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TV Interviews with Writers
 TV Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 1
Liz
Carpenter, Ray Bronk, Frances Nail Lively Conversations with Three Non-Fiction Writers on Memoirs, Essays, Speeches and Magazine Writing. See Liz Carpenter, Ray Bronk and Frances Nail, each a successful writer, in a 30-minute interview. 1. LIZ CARPENTER, who talks about non-fiction and speechwriting, was press secretary to Lady Bird Johnson and a speechwriter during the Lyndon Johnson presidency. She has become a popular speaker and shares details on how to use humor and personal stories in speeches. She also talks about her long journalism career and her books, Getting Better All the Time and Start with a Laugh. 2. RAY BRONK, who talks about magazine writing and non-fiction, is the only person to ever survive a head-on mid-air collision at 1,200 mph. Bronk is now a successful magazine writer and conducts workshops on magazine writing. He gives detailed advice on how to break into and make money in this field that always needs new material. His book is 50 Secrets of Writing for Magazines. 3. FRANCES NAIL, who talks about memoirs and essays, is a painter and self-confessed ham who self published her book of essays Crow in the House, Wolf at the Door. Her memoir I'm Not the Woman I Was also was produced as a one-woman play. She compares essays to a kaleidoscope, and says essays "reveal you to yourself." |
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 TV
Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 2
Elizabeth Moon, Susie Flatau, Patrick Beach Lively Conversations with Published Writers on Science Fiction/Fantasy, Memoirs & Non-Fiction See Elizabeth Moon, Susie Flatau, and Patrick Beach, each a successful writer, in a 30-minute interview: 1. ELIZABETH MOON, who talks about science fiction and fantasy, is a former Marine. She describes her national Nebula Award-winning book The Speed of Dark (also a 2003 Arthur C. Clarke Award finalist) and her research and writing methods. She wrote a book at age six, but her 14 books and two collections of short stories were all published after she turned 40. 2. SUSIE FLATAU, who writes memoirs and nonfiction, is a former teacher who now writes and teaches writing. She has collaborated on two memoir anthologies: From My Mother's Hands and Red Boots and Attitude. She talks about working with a collaborator and about memoir writing: "Trust your voice and give your life energy to it." 3. PATRICK BEACH, who talks about journalism and nonfiction, is a newspaper reporter and winner of three major writing awards for his book A Good Forest for Dying, about the clash between redwood forest loggers and environmentalists in northern California. "I still don't know who was right," says Beach. "The truth is messy." |
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Robert Flynn, Laurie Drummond, Dorothy Barnett Lively Conversations with Three Published Writers on Fiction, Essays, Short Stories and Poetry. See Robert Flynn, Laurie Drummond and Dorothy Barnett, each a successful writer, in a 30-minute interview. 1. ROBERT FLYNN, who talks about writing fiction and humorous essays, has been writing for over 40 years and is a member of the Texas Institute of Letters. Strong characters and transformation are important for any story, he says. Flynn's books include the acclaimed novel North to Yesterday, Confessions of a Sullen Baptist (humorous essays) and Slouching Toward Zion. 2. LAURIE DRUMMOND, who talks about writing fiction and short stories, is a former policewoman turned writer and professor of creative writing. She talks about how personal experience has affected her fiction: "Our job is to be curious and pay attention." Her book of short stories Anything You Say Can and Will Be Used Against You won the top 2004 fiction prizes from the Texas Institute of Letters and the Writers' League of Texas. 3. DOROTHY BARNETT, who talks about the creative process, how to read poetry aloud in public, short stories and memoir, is a creative writing professor and former Michener Fellow at the University of Texas. "Everyone's creative. Everyone can write," she says. Barnett is a founding editor of "Borderlands: Texas Poetry Review." |
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Gary Lavergne, Diane Fanning, Suzy Spencer Lively Conversations with Three Published Writers on Researching and Writing True Crime Books See Gary Lavergne, Diane Fanning and Suzy Spencer, each a successful writer, in a 30-minute interview. 1. GARY LAVERGNE specializes in books about multiple and serial murderers and their effect on society. His highly regarded books include A Sniper in the Tower, Bad Boy from Rosebud and Worse Than Death. He and his writing have been featured on the "Today Show" and the Discovery Channel. 2. DIANE FANNING focuses on the psychological aspects of crime, including strong women who became victims. Her books include Gone Forever, Into the Water, Written in Blood, Baby Be Mine and Through the Window. Getting the facts right and then having to stick to those facts makes writing true crime harder than writing fiction, she says. 3. SUZY SPENCER has been on The New York Times Best Seller list and considers writing about high profile crime cases to be an art form. She visualizes the scenes and events, then puts her reader inside the story. "I let the story tell me what to write," says Spencer. Her books include Wasted, Wages of Sin, Breaking Point and The Fortune Hunter. |
