Deadline City's Podcast

Welcome back to Deadline City! This week we are talking about the "Big Idea." But what is a "Big Idea" and who gets to decide that? We pull from our vast publishing experience plus trends we've seen come and go, and do a deep dive into a topic everyone seems to be chasing. Support the show

This week on Deadline City, we break down retellings and remixes. When it comes to writing, IS there anything new under the sun? We talk about our own experiences with tropes, reimaginings, classics, and WHO gets to tell these stories. Buckle in and join us. Support the show

This week we head to "Myth Buster Manor" where we asked the internet for publishing myths and rumors that are spread through the industry streets. Based on our experience, we tackle one by one. Is your career over if you don't hit the elusive NYT list? Are you relegated to a single genre? Does jumping agents make you less desirable? You asked, we answered. Support the show

This week's episode features Samira Ahmed, New York Times bestseller and activist! It's a deep dive into the politics of being an author. What risks do we take? What do we have to consider when we're writing about people from the real world, or fantasy worlds? We interrogate ourselves and the way we approach social media, as well as the decisions other creatives make when they're voicing their political views online. We hope you love this honest, and at times ridiculous (thanks Zoraida), conversation. Support the show

What's up Deadline City?! We're back to Burn Out Borough. This week we're having an honest conversation about how to identify burnout, working through COVID, what we're doing to cope with the times, and how we can be better.  No matter what, we're still creating. We're in this together, and hope this episode lets you know that you're not alone in Burnout Borough. Support the show

We're back and more tired than ever! But first, we need to catch up on all that's happened in our lives since the start of the year. So much has happened in the publishing industry this summer, and we go through our own version of "the state of the union." From Barnes & Noble's new policies to book bannings to the DOJ v PRH, we have a lot of opinions. Welcome back to Deadline City and we hope you stay a while! Support the show

It's that time again. RESOLUTION BLVD, we meet again. Dhonielle and Zoraida break down the peaks and pits of our year and lay out what we want to do better or try next year. What are your resolutions? We're also launching a small Deadline City shop! We've got mugs and tshirts and stickers, oh my! Check it out here: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/deadline-citySupport the show

This week on Deadline City, we discuss the subject of pen names. Why start your career with one? Why start a new one for a different genre? And what are the pros and cons of anonymity? Tune in to dive into another side of writer life on Deadline City. Support the show

This year, TikTok has become the new publishing buzzword. Publishers and authors have tried to crack the code of virality. What makes a book take off? Does crying online sell books? One thing is certain: when it works it works. Critically acclaimed author, Alex Aster, stops by Deadline City to talk about her first-hand experience with the platform, and how she leveraged her success into the biggest deal of her career so far. Listen in to what Alex has to say!Support the show

This week on Deadline City we talk about POV. From a certain POV, that is. No, it's not a Star Wars episode, BUT we do dig into what makes us write the way we write. How do we choose the way we tell stories? All that and more on this week's episode of Deadline City. Support the show

This week Deadline City has a special guest! Publicity manager, editor, and festival founder, Saraciea J. Fennell knows the ins and outs of the publishing industry. She stops by the Publicity Parlor to give us her insights into author-publisher relationships and how we can feel a little less helpless in this big wide career. Support the show

This week on Deadline City we are digging deep into theme! We break down some of our recent reads and figure out how we build themes and make our stories stronger.  Dhonielle is very organized, and Zoraida is not. Support the show

This week on Deadline City we head to the Query Quarter. We have an honest discussion about how we got our agents, when you know you need to move on, and how to keep going. Whether you're polishing your first letter or an author thinking of making a change, this episode is for you. Support the show

USA Today Bestselling author, Sierra Simone, stops by Deadline City to talk all things self-publishing. Sierra Simone is a bestselling author of angsty and dark romance. She's been in the game for years and we are so lucky to have her share her experience, her process, and her journey overall. Tune in to find out more!Support the show

This week on Deadline City we're talking about the future of the publishing industry from our perspectives. What are the changes we're reading out? How do we see buying trends changing, and how is this affecting the way we are personally going to keep creating. As always, let us know your thoughts! Support the show

Season 5 of Deadline City is here, and we are back on our bullsh*t! We catch up on this episode and go over our pandemic releases and well as discuss how we are staying sane during author promotion. Join us for our first episode back. Support the show

