Tackling Big Issues with Humor: Lessons from Kid-Lit Author Ali Terese
This week on the Write It Scared podcast, I had the joy of talking with middle-grade and YA author Ali Terese, whose books prove that stories can be both laugh-out-loud funny and deeply empowering.
Her novels tackle big issues like period equity, bodily autonomy, and health equity for kids. And they do it through comedy, friendship, and activism.
Ali calls them stories about “messy girls changing the world,” and I—as a mom to a nine-year old who insists she’s already a tween—couldn’t love that description more.
From False Starts to Finished Novel: How Bruce Buchanan Wrote His Debut Fantasy
What does it take to finally finish a novel after years of false starts? For fantasy author Bruce Buchanan, the answer was persistence, community, and the decision to stop giving up.
Like many of us, Bruce spent years starting and stopping projects, second-guessing himself, and walking away when the doubts got loud.
In our recent conversation, Bruce shared how he broke through that cycle, what kept him moving forward, and the lessons he learned along the way.
Mining Real Life for Story Gold With Debut Author Christine Ma-Kellams
This week on The Write It Scared Podcast, I had the pleasure of talking with debut author Christine Ma-Kellams—a Harvard-trained cultural psychologist, Pushcart-nominated writer, and now, published novelist with her book The Band.
We dug into a lot of juicy topics: perfectionism, social media, mental health, a fresh spin on what it means to “write what you know,” as well as how to keep going when the voice of doubt gets loud.
Christine's journey is an inspiration to all of us as she’s someone who has figured out how to trust herself in this chaotic writing journey.
Tips on Writing Dual Points of View from Author Alexandria Faulkenbury
Writing and publishing a novel isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s exhilarating, terrifying, exhausting, and rewarding—all wrapped up into one wild journey. I recently sat down with Alexandria Faulkenbury, whose debut novel, Somewhere Past the End, hits shelves in May 2025, and let me tell you—her story is as inspiring as it is relatable.
Why Authors Need to Fight Censorship and Tell the Truth with Courage
I know with every fiber in my being that stories have the power to change and shape lives. In fact, they saved mine.
Why Every Word Matters: Even the Crappy Ones
Encouragement for the frustrated writer.
Writing can be maddening when the words won’t come, or we don’t like what we write. Sometimes, it can feel like a waste of time to plot story events that we can’t see clearly because they’ll probably all change anyway.
And what about when we write a handful of chapters and realize the story started in the wrong place, or we didn’t quite have our main character’s trajectory as mapped out as we thought, and we need to start over?
Turning Writing Rejection into Triumph: Talking Middle-Grade Horror Novels with Wendy Parris
Imagine…you’re heartbeat away from getting a phone call from your dream agent only you don’t know it and right before that can happen you decide to hang it up, put your story ideas and writing dreams away.
It’s Never Too Late to Start Writing Your Novel: Tips on Mindset and Story Development From Two Certified Book Coaches
Do you ever feel like it’s too late?
Think that maybe you missed the boat heading toward your writing dreams?
Maybe you should have started in your teens, twenties, thirties, fifties, or some other decade before where you are now.
If you said yes to any of that, then episode twelve of the Write It Scared Podcast is where I will prove you wrong. Well, me and my guest, award-winning YA Fantasy Author and Certified Book Coach, Cassie Newell.