DIY MFA Radio
Activity Overview
Episode publication activity over the past year
Episodes
091: How to Write Every Day - Interview with Julie Duffy
20 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerd! Today I have the great pleasure of hosting Julie Duffy on the show. Julie is the founder of the StoryADay May creative writing...
090: Music and Storytelling - Interview with Anna Harwell Celenza
13 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with Anna Harwell Celenza, a music professor of Georgetown University where she teaches courses in music his...
089: The Power of Deliberate Practice - Interview with Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool
06 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hello, hello word nerds! I'm so excited to share today's DIY MFA Radio episode with you! I'm speaking with Anders Ericsson and his co-author Robert Po...
088: How to Be a Learning Superhero (and Navigate the Great MFA Debate)
30 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! This is our last solo show before the Storytelling Superpower Summit in June. We just rolled out the Storytelling Superpower ...
087: Multiple Paths of a Writing Career - Interview with Jen Calonita
23 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! I'm so glad you can join me for today's interview with Jen Calonita. Jen is a YA and Middle Grade author, and in this episode, s...
086: How to Achieve Creative Consistency in Your Writing - Interview with Lisa Gardner
16 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome, welcome Word Nerds! Today I'm delighted to host Lisa Gardner on the the show. Lisa is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of seven...
085: Craft Your Body of Work - Interview with Carolyn Mackler
09 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there word nerds! I'm so excited to share today's episode with you. It's not often that I have an author on the show where I've read almost the...
084: The Art of Collaboration - Interview with Steve Berry and Raymond Khoury
02 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there word nerds, I'm so glad you're here! We're doing something different for this episode of DIY MFA Radio. This week I'm speaking with Steve B...
083: Writing Outside Our Experience - Interview with Nicholas Petrie
24 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! Today I'm talking to Nicholas Petrie, author of the stunning debut THE DRIFTER, an explosive thriller written with a strong ...
082: Start Small and Embrace the Power of Zero
17 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! I'm so glad you're here with me today. I am so excited to talk to you about this topic today, about the power of starting sma...
081: Why We Write About Ourselves - Interview with Meredith Maran
10 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hi there Word Nerds! Thanks for joining me for today's episode of DIY MFA Radio. Today I'm talking to Meredith Maran about her latest book: Why We...
080: Writing the First Instagram Novel - Interview with Rachel Hulin
03 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! I'm so happy you're here! Today I'm talking to Rachel Hulin, photographer and writer. Her photographs have been shown at Jen Bek...
079: The Fact of Fiction - Interview with Brad Taylor
27 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, Word Nerds! So excited to have you here for a new episode of DIY MFA Radio. Today I'm interviewing the New York Times bestselling thrill...
078: A Writer's Guide to Building an Email List - Interview with Kirsten Oliphant
20 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! Welcome back to DIY MFA Radio. Today I'm talking to Kirsten Oliphant, a writer with an MFA in fiction from University of North C...
077: Build Your Freelance Writing Career - Interview with Zachary Petit
13 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hello there Word Nerds! Today I'm interviewing the awesome Zachary Petit. Zac is the editor of the National Magazine Award-winning publication PRINT. ...
076: Life, Literature, and Everything Geeky - Interview with Ryan Britt
06 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! So glad you could be here with me for this awesome episode of DIY MFA Radio! Today we're here with pop culture and sci-fi guru, ...
075: Stop Dreaming, Start Doing - Why I Stopped Making New Year's Resolutions, and What To Do Instead
30 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey hey! Thanks for joining me for our very last episode in 2015. Today I'm talking about why I stopped making New Year's resolutions and what I do...
074: Identity, Authenticity, and How to Be True To Your Voice
23 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! It's the week before Christmas, and I wanted to do something a little bit different from the interviews we've had these many ...
073: Finding the Right Medium for Your Story - Interview with Drew Chapman
16 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, Word Nerds. Thanks for joining me for another installment of DIY MFA Radio. Today I'm talking to Drew Chapman. Drew is a thriller author. H...
072: How to Write a Killer Query - Interview with Janet Reid (AKA the Query Shark)
09 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there word nerds! Thanks for joining me today for DIY MFA Radio. I'm so excited to share this episode because I'm interviewing literary agent J...
071: Read Like a Writer - Interview with Lorin Stein (editor of The Paris Review)
02 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello hello Word Nerds and welcome to Episode 71 of DIY MFA radio. Today I'm talking with Lorin Stein, editor of The Paris Review and we'll be talki...
