Authors & Audiences

Norah Woodsey, is an indie author, with three novels, THE CONTROL PROBLEM and LIFELESS, and the novella WHEN THE WAVE COLLAPSES. Her next book, THE STATES, will be out in April 2024. After short careers in finance and tech, Norah began writing novels featuring subjects of which she says she has “intense interest but not quite expertise”, such as history, physics, genetics, sociology and gender studies. She’s a fourth generation Brooklynite, though she’s now living over on the west coast.You can pre-order THE STATES or buy any of her other books via the links on Norah's website, or from Norah's favorite indie bookstore, Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn, and you can find Norah at www.norahwoodsey.com and follow her on  Instagram.Kealani Netane is a Native Hawaiian and Samoan author who was raised on the leeward side of Oʻahu in Hawaiʻi where she currently lives. She writes children's books and her debut picture book will be TALA LEARNS TO SIVA, illustrated by Dung Ho (Scholastic, Summer 2024) and is available for pre-order now.Kealani is passionate about championing Pacific Islander voices in all sectors of the art world, and she was part of the organizing team which put together the Books for Maui online auction to help support the island recover and rebuild after the devastating wildfires of August 2023. The other auction organizers are:Malia Maunakea- LEI AND THE FIRE GODDESSKeala Kendall- unannounced book newsErika Cravahlo Meyers- not an author, contributor to Scholastic’s Rising Voices initiativeShar Tuiasoa- Punky AlohaTerisa Siagatonu- award-winning poet Joanna Ho (Chinese/Taiwanese)- NYT Bestselling author. The four organizations which the Auction supported are:Kamehameha Schools and the Pauahi FoundationHawai’i Community FoundationCouncil for Native Hawaiian AdvancementMaui Food BankPlease Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Emily Bain Murphy is the author of two gorgeous magical fantasy books for young adults - THE DISAPPEARANCES and SPLINTERS OF SCARLET - and has this month published her first novel for adults, ENCHANTED HILL, with Union Square & Company, Emily has not only transitioned to writing for an adult audience, she's also turned to the world of a detective and a murder mystery.  Having lived in the Far East as a youngster, and all over the US as an adult, Emily has finally settled in the St Louis area.You can buy ENCHANTED HILL from Emily's favorite indie bookstores in Missouri, Main Street Books in St. Charles, or The Novel Neighbor in Webster Groves.You can find Emily at www.emilybainmurphy.com, and follow her on Facebook and Instagram.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Today is November 1st, the opening day of National Novel Writing Month – or NaNoWriMo which takes place every November, as writers from all over the world come together, in person and online, to write 50,000 words in just 30 days. I'm a big fan of NaNoWriMo, because the book I drafted during NaNoWriMo 2010 ended up being published as WAIT FOR ME, my debut YA novel for Harper Collins in 2017. And I’m not the only NaNoWriMo participant who then got a Big Five publishing deal with that same project. So on my blog yesterday, at carolineleechwrites.com , I posted my five best writing tips to help you win NaNoWrimo, and today, on this episode, I share with you my best social media tips to help you engage with your readers and with the other NaNoWriMo participants all through November, without using up all your precious writing time, and without derailing your wordcount goals. So whether you are already signed up , are still thinking about it, or are happy to stay on as cheerleaders,  hope you'll find this episode interesting and useful.For more details, and to sign up to take part, visit the National Novel Writing Month website.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

I’m so delighted to be back here with you on your favorite podcast app, and I'm absolutely thrilled to kick off my second season, which I hope you will listen to, love and learn from along with me.This season, I’ll still be bringing you fantastic authors, ready to share with you their stories, their experiences and their advice to help you build your confidence in front of all your audiences – in person and virtually, and also help you develop your career as a professional author even further – whether you’re a pro author already, or working towards becoming one. Last season, I hosted writers of novels and short stories, books for kids of all ages and books for adults, as well as teachers, booksellers, librarians and even a ghostwriter. And towards the end of each episode, I asked my guests one or two questions about the best advice they were given, and the best advice they would share. As you’ll hear, the question varied depending on the guest, but the value of the advice never wavered from pure gold.Please listen to hear amazing advice from:Tiffany D Jackson - award-winning YA authorChris Cander - bestselling literary authorTae Keller - Newbery Award winnerLaurel Goodluck - picture book debut authorLizzy Dent - women's fiction author and screenwriterLouise Marburg - short story writerL.A. Mitchell - ghostwriterLisa Stringfellow - MG authorDeborah DEEP Mouton - former Houston Poet LaureateScott Reintgen - YA/MG fantasy and scifi authorCathy Berner - Blue Willow Bookshop Joy Preble - Brazos BookstoreMelissa Buron - Houston ISD Library ServicesI'd love to hear from you about what advice really resonated with you, if you have any topics you'd like me to cover on the podcast, or if you'd just like to say hi! So please message me via my website by clicking here.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

