Explore every episode of the podcast Lit Service

Crystal joins Caitlin and Aliah to chat about her experience writing a main character that shares her own disability, and gives some thoughts that could help other authors attempting to do the same.

Crystal mentioned another book in the podcast that features a protagonist with Crohn's disease, though we don't mention the title, we will here: Of Wolves and Stags by Ria Parisi 

Crystal Seitz is a young adult contemporary fantasy writer. A Viking at heart, Crystal battles Crohn’s disease and raids libraries for all the books on Norse mythology she can find. She works in marketing and web design, but only because she can’t be a professional shield-maiden. She has a penchant for mythology, history, and all things creative. When she isn’t writing, Crystal can be found doing archery, drawing, or rewatching Game of Thrones.

More about the book:

Belladonna meets Norse mythology in this gorgeous dark fantasy debut that follows a teen who accidentally awakens an imprisoned draugr and must follow him into a deadly magical forest to rescue her grandmother. Never go beyond the stave church. Within Tiveden Forest, bloodthirsty monsters known as draugr lurk behind every tree, and secrets run through the soil like twisted roots. When her grandmother vanishes into the forest, Astrid won’t let Crohn’s disease get in the way of finding her. But in searching for her lost loved one, Astrid soon uncovers an even greater mystery: A conflict that’s haunted her village and family for generations. An ancient blood oath her ancestor made to protect them. A deadly draugr imprisoned for centuries…who Astrid accidentally awakens. Newly revived, Soren first mistakes Astrid for her ancestor, his ex-lover turned enemy. Astrid can’t tell if he would rather kill her or kiss her. But Soren knows the forest better than anyone, and Astrid quickly realizes that she’ll need his help to rescue her grandmother. The deeper they venture into Tiveden, the closer Astrid gets to the cold, alluring Soren and the truth behind her grandmother’s disappearance. To save her home, a dark ritual must be performed before Midwinter—and only Astrid can fulfill her ancestor’s blood oath…or break it. That is, if Soren—or the forest—doesn’t break Astrid first.

Caitlin and Aliah chat with Printz Honor winning author Lily Anderson about how to write hauntings and horror, tempering scary stories with humor, and her newest book Killer House Party.

Lily Anderson the author of several novels for young adults including The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You, Not Now Not Ever, and Undead Girl Gang. A former school librarian, she is deeply devoted to Shakespeare, fairy tales, and podcasts. Somewhere in Northern California, she is having strong opinions on musical theater.

More about Killer House Party:

Red Solo cups? Check. Snacks? Check. Abandoned mansion full of countless horrors that won’t let you leave? Check. The Deinhart Manor has been a looming shadow over town for as long as anyone can remember, and it's been abandoned for even longer. When the final Deinhart descendent passes, the huge gothic manor is up for sale for the first time ever. Which means Arden can steal the keys from her mom’s real estate office . . . It’s time for a graduation party that no one will ever forget. Arden and her friends each have different reasons for wanting to throw the party to end all parties. But when the manor doors bar everyone inside and the walls begin to bleed, all anyone wants to do is make it out alive.

What are the building blocks of a heist? Caitlin Schneiderhan chats with Caitlin (two of us! Correct spelling and everything!) to chat about her debut book Medici Heist and how she went about planning it.

Caitlin Schneiderhan is a genre-loving writer on the hit Netflix show STRANGER THINGS. Originally hailing from Silver Spring, Maryland, Caitlin hatched from a cocoon of Terry Pratchett novels when she was 13. She spent her teenage years scribbling stories during class instead of paying attention (you can’t prove she wasn’t just taking notes). Eventually, she decided to chase that storytelling bug all the way out to sunny Los Angeles, where she spent a few years scribbling scripts at assistant jobs instead of paying attention (you can’t prove she wasn’t just taking notes). She has been named one of MovieMaker Magazine’s 25 Screenwriters to Watch, and has projects in development with multiple production companies around Hollywood.

