Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most recent episodes, a curated Listening List of episodes on a particular theme, and other fun goodies we only share via email. Best of all, it’s free to join! The theme for March is Magic, and you can become an insider by signing up with your email at diymfa.com/insiders.

In the 400th Episode Extravaganza, Lori and I:

• Give listeners a behind the scenes look at the inner workings of DIY MFA.
• Share what makes a successful podcast pitch and how to be a good guest.
• Discuss why I started the podcast in the first place and how it evolved over time.
• Talk about some of the fun things we have in the works for word nerds.

Plus, we share a huge announcement.

About Lori Walker

Lori Walker is the Operations Maven, Podcast Producer, Launch Manager, Web Editor, Book Coach, and Resident Reader at DIY MFA. Lori is also the writer behind the Book Nook column. She is currently working on an essay collection and a novel.

In her spare time, she loves yoga, cooking, traveling, smooth bourbons, strong cabernets, dirty martinis, watching baseball, and of course, reading. She lives outside of Tulsa with her husband and cat, Joan Didion.

You can follow her on Twitter or on Instagram.

To check out the pitch page for DIY MFA Radio, click here.

Link to Episode 400

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.

Also, remember that sharing is caring so if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please tell them about it or leave us a review so other listeners will want to check it out.

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post The 400th Episode Extravaganza with Gabriela Pereira and Lori Walker appeared first on DIY MFA.

Today’s show is our last episode of 2018 so Happy New Year everybody!

And this episode is an especially awesome one because it features three members of my awesome DIY MFA team. I am so excited to have DIY MFA columnists Melanie Marttila, Brenda Joyce Patterson, and Stacy Woodson on the show!

I also want to take a moment to mention that these three amazing women are only a tiny sample of the awesome members of DIY MFA. We currently have 21 members on our team, from columnists who contribute articles to people who work their magic maintaining our archives and helping to curate all the voices we feature on our site. So a big thank you to all the members of the team for another awesome year!

Now, let me introduce the three amazing ladies I’ll be chatting with in this interview.

Melanie Marttila is a certified corporate trainer by day and fantasy writer by night. She writes the DIY MFA column Speculations, which is all about science fiction and fantasy. Her own works of scifi and fantasy have appeared in several places such as Bastion Science Fiction Magazine and On Spec Magazine.

Brenda Joyce Patterson is a poet, writer, librarian, and lover of short writing forms. Her column at DIY MFA, Writing Small, focuses on the various different short forms of writing such as short stories, poetry, and essays. She is a mentee in the Association of Writers & Writing Programs’ Writer to Writer Mentorship Program for Fall 2018—which is a very prestigious and selective mentoring program—and her poetry and flash fiction have been published in numerous literary magazines such as Vayavya. She has also had a travel essay published (along with works by Maya Angelou and Gwendolyn Brooks) in the anthology Go Girl: The Black Woman’s Guide to Travel and Adventure.

Stacy Woodson writes crime fiction and is the columnist behind Hook, Line, and Dagger, which dives into all things thriller and mystery. She is a U.S. Army veteran and memories of her time in the military are a source of inspiration for her writing. Stacy is a Daphne du Maurier winner and a Killer Nashville Claymore finalist. She also has several short fiction pieces forthcoming in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, Malice Domestic’s Mystery Most Edible, and Chesapeake Crimes: Invitation to Murder.

Didn’t I tell you my team was amazing?!?! But I’ll stop gushing and let you hear from these fabulous women themselves. So listen in as Melanie, Brenda, Stacy and I chat about the aspects of genre writing and give you a sneak peek at the behind-the-scenes of DIY MFA.

In this episode Melanie, Brenda, Stacy and I discuss:

• An inside look at the Speculations, Writing Small, and Hook, Line, and Dagger columns.
• The different conventions within genres and writing forms.
• Why reading with purpose in your genre is so important.
• Pitfalls to avoid when writing thriller, scifi/fantasy, and short forms.
• Book recommendations to help you dive into each of their genres.

Plus, all these lovely ladies’ #1 tip for writers.

About Melanie Marttila

During the day, Melanie is a certified (insert joke-of-choice here) corporate trainer, and by night she is a science fiction and fantasy writer. She writes the DIY MFA column Speculations which is all about science fiction and fantasy.