 PART THREE – THE SCHOOL VISITS SERIES – EXTENDED EPISODEJoy Preble is both a successful YA author, and the Children’s Programming Director at Brazos Bookstore in Houston. Her first picture book, Lost and Found Hanukkah, will be published in 2025 by Chronicle Books.Melissa Buron is one of Houston Independent School District’s Library Media Specialists. She is also an author and illustrator, and in 2016, created her own publishing company, Mab Media, a boutique publishing company specializing in fantasy, fairy tales, and folktales. This is the third episode of my mini-series on School Visits, and you can listen to the other episodes here:Episode 22 - MG debut author and teacher, Lisa StringfellowEpisode 24 - YA & MG author, Scott ReintgenIf you are planning your own school visits, don’t forget to request the SCHOOL VISITS 101, the guide to school visits which Scott Reintgen have put together just for you.You can find out more about Joy and all her books at www.joypreble.com, and find her book recommendations on the Brazos Bookstore website. You can also follow her on Instagram and Twitter.You can find Melissa at her publishing company, Mab Media, and she is on Instagram and Twitter. Melissa and her colleagues in the Library Services team at Houston ISD can also be found on Facebook. We also talked about:Tae Keller's interview on Authors & AudiencesKeir Graff's Phantom Tower and his school visits Alana  Arnold's Harriet Series and her school visitsAnd two Paris bookstores:Shakespeare and CompanyThe Red Wheelbarrow/The Red BalloonPlease Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

PART TWO – THE SCHOOL VISITS SERIES – EXTENDED EPISODEScott Reintgen is a young adult and middle grade author, who specializes in writing fantasy and science fiction. His tenth novel, A Door in the Dark, which came out this week from Simon & Schuster, is the first installment of his Waxwings series. His other series are the Nyxia Triad and Ashlords series, as well as the Talespinners series and the Celia Cleary series for middle graders.      A former English and creative writing teacher in North Carolina, Scott has done over 500 school visits since he debuted in 2017. With so much experience, he has developed the process of doing author visits to schools – virtually and in-person – into not so much an art, but more a science. So in this extended Part Two episode of the Authors & Audiences School Visit series, Scott shares his incredible knowledge and strategies, including pitching visits, collaboration with bookstores, pricing and librarians.     You can follow Scott on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter     Order your copy of Scott’s new book A Door in the Dark – out this week from Simon and Schuster – by using this link to Scott’s favorite indie bookstore, Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh NC.    Get our free downloadable tip sheet, SCHOOL VISITS 101, by clicking here.     Scott’s book recommendation were:Gallant by V.E. SchwabThe House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune     You can listen to Part One of this School Visits series in episode #22, an interview with middle grade author, Lisa Stringfellow  Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton is an internationally-known writer, librettist, educator, activist and performer. She began as a slam poet, competing regularly in national poetry slams, and was even voted one of the top performance poets in the world. In 2017, she was the first African American to be appointed as Poet Laureate of Houston, In 2019 her poetry collection, Newsworthy, won huge acclaim, and her memoir, Black Chameleon, is out this week from Harold Holt. Deborah has also taken her poetry and artistry into other artforms – opera, ballet and most recently visual arts - using those new opportunities to lift up women and to celebrate their stories, whether those stories were well known or not. International Women's Day  is celebrated today, March 8th, 2023, and is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. The first National Women's Day was celebrated in the US in 1909,  and it became International Women's Day in 1911. To mark the centenary in 2011, March was declared as Women's History Month by US President Barack Obama.Buy Deborah's new memoir, Black Chameleon: Memory, Womanhood, and Myth, from Kindred Stories, Brazos Bookstore, or the  Bookshop.org.Watch Deborah's Poet Laureate response to Hurricane Harvey on BBC World News in 2017.Deborah's book recommendations were:Chrome Valley, a poetry collection by Mahogany BrownInterior Chinatown, a novel by Charles YuA little devil in America, by Hanif AbdurraqibYou can find Deborah at:Website - www.livelifedeep.com@livelifedeep on  