Welcome to the season finale of Deadline City! For our final episode, we've decided to talk about ideas and trends. We're often asked, "where do you get your ideas from?" Well, here it is. We discuss organic ideas and how they take shape. How trends might not be such a bad thing to write to if you do the work! And how publishing changes ideas for authors. We're also thrilled to be partnering with Libro.fm for a Deadline City exclusive discount code. Create a new account and you can get **2** audiobooks for the price of one ($14.99). About our sponsor: Libro.fm makes it possible to purchase audiobooks through your local bookstore of choice. The same way Bookshop.org helps independent bookstores, Libro.fm has a network of 1400+ bookstore partners.  They have over 185,000 audiobooks including New York Times bestsellers and hundreds of bookseller recommendations. The best part about Libro.fm? It's DRM-Free so all their audiobooks are free of being digitally managed. Translation: Unlike Audible, with Libro.fm you OWN the digital file, regardless. Read more here.To claim your two for one audiobooks: Your code can be entered at checkout: DeadlineCity26It can also be redeemed by clicking on your link with the code embedded: libro.fm/redeem/DeadlineCity26Thank you for listening in this season. We wouldn't be able to this without you. If you're part of our Patreon, the monthly live streams will still be happening! After our summer break we'll be back for the fall with more conversations, more publishing deep dives, and more shenanigans. Write on, Zoraida + Dhonielle  Support the show

YA versus Adult! We get these questions quite a bit. Why write YA? Why write adult? What is the difference? Zoraida is making the move to adult in September 2021, and Dhonielle is so close to finishing her first adult novel. But why the change? And how was the process different than when they wrote Labyrinth Lost or The Belles? How would those books look like if they had written them with an older audience in mind?Support the show

This week on Deadline City we talk about sex and intimacy in adult romance novels! Sarah E. Younger is a literary agent who specializes in adult romance. She's part of the Nancy Yost Literary Agency and represents authors like Alexis Daria, Kit Rocha, and many more. We explore the different heat levels (chili peppers, if you will) and what makes for convincing chemistry. Support the show

Welcome to the Fantasy Fields! New York Times best-selling author Rebecca Roanhorse joins us in Deadline City for a deep dive on fantasy world-building. How do we create fantasy novels that have distinct cultures? How do we go beyond the generic European fantasy? Rebecca is a master world-builder--just read Black Sun! Listen in for her expert advice on how to write with intention. Support the show

One of the ongoing conversations in the Book World is the politics of being a writer! Can authors take an a-political stance? What are the expectations? Dhonielle and Zoraida discuss the politics of being an author in times like these. Support the show

This week on Deadline City we are joined by an old friend and critically acclaimed author and anthologist, Natalie C. Parker.  We pick her brain about how she creates community through workshops and retreats at her company, Madcap Retreats, as well as other author events. The social aspect of being an author is a big part of #authorlife, and we talk about our own experiences navigating these waters. Support the show

Let's talk about #OwnVoices! This term  coined by the writer Corinne Duyvis has changed a lot about the conversation about books. We go over what it means, what it means to us, and how it can be weaponized by the publishing industry. Is #OwnVoices over? Tune in to this week's Deadline City. Support the show

A question we get often is "do I have to stay in one genre?" For us, the answer is no. But that's a big topic and a lot of factors go into that. We're joined by New York Times bestselling author, Adam Silvera, to talk about how we write our stories and why. Support the show

This week we talk about the controversial parts of publishing! As always we want to make sure we cover everything, even subjects that are a bit tricky to navigate. This is a huge discussion and we only cover a bit of it, but we have to start somewhere. The Deadline City court is in session!Support the show

It's party time in Deadline City. A *monster mash* if you will. This week we have two powerhouse authors stopping by: Cassandra Clare and Holly Black. Cassandra Clare is the creator of the Shadowhunters universe and Holly Black is the author of over a dozen books, most recently The Folk of the Air trilogy. As a duo, they're the co-authors of The Magisterium Series. With expansive worlds, deliciously bad characters, and morally complex anti-heroes, we couldn't wait to have a candid conversation about writing monsters, villains, good guys, and everyone in between. Support the show

