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PODCAST

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If you"re an aspiring author and want insights into what"s involved in launching a book into the world, this is the podcast for you. Maggie Smith, author and blogger, interviews debut novelists from the Women"s Fiction Writers Association discussing not only the inspiration behind their book, but also their insights into the writing process, the best advice they ever got, and the joys and sometimes pitfalls they encountered on their path to publication.

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All Episodes

34:44

312: Julie McDonald Zander - Author of The Reluctant...

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2026/04/02

This week's guest is Julie McDonald Zander (The Reluctant Pioneer, St. Helen's Press, September 2024). An historical novel of a real-life woman who crossed the country on the Oregon Trail in 1847 and settled in the state of Washington, Julie's debut was her first attempt at fiction after years spent as both a reporter and columnist on the non-fiction side. We discuss the difference between the two genres, the invaluable advice she got from her critique group, and the hats she also wears as owner

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29:26

311: Leissa Shahrak - Author of Half The World

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2026/03/26

Our podcast guest this week is Leissa Shahrak (Half the World, Atmosphere Press, September 2024). Set in Iran during the Iranian Revolution in 1979, Leissa's book is based on her own experiences living there during that time and her desire to share themes of cultural, language, and religious differences that inform current world events. We also discuss what happens when your pub date happens on the same day a hurricane devastates your town and shuts down not only roads but power and

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33:06

310: Beth Dotson Brown - Author of Rooted in Sunrise

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2026/03/19

This week's guest is Beth Dotson Brown (Rooted in Sunrise, Koehler Books, September 2024). Beth discusses how she came to write a coming-of-age book for middle-aged women because of a tornado that hit her Kentucky town, how she chose between several hybrid publishers, and how important community is to her as a writer. Finally we discuss finding your "why" and setting your personal goals for your book and how that can effect everything from your plot and your characters, to your publishing route,

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40:16

309: Christine Gunderson - Author of Friends with...

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2026/03/12

On the podcast this week we welcome Christine Gunderson (Friends with Secrets, Lake Union, August 2024). In a wide-ranging discussion, we cover finding an agent who is a real partner, selling book on "proposal" rather than a completed manuscript, and how putting yourself on a "1,000 words a day diet" might help keep you on track. Finally, we look at examining your "why" and learning to differentiate between activities we do that are fun and make us feel good vs. things that actually sell books and

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28:25

308: Nancie Abuhaidar - Author of The Trouble with...

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2026/03/06

This week's guest is Nancie Abuhaidar (The Trouble with Possibilities, indie published, September 2024). The idea for Nancie's debut originated with her sister but was passed on to Nancie to bring into being, although it had to be totally reworked after a trip to the African continent where the story takes place. We discuss how writing doesn't have to be a solitary endeavor, where Nancie found help, how effective Instagram blog tours were to publicizing her book, and how getting over the

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33:10

307: Jan Heidrich-Rice - Author of Secrets of the...

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2026/02/26

Our podcast guest this week is Jan Heidrich-Rice (Secrets of the Blue Moon, indie published, September 2024). We discuss making up a whole small town for your setting, basing characters on people you know, and why writing her first novel often meant asking for help from fellow writers, including WFWA members. And listen at the end for a cute story of Jan's favorite review from an unexpected source. Jan Heidrich-Rice writes contemporary fiction and creative nonfiction—occasionally haunting, often

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33:18

306: Jessica Maffetore - Author of Eleanora in Pieces

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2026/02/19

This week's guest is Jessica Maffetore (Eleanora in Pieces, Black Rose Writing, September 2024). If you've ever wondered about what happens when a small press "ghosts" its writers and eventually breaks its contract, this is a must-listen. Jessica describes the process of surviving this challenge and finding another small press about losing a year in publishing purgatory, and the hidden pluses that came from that experience, including a longer runway for social media and the networking community of

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35:51

306: Natalie Dossett - Author of Sarita

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2026/02/13

Our podcast guest this week is Natalie Dossett (Sarita, Atmosphere Press, September 2024). Natalie's novel, set in west Texas during the 1920's Prohibition era, is a love letter to where she grew up and her family's history, We discuss how she learned skills through a creative writing program, her method of doing historical research, and how she advises new writers to find the time to write through a structured process, no matter what it is. Lastly, we discuss how entering contests can provide

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32:16

304: Leilani Garrett - Author of After the Burn

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2026/02/05

This week's guest is Leilani Garrett (After the Burn, Palmetto Publishing, August 2024). Leilani shares sage advice from her first writing mentor, how her debut incorporated her struggles both personally and in the tech world as a woman of color, and how she first lost her editor, then her agent, but still kept going. Hear about the workbook with exercises which she created as a companion to her novel and her adjunct career working with corporate America to use storytelling techniques to create

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42:54

303: Erica Colahan - Author of The Oystercatcher of...

