The Resilient Writers Radio Show

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How to Write Grief and Memory in Fiction, with Ellis Scott Nov 05, 2026

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Writing about grief can leave you wondering where to begin. How do you tell a painful story without letting the loss overwhelm everything else? And how do you give readers room to connect with lives different from their own?

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by Ellis Scott, author of Night Terminus, to explore those questions through his experience of writing his first novel.

Our conversation offers insight into novel structure, character development, research, and finding your way into emotionally difficult material.

Ellis’s novel follows an unnamed narrator across three continents and four decades, exploring the lives of gay men who survived the AIDS crisis. Having lost partners and close friends himself, Ellis felt an urgency to preserve experiences that could disappear as his generation grows older.

When I asked whether revisiting those losses had been devastating, his answer surprised me. He described the writing as healing, a labour of love that allowed him to honour people he had known.

What interested me was his focus on the aftermath. Ellis is drawn to the lives people build around what they have lost: the friendships, journeys, memories, and conversations that continue long after a catastrophe.

For writers working with grief or historical trauma, that offers a useful question: where are the emotional consequences still unfolding?

We also talk about how a novel can begin with images rather than a complete plan. Ellis started with two: an encounter in a Paris train station and an older man walking through Brussels at midnight. Those images helped him begin discovering the people and stories that would become the book.

His research opened possibilities. While investigating the history of Gare du Nord, he discovered the photographs of Édouard Baldus. Their traces of human presence became a recurring motif, connecting the novel’s historical setting with its exploration of absence and memory.

I loved hearing how something found during research could become woven into the emotional life of a book.

In our conversation, we explore:

Moving from publishing short stories to writing a first novel.
Using an unnamed narrator to connect different characters and settings.
Thinking about backstory through encounters, travel, and conversation.
Allowing research discoveries to deepen a novel’s themes.
Finding an ending through attention to the place around you.

Ellis also shares how a residency in Provence helped him finish the final chapter, and why he gives new ideas time to percolate before beginning another project.

What I took from our conversation is the value of staying curious about the material that keeps returning to you. An image, a remembered encounter, or an unexpected discovery may offer a way into a story you have carried for years.

If you’re writing literary fiction, drawing on personal experience, or wondering how to shape connected stories into a novel, I think you’ll find much to reflect on.

Listen to my conversation with Ellis Scott, and consider which image or unanswered question might help you return to your manuscript.

Writing a Novel in a Busy Life, with Nadia Bozak Oct 29, 2026

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Your book can take longer than you hoped and still get finished. That’s one of the things I hope you’ll take away from my conversation with novelist Nadia Bozak.

When you’re writing around a job, parenting, and everything that keeps a household going, it’s easy to look at your progress and decide you’re falling behind.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, we talk honestly about writing a novel when sustained time is hard to find, accepting feedback, and remembering what makes the work worthwhile.

Nadia is an Ottawa author, researcher, and creative writing teacher at Carleton University. Her novel, Fret, follows a single mother facing a family crisis and the public scrutiny that comes afterward.

We explore how Nadia brought motherhood, isolation, and climate change into the story without losing sight of her characters’ emotional lives.

Nadia began Fret during the pandemic, while at home with two young children. Much of the writing happened during spring and summer, when her teaching schedule allowed more room for sustained work.

She tried to stay connected to the manuscript during busier months, but that didn’t always happen. There were interruptions, lost momentum, and stretches when other responsibilities had to come first.

I think many writers will recognize that experience. We talk about what it means to finish a book in the middle of an already full life, and why the length of the process doesn’t tell the whole story.

I hope hearing the realities behind a finished novel helps you look at your own manuscript with more patience, especially when the available writing time changes from week to week.

We also get into novel revision and the point when you can no longer see your own story clearly.

Nadia describes turning to friends, colleagues, and freelance editors for fresh perspectives. Her literary agent also played an important editorial role, sending the manuscript back for further work before submitting it to publishers.

That feedback included looking at the book’s length and how long it took for the story to get going. We discuss the value of an honest reader and our observations about opening a novel in a way that keeps readers turning pages.

For Nadia, parenting and her research on climate helped shape the questions behind Fret. What happens to everyday decisions under extreme heat? How do loneliness, responsibility, love, and joy exist together within a family?

Our conversation offers a thoughtful look at drawing on lived experience while creating complicated, individual characters.

Finally, we talk about book promotion, the nerves that can accompany public appearances, and Nadia’s experience of beginning another project while Fret still feels fresh.

Her new manuscript gives her somewhere to explore voice, structure, and the pleasure of making something. I loved that reminder. Publication matters, but so does the experience of being absorbed in a story you want to tell.

