"Naomi and her best friend just turned 14. Now the friend is pregnant and Naomi is pissed. Pregnancy changes everything. It was definitely not part of the plans."

Please join us as our Latin American correspondent explores the pros and cons of various ebook readers.

"Some divine messages come from upon high, while some come from the East End."

In this commentary, Blake explains how to end your movie.

How do you write a historical novel about a person so shadowy that almost nothing is known about her?

Please join Christine Blake and host Paula B. as they discuss:

How we know what we do about Mary Magdalene

Which sources Christine relied on, and how she evaluated them

What she extrapolated, and how she came up with her conclusions

How she handled contradictions in her sources

How important it is to be accurate in historical fiction.

Writers' conferences can be expensive. Are they worth it? Get the lowdown from an agent and two veteran conference attendees.

Please join agent Kristin Nelson, writers Frances Julia Kemp and Del Landis, and host Paula B. as they tour the conference landscape, including:

What to expect from a conference

How much writers' conferences cost

What agents who go to conferences are looking for

How to pitch agents and publishers at conferences

What to wear

How best to enjoy a tipple at a conference.

Find out what our 2008 first-prize winner is all about.

Please join Linda Simoni-Wastila and host Paula B. as they explore:

Where her story came from

What it was like to write in the voice of a 19-year-old boy

How she would describe her style

What was easy and difficult in the writing of Brighter Than Bright

What her writing goals are

What she'd like her Contemporary Authors entry to say

Why she writes about the things she does.

In this commentary, Blake explains how you can sneak exposition into your script and entertain viewers at the same time.

One of the most common questions writers ask is how to query agents and publishers. Here's one editor's take.

Please join Jennifer Silva Redmond and host Paula B. as they reveal what editors are really thinking, including:

How to select a publisher to query

What the difference between a query letter and a proposal is

How to write a great query (and what not to do)

How to talk yourself up without being obnoxious

Why you should adhere to publishers' guidelines (and what happens when you don't)

How long is reasonable to wait for an answer.

Novelist Susan Choi likes prickly, difficult characters. In this fascinating interview, she explains why.

Please join Susan Choi and host Paula B. as they discuss:

Whether protagonists need to be likeable

Whether protagonists of advanced years are rare in literature

Why she relies so heavily on description

Why much of the story is told through flashbacks

How she got the FBI to help her research the story.