How NY Times Bestselling Author Jami Attenberg Writes: Bonus
In honor of Novel November and every writer who needs 1000 Words, I'm republishing author Jami Attenberg's interview. Keep calm and write on ...
New York Times bestselling author, Jami Attenberg, spoke with me about documenting the process of being a writer online and off, building a global literary movement, and her latest, 1000 Words: A Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All-Year Round.
Jami Attenberg is the New York Times bestselling author of seven books of fiction, including The Middlesteins, All Grown Up, and her recent memoir, I Came All This Way to Meet You. Her work has been published in 16 languages, she is the founder of the annual #1000WordsofSummer project and maintains the popular Craft Talk newsletter.
Jami Attenberg’s latest is 1000 Words: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All Year Round. “Inspired by [her] wildly popular literary movement #1000WordsofSummer, this writer’s guide features encouraging essays on creativity, productivity, and writing from [over 50] acclaimed authors including Roxane Gay, Lauren Groff, Celeste Ng, Meg Wolitzer, and Carmen Maria Machado.”
Lit Hub said of the book, “It will be the new Bird by Bird, you heard it here first.” A Booklist, Starred Review called it “A fantastic set of essays… Readers of this collection will feel surrounded and bolstered by like-minded people who have been in the trenches.”
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In this file Jami Attenberg and I discussed:
The blessing and the curse of knowing you’re a writer
How she built an online writing community into a literary movement
Her tongue-in-cheek approach to the craft
The reason she uses the seasons as a metaphor for writers
How to harness the power of write-alongs
And a lot more!
Show Notes:
JamiAttenberg.com
1000wordsofsummer.substack.com
1000 Words: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All Year Round by Jami Attenberg (Amazon)
Jami Attenberg Amazon Author Page
Jami Attenberg on Twitter
Jami Attenberg on Instagram
Kelton Reid on Twitter
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The Writer Files x Diary of a Book Babe: Vol. 2
#bookstagram influencer, reviewer, and writer Milena Gonzalez (aka Diary of a Book Babe) returns to speak to me about hanging out with Jeneva Rose and Penny Zang, her latest five-star finds, and her top book pick of 2025.
Milena Gonzalez graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a double major in Literary Journalism and English. She spent eight years as owner, designer, and screen printer of a small business, Lady & Little.
Milena is a Southern California mom to three kids. She is currently working on her third novel, a psychological suburban thriller. Learn more about her at diary_of_a_book_babe on Instagram.
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In this file Milena Gonzalez and I discussed:
Diving deeper down the Doll Parts rabbit hole
Our future chat with #1 New York Times-bestselling author of We Were Liars, E. Lockhart
Emily Henry’s Netflix adaptation
The importance of finding other voices and your writing community
Adam Skolnick’s return to the podcast
My rapid-fire AMA with Milena
A few gratuitous F-bombs
And a lot more!
Show Notes:
Milena Gonzalez | Writer | Reader | Book Reviewer
The Writer Files x Diary of a Book Babe: Vol. 1
Doll Parts: A Playlist by Penny Zang (Spotify)
How Acclaimed Debut Novelist Penny Zang Writes
How #1 NY Times Bestselling Author Jeneva Rose Writes
How Acclaimed Debut Novelist Jinwoo Park Writes
diary_of_a_book_babe on Instagram
Kelton Reid Instagram
Kelton Reid on Twitter
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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How National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride Writes
National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride spoke with me about finding her authentic voice, getting yelled at by kids, near-death experiences and the story behind her latest novel-in-verse THE LEAVING ROOM.
Amber McBride is an award-winning author, poet, and former assistant professor of poetry, writing, and protest literature. Her debut young adult novel, Me (Moth) was a finalist for the National Book Award, 2021 and won the 2022 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent, among many other accolades.
Her latest YA novel-in-verse is The Leaving Room, also a 2025 National Book Awards Finalist.
“Told from the perspective of a girl hovering between life and death, The Leaving Room is a poignant story about connection, grief, love, and the power of memories.”
Amber McBride’s middle-grade debut, Gone Wolf, won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. She holds an MFA in poetry from Emerson College, and her poetry has been published in Ploughshares, The Rumpus, DecomP Magazine, Provincetown Arts, and more.
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In this file Amber McBride and I discussed:
Overcoming hundreds of rejections early on
Finally quitting her assistant professorship to write full time
How the loss of her grandfather changed her writing
Why anything beyond publishing is icing on the cake
How she creates an entire world with a quarter of the words
Writing while the world sleeps
And a lot more!