070: How to Persevere as a Writer - Interview with Robert Crais
25 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds. I'm so excited to bring you this interview today with Robert Crais, a #1 New York Times bestselling author of crime fiction. In ...
069: Motivation for Creative People - Interview with Mark McGuinness
18 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there Word Nerds! I'm so excited to share with you today my conversation with Mark McGuinness. Today we're talking about motivation and creativity...
068: Writing Psychological Suspense - Interview with Elizabeth George
11 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello Hello Word Nerds! I'm so excited to share my interview with author Elizabeth George. Today we'll be talking about writing psychological suspense...
067: Teaching and Learning to Write - Interview with Ken Murray
04 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome, welcome Word Nerds! I am so excited to share today's interview with author Ken Murray with you all. Ken Murray is a writer and creative writ...
066: Writing Rules! - Interview with Austin Kleon
28 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there word nerds! Today's episode features one of my most favorite authors EVER: Austin Kleon. If you don't know who he is, Austin is the New Yor...
065: The Art of the Sequel - Interview with Jojo Moyes
21 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hi there Word nerds! I'm so excited for today's interview with bestselling author JoJo Moyes on the art of the sequel. Jojo Moyes is the New York Tim...
064: Why Writers ROCK at Marketing (and How to Do It Right)
14 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode is all about the m-words of writing: marketing and money. These topics are often hard for writers to discuss, but I wanted to address...
063: Writing Poetic Prose - Interview with Ken Zak
07 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello word nerds! Today I'm interviewing Ken Zak about writing poetic prose and the process behind his book, The Poet's Secret. Kenneth Zak is an aqu...
062: From Concept to Bookshelf - Interview with Kim Liggett
30 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey Word Nerds! Today's episode is going to be so awesome because I'm talking to debut author Kim Liggett, a fabulous YA author and good friend. Her b...
061: How to Write Spellbinding Sentences - Interview with Barbara Baig
23 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, Word Nerds! Thanks for joining me for today's episode. Today I'll be interviewing Barbara Baig about how to write spellbinding sentences, b...
060: Bring Your Setting to Life - Interview with Linda Fairstein
16 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, Word Nerds! I'm so excited to share this interview with you today. I'll be talking to Linda Fairstein about the world she built in her fame...
059: Finding Your Om Factor - Interview with Alka Dhillon
09 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there word nerds! Gabriela here with another exciting interview episode on DIY MFA Radio. Today I'm thrilled to share my recent conversation wit...
058: A Mindfulness Manifesto for Writers
02 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello Word Nerds! Thanks for joining me today. Man, it's been a while since I've done a solo show. It feels like it's been forever since I've had a ...
057: How to Rock Your Social Media - Interview with Jandra Sutton
26 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, word nerds! Thanks for joining me for another episode of DIY MFA Radio. I'm so glad you're here! Today I'm interviewing Jandra Sutton, the ...
056: Writing Literary Mysteries - Interview with Tana French
19 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hi there Word nerds! I'm so excited to share today's interview with bestselling author Tana French and her process in crafting series and writing lite...
055: DIY MFA Radio One-Year Anniversary
12 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This is our one-year anniversary of DIY MFA Radio and for this episode, Elisabeth and I decided to change things up. Since I'm usually the one doing ...
054: Taking the Crime Novel World by Storm - Interview with Sara Paretsky
05 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
I'm so excited to interview Sara Paretsky, author of 20 books, including the renowned V.I. Warshawski novels. In 1982 she introduced the world to p...
053: Bringing French Thrillers to America - Interview with Le French Book
29 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello and welcome to another episode of DIY MFA Radio! I'm so excited to be sharing this interview with you from Thrillerfest! I met with Le French B...
052: The Debut Author's Life - Interview with Susannah Marren
22 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hi Word Nerds! Thanks so much for joining me. In this episode, I'm thrilled to interview debut author Susannah Marren. She and I talk about her proce...
051: An Alternate Path to Publishing Books for Kids - Interview with Calee Lee of Xist Publishing
15 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello and welcome to another exciting episode of DIY MFA Radio! Today I'm interviewing Calee Lee, the founder and CEO of Xist Publishing, the largest...
050: How to Create Your Own Mini Writing Retreat
08 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey Word Nerds! Welcoem to another episode of DIY MFA Radio. Back in June, I went on my first mini writing retreat right here in my howntown of NYC. I...
049: Mastering Voice and Point of View - Interview with Beatriz Williams
01 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello and welcome to another exciting episode of DIY MFA Radio! Today I'm so excited to interview Beatriz Williams. She is the author of international...