More about Medici Heist:

A sharp-witted teenage thief leads a team of skilled misfits in a dangerous and daring heist for fortune, freedom and revenge against a corrupt Pope in Renaissance Italy in Caitlin Schneiderhan's clever YA debut, Medici Heist. Welcome to Florence, 1517, a world of intrigue and opulence, murder and betrayal. Seventeen-year-old conwoman Rosa Cellini arrives in the city the same day that the Medici Pope, Leo X, returns to take up the reins of power. This is not a coincidence. The new Pope is extorting a mountain of indulgence money from the people of Florence to bolster his power and standing, and Rosa has a plan to take it back. To pull off the Renaissance’s greatest robbery, she’ll recruit a team of specially-chosen, highly-skilled misfits: Sarra the tinkerer, Khalid the fighter, and Giacomo, the irrepressible master of disguise. To top it all off, and to smooth their entrance into the fortress-like Palazzo Medici, Rosa even enlists the reluctant help of the famed artist Michelangelo. But as the authorities draw closer and the Medici’s noose pulls tighter around the land, old secrets resurface and tensions in the group start to flare. What began as a robbery could be the key to saving the city itself—if Rosa and company don’t destroy each other first.

Tricia Levenseller joins Caitlin to talk about how she plots romance, including a fun twist on Dan Wells' Seven Point Plot structure specifically for romance. (Here's Dan's original presentation, which is worth a watch and an easy-to-use template of the non-romance version)

Tricia is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of eight YA romantasies, including the Daughter of the Pirate King duology and The Shadows between Us. Her books have been translated into twenty languages and counting.

Tricia grew up in Oregon, where she spent her childhood climbing trees and playing make believe. She now lives in Utah with her bossy dog, Rosy, where she writes full time. When she’s not writing or reading, Tricia enjoys putting together jigsaw puzzles, playing video games, and finding tasty restaurants to frequent.

The Darkness within Us is a companion novel to The Shadows between Us. It can be read without reading the first book, but you probably will enjoy it more if you read The Shadows between Us first.

Chrysantha Stathos has won.

By hiding her intelligence and ambition behind the mask of a beautiful air-headed girl, she has become a wealthy duchess. And, once her elderly husband dies, she will have all the freedom, money, and safety she’s ever wanted.

Or so she thought.

A man claiming to be the estranged grandson of Chrysantha’s lecherous late husband has turned up to steal her inheritance. To make matters worse, her little sister is going to be queen and is rubbing it in her face. Chrysantha decides that the only thing to do is upstage Alessandra at her own wedding. And as for this grandson, he has to go. Never mind that he’s extremely handsome and secretive with mysterious powers . . . No, Chrysantha wants Eryx Demos dead, and in the end, a Stathos girl always gets what she wants.

Throwback to when Daniel Kraus came on our show to discuss Whalefall!

DANIEL KRAUS is a New York Times bestselling writer of novels, TV, and film. His latest novel, Whalefall, received a front-cover review in the New York Times Book Review, won the Alex Award, was an L.A. Times Book Prize Finalist, and was a Best Book of 2023 from NPR, the New York Times, Amazon, Chicago Tribune, and more.

With Guillermo del Toro, he co-authored The Shape of Water, based on the same idea the two created for the Oscar-winning film. Also with del Toro, Kraus co-authored Trollhunters, which was adapted into the Emmy-winning Netflix series. His also cowrote The Living Dead and Pay the Piper with legendary filmmaker George A. Romero. Kraus’s The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch was named one of Entertainment Weekly‘s Top 10 Books of the Year. Kraus has won the Bram Stoker Award, Scribe Award, two Odyssey Awards (for both Rotters and Scowler), and has appeared multiple times as Library Guild selections, YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults, and more.

Kraus’s work has been translated into over 20 languages. He lives with his wife in Chicago. Visit him at danielkraus.com.

