Writing Break

By America's Editor

Whether you’re polishing your first draft or chasing down a book deal, the award-winning Writing Break will keep you informed, inspired, and ready to write. For access to all episodes, join the librar... more

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FAQs about Writing Break:

How many episodes does Writing Break have?

The podcast currently has 152 episodes available.

Writing Break episodes:

November 01, 20227 Tips for Creating a Setting
Learn what it really means to win NaNoWriMo. Plus, we discuss 7 tips for creating your novel's setting.
More Writing Tips
In conversation: May-lee Chai & Belinda Huijuan Tang (Zoom event)
A Map for the Missing: 9780593300664 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books - Featured Author, Belinda Huijuan Tang
Tomorrow in Shanghai — Blair - Featured Author, May-lee Chai
Indigo Bridge, Lincoln, Nebraska - Featured Bookstore
Study App | Sharpen by McGraw Hill
Frankfurt Book Fair 2022: 'Romantasy' and Revelry on the Fair Floor
Demand Soars for kids' books addressing violence, trauma
Audible changes returns policy
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
"We Were Meant To Be" by Humans Win
"Sunshine" by Simon Jomphe Lepine
"A Triumphant Return" by Jon Presstone
"Storm On The Plains" by Humans Win
...more
12min
October 25, 2022These 7 Components Will Set the Perfect Pace for Your Story
This Halloween episode breaks down the components of the scene and sequel structure to ensure that every scene you write is essential and moves the story and plot along at the right pace.
More Writing Tips
The Ghost of Normandy Road by John Hennessey
Home - Grey Lady Ghost
Willard Public Library - the oldest public library in Evansville, Indiana
Frankfurt Book Fair 2022: International Fiction Book Sales, So Far
Frankfurt Book Fair 2022: Al Pacino Memoir Makes the Rounds
Authors Must Document Russian Terror, Zelensky Tells Frankfurt Fair - Kyiv Post - Ukraine's Global Voice
Ingram Says Shipping Error Was Unintentional
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
“Mystery of a Haunted Memory” by Jon Presstone
“Trick or Treat” by MoodMode
“Halloween Haunted House” by MoodMode
“Halloween Stalker” by Jayson Wayne Brown
...more
13min
October 18, 20228 Common Novel Endings
Authors often wonder how to end a novel. We'll review the 8 most common ways to end a story.
More Writing Tips
Bullet journals for writers - Bright Bird Press
Belinda Kroll | Cozy Victorian fantasy & fiction - Featured Author
The Book Loft of German Village, Columbus, Ohio - Featured Bookstore
A History of Buying Books Onto the Bestseller List
Axios's 'Smart Brevity' and Questionable Book-Selling Tactics - The Atlantic
Amazon & KDP Issues - Special Update
Artist receives first known US copyright registration for latent diffusion AI art | Ars Technica
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
“Gazing Out of a Cafe Window on a Rainy Day” by Tencher Music
“Autumn Leaves” by Simon Sharp
“The Wonder Years” by Humans Win
“Fancy and Friendly” by Jon Presstone
“Beautiful Way to End” by Neil Cross
...more
13min
October 11, 2022Tips for Writing Your Book's Climax
In this episode, we talk about writing your novel's climax, becoming an award-winning podcast three times over, and the latest publishing news.
More Writing Tips
Dee Alvis, Tattoo VO - Voice Talent
June Meyer's Authentic Hungarian Heirloom Recipes - Featured Author
June Meyer's Authentic Hungarian Heirloom Recipe Index Page - Featured Author - Recipes
Massolit Books & Cafe, Budapest, Hungary - Featured Bookstore
It's Never Too Late: Seven Authors on Making Their YA Debuts After Age 50
The 2022 Publishers Weekly Holiday Gift Guide
2022 National Book Award Finalists Announced - National Book Foundation
Little Golden Books Plans 100th-Anniversary Disney Set
Publisher Wiley reinstates ebooks
TikTok’s Penguin Random House Collab Has BookTok Creators Worried – Rolling Stone
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
“Vibes Just Right” by Jon Presstone
“I Only Have a Little Bit Left to Give” by Jon Presstone
“Give Me Food” by Bobby Cole
“The Hero Within” by Bobby Cole
...more
15min
October 04, 2022Hemingway, NaNoWrimo, and Writing Act 3
We begin our discussion of Act 3 of a three-act book, and I share my professional opinion of NaNoWriMo. I also share a rare recording from Ernest Hemingway, which offers his opinion on writer organizations.
More Writing Tips
Fernanda Melchor, Hurricane Season - Featured Author
Curious Fox, Berlin, Germany - Featured Bookstore
New York Jewish Book Festival : Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust
Short Story Contest 2022 Horror Comedy!!!
