Freelance Writing Direct with Estelle: Conversations with authors, journalists, agents, novelists, memoirists, niche writers, publishers, writing teachers, assigning editors and media experts.

In this episode: Laura's expertise writing about food [2:43] Writing and interviewing in short sound bites [17:14] Working with editors [5:33] Tips for writing reader-friendly, inspirational stories [4:24] How to become the go-to expert in your industry or niche [11:46] Trendspotting to excel at writing and publishing [23:45] Laura Burak is a nationally recognized registered dietitian of over 20 years, a media spokesperson, published author, and freelance writer and recipe developer. Laura founded GetNaked® Nutrition with a mission to teach you how to ditch serial dieting and strip down to the simplicity of food and nutrition while also finding joy and pleasure from it, including lots of fun snacks and food finds. Although the majority of her time has been spent working in hospital and private practice settings, Laura has been an adjunct professor at NYU, frequently contributes to media outlets and is the founder of the online community and course GetNaked Prep School. Her most recent publication is a health and recipe book entitled Slim Down with Smoothies. Laura sits on the medical expert board for Eat This, Not That and is an ambassador for The Nutritious Life Studio. Most significantly, Laura is a mom to two kids who love to challenge her encouragement of green foods and lives in the Long Island suburbs outside the city. Laura keeps it realer than real when it comes to the craziness of your busy life and strives to create a positive, comfortable environment to discuss what can sometimes feel like daunting and sensitive topics. Connect with Laura: Instagram page: www.instagram.com/getnakednutrition Facebook page: www.facebook.com/lauraburaknutrition Website: https://www.lauraburaknutrition.com Get Naked Snack Bar Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getnakedsnackbar Get Laura's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Slim-Down-Smoothies-21-Day-Weight/dp/1646117077 Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social Estelle's article on Maximizing Book Launch for Writer's Digest https://www.writersdigest.com/getting-published/what-to-do-to-maximize-your-launch-week-and-get-your-book-noticed Estelle's interview with Sheryl Ziegler on Freelance Writing Direct: Getting the Sound Bite: A Media Expert Speaks about Interviews https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freelance-writing-direct/id1647429472?i=1000608731314

In this episode: What the non-profit organization Pen Parentis offers parents who are writers [3:34] Milda's best tips for staying productive and finding accountability [7:35] Actionable tips for finding a writing routine that works best for you [12:14] Being a creative person in a relationship and creating priorities [15:20] Writing tips for creatives [28:00] M. M. De Voe is an internationally published creator of short fiction and poetry and holds numerous writing awards in a broad range of genres including poetry, literary fiction, horror/fantasy, and creative nonfiction. De Voe also runs Pen Parentis, a literary nonprofit she founded in 2013 to help writers stay on creative track while raising children. She is the author of Book & Baby, a fun-to-read guide showing parents how to find the time, money and energy to devote to creative writing. The book is organized from infancy to grown-and-flown and includes personal anecdotes from various established authors. In 2021, it won first prize at the NextGen Indie Book Awards. Her debut story collection A FLASH OF DARKNESS just launched in 2023 and is available here. Reviewers have called her "a femme-Kafka." Connect with Milda: Website: mmdevoe.com website also has links to BOOK & BABY for purchase. Substack: mmdevoe.substack.com Medium: mmdevoe.medium.com X: Twitter.com/mmdevoe Facebook: Facebook.com/mmdevoe How to find Pen Parentis: Website: penparentis.org X: twitter.com/penparentis Instagram: instagram.com/penparentis Facebook: facebook.com/penparentis Photographer credit for Milda's headshot: Luba Grossman. Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets- noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional- pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