Whalefall, if you have not had a chance to read it yet, is well worth your time:

A USA TODAY BESTSELLER Named a Best Book of 2023 by Book Riot, Shelf Awareness, and NPR The Martian meets 127 Hours in this “astoundingly great” (Gillian Flynn, #1 New York Times bestselling author) and scientifically accurate thriller about a scuba diver who’s been swallowed by an eighty-foot, sixty-ton sperm whale and has only one hour to escape before his oxygen runs out. Jay Gardiner has given himself a fool’s errand—to find the remains of his deceased father in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Monastery Beach. He knows it’s a long shot, but Jay feels it’s the only way for him to lift the weight of guilt he has carried since his dad’s death by suicide the previous year. The dive begins well enough, but the sudden appearance of a giant squid puts Jay in very real jeopardy, made infinitely worse by the arrival of a sperm whale looking to feed. Suddenly, Jay is caught in the squid’s tentacles and drawn into the whale’s mouth where he is pulled into the first of its four stomachs. He quickly realizes he has only one hour before his oxygen tanks run out—one hour to defeat his demons and escape the belly of a whale. Suspenseful and cinematic, Whalefall is an “powerfully humane” (Owen King, New York Times bestselling author) thriller about a young man who has given up on life…only to find a reason to live in the most dangerous and unlikely of places.

Marie Lu is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Legend trilogy and The Young Elites trilogy (and lots of other fabulous books!). She graduated from the University of Southern California and jumped into the video game industry, working for Disney Interactive Studios as a Flash artist. Now a full-time writer, she spends her spare time reading, drawing, playing Assassin’s Creed, and getting stuck in traffic. She lives in Los Angeles, California (see above: traffic), with one husband, one Chihuahua mix, and two Pembroke Welsh corgis. Her newest book is Icon and Inferno.

Marie joins Caitlin to chat about how she approaches writing distinctive voices for her characters and shares some exercises that help her get comfortable with a new cast of characters.

EVA DES LAURIERS joins the Lit Service cast to chat about how she approaches writing characters based on her background in psychology and sociology and how authors can approach writing teen characters with authenticity.

Eva is the author of YA Romance, I Wish You Would (Holt, BYR). She’s a diehard romantic who holds both an MSW and BA in psychology. As a clinical social worker, she had the privilege of working with the vibrant and complicated teens for whom she now writes. She co-hosts a writing and mental health podcast with fellow author Katryn Bury called Write Where It Hurts. A White-Chicana California girl with the ocean in her veins, she lives and writes in Oakland, California with her husband, who also happens to be the boy she sat next to in eleventh grade Calculus, their two children, and her collection of kissing books. Find her on Instagram @evadeslaurbooks

Caitlin chats with Holly Black about building characters and her newest book The Prisoner's Throne.

Holly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy novels, including the Novels of Elfhame, THE COLDEST GIRL IN COLDTOWN, the Spiderwick Chronicles, and her adult debut, BOOK OF NIGHT. She has been a finalist for an Eisner Award and the Lodestar Award, and the recipient of the Mythopoeic Award, a Nebula, and a Newbery Honor. Her books have been translated into 32 languages worldwide and adapted for film. She currently lives in New England with her husband and son in a house with a secret library.

You can find the special editions set of the duology here.

What do you do once you've finished your first draft? Immediately send it to every agent and publisher you can find contact info for? Put it in a drawer? Maybe something in between. Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen chat about how they approach a second draft.

Don't forget to check out Caitlin's newest release, He Who Breaks the Earth

Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen chat about how to approach writing a satisfying and exciting ending. 

Don't miss Caitlin's new release from Simon and Schuster, He Who Breaks the Earth 

Martha Wells joins to podcast to chat about how to write characters your readers will love. Martha has been an SF/F writer since her first fantasy novel was published in 1993, and her work includes The Books of the Raksura series, The Death of the Necromancer, the Fall of Ile-Rien trilogy, The Murderbot Diaries series, media tie-in fiction for Star Wars, Stargate: Atlantis, and Magic: the Gathering, as well as short fiction, YA novels, and non-fiction. She has won Nebula Awards, Hugo Awards, and Locus Awards, and her work has appeared on the Philip K. Dick Award ballot, the BSFA Award ballot, the USA Today Bestseller List, and the New York Times Bestseller List. She is a member of the Texas Literary Hall of Fame, and her books have been published in twenty-five languages. Her newest book, Witch King is out now (find it here!).

Margaret Owen joins Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen to chat about how to help your action to rise naturally and how to raise stakes. 

Margaret is the author of The Merciful Crow, The Faithless Hawk, Little Thieves, Painted Devils which releases May 16th, and A Grimoire of Grave Fates which releases in June.

