The Shit No One Tells You About Writing

In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe are joined by Mire and Katy who have submitted their work for critique. They discuss not losing the plot in a quest for being true to the emotionality of the story; making sure that one character isn’t just a vessel for the other in a dual POV story; toeing the line between making the reader curious and leaving them frustrated; making sure that if you focus on one POV in your query letter, you still include who the other POVs will be; giving context so the reader understands certain details; limiting the number of ppl in your opening pages so as not to confuse the reader; and being present with your protagonist.
After which, Bianca is joined once again by Femi Omotade who interviews Marlon James, award-winning and bestselling author of Moon Witch, Spider King, about why Marlon is attracted to fantasy as a genre; how the best stories are about making new myths; how a novel can be born from research into something you’re interested in without knowing it’s going to be a novel; drawing from your mythological history; being careful what resources you pick for your research; how readers can feel like tourists in a work you’re creating but characters needs to be at home there; believing both your protagonist and your antagonist, and leaving it up to the reader to decide who’s telling the truth; and how where you begin writing isn’t necessarily the beginning of the novel.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Website: www.biancamarais.com
Marlon James can be found at www.marlonjameswriter.com and on Twitter at @MarlonJames5
Femi Omotade can be found on Instagram at @thebookalert

In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe are joined by Kathy and Leila who have submitted their queries for critique. During the segment, they discuss why it’s important to frame a memoir as ‘why does this book have to be out there for others?’; why it’s okay to not have your hook fully fleshed out in a memoir query because agents are there to help you finish the job; how, in non-fiction, the hook is what you’re delivering to the reader and so it’s something you dig to find, unlike in fiction; how your story can start in multiple places, depending on taste; how starting in story is always the best place to start, even in memoir; using first person to help yourself write third person close; watching out for characters that are too generic/cookie-cutter/cliche; and how to make readers connect with characters in dark stories by making them very human.
After which, Bianca chats with Ashley Audrain, author of The Push, and bookstagrammer, Femi Omotade, about inserting non-typical themes into a thriller; writing about things that could be triggering for an author; writing being a cathartic experience—not therapy, but therapeutic; and the process of having a book get optioned for film or TV.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Website: www.biancamarais.com
Ashley Audrain can be found at www.ashelyaudrain.com and on Instagram at @ashleyaudrain and Twitter at @audrain
Femi Omotade can be found on Instagram at @thebookalert

In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe kick it back old-school to review the same three query letters. During the segment, they discuss avoiding flowery language, especially in a query; avoiding "reviewing" your own work and letting the pages show what kind of work it is; pitching your story rather than your writing; making sure you have the right category/genre, so that the right people read it and judge it accordingly; and getting creative with your POV when you need to write a character that isn't a main character.
After which, Bookstagrammer Femi Omotade joins us again to interview #1 NYT Bestselling Brit Bennett, author of The Vanishing Half. They discuss the writer’s responsibility to their reader; not giving yourself the burden of having to educate the reader; writing with an intelligent reader in mind; imagining that the reader is smarter than you; not trying to be universally appealing; writing as specifically as possible; how reviews are for readers, not writers; finding ways to protect your boundaries; how the book (rather than the author) is the product; and aiming for tonal fluctuations in a book.

Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Website: www.biancamarais.com
Brit Bennett can be found at www.britbennett.com and on Instagram and Twitter at @britrbennett
Femi Omotade can be found on Instagram at @thebookalert

In today's BONUS Episode, Carly chats with Andrea Dunlop, author of We Came Here To Forget, about comps and why they’re so important; what it feels like to be out on submission; writers not getting what they need in terms of knowing how to market themselves and their books; a day in the life of; and NaNoWriMo goals.
After which, Bianca chats with Nick Petrie, author of The Peter Ash Series, about backstory; being a pantser; internal and external conflict in the opening chapters; circling the building as you find your way into your opening; and how to structure chapters to keep readers turning pages.
Find us on our socials:
Twitter: @TSNOTYAW @BiancaM_author @carlywatters @ceciliaclyra
Instagram: @biancamarais_author @carlywatters @cece_lyra_agent @ the_shit_about_writing
Facebook: @tsnotyaw
Website: www.biancamarais.com
Andrea Dunlop can be found at www.andreadunlop.net and on Instagram at @andreadunlop
Nick Petrie can be found at www.nickpetrie.com and on Instagram and Twitter at @_nickpetrie_