Show Notes:
amber-mcbride.com
76th National Book Awards - Young People's Literature - Finalists
The Leaving Room by Amber McBride (Amazon)
Amber McBride Amazon Author Page
Amber McBride on Threads
Amber McBride on TikTok
Amber McBride on Instagram
Kelton Reid on Twitter
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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How Acclaimed Debut Novelist Penny Zang Writes
Acclaimed debut novelist Penny Zang spoke with us about making friendship bracelets for readers, why the world doesn’t stop when you lose a loved one, hanging out with Sylvia Plath, and her psychological thriller DOLL PARTS
I am joined by a co-host this week, none other than The Book Babe, Milena Gonzalez.
Penny Zang is an English professor at Greenville Technical College and the debut author of DOLL PARTS, described as “... a dark, poetic, dual-timeline psychological thriller that blends sad girl lit and feminist horror with a heavy dose of 90s grunge nostalgia.”
International bestselling author Samantha Downing said of the book, "Doll Parts is the most mesmerizing and original book I’ve read in a long time. It’s eerie and addictive, a story that pulls you in and won’t let go," and Library Journal wrote, “Zang’s compelling debut delves insightfully into topics such as friendship, grief, and Plath’s place in literature...”
Penny Zang holds an MFA in Creative Writing from West Virginia University and is the 2024 Elizabeth Boatwright Coker fiction fellow via the South Carolina Academy of Authors. Her work has appeared in New Ohio Review, Louisville Review, Superstition Review, Potomac Review, and South 85, among others.
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[If you’re a fan of The Writer Files, please click FOLLOW to automatically see new interviews. And drop us a rating or a review wherever you listen]
In this file Penny Zang, Milena Gonzalez, and I discussed:
How she formed the #5AMWritersClub
Writing as a form of grief after losing a good friend
Reminding her parents that her fiction didn’t really happen
Wending pop culture iconography into her work
Why finding your writing community is so important
And a lot more!
Show Notes:
pennyzang.com
Doll Parts: A Novel by Penny Zang (Amazon)
Penny Zang on Facebook
Penny Zang on Instagram
Penny Zang on Twitter
Milena Gonzalez | Writer | Reader | Book Reviewer
diary_of_a_book_babe on Instagram
Kelton Reid on Twitter
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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How to Become a Professional Screenwriter with Ted Braun and Melissa Rosenberg
WGA-nominated writer, director and USC professor Ted Braun, and TV and film writer and exec. producer Melissa Rosenberg, joined me to talk about reimagining screenwriting education with the MFA in Screenwriting at Bennington College.
Ted Braun is the Program’s Director and the WGA-nominated writer and director of Darfur Now, Betting on Zero, and Viva Maestro. He is a Professor of Screenwriting and Joseph Campbell Endowed Chair of Cinematic Ethics at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts and was named one of Variety’s Top Ten Teachers in Film and TV in 2018.
Melissa Rosenberg is a writer and executive producer known for Twilight, Jessica Jones, and a 1986 graduate of Bennington College, where she is now a Trustee. She helped create and showrun Jessica Jones and adapted the Twilight film series, while also serving as head writer for Dexter.
Bennington College will admit just 12 gifted, driven writers—students who are serious about building a body of work and launching a professional screenwriting career—to their inaugural class of The MFA in Screenwriting.
Braun notes, “We’re looking for students with imagination and hunger—those who want to develop a foundation for a decades-long screenwriting career.”
The MFA in Screenwriting at Bennington College prepares writers for a life as creative and professional leaders in the evolving landscape of film and television. This low-residency, two-year program combines the academic depth of a liberal arts education with the rigorous preparation needed for a career in screenwriting.
Learn more at bennington.edu/screenwriting Applications are due by December 1st, 2025.
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In this file Ted Braun, Melissa Rosenberg and I discussed:
How life as a screenwriter starts with material that is unique and alive to you
A one-of-a-kind screenwriting MFA, a low-residency program that yields six major pieces of work for TV and film, and why it is “perfectly suited to our times”
Bennington’s legacy of influential writers
Why we need strong, original cinematic voices now more than ever
And a lot more!
Show Notes:
bennington.edu/screenwriting
Ted Braun on IMDb
Melissa Rosenberg on IMDb
Kelton Reid on Twitter
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Om The Writer Files: Writing, Productivity, Creativity, and Neuroscience
“Learn how acclaimed writers keep the ink flowing, the cursor moving, and avoid writer’s block.”
Each week, host Kelton Reid chats with guests like Nobel Prize winner Abdulrazak Gurnah, on life after becoming a laureate; #1 New York Times bestselling author, Emily Henry on her past life as a YA mid-lister; Celebrated author, Walter Mosley, on his conflicted feelings after winning a National Book Award; NY Times bestselling author, Lisa Scottoline, on what she learned from literary lion Philip Roth; #1 NY Times bestselling author Dennis Lehane on what he borrowed from Clint Eastwood; and bestselling author, Matt Haig, on the process behind his novel, The Midnight Library, and serial guest hosts: neuroscientist Michael Grybko, journalist Adam Skolnick, and short story writer Robert Bruce.
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