Listen to my conversation with Nadia Bozak for an honest look at finishing a novel, working through revision, and finding your way back to the writing itself.

How to Write Emotionally Compelling Romance, with Francesca Frost Oct 22, 2026

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A character can want love and still struggle to let anyone close. Understanding that tension can help you write relationships that feel believable, give your scenes emotional weight, and create conflict that matters to your reader.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m talking with contemporary romance author Francesca Frost about writing romance with emotional depth, learning the craft of fiction, and bringing an unfamiliar world to life without overwhelming your audience.

Her debut novel, The Crypto King’s Muse, brings together romance, mystery, fashion, and cryptocurrency. But what interested me most was the question underneath that unusual combination: how do two people with emotional wounds learn to trust each other?

Francesca’s heroine, Charlotte, has a clear picture of how her life should unfold. She expects to find an older man, settle down, and start a family. Her attraction to the younger Duane challenges that picture. Meanwhile, his difficult past has left him wary of trusting others. Their relationship asks both characters to reconsider what they believe will keep them safe.

For writers, there’s plenty to think about here. What does your character believe about love? Where did that belief come from? And what happens when the person they want brings those assumptions into question?

We also explore how Francesca prepared to write her first novel. Her five-year journey included two years studying fiction through craft books, webinars, and writing retreats. She also read roughly 500 romance novels, discovering how much the genre could teach her about structure, character, and emotional connection.

I especially appreciated our discussion of creative constraints. Francesca found that romance conventions gave her a framework for making decisions as a new novelist. That’s a useful idea when the possibilities for your own book start to feel overwhelming.

Her cryptocurrency setting brought another challenge: choosing which details readers needed. She wanted to share her fascination with the world while keeping the love story central. We talk about drawing readers into a specialized setting through danger, ambition, and the pressures characters face.

Our conversation also covers writing physical intimacy that deepens a relationship and serves the plot. Francesca explains how her characters’ emotional connection shaped her decisions about what belonged on the page.

And because finishing the manuscript is only part of publishing a book, we discuss her experience with self-publishing, choosing her cover and audiobook narrators, and finding creative enjoyment in book marketing through Instagram and a companion playlist.

We finish with a lovely detour into book clubs and contemporary poetry.

Whether you’re writing contemporary romance, developing a relationship subplot, or researching an unfamiliar setting, this episode offers questions you can bring straight to your manuscript.

Listen to my conversation with Francesca Frost, then choose one relationship in your story to revisit. Ask what each person wants, what makes trust difficult, and how their history affects the choices they make together. You might discover a source of tension you haven’t fully explored yet.

Find Francesca and learn more about The Crypto King’s Muse at francescafrost.com.

Writing Secrets, with Susan Shapiro Barash Oct 15, 2026

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A powerful secret can do more than create suspense. It can reveal what your characters value, what they fear, and how far they will go to protect the lives they have built.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m speaking with Susan Shapiro Barash, the author of 14 nonfiction books and five novels.

Susan writes fiction under the name Susannah Marren, and her latest novel, Palm Beach Confidential, explores wealth, privilege, family loyalty, female rivalry, and the lasting consequences of keeping a life-changing secret.

At the center of the novel is Lucinda Barrows, a prominent Palm Beach matriarch whose carefully constructed life is threatened when a secret from her past is about to be exposed. Lucinda also has three adult daughters, Maribelle, Caroline, and Raleigh, each navigating her own ambitions, relationships, and place within the family.

Our conversation offers a fascinating look at how writers can use secrets to create suspense while still developing emotionally believable characters. Susan explains why a secret cannot exist simply as a plot device. It must grow out of a character’s circumstances, desires, fears, and choices.

We also talk about Susan’s decades of research into women’s lives. For her nonfiction books, including Estranged: How Strained Female Friendships Are Mended or Ended, Tripping the Prom Queen, and A Passion for More, she has interviewed hundreds of women across generations and backgrounds. That research gives her fiction a rich understanding of female relationships, social expectations, judgment, betrayal, and survival.

Susan shares practical insights into her writing process, from beginning a novel with a clear sense of its opening and ending to discovering the middle as she writes.

She keeps detailed notebooks about her characters, including their longings, clothing, food, relationships, and histories. Once the first draft is complete, she revises chapter by chapter, asking whether the writing is clear, sharp, well paced, and emotionally true.

