THE SOCIETY OF UNPUBLISHED AUTHORS

In this episode we talk about books being windows, mirrors and sliding doors, an idea that comes from researcher Rudine Sims Bishop. Windows into other people’s lives, mirrors that reflect our own experiences, and sliding glass doors into new possibilities. Sarah shares how she has had to go seeking books with Latino stories for her…

On this episode we talk about why rejection feels so hard, and what we can do after we get rejected. We learn from poet Maggie Smith in her book ‘Dear Writer’ that YOU are not being rejected, your work is. We talk about 4 big reasons picture books are rejected from the Picture Book Summit…

This episode is all about how much money you should/could spend chasing your dream of being a published author, and what you can do if you have none. We discuss creative writing courses, manuscript assessments, competitions and other paid avenues to publication. We also share our favourite free resources such as podcasts, online videos, critique…

We share the experience of having our book ideas come into the world, not written by us. We discuss whether there is anything truly original? Where do ideas come from, and how to capture them.  What is a unique voice, and how we can find ours? We talk about the books Steal Like an Artist,…

This episode is all about cringe. What does it mean, where does it come from, and how much should we care about it? Also, what role does social media play in cringe culture? We discuss actor Austin Butler’s thoughts that ‘embarrassment is an underexplored emotion,’ Erica Mallet’s ‘Cringe Mountain’ theory, and Amie McNee’s notion that…

This episode is all about what on earth publishers are looking for and whether knowing or not knowing can affect our writing. We discuss whether Rick Rubin’s theory that ‘the audience comes last‘ is a good one for writers, and we also talk about country singer Luke Combs and his song Doin This. We talk…