The Shit No One Tells You About Writing
Episodes
Nuggets of Wisdom from Carley Fortune and Sue Hincenbergs
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In part one of this week's author interviews, Bianca sits down with Canadian superstar writer, Carley Fortune. The authors discuss her latest nove...
The Problem with the Blank Canvas Protagonist
01 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Books with Hooks, hosts Bianca, CeCe, and Carly first review a query letter for literary fiction, providing insights on emotional d...
April Bonus Episode
28 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the first part of this bonus episode, Bianca interviews Lauren Ling Brown, author of 'Society of Lies.' They discuss Lauren’s journey to ...
An Ingenious Query Hack
24 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this informative author interview, Bianca connects with debut novelist Sarah Damoff to discuss her novel, ‘The Bright Years’ which explores the...
Why Plot and Specificity are a Query Letter's Best Friends
17 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Books with Hooks, hosts Bianca Marais, Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra welcome querying author Debbie Whittall to discuss her query let...
Ann Napolitano on Overcoming Rejection and Despair as Part of the Writing Life & Kirthana Ramisetti on The Art of Foreshadowing
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the first part of this episode, Bianca interviews Ann Napolitano, inspiring Oprah Book Club pick author of Hello Beautiful. During the multi-laye...
Stage Directions, Opening and How to Avoid Them
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Books with Hooks, hosts Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss the importance of clarity in storytelling, character development, and the n...
March Bonus Episode
31 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the first part of this month’s bonus episode, Carly Watters interviews Bailey Hannah, a Canadian romance author known for her ‘Wells Ranch’ s...
The Evolution of a Novel: Learning to Let Go
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this inspiring author interview, Bianca interviews Kath Jonathan, whose debut novel, 'The Resistance Painter', intertwines historical and c...
It's a Vibe: Plot Points & Emotional Vibes in Storytelling
20 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Books with Hooks, hosts Bianca, Carly and CeCe welcome special guest, literary agent, Lauren Spieller to discuss query letters in r...
Knowing the Shape of Your Story
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Warning: mature content.In this insightful segment that will make you laugh out loud, Bianca interviews New York Times best-selling writer, Lamda Lite...
Using the 'Micro to Macro' Hack
06 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Books with Hooks, hosts Bianca, Carly, and CeCe dive into the intricacies of middle grade fantasy submissions. They discuss a query...
Those Aha Moments That Arrive at the 80 000-Word Mark
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this engaging conversation, Bianca, interviews New York Times bestselling author Gillian McAllister. The author’s explore Gillian’s writing pro...
February Bonus Episode
24 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the first engaging conversation of this bonus episode, Bianca interviews Booker Prize-nominated Charlotte Wood, the acclaimed author of Stone Yard ...
Delving Deeply Into Your Antagonist's Psyche
20 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this segment of Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly and CeCe discuss a gothic horror novel submission as well as a psychological thriller.They highligh...
The Stories We Tell Ourselves to Make Them More Palatable
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s author interview, Bianca chats with Sarah Chihaya about her memoir, Bibliophobia.During the conversation, they explore the profound impac...
What is Literary Burlesque and Can You Perform It?
06 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this segment of Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly and Cece discuss a memoir submission as well as a speculative thriller submission.They highlight th...
Capturing Your Character’s Voice by Deeply Immersing Yourself in Their Perspective
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this engaging conversation, Bianca interviews Allegra Goodman about her latest novel, Isola, exploring themes of storytelling, character developmen...
January Bonus Episode Comp Titles Segment
27 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In January’s bonus episode, Bianca and Emilie Sommer from East City Book Bookshop tackle a variety of book recommendations based on listener comp re...
CeCe Swipes Carly’s Submission
23 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this Books with Hooks segment, hosts Bianca, Carly and CeCe delve into two query letters from aspiring authors. The hosts discuss how negotiation ...
Exploring How a Single Choice Can Define an Entire Life
16 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this engaging author interview, Bianca chats with Karissa Chen about her debut novel, Homeseeking.During the conversation, they explore the inspira...
A Query That Ticks all of CeCe’s Psychological Acuity Boxes
09 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this Books with Hooks segment, hosts Bianca, Carly and CeCe welcome listeners to a new year of writing while they reflect on their critiquing journ...