This week on Deadline City we have special guest Daniel José Older! We get down to the nitty-gritty of race and coding in science fiction and fantasy. Prepare for some conversation around Star Wars and all the things fantasy. How do writing and politics intersect? We don't have all the answers but we have a starting point to a larger conversation. Plus, Dhonielle renames Jabba the Hut. #Werepigeons Support the show

This ween on Deadline City we talk all things agents! We've changed agents and agencies quite a few times and we wanted to share how it all went down, and the questions you need when searching for your forever agent-home. This is a big topic so we can't cover everything, but we always want to be as honest as possible when it comes to our experiences. Support the show

Zoraida and Dhonielle are back for season 4! That means more deadlines, more shenanigans, more loving drags of each other. For the kick-off episode, we cover everything from where we are in our forever deadlines, to the writing process, to how we are going to keep each other accountable in self-care. It's a new year but the game hasn't changed. We're just learning and going with the flow. Welcome back. We missed you!Support the show

We've made it to the end of 2020! We do a recap of our resolutions, the way 2020 body checked us into a new reality, and how we plan to reset into 2021 for a better, more productive writing year. We can do this together. Happy New Year! Love, D + ZSupport the show

Welcome to the longest episode we've done on Deadline City yet! We invited Tessa Gratton, author of Queen of Innis Lear and Night Shine, to talk about big worldbuilding challenges. We talk about racial coding and queering the worlds we love to read about. What succeeds? How do some fail? Dhonielle has it out for The Witcher and Star Wars, and Zoraida tries to defend her faves. There is a lot of love, shouting, and serious advice on how to get down to business creating new and epic fantasy novels. Support the show

To celebrate the release of Dhonielle's TINY PRETTY THINGS, we are talking Hollywood adaptions! We cover everything from how books get optioned to some of our favorite properties that have received the Hollywood treatment, and what are we excited to see up next! Make sure you stream TINY PRETTY THINGS on Netflix!Support the show

Deadline City goes to the Library! What books populate your shelves? What makes you love a story forever? What turns you away? This discussion is focused on recent industry conversations involving the place of classic novels and how that ties into a larger discussion about the state of YA, and beyond.  Support the show

This week we do a deep dive into the revision process. Or as Dhonielle calls it, the Revision Dumpster. That's right, we live here. Revision can often feel like a huge mountain to climb. So how do you actually do it? What do you focus on? We go over our process, what has worked in the past, what is working now, and more bickering from your Deadline City aunties. Support the show

Welcome to the jungle! On this week's episode of Deadline City, we tackle all kinds of jealousy monsters. Each one has a character and purpose because we know that there are tons of forms of jealousy. The question is, which one are you and which have we been? This topic is tricky and sometimes hard to talk about. But as always, we strive to be as transparent as we can, and hope that these anecdotes can help you resolve some of your own publishing dilemmas--or even better--avoid them! Support the show

Love is in the air. Sort of. This week on Deadline City we do a deep dive into what makes for a compelling love triangle. What makes a love triangle versus a love tent? We look at the most popular books like the Twilight and Shadowhunters series, as well as discuss our tips to write our own versions, as well as what to steer away from. Support the show

It's that time of the year again and we are in the trenches of deadlines, specifically NaNoWriMo. Whether you're new to National Novem Writing Month or you wait for November to roll around to get to work, this episode is for you! It focuses on how we write and how we prepare for the marathon. What's your NaNo novel this year? Support the show

Come with us on a journey to the past...ish. This section of Deadline City is called Oldville, where historical fiction waits for us. Our first special guest of the season is Chloe Gong, author of The Violent Delights. How much research is too much research? What books do we love that mix historical and fantasy? Get some tips and more on this week's episode of Deadline City. Support the show

We're living in Burn Out Borough this week on Deadline City. What does burn out look like for working authors? We talk about our biggest fears, our worst habits, and the things we do to get out of this part of Deadline City. Plus, every writing metaphor we can find! Support the show

We are back for season three! That means more deadlines, more book shop talk, and more Dhonielle and Zoraida shenanigans. This week we're headed to the Short Story Zone. We've been involved in a lot of short story anthologies lately and we wanted to break down the process a little bit, especially the ingredients that we thinking about when writing in this medium in particulate. Thanks for listening and be sure to subscribe! Support the show