You can find her short science fiction in Bastion Science Fiction Magazine (“The Broken Places,” June 2014), On Spec Magazine (“Downtime,” Fall 2014), and Sudbury Ink (“Cicadas” and “Molly Finder,” 2016).

To connect with Melanie check out her website melaniemarttila.ca.

And you can read Melanie’s most recent Speculations article here.

About Brenda Joyce Patterson

Brenda Joyce Patterson is a poet, writer, librarian, and lover of short writing forms. She is a mentee in the Association of Writers & Writing Programs’ Writer to Writer Mentorship Program for Fall 2018. She writes the column, Writing Small, for DIY MFA extolling poetry and short stories, literature’s mild-mannered superheroes.

Her poetry and flash fiction have been published in Vayavya, Gravel Magazine, and Melancholy Hyperbole. Also, along with works by Maya Angelou, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Alice Walker, her travel essay, “The Kindness of Strangers”, appeared in Go Girl: The Black Woman’s Guide to Travel and Adventure published by Eighth Mountain Press in 1997.

To connect with Brenda check out her website at brendajoycepatterson.com.

And you can read Brenda’s most recent Writing Small article here.

About Stacy Woodson

Stacy Woodson is a crime fiction writer as well as a U.S. Army veteran, and memories of her time in the military are a source of inspiration for her stories. She is a Daphne du Maurier winner for best romantic suspense, in the single-title, unpublished category and a Killer Nashville Claymore finalist. She reviews books for Publishers Weekly, and writes the column Hook, Line, and Dagger for DIY MFA which dives into the thriller and mystery genre.

Her short fiction will appear in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine in 2019, as well as in two forthcoming anthologies: Malice Domestic’s Mystery Most Edible from Wildside Press also due out in 2019, and Chesapeake Crimes: Invitation to Murder due out from Wildside Press in 2020.

To connect with Stacy check out her website at www.stacywoodson.com.

And you can read Stacy’s most recent Hook, Line, and Dagger article here.

Link to Episode 232

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio or Google Play and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.

Also, remember that sharing is caring so if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please tell them about it or leave us a review so other listeners will want to check it out.

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 232: Behind the Scenes of DIY MFA’s Genre Columns — Interview with Melanie Marttila, Brenda Joyce Patterson, and Stacy Woodson appeared first on DIY MFA.

I’m beyond excited to announce that we are adding not one, not two, but three new columns to our regular DIY MFA schedule. One of my favorite parts of DIY MFA is building our community by bringing you more word nerd wisdom via the website. And let me tell you—you are going to LOVE our new columnists.

As you know, “read with purpose” is one of the three core concepts at DIY MFA, but for a long time we haven’t had any columns on the site dedicated to just to reading. We’ve always featured great in-depth posts on the craft of writing and practical advice on the marketing and platform side of things. More recently, we’ve also added several columnists to our roster, each focusing on a specific genre. But that reading piece has always been missing… until now.

While you’ll notice that our three new columnists have very different talents and expertise, they do have one very important trait in common: they are passionate about books and reading. When Bess and I put out a call for a reading columnist, we absolutely fell in love with the concept behind each of these three columns, and each was so unique and distinct from the others that we decided we had to have all three on the team.

Here’s what each of these awesome women about the columns they’ll be writing:

Terri Frank: Your Personal Librarian

As a professional librarian, I’ve been connecting readers and books for over 20 years. My column will give you tips and tricks to get more reading done, expand your knowledge of genres and authors and, of course, to read with purpose. So grab your favorite warm beverage and join me as we delve into the world of books and reading. Think of me as the DIYMFA community’s personal librarian.

Check out Terri’s first article, “Five Ways to Use the Library to Nurture Your Reading Life” 

Note from Gabriela: Librarians are the unsung superheroes of literature and it’s about time we added a librarian’s voice to the website. Terri’s column will give you a window into how librarians think, and also how to build more reading into your writing life.

Brenda Joyce Patterson: Writing Small

In my Writing Small column, I’ll share poems and short stories, literature’s mild-mannered superheroes, to help you hone your writing skills. Together, with a detour or two, we’ll learn to weave their subtle lessons in voice, characterization, and place into creating our own poems, short stories, and novels. We’ll also explore techniques to reading widely — spontaneously and planned — that will work towards your writing goals.

