Read the Acknowledgments ft. Isabel Booth & Marcia Markland: Now Available
Learn more of the story behind the first novel discovered on blcklst.com...
EPISODE BREAKDOWN
00:01:49 THEN HE WAS GONE manuscript status before The Black List
00:02:53 Writing before querying
00:04:04 Books that inspire
00:05:12 A writer’s faith in using The Black List
00:06:15 Why an acquiring editor chose to use The Black List
00:07:05 What an acquiring editor is looking for in a manuscript
00:08:23 Their first conversation about the manuscript
00:10:03 How a writer celebrates a manuscript acquisition
00:10:49 How an editor celebrates a win
00:12:03 Why writing
00:14:06 The value of community support
00:14:53 Where an acquiring editor looks for the stories she wants to publish
00:17:43 Deciding what to write next
00:19:39 On empathy
00:24:29 The writing practice
00:25:35 Questions authors and editors should ask each other
00:30:02 How an author moves on to the next story
00:33:17 Feeling seen in the work
00:34:30 Marcia’s book recommendations
00:36:17 The impact of the work
EPISODE GUESTS
Karen Jewell is a former trial attorney and author of numerous pieces of nonfiction. Her first novel, IN THE GARDEN OF SORROWS, was a finalist for the 2023 BookLife Prize for Fiction. Karen writes under the pen name Isabel Booth.
Marcia Markland thinks crime fiction writers in general are a most admirable and ingenious bunch, and she is grateful to have been following their literary escapades for a lot of years with, acquiring editor jobs at The Mystery Guild and St. Martin’s. These days, she steers away from cozies but loves most other kinds of suspense writing. Her taste is admittedly a bit off the beaten track, so if you have something unusual to offer, do give her a try. She is looking for great writing first, quirky characters second, and there should probably also be an extremely clever, never-would-have-guessed-that plot. Every once in a while, she’ll go for something that is on the horror/gothic side if the moon is full.
ABOUT THE HOST
Randy Winston is an artist and curator who serves as Creative Director of Fiction at The Black List, and formerly served as Director of Writing Programs at The Center for Fiction, where he managed, curated, and directed the production of all writing courses, the illustrious First Novel Prize, the famed Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellowship, and the highly sought Writers Studio membership. Prior to his work at The Center, Winston served as Fiction Editor of Slice Literary Magazine for six years and has over ten years of executive admin experience in higher education. Before his MFA, Randy served as editor-in-chief of, formerly Southern Polytechnic State University, now Kennesaw State University’s online and print student publication, in Marietta, Georgia. He is a 2016 graduate of the MFA program in Creative Writing (Fiction) at The New School. A former Orion Magazine trustee, Winston sits on the board at WriteOn NYC.
ABOUT THE SERIES
Read The Acknowledgements is an educational live visual podcast designed for book and writing professionals to share their industry experiences and help give writers a clear picture of the ecosystem that is publishing.
This podcast series exists, in part, to fundraise for writers and literary nonprofits in need. Attendance is free, and we encourage viewers and listeners to make donations to writer support funds such as the Authors League Fund and Baldwin for the Arts.
Now available on Apple and Spotify.
Read the Acknowledgments is brought to you by The Black List, LLC.
TITLES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE
THEN HE WAS GONE by Isabel Booth (on sale for Kindle for $1.99 now through June 30th)
MIDNIGHT IN MEMPHIS by Thomas Dann
THE POPE’S HITMAN by J.M. Berger
THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT’S WOMAN by John Fowles
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