We also discuss the publishing journey and why writers need both persistence and support. Susan reflects on working with publishers including St. Martin’s Press and Meridian Editions, studying with E. L. Doctorow, and returning to a novel she first began during her MFA. She also explains how a skilled freelance editor can help a writer identify structural or developmental problems that are difficult to see alone.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

How to use secrets to deepen character and strengthen suspense
Why wealth and privilege do not protect characters from conflict
How nonfiction research can inspire compelling fiction
A practical approach to drafting and revising a novel
Why outside editorial support can improve a manuscript
How to stay resilient through an unpredictable publishing career

If you’re writing a novel, revising a manuscript, or wondering how to make your characters more layered and emotionally convincing, I think you’ll find plenty of insight and encouragement in this conversation with Susan Shapiro Barash.

How to Write a Cozy, with Melissa N. Wright Oct 08, 2026

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Sometimes a whole novel begins with one sentence that refuses to leave you alone.

That is exactly how Of Pies and Men, the cozy fall romance by Melissa N. Wright, began. Melissa had one line circling in her mind, so she wrote it down.

That sentence led to questions, the questions led to characters, and before long, she had created a story filled with baking, friendship, found family, kittens, and a love triangle.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, Melissa and I talk about what makes a story feel cozy and how writers can create a fictional world that feels like home.

For Melissa, coziness comes from familiarity and connection. It is the comfort of a small town, the predictability of seeing familiar faces, and the presence of friends who will tell you the truth and offer you a hug afterward. Baking also plays an important role in the novel. For Stewy, the main character, making pies gives her something to do with her hands when her anxiety takes over.

We also talk about writing a story without a traditional villain. In Of Pies and Men, much of the conflict comes from within Stewy herself. She overthinks, second-guesses her choices, and worries about hurting the people around her. It is a struggle many writers and readers will recognize.

Melissa shares how she completed her first draft in about a month, then spent several more months revising and editing it. We talk about her publishing journey, from researching agents through QueryTracker to choosing Rogue Wolf Publishing, an independent publisher that offered professional support while allowing her to keep creative control.

She also offers an honest look at fitting writing around a full-time job and other responsibilities. Melissa writes during evenings and weekends, but she also accepts that some days she is simply too tired. When that happens, she saves ideas in her phone so they will be waiting when she is ready to return to the page.

One of my favourite parts of our conversation is Melissa’s reminder to trust the reader. Writers do not need to explain every detail. Readers can notice clues, make connections, and understand more than we sometimes give them credit for.

We also talk about the discomfort of promoting your own book and why believing in your work matters. If you love the characters, the setting, or the feeling your book creates, there is another reader out there who will love it too.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

How to create a cozy atmosphere in fiction
Why internal conflict can be just as powerful as an external villain
How Melissa balanced writing with a full-time job
What she learned from choosing an independent publisher
How to trust your readers without overexplaining
How to talk about your book with greater confidence

Listen now for a warm, honest conversation about cozy romance, the writing process, publishing, and believing in the story you have created.

How Play Can Help You Write a Better Novel, with Gail Anderson-Dargatz Oct 01, 2026

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An outline doesn’t have to limit your creativity. It can give you the freedom to explore your story without losing your way.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by award-winning Canadian author Gail Anderson-Dargatz to talk about her new novel, The Atlas Keeper, and the writing process behind this complex time travel romance.

Gail has written across genres, from literary fiction and domestic thrillers to hi-lo books and speculative fiction. Her novels include The Cure for Death by Lightning, A Recipe for Bees, The Spawning Grounds, The Almost Wife, and The Almost Widow.

With The Atlas Keeper, she gave herself permission to follow a longtime love of time travel stories and simply play.

That sense of play is at the heart of our conversation.

Gail shares how the idea for the novel began with a question: What would a map of someone’s life look like?

With help from her husband, a GIS analyst with an interest in astrology, she developed an intricate structure based on a lunar month, the twelve astrological houses, and a character who can visit different moments in her own life.

Writing a story with so many moving pieces required a clear map. Gail explains how she begins with a synopsis, moves into an outline, and then creates a chapter-by-chapter plan. At the same time, she writes snippets of scenes and allows room for discovery.

Her process offers a helpful reminder for writers who worry that outlining will take the magic out of writing. The outline is not a cage. It is a guide you can adjust as the story develops.

We also talk about what literary writers can learn from genre fiction. Whether you are writing literary fiction, romance, suspense, or fantasy, your character still needs a goal. Something must stand in their way. The reader needs a reason to keep turning the pages.

Gail also opens up about reaching a stage in her career where she is less concerned about awards and expectations and more interested in enjoying the act of creation. After experiencing burnout, she found her way back to the pleasure of writing by exploring new genres and remembering why she started.

This episode is a warm and honest conversation about outlining a novel, experimenting with genre, staying curious, and making writing feel playful again.