Welcome to the season finale of Deadline City. We're headed to the Commercial Tower! In this episode, we're going to talk about literary vs. commercial fiction. We break down some of our favorite books and turn them into log lines. Is the book commercial or is it the pitch? What is the science of an alluring pitch? How does publishing pigeonhole us? Most importantly, do any of these things matter in the grand scheme of things as long as we're writing amazing books? All of this and more in our final episode of the season. See you in season 3! Support the show

This week on Deadline City we are heading to the Arena! Fantasy vs. Contemporary. We have the immense pleasure of being joined by multi-award-winning and bestselling author, Jason Reynolds. The big debate? How do creators keep pushing themselves to become innovators? Is fantasy in a Middle-Earth sized rut? Do contemporary writers feel the same constraints as their genre counterparts? But most importantly, what did dragons ever do to Jason Reynolds? Find that out and more in this lively discussion.Support the show

What's up, Deadline City? This week Dhonielle and I are talking about MONEY. That's right. We're going to the Bank. We know that there is a lot of mystery surrounding the financial aspects of becoming a writer. What are world rights? How do I even get paid? How much, in the eyes of publishing, is my book worth? Do you go full time? Do you keep your job? That decision is one you have to make yourself. But, we can share some of our knowledge. We cover what advances are, how they're broken up, the viral hashtag #PublishingPaidMe (created by L.L. McKinney and Tochi Onyebuchi), and much more. Here at Deadline City we try to be as open and honest as we can. We hope that no matter what level of publishing you're in, you get something out of this episode. Support the show

Don't kill the mentor! (Or do! But first, let's talk about why). In our final episode on character study and archetypes, we talk about one of the staples in fantasy: the mentor. One of our jobs as writers is to keep inventing fresh stories and language, and the work only gets harder. The Mentor figure is one that rarely seems to change and we try to figure out why that is. How can we push ourselves and our stories to surprise the reader? Worldbuilding is never finished, but this is a wrap on our character study (for now)! Support the show

Welcome to the Champagne Room. A shimmering lounge where we discuss love interests—the good, the villainous, and the ones who belong in the trash with us. As part of or character study, we move on to the Love Interest. How do they serve the narrative and further the plot and the protagonist's main story arc? How do you make a love interest that is hard to forget? As always, we run through some examples using books and movies with characters we love to love. Support the show

Hop aboard the Murder Express! This week we put some of our character building to the test while we interview Gretchen McNeil, acclaimed horror and mystery author of Ten, #MurderTrending, and the Get Even duology, now on the BBC and soon to be on Netflix. We break down horror tropes, how to build a good mystery, and how to take these tools and apply them into any genre you're working on. Sometimes the scariest stories will surprise you! Support the show

Welcome to Sidekick Central! We continue our character study during the month of May. Sidekicks can sometimes take on a life of their own. We name some of our favorites as well as the do's and don't's that can help while you're on deadline. The more life you give the people surrounding your hero, the more complexity you bring to your world. Bonus: the time Dhonielle met Outlander's Sam Heughan by accident in Scotland. Support the show

Welcome to Plot Depot! This week we cover Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey and break down each section using 'Into the Spider-Verse'. Outlines don't always work. The Hero's Journey is one of the most popular ones used by fantasy authors. It certainly doesn't work for everyone, nor should it be prescriptive. In this episode, we aim to understand how each section can move the character's inner journey alongside the physical one. We might end up breaking our books, or possibly fix them! Happy writing!Support the show

Welcome back to Deadline City! This week kicks off our month-long series of character studies. From now until the end of May we will be breaking down heroes, villains, and the journeys they take. Hang with us in our Hero & Villain Lounge where we discuss the traits that make us love these protagonists and the gray areas that make their stories so potent. How do you take the idea of a character and build someone complex and relatable? How do we make their journey compelling enough to maintain that narrative tension? Tune in to this week's episode to find out. Support the show

This week on Deadline City we have Clean Getaway author, Nic Stone joining the Author Salon! Nic Stone writes in multiple genres and age groups and we pick her brain about how she keeps track of everything. We all have so many stories to tell, but how do you decide a particular story is "the one"? What is Nic's method? How do you figure out who the protagonist is, or what age groups your audience is? All of these things come into play, as well as our usual writer shenanigans. Support the show