Levin on a recent episode of First Draft, as well as an episode of the Writer's Panel podcast!

• The Writer's Panel started 826 LA

• Ben recommends the recent episode of The Writer's Panel featuring Mark Frost (co-creator, Twin Peaks), Steven Canals (co-creator, Pose), Harley Peyton (Project Blue Book; Channel Zero; upcoming: Child's Play) as a jumping off point to get into the podcast

• Ben also loves this recently re-released episode with Carlton Cuse (LOST, and Bates Motel), Mike Shur (who got his start on The Office and then created Parks and Recreation, Brooklyn 99, and The Good Place), and J.J. Philbin (New Girl, creator of Single Parents)

• The Sopranos and Mad Men are some prestige shows that ushered in a time of "showrunner auteur"

• Vince Gilligan, creator of Breaking Bad

• Damon Lindelof, co-creator of LOST

• Marc Evan Jackson hosts The Good Place podcast, which was running concurrent to new episodes of The Good Place, the TV show — and now he's doing one for Brooklyn 99's podcast, too!

• Andrew Reich, writer for Friends and Worst Week, created The Dead Pilots Society podcast

• Dexter

• Fargo, Weeds, and later seasons of Breaking Bad are shows that Ben says are representative of he and Ben Acker's writing tone

• Weeds creator Jenji Kohan (side note, I really loved the Emily Nussbaum feature profile about Jenji featured in The New Yorker and her book, I Like to Watch)

• Edgar Wright (Baby Driver), Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums), Rian Johnson (Knives Out), and Greta Gerwig (Little Women) are all filmmakers Ben cites as great examples of people with very specific individual tones

• Humphrey Ker and Katie Wood were staff writers for CUT + RUN, and you can hear them talk to Ben and Ben about the writing process on The Writer's Panel!

• Hear Janet Varney, comedian, writer, and co-founder of SF Sketchfest, on her episode of First Draft!

• The cast of CUT + RUN is amazing and includes: Meg Ryan, Sam Richardson, D'Arcy Carden, Rachel Bloom (listen to the episode of The Writer's Panel where Ben sat down with Rachel and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend showrunner Aline Brosh McKenna), Ed Begley, Jr.

• Why would I miss a chance to mention The Princess Bride? And why not link to the book, written by famous screenwriter William Goldman

• Aimee Mann and Ted Leo recorded "Dynamite Lady," an original song to play over the credits of CUT + RUN

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Sarah Watson is a television writer, producer, and novelist. She's the creator of the Freeform series, The Bold Type, and was a Writer and Executive Producer of the critically acclaimed NBC drama, Parenthood. She has also written for About A Boy, Lipstick Jungle,The Unusuals, and The Middleman, as well as other series. Her debut novel, Most Likely, is out now.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Down a Dark Hall by Lois Duncan
• Sarah basically wrote a book report for the movie War Games
• Felicity (TV show) was a game changer for hour-long dramas, and Dawson's Creek and Buffy. Before that there was mostly just Thirtysomething
• Sarah was an intern with someone named Damon Lindeloff, who went on to create LOST, The Leftovers, and Watchmen
• That's so Raven was one of Sarah's very first jobs out of college
• Eileen Heisler (executive producer of How I Met Your Mother and The Middle) and DeAnn Heline (producer on Murphy Brown and executive producer Ellen), the women behind Lipstick Jungle
• The Middleman is where Sarah met Javier Grillo-Marxuach
• Jason Katims, showrunner and executive producer of Friday Night Lights (created by Peter Berg, based on the book Friday Night Lights written by Pulitzer Prize winner H.G. "Buzz" Bissinger [not for nothing but the documentary Buzz was fascinating]) was the creator, showrunner, and executive producer for Parenthood
• The 1989 film Parenthood, written by Lowell Ganz (who also wrote Splash and A League of Their Own, among others) and Babaloo Mandel (who also wrote City Slickers, A League of Their Own, and Forget Paris)
• In the writing room for Beyond the Break there were only three writers
• Sarah shadowed Joanna Coles in researching for The Bold Type
• The Bold Type was originally at NBC in a more West Wing style iteration before it settled into Sarah's vision at Freeform
• What Happened by Hilary Clinton
• Kate Testerman at KT Literary is Sarah's agent
• The Deadline announcement for Sarah's new TV show, about a The Goonies remake
• Sarah got the chance to create her new TV show with Gail Berman, Chairman and CEO of The Jackal Group, an independent production entity formed in partnership with Fox Networks Group.
• Richard Donner, the director of The Goonies, Superman, Lethal Weapon, Scrooged, and more
• Greg Motolla, director of Superbad and Adventureland, is directing Sarah's pilot

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Rebecca Serle is a television writer, producer, and New York Times bestselling author of six books, including When You Were Mine , The Edge of Falling, The Dinner List, and her newest, In Five Years, out now. She co-developed the hit TV adaptation of her YA series, Famous in Love.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Marianne Wiggins, author of National Book Award finalist Evidence of Things Unseen and The Shadow Catcher, and a professor of creative writing at USC

• Sigrid Nunez, author of National Book Award-winning The Friend, was Rebecca's thesis advisor at The New School's MFA program

• While Rebecca was getting her MFA, she was an intern and then an assistant at Foundry Literary and Media

• Mollie Glick, previously of Foundry Literary and currently with CAA, represented Rebecca for her first book, When You Were Mine

• Lauren Oliver, author of Delirium and Before I Fall, gave Rebecca great advice: "Time is going to pass anyway," meaning you might as well get to work.

