Get The Honeys, by Ryan La Sala!  Come chat with us on the BABC discord: https://discord.gg/Mhw92TUdMG Buy our books: Witchlings (and join the Witchlings discord!) Ghost Squad  Reverie  Be Dazzled  The Honeys Find us online!   Follow Us on Social Media: Ryan: Twitter | Instagram | TikTok Claribel: Twitter | Instagram | TikTok --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/writeordiepodcast/support

THANK YOU to all of our WorDies! We love you! Kat & Claribel say goodbye to Write or Die by listening to snippets from past episodes and discussing the advice they’ve received along the way from amazing past guests including S.Jae Jones, Alex Aster, Victoria Aveyard, Tiffany Jackson, Phil Stamper and More! Then they read listener comments and answer some last “Ask Us Anything” questions! Thank you to all the WorDies who’ve joined us on this journey! Our hope is that you keep this...

Kat & Claribel say goodbye to Write or Die by listening to snippets from past episodes and discussing the advice they’ve received along the way from amazing past guests including Daniel Jose Older, Leigh Bardugo, Holly Black, Ayana Gray, Mark Oshiro, and More! Topics discussed include: Messy first draft. How to get into drafting mode. Being wary of generalized advice. Finding community. Being a BIPOC author. Parasocial relationships in publishing. • FOLLOW CLARIBEL: Twitter...

Claribel & Kat discuss what "success" means in publishing (and what it definitely does not mean). Then they interview Vita Ayala about their journey into writing comics, how the Metropolitan Museum of Art is super haunted, being inspired by Octavia Butler as a kid, and the difference between comics and prose writing.  ABOUT VITA: Vita Ayala (they/them) is a trans non-binary Afro-Puerto Rican writer born and bred in New York City, where they grew up dreaming dreams of dancing on far away...

Claribel interviews Kat about her young adult k-pop romcom, Once Upon a K-Prom. They chat all things k-pop (including Kat’s first k-pop loves), what inspired the book, whether Kat included BTS in K-Prom, and more! ABOUT KAT: Kat Cho used to hide books under the bathroom sink and then sneak in there to read after bedtime. Her parents pretended not to know. This helped when she decided to write a dinosaur time-travel novel at the tender age of nine. Sadly, that book was not published. Kat and...

Claribel & Kat talk about pressures on authors every time a new book comes out & how publishing relationships naturally change over time. Then they interview Traci Chee about her path to publication, behind-the-scenes of finding out her book was a Printz Award Honor, and her newest Fantasy, A Thousand Steps into Night! BIO: Traci Chee is a best-selling and award-winning author of books for young people, including the instant New York Times best seller and Kirkus Prize Finalist The...

Claribel & Kat discuss a conversation the saw online about being “satisfied” with your author career vs being “happy” as an author. Then they interview Laekan Zea Kemp about her publishing journey. How she started off self-publishing and transitioned into traditional publishing. And what it’s been like writing across multiple genres and age categories! Content Warning: Discussions of grief/parental death/cancer ABOUT LAEKAN: Laekan Zea Kemp is a writer living in Austin, Texas. She’s...

Kat interviews Claribel about the process of writing and publishing their second middle grade (and first series!). How publishing a second book feels different. How expectations change as your career progresses. And working on not “giving weight to the negative” ABOUT CLARIBEL: New York Times Bestselling and award-winning author, Claribel A. Ortega is a former reporter who writes middle-grade and young adult fantasy inspired by her Dominican heritage. When she's not busy turning her...

Claribel & Kat talk about book promo they’ve done that they think was worth it, and what they don’t think they’ll do again. Then they talk to debut author, Judy I. Lin about her debut fantasy, trying out IP, and eventually choosing to go the traditional route instead. ABOUT JUDY: Judy I. Lin was born in Taiwan and immigrated to Canada with her family at a young age. She grew up with her nose in a book and loved to escape to imaginary worlds. She now works as an occupational therapist,...

Claribel & Kat talk about Author-Reviewer “relationships” and what’s okay to do and what to stay away from. Then they interview debut graphic novelist, Alexis Castellanos about how she used family stories to flesh out and inspire her debut graphic novel. ABOUT ALEX: Alexis Castellanos was born and raised in Florida where she enjoyed sunny days, dramatic thunderstorms, and delicious Cuban food. After graduating from college, she moved to New York City and worked as a scenic artist,...

Claribel & Kat discuss their thoughts on jumping back into promoting their new books! Then they interview their PitchWars mentee about her upcoming seering fantasy debut, BLOOD SCION! ABOUT DEBORAH: Deborah Falaye is a Nigerian Canadian young adult author. She grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, where she spent her time devouring African Literature, pestering her grandma for folktales, and tricking her grandfather into watching Passions every night. When she’s not writing about fierce Black girls...

Claribel & Kat discuss how they decide on what project to work on next. And then they interview Award Winning and NYT Bestselling author, Malinda Lo, about her experience in the industry, her advocacy for diversity in kidlit, and what it was like going back to a shelved project and revising it years later for publication. ABOUT MALINDA: Malinda Lo is the National Book Award-winning, bestselling author of Last Night at the Telegraph Club, which which was named a Best Book of 2021 by NPR,...

