Lilliam Rivera is the debut author of "The Education of Margot Sanchez" and she was recently named a 2017 Face to Watch by the LA Times. Click here to go directly to Lilliam's shownotes page!
In today’s episode proudly brought to you by VCFA's MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults, we dive right into the heartwarming inspiration that influenced Lilliam’s book and her experiences growing up in NY. For my craft-driven writers, you’re going to LOVE Lilliam’s advice and craft tips on building complex characters and how writing a character study will help you make decisions in your novel that are true to your character.
Lilliam walks us through writing emotionally heavy scenes, and how to capture universal ideas in your story while representing underappreciated voices.
We unpack Lilliam’s experience with the PEN Center Emerging Voices Fellowship and the kinds of resources it provides writers, and we go even further to discuss how writers can financially support their writing with grants and fellowships.
We also discuss how to write query letters and where to find writing mentors. Listeners, if you’re working on your own manuscripts or are approaching literary agents for representation, you especially do not want to miss Lilliam’s episode!
Xo,
Yin
-----
“I don’t believe in writer’s block. I believe that there’s always something you write.” -Lilliam Rivera (click to tweet)
-----
https://www.patreon.com/88cupsoftea
---
I’m thrilled to have Justina Ireland on the show today! Justina is the author of Vengeance Bound and Promise of Shadows. You can find her on Twitter here and you can access her shownotes page with all of her recommended books and resources linked up here!
In today’s episode proudly brought to you by VCFA's MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults, we discuss why it’s crucial for us to grow and change as people, and why it’s worthwhile to say the things that are most important to us and to share it with others so they know they’re not alone.
I’m really looking forward for you to hear our conversation about handling the overwhelm of the political climate and Justina’s advice on powerful and productive ways of decompressing.
Now, more than ever, we need more diversity in books and the media; Justina walks us through the important steps writers need to take to create diverse characters that break away from institutional stereotypes.
We dive into how to approach difficult scenes that are closest to our own feelings or experiences, and we unpack why it’s difficult to get through them in the first place, and how to conquer those specific scenes. Justina also walks us through manageable steps you can take to accomplish your writing goals, and the important criteria for your literary agent submission.
You don’t want to miss out on Justina’s valuable advice!
Xo,
Yin
PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!
PPS. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d really love your support in growing our community by subscribing to us on iTunes, and leaving a rating and review. Those specific steps help to increase our visibility on iTunes which really helps new listeners discover us. A huge heartfelt thank you for your time and support! You can click here to go directly to our iTunes page!