• I plug my BestSelf Journal, which is helping me be more productive

• Kristin Stewart as Bella in Twilight movies; Shailene Woodly as Tris in the Divergent films; and Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss in The Hunger Games films

• Joshua Jackson and Katie Holmes dated in real life while filming Dawson's Creek

• Dan Farrah, Rebecca's manager

• Rebecca studied the pilots for Gossip Girl and The O.C. to prepare to write the pilot for Famous in Love

• Erin Malone at WME is Rebecca's agent

• I. Marlene King, creator of Pretty Little Liars came on as a producer of Famous in Love

• ABC Signature Studios has acquired the television rights to Rebecca's pilot adaptation of the bestselling book series Jessica Darling by Megan McCafferty (whose newest book, The Mall, is out in 2020)

• One Day in December by Josie Silver

• In Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, Elizabeth Gilbert discusses the concept that ideas are out in the atmosphere and can pass from person to person

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Somaiya Daud, debut author of YA sci-fi book Mirage, was the very first author I ever interviewed for First Draft Podcast. Her upcoming book, the final book in the Mirage duology, Court of Lions will be out in fall 2020!

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Self Control, a Mac app, can't be turned off by restarting your computer, and that is helpful for Somaiya when she's trying to focus

• ADHD related time blindness and how seeing and feeling of time can help combat it

• The Pomodoro method of writing has helped Somaiya be very productive

• "Never half-ass two things, whole-ass one thing." - Ron Swanson from Parks and Recreation (TV show)

• The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien

• "All stories are about wolves. All worth repeating, that is. Anything else is sentimental drivel…." - Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid's Tales

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Kate DiCamillo is one of six people to win two Newbery Medals, for her novels The Tale of Despereaux and Flora & Ulysses, and author of Newberry Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie, National Book Award finalist The Tiger Rising, as well as New York Times bestselling novels The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The Magician's Elephant, the Mercy Watson series, and more. DiCamillo was the U.S. National Ambassador for Young People's Literature for 2014 and 2015. Her most recent novel, Beverly, Right Here completes the trilogy of Raymie Nightingale and Louisiana's Way Home.

This episode of First Draft is brought to you by Steven Sater's Alice By Heart, a debut young adult novel in which the Tony Award-winning co-creator of Spring Awakening tells the story of a young girl who takes refuge in a London Tube station during WWII and confronts grief, loss, and first love with the help of her favorite book, Alice in Wonderland. Alice By Heart is out from Penguin Random House now.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

• Christopher Paul Curtis, author of Newberry Medal book Bud, Not Buddy and Newberry Honor book The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1963 and Elijah of Buxton

• Katherine Paterson, author of Newberry Medal books Bridge to Terabithia and Jacob Have I Loved, as well as Newberry Honor book The Great Gilly Hopkins

• Karen Hesse, author of Newberry Medal book Out of the Dust

• Kara LaReau was Kate's editor for Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tiger Rising, The Tale of Despereaux

• Poets & Writers magazine

• Holly McGhee, founder and creative director at Pippin Properties

• Blank Check with Griffin and David (podcast)

• The quote Kate shares from Katherine Paterson is from Paterson's 1988 essay, "Hope is More Than Happiness." (New York Times).

• How to Talk so Kids Will Listen And How to Listen so Kids Will Talk by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish

• Karen Lotz, president of Candlewick

• Linda Sue Park, author of A Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Story and A Single Shard

• Kate was also the 2014 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature

• Ann Patchett, author of Bel Canto, State of Wonder, The Magician's Assistant, and many more, owns Parnassus bookstore in Nashville, Tenn.

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!

Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Leah on the Offbeat, and co-author of What if it's Us, and Aisha Saeed, New York Times bestselling author of Written in the Stars and Amal Unbound, teamed up to write Yes No Maybe So.

This episode of First Draft is brought to you by Steven Sater's Alice By Heart, a debut young adult novel in which the Tony Award-winning co-creator of Spring Awakening tells the story of a young girl who takes refuge in a London Tube station during WWII and confronts grief, loss, and first love with the help of her favorite book, Alice in Wonderland. Alice By Heart is out from Penguin Random House now.

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

• Becky's previous episode of First Draft

• Shabanu, Daughter of the Wind by Suzanne Fisher Staples

• Aisha Saeed was a co-founding member of We Need Diverse Books

• Jon Ossoff, the politcian whose run for a U.S. House seat brought Becky and Aisha together and inspired Yes No Maybe So, is running for Senate. Learn more about him and donate to his campaign here!

• Becky co-wrote another book, What if it's Us, with Adam Silvera (listen to his First Draft interview here)

• Long Shot (movie)

• Nancy Paulsen of Nancy Paulsen Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House, is Aisha's long-time editor

• Donna Bray at Balzer + Bray has been Becky's editor for her entire career, and she edited YES NO MAYBE SO

• Love, Simon (movie based on Becky's debut novel, Simon vs. the Homo Sapien's Agenda)

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998.

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone's an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too; Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

Don't miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It's free!

Rate, Review, and Recommend

How do you like the show?

Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you!

Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post!

Thanks again!