The Resilient Writers Radio Show

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What happens when the themes that shaped your earliest writing continue to follow you across an entire creative life?
In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by acclaimed poet and fiction writer Eleanor Lerman, author of King the Wonder Dog. Eleanor has spent more than five decades writing honestly about anger, loneliness, grief, love, rebellion, and survival. 
Her work has earned recognition including a Guggenheim Fellowship, an NEA Fellowship, and the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize from the Academy of American Poets.
Eleanor began writing poetry when she was very young, following the death of her mother and the sudden collapse of the close family life she had known. Those early poems grew out of anger and a powerful desire to escape. As a teenager, she began traveling alone from the Bronx to Greenwich Village, where she found the artistic community that helped her see herself as a writer.
We talk about what it meant to become one of the youngest finalists for the National Book Award, how she resisted being placed into categories, and why she has always thought of herself first and foremost as a writer rather than as a woman writer.
Eleanor also shares how she moved from poetry into fiction after believing that writing novels was the path to literary success. When novels did not feel natural to her, she eventually found her form in the short story. Her experience is such an important reminder that we do not have to force ourselves into a genre, career path, or version of success that does not fit who we are.
Much of our conversation centers on King the Wonder Dog, a collection of stories set primarily in contemporary New York. The book explores aging, illness, grief, and loneliness through the relationships its characters form with dogs and cats. 
Eleanor did not originally set out to write a collection about animals, but her publisher at She Writes Press noticed the connection running through the stories and encouraged her to build the book around it.
We also get into Eleanor’s writing process, including why her fiction often begins with a place, how she imagines her memory as rows of filing cabinets, and why she often knows the final lines of a story before she writes the beginning.
Eleanor offers practical insight into revision as well. Drawing on her own experience as an editor, she explains why writers must read for clarity, watch for repetition, and remain open to the people who are trying to help make the work stronger.
This is a thoughtful conversation about finding the form that suits you, trusting your own definition of success, and accepting that certain themes may remain with us throughout our writing lives.
Listen in for an honest, generous look at what it means to keep writing across decades.

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In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by dark fantasy author A. L. Sinclair for a fascinating conversation about historical fantasy, feminist storytelling, creative resilience, and what it takes to keep writing when the publishing journey feels especially difficult.
A. L. is the author of The Witch Queen’s Gambit, a sharp, sensual, and subversive Anne Boleyn retelling that blends history, witchcraft, queer romance, mythology, and feminine rage. If you love stories that take familiar history and turn it in a bold new direction, you’ll find plenty to enjoy in this conversation.
We talk about why Anne Boleyn remains such a compelling figure and how her story reflects the ways powerful women are still judged, misrepresented, and turned into villains. 
A. L. explains how she took the rumours and mythology surrounding Anne and transformed them into a story where the so-called villain becomes someone readers can understand and root for.
We also explore the balance between historical accuracy and creative freedom. A. L. shares how she researches the Tudor era, decides which historical details to retain, and allows the fantasy elements of the story to reshape what might have happened. It’s a helpful reminder that research should support the story rather than overwhelm it.
Our conversation also moves into writing romance and intimate scenes with purpose. A. L. talks about consent, power, pleasure, and why every scene needs to contribute to the character arc or move the story forward. Rather than adding spice simply because readers may expect it, she approaches those scenes as an important part of character development and emotional connection.
One of my favourite parts of this episode is our discussion about where stories begin. For A. L., they begin with character. She listens for the character’s voice, motivation, pain, and desire, then follows those emotional threads into the story.
We also talk honestly about rejection. A. L. received more than 200 rejections while querying one of her novels. She shares how her background in somatic healing helped her sit with the discomfort of rejection without allowing it to define her or her work.
This episode is a powerful reminder that rejection is not always a verdict on your talent. Sometimes it is information. Sometimes it is timing. Sometimes it is simply one person saying that a book is not right for them.
If you’re navigating the query trenches, revising a manuscript, or trying to protect your creative confidence, this conversation will help you approach your writing life with more courage, curiosity, and resilience.

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What happens when the people most likely to care for everyone else finally decide to make space for their own creative work?
In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by Kasia Van Schaik, author of the linked story collection We Have Never Lived on Earth and the new hybrid memoir and work of cultural criticism, Women Among Monuments: Solitude, Permission, and the Pursuit of Female Genius.
Kasia’s book began with a question she had carried since girlhood: Where are the women among monuments?
That question led her into the lives of women writers and artists, including Virginia Woolf, Mary Shelley, Gertrude Stein, Toni Morrison, Bernadette Mayer, and many others. 
It also led her to the story of Elena Cornaro Piscopia, the first woman in the world to earn a PhD. In 2022, a proposal to place Piscopia’s statue in a public square in Padua, alongside statues of celebrated male thinkers and artists, was met with fierce resistance.
Why are women’s achievements still so difficult for some people to recognize? And what does that resistance reveal about the way we understand creative genius?
Kasia and I explore those questions while looking closely at what it takes for women to build and sustain creative lives.
We talk about the guilt that can arise when women step away from caregiving, housework, emotional labour, or professional responsibilities to write. 
Even when time has been deliberately set aside, it can feel pressured or selfish. Instead of entering the writing space freely, we may feel that every minute has to produce something impressive.
Kasia shares how different writers protected their creativity. Toni Morrison worked during the quiet hours before sunrise. Gertrude Stein boldly claimed the mantle of genius for herself. Bernadette Mayer found poetry in the ordinary details of motherhood and domestic life, showing that the creative and “uncreative” parts of our lives do not always need to be separated.
We also unpack the complicated history of the word “genius.” It can feel exclusive, grandiose, and even a little cringe. Kasia offers another way to understand it: not as a title reserved for a chosen few, but as a capacity someone possesses. 
You might have a genius for language, storytelling, observation, humour, or seeing connections others miss.
Our conversation also moves into literary awards, genre fiction, imposter syndrome, rejection, and the importance of creative community. Recognition can help a writer feel that they belong, but awards are subjective and limited. They cannot be the only measure of whether our work matters.
Ultimately, sustaining a creative life requires persistence and permission. It may mean protecting your brightest hours, creating a small ritual, joining a writing group, or continuing to submit your work after another rejection.
If you’ve been waiting for proof that your writing deserves your time, this conversation is for you. Listen now for an honest, encouraging reminder that your creative work matters, and you are allowed to make room for it.