Check out Brenda’s first article, “Opening Doors Through Poetry and Short Fiction”

Note from Gabriela: I’ve often said that writing small is the literary holy grail, and there’s no better way to study the craft than by examining poetry and short fiction. I am so thrilled to welcome Brenda to the team. As a librarian, writer and avid reader, I know she’ll have plenty to share about on reading—and learning from—short form literature.

Abigail K. Perry: Let’s Talk Books

When all else fails, remember Stephen King’s motto! “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all else: read a lot, and write a lot.” The more we read, the more invisible mentors we gather to our noggins, the stronger writers we become. And yet, for us writers, reading isn’t enough. We need discussion!

In my column, Let’s Talk Books, I dissect writing at the paragraph level to help you get the most out of your reading. How? By pulling sections from the four pillars of DIY MFA’s recommended reads: Competitive Books, Informative Books, Contemporary Books, and Classics. I start the reading discussion by explaining what I noticed in the paragraph, why it’s important, and how these writing techniques and tips make a stronger writer. But the real beauty of this column comes in the bonus section, where you can practice what I’ve discussed with a writing exercise!

Check out Abigail’s first article, “How to Make Your Character Descriptions Perform Double-Duty”

Note from Gabriela: One of my favorite things to do is read short passages of great literature and nerd out over the craft. I am so excited for a column that will focus on just that, and pull examples from the different type of recommended reads. At the end of each post, Abigail will give you a writing exercise, so you can implement what you learned.

Please join us in welcoming Terri, Brenda and Abigail to the team!

The post Announcing New Reading Columns at DIY MFA! appeared first on DIY MFA.

Writing Resolutions from the DIY MFA Team

Emily: I Resolve to Complete the First Drafts for Two Novels

Sara: I Resolve to Start Pitching My WIP

I try not to make New Year’s Resolutions – because I’m terrified I’ll fail at them! However, one of my goals for 2016 is realistic enough that I feel comfortable (though super-scared) with sharing it: I want to start pitching my YA fantasy novel to agents in 2016.

I haven’t pitched the WIP yet mostly because “it’s not ready.” (In other words, I didn’t want to pitch it too soon, when I’d just started the revising process.) However, I already have a “practice pitch” that I brought to the 2015 Writer’s Digest Conference, and I shared it with other attendees to get their feedback. I also asked about the conference’s Pitch Slam to learn how it ran and how to prepare myself when I “take the plunge.”

So, in 2016, I’m taking the pitching plunge. I’m already planning to attend Writer’s Digest Conference in August; and this time, I’ll sign up for the Pitch Slam. As the conference dates come closer, I’ll review my pitch, hone it as necessary, and memorize it as best as I can. I’ll also look into other pitching opportunities such as #PitMad on Twitter. All the necessary steps are there – now my challenge is ensuring I craft that a pitch that convinces agents to read my story.

Bess: I resolve to read 25 Published Books

One of the wonderful things about working as an editor is that reading is my job. It’s also one of the hardest things. I’ve got a constant pile of submissions, and do a lot of beta-reading as well. It’s wonderful, and I’m so happy that I get to spend a lot of my office hours curled around a good story. But the unwelcome side effect? When I get home from work, I’m much more likely to turn on Netflix than crack open a new book, especially if I’m pretty sure that book is going to keep me up past 11:00. In 2015 I ended up reading only a handful of finalized works.

Of course, this is a problem. I don’t think writers can write well or editors can edit well if they’re not reading well. At the same time, I don’t want reading to be a chore. That’s why I’ve resolved to read 25 published books in 2016. My younger self would scoff at the number, calling it far too low, but for me right now, it’s an ambitious, but reachable one that I think will help my career, my writing and my sanity!

Gabriela: I Resolve to Not Make Any Resolutions

Wendy: I Resolve to Read As Much As I Write 

And Now it’s Your Turn!

What are your writing resolutions this year? Or are you taking a leaf out of Gabriela’s book and focusing on daily plans and shorter-term goals? Let us know in the comments, or on social media, using the hashtag #5OnFri!

Happy New Year Word Nerds! And here’s to a fabulous and writing-filled 2016!

The post #5OnFri: 5 Resolutions from the DIY MFA Team appeared first on DIY MFA.

As we launch into the holiday season, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the wonderful things that have come of this year, and—more importantly—all the people who helped me get where I am.