Twitter, Instagram and Tiktok@LivingLifeDEEP on Facebook Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Bestselling author L.A. Mitchell published her first story—a time travel short called THE LOST HIGHWAY—in 2008. Since then, she has published over 33 works of fiction and non-fiction as a ghostwriter. Her works include memoir, business non-fiction, self-help, young adult, women’s fiction, and—most prevalently—romance. Spotlights have been turned recently on the craft of a ghostwriter following the publication of Prince Harry's autobiography, SPARE, by Penguin Random House. The prince readily acknowledges the involvement of "superstar ghostwriter", J.R. Moehringer, and yet many people have accused him of cheating because he didn't write the book himself. In this episode, experienced ghostwriter, L.A. Mitchell, pulls back the curtain on publishing's best kept secret, and shares her own processes for bringing someone else's voice to life.  To find out more about Laura, visit her website, where you can sign up to both of her regular newsletters, or follow her on Instagram.Published in her own name, Laura's new novel, FARTHERMOST - as she mentioned in the interview - is available on Kindle Vella, the new serialized story platform from Amazon, and you can read the first three episodes of FARTHERMOST for FREE here. FARTHERMOST: Five years past the End Times War, inside the bombed-out shell of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, seventeen-year-old Ronin Black discovers a portal to a secret realm where all of art’s masterpieces, from doodles to Degas, blend into a vast canvas of shared emotion. Together with a motley band of art misfits, this thief-turned-guardian discovers that the key to restoring humanity is closer than he imagined. New episodes on Thursdays and Sundays.While me may never learn which books she has ghosted, she did mention how much she had enjoyed PACHINKO by Min Jin Lee, a National Book Award finalist. If you haven't yet read this amazing book, please consider buying it from from Bookshop.org - Laura's favorite bookstore in Denver, The Tattered Cover, will receive a small fee from any purchase using this link, which will go towards the costs of keeping the store running. Many thanks.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Louise Marburg is the author of three short story collections – The Truth About Me, No Diving Allowed and her latest one, You have reached your Destination, which  came out in November. Her stories have also been published in any number of highly respected literary journals and she’s won awards for them too. Louise’s new collection captures turning points in the lives of twelve women, and Louise invites us to face ourselves and our own life journeys with sympathy, humor, and courage. Louise originally trained as a designer at the Kansas City Art Institute, but then discovered that she wanted to write instead, and went on to get an MFA in Fiction from Columbia University.During our discussion, Louise mentioned her recent article for The Daily Beast, entitled Are They Really Your Friends if They Don't Read Your Work?  She also praised Eleanor Lipman's novel Ms. Demeanor, and she recommended following Amy Sedaris on Instagram. She will be presenting her new collection in Houston, TX, on Saturday, January 14th at an event at Brazos Bookstore where she will be in discussion with author, Chris Cander.To find out more about Louise, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.To buy her latest book, You have reached your destination, or any of her other books, please consider buying it from from Bookshop.org - as an affiliate, Authors & Audiences will receive a small fee from any purchase using this link, which will go towards the costs of keeping the podcast running. Many thanks.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Caroline shares her Holiday Survival Guide for authors and illustrators. Her five tips will help you as a writer or author so you can not just survive the holidays, but usefully make the most of them. That way you'll be ready to go into 2023 with a whole load of tools in your author tool box.Before that, however, Caroline shares her plans for Authors & Audiences in 2023.If you'd like to hear more of Caroline's news please sign up for her newsletter at www.carolineleechwrites.com. Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Lizzy Dent is a bestselling women's fiction author.  Her first novel for women – The Summer Job -  came out in 2021 and her second , The Set Up, came out this year, in 2022. Before her move into adult fiction , Lizzy wrote a three Young Adult novels, under her real name, Rebecca Denton, all set in and around the music scene, called This Beats Perfect, A Secret Beat and The Punk Factor.  Lizzy is a New Zealander, but she spent many years working in London, and these days lives in Austria with her family. Before she was an author, she worked in television, creating content for various companies like MTV, the BBC, Cartoon Network and Channel 4.To find out more about Lizzy Dent, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.To buy Lizzy's books and support this podcast, please consider buying The Summer Job and The Set Up from Bookshop.org or from any independent bookstore near you.Lizzy also mentioned:Hating Alison Ashley by Robin Klein Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie GarmusPlease Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Lizzy Dent is a bestselling women's fiction author.  