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What if the thing keeping you from finishing your novel is not a lack of talent, discipline, or ideas?
What if it is fear about what happens after you finish?
In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by debut novelist Mel West, author of Now Is Not a Good Time for a Breakdown, for an honest and deeply relatable conversation about creativity, mental health, publishing, and the fears that quietly shape our writing lives.
Mel’s novel began with snippets of dialogue and a character whose voice would not leave her alone. 
It was not until Mel moved to New York City that the story fully came into focus. Suddenly, she understood where this character lived, how she moved through the world, and what kind of life she was trying to survive.
We talk about Mel’s discovery-based approach to drafting and how she eventually turned to plotting when the story began to lose momentum. She also shares why the pandemic became an unexpected missing piece of the novel and how returning to the manuscript helped her finally understand where the story needed to go.
One of the most powerful parts of our conversation is Mel’s realization that fear was one of the biggest obstacles between her and a finished book. Not fear that she could not write it, but fear of what would come next once the novel was done.
I think many writers will recognize themselves in that.
We also explore how Mel used dark humour to write about the fragility of mental health without making the novel feel heavy-handed. Her main character is not especially self-aware, which allows humour, discomfort, and emotional truth to exist side by side. Mel even shares how The Sopranos influenced the way she thought about revealing a character’s inner life.
Mel is refreshingly open about her publishing journey too. After exploring traditional publishing, she chose a hybrid path with Archway Publishing. She talks candidly about what she wishes she had known, how emotionally vulnerable it can feel to hand over your “book baby,” and why writers need to approach publishing with both creativity and clear-eyed research.
We also discuss author platforms, building community, and why TikTok has felt more natural and conversational for Mel than Instagram.
This episode is especially valuable for writers who are close to finishing a book but feel themselves pulling back. Mel’s advice is simple and important: learn what comes next, research your options, and pay attention to the fear underneath your resistance.
Because sometimes finishing the book is not the scary part.
Sometimes the scary part is becoming the writer who finished it.
Listen now for an honest conversation about fear, mental health, publishing, creative courage, and what it really takes to follow a novel all the way through.

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Some books begin with a carefully planned premise. Others begin with a conversation you suddenly realize you do not want to lose.
In this episode of The Resilient Writers Radio Show, I’m joined by Maureen Howley, author of Small Shoes, Impossible to Fill, a memoir that began when Maureen sat down with her terminally ill mother during the COVID lockdowns and started recording her stories.
Maureen had recently retired from a long career in nursing and midwifery and had travelled to Scotland to be with her mum. Her mother had always been active and involved in her community, so the isolation of lockdown was especially difficult. 
Their shared storytelling project became a way to pass the time, stay connected, and preserve memories that might otherwise have been lost.
But as Maureen listened, recorded, and wrote, she realized something important. The story was not only about her mother’s past. It was also about what was happening between them in the present.
That discovery shaped Small Shoes, Impossible to Fill into an unusual and deeply personal blend of memoir, fictionalized family history, and reflection. Maureen wrote her mother’s memories as scenes, drawing on her background in musical theatre to imagine the people and places almost as if they were appearing on a stage. She then wove those scenes together with journal entries from their final months and reflective passages written in her mother’s voice.
Creating one cohesive book from those three strands was not easy. Maureen’s early draft reached roughly 150,000 words, and she had to work carefully to shape it into a unified story. She studied three-act structure, character arcs, and the hero’s journey to make sure each strand contributed to the book’s emotional movement.
We talk honestly about that long revision process, the moments when Maureen nearly gave up, and why finishing the first draft was only one part of finishing the book.
Maureen also shares what she learned through assisted self-publishing, finding the right cover, and continuing to revise even after proofreading. We also discuss the unexpected challenge many authors face after publication: becoming their own marketing department.
One of my favourite parts of our conversation is hearing how Maureen transformed her book launches into meaningful events. Through readings, family photographs, music, and personal stories, she created celebrations in Scotland, Monaco, Sligo, and the south of France that brought the world of the book to life.
At its heart, this episode is about more than writing a memoir. It is about listening closely, honouring family stories, finding joy in difficult seasons, and trusting that a book does not need to fit neatly into a category to deserve to be written.
Listen in for an encouraging conversation about memoir writing, family history, revision, self-publishing, creative book launches, and what it really takes to keep going until your story is finished.