While DIY MFA started off as a one-woman show, these days it is far from that. Rather, there are many people behind the scenes helping to make DIY MFA what it is today. Without these amazing people on the DIY MFA team, I would not be able to do what I do.

Bess Cozby

You probably already know that DIY MFA offers tons of great content several times per week, but what you probably don’t realize is that the mastermind behind all these articles is not only me, but my amazing web editor, Bess Cozby.

Bess has been part of the DIY MFA family since day one. When I ran the first DIY MFA experiment on my teeny-weeny personal blog back in 2010, she was one of the first people to participate. We realized that we were both based in NYC and ended up meeting in person. Later, in fall 2012, Bess volunteered as an intern, then became the first core member of my team a few months later.

In her tenure as web editor, she has helped put together a phenomenal group of columnists and guest post regulars, plus spearheading and coordinating this #5onFriday column. Bess has a remarkable eye for spotting talent and has been instrumental in shaping the voice and vibe of the DIY MFA curated content.

As if that wasn’t enough, she also works full-time at Tor/Forge (an imprint of Macmillan) and recently acquired her first book. Remember her name, people, because this girl is going to be running an imprint someday.

Elisabeth Kauffman

If there is someone I rely on almost daily with DIY MFA, it’s Elisabeth. She is the producer for DIY MFA Radio and coordinator for Writer Igniter Con, but her role is so much bigger than that.

When I start going down a rabbit hole of some crazy idea, Elisabeth is always the person who gives me that much-needed (but also gentle) reality check. When I’m in the middle of a meltdown because I have eight zillion deadlines all at once, Elisabeth is the person who reminds me to breathe and then in the next sentence says: “what can I do to help?”

With DIY MFA Radio, she is the second set of ears who listens to every episode and edits out anything silly or ridiculous I might say. Basically, if I (and my guests) sound smart and collected on the show, a huge part of that credit goes to Elisabeth for making us sound good.

As for Writer Igniter Con, there would be no conference at DIY MFA without Elisabeth. Aside from helping me curate the event line-up, select speakers and prepare all the materials so that it was seamless, she also corralled the agents and coordinated submissions for the various panels at the Con. These critique panels were by far and away the favorites at the conference, mostly thanks to Elisabeth’s ninja skills at coordinating everything.

Elisabeth runs Writing Refinery (her freelance editing company) and whenever a writer asks me to refer a freelance editor, I send them to her. Her sharp instincts and gentle hand are the perfect combination to help writers polish their manuscripts into something that will make them proud.

Columnists

One of the first things I realized when creating DIY MFA is that I myself could not be an expert at everything and that sooner or later I would have to bring more voices to the website. Bess and I worked together to create a team of phenomenal columnists and guest post “regulars” to round out the areas of expertise represented on the site.

While not all of these columnists are actively writing for the site, they have all had an impact in shaping the collective DIY MFA voice.

• Emily Wenstrom — Pixels to Platform
• Sara Letourneau — Theme: A Story’s Soul
• Robin Lovett — Let’s Write
• Alicia Audrey — Flash in the Corner
• Amy Bearce — KidLit Cornucopia
• Melinda VanLone — The Amateur’s Guide to a Professional Book Package and DIY MFA Photographer
• Rebecca Ann Jordan — Ask Becca
• Wendy Lu — New Spin
• Kent Bridgeman —Swimming With the Sharks

101 Course Ambassadors

These people are among the best-kept secrets at DIY MFA. Each quarter, I recruit a couple of DIY MFA 101 course “alumni” to serve as ambassadors for the up-coming term. These writers serve as a cross between TA’s and student advisors for the incoming class. They answer questions, offer guidance, and help foster the creative and supportive community that is one the core components of the class. Several ambassadors have even served several times, becoming an integral part of the course community.

I want to give a super-mega shout-out to one course ambassador in particular, who has been on every single class conference call since the class first began. If I ever get hit by a NYC bus and can’t call in to class, I know she’s ready to step in and take the reins. Laura, you rock!

Lawyer-Hubby and the Kidlets

I can’t begin to say thank you enough to my amazing partner in crime: Greg (AKA Lawyer-Hubby). His lawyer-eyes read every contract I sign, every newsletter I write, every page I create on the site. He corrals our crazy kids when I need to work on weekends. And it is thanks to his “responsible career” that I have been able to take all the crazy risks and try unconventional things, allowing me to create DIY MFA in the first place.