Jodi Thomas, Evelyn Palfrey, Scott Wiggerman Lively Conversations with Three Published Writers on Fiction, Romance Novels and Poetry. 1. JODI THOMAS, who writes historical and mainstream fiction prolifically, uses storyboards and extensive research to craft her bestsellers. She also has mastered how to market her work and make a living as a writer. She has two RITA awards from Romance Writers of America, and Finding Mary Blaine won the National Readers' Choice Award. 2. EVELYN PALFREY specializes in "romances for the marvelously mature." She self-published her first three books, then moved on to a large publisher. "I used to stay up all night reading," she says. "Now I write." By day, she is a judge. Her books include Everything in its Place and Dangerous Dilemmas. 3. SCOTT WIGGERMAN edits poetry anthologies, teaches Poetry 101 online and conducts poetry slams. Poetry is "emotion recollected in tranquility," he says, quoting Wordsworth. He believes that poets and would-be poets should listen to and read a lot of poetry and join a critique group. His book is Vegetables and Other Relationships. |
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Stephen Harrigan, P.J. Pierce, Lively Conversations with Published Writers on Non-Fiction, Fiction, Biography & Memoir See Stephen Harrigan, P.J. Pierce and David Marion Wilkinson, each a successful writer, in a 30-minute interview. 1. STEPHEN HARRIGAN writes fiction and non-fiction. His training as a journalist helped lead to his success as a screenwriter and novelist. "Part of writing a novel is conscious and strategic. Part is dreamlike," he says. His critically acclaimed novel Gates of the Alamo is the subject of this interview. "I like not knowing things," says Harrigan. "History is a natural lure." He also wrote the novel Challenger Park and his non-fiction books include A Natural State. 2. P.J. PIERCE writes non-fiction and biography. A journalist by training, Pierce wrote Let Me Tell You What I've Learned: Texas Wisewomen Speak, a book of interviews with 25 women. She talks about how to write a good book proposal, the overwhelming importance of sheer perseverance and the huge influence of English teachers on many writers and achievers. 3. DAVID MARION WILKINSON writes fiction and memoir. A North Sea oil rig worker when he was 23, Wilkinson settled down to write award-winning books, including Not Between Brothers, Oblivion's Altar, The Empty Quarter and One Ranger. The search for meaning in his characters' lives was his own search, he says, and gave him a sense of purpose: "I just keep trying to challenge myself." |
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Molly Ivins, Angela Medearis & Kathy Borich, Lila Guzman & Diane Bertrand Lively Conversations with Five Published Writers on Non-Fiction, Cookbooks and Young Adult Fiction See Molly Ivins, Angela Medearis & Kathy Borich and Lila Guzman & Diane Bertrand, all successful writers, in three 30-minute interviews. 1. MOLLY IVINS is a political journalist and non-fiction book author who died in January 2007. Her books have been on the bestseller lists and she has won prestigious awards. A reporter, journalist, author and columnist, Ivins is known for her biting humor. "I'm not funny," says the writer who has been called Madame Texas, "it's the material." She talks about the limits of satire and vigorously defends investigative reporting and First Amendment rights. A three-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, Ivins has been called by the L.A. Times "H.L. Mencken without the cruelty, Will Rogers with an agenda." Her books include Molly Ivins Can't Say That, Can She?,You Got To Dance with Them What Brung You: Politics in the Clinton Years, and Shrub: The Short but Happy Political Life of George W. Bush. 2. ANGELA MEDEARIS & KATHY BORICH talk about writing cookbooks. Medearis has written several cooking-related books, including The African-American Kitchen and is the author of over 80 children's books. Borich wrote Appetite for Murder: A Mystery Lover's Cookbook, which pairs recipes with famous detectives. She also reviews movies, then adds an appropriate recipe. 3. LILA GUZMAN & DIANE BERTRAND talk about writing young adult and children's fiction. Guzman uses action and adventure in her Lorenzo series to hook young adults. Bertrand's Trino's Choice reaches teens with authentic, modern stories. She also writes bilingual children's picture books. They talk about finding time to write, the importance of research and how to market to schools. |
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 TV Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 8
H.W. Brands, Jim Hornfischer, Mark Mitchell Lively Conversations with Three Published Writers on Non-Fiction, Biography and Children's Non-Fiction. See H.W. Brands, Jim Hornfischer and Mark Mitchell, each a successful writer, in a 30-minute interview. 1. H.W. BRANDS talks about writing non-fiction and biography. Readers and reviewers alike applaud the many books of history professor H.W. Brands. The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and a New York Times bestseller, is the subject of this interview. Other books include The Age of Gold and The Strange Death of American Liberalism. 2. JIM HORNFISCHER is a literary agent and author. His book The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors is about a World War II naval battle. Knowing the book business as an agent demystified the writing process, he says, and he now understands writers better. His advice: Write from passion and make the reader a participant in the action. 3. MARK MITCHELL talks about the story behind Raising La Belle, Mitchell's award-winning book about excavating French explorer La Salle's ship from a bay in Texas. Other books for youth by this writer and illustrator are The Mustang Professor: The Story of J. Frank Dobie and Seeing Stars: The McDonald Observatory, Its Science & Astronomers. |
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Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 3 
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Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 4
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Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 5 
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Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 6 
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Interviews with Successful Writers, Collection 7
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