Page Count

Query Critiques with Devon Halliday

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.

Novel Revision with Matt Bell

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the drafting process, finding your place on the “outline or no outline” spectrum, strategies for the second draft, unpublished first novels, abandoning a novel after writing 100 pages, why community is sustaining for writers, and more.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

Building Community with Rachel Elizabeth Cargle

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.

Doing the Work with Thrity Umrigar

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.

The Ohio Literary Trail

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.

Welcome to Page Count

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.

Trailer

Welcome to Page Count, a new podcast presented by the Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. This podcast celebrates authors, illustrators, librarians, booksellers, literary advocates, and readers in and from the state of Ohio. Page Count launches April 26 and will offer a new episode every other Tuesday.