The "How Dire Is It" chart Margaret mentions can be found here.

Kristen, Caitlin, and Aliah chat about what goes into the middle of a book.

We all hit moments where a shiny new project suddenly feels more like work. Aliah, Caitlin, and Kristen discuss strategies that allow the slog to become a little easier.

Aliah, Caitlin, and Kristen discuss how to keep writing when the ideas aren't coming.

Aliah, Cameron, Caitlin, and Kristen discuss what is most important at the beginning of a book and how to go about approaching it in your own stories.

Don't forget to check out our special edition books we've done for past guests!

Caitlin, Cameron, Kristen, and Aliah chat about how to begin writing and how to overcome some of the difficulties writers struggle with when starting a project.

Don't forget to check out our special editions!

Aliah, Kristen, Caitlin, and Cameron kick of season seven with a new series on how to write a novel from start to finish beginning with how to come up with a good idea. 

For updates and information on upcoming guests, subscribe to our newsletter!

To check out our special editions, go to Caitlin's store.

Marissa Meyer joins Caitlin and Kristen to chat about how she approaches an adaptation, how to choose what to keep, what to get rid of, and where she gets inspiration for the unique new worlds and characters that go into her new story.

Her newest book, CURSED, the second in the Gilded Duology came out on November 8th, be sure to check the series out. We did a signed hand-painted edge design here, if you like your books special :) which you can find here.

Marissa Meyer is the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles, Heartless, The Renegades Trilogy, and Instant Karma, as well as the graphic novel duology Wires and Nerve. She holds a BA in Creative Writing from Pacific Lutheran University and a MA in Publishing from Pace University. In addition to writing, Marissa hosts The Happy Writer podcast. She lives near Tacoma, Washington, with her husband and twin daughters.

Tamsyn Muir joins Kristen and Caitlin to chat about alternative POV choices, non-consecutive timelines, meme culture, Women Who Suck, and all the other fun things that went into the Locked Tomb series.

TAMSYN MUIR is the bestselling author of the Locked Tomb Series. Her fiction has won the Locus and Crawford awards, and been nominated for the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, the World Fantasy Award, the Dragon Award, and the Eugie Foster Memorial Award. A Kiwi, she has spent most of her life in Howick, New Zealand, with time living in Waiuku and central Wellington. She currently lives and works in Oxford, in the United Kingdom.

Be sure to check out Nona the Ninth (out now!) as well as the special editions STET books is doing in conjunction with our next guest, Marissa Meyer.

Chloe Gong joins Aliah and Caitlin to discuss the anatomy of a spinoff, how to approach writing an extension of your own world and stories that still feels familiar while also being new.

Chloe is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights, its sequel Our Violent Ends, and the first in a new duology set in the same world, Foul Lady Fortune. She is a recent graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where she double-majored in English and International Relations. Born in Shanghai and raised in Auckland, New Zealand, Chloe is now located in New York pretending to be a real adult.

Works we mention in this episode: Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse and Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir.

Don't forget to check out the sweet signed special editions we're doing for Marissa Meyer's Gilded duology in our shop!

Stephanie Garber joins Caitlin and Aliah to chat about "romantasy" and how to make it (or a developing romance in the book you are writing!) really sing. A resource Stephanie mentions, Romancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes, can be found here.

Stephanie is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of Once Upon a Broken Heart, The Ballad of Never After, and the Caraval trilogy. Her books have been translated into thirty languages. To find out more, you can follow her on social media.

To check out our signed, hand-painted editions of Once Upon a Broken Heart and The Ballad of Never After, check out Caitlin's store.

Britney Lewis joins the cast to chat about adding surreal elements to our stories in order to better articulate things that words can't quite describe.

Britney is the author of The Undead Truth of Us (which just came out!! Get it here!). She has a B.A. in corporate communications with an emphasis in business and art. She strongly supports We Need Diverse Books, and she’s an avid follower of #DVpit and #BVM. 

When Britney isn’t daydreaming about new stories, she can be found binge-watching TV shows with her husband and her pup or practicing West Coast Swing. She lives in Kansas City. You can follow Britney on her Twitter, or her Instagram. 