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2026/01/29

Our podcast guest this week is Erica Colahan (The Oystercatcher of Southwark, Chrism Press, July 2024). A dual timeline historical novel set in turn-of-the-century Philadelphia and based on Erica's great-great-grandmother's dramatic story, this novel was born out of Erica's desire to explore her family's history and resulted in various serendipitous discoveries including another whole branch of her family. We discuss scenes she avoided writing, how she had to kill several darlings during editing,

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28:33

302: Cathelina Duvert - Author of The Box

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2026/01/22

This week's guest is Cathelina Duvert (The Box, indie published, July 2024). Over 20 years in the making, this debut novel initially sprang from the author's own struggles with depression and her desire to use her degree in creative writing and her knowledge of the publishing industry to fashion a novel focusing on this mental health issue for a woman of color. She received invaluable help from WFWA's mentor program but because of the adult themes in her novel and her day job as a teacher, she

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29:59

301: Amily D'Nas - Author of The Swaying Willlow

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2026/01/08

Our podcast guest this week is Amily D'Nas (Beneath the Swaying Willow, indie published, July 2024). Amily joined an existing writing group when she met a member through her day job and found a home with supportive and experienced authors who encouraged her to write a novel informed by her parent's experiences during the Vietnam War era and the family trauma that followed. We discuss why she chose to indie published her debut and the pluses and minuses of being in control of everything, including

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30:18

300: Sharon Wishnow - Author of The Pelican Tide

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2025/12/31

This week's guest is Sharon Wishnow (The Pelican Tide, Lake Union, June 2024). Sharon describes how she used both her networking contacts and her background as a non-fiction editor to research the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and its devastating effect on the Gulf Coast, in particular the Grand Isle area of Louisiana. We discuss the iterations her novel underwent during the acquisition phase and the seven editors Lake Union gave her to hone her story, including a Cajun proofreader and a sensitivity

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33:58

299: Hadley Leggett - Author of All They Ask is...

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2025/12/11

Our podcast guest this week is Hadley Leggett (All They Ask is Everything, Lake Union, August 2024). We discuss the intensive research Hadley did to learn about the foster system, how she changed from first to third POV and the difference in made in the novel's narrative voice, and how winning the Rising Star contest help her find an agent. Then we delve into the collaborative process after signing her publishing contract, including deleting a chapter, softening a secondary character and finding

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41:01

298: Melissa Collings- Author of The False Flat

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2025/11/20

This week's guest is Melissa Collings (The False Flat, Montlake/Amazon publishing, June 2024). Melissa talks about learning to filter conflicting feedback from an early writing group that stifled her flow, how she edited her debut as though it was someone else's, and how she's a fickle fan of social media. Don't miss the end where Melissa describes finding your "why" as a writer, and how writing a newsletter is her single biggest recommendation for authors building a lasting career. And if you've

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31:59

297: Kim McCollum- Author of What Happens in Montana

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2025/11/13

Our guest this week is Kim McCollum (What Happens in Montana, Black Rose Writing, January 2024). Kim discusses how writing was her first love but she was told it wasn't a "practical career", how imposter syndrome interfered with her writing process and how she dealt with it, and how the best writing advice she received was to write the ending early on so you know where you're going. And don't miss the tale of the cross-country book tour she and a fellow novelist organized that took them to 27

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39:13

296: Wendy Haller: Author of The Flannigan Girls

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2025/10/30

This week's guest is Wendy Haller (The Flannigan Girls, Stillwater River Publications, June 2024). Because Wendy's debut centers around sisterhood, we discuss sibling bonds, birth order research, and the experts she turned to both professionally and in her personal life when writing An author who writes out of order and skips around in various genres (she's written both a children's book series, a poetry chapbook, and now women's fiction), Wendy shares the positives and negatives to not "picking a

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36:12

295: Catherine Matthews- Author of Releasing the Reins

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2025/10/23

My guest this week is Catherine Matthews (Releasing the Reins, indie published, June 2024). Catherine describes writing a first draft of your debut as “building the airplane while flying it” but got lots of help and support from various writing groups she joined and classes she took. Her mash-up novel blends western, women’s fiction, and mystery genres as well as a complicated structure with dual timelines and multi-POV’s. After nine requests for fulls from agents, but no offer, she decided to do

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34:35

294: Jaclyn Westlake- Author of Dear Dotty

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2025/10/16

This week’s guest is Jaclyn Westlake (Dear Dotty, Avon Books/Harper Collins, June 2024). Jaclyn signed up for Stanford’s 2-year Novel Writing Course and emerged with the first draft of her debut, a humorous women’s fiction centered on a young woman finding her true path following the example of an unconventional aunt. After querying over a hundred agents, Jaclyn received offers from several, and later had her book go to auction and sell in a two-book deal. We discuss how she made decisions on

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31:52

293: Amy Dressler - Author of How to Align the Stars

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2025/10/09

Our guest this week is Amy Dressler (How to Align the Stars, Egret Lake Books, June 2024). Amy’s biggest challenge in writing her debut was finding the self-confidence to believe she was qualified to tackle a beloved Shakespeare story and update it for our current time. She was helped in that effort by a supportive critique group and a brand-new publisher who took a chance on her after a fluke meeting in a bathroom at a conference. And if you’ve ever wondered what to write in a newsletter when you

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