Middle Grade Matters

Justina Chen, author of With Twice the Love, Dessi Mei, shares her journey as a writer, her love for writing middle grade, and the differences between writing for YA and middle grade readers. Justina discusses the challenges of writing about sensitive material. She also emphasizes the importance of belonging and offers advice for new writers.I love audiobooks! If you do, too, consi

Alicia D. Williams, Newbery Honor author of Genesis Begins Again, shares her journey as a writer and the inspiration behind her middle grade novels. She discusses her latest middle grade book, Mid-Air, which explores themes of grief, toxic masculinity, and the power of friendship. I love audiobooks! If you do, too, consider switching to Libro.fm. For the same price as other major a

In this bonus episode, middle grade author Polly Holyoke shares her journey with four different literary agents and the lessons she learned along the way. Polly talks about the importance of finding the right agent, having a finished manuscript before querying, and crafting a compelling query letter. She also provides tips on where to find agents, how to choose the right one for yo

On this episode of the Middle Grade Matters podcast, Laurie Morrison discusses her middle grade novel Keeping Pace and the themes it explores, including the pressure to succeed, the intensity of competition in middle school, and the importance of friendship and relationships . In this conversation, Laurie shares how she discovered her passion for writing and the role of critique pa

On this episode, Colleen Oakes discusses her debut middle grade book, The Second Favorite Daughters Club, which follows two girls who form a club and come up with pranks to undermine their favorite siblings. Colleen shares her inspiration for the book and the importance of exploring family dynamics. She also talks about the transition from writing YA and adult novels to middle grad

On this episode, I talk with author Allie Millington about her debut middle grade novel, Olivetti, and her writing journey. She shares her inspiration for writing from the perspective of a typewriter, the emotional side of Olivetti, and the themes of connection and finding one's voice. Allie also talks about her writing process, being a self-taught writer, and her experience w

In this episode of the Middle Grade Matters podcast, I talk with Ali Terese, author of the debut novel Free Period. The book explores the themes of period equity and period poverty through the story of two prankster characters, Helen and Gracie, who take on these issues in their school. Ali shares her motivation for writing the book and her hope that it inspires kids to take action

On this episode, I talk with Ridley Pearson, the NYT #1 Bestselling author of the Kingdom Keepers series. We talk about the process he follows for writing books, the time he spends at Disney parks conducting research (often after-hours), and how middle grade has evolved over the course of his writing career.I love audiobooks! If you do, too, consider switching to Libro.fm. For the

On this episode, I talk with Emily Barth Isler about her new middle grade novel, The Color of Sound, which tells the story of twelve-year-old Rosie, a musical prodigy whose synesthesia allows her to see music in colors. From the publisher: Rosie's mom has always pushed her to become a concert violinist, but this summer Rosie refuses to play, wanting a "normal" life.

In this episode, Barbara Dee talks about her 14th middle grade novel, Unstuck, which follows a young writer who deals with writer's block as she writes her first novel. Barbara talks about how middle grade has evolved over the the course of her career, how she comes up with book ideas, and how she stays in touch with today's middle grade readers.From the publisher: From c