AAP StatShot Annual Report For 2021: Book Publishing Revenues Up 12.3% For the Year, Reaching All-Time High of $29.33 Billion - AAP
NaNoWriMo
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
"A Cafe In Monaco" by Scorehouse Media
"A Dreamy Slumber" by Tencher Music
"Bay Area Bop" by Q-Rock
"Happy Walk" by Simon Jomphe Lepine
"Vintage Funky Intro" by Jon Presstone
...more
14min
September 27, 20224 Reasons Authors Mess Up the End of Act 2
This episode is filled with good news, including a big win for authors, a new program for debut authors, and a new feature on Spotify. We also review four reasons you might be getting in your own way when writing the Epiphany at the end of Act 2.
More Writing Tips
New Titles from Self-Publishers: End of September 2022 - Featured Authors
Todo Modo, Florence, Italy - Featured Bookstore
Findaway Voices - Create and Sell Audiobooks
Spotify Audiobooks - Spotify (US)
Amazon Is Changing Its Ebook Return Policy in Major Breakthrough for Authors - The Authors Guild
DARK HORSE EXPANDS PARTNERSHIP WITH PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE PUBLISHER SERVICES :: Blog :: Dark Horse Comics
Get the Word Out | Poets & Writers
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
“Italian Romance” by Keith Anthony Holden
“Warm and Cozy” by New Library Sounds
“Boccherini Minuet” by Bobby Cole
“Magic” by Humans Win
...more
13min
September 20, 2022Tips for Writing Act 2 of a Novel
We grapple with the second checkpoint in Act 2 of a three-act novel: the Struggle. Plus, I tell you about giveaways and events taking place during Banned Books Week.
More Writing Tips
Read an Excerpt - The Night in Her Hair - Featured Author
The Last Word, Lahore, Pakistan - Featured Bookstore
Best Books of the Year - Book of the Month Club
The Booker Prize 2022 | The Booker Prizes
2022 National Book Awards Longlist for Fiction - National Book Foundation
Read and Share Banned Books – MacKids School & Library
DK’s Banned Books Profiles the Most Controversial Texts Throughout History - Penguin Random House Secondary Education
DK Banned Books Sweeps - GIVEAWAY
Children's Publishers Rally to Promote Banned Books Week
Spotify exec says the company will begin testing audiobooks 'very soon' • TechCrunch
Don’t Miss These Banned Books Week Coalition Facebook Live Events! | Banned Books Week
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
“Warm Summer” by Valentina Gribanova
“A Dramatic Twist” by Neil Cross (conspiracy theory music)
"Hip Hop" by Oleksii Abramovych
“Only One” by Humans Win
“Summertime Love” by Humans Win
...more
14min
September 13, 2022The Hardest Part of a Book
Today I will guide you gently into Act 2 of your novel, and you will talk me down from yet another literary soapbox. And that is why we work well together.
More Writing Tips
SUMMER ISLAND comic, Steve Coulson - Featured Author
Chapter 101 Bookstore, Gurugram (formerly Gurgaon), India. - Featured Bookstore
TikTok creators and influencers are protesting against Amazon | Mashable
TikTok's Book Club is now (unsurprisingly) Amazon-sponsored | Mashable
Walmart Inspires New Reading Adventures with the Walmart Book Club
Val McDermid, Queen of Crime, is probably not in trouble with the law over Agatha Christie estate trademark claim – Colin Hulme | The Scotsman
How to Get Published - The New York Times
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
“Swing it Smooth” by Jon Presstone
"Romance" by Enzo Orefice
“Happy India” by Neil Cross
...more
12min
September 06, 2022Nonstop Writing Tips (Clip Show #3)
Ten week's worth of brainstorming, plotting, character development, and other writing tips from a professional book editor.
More Writing Tips
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
"Chill Out In The Coffee Shop (No Sax)" by Jon Presstone
...more
35min
August 30, 202212 Plot Frames That Can Support Your Novel
To wrap up our discussion of Act 1 of your book, I am answering listener questions, and you asked some good ones. Also, learn about paid internship opportunities at HarperCollins.
More Writing Tips
Wrzenie Świata, Warsaw, Poland - Featured Bookstore
12 Plot Frames
HarperCollins Internship US
The Traineeship 2023 - HarperCollins Publishers (UK)
NCAC challenges Keller, Texas banned books
‘Heat 2’: Why Michael Mann’s Sequel to His Classic Crime-Movie Had to Be a Novel – Rolling Stone
Free Style Sheet Templates

Music licensed from Storyblocks:
“More Jam Please” by Raighes Factory
"Party Song With Funky Bass" by Sondé
"Hello Memories" by Oleksii Abramovych
“Retro 80s Pop Rock” by Bobby Cole
...more
11min

FAQs about Writing Break:

How many episodes does Writing Break have?

The podcast currently has 152 episodes available.