The Kidlets (AKA Little Man and Lady Bug) are the reason I do what I do. I firmly believe that a lifelong love of learning is central to becoming your best self. Whenever I lose my focus, I look at the vibrant curiosity in my two kids and instantly remember the joy that comes from learning something new or figuring something out. Kids don’t learn because of some end-result or reward. They learn because they can’t NOT do it. Learning is as natural to them as breathing. My goal in life is to have the sponge-like curiosity of a three-year-old forever.

Finally, thank you to all my word nerds!

You are part of what makes DIY MFA possible. Without this amazing community of writers reading, commenting, and sharing our posts, DIY MFA would probably still be just some “crazy idea” I tried once upon a time on my personal blog.

Thank you for being part of the word nerd community.

Keep writing, and keep being awesome!

The post #5onFri: My Gratitude List — The DIY MFA Team appeared first on DIY MFA.

You’ve probably already seen some new faces and voices on DIY MFA in the past month. We are so excited to officially announce the six newest members of the DIY MFA team. Stay tuned for awesome articles from these fabulous writers and newest DIY MFA team members!

Elisabeth Kauffman — Podcast Producer

Elisabeth is the producer for DIY MFA radio. She’s also a freelance editor of fiction, spending her days helping authors get to the heart of their characters. Her favorite genres to edit and read are YA fantasy, sci-fi, and romance.

After earning a degree in English Literature from Asbury University in Kentucky, Elisabeth has moved across country (five times!) and is now happy to call California home. She has worked in communications, writing articles for alumni magazines, and in the book business since 2007. When she’s not editing, Elisabeth writes her own fiction, paints in bright colors, and blogs about all things bookish at Writing Refinery. You can also find her online on Facebook or at theWriting Refinery website. She is unabashedly obsessed with board games, Doctor Who, and Harry Potter.

As podcast producer, Elisabeth does everything from helping me brainstorm ideas for episodes, helping guest speakers troubleshoot the podcast process and edit the audio so it sounds fantastic. While most of her work is behind-the-scenes, DIY MFA Radio would not be possible without all her help. Elisabeth has also written a series of articles, sharing her expertise on how to find the perfect freelance editor. You can read her first guest article here.

Robin Lovett — Columnist, “Let’s Write”

An opera singer by profession, S.A. Lovett grew tired of playing dying heroines and took up writing romance instead. Now a professed novel writing addict, she is a member of a wonderful writing group.

About S.A.’s Column: Working with other writers is an essential part of being a writer, but it can be as scary as seeking an agent and as daunting as editing an entire novel. “Let’s Write” is a column on the benefits of writers’ groups, both locally and online, with a boost of support for the trials involved. You can check out her first post here.

 Sara Letourneau — Columnist, “The Soul of a Story”

Sara Letourneau is a Massachusetts-based writer who practices joy and versatility in her work. In addition to writing a fantasy novel, she reviews tea at A Bibliophile’s Reverie and is a guest contributor for Grub Street Daily. She’s also a published poet whose works have appeared in The Curry Arts Journal, Soul-Lit, The Eunoia Review, Underground Voices, and two anthologies. Learn more about Sara at her personal blog, Facebook, and Twitter.

About Sara’s Column: Ever wonder how you can weave theme into your stories? Or how to identify a story’s theme? The Soul Of A Story can help you with both! With examples of themes from published novels as well as tips and prompt ideas for your own work, we’ll explore and gain better understanding of the elusive element that’s sometimes called the “soul” of a story. Check out her first post right here.

Emily Wenstrom — Columnist, “Pixels to Platform”

Lit addict, movie junkie, geek. Emily Wenstrom is a professional writer working in PR. She edits the short story zine wordhaus, blogs about creativity at Creative Juicer, and regularly contributes to The Write Practice. In her alleged free time, she writes fantasy fiction.

About Emily’s Column: Get insights on tips tricks, and trends in social media geared toward writers from a pro in the know. This monthly column gleans from Emily’s professional experience in marketing and public relations, along with her personal experience building her own online platform for creative writing, to help other writers get the most from their digital outreach efforts. Check out her first post right here.