048: The Brain Book - A Safe Space for Your Creative Process
24 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today I want to talk to you about a crucial part of my own creative life: The Brain Book. It's my portable office. When I have the Brain Book with me,...
047: Honor Your Reality
17 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey Word Nerds! Thanks so much for being here with me today. We're going to talk about a bit of DIY MFA's core philosophy and I'll teach you a game-ch...
046: Looking Ahead at the Publishing Industry
10 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to our official Book Expo America (BEA) 2015 recap. In this episode, I pull together insights I gained from attending various sessions at BEA ...
045: Crafting Nonfiction - Interview with Joe Wenke
03 Jun 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to another interview episode of DIY MFA Radio! Today I'm so excited to introduce you to author Joe Wenke, and share this interview with hi...
044: Take Your Writing to the Next Level
27 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey word nerd! Thanks for joining me. Today's episode is all about how to take your writing from a hobby to something more. This episode was inspired ...
043: Book Expo America Survival Guide 2015
20 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, word nerds! Thanks for joining me for this episode of DIY MFA Radio. Today I want to share with you some survival tips for Book Expo Ameri...
042: Plot, Character, History, Oh My! - Interview with Thriller Author Steve Berry
13 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello and welcome to another episode of DIY MFA Radio! Today I'm so excited to interview bestselling author Steve Berry. Steve Berry is a New York T...
041: Behind DIY MFA - Interview with Sara Letourneau
06 May 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to another episode of DIY MFA Radio! Today I'm doing things a little bit differently. Instead of an interview, I'm bringing one of my team me...
040: A DIY MFA Social Media Extravaganza!
29 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hey there, word nerds! Thanks for joining me for today's episode of DIY MFA Radio. Today we're going to talk about a super important topic for any aut...
039: Seven Essentials of a Writer's Education
22 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Hello and thank you for joining me today! Today's episode is all about the seven essentials for a writer's education. I've been thinking about this to...
038: Plot Without a Formula - Interview with Stuart Horwitz
15 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to another episode of DIY MFA Radio. So glad you're here! Today I'm so excited to interview Stuart Horowitz from Book Architecture. Stuart is...
037: Query Critiques with Agent Jeff Kleinman, Part 2
08 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today is part two of the query critique series with my awesome agent, Jeff Kleinman. In this episode, Jeff and I look at a few more query letters, gi...
036: Writer Igniter Anthology
01 Apr 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today I have an exciting announcement at DIY MFA: we are launching an Anthology! Our goal with this anthology is to address both the Read with Purpos...
035: Query Critiques with Agent Jeff Kleinman, Part 1
25 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
I'm especially excited to share today's episode with you because it features my awesome agent, Jeff Kleinman. In this episode, Jeff and I talk about q...
034: Archetypes for Supporting Characters
18 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Supporting characters are an essential ingredient for crafting your story. Not only do these characters add depth and further the plot, they also hel...
033: Find Your Voice
11 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Voice is one of those topics in writing that is so hard to pin down and define. The one thing that we can be certain of with voice, though, is that we...
032: Conference Survival Guide
04 Mar 2015
Contributed by Lukas
One of the biggest game-changers for my writing career has been attending writers' conferences. In this episode, I share some insider conference tips ...
031: Finding Focus in Your Writing
25 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Do you ever feel pulled in a million different directions, chasing one sparkly writing project after nother. This episode is all about figuring out wh...
030: Make Your Setting Come to Life - with Kathryn Holmes
18 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today is an extra special episode because I'll be interviewing a fabulous author and my good friend: Kathryn Holmes. We're going to be talking abo...
029: Find Your Purpose, Build Your Tribe - Interview with Jeff Goins
11 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
I have been a long-time follower of author Jeff Goins and his work, so it was an absolute thrill to host him on the show for this episode. In it we di...
028: Picture eBook Secrets - Interview with Laura Backes
04 Feb 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode is especially for the children's writers out there. Have you wanted to create a picture book, but weren't sure how to translate it fro...
027: The Art of Social Media - Interview with Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick
28 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
I am absolutely thrilled for this episode today. Not only is the topic timely and something that's on a lot of writers' minds, but I get to interview ...
026: Write Your Book in 2015
21 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Many people say they want to write a book, but very few actually do it. Stop dream, start doing. I'll show you how. Today's episode is all about gett...
025: Get Motivated and Get Writing
14 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode was inspired by a question I got from a listener. Got a questions about writing or publishing that you want to hear answered on the sh...
024: My Go-To Productivity Tool
07 Jan 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Do you set goals only to lose momentum after a few days or weeks? Don't worry, I've been there and I know how you feel. In this episode I share my go-...