Take a look at the first chapter we critique here.

If you want us to critique your work, review our submission guidelines here.

To check out the special editions we are doing for Stephanie Garber's Once Upon a Broken Heart series and Marissa Meyer's Gilded duology, visit Caitlin's website.

Erin Beaty joins Caitlin, Kristen, and Aliah to talk about how to write stories and characters that are smarter than we are.

Erin was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, which means she can't drive a tractor but won't eat veggies that come from a can. She graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2000 with a BS in Aerospace Engineering (Astronautics) and German, then served in the fleet as a weapons officer on a combat destroyer and later as an instructor the Center for Naval Leadership. After a few years as a stay-at-home mother and navy wife with a casual family blog, Erin upped her game and started writing her first novel in the spring of 2014. She is now the author of the Traitor's Circle Trilogy published by Imprint, Macmillan and in several foreign languages. Her newest book Blood and Moonlight just came out, check it out here.

​She and her husband have five children, two cats, and a vegetable garden and live wherever the navy tells them to go.

To read the first chapter we critique with all our notes, go  here.

Don't forget to check out the special editions Caitlin is doing for Stephanie Garber's Once Upon a Broken Heart series and Marissa Meyer's Gilded Duology! You can find them here.

Jesse Q. Sutanto joins the crew to chat about writing authentic voices for different age groups.

Jesse is the author of Dial A for Aunties, The Obsession, and Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit. She has a master’s degree in creative writing from Oxford University, though she hasn't found a way of saying that without sounding obnoxious. The film rights to her women’s fiction, Dial A for Aunties, was bought by Netflix in a competitive bidding war. The novel will be out in April 2021. Jesse lives in Indonesia with her husband, her two daughters, and her ridiculously large extended family, many of whom live just down the road. For more about her and her books, be sure to visit her website.

Lit Service was thrilled to chat with Holly Black about how to build a world, characters, and story in a more concise way. We have signed special editions of her adult debut Book of Night in our store.

Holly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of over thirty fantasy novels for kids and teens. She has been a finalist for an Eisner Award and the Lodestar Award, and the recipient of the Mythopoeic Award, a Nebula, and a Newbery Honor. Her books have been translated into 32 languages worldwide and adapted for film. She currently lives in New England with her husband and son in a house with a secret library. To find out more about her and her fabulous books, check out her website.

To read the first chapter we critique with all our notes, go here.

For information on upcoming guests or how to submit your work for critique, check out our website.

Caitlin, Aliah, and Kristen chat with Emily X.R. Pan about magic in contemporary books and suspension of disbelief (as well as throwing down a gauntlet in the never-ending prologue debate!). To find the signed and stenciled edge edition the podcast put together for her new book An Arrow to the Moon, visit our shop.

Emily X.R. Pan is the New York Times bestselling author of THE ASTONISHING COLOR OF AFTER, which won the APALA Honor Award and the Walter Honor Award. It was also a finalist for the L.A. Times Book Prize, longlisted for the Carnegie Medal, and named by TIME Magazine as one of the 100 Best YA Books of All Time. Emily co-created the FORESHADOW anthology, teaches creative writing, and lives on Lenape land (in Brooklyn, New York). Her sophomore novel, AN ARROW TO THE MOON, launched April 12, 2022 (Check it out here!!). Find her on Twitter and Instagram: @exrpan.

You can find the chapter we critique here.

V.E. Schwab joins the podcasters to chat about how to build a character who is instantly sympathetic and fits into your story. 

A big welcome to Victoria “V.E.” Schwab. Schwab is the #1 NYT, USA, and Indie bestselling author of more than twenty books, including the acclaimed Shades of Magic series, the Villains series, the Cassidy Blake series and the international bestseller The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Their work has received critical acclaim, been translated into over two dozen languages, and been optioned for television and film. First Kill – a YA vampire series based on Schwab’s short story of the same name – is currently in the works at Netflix with Emma Roberts’ Belletrist Productions producing. Schwab’s most recent book, YA fantasy Gallant, just came out at the beginning of March. To learn more about it (or Victoria!) check out her website.

The special edition of Gallant Lit Service put together with stenciled edges and a signed bookplate can be found here (be sure to check it out!).

