In larger bodies of work, how can we use time and place to develop characters? Whether choosing a setting for a novel or deciding what details of an era to highlight in nonfiction, every detail should drive the story forward. The Inner Loop Author's Corner August spotlight: Zak Salih shares how time and place works on many levels in his latest novel, "Let’s Get Back To The Party." Plus, Courtney, Rachel, and Zak write themselves from different stages of their own timelines.

Listen as three writer-friends get real weird, but also talk about the tangible and intangible benefits of having friends who are writers. Rachel Coonce, Courtney Sexton, and Daniel Knowlton discuss the value of being connected to a literary community, but not without a lot of laughing... and some potty jokes. Plus, we trace writing communities back through the centuries and uncover some of the lesser-known writerly enclaves.

Writing often helps us process traumatic experiences, but how do we turn that into a piece of art worth sharing with a broader audience? The Inner Loop Author's Corner July spotlight: Megan Alpert, author of The Animal at Your Side, joins us to discuss how we can find joy in creating something beautiful out of pain. Plus, how have some of our favorite authors coped with their own pain? We introduce you to the animals at their sides throughout the writing process.

Our heroes stick with us long after their stories have ended, but how do you create memorable characters? Melissa Scholes Young, author of The Hive, joins us to discuss research, empathy, and just how significant something as simple as eating an apple can be. Plus, we each try to introduce you to a new character without using adjectives or adverbs.

Courtney and Rachel discuss what it means to be "good" on so many levels -- writer, person, heroine -- with The Inner Loop Author's Corner June spotlight: Elizabeth Deanna Morris Lakes, poet and author of "Ashley Sugarnotch and The Wolf." How do you know when a piece is good? How do you incorporate play and experimentation in poetry and prose? And how do you recognize cycles of abuse, so you can break them? Embracing failure on all accounts may be the answer.

There’s light at the end of the quarantine tunnel with vaccines widely available and the CDC giving us permission to socialize again. So let’s take a look back and ask, how did you write your way through the past year? Maybe you took the opportunity to crack down on a big project, maybe you eeked out only a sentence at a time in fits and spurts, or maybe you didn’t write at all. We can sympathize! And so can the writers from our Quarantine Inspiration Series. We take a look at how Courtney and Rachel wrote through quarantine, as well as poet Jose Padua, nonfiction writer Kyoko Mori, and fiction writer Rion Amilcar Scott.

Poet Sean Felix embraces the seasons to break up the monotony of quarantine and channels it into Haiku. He also reminds us that writing is a connection to both interior spaces and also each other in the final installment of our Quarantine Inspiration Series: weekly mini-episodes that offer writing tips, inspiration, and prompts so writers can keep writing through difficult times.

Poet and Editor of Lines and Stars Rachel Cloud Adams shows us how to keep it simple with a quiet walk and a map of sound for inspiration and a forgiving writing routine to get through dry periods in this week’s episode of our Quarantine Inspiration Series: weekly mini-episodes that offer writing tips, inspiration, and prompts so writers can keep writing through difficult times.

A writer writes. Simple right? Not always. Comedienne and writer Diana Veiga takes us on her journey to a steady writing routine. Plus, she encourages us to invoke summertime to warm us through the winter in this week’s episode of our Quarantine Inspiration Series: weekly mini-episodes that offer writing tips, inspiration, and prompts so writers can keep writing through difficult times.

Transform a space - with DIY projects or by changing your perspective, and create something new with poet Lucian Mattison in this week’s episode of our Quarantine Inspiration Series: weekly mini-episodes that offer writing tips, inspiration, and prompts so writers can keep writing through difficult times.