Playing to Your Strengths as a Writer
02 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Bianca interviews Emmy award-winning journalist and bestselling author, Kate Fagan, about her debut novel, The Three Lives of Ca...
Can An Agent Picture a Movie Trailer After Reading Your Query Letter?
26 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s Books with Hooks segment, hosts Bianca, Carly, and CeCe provide feedback on two query letters, one for historical fiction and the other f...
Techniques for Fully Dramatizing Scenes or Bringing Memories to Life
19 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s author interview, Bianca interviews Jessica Waite about her memoir, The Widow's Guide to Dead Bastards. Jessica discusses her writing...
The Polarizing “P” Word
12 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s Books with Hooks segment, hosts Bianca, Carly, and CeCe analyze two query letters, one for an upmarket novel and one for women’s fictio...
All Things Fantasy and Romantasy
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this engaging author interview, Bianca chats with Sarah Hawley to discuss her journey as a fantasy and paranormal romance author, focusing on her l...
The Challenges of Writing in the First Person
28 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s Books with Hooks segment, the hosts, Bianca, Carly and CeCe, analyze two query letters submitted by aspiring authors, one of which is a m...
November Bonus Episode: Comps Title Segment
25 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In November’s bonus episode, Bianca and Emilie Sommer from East City Book Bookshop tackle a variety of book recommendations based on listener comp r...
All the Things You Might Not Expect on Your Author Bingo Card
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Bianca interviews KJ Dell’Antonia, author of The Chicken Sisters and Playing the Witch Card. They discuss KJ's journey fro...
The Significance of Pacing in Storytelling
14 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s Books with Hooks segment, hosts Bianca, Carly and CeCe analyze a literary fiction query and a historical fiction query, providing insight...
The Black List: The Future of Storytelling
07 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Carly and CeCe interview Franklin Leonard and Randy Winston, founders of The Blacklist, a platform designed to connect writers w...
Leveraging Your Characters’ Emotional Complexity
31 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a coming-of-age submission set in the 80s, as well as a speculative literary fiction query.They chat about the ...
October Comp Title Bonus Episode
28 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join Bianca in our October bonus episode as your favourite book person, Emilie Sommer from East City Book Shop, answers all your comp requests!If you’...
Dramatizing a Scene so That It Comes to Life on the Page
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today Bianca interviews NYT bestselling nature writer, Leigh Ann Henion. They discuss Leigh Ann's latest work, Night Magic: Adventures Among Gloww...
Ensuring Your Plot and Climax Match Your Genre
17 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a speculative fiction query and a literary fiction one. They discuss avoiding confusion in your query letter; ...
How Character Relationships Can Reveal Vulnerability and Create High Stakes
10 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Bianca interviews the Hugo-Award winning and NYT bestselling sci-fi and fantasy author, Alix E. Harrow. They discuss Alix's ...
Balancing Scene Work and Interiority
03 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a family saga submission and a psychological thriller. They discuss whether there's a need for personali...
September Comp Titles Segment
02 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's second Bonus Episode of the month, Emilie Sommer from East City Bookshop answers all your burning comp title questions!To connect with ...
Bumper September Bonus Episode
30 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca interviews Reese's book pick and best-selling author Marissa Stapley, to discuss her latest, The Lightning...
Insights from NYT bestselling authors, Liane Moriarty and Hannah Nicole Maehrer
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, we have two epic author interviews!The first is with NYT best-selling romance-fantasy author, Hannah Nicole Maehrer, and her age...
Digging Deep to Find Your Characters’ Messy Emotions
19 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss a humorous contemporary fiction query and an upmarket book club query. They discuss clearly defining your genre...
Problem-Solving Your Way Through a Story
12 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s author interview, Bianca interviews Amanda Peters, author of Waiting for the Long Night Moon, which is a collection of short stories. Ama...
Making Something Unexpected Happen in Your Opening Pages
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s Book with Hooks episode, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique an upmarket women's fiction query and a dark romance one (spicy content war...
Coco Mellors' Incredible Insights on Writing
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which Bianca interviews bestselling author, Coco Mellors,...