Listen now to discover how structure can support creativity, why writers benefit from trying new genres, and how finding the fun in your process can lead to a stronger book.

Writing Historical Fiction That Keeps Readers Turning Pages, with Terry Kirk Sep 24, 2026

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Strong historical fiction does more than recreate the past. It pulls readers into another time, helps them understand what was at stake, and keeps them turning the pages.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by lawyer, finance and fintech innovator, and historical fiction author Terry Kirk.

Terry is the author of Pitfall and Plunder, two financial thrillers that bring major moments in history to life through memorable characters, high stakes, and plenty of suspense.

Terry came to writing later in life after spending several decades practising law. She shares how her professional experience inspired her to write fast-moving stories that make the world of finance interesting and accessible, particularly for readers who might otherwise find it intimidating.

Her latest novel, Plunder, takes place in London in 1940, as World War II intensifies and America considers entering the war. Terry’s protagonist, Frank Cork, has been given an enormous task: find the money needed to help finance the war.

We talk about the research required to write historical fiction convincingly, from studying fashion and magazines to understanding how people communicated before email, text messages, and instant access to information.

Terry explains why the smallest historical details can make the biggest difference, and how she immerses herself in an era before she begins writing.

We also dig into the craft of writing suspense. Terry shares how she keeps a story moving even when the historical realities involve delays, letters, and slow communication.

Her approach includes strong chapter openings and endings, changing points of view, and resisting the urge to rely on words like “suddenly” to create tension.

As a committed plotter, Terry uses Excel to track her chapters, characters, word count, and story development. She sees the spreadsheet and the blank Word document as two different creative spaces, one for structure and one for imagination.

Our conversation also explores writing characters whose lives are very different from our own, the challenges of cultural appropriation, her surprisingly quick path to publication, and the discomfort many writers feel when they have to move from quiet creative work to marketing their books.

Terry’s story is a lovely reminder that it is never too late to begin writing. After decades in another career, she found that becoming a writer felt like coming home.

Listen to learn:

How to research historical fiction without overwhelming the story
Ways to create suspense and maintain narrative pace
Why chapter endings and multiple points of view keep readers engaged
How plotting tools can support the creative process
What Terry learned from beginning her writing career later in life
Why writers need courage during both publishing and promotion

Listen now for an honest and encouraging conversation about historical fiction, plotting, publishing, and finding the writing life that feels like home.

How Writers Can Use AI Responsibly, with Ana del Valle Sep 17, 2026

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AI is everywhere right now, but for writers, the conversation has become a lot more complicated.

Can you use ChatGPT to brainstorm your novel? What about getting feedback on your plot? Can AI help you edit? And where is the line between using AI as a tool and letting it do so much of the work that your authorship, copyright, or even publishing opportunities could be affected?

Those are exactly the questions I wanted to dig into in this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show.

I’m joined by Ana del Valle, novelist, CEO of StoryGroove.ai, and someone I turn to when I want to understand what’s happening with AI in the writing world.

Ana works with writers who want to understand how generative AI can fit into a creative process while staying aligned with current copyright guidance and recommendations from organizations including the Authors Guild and the Association of American Literary Agents.

And one thing becomes very clear in our conversation: there is a big difference between asking AI to help you think and asking AI to write your book for you.

We talk about where Ana believes that line sits, including the difference between using AI for brainstorming, outlining, analysis, and preliminary feedback versus asking it to rewrite, polish, tighten, expand, or generate your prose.

Ana also walks us through four different categories of AI tools writers are encountering right now.

We look at AI book generators that can produce entire books, more technical tools such as NovelCrafter that connect writers with large language models, AI-powered writing programs such as Sudowrite, and platforms designed around analysis, feedback, and editorial support.

We also talk about tools writers may already recognize, including ProWritingAid, AutoCrit, Scrivener, Plottr, Dabble, Claude, and ChatGPT.

But this conversation isn’t really about finding the newest shiny tool.

It’s about understanding what the tool is actually doing.

Is it helping you think more clearly about your story?

Or is it beginning to replace the creative work that only you can do?

Ana also shares why she believes experienced editors and publishing professionals can often recognize AI-generated prose, even without technological detection tools, and why writers need to think carefully before handing their sentences over to a chatbot for “just a little polishing.”

If you’re curious about AI but worried about accidentally crossing a line, this episode will give you a much clearer framework for thinking about it.

You don’t have to use AI in your writing process at all. I don’t.

But if you choose to explore it, understanding the boundaries matters.

Listen to the full conversation and decide what role, if any, AI should have in your writing life.

