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PODCAST

Book Friends Forever Podcast

Alvina and Grace

Children"s book publishing"s secrets are revealed as we listen in on fascinating, unguarded, insider discussion from two uniquely qualified best friends: award-winning author/illustrator Grace Lin, and one of NYC"s top editors, Alvina Ling. Go behind the scenes of kid lit and catch a glimpse of the lives of the best-selling author and editor, and the relationship between them.

arts books

All Episodes

01:04:13

Episode 337: Seven-Year Anniversary!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/02/20

Grace and Alvina celebrate seven years of this podcast by answering some author, illustrator, and listeners questions. They answer questions ranging from Alvina's imprint, the different levels of editors within a publishing company, AI in publishing, the ups and downs of the market, and more! For the Fortune Cookie segment, in honor of the seven-year anniversary, they share seven Book Friends Forever episodes each that they feel are worth revisiting (and one they don't think is worth revisiting)

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01:06:40

Episode 336: Writing Communities with Julie Hedlund!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/02/13

Grace and Alvina welcome special guest, author Julie Hedlund, to talk about what the 12x12 Challenge is, and they talk about the importance of writing communities and how to create and cultivate them. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they discuss what they've been reading lately, and they end as always with what they're grateful for. Sign up for the 12x12 challenge! Link open till the end of February! https://12x12challenge.com/bff Click here to become a Patreon member:

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01:02:12

Episode 335: Cultivating joy in others' successes!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/02/06

Grace Lin and Alvina Ling talk about some recent news, including the snow storm, the announcements of the ALA Youth Media Awards, and recent events in Minnesota. They do the Fortune Cookie Segment first and list the Newbery, Caldecott, and Printz Award winners and honor books, and Alvina shares the books awarded from LBYR. And then they talk about professional jealousy and how to cultivate pure joy and happiness in other people's successes (sometimes called "freudenfreude" or "mudita"), including

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01:14:59

Episode 334: Award Committees with Susannah Richards!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/01/29

Grace and Alvina welcome special guest Susannah Richards who has served on many different awards committees! Ever wonder what goes on behind closed doors? Susannah gives some insight on what type of discussion might go on. They talk about the role of luck in the choosing of the winners, and potential sales effects of winning an award. They also touch on the definition of talent and if versatility plays a role or not. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they share something that is bringing them hope

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58:38

Episode 333: CHOP SUEY: Amazon's Ask This Book,...

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/01/23

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode, and Alvina gives a sneak peak to listeners of this podcast about the name of her new imprint! They discuss a new Amazon Ask This Book AI feature. They also discuss what everyone's responsibility (or not) is about posting about current events on social media. For the third segment, they discuss the proper way to breathe. And then, children's literature specialist Alison Morris joins to share some book recommendations. They end as always with what

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52:17

Episode 332: Embracing Discomfort!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/01/16

Grace and Alvina talk about the importance of discomfort, using two Hidden Brain podcast episodes plus Adam Grant's book Hidden Potential as jumping-off points. They discuss times in the past where they've embraced discomfort and have grown from the experience, including public speaking and Karaoke! For the Fortune Cookie segment, they make some resolutions for the podcast, including producing a gift for patrons (finally) and having another happy hour! And they end as always with what they're

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01:03:01

Episode 331: 2026 New Year's Resolutions!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2026/01/09

Grace and Alvina have their first episode of 2026. They sum up 2025 with one word, they share their proposed words of the year for 2026, and then share four resolutions and some aspirations each. They also share something they want to let go of in 2026. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they share some of the favorite things they consumed over the holidays, including books, movies, TV shows, and food! And, they end as always with what they're grateful for. Click here to become a Patreon member:

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51:54

Episode 330: 2025 Year-End Review!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/12/19

Grace and Alvina look back on the year and share their highlights and lowlights, look back at their words of the year, and evaluate how they did on their new year's resolutions. For the Fortune Cookie segment they share their favorite things they consumed all year. And, they end as always with what they're grateful for. FYI, they're taking the next two weeks off for the holidays! See you in 2026! Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1. See info about

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53:13

Episode 329: Intelligence vs. Wisdom

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/12/12

Grace and Alvina talk about the difference between wisdom as intelligence, as outlined in an episode of the Hidden Brain podcast, and how this applies to current events as well as the publishing world. They talk about the definitions of both, and how intelligence is not an indicator for success. For the Fortune Cookie they talk about the nonprofit organization Inkluded and their efforts to diversify the publishing industry. And then Grace tells Alvina about her book A BIG BED FOR LITTLE SNOW. And

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42:14

Episode 328: 2025 Holiday Gift Guide!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/12/04

Grace and Alvina have their annual holiday gift guide episode where they give gift recommendations for the people in your life! The gifts ideas include bread lamps, banned books socks, board games, and more! For the Fortune Cookie they talk about School Library Journal's 21st Century Canon and the lack of inclusion of picture books by women. And they end as always with what they're grateful for. Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1. See info about

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48:45

Episode 327: Inventory Management with Lianna Izzo!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/11/26

Grace and Alvina continue their Publishing Curriculum series and welcome special guest Lianna Izzo, to talk about inventory management! They cover everything from what is entailed with evaluating how many books to print, as well as the supply and demand of books, and which departments Lianna works with the most. They talk about the difference between books printed overseas vs domestic printing, and what happens at the end of a book's life. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they share their favorite

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01:05:03

Episode 326: CHOP SUEY: New Imprint, AI and Library...