In this episode: Kathleen's experience writing about publishing and public relations for her substack Publishing Confidential and why those newsletter issues have gone viral. [3:08] Why is the publishing industry broken? [3:45] Kathleen's view on book tours, and why they might not be the best options for selling books. [15:26] How to create a strategy for your book launch. [17:11] The 411 on signing books at bookstores. [13:16] Best practices for leveraging substack. [17:21] As the Founder and CEO of Kathleen Schmidt Public Relations, she is a well-respected voice in book publishing with in-depth experience in all aspects of the industry, including as a publicist, literary agent, acquisitions editor, and ghostwriter. Her career encompasses 30 years of creating and directing impactful and strategic global media, marketing, and branding campaigns for politicians, A-List celebrities, athletes, and high-profile personalities. To date, she has worked on 50 New York Times bestsellers, and her clients have continuously appeared in top-tier national print, broadcast, and radio outlets such as The Today Show, Good Morning America, Vogue, Elle, Financial Times, Vanity Fair, GQ, and Sirius XM. Her fast-growing Substack newsletter, Publishing Confidential, shares her wealth of inside knowledge that she hopes will help demystify the book industry. Married with two children, she resides in New Jersey. Connect with Kathleen Schmidt: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathmschmidt/ Substack: https://substack.com/@kathleenschmidt Website: https://kmspr.com To watch the extended version of this interview, with Kathleen's recommendations on what to read, watch, buy and more to gain insight and information, become a paid subscriber to Estelle's substack: https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social Estelle's article on Maximizing Book Launch for Writer's Digest https://www.writersdigest.com/getting-published/what-to-do-to-maximize-your-launch-week-and-get-your-book-noticed

In this episode: How Kevin came up with the idea of writing Junior Miles and the Junkman [3:13] The transition of writing poetry to writing middle grade fiction [6:24] Writing compelling characters and taking them on a conflict-filled, dramatic journey [9:58] Tips for telling short stories in the literary journal Molecule in 50 words or less [13:27] Stealing fact from fiction [29:07] Revising and tightening up your writing [31:01] Kevin Carey is Coordinator of Creative Writing at Salem State University. Books include: The Beach People (2014), The One Fifteen to Penn Station (2012), Jesus Was a Homeboy (2016) which was an Honor book for the Paterson Literary Prize, & Set in Stone (2020). His poems have appeared on The Writers Almanac on National Public Radio three times and on The Academy of American Poets Poem a Day. Kevin is also a playwright and a filmmaker. He has co-directed & co-produced two documentaries about poets, All That Lies Between Us and Unburying Malcolm Miller. A crime novel, Murder in the Marsh, from Darkstroke Books, was released in October (2020). A new middle grade novel Junior Miles and the Junkman will be out in September of 2023 from Fitzroy Books / Regal House Publishing and a co-written poetry collection Olympus Heights (Lily Poetry Review) will hit in October of 2023. Kevincareywriter.com Connect with Kevin: Email: kcareywriter@gmail.com Website: kevincareywriter.com X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/kcarey127 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevincareywriter/ Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social

In this episode: How Claire's viral article led to her writing her book [2:32] Why Claire decided to add a memoiristic approach to this book, rather than just a journalistic approach [8:22] The process and structure of Claire's book [12:32] Claire's opinion on 'cancel culture' and how she approaches writing about it [18:58] Adding a humanizing element to the book through memoir [29:13] The importance of writing with scene [34:29] Claire Dederer is a bestselling memoirist, essayist, and critic. Her books include the national bestseller Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma and the critically acclaimed memoir Love and Trouble: A Midlife Reckoning, as well as Poser: My Life in Twenty-three Yoga Poses. Dederer is a longtime contributor to The New York Times. Her essays, criticism, and reviews have also appeared in The Paris Review, The Atlantic, The Nation, Vogue, and many other publications. She began her career as the chief film critic for Seattle Weekly. She is the recipient of a Hedgebrook residency and a Lannan Foundation residency. Connect with Claire: Website: https://www.clairedederer.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clairedederer/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/claire.dederer/ X: https://twitter.com/ClaireDederer Read Monsters: https://www.clairedederer.com/monsters Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social

