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In this episode Natalka Burian and Lori discuss:

• How to employ flashbacks effectively in your writing without overdoing it.
• Juggling multiple mysteries in one story while maintaining the intrigue of each.
• Using your readers’ drive to understand others as an engine for storytelling.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Natalka Burian

Natalka Burian is the co-owner of two bars, Elsa and Ramona, as well as the co-founder of The Freya Project, a non-profit reading series that supports community-based activism and annually awards five unrestricted grants to further the work of women and non-binary writers. She is the author of three novels–her latest, The Night Shift, is out this summer with Park Row–and a cocktail book. Natalka grew up on a farm in Maryland but now lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two daughters.

You can find her on her website or follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok.

The Night Shift 

Hidden behind back doors of bars and restaurants and theaters and shops all over New York City are shortcuts—secret passageways that allow you to jump through time and space to emerge in different parts of the city. No one knows where they came from, but there are rules—you can only travel through them one way, and only at night.

When Jean’s work friend Iggy introduces her to the shortcuts, it’s to help shorten her commute between her night shifts bartending and working at an upscale bakery. Jean is intrigued but has a hard time shaking the side effects—the shortcuts make her more talkative, more open to discussing her past and recalling memories she’s tried hard to forget.

When Iggy goes missing, Jean believes it’s related to the shortcuts and his growing obsession with them. But as she starts digging into their origins, she comes to find a shocking connection between herself and the shortcuts.

A shimmering, propulsive novel set in New York City during the early aughts and across time, The Night Shift shows that by confronting the past can we reshape our future. 

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link where, if you choose to purchase via the link, DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 418

(Right-click to download.)

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Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 418: Flashbacks, Time Travel, and Multiple Mysteries: Learning the Rules – Interview with Natalka Burian appeared first on DIY MFA.