Kent Bridgeman — Columnist, “Swimming With the Sharks”

Kent Bridgeman is a freelance writer and marketing strategist who also writes short stories, screenplays and poetry.  He helps his clients clarify their marketing messages and craft potent content. He lives in Chicago with his lovely fiancée D, and grumpy parrot Poncho. Check out his work at thewritejazz.com

About Kent’s Column: Writers are terrified of marketing.  Rampant stereotypes and misconceptions abound among us creative folk.  I’m pained to admit that I myself was once suffering from marketing stigma.  That’s business, I used to think, how can I get it over with so I can get back to my art?  It wasn’t until I landed squarely in the land of marketing strategy that I realized how creative marketing really is.  “Swimming with the Sharks” sheds a light on marketing misconceptions, banishes unfounded fears and helps writers conquer the business side of writing. Check out the first post right here.

Alicia Audrey — Columnist, “Flash in the Corner”

Alicia Audrey is a writer, editor, blogger and social and political commentator living and working in Nassau, Bahamas. She enjoys writing flash fiction, and is currently working on a women’s fiction novel entitled The Whispering Willow. She prides herself on keeping the local post office open by sending far too many penpal letters and packages to friends and strangers alike on a weekly basis. Her favourite things include journals, tea, cupcakes, sarcasm, challenges, and autumn. She tweets her musings to everyone, but no one in particular, as @_AliciaAudrey.

About Alicia’s Column: Flash in the Corner is all about skillful edginess. How many words do you need to make a story sing, zing, or sting? Flash fiction is short on words and heavy in impact. The writer must capture attention, introduce a character or situation, and flip it upside-down or turn it inside-out before anyone notices a thing. Discover the power of word choice, sentence structure, sequence, and length. Challenge yourself to turn a novel-worthy story into a five-minute read. Spend a few minutes in this comfy, cozy corner and master the art of flash fiction. Check out her first post right here.

The post Announcing the Newest Members of the DIY MFA Team appeared first on DIY MFA.

Isolation can wear us down as writers. After all, it’s hard pushing forward when it’s just you against the world. Sooner or later, writers have to learn to share and collaborate. At some point we have to admit that we’re better off in a team than going it alone.

Believe me, I’m the first to admit that “playing well with others” is not one of my finer qualities. Sharing is a perpetual challenge for me, especially when it comes to projects I’m really passionate about, like DIY MFA. This past year, though, it became clear to me that I needed to stop being stubborn and selfish, and I had to let other people help me with this project. It hasn’t been easy, because for a while I was afraid that sharing DIY MFA would mean giving up part of it. What happened was the opposite.

Sharing Ideas Is Not a Zero-Sum Game

Earlier this year I attended 99u, a creativity conference for designers, tech people and entrepreneurs. One of the presenters talked about what it means to share ideas, and this concept really stuck with me. Here’s the essence of what this speaker said:

Suppose I have an apple and you have an apple. If we exchange apples, then we each still have only one apple. Now suppose I have an idea and you have an idea. If we exchange ideas then we each have not one, but two ideas.

Such is the nature of ideas: sharing is not a zero-sum game. Not so with concrete objects. If I give you an apple then I no longer have that apple. Your gain is my loss. But if I share an idea with you, then we both can build on it and come up with new concepts. Ideas are not finite, they expand and multiply. By understanding the multiplicative nature of sharing ideas, I realized that forming a team wouldn’t mean less of DIY MFA for me, but more of DIY MFA for everybody.

Introducing the DIY MFA Team

DIY MFA has come a long way in the past few years, but what I see as my biggest accomplishment has been building a phenomenal team. These five talented, brilliant women have added so much to DIY MFA, above and beyond anything I could have done by myself. The best word I can think of to describe it is “gestalt,” or the idea that whole is greater and more complete than sum of the individual parts. As individuals we each have our strengths, but put us together and we are a force to be reckoned with.

Today, it is my honor and privilege to introduce the DIY MFA Team. For more details about what each of us does at DIY MFA, check out the contact page or read our individual bios.

Meghan Drummond

Meghan joined DIY MFA this past fall and already she’s an indispensable part of the team. Originally signing on as the TA (teaching assistant) for our fall speaker series, she’s now stepped into a larger role as Curriculum Coordinator, helping me develop all the teaching materials for DIY MFA. She was instrumental in helping me run the DIY MFA Writing Sprint in November and these past few weeks she and I have been working tirelessly to create the new flagship course: DIY MFA 101. Having taught high school English, Meghan is truly a teacher at heart and has already made a huge impact on DIY MFA behind the scenes. She’s also currently enrolled in the same MFA program where I studied, and we’ve bonded over our love of teen literature and children’s books.

