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Debut

Fiction, Writers on Writing

MAY 26: Joani Elliott with The Audacity of Sara Grayson

“Do that thing that makes you feel alive.”

JOANI ELLIOTT believes in the magic of stories, a good cup of tea, and the power of living a creative life. So maybe it’s no surprise that her debut novel is about a writer who’s just landed the toughest assignment of her life.

Joani shares great insight into her creative journey, and some of the challenges she faced, while writing her debut novel. Like her willingness as a writer to step into the unknown. Why this former academic had to learn to tap into her own emotions, to gain the truth of her emotional scenes. How she came to terms with the messy process of writing…and more.

About Joani Elliott

Joani Elliott taught writing at the University of Maryland and Brigham Young University. The Audacity of Sara Grayson is her first novel. Find book club resources, virtual author chats, and more at joanielliott.com.

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Fiction, Writers on Writing

JAN 15: The Body Outside the Kremlin with James L. May

For our Writers On Writing Series, James L. May, author of The Body Outside The Kremlin joins us with what Publisher’s Weekly calls a “richly evocative first novel…gripping…thriller deserves high marks…for historical detail about a prison that served as a key link in the gulag chain.”

We discuss the history of the White Sea Solovetsky Islands and Russia’s renowned concentration camp. How and why this sparked the location and set the scene for his murder mystery. His favorite scenes to write. Most surprising research. What James knows now, that he wish he’d understood when he began writing his book. Does his work as a reviewer inform or hinder his own creativity? And is it worth doing an MFA in Creative Writing?

James L. May’s short fiction has appeared in Tigertail, and he reviews fiction for The Florida Book Review, Gulf Stream Literary Magazine, and New Orleans Review.

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