023: Writing Resolutions that Stick
31 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Crazy fact: Did you know that while 45% of Americans make New Year's resolutions, only 8% actually achieve what they set out to do? Here at DIY MFA w...
022: Five Lessons About Writing and Life (From the One and Only Santa Claus)
24 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Happy Holidays! In today's episode, I explore the Santa Claus story, and the five lessons that writers can take from it. Like Santa, writers are creat...
021: Outlining Demystified
17 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
I used to hate outlines, but now I love them. In this episode I share my five go-to outline techniques: mind maps, scene cards, story mapping, story s...
020: Beyond the Book - Interview with Daniel Milnor of Blurb, Inc.
10 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Today we have Daniel Milnor, photographer at large for Blurb, Inc., joining us. Dan and I talked about how the book has evolved, what it means for som...
019: How to Rock Your Post-NaNoWriMo Revisions
03 Dec 2014
Contributed by Lukas
It's December and if you did NaNoWriMo, you've probably got a big pile of pages that need shaping and editing. But where do you start? This episode wi...
018: Deconstructing Shakespeare's Sonnet #90
26 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Happy Wednesday-before-Thanksgiving, everyone! I'm so thankful that you are all here and going on this podcast journey with me! This week, I wanted to...
017: The Essentials - Books Every Writer Should Have in Their Library
19 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
If you're like me (and most writers) you probably love acquiring new books. But how do you know if a writing book will teach you what you need to know...
016: Insider's Guide to Writing Groups - Part 2: Giving Critique
12 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
As a follow-up to our previous episode on Writing Groups, this time we discuss how to give useful critiques. The key to giving critique is to be speci...
015: Master Class with Jane Yolen
05 Nov 2014
Contributed by Lukas
This is a very special episode for DIY MFA Radio because it features a wonderful writer--and one of my writing heroes--Jane Yolen. Known as the "Hans ...
014: Creative Monsters
30 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
In our Halloween episode, we talk about creative monsters and how to evade them. I'll share was to trick (or treat) your way around these monsters so ...
013: Five Stages of Writer's Block
22 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Inspired by the Kubler-Ross five stages of grief, this episode walks you through the five stages of how writers process and get through writer's block...
012: Insider's Guide to Writing Groups - Part 1: Receiving Critique
15 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
When new writers join DIY MFA, one of the biggest challenges they face is finding a writing group, and what to do when they finally join one. I've bee...
011: Life is Short, Read with Purpose
08 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Do you love to read? If you're at all like me, chances are your list of books TBR (to be read) is much bigger than the number of books you could ever ...
010: The Art of the Ask - How to Get What You Want
01 Oct 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Sooner or later you're going to have to ask for something. Whether it's asking readers to buy your book, or asking someone to help you promote it, at...
009: The Magic of Poetry - Interview with Marilyn Singer
24 Sep 2014
Contributed by Lukas
I came to poetry fairly late as a writer, and now I'm on a mission to bring other writers to poetry as well. In this episode, I interview poet and chi...
008: The Last POV Cheat Sheet You'll Ever Need
17 Sep 2014
Contributed by Lukas
We often think of writing purely as an art but when it comes to POV, there's definitely a science to it. When I first started writing I had no idea wh...
007: Build Your Writing Community - Interview with Karen Dionne
10 Sep 2014
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to building a writing community, Karen Dionne knows where it's at. Co-founder of Backspace--an online community for writers of all genr...
006: Five Promises in Your First Five Pages
03 Sep 2014
Contributed by Lukas
The first five pages are super-important for setting the tone of your novel. In those pages, you make five key promises and delaying or breaking those...
005: The Opposite IS Possible--Writing Characters with Depth
27 Aug 2014
Contributed by Lukas
As writers, we must look at who the character could be, not necessarily who the character already is. That's the key to writing characters with depth....
004: The Sky's the Limit... But Not Really - Why Setting Limits Is a Good Thing
20 Aug 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Some people think unlimited possibilities leads to unlimited creativity. Not so. In this episode, you'll find out why it's important to limit your opt...
003: Pump Up Your Writing with Prompts
12 Aug 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Learn seven good reasons why you should include prompts in your writing practice. You'll also discover a simple three-step process to help you pump ...
002: Build Your Writing Practice
12 Aug 2014
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I'll tell you why you want to build a writing practice, what this writing practice can look like and how to do it. For show notes and...
001: Write More, Write Better, Write Smarter
10 Aug 2014
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the first episode of DIY MFA Radio! I am so happy to share this creative adventure with you. This weekly podcast will offer tips and techni...