August Bonus: Insights from Fiona Barton and Jean Meltzer
26 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca interviews writer, journalist, and author Fiona Barton. They discuss the resounding success of Fiona's deb...
Writing the So-Called ‘Unlikable Protagonist’
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, Bianca interviews sisters, Lynne and Valerie Const...
The Idea of Writing the Book That Doesn’t Exist
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, CeCe interviews Claire Jiménez, assistant profess...
Why You Shouldn’t Make Every Change Your Beta Readers Suggest
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, Bianca interviews MK Pagano, author of the YA thri...
Working With an Agent on Edits Ahead of Submission
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, CeCe speaks with her very own client, Anamely Salg...
From Self-Publishing to Traditional Publishing: You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know
29 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca interviews Kern Carter, author of And Then There Was Us. They discuss the different routes to publication an...
Giving Characters Changing Wants and Needs to Fulfill Their Character Arcs
25 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, Bianca interviews creative writing professor, essa...
Giving Yourself Permission to Change and Grow as a Writer
18 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, CeCe interviews Parini Shroff, lawyer and author o...
Writing Issue-Driven YA Fiction & Considering Alternate Routes to Publication
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, Bianca interviews author, editor, head of Writing ...
The Joy of Writing Without Following a Synopsis
04 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, we’re throwing it back to an early backlist segment.After which, Carly interviews her very own client and best-sell...
How to Tackle Writing an Omniscient POV
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, CeCe, and Carly are joined by Jennifer to discuss her thriller submission. They chat about trigger warnings a...
What Message Do You Want to Convey Through Your Writing?
24 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's bonus episode, Bianca interviews author, Kirsten Miller, to chat about her latest novel, Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books. ...
How Interiority Makes a Character Come Alive
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a rom-com and a YA submission. They discuss the importance of clarity in your query ...
An Inspiring Journey to Publication
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, CeCe, and Carly critique two upmarket submissions, one of which is in the gothic genre. They discuss the reas...
Writing That Evokes All the Feels
06 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, CeCe, and Carly are joined by guest literary agent, Mary C. Moore. They critique a resubmission and a sci-fi ...
Choosing How to Frame Certain Aspects of Your Work
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by listener, Kelly Fuller, as they critique her book club fiction submission. They...
May Bonus Episode
27 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca chats with Courtney Preiss to discuss her debut novel, Welcome Home, Caroline Kline. They speak about the insp...
A Debut Experience All Authors Dream Of
23 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a YA submission and a literary coming-of-age horror. They discuss avoiding using rep...
Insights from Publishing Phenomenon, Veronica Roth
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a literary fiction query and a high concept YA fantasy query. They discuss the neces...
Rewriting Instead of Giving Up
09 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by Paige to discuss her query for her action-adventure romance novel. They discuss...
Metaphor and Meaning in Memoir
02 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by two guests, author Rachel Kapelke-Dale and her agent, Sarah Phair. They discuss...
April Bonus Episode: Writing Without a Pricetag
29 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca interviews poet, novelist, and Chair of the Amherst Writers (AWA), Sue Reynolds. They discuss the AWA workshop...
Caroline Leavitt’s Insights and Encouragement
25 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s Book with Hooks, Carly and CeCe critique two listener queries, a resubmission and a YA fantasy. They discuss the issue of starting with a...
Figuring Out What Genre You Should Be Writing In
18 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe critique a children's picture book and a literary fiction query. They discuss avoiding va...
Choosing the Best POVs for a Multi-POV Novel
11 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe are joined by guest agent, Jo Ramsay, to critique two queries. They discuss the issue of withholding t...
Insights from Mary Kubica
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly and CeCe discuss choosing a unique title for your work; having a strong plot connection between your ma...
Defining Book Club Fiction
28 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss keeping your author bio paragraph concise; the need for causality in a plot paragraph...
March Bonus Episode
25 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this month’s bonus episode, Bianca interviews game designer, curator, and writer, Holly Gramazio to discuss her debut novel, The Husbands. The tw...
How Research Should Inform a Novel Without Leaving Too Many Fingerprints
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Carly, CeCe, and Bianca are joined by Ron, to discuss his query submission. They chat about Ron's curiosity-induc...
