Hear us Roar cover art

Hear us Roar

Hear us Roar

By: Maggie Smith
Listen for free

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. Debut writers discuss 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.Maggie Smith Art Economics Literary History & Criticism Marketing Marketing & Sales
Episodes
  • 320: Rosa Kwon Easton - Author of White Mulberry

    320: Rosa Kwon Easton - Author of White Mulberry
    May 28 2026
    This week's guest is Rosa Kwon Easton (White Mulberry, Lake Union, December 2024). We discuss how an unusual query approach got Rosa her dream agent, who helped her strategically pinpoint editors during submission resulting in a two-book deal with Amazon and a selection as a First Reads. We also delve into why you might want to hire a publicist, financing your own book tour, and how your college alumnae group may be your secret weapon in finding book clubs.

    Rosa Kwon Easton is a Korean American lawyer, a library trustee, and the author of the debut novel, White Mulberry, an Amazon First Reads Editor's Pick and a #1 Best Seller in Historical Fiction. Her novel has been reviewed by Booklist and named a "Best Book" by Parade Magazine, BookBub, and Book Riot, among others. Easton is an Anaphora Writing Residency Fellow, a member of the Women's Fiction Writers Association, and her work has been published in CRAFT Literary, Electric Literature, Writer's Digest and elsewhere. A graduate of Smith College, Columbia University, and Boston College Law School, she resides with her husband and Maltipoo in sunny Southern California. White Mulberry has been translated into multiple languages, and her sequel, Red Seal, is due out in October 2026.

    For more information about Rosa, go to https://rosakwoneaston.com/
    Show More Show Less
    36 mins
  • 319: Kristin Owens - Author of Elizabeth Sails

    319: Kristin Owens - Author of Elizabeth Sails
    May 21 2026
    Our guest this week is Kristin Owens (Elizabeth Sails, Rising Action Publishing, October 2024). We discuss how Kristin's critique group convinced her to write a novel instead of short fiction, how a trip on the Queen Mary inspired her setting, and how she learned to stop being kind to her main character and to get tough instead. Then we discuss how she's paired with cruise lines like Cunard to market her book, spending six months last year on ships where she lectures about the publishing industry and teaches classes.

    Kristin Owens holds a Ph.D. in higher education and is an award-winning faculty member with over 25 years university experience. Now a full-time writer in sticky southwest Florida, Kristin has over 100 bylines with celebrated magazines such as Wine Enthusiast, Writer's Digest, and 5280. Her personal essays have won Honorable Mention for the New Millennium Writing Awards, awarded finalist for the New Letters' award in nonfiction, and included in RISE! Colorado's Book of the Year. Her debut novel, Elizabeth Sails, was shortlisted for The Gilda Prize and Killer Nashville's Silver Falchion Award for Best Cozy. With her background in instructional design, she takes complex subjects and breaks them down into entertaining bite-sized pieces. Her high-energy presentations motivate writers to stick with it.

    To learn more about Kristin, go to her website https://www.kristin-owens.com/
    Show More Show Less
    39 mins
  • 318: Faye Arcand - Author of Inside Outside

    318: Faye Arcand - Author of Inside Outside
    May 14 2026
    This week we talk with Faye Arcand (Inside Outside, indie published November 2024). Learn how a best-seller psychological suspense informed Faye's debut plot, how she delved into a fourteen-year-old's brain, and how having an agent didn't work out for her. Then we discuss the importance of an author website and how having a plan for marketing makes everything smoother. And don't miss her quirky secret—it's a doozy.

    Faye Arcand is the author of the award-winning psychological suspense novel INSIDE OUTSIDE. Arcand spent several years working within the criminal justice system before travelling the world. Every experience is fodder for her twisted writer brain. She's fascinated by the quirks and perspectives life presents as she peers through the lens of deviance, mental health, fear, or anything antisocial, weird, or different. When she's not eavesdropping on a conversations or observing from afar, you'll find her studying reality TV, chatting with her golden retriever Piper, or editing her upcoming thriller, Can You See Me? She lives somewhere in the wilds of British Columbia, Canada.

    To learn more about Faye, go to https://fayearcand.com/
    Show More Show Less
    36 mins
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet