https://www.patreon.com/88cupsoftea
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Rebecca Green is an incredibly talented illustrator and painter, and is the picture book author of "How to Make Friends with a Ghost". In this episode, Rebecca walks us through what a dummy book is and how it fits into the picture book creation process, how an agent can help manage and protect your creative time, and why it’s crucial to surround yourself with a strong and creative publishing team.
Rebecca also shares the different mediums she uses to create her illustrations, why it’s so important to be realistic about your workload and learning how to say no, and we discuss ways to stay inspired as an artist, writer, and a creative.
Say 'Hi' to Rebecca on Instagram! Check out the books and resources mentioned in her episode by clicking here!
Happy listening!
Xo,
Yin
PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!
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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. These 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!
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For EXCLUSIVE EARLY ACCESS to our shop, meet fellow members in our community and check in about your work-in-progress, and join in on other bookish talks and 88 Cups of Tea related things, join our private Facebook group! You can really feel the love and support in our community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to have a clear profile picture of yourself. If not, send over links to either your Twitter or Instagram. Fill out the 3 questions that pop up as soon as you join. To protect our group's safe space, these steps help us weed out any spam/fake profiles/creepers. Can't wait to meet you!
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Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!
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“I definitely try to make things a little funnier and play with your expectations a little bit.”
-Rebecca Green
“You’re just sort of filling a pantry with skills and with these skills you’ll be able to pull them out at certain times throughout your life and make use of them.”
-Rebecca Green
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WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN TODAY'S EPISODE:
Greg Pizzoli is an author, illustrator and screenprinter.He is the author of "Good Night Owl", a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor book, "Templeton Gets His Wish", "Number One Sam", and "The Watermelon Seed", which received the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award.
In this episode, Greg walks us through his writing process, how his method can help you develop your story ideas, and shares advice on creating brevity in your picture books. We discuss the importance of standing out in the publishing market by highlighting your personality and getting your artwork noticed in the industry by sending out postcards of your illustrations to editors and art directors.
We also get into the nitty gritty about preparing your portfolio to be successful at writing conferences, what a picture book dummy is and how it can help you showcase your work to editors and publishers, and how to approach query letters in the picture book world.
Further into the episode, we discuss why diversification is the key to earning money while supporting your storytelling dreams and how Greg creates silkscreen style illustrations.
Say 'Hi' to Greg on Twitter! Check out the books and resources mentioned in her episode by clicking here!
Happy listening!
Xo,
Yin
PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!
---
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. These 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!
---
Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, and join in on other bookish talks and 88 Cups of Tea related things! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to have a clear profile picture of yourself. If not, send over links to either your Twitter or Instagram. Fill out the 3 questions that pop up as soon as you join. To protect our group's safe space, these steps help us weed out any spam/fake profiles/creepers. Can't wait to meet you!
---
Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!
---
“I definitely try to make things a little funnier and play with your expectations a little bit.”
-Greg Pizzoli (Click to tweet)
“You’re just sort of filling a pantry with skills and with these skills you’ll be able to pull them out at certain times throughout your life and make use of them.”
-Greg Pizzoli (Click to tweet)
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WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN TODAY'S EPISODE:
https://www.patreon.com/88cupsoftea
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Susan Dennard is the author of the Something Strange and Deadly series as well as the New York Times bestselling books Truthwitch and Windwitch. Susan is one our community’s most requested authors for the show and is known for her really helpful and eye-opening resources for writers. And not to mention, she also has a solid reputation of being known as an author who really cares about the writing community.
This episode is a must for listeners who love conversations about the craft of writing. We cover how to create a successful “plan of attack” for your novel’s revision process, how to develop a strong magic system, advice on crafting a believable male point of view who isn’t a stereotype or a personification of female idealism, and Susan shares the three phases of writing that helps her turn ideas into concrete stories.
We discuss ways for writers to overcome perfectionist tendencies and use it to your advantage, how to discover and fine-tune your writing process to help you reach your writing goals, how a beta-reader or a critique partner can help you avoid info-dumping in your world building, and why it’s crucial to distance yourself from your story idea in order to help it grow.
We also talk about how Susan learned to be self-motivated, how to cope with the loneliness that usually comes along with a writing career, and the importance of sharing your experiences with a writing community who truly understands what you are going through.
Say 'Hi' to Susan on Twitter! Check out the books and resources mentioned in her episode by clicking here!
For NaNoWriMo participants, join Susan's 'The Mighty Pens" fundraiser by clicking here!
Happy listening!
Xo,
Yin
PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!
---
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. These 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!
---
Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, and join in on other bookish talks and 88 Cups of Tea related things! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to have a clear profile picture of yourself. If not, send over links to either your Twitter or Instagram. Fill out the 3 questions that pop up as soon as you join. To protect our group's safe space, these steps help us weed out any spam/fake profiles/creepers. Can't wait to meet you!