In this episode: The benefit of starting your story with a hook [3:09] Going from interviewing experts to becoming an expert [7:36] Her pivot from journalist to author [10:53] Writing about family in your book and the challenge of sharing their voices [13:57] Navigating covering a fraught topic like money in your book [7:36] Bobbi's favorite tips for organizing her writing/writing time [21:19] Bobbi Rebell, CFP® is the founder of Financial Wellness Strategies and the author of Launching Financial Grownups: Live Your Richest Life by Helping Your (Almost) Adult Kids Become Everyday Money Smart. She is a financial wellness advocate, the host of the Wellness for Financial Grownups podcast and the founder of GrownupGear.com. Bobbi was previously a global business news anchor and personal finance columnist at Reuters and held various journalist positions at top news outlets including CNBC, CNN and PBS. Connect with Bobbi: Website: https://www.bobbirebell.com Business Website: https://financialwellnessstrategies.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bobbirebell1/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbirebellkaufman/ Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social

In this episode: How Anna came up with the topic of her book [4:09] Using your book cover to promote your book and your business [11:39] A site that you can use to grow your authority [10:34] Using your team to get the word out [7:39] How speaking about your book can become lucrative, and where to start [23:35] Anna's best tips for marketing yourself as an expert [23:37] Anna David is the New York Times bestselling author of eight books and founder of Legacy Launch Pad Publishing. She's been published in the New York Times, Time, LA Times, Vanity Fair, Playboy, Vice, Cosmo, The Huffington Post, Buzzfeed and Salon, among many others, written about in Forbes, Martha Stewart Living, Entrepreneur, Allure and Women's Health and has appeared repeatedly on Today, The Talk, Good Morning America and numerous other programs. A featured speaker at three different TedX events, Anna hosts a hit publishing podcast that has featured interviews with authors such as Robert Greene and Chris Voss. Her first book, Party Girl, is in development as a film tentatively scheduled to be shot in 2023. Connect with Anna: Legacy LaunchPad Pub: https://www.legacylaunchpadpub.com Book To Business Class: https://www.legacylaunchpadpub.com/book-to-business Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/legacylaunchpad On Good Author-ity Podcast: https://www.legacylaunchpadpub.com/podcast Connect with Estelle: Estelle's 2 month Zoom class for NYU: Writing About Midlife and Beyond Through Memoir, Essays and Articles (limited spots available) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/courses/WRIT1-CE9800-writing-about-midlife-and-beyond-through-memoir-essays-and-ar.html Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her pitching guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social

CONTENT WARNING: This episode covers a novel that features a character who has gone through childhood sexual assault. In this episode: Finding the courage to tell a personal story [3:04] Alle's experience of publishing with a small press [4:19] Working with a PR agency [19:58] Advice for calling independent bookstores to set up in-person events or other opportunities [8:40] How to get the word out about your book with help from your readers [17:40] Actionable tips on how to promote your book [18:57] Nominated for The National Book Award and The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Book Award, Alle C. Hall's debut literary novel, As Far as You Can Go Before You Have to Come Back was winning prizes before its publication, including the National League of American Pen Women's Mary Kennedy Eastham Prize. Her short stories and essays appear in journals including Dale Peck's Evergreen Review, Tupelo Quarterly, New World Writing, Litro, Creative Nonfiction, and Another Chicago. Alle lived in Asia, traveled there extensively, speaks what she calls "clunky" Japanese, and has a tai chi practice of 35 years running. Connect with Alle: Website: https://allehall.wordpress.com Substack: https://allechall.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allec.hall/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alle.hall X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/allechall1 Alle's interview on Literary Mama: https://literarymama.com/articles/departments/2023/07/expect-the-miracle-a-conversation-with-alle-c-hall Connect with Estelle: Estelle's 2 month Zoom class for NYU: Writing About Midlife and Beyond Through Memoir, Essays and Articles https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/courses/WRIT1-CE9800-writing-about-midlife-and-beyond-through-memoir-essays-and-ar.html (Sign up now) Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her writing guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social

