Lit Service

4.10 Keeping it Grounded with Lauren Spieller

Lauren Spieller joins the Lit Service Crew to chat about the differences in tension in stakes between grounded, realistic, contemporary novels vs genre fiction. 

Lauren is an agent at TriadaUSA, and the author of She's the Worst and Your Destination is on the Left.

If you'd like a first chapter critique from the podcast, be sure to check out our guest schedule and submission guidelines on our website, https://litservicepodcast.wixsite.com/litnation

4.9 Juggling Multiple POVs with Marissa Meyer

Marissa Meyer joins the Lit Service crew to chat about how to make different points of view in a story sound distinct, how to best utilize your different points of view, and how to avoid common pitfalls that go with having more than one point of view character.

 

Marissa Meyer is the NYT bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles, Heartless, and the Renegades series. 

 

If you would like to see the text of the chapter we critiqued along with all our notes, you can find it on our website, https://litservicepodcast.wixsite.com/litnation. If you'd like a first chapter critique from us, you'll find upcoming guests and submission guidelines at that same site. Be sure to visit us on social media and to leave us ratings and reviews in whichever app you listen to us! 

 

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4.8 Unlikable Characters with Kiersten White

Kiersten White joins the Lit Service crew to chat about how to help readers identify with and root for characters who aren't exactly shiny white souls.

Kiersten is the New York Times bestselling author of the And I Darken trilogy, the Paranormalcy trilogy, Beanstalker and Other Hilarious Scarytales, The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein, Slayer, and many other novels.

4.7 Dispatches from the Closet with Ben Grange

Join Lit Service for their first socially distanced--wait no, we're almost always socially distanced--episode about how to write good dialogue.

Ben Grange is an agent at the L. Perkins literary agency.

4.6 It's Complicated with Misa Sugiura

The Lit Service crew chats with Misa Sugiura about creating flawed characters, why we like flawed characters, and how flaws can drive a story.

Misa Sugiura is the author of the award-winning It's Not Like It's A Secret (2017) and This Time Will Be Different (2019)

Our next two guests will be Kiersten White and Marie Rutkoski. If you'd like a first chapter critique from the either of these NYT bestelling authors, check out our submission guidelines here. 

4.5 Layers of Tension with Katherine Arden

The Lit Service crew chats with Katherine Arden (NYT Bestselling author of The Winternight Trilogy: The Bear and the Nightingale, The Girl in the Tower, and The Winter of the Witch as well as the two middle grade horror books Small Spaces and Dead Voices) about how to create layers of tension in your story in order to keep it from feeling flat.

Sorry about the beeps. We were recording in a new space and . . . well, that's what happens sometimes.

If you'd like a first chapter critique (and to see who we have coming up on our guest list!) go to our website www.litservicepodcast.wixsite.com/litnation for mor information.

4.4 Authentic Kid Voice with Tae Keller

The Lit Service Crew chats with middle grade author Tae Keller about how to approach writing from a child's perspective and what we owe to the audience for whom we're writing.

Tae Keller is the author of The Science of Breakable Things and When You Trap a Tiger. She grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii, where she danced hula and subsisted on kimchi and spam musubis. Now, she writes about biracial girls trying to find their voices, and lives in New York City with a multitude of books.

 

4.3 Characters Are Like Onions with Rebecca Ross

Rebecca Ross joins the Lit Service crew to chat about layering characters (like onions! Imagine the Scottish accent) and how that relates to plot.

Rebecca is the author of The Queen's Rising, The Queen's Resistance, and the forthcoming Sisters of Sword and Song.

4.2 Pitch Wars 101 with Sarah Nicolas

Online pitching and mentorship contests can be kind of confusing. Sarah Nicolas breaks down Pitch Wars for us.

Sarah Nicolas is a recovering mechanical engineer, library event planner, and author who lives in Orlando with a 60-lb mutt who thinks he’s a chihuahua. Sarah writes YA novels as Sarah Nicolas and romance under the name Aria Kane. Sarah has published both traditionally and independently, and has also worked in the publishing industry as an editorial intern, editorial assistant, publicist, publicity director, cover artist, and art director. Sarah is the current Managing Director for Pitch Wars.

Bonus Episode: Reactions to The Rise of Skywalker with Emily Duncan

The Lit Service Crew chats with Emily Duncan about Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and the Mandalorian. Spoilers abound (though not so much on the Mandalorian front!) so be forewarned.