Kristen Ciccarelli joins Caitlin, Kristen, and Aliah to talk about how publishing journeys look from the inside and how to manage the rough moments and celebrate the good.

Kristen was born and raised on her grandfather’s grape farm. She spent her childhood running amok through his vineyards and adventuring in the deep, dark woods behind his house. Before writing books full-time, Kristen was an artisanal bread baker, an indie bookseller, and a ceramic artist. Her first novel, The Last Namsara, was an international bestseller and has been translated into 12 languages. Her new contemporary fantasy, Edgewood, released on March 1st (and you can find out more about her and it here!)

To read the first chapter we critique and look through our notes, go here.

You can always follow us on Instagram (which is mostly where we are!!), and if you haven't checked out the special edition we're doing for our new Lit Service Book of the month (stenciled edges!!! They're so pretty!) you should probably go check out our shop now!!

Actress extraordinaire Liana Tan joins Caitlin for a special reading Caitlin's middle grade fantasy debut,  A Baker's Guide to Robber Pie, which is out now!

Liana has been involved in all sorts of fun acting projects and is a radio personality in Idaho. You can find her on instagram and follow her cool lifestyle show here.

If you want to see the episode Caitlin did (about writer's block!) it's here.

Tara Goedjen joins the podcast to chat about the do's and don'ts of mixing genres. She's the author of The Breathless and No Beauties or Monsters which is a mystery/paranormal mash up that will make you not want to stop reading. You can find out more about Tara and her books here.

To read the chapter we critiqued with all our notes, go here.

Join Caitlin, Kristen, and Aliah as they discuss some of the cool storytelling elements used in Netflix's new series, Arcane.

If you want to read twelve pages of Caitlin and Kristen lauding/arguing/not understanding/beings stupid about some of the things the writers, animators, and others involved did, you're welcome to it: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mQrrDsc9pBwvPFDv_flGj7nELO1UZ9XcQpqtzmrEjjw/edit?usp=sharing

Hello out there to all you lovely podcast listeners!

Thank you so much for your support and for listening during this exciting year! Hope you have lovely holidays and we'll be back in 2022!

Adrienne Tooley joins the Lit Service cast to chat about why magic makes such a great tool for allegory in stories, especially when it comes to mental health.

Adrienne Tooley grew up in Southern California, majored in musical theater in Pittsburgh, and now lives in Brooklyn with her wife, six guitars, and a banjo. In addition to writing novels, she is a singer/songwriter who has currently released three indie-folk EPs. You can check out her debut novel, SWEET & BITTER MAGIC (as well as more about Adrienne!) here. Her second novel, SOFI AND THE BONE SONG, will release April 19, 2022 and you should definitely preorder it here.

If you'd like to read the chapter we critique with all our notes, you can find it here.

Morgan Rath, senior publicist at Macmillan Children's publishing, joins Caitlin this week to talk about what a publicist actually does, what authors can expect while working with one, and things authors can do on their own or to help a publicist get the word out about your book.

No first chapter critique this week! Let us know on social media or e-mail to let us know why you listen to the show--do you like the critiques? Do you prefer the behind the scenes in publishing episodes or the craft discussions? Who would you like to hear from on the show?

Aliah, Caitlin, Cameron and Kristen talk about constructing fake political intrigue in stories and how to make it interesting and peak amounts of "intrigue-y". 

The chapter we critique is here.

Find out how to support Lit Service on our Patreon.

Lyndall Clipstone joins the podcast to chat about what gothic romance is and how to write it. Lyndall writes YA Gothic romance about monsters and the girls who like to kiss them. A former youth librarian, she has a Bachelors in Creative Writing and a Graduate Diploma in Library and Information Management and is the author of Lakesedge. Find out more about Lyndall on her website, or you can order her book here.

To check out the submission we critique go here.

To find out how to support the podcast, visit us on Patreon.

Margaret Owen joins the Lit Service Crew to chat about character stakes, both personal and existential, and how to build them up so your readers minds explode (but not because there are thousands of planet-killing weapons waiting to declare war.) 