This is a bonus episode of Write or Die! Originally recorded live as part of DVCon (a free virtual writing conference for diverse creators), Claribel & Kat read your anonymously submitted publishing stories and questions! MENTIONS: • DVCon • Watch DVCon panels • FOLLOW CLARIBEL: Twitter | Instagram | Youtube | TikTok • www.claribelortega.com • Check out all of Claribel’s books • PRE-ORDER Witchlings (April 5, 2022, Scholastic) • FOLLOW KAT: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube |...

Claribel & Kat interview illustrator Wendy Xu about how she first got into illustrating comics, how her work in publishing prepared her for her publication journey, and advice on properly crediting artists for their work! ABOUT WENDY: Wendy Xu is an award-nominated Brooklyn-based illustrator and comics artist with three upcoming graphic novels from Harper Collins. She is the co-creator of "Mooncakes", a young adult fantasy graphic novel published in 2019 from Lion Forge Comics/Oni Press....

Claribel & Kat catch up with each other and talk about the emotional ups and downs of building an author career. (CW: brief discussion of trauma) Then they interview Sarah Raughley about what it was like to get published in the before-times, differences she’s felt releasing her newest series during the pandemic, and how she researched the lives of Black people in 19th century Britain for her book, THE BONES OF RUIN. ABOUT SARAH: Sarah Raughley grew up in Southern Ontario writing stories...

Happy New Year! Claribel & Kat discuss some fun news in their author careers and chat about new year and resolutions. Then they interview debut author, Akshaya Raman about her highly anticipated Fantasy, The Ivory Key. How she dealt with doubt during her query journey  and how she made writing friends. ABOUT AKSHAYA: Akshaya Raman fell in love with writing when she wrote her first story at the age of ten. Though she graduated from UC Davis with a degree in biology, she gave up pursuing a...

This week, Claribel & Kat discuss what they learned about their writing and author journeys in 2021. Then they answer listener questions about how to survive querying, Self-publishing, how they first got into writing, when to change agents, and more. Plus bonus chat about K-Dramas and K-pop! MENTIONS: WRITING PODCASTS • The Writing Show with Paula B. • 88 Cups of Tea • First Draft with Sarah Enni • Minorities in Publishing • Pub(lishing) Crawl Podcast (Archive) MOVIE • Authors...

Claribel & Kat discuss mentorship programs, both formal and informal! Then they chat with Maisie Chan about her experience publishing her debut Middle Grade and the differences between the UK and US publishing market. ABOUT MAISIE: Maisie Chan is a British Chinese children's author from Birmingham. She loves dim sum, yoga and travelling. She has written early readers for Hachette and Big Cat Collins, and has a collection of myths and legends out with Scholastic. She is the author of...

Claribel & Kat talk about how to prepare for panels & some quick tips on how to answer interview questions. Then they interview NYT Bestselling author Emiko Jean about her publishing journey, how publishing has changed since she first queried in 2011, and what it’s been like building an author career. Emiko’s BIO: When Emiko is not writing, she is reading. Most of her friends are imaginary. Before she became a writer she was an entomologist (fancy name for bug catcher), a candle...

Claribel and Kat answer a listener's question about publishing events, what it’s like to organize events like DVPit/DVCon, and some tips about attending events. Then they chat with Alex Aster about her author journey, discuss going viral on TikTok and whether it’s worthwhile for authors to join. Plus Alex gives us some Authortok tips! ALEX’S BIO: Alex Aster is an author and graduate of The University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in English with a Concentration in Creative Writing. The...

Claribel & Kat discuss author responsibility as public figures with platforms, brought to you by Kat’s k-pop obsession with Stray Kids. Then they interview Shanna Miles about her hybrid journey, starting out with self-publishing, and then getting an agent and being traditionally published. Shanna gives some practical advice for anyone considering self-publishing, discusses diversity in publishing, and how YA “trends” are cyclical! BIO: Shanna Miles is an author, reviewer and librarian...

Clarible & Kat discuss burnout and some of the coping mechanisms they’ve found helpful to get them through. Then they interview debut author, Ayana Gray about the path it took to find the courage to write, how her path “crossed” Claribel & Kat’s along the way, and her highly anticipated debut novel, BEASTS OF PREY. CW: Discussions of death of a loved one and grief at 21:45 time point. Fast forward past that to 25:03 if this is triggering. Ayana BIO: Ayana Gray is an author of...

Claribel and Kat give updates on their upcoming books (Witchlings and Once Upon a K-Prom) and discuss comparison in publishing and how it disproportionately affects BIPOC. Then they interview bestselling author Graci Kim about her journey into publication and how she learned to embrace her Korean name and identity! CONTENT WARNING: Discussions of death of a child at 27:12 point. Skip to 28:54 to avoid that discussion. GRACI BIO: Graci Kim is a bestselling author of magic-infused middle...

Claribel & Kat answer a listener question about writing character voice and perspective. Then they interview Jason June about getting kicked in the face by Kylie Minogue and the journey from writing Picture Books to writing Young Adult! BIO: Jason June is a gay, genderqueer, list-making, Virgo Sun, Taurus Moon, Pokémon-playing writer living in Austin, TX. If he had a Gay Agenda, "marry the love of your life", "be mom to two extremely pampered Pomeranians," and "get accidentally kicked in...