Bess Cozby

Bess has been following DIY MFA ever since it was a small post-series on my personal blog. We became blog-friends right away. At one point, we realized that we were both in NYC so we met for coffee, hit it off, and the rest is history. In fall of 2012, Bess joined DIY MFA as an intern and she proved so invaluable that I quickly started giving her more responsibilities. Today, she’s the Web Editor and oversees the entire website, Facebook page and the @TeamDIYMFA Twitter feed. Everything you see on this site has passed Bess’s meticulous scrutiny. She coordinates the regular columns, handles all guest articles and is master of the editorial calendar. Sharing control of the website was a big step for me, but knowing Bess as I do, I knew the site would be in good hands. More importantly, having Bess coordinating the site has freed me up to focus my attention on developing DIY MFA workshops and products, speaking at conferences and growing our community.

Melinda VanLone

Melinda is our official photographer and her work makes the website look fantastic. The vast majority of those beautiful photos you see attached to the articles are from Melinda’s extensive archive, but her talents don’t stop there. Melinda is a published author and a brilliant book cover designer. She’s writing several guest articles for us, sharing her expertise about book cover design to inform writers and help them make smart decisions on this topic. She also has several books in the pipeline to be released in 2014. Stay tuned!

Wendy Lu

Wendy, a senior at UNC Chapel Hill, was the DIY MFA intern this past summer and she reminds me a lot of what I was like in college: driven, motivated and passionate about her work. Since Wendy is studying journalism, I decided to put her skills to the test by having her do an author interview toward the end of her internship. She did such a great job that I created a special column just for her. Wendy now interviews published authors and shares insights about their writing process and books at DIY MFA. In particular, Wendy’s column focuses on authors and books that use storytelling in unique and fun new ways, hence the column’s name: New Spin.

Becca Jordan

The very first thing that struck me about Becca was the personality and voice that came across in her writing. As an intern she wrote a couple of guest articles for the site and right away her voice came through loud and clear. When the time came for DIY MFA to launch an advice column, I knew that Becca would be the perfect person to bring both depth and humor to the topic. Becca now writes bi-weekly articles for her “Ask Becca” column, where she gives honest (and often also hilarious) advice about writing.  As a writer, she focuses on science fiction and fantasy, and one of her stories has recently been featured at Fiction Vortex.

What I’ve Learned from Building a Team

Building a team and sharing DIY MFA didn’t mean there was less of it left for me. In fact, the opposite was true. By delegating things to people whose talents exceeded mine in those areas, I’ve been able to focus my skills on the aspects of DIY MFA that I’m good at and love doing. My passion has always been teaching, and by sharing website responsibilities and bringing in more writers to create articles, I’ve been able to focus on what I really love: creating and teaching courses. This allowed me to launch a speaker series this past fall with twelve guest experts, and to create a new flagship course called DIY MFA 101 (coming later this month).

On a more personal note, Lawyer Hubby, Little Man and I will be welcoming a new addition to our family in late June: a new baby girl!  This new development has made me all the more motivated to build a strong team at DIY MFA so that when summer comes I’ll be able to step back and focus on being a mommy for a few weeks. I am confident that with these five talented women on the team, DIY MFA will be in good hands and I’ll be able to take my “mommy-time” and DIY MFA won’t miss a beat. Don’t worry, I won’t be gone completely, but I definitely feel better knowing that these brilliant ladies have my back.

The post Writers Need a Team: Meet the Team at DIY MFA appeared first on DIY MFA.

Bess McAllister is the new DIY MFA Web Editor.