Her first novel for women – The Summer Job -  came out in 2021 and her second , The Set Up, came out this year, in 2022. Before her move into adult fiction , Lizzy wrote a three Young Adult novels, under her real name, Rebecca Denton, all set in and around the music scene, called This Beats Perfect, A Secret Beat and The Punk Factor.  Lizzy is a New Zealander, but she spent many years working in London, and these days lives in Austria with her family. Before she was an author, she worked in television, creating content for various companies like MTV, the BBC, Cartoon Network and Channel 4.In this episode Lizzy talks to host, Caroline Leech, about the highs and lows of her publication journey and about how she sets goals to help her achieve what she wants to achieve.To find out more about Lizzy, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.To buy her latest book, The Set Up, or any of her other books, please consider buying it from from Bookshop.org - as an affiliate, Authors & Audiences will receive a small fee from any purchase using this link, which will go towards the costs of keeping the podcast running. Many thanks.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Last weekend, I invited eight amazing authors who had all debuted in 2022 to join me in presenting a free webinar to a gathering of 2023 Debuts. As you may have heard in Part 1 of the webinar, I had helped the 22s with a webinar this time last year, and so we reconvened to share what had gone well in their debut year, and which of the strategies and tips they’d learned from me a year before were still things they’d recommend.Part 1 was posted as episode #14 , and now here is Part 2. In this episode the following authors shared their debut year experiences and their top tips for a great book launch:04.40  Sarena Straus14.00  Laurel Goodluck 22.22  Brynn Barineau In this half, we'll hear from Serena Straus, Laurel Goodluck and Brynn Barineau, and I explain my plans for Authors & Audiences over the next few months, and announce registration  for my Book Launch Briefing course. We finish off with a Q&A session  in response to questions from the 2023s.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

This weekend, I invited eight amazing authors who had all debuted in 2022 to join me in presenting a free webinar to a gathering of 2023 Debuts. As you’ll hear, I had helped the 22s with a webinar this time last year, and so we reconvened to share what had gone well in their debut year, and which of the strategies and tips they’d learned from me a year before were still things they’d recommend.This is Part 1 - and Part 2 will be posted on Friday. In this episode the following authors shared their debut year experiences and their top tips for a great book launch:11:45 - Becky Dean - Love & Other Great Expectations20:30 - Betty Yee - Gold Mountain29:40 - Sathya Achia - In My Hands38:53 - Lisa Stringfellow - A Comb of Wishes52:40 - Anita Jari Kharbanda - Lioness of PunjabIn part 2, we'll hear from Serena Straus, Laurel Goodluck and Brynn Barineau, and I will explain my plans for Authors & Audiences over the next few months, and announce registration  for my Book Launch Briefing course, as well as a Q&A session  the response to questions from the 2023s.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Cathy Berner qualified as a school librarian up in the frozen north, but very quickly found her way to Texas, where she's been a bookseller at Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston for the last 18 years. She's Children/Teen Coordinator and the Event Coordinator, and is the curator of three book festivals in Texas: the Bookworm Festival for picture book readers, TweensRead for middle grade readers, and Teen Book Con for YA readers. In this episode, Cathy talks with Caroline about book launches from a bookseller's perspective, about what to do to help a bookseller (and as importantly, what NOT to do!) and she also shares the science behind her highly efficient signing lines.You can follow Cathy on Instagram and on Twitter, and to check out Blue Willow, you can visit and buy lots of books on the website at Blue WillowBookshop.com, and you can follow the store on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and of course, if you want some really good fun, follow the store on Tiktok. Even better, if you're ever in Houston, why not drop by to see this beautiful little store for yourself?Cathy recommended two great books:Dirtbag, Massachusetts by Isaac FitzgeraldOdder by Katherine ApplegateShe also suggested we follow two of her favorites booksellers on social media:The Raven Book Store in Lawrence, KansasNicole Brinkley, bookseller at  Oblong Books, and podcaster at the Misshelved Podcast Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Laurel Goodluck is a debut author who writes picture books with modern Native American themes that reflect Native children’s cultural experiences and everyday