How to Write Historical Fiction, with Lynn Austin Sep 10, 2026

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Some stories begin with an idea. Others begin with a single question that refuses to let go.

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I had the pleasure of sitting down with bestselling historical novelist Lynn Austin, whose books have touched millions of readers around the world.

We talked about her latest novel, The Lumber Baron’s Wife, and the fascinating journey behind creating a story that bridges two timelines while remaining deeply rooted in the emotional truths that connect women across generations.

One of the things I loved most about our conversation was hearing how Lynn approaches history. She admits she never loved history class because it focused on wars and politics.

Instead, she became captivated by diaries, letters, and firsthand accounts that reveal what everyday people, especially women, were experiencing while history unfolded around them. That perspective has shaped her entire writing career.

Lynn takes us behind the scenes of The Lumber Baron’s Wife, explaining why this is her first true dual timeline novel. Rather than connecting the stories through family alone, she chose to connect them through place. The same historic homes become the bridge between two very different eras, allowing readers to see how love, motherhood, marriage, courage, and resilience remain constant even as the world changes.

We also dive into the surprising history behind Michigan's lumber boom, an era that transformed both the landscape and the people who lived there. Lynn shares how learning about the environmental impact of the lumber industry became an important part of the novel and how that history naturally connects with one of her modern-day characters, an environmentalist working to protect the forests that were once devastated.

Of course, we couldn't talk about historical fiction without talking about research. Lynn shares her wonderfully practical approach, describing how research becomes what she calls "book soup."

She gathers facts, visits locations whenever possible, collects fascinating details, and slowly watches her characters emerge from everything she's learned. Rather than outlining every chapter, she writes as a discoverer, allowing the story to surprise even her.

We also spend time talking about something every writer struggles with: finding time to write. Lynn offers refreshingly honest advice about protecting your writing time, setting realistic daily goals, and committing to the work even during the busiest seasons of life. Her own practice of writing five new pages a day has carried her through raising children, building a successful career, and publishing dozens of novels.

Before we wrapped up, Lynn gave us a sneak peek at the research behind her next novel, inspired by the remarkable true story of the Hello Girls, the bilingual women telephone operators who served during World War I. It's exactly the kind of forgotten history that has made her novels so beloved by readers.

If you love historical fiction, enjoy discovering little-known moments from history, or simply need encouragement to keep showing up for your own writing, this conversation is full of wisdom, practical advice, and plenty of inspiration. I think you'll come away ready to protect your writing time and maybe even visit your local library with fresh eyes.

How to Write a Series, with Kevin T. Johns Sep 03, 2026

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What if the best way to write a successful series is to stop thinking about the series and focus on writing one excellent book?

In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by Canadian author and writing coach Kevin T. Johns for an honest, funny, and deeply practical conversation about finishing ambitious writing projects, writing a trilogy, and giving your current book everything you have.

Kevin recently completed The Page Turners trilogy, a genre-bending series about three teenagers who discover a magical book of spells and accidentally release the fictional villains from the stories they love.

Across the three books, Kevin moves through horror, science fiction, and fantasy while exploring much bigger themes, including family, anger, identity, loneliness, and what it means to grow up.

But this conversation is not only for writers working on a trilogy.

It’s for anyone whose book has become too big, too complicated, or too precious to finish.

Kevin shares why every book in a series still needs to stand on its own, with a complete emotional arc, a clear theme, and a satisfying story. His advice is simple and powerful: do not save the good material for book three. Put your strongest ideas, scenes, emotions, and creative energy into the book directly in front of you.

We also talk about the “punk rock” mindset that transformed Kevin’s writing process. Instead of trying to create his version of The Lord of the Rings, he began asking how he could make the story shorter, more focused, more passionate, and more entertaining. That shift helped him finish the first book and allowed the rest of the trilogy to grow naturally.

Kevin also offers thoughtful advice for writers who love complex stories. A multigenerational epic with several timelines, continents, and points of view may sound exciting, but complexity does not automatically create depth. Sometimes the more focused your story becomes, the more deeply you can explore what truly matters.

We dig into revision too, including the challenge of returning to a manuscript written ten years earlier. Kevin explains how adding fresh material helped him reconnect with the story while honouring the younger writer who first imagined it.

And because this is a conversation about the real writing life, we talk about self-doubt, dark art, creative resilience, and why writers are rarely the best judges of their work in the moment.

Your readers are not waiting for you to fail. They want to love your book.

So stop saving your best ideas for later. Write the strongest version of the book you can write today.

Listen now to hear Kevin’s practical advice on writing a trilogy, simplifying an ambitious story, revising an old manuscript, finding your audience, and finishing the book in front of you.

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