As Web Editor at DIY MFA, Bess will be taking on most of the social media duties. This means she’ll be doing most of tue updates on the Facebook and Google+ Pages and tweeting with the handle @TeamDIYMFA. I’ll still be on Twitter as @DIYMFA so all tweets coming from that handle are direct from me. I’ll also continue writing all Writer Fuel newsletters, unless otherwise noted. We’ve been testing out this method for a few weeks and so far it’s working, but as always if we make any changes or adjustments we’ll keep you all in the loop. I believe that it’s very important for you to know who the tweets, shares and updates are coming from so we make it a priority to keep you informed of any changes. Aside from social media, Bess will write articles at DIY MFA more regularly and will help me plan the editorial calendar. Bess will be the go-to person to field requests from writers who want to do guest articles on the DIY MFA site (more details on that later this week). In addition, she’ll be helping me line up Q&A articles or video interviews with authors and industry professionals. If you want to get in touch with Bess directly, you can email her at: bess [at] DIYMFA [dot] com

A few things about Bess that you might not already know.

You probably remember Bess being among the team of interns that joined DIY MFA. You also may have noticed her byline on several DIY MFA articles in recent weeks.Or you might know Bess via her hilarious blog It’s the World, Dear where she writes about her adventures in New York City and in writing. And that’s just the beginning. Bess is just the person to help with the DIY MFA social media presence. She’s worked with a best-selling author as a social media and marketing assistant and this winter she is serving as an editorial assistant at Tor/Forge books. But what you probably wouldn’t guess is that Bess has been involved with DIY MFA from the very beginning, even before this project was it’s own entity and was just a link off of my personal blog. That’s right. Bess has been one of the very first followers of DIY MFA and she’s seen this project grow from the ground up. In September of 2010, I decided to do a one-month test-run of DIY MFA on my personal blog. At the time, I had no idea if DIY MFA would have an audience (much less business potential) so this was all a shot in the dark. As part of an incentive to get people interested in DIY MFA, I decided to offer a free critique to a randomly-selected participant who signed up for the mailing list, I drew the winner at the end of the one-month experiment and guess what, Bess won. As we emailed back and forth to set up a time for the critique, we eventually figured out that not only did we live in the same city, but I lived in the same neighborhood where she worked. At this point it was inevitable that we would do the critique session in person over coffee instead of over Skype. We met at the Lincoln Center Atrium, a glorious indoor public space and a great spot to write. Right away Bess and I bonded over our love of teen literature, New York City and, of course, all things related to writing. We stayed in touch long after that afternoon and a few months later when my writing group was on the lookout for new members, I suggested we invite Bess. After that, she and I have attended conferences together, read one another’s work an and become trusted writing colleagues. Since she’s one of the few people who’s seen the concept develop from day one, Bess has been one of my go-to people for feedback on DIY MFA materials. She’s not afraid to give honest critique but also knows how to do it in such a way that even the most fragile of egos will come out feeling all warm and fuzzy.

Please help me welcome Bess to her new role as Web Editor!

I am so excited to have Bess at DIY MFA in a more official capacity. I’ve followed her work over the years and it looks like her career is really taking off! Keep an eye on this one, people. She’s definitely going places.

The post Introducing the New DIY MFA Web Editor: Bess McAllister appeared first on DIY MFA.

This has been an exciting week here at DIY MFA. It may not look like a lot has happened on the surface, but behind the scenes we have a lot of awesome things cooking. One of those things is that I’ve assembled the DIY MFA Team!

In the coming weeks, I’ll be talking more about teamwork and the value for writers of forming strong collaborative partnerships, but for today, I wanted to give a shout-out to my awesome team!  I’m honored and excited to work with each and every one of them. They all bring unique skills and talents to the table and I know DIY MFA will be so much stronger from having these people be part of it.

So without further ado, here’s the DIY MFA Team:

•  Jeneen Owens, gets creative at Words by Design

•  Satia Renee, shares her thoughts at Satia’s Journal

• Jill Rubin, world traveler and English teacher extraordinaire

• Bess Cozby, tells her story at  It’s The World, Dear

These lovely ladies are volunteering their time to help me build up DIY MFA and make it even better for all you writers out there. We have a lot of exciting new things in store so stay tuned over the next few months as we put these plans into action. In the meantime, you can learn more about each team member by visiting her blog.

Also, a HUGE Thank You to Rebecca Ann Jordan, the very first member of the DIY MFA team.  She completed her internship and is moving on to exciting opportunities but will return from time to time, writing articles or offering her expertise on certain projects. Thank you Rebecca, for all your hard work and help in making DIY MFA great! You can find her at RebeccaAnnJordan.com.

To those about to write, I salute you.
To everyone else,
I suggest you stay out of our way.

The post Announcing the DIY MFA Team appeared first on DIY MFA.