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/11/21

Grace Lin and Alvina Ling have an odds and ends episode where they talk about the big news that was recently announced--Alvina is going to be starting a new imprint in the new year! And, the LBYR editorial team is being reorganized. They also talk about how AI is being used by some librarians in Texas to comply with some new book banning laws. And they also talk about traveling alongside literary themes. And then, children's literature specialist Alison Morris joins to share some book

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50:03

Episode 325: Decision Making and Regret!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/11/13

Grace Lin and Alvina Ling discuss how regret factors into their decision making, and they discuss five styles of decision making, and which style they both fall under. They also talk about the endowment effect and how that factors into their decision making, and their feelings about making mistakes and whether they consider themselves to be careless or careful. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they discuss various pieces of publishing news, including a follow up on the closing of Baker & Taylor, a

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42:52

Episode 324: Two Topics: Asian Parents and Gratitude...

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/11/07

Grace and Alvina talk about two topics this week. The first, inspired by a post by actor Ming Na Wen, they talk about different types of Asian parents and what some of the stereotypes and cultural differences are. Then, they talk about gratitude chains, where you start with the thing you're grateful for, and then work your way back to trace all the things that had to happen for that thing to exist. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about a garlic aoili-scented vampire book! And they end as

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57:33

Episode 323: Does Publishing Have a Gambling Problem?

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/10/31

Grace and Alvina discuss a recent article about the challenges regarding the business model of book publishing, and how publishers tend to gamble big on debut novels. They discuss sales track and how that affects how publishers view you, and the ups and downs of publishing in general. For the Fortune Cookie segment they talk about what their favorite type of landscape is. And they end as always with what they're grateful for. Click here to become a Patreon member:

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01:06:11

Episode 322: CHOP SUEY: Baker & Taylor, Banned Books,...

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/10/24

Grace and Alvina have an odds and ends episode where they talk about the closing of Baker & Taylor, and they touch on some topics regarding banned books. They also talk about internships and their own experiences working as interns back in the day, as well as some advice for interns today. Then, Alison Morris joins to share some book recommendations, and they end by sharing what they're grateful for. Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1. See info about

en

53:07

Episode 321: Community Building With Debbi Michiko...

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/10/16

Grace Lin and Alvina Ling welcome special guest Debbi Michiko Florence--Grace and Debbi are recording together while on their Very Asian Book Trip! They talk about building community, including the Asian American Voices retreat at Highlights. They talk about the impact the pandemic had on their respective communities. And they talk about how the main thing needed to create community is putting yourself out there. They also talk about the potential pitfalls of creating community. For the Fortune

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52:23

Episode 320: Gift and Specialty Sales with Adelia...

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/10/09

Grace and Alvina welcome special guest Adelia Kalyvas to talk about her job working in Special Sales, specifically the gift side. You'll learn all about how she got into publishing and what "specialty sales" and "gift sales" entails. They talk about the type of products that work well in the gift market, including mini kits and wrapping paper books, and how they sell to accounts using paper catalogs and gift shows. For the Fortune Cookie segment they talk about their favorite retail stores to shop,

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40:02

Episode 319: Freedom of Speech!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/10/02

Grace and Alvina discuss some recent events surrounding the Freedom of Speech, including late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel being pulled from the air temporarily. They talk about censorship and cancel culture. For the Fortune Cookie segment, they talk about Slate.com's recent "25 Greatest Picture Books of the Last 25 years." And they end as they always do with what they're grateful for. Click here to become a Patreon member: https://www.patreon.com/Bookfriendsforever1. See info about Grace's new

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37:05

Episode 318: Gossip!

Book Friends Forever Podcast ·

2025/09/25

Grace and Alvina are together in Brooklyn and gossip with each other! They talk about their relationship with gossip, when it can be positive or harmful, and Alvina shares a piece of funny gossip from her office. They also share some legendary author gossip! For the Fortune Cookie segment the talk about a group that has formed called "Save Middle Grade" to try to address the challenges the middle grade category has been facing. And they end as they always do with what they're grateful for. Click

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318 results

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