---
Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!
---
“What one person likes, is not what someone else is going to like.”
-Susan Dennard (Click to tweet)
“If it doesn’t feel right, if the cookie is not there, I can’t write it.”
-Susan Dennard (Click to tweet)
“Be kind to yourself. It’s okay if you don’t write everyday.”
-Susan Dennard (Click to tweet)
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WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN TODAY'S EPISODE:
Sara Shepard is the author of the popular NYT bestselling series "Pretty Little Liars" and "The Lying Game". She takes us behind the scenes of her newest book, "Follow Me", the second book in "The Amateurs" series.
We unpack how ghostwriting can help hone your craft and develop your own novel, and how ghostwriting created opportunities for Sara to develop the “Pretty Little Liars” book series with Alloy Entertainment. For “Pretty Little Liars” fans, we dive into detail about the book series and Sara’s thoughts on the TV series adaptation.
Further into our conversation, we talk about coping with imposter syndrome as a writer, ways to overcome writer’s block and unlock new plot lines, how outlining can help you keep track of complicated plot lines during your writing process, and how to manage the pressure of strict deadlines.
We also talk about how to protect your emotions when writing about dark and intense scenes or characters, how to create a villain readers won’t forget, and how to write action scenes that will captivate your readers.
We discuss the importance of community and support when you are going through a hardship and the importance of giving back and showing gratitude to your fans and support.
Say 'Hi' to Sara on Twitter! Check out the books and resources mentioned in her episode by clicking here!
Happy listening!
Xo,
Yin
PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!
---
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. These 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!
---
Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, and join in on other bookish talks and 88 Cups of Tea related things! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to have a clear profile picture of yourself. If not, send over links to either your Twitter or Instagram. Fill out the 3 questions that pop up as soon as you join. To protect our group's safe space, these steps help us weed out any spam/fake profiles/creepers. Can't wait to meet you!
---
Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!
---
“Don’t worry about getting it perfect.”
-Sara Shepard (Click to tweet)
“As a writer, you have to put yourself in your character’s shoes and understand what they are feeling and the temptations that go with that.”
-Sara Shepard (Click to tweet)
“There are ups and downs and sometimes what you are doing is really popular and sometimes it’s not. It’s ok when it’s not. You still write what you love and still do what you love to do.”
-Sara Shepard (Click to tweet)
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WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN TODAY'S EPISODE:
In today’s new episode, we have Maggie Shen King, author of "An Excess Male". In her novel,she explores the marriage plot in a dystopian future and follows in the footsteps of Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale”. It’s the story of one excess male, the less-than-perfect family he seeks to join, and the fight for their version of home, for the freedom to be their true selves, and for the country they have lost to a totalitarian regime that aims to control sex and define the boundaries of marriage in the name of the public good.
I’ve been really looking forward to this conversation with Maggie as her story is inspired by actual statistics. China’s One Child Policy was originally implemented to control overpopulation and according to stats, by the year 2030, China will have unintentionally created a society which more than 25% of men in their late thirties will never have married.
In our discussion, Maggie shares more insight into China’s One Child Policy, one of the most radical social experiments in history. She walks us through the research process for writing “An Excess Male” and the importance of targeted research to prevent the loss of writing time.
Maggie belongs to two different writing groups and we dive into the benefits of joining one, and how they’ve helped her tremendously in her writing career. We also discuss the importance of having an editor to help move your story forward. For craft-focused writers, we cover how to improve your world building as a linear writer, and what a style sheet is, and how it can help you create dynamic characters.
Say 'Hi' to Maggie on Twitter! Check out the books and resources mentioned in her episode by clicking here!
Happy listening!
Xo,
Yin
PS. Do you know anyone who would love our conversation? Please share this episode to help spread the word!
---
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. These 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!
---
Would you love to support our show with some 88 Cups of Tea swag? Grab our limited edition mug (signed by yours truly) here!
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Meet fellow members in our community and check in about your WIP, and join in on other bookish talks and 88 Cups of Tea related things! You can really feel the love and support in our Facebook community. You also get the opportunity to submit your questions for upcoming guests on the show. Click here to join our private Facebook group!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to have a clear profile picture of yourself. If not, send over links to either your Twitter or Instagram. Fill out the 3 questions that pop up as soon as you join. To protect our group's safe space, these steps help us weed out any spam/fake profiles/creepers. Can't wait to meet you!
---
Warm welcome to our new listeners, be sure to check out our archive of episodes by clicking here!
---
“It’s adding a piece of the puzzle at a time and once you create it, then there’s a place to add more.”
-Maggie Shen King
“Learning to listen to the criticism and encouragement and suggestions is a really good thing to develop.”
-Maggie Shen King
“Once you have something on the page, you can work on it.”
-Maggie Shen King
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WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN TODAY'S EPISODE: