How to Make Friends & Publish Things

The embarrassing thing I did while creating my new podcast plus TONS of writing links and resources

(For writing news and resources, scroll down.)

The Long Road to Publishing has arrived!

Today is my birthday, and the present I’m giving myself is the launch of my new podcast!

But it’s also a gift to all writers because these episodes are filled with fascinating stories about writing and publishing, as well as lots of great advice, no matter where you are on your own writing/publishing journey.

You can find The Long Road to Publishing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. The following episodes are available now, and there will be another episode dropping next week!

Episode 0 with Bethany Alcott: Publishing Terms & Explanations

This episode is a little different from the others. Bethany asks me questions like “what’s the difference between traditional and indie publishing?” and I offer explanations. This is a great episode if you’re newer to the publishing world. It defines a lot of the terms you’ll hear in later episodes.

Episode 0 with Bethany Alcott

Episode 1 with Courtney Maum: 10 Years Before the Book Deal, or, How to Make Friends and Publish Things

A lot of us know

Courtney Maum

from her nonfiction guidebook for writers, Before And After the Book Deal, but she debuted with a novel in 2014 that was ten years in the making. She’s also written in various genres and published with both Big 5 and indie publishers. This episode is fascinating and funny and full of great advice.

Episode 1 with Courtney Maum

Whoopsies, I made a mistake (but it’s okay)

My kids used to watch a lot of Gabby’s Dollhouse (which is the reason my five year old literally thinks the word is “paw-some” instead of awesome), and there’s this one song that still runs around in my head. It goes “whoopsies, I made a mistake, but it’s okay!”

As you all know, back in January I announced I was going to start my own podcast, The Long Road to Publishing, and then I set about figuring out how to do that. I tend to dive into things with very little research ahead of time.

Which means some mistakes were made along the way…

Lessons I’ve learned while creating my new podcast:

1. How to use my fancy microphone.

I decided to record an “Episode Zero” with a friend as practice, and I’m SO glad I did. We recorded the episode, and I sounded terrible! My voice was too loud and fuzzy, and my p’s were popping all over town. I was using my fancy new Blue Yeti microphone (well, technically I bought it used), so what was the deal?

Apparently I’d had the Gain turned up too high, for one thing. I still don’t know what the Gain does or what “gain” means. Wait, let me look it up right now. (See? I avoid research until absolutely necessary.) Okay, I’m back. Gain is apparently the amount of audio signal increased by an amplifier, so… still not totally sure what that means. But the point is, I’ve learned it needs to be turned down low on my microphone, like this:

Gain turned low is key.

Also, after doing some research about the Blue Yeti microphone, it turned out I was using it wrong. I should keep it mostly upright, or slightly tilted towards my face, and I don’t need to get too close to it. Getting too close to the mic was making my voice too loud and fuzzy. Probably should have researched this before recording, but, again, glad I figured this out during the practice episode instead of during the first real interview.

And, because I did Episode Zero with a friend (

Bethany Alcott

), I didn’t feel that bad asking her to record it with me again, which we did, and this time I sound great (if I do say so myself).

2. It’s much easier to fix sound quality during recording than in the editing process.

Here’s the most embarrassing thing to happen to me so far in this podcasting journey: I recorded a FABULOUS interview, and about halfway through I started to notice that my guest’s sound quality wasn’t great. Their voice was going in and out and it was sometimes hard to understand.

But instead of stopping the interview and troubleshooting in the moment, I figured I would fix in in the editing process. Never mind that my editing skills are rudimentary at best.

I did a lot of research about how to improve sound quality, even resorting to using the Adobe AI Sound Enhancer which claimed to “instantly clean up speech and boost clarity.” Well, it worked okay in some places, but in other places it totally distorted my guest’s voice.

I debated what to do and eventually reached out, explaining what had happened and asking if we could re-record. Super embarrassing for me, but they were really nice about it, and we will be re-recording soon.

3. Everyone has a fascinating story to publication and beyond.

This isn’t a mistake I made but an observation: every single author I’ve talked to has had such an interesting writing and publishing journey. I am SO EXCITED to launch this podcast and share with the world these interviews filled with wild stories and tons of great advice.

Also, almost every author has expressed gratitude for the mission of the podcast, which is to dive into the hardships of publishing that aren’t always discussed candidly. To show all the hard work and rejection and time that goes into a single book. To show that sometimes we write books that doesn’t get published, and that’s okay. To normalize that this is a marathon not a sprint. A marathon with hurdles and detours and the occasional pit of despair you have to find a way to crawl back out of.

All I Want for My Birthday

Today is my birthday, and all I want is for people to listen to my new podcast and subscribe! Even better, give The Long Road to Publishing a five-star rating or review, because that helps other people find the podcast. What a great gift that would be. Thank you in advance! And please, let me know what you think of the show!

Writing News and Resources:

For All Writers:

• 13 top-tier literary magazines that publish new writers, from

  Sub Club
  .

• July open submission calls from

  Angelique Fawns
  .

• The CRAFT First Chapters Contest is now open. Submission deadline: August 10.

• Check out the upcoming workshops and Publishing Lunch Q&A events from

  Mary Kole & Good Story Company
  .

• The NYC Midnight 500-word fiction challenge kicks off August 15.

• Agent Carly Waters of The Shit About Writing Team explains upmarket fiction on Instagram. So helpful.

• 25+ Open Calls for Writers (and Artists) from Write, Period.

• Every week the London Writers' Salon publishes a fresh creative writing prompt.

  Everyone is free to submit up to 500 words, in any genre, on the prompt.

  They award the winner a cash prize (£50 / $65) and publish our top 3 favorite entries.

• Grants for authors: application tips from Mallary Tenore Tarpley

• Creative Parenting Club is actively looking for guest posts from parents juggling creative ambitions with family life and other responsibilities.

• Check out these FREE event replays from The Manuscript Academy!

• The Writers Center website is a GREAT resource for finding grants, fellowships, residencies & retreats, publishers (who publish non-agented authors), and literary journal opportunities.

• Writing Workshops offers lots of online classes in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, picture books, and the business of writing.

• Check out the meet-up group called Shut Up & Write. There are in-person chapters all over the country, as well online events.

• Looking for places to submit your writing? Check out NewPages.

For KidLit Writers:

• The Highlights Foundation offers tons of programs, workshops, and events for children’s writers and illustrators.

• Literary Rambles has information on kidlit agents and agent interviews. Plus contests and giveaways.

• Here’s an incredible list of upcoming events for KidLit writers!

• Check out SCBWI (The Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) for events, conferences, critique partners and more. (Picture book through YA.)

For Querying Writers:

• Wow, there are a TON of pitch contests happening on BlueSky:

  • #MiseryPit July 5

  • #SmallPitch July 7-8

  • #PlaylistPitch July 11th

  • #BluePit July 13th

  • #WickedPit July 31st

• Here’s a list of small publishers that do not require agents.

• Andrea Bartz has a list of successful query letters (including mine!).

• I occasionally choose a subscriber for a FREE submission package critique. Send me your query and first two pages, and, if I chose your submission, I will send you feedback. Fill out the form here.

Writing Conferences & Events:

• Live in the mid-Atlantic region and looking for an affordable writing retreat? The Writer’s Retreat at Good Contrivance Farm north of Baltimore is open year-round. The only requirement for this peaceful retreat is that you use the time to work on your writing. Spaces normally book about two months in advance.

• Thinking about going to a conference or applying for a residency? Check out the free searchable database on Poets & Writers.

• The James River Writers Conference in Richmond, VA will be held Oct. 4 - 6.

• The Writing Day Workshop “How to Get Published” Conferences are affordable and helpful. Plus, sign up for pitch sessions with agents for $29 a piece. For online conferences, attend from anywhere in the world! Check out the upcoming conferences:

  • The New England Writing Workshop: July 25-26 (online)

  • The Chesapeake Writing Workshop: August 15-16 (online)

• I’m going to Bouchercon, the World Mystery Convention in New Orleans September 3-7! See you there?

• Writers Digest offers loads of virtual conferences on a variety of publishing and writing craft topics.

• For more writing conferences, check out this list or the free searchable database on Poets & Writers.