Margaret is the author The Merciful Crow, The Faithless Hawk, and Little Thieves which just barely came out this week as of this podcast publishing. It is a fabulous twist on Grimm's The Goose Girl with lots of scamming, teasing, and a girl cursed to turn into jewels if she cannot give back the things she's stolen and you should check it out.

If you would like to see the chapter we critiqued with all our notes, go here.

To learn more about Margaret, buy a copy of the book, and see the fun character art and comics she's illustrated herself to go with Little Thieves, visit her website. 

We mentioned in the show that we're looking for a sound designer, if you are interested in working with us, please e-mail us at litservicepodcast@gmail.com.

To learn how to support he podcast, visit our Patreon, where you can get early access to the show, sometimes video versions of our recordings, as well as occasional bonus content.

If you'd like to submit your work for us to critique, check out our submission guidelines and see who we have coming on next on our website.

Ayana Gray joins the Lit Service Crew to chat about the nuts and bolts of building a scene, ways to ground your reader, how to balance different types of interaction on the page and how to know if your scene is interesting.

Ayana is the author of (highly anticipated!) YA fantasy Beasts of Prey, and is a lover of all things monsters, mythos, and #MelaninMagic. To learn more about her and her book, check out her website.

To learn how to support Lit Service (and get early access to episodes and some bonus content), check out our Patreon.

The Lit Service crew does a full cast reading of a chapter from Caitlin's upcoming book, SHE WHO RIDES THE STORM, out September 21, 2021.

If you'd like to get a copy of the book, please consider supporting your local independent bookstores!

For a signed copy, you can pre-order from The King's English (before September 19th)

Or from Anderson's Bookshop (whenever!) Both bookstores can ship to you wherever you are and each signed copy will come with a special bookmark. For either bookstore, be sure to put in the comments that you want it signed an personalized.

Bethany C. Morrow and CB Lee join the cast to talk about how to approach writing historical fiction, problems that crop up when writers don't do proper research for the time period and society they are trying to represent and the peoples and cultures that are often left out of the narrative.

Bethany C. Morrow is  an Indie Bestselling author who writes for adult and young adult audiences, in genres ranging from speculative literary to contemporary fantasy to historical. She is author of the novels MEM and A SONG BELOW WATER, which is an Audie, Ignyte and Locus finalist. She is editor/contributor to the young adult anthology TAKE THE MIC, the 2020 ILA Social Justice in Literature award winner. Her work has been chosen as Indies Introduce and Indie Next picks, and featured in The LA Times, Forbes, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and more. She is included on USA TODAY's list of 100 Black novelists and fiction writers you should read. You can find more about her and buy her books here.

CB Lee is a Lambda Literary Award nominated writer of young adult and middle grade fiction. Her works include the Juinor Library Guild selected A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix (Feiwel and Friends), the Sidekick Squad series (Duet Books), Ben 10 graphic novels (Boom! Studios), Out Now: Queer We Go Again (HarperTeen), Minecraft: The Shipwreck (Del Rey Books), From A Certain Point Of View: The Empire Strikes Back (Del Rey Books). Lee’s work has been featured in Teen Vogue, Wired Magazine, Hypable, Tor’s Best of Fantasy and Sci Fi and the American Library Association’s Rainbow List. For more about her and to buy her books, visit her website.

If you'd like to read the chapter we critiqued with our notes, you can find it here.

To find out how to support Lit Service, get extra content (like the video versions of these episodes, bonus hot seat critiques and occasional other bonus material, as well as opportunities to get critiques from the cast) visit our Patreon!

The Lit Service Crew chats about the role of betrayal between characters and how to accomplish it so your reader is both surprised and betrayed as well.

If you'd like to see the video version of the episode (and a few other episodes that we've already recorded that aren't available on the feed yet!) check out our Patreon. There are are extra episodes and critiques to listen to as well as opportunities to get personal critiques from the cast!

We critiqued this chapter hot-seat critique-style (we read it out loud!) so there's no text chapter to look at this week.

Jeff Zentner joins the Lit Service cast to chat about poetry, how it can be used in a novel, and how authors who are interested in learning to write poetry (or more poetic prose!) can get started.