In this episode: How and why Brendan and Noah, his co-founder, created Narratively [3:04] Writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories [5:38] Tips for writing with narrative scenes [8:42] Advice for writing historical pieces that do not read like a wikipedia article [16:55] Brendan's best tips for writers and editors who want to work with Narratively [19:02] Advice for self editing [30:46] Brendan Spiegel is the co-founder and Editorial Director at Narratively. A New York City native, Brendan got his start in journalism as a political reporter and editor at Congressional Quarterly in Washington, D.C. His articles on food, travel, politics, news and humans have appeared frequently in The New York Times, as well as The Washington Post, Wired, New York magazine, Travel + Leisure and many other publications. Connect with Brendan: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanspiegel/ X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/BrennanSpiegel Narratively: https://www.narratively.com Narratively's Twitter: https://twitter.com/Narratively Narratively's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Narratively Narratively's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Narratively/ Narratively's most popular stories: The Deep South's Dames of Dildos: https://www.narratively.com/p/the-deep-souths-dames-of-dildos My High-Flying Life as a Corporate Spy Who Lied His Way to the Top: https://www.narratively.com/p/my-high-flying-life-as-a-corporate-spy-who-lied-his-way-to-the-top The Man with the Golden Airline Ticket https://www.narratively.com/p/the-man-with-the-golden-airline-ticket Estelle's articles she edited mentioned in the episode Confessions of a Fainting Man https://www.narratively.com/p/confessions-of-a-fainting-man I Quit My Job At 50 To Reinvent Myself: Pro Tip: Don't Do This https://www.narratively.com/p/i-quit-my-job-at-50-to-reinvent-myself-pro-tip-dont-do-this Connect with Estelle: Estelle's 2 month Zoom class for NYU: Writing About Midlife and Beyond Through Memoir, Essays and Articles https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/courses/WRIT1-CE9800-writing-about-midlife-and-beyond-through-memoir-essays-and-ar.html (Sign up now) Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her writing guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html Her substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social

In this episode: Switching genres from memoir to fiction writing [2:54] The freedom of writing fiction [7:07] What to leave out in your story and why? [10:22] The power of deadlines [11:49] Coming to writing later in life [13:33] Using literary devices, such as objective correlative to enhance your story [18:18] William Dameron is an award winning blogger, memoirist, essayist and the author of "The LIE, A Memoir of Two Marriages, Catfishing & Coming Out." His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Salon, The Huffington post, and in the book, Fashionably Late: Gay, Bi and Trans Men Who Came Out Later in Life. He is an IT Director for a global economic consulting firm, where he educates users on the perils of social engineering in cybersecurity. William, his husband, and blended family of five children split their time between Boston and the coast of southern Maine. Connect with Bill: Website: https://www.williamdameron.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wcdameron/ The Way Life Should Be: https://www.amazon.com/Way-Life-Should-Be-Novel/dp/1662511590 The Lie: A Memoir of Two Marriages, Catfishing & Coming Out https://www.amazon.com/Lie-Memoir-Marriages-Catfishing-Coming/dp/1542044731/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2PE6QI2KYYUTG&keywords=the+lie+by+william+dameron&qid=1692144535&sprefix=The+Lie+by+Will%2Caps%2C116&sr=8-1 Estelle's podcast with Ann Hood: Flying High with Storyteller Ann Hood https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freelance-writing-direct/id1647429472?i=1000614421113 Connect with Estelle: Her website: https://estelleserasmus.com (sign up for her newsletter and receive her writing guide). Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: Available wherever books are sold at https://estelleserasmus.com/books/writing-that-gets-noticed/ Adjunct Instructor, NYU (Sign up for her latest classes) https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/1068-estelle-erasmus.html My next course: Writing About Midlife and Beyond Through Memoir, Essays and Articles https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/courses/WRIT1-CE9800-writing-about-midlife-and-beyond-through-memoir-essays-and-ar.html (Sign up now) Her substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus/ X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/EstelleSErasmus Threads: https://www.threads.net/@estelleserasmus Blue Sky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social