life, showing Native children that they have a perspective that is unique and powerful. To find out more about Laurel, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.To buy Laurel's debut picture book, FOREVER COUSINS, please consider buying it from her favorite indie bookstore, Red Planet Books & Comics in Albuquerque. Or, please buy it from any independent bookstore near you.Laurel also mentioned:Esther Averill's early reader, The Fire Cat  Darcy Littlebadger's A SNAKE FELL TO EARTHHer son Forrest's movie, HOW TO BLOW UP A PIPELINEOctavia Butler's book PARABLE OF THE SOWERPlease Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Laurel Goodluck writes picture books with modern Native American themes that reflect Native children’s cultural experiences and everyday life, showing Native children that they have a perspective that is unique and powerful. Laurel comes from an intertribal background of Mandan and Hidatsa from the prairies of North Dakota, and Tsimshian from a rainforest in Alaska and now lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In October, Laurel’s first picture book, Forever Cousins, which was illustrated by Jonathan Nelson, was published by Charlesbridge. Her second picture book, Rock Your Mocs, which is illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight, will be published by the Heartdrum imprint of HarperCollins  in Fall 2023, and her third, Too Much, which will be illustrated by Bridget George, is slated for Spring 2024 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, as well as her contribution to Chelsea Clinton's She Persisted series.To find out more about Laurel, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.To buy Laurel's debut picture book, FOREVER COUSINS, please consider buying it from her favorite indie bookstore, Red Planet Books & Comics in Albuquerque. Or, please buy it from any independent bookstore near you.Laurel also mentioned her mentor, Traci Sorell and her illustrator, Jonathan Nelson.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

In this episode, Tae Keller faces the A&A Q&A, with host, Caroline Leech.Tae Keller's first book – THE SCIENCE OF BREAKABLE THINGS - was published in 2018, and she then won the 100th Newbery Medal in 2021 for her second book, WHEN YOU TRAP A TIGER. This year, Tae has had three books out - JENNIFER CHAN IS NOT ALONE came out in April, and in May came Tae’s contribution to Chelsea Clinton’s chapter book series, SHE PERSISTED. Tae wrote the true story of Patsy Mink who in 1964 became the first woman of color and the first Asian American woman elected to Congress. And this week - on November 8th, 2022, her latest book, MIHI EVER AFTER, is out from Macmillan.To find out more about Tae, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.To buy Tae's latest book, MIHI EVER AFTER, or any of her other books, please consider buying it from Tae's favorite indie bookstore, Third Place Books in Seattle, or from Brazos Bookstore which partners with Inprint Houston for the Cool Brains! reading series which brought Tae to Houston.  Or, please buy it from any independent bookstore near you.Tae's recommendations:A Rover's Story by Jasmine WargaGod's Country, directed by Julian HigginsMisshelved - a books newsletter from Nicole BrinkleyThe Loneliest Time - the new album from Carly Rae JepsenPlease Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

Tae Keller's first book – THE SCIENCE OF BREAKABLE THINGS - was published in 2018, and she then won the 100th Newbery Medal in 2021 for her second book, WHEN YOU TRAP A TIGER. This year, Tae has had three books out - JENNIFER CHAN IS NOT ALONE came out in April, and in May came Tae’s contribution to Chelsea Clinton’s chapter book series, SHE PERSISTED. Tae wrote the true story of Patsy Mink who in 1964 became the first woman of color and the first Asian American woman elected to Congress. And this week - on November 8th, 2022, her latest book, MIHI EVER AFTER, is out from Macmillan.To find out more about Tae, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.In this episode Tae talks to host, Caroline Leech, about MIHI EVER AFTER, about what winning the Newbery has meant to her life and career, about creating the stories behind her stories for presentation in schools, and about setting boundaries to protect herself on social media.To buy her latest book, MIHI EVER AFTER, or any of her other books, please consider buying it from Tae's favorite indie bookstore, Third Place Books in Seattle, or from Brazos Bookstore which partners with Inprint Houston for the Cool Brains! reading series which brought Tae to Houston.  Or, please buy it from any independent bookstore near you.Thank you to Tae, and to Samantha at Macmillan Children's Group, and to all at Inprint Houston for all your help and hospitality.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine

In today's episode, Caroline digs deeper into what we might do to answer the question, "What could I do if I weren't afraid?" following the three basic questions she asked in episode 1, and her conversation last week with author, Chris Cander.Please Rate, Review, & Subscribe to Authors & Audiences! Sign up for my newsletter Music by Oleg Kirilkov - #We StandWithUkraine