Today on the podcast, we are so happy to welcome author Jennifer Chen and her agent, Caitie Flum from Liza Dawson Associates. We originally asked Jennifer on to talk about short pieces, and how she succeed with them—and she does a great job discussing that—but we were so pleasantly surprised to watch the thoughtful, kind, creative dynamic between this author and agent pair.

We also discuss an unlikely source for writing (and structure) inspiration, how story is brain science, and building your writing team to keep you healthy, happy and creative.

Jennifer says: I am a freelance journalist who has written for print and online, including pieces in the New York Times, O: The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, and Bust. I have a MFA and BFA in dramatic writing from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and am a proud alumnae of Hedgebrook, a women’s writing residency. I am represented by literary agent Caitie Flum at Liza Dawson Associates. I live in Los Angeles with my TV writer husband, twin daughters, a snorty pug named Chewbacca, and a fluffy cat named Puff. You can find her at and on Twitter at @jchenwriter. https://jchenwriter.com/

Caitie Flum joined Liza Dawson Associates in July 2014 as assistant and audio rights manager. She graduated from Hofstra University in 2009 with a B.A. in English with a concentration in publishing studies. She interned at Hachette Book Group and Writers House. She was an editorial assistant then coordinator for Bookspan, where she worked on several clubs including the Book-of-the-Month Club, The Good Cook, and the Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club. You can find her at https://www.lizadawsonassociates.com/team/caitie-flum/ and @caitief on Twitter.