Balancing Curiosity Seeds and Tension Without Making the Reader Feel Cheated
14 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss the need for external pressure in your major dramatic question; the three sets of q...
Insights from Acquisitions Editors & Working on Author Collaborations
07 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks segment, Carly, CeCe, and Bianca are joined by two acquisitions editors at Atria Books, Elizabeth Hitti and Melanie Ig...
Being Intentional With Your Novel's Timeline
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks segment, Bianca, Carly and CeCe discuss the importance of specifying between awards for published and unpublished manu...
Bumper February Bonus Episode
26 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Bumper February Bonus Episode, Bianca kicks it off by interviewing interviews tech anthropologist and author, Nikki Payne. They discuss...
How Some Stories Need You to Become a Better Writer Before Telling Them
22 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks segment, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by emerging author, Sarah. They discuss ways to make a novel sound less qu...
Torturing Your Characters in the Second Act
15 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, CeCe, and Carly discuss small tweaks for an overall 'fantastic' query; a good example of framing and ...
How Writing Contests Can Help Launch Your Career
08 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, CeCe, and Carly critique an upmarket/southern-gothic query and a book club romance. They discuss a "perfe...
Insights from NYT Bestselling Authors, Ali Hazelwood and Kiley Reid
01 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss the need for specificity with regard to plot details when you have a more psychologic...
January Bonus Episode
29 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's January Bonus Episode, Bianca interviews Jami Attenberg, author of 1000 Words: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and P...
How the Close Third Person POV Can Get You Closer Than First Person
25 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by guest listener, Erica. They discuss the need to illustrate external plot points...
The Dos and Don’ts When Writing For Children
18 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, CeCe and Carly discuss what agents look for with a resubmission; the issue with starting with themes in a query lette...
Creating intimacy With Your Reader
11 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe discuss the importance of eliminating any confusion in your query; the distinction between having a &#...
Working with a Writing Coach
04 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe are joined by guest Alicia Clancy, executive editor at Lake Union Publishing. They discuss the need to...
Finding Your Voice
28 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe discuss an example of an excellent hook and query letter in general; the issues with beginnin...
December Bonus Episode
25 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's December Bonus Episode, Bianca interviews Sarah Lariviere, YA author of The Bad Kid, Time Travel for Love and Profit, and the upcoming,...
What to do When a Scene is Falling Flat
21 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, CeCe, Carly, and Bianca are joined by Harvey to discuss his submission. They chat about illustrating plot escalation ...
Writing with Respect and Authenticity
14 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Carly, CeCe, and Bianca discuss a historical mystery and a women's fiction query. They chat about whether startin...
How Writing Interiority is Like Squeezing an Orange
07 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by guest, Ronnie Alvarado, a senior editor at Simon Element. They discuss two quer...
Writing Retellings and Reimaginings
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly and CeCe critique two listener query letters, one fantasy and one middle-grade fiction. During which, t...
Bumper November Bonus Episode
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Bumper November Bonus Episode, Emilie Sommer of East City Bookshop kicks us off with suggested comp titles. After which, Bianca is joi...
In Praise of the Essay
23 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly, and CeCe are joined by Nicole to discuss her query submission. They discuss the introduction of charac...
Writing Morally Ambiguous Characters
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly and CeCe critique two query letters. They discuss a good example of the concept of 'curiosity seeds...
Encouragement from NYT Bestselling Author, Jean Kwok
09 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Bianca, Carly and CeCe are joined by guest agent, Dana Murphy. The four discuss the need for specificity in a query l...
Adapting a Novel into a Screenplay
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's Books with Hooks, Carly and CeCe critique two query letters. During which, they discuss how specificity can make your novel seem more r...
Bumper October Bonus Episode
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's bumper October Bonus Episode, Emilie Sommer of East City Bookshop kicks us off with suggested comp titles.After which, Jessica Knoll jo...
Bumper October Bonus Episode
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's bumper October Bonus Episode, Emilie Sommer of East City Bookshop kicks us off with suggested comp titles.After which, Jessica Knoll jo...