Jeff Zentner is the author of New York Times Notable Book The Serpent King, Goodbye Days, Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee, and In the Wild Light which released on August 10th (with four starred reviews!). For more about Jeff and his books, visit his website.

If you'd like to read the chapter we critique and read our written notes, it can be found here.

Please consider supporting this podcast! You can find out how (along with the benefits to supporting us, like early access to episodes, video versions of the podcast, extra episodes, and a chance to get critiques from cast members) by visiting our Patreon.

John Blackham joins Caitlin in talking about constructed languages authors create for their sci-fi and fantasy worlds.

Resources and other tidbits John mentions:

Caillou clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiSLxeszVCo&ab_channel=tovaeditshttps://www.cnn.com/2021/07/17/health/sunscreen-recall-cancer-wellness/index.html

Instant conlang generator: https://gwistix.github.io/ling/conlanger

Mark Rosenfelder’s Language Construction Kit: https://www.zompist.com/kit.html

For fun, some of John’s conlang, The Lord’s Prayer in Hellish-Latin creole:

Bader noṣerum, qui eḷwet in ǧevu Saṇificátus nomeus tuí foṣet. Venítus foṣet regḷeṛu tuí. Beṇorwium tuí facétus foṣet in teṛa et quoque in ǧevu. Panum nóbís dá xadix lebiére pro ǧuic dié Et iteredá nóbís debití noṣerum et iteredámus iḷós que debitátí nóbís sunet. Et non lemá nós in deṇaší, autem liberá nós ex malí.

Audio link, if you’d like to hear it spoken.

Erin A. Craig joins the podcasters to chat about horror as a genre and how she approaches writing it. Erin is the New York Times bestselling author of House of Salt and Sorrows and Small Favors which will be out July 27th.

For more about Erin and her books, visit her website.

The chapter we critiqued with all our notes can be found here.

To learn more about how to support the podcast (or participate in a writing group with some of the podcasters!) check out our Patreon.

Axie Oh joins the podcast to talk about how to create a shiny (or not so shiny!) near future world. Axie is the author of Rebel Seoul, Rogue Heart, XOXO (releasing July 13th), and The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea (Releasing February 2022). Find out more about Axie and her books here.

To read the chapter we critiqued with all our notes, go here.

If you'd like to learn how to support the podcast, check out our Patreon (we'd really appreciate it!)

Please remember to like, subscribe, comment, and tell your friends! All those things (maybe the last one most of all...) helps others to find the show.

Lori M. Lee joins us to chat about what it's like to work with a smaller publisher (compared with some of her other publishing experiences). What kind of publisher are you interested in working with?

Lori is the author of The Gates of Thread and Stone series (Skyscape/Amazon), Forest of Souls and it's sequel Broken Web (Page Street), and Pahua and the Soul Stealer (Sept, Rick Riordan Presents/Disney Hyperion). To find out more about Lori and her book, check out her website!

You can find the chapter we critiqued with all our notes here.

If you'd like to find out how to support this podcast, check out our Patreon.

For more about upcoming guests, first chapter submission guidelines, and the podcast, visit our website.

Liselle Sambury joins the Lit Service crew to chat about how to use subplots to flesh out our stories (and where to find them!).

Liselle is a Toronto-based Trinidadian Canadian author. Her brand of writing can be described as “messy Black girls in fantasy situations.” She works in social media and spends her free time embroiled in reality tv because when you write messy characters you tend to enjoy that sort of drama. She also shares helpful tips for upcoming writers and details of her publishing journey through a YouTube channel dedicated to helping demystify the sometimes complicated business of being an author.

Check out her website and her book (out the 15th!)!

If you'd like to see the chapter we critiqued with all our notes, there are two version: one with swearing and one without.

To find out more about how to support the podcast, please visit our Patreon.

Katherine Cowley joins the Lit Service Crew to chat about why adaptations, both of fairy tales and other stories people love, are so common, and how to approach writing one so it becomes your own story. 

To learn more about Katherine and her new book The Secret Life of Miss Mary Bennet, check out her website.

The first chapter we critique with all our notes is here.

To learn how to support the podcast, you can visit our Patreon page. Or, to find out how to submit your chapter for us to critique and upcoming guests, you can visit our website.