Episodes

  • Writing the Perfect Ending (w/ Literary Agent Allegra Martschenko)

    Writing the Perfect Ending (w/ Literary Agent Allegra Martschenko)
    Jan 20 2026
    We spend so much of our writing time perfecting the beginnings of our stories that we might be neglecting the endings—and literary agents can tell. While it's vital to have a strong start to your manuscript to get an agent's attention, if you aren't able to carry that momentum through to the end, it can be the difference between getting representation and being told, "Thank you, but no." In this episode of Writer's Digest Presents, editor Michael Woodson chats with literary agent Allegra Martschenko about how we can perfect our endings to help us land that book deal.
    Show More Show Less
    42 mins
  • Why You Should Consider Writing Retreats

    Why You Should Consider Writing Retreats
    Dec 16 2025
    SEASON FINALE. With the new year right around the corner, it might be time to start thinking about your creativity in 2026. For writers, writing retreats offer uninterrupted time to focus on your craft, build your writerly community, and receive feedback from publishing experts. In the season finale of "Writer's Digest Presents," editor-in-chief Amy Jones and literary agent Jessica Berg talk about why writers should consider writing retreats, what you can expect from the Writer's Digest Writing Retreat in Tuscany this spring, and more. The Writer's Digest Writing Retreat in Tuscany is from April 7 – April 14, 2026. Escape to the peaceful Tuscan countryside to spend a week dedicated to making time for writing, improving your craft, and learning from publishing professionals, all while enjoying a taste of Italy! Learn more and register here: https://writersdigestshop.com/pages/tour/writingretreat-2026apr-italy
    Show More Show Less
    27 mins
  • Turning Your Career Into a Book (with Alexandra Gater)

    Turning Your Career Into a Book (with Alexandra Gater)
    Nov 18 2025
    Say you want to learn more about woodworking, but you're not quite ready to follow a how-to video on YouTube and just want to learn as much as you can about the craft. So, you turn to your local bookstore for the best how-to book on woodworking. Publishing has long been the answer to the "how" question of our hobbies, but writing about what you do for a living is a very different task than doing what you do for a living. In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," Michael Woodson chats with interior designer and author Alexandra Gater about the process of writing her how-to book, Own Your Space, where she offers advice for other professionals looking to write their own books, the importance of the outline in nonfiction writing, her literary agent experience, and more.
    Show More Show Less
    47 mins
  • Keeping Young Readers Engaged (with Alyssa Colman)

    Keeping Young Readers Engaged (with Alyssa Colman)
    Sep 16 2025
    Fall is upon us and a new school year has begun. Kids are lining hallways and rushing to class, clutching their school work, and new books to read. Between independent reading and required reading, keeping young readers engaged with reading helps build lifelong readers from the start. In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," middle-grade author Alyssa Colman sits down to discuss how to keep young readers engaged, how writing what she wanted to know more about kept her engaged, and her new historical fiction, Where Only Storms Grow, now available.
    Show More Show Less
    39 mins
  • Meet Cutes, Miscommunication, and Queer Romance with Chip Pons

    Meet Cutes, Miscommunication, and Queer Romance with Chip Pons
    Jul 15 2025
    The conversation around publishing journeys is often binary: You either try traditionally publishing or choose self-publishing. But the reality for many authors is a combination of both. Author Chips Pons self-published his debut novel, You & I, Rewritten, in 2022. Now, he returns to bookshelves with her second novel, and first traditionally published, Winging It with You. In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," we chat with Chip about all things romance, from writing the will-they-won't-they scenes to infusing genuine miscommunication that everyone can relate to.
    Show More Show Less
    40 mins
  • Tackling Historical Nonfiction (with Robert Fieseler)

    Tackling Historical Nonfiction (with Robert Fieseler)
    Jun 17 2025
    When you tackle historical nonfiction, you're offering doing more than simply putting to paper the events of the past. In author and journalist Robert Fieseler's experience, it meant hunting down sealed documents from a state that never wanted this history exposed, and it meant uncovering hundreds of names redacted from records and conducting countless hours of interviews—all before the actual writing takes place. In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," editor Michael Woodson sits down with Robert to discuss his new book American Scare: Florida's Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives (on sale today), his process as a writer, how and if he employs fiction craft in his writing, and more. Buy the book here: Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/a/14625/9780593183953 Amazon: https://amzn.to/4e83Wt9
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Writing Fiction Based On Your Life (with Jessica Berg)

    Writing Fiction Based On Your Life (with Jessica Berg)
    May 20 2025
    How do you write what you know? By writing fiction based on your life. This doesn't mean writing memoir or simply changing the names of the people in your life: It could be a passing comment you hear at the bus stop, or someone's missing shoe you notice in the street, or it could even just be a feeling from a time in your life..the list goes on and on! In this episode of "Writer's Digest Presents," editor Michael Woodson sits down with author and literary agent Jessica Berg about how to write fiction based on your life, how you can find inspiration everywhere, how to mine your life for story ideas in real time, and more.
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins
  • BONUS EPISODE: Writer's Digest is Going to England!

    BONUS EPISODE: Writer's Digest is Going to England!
    May 7 2025
    Writer's Digest is heading to England! From September 12-20, you can join managing editor Moriah Richard and literary agent Amy Collins in London and Bath for the writing retreat of a lifetime! Listen here as they are in conversation with editor-in-chief Amy Jones about what to expect on the retreat, what they're most looking forward to, and more!
    Show More Show Less
    29 mins