Page Count

Eric Obenauf and Eliza Wood-Obenauf discuss the beginnings and evolution of Two Dollar Radio, an independent publisher, bookstore, and vegan café based in Columbus, Ohio. They share insight on starting a small press without a budget or connections; the origin of the “Two Dollar Radio” name; the benefits of being based outside of New York; what they look for when acquiring manuscripts; how they manage submissions; why they accept unsolicited and unagented manuscripts; their publisher mentoring program; publisher consolidation and industry challenges; why bookstore visitors are greeted by a unicorn mural; how a limerick by Lemony Snicket came to grace their menu; and a DIY spirit that extends to the bookstore and café, where Eric and Eliza have had a hand in making everything themselves, from the books to the furniture to the food.
Mentioned in this episode:
 
The Book of X by Sarah Rose Etter
They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us by Hanif Abdurraqib
I Will Die in a Foreign Land by Kalani Pickhart
Crapalachia by Scott McClanahan
Binary Star by Sarah Gerard
Two Dollar Radio Guide to Vegan Cooking: The Pink Edition by Jean-Claude van Randy and Speed Dog (with Eric Obenauf)
Purple Palm Press
Akashic Books
 
For a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page at https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line. Find us on Twitter @cplocfb.

Author Jyotsna Sreenivasan discusses the power of second-generation stories; Indian American stereotypes in fiction; tips for writing dialogue and expressing the internal thoughts of a character whose first language is not English; writing and publishing without an MFA; freeing herself from the pressure to publish; transforming a novel into a novella; the long road of revision; and how her latest book, the story collection These Americans, came to be.
 
Mentioned in this episode:
And Laughter Fell From the Sky (William Morrow)
These Americans (Minerva Rising Press)
Second Generation Stories: Literature by Children of Immigrants
Pioneer Girl by Bich Minh Nguyen
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by Maxine Hong Kingston
Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama
Barack Obama’s early journey as an author
For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page at https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line.

We’re getting meta on the pod by talking about page counts in published books and, by extension, word counts in unpublished manuscripts. What is an acceptable word-count range for a novel or memoir, and why does word count matter at all? Writer, speaker, and former Penguin publishing executive Brandi Larsen shares the economic rationale for common page-count ranges in published books and offers tips for writers penning their own manuscripts. While there’s always wiggle room and the occasional exception, there’s a reason why writers might run into trouble when trying to publish a 50,000-word novel or a 200,000-word memoir with a traditional publisher—and this episode will illuminate why.
 
Brandi Larsen is a writer and speaker building a more inclusive publishing landscape. Her work at Penguin Random House helped create NYT bestsellers, and her journalism pieces earned Emmy nominations. Her talks about publishing, leadership, and grief inspire audiences from Zoom to Harvard. She serves as the board president for Literary Cleveland and writes books and essays. Uncultured: A Memoir publishes September 20, 2022 and is available to pre-order now. Learn more at BrandiLarsen.com and @brandilarsen on social media.
 
For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page at https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line.

Christopher Gonzalez discusses his debut story collection, I’m Not Hungry But I Could Eat, as well as his writing process, flash fiction techniques, literary magazine editing, literary Twitter, the art of putting together a story collection, small press publishing vs. the Big 5, revision, reality TV, leaning into your own weirdness as a writer, and more.
 
Mentioned in this episode:
“On Chicken Tenders” by Helen Rosner 
Barrelhouse 
Santa Fe Writers Project (SFWP)
“And Another and Another and Another Glass of Rosé” in Catapult
Love Is Blind 
The Bachelorette
Race and the Bachelor franchise
Reality TV
Twitter tips for writers
Nafissa Thompson-Spires
Roxane Gay
Raven Leilani
 
Host: Laura Maylene WalterPresented by: Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library
 
For a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page at https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line.

NOTE: At the time of this recording, Devon Halliday was an agent at Transatlantic Agency, but she is now pursuing other opportunities. Stay tuned for additional podcast episodes discussing trends related to agent and editor transitions within the publishing industry. 
 
Devon Halliday, a former literary agent, discusses how she became an agent, working in publishing outside of New York City, the difference between a scout and an agent, how she manages her queries, and what she looks for in new clients. Next, she critiques query letters from three Ohio writers working on historical fiction, memoir, and YA manuscripts, respectively. Halliday offers advice surrounding the structure and content of these query letters, as well as her thoughts on comparative titles, manuscript word count, book proposals, the role of research in memoir, platforms for nonfiction writers, rhetorical questions in query letters, and more.
 
Halliday recommends Twice in a Lifetime by Melissa Baron, which publishes December 6, 2022.
 
For a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page at https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line.

Matt Bell discusses his new craft book, Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts. We talk about the mysteries, joys, and frustrations of novel revision, including getting that first draft out on the page, recordkeeping during the drafting process, finding your place on the “outline or no outline” spectrum, strategies for the second draft, unpublished first novels, abandoning a novel after writing 100 pages, why community is sustaining for writers, and more.
 
Matt Bell is the author of the novels Appleseed, Scrapper, and In the House upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods, as well as the short story collection A Tree or a Person or a Wall, a nonfiction book about the classic video game Baldur's Gate II, and several other titles. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Esquire, Tin House, Fairy Tale Review, American Short Fiction, Orion, and many other publications. A native of Michigan, he has an MFA from Bowling Green State University and teaches creative writing at Arizona State University.
 
For a transcript of this episode, visit https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line.
Photo credit: Jessica Bell

Writer, entrepreneur, and activist Rachel Elizabeth Cargle discusses her Akron roots; the viral photo that served as a catalyst for her deeper exploration of intersectional feminism; how she improves her own writing by studying her literary ancestors; her thoughts on the state of the publishing industry, especially for writers of color; how she makes use of a robust social media following; the importance of celebrating marginalized voices; how and why she founded Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre in Akron; and why community building is imperative to the health and success of independent bookstores.
 
Books Rachel recommends in this episode:
Chlorine Sky by Mahogany L. Brown
Grown by Tiffany Jackson
Listening with My Heart by Gabi Garcia and Ying Hui Tan
I Promise by Lebron James and Niña Mata
You Matter by Christian Robinson
 
For a transcript of this episode, visit https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org and put “podcast” in the subject line.

Bestselling author Thrity Umrigar discusses her latest novel, Honor, including her inspiration, the research process, being a part of Reese’s Book Club, and promoting the novel during the pandemic. Umrigar also discusses persistence, how she flirted with the idea of giving up writing, her conception of what “success” means for authors, her love of libraries, and the importance of doing the work above all else.

Follow along as David Weaver, executive director of the Ohioana Library Association, and Betty Weibel, author of The Ohio Literary Trail: A Guide, discuss Ohio’s literary heritage and offer a quick tour of some of the notable literary sites found around the state.

Laura Maylene Walter chats with Don Boozer, the Ohio Center for the Book (OCBC) Coordinator and Manager of the Literature Department at Cleveland Public Library, to introduce Page Count. Laura and Don discuss the OCFB collection and their hopes for the podcast before their conversation takes an unexpected detour to Hershey, Pennsylvania.