This week’s interview is with Cynthia Bogard (A History of Silence, Atmosphere Press, March 2023). A former university professor, Cynthia’s novel features six contemporary women grappling with issues of racism, misogyny, and societal challenges and she brought not only her background in Women’s Studies but also sensitivity readers to vet her story. We discussed how the lack of response from agents shocked her when compared to the academic feedback she was used to, how working with a hybrid press educated her about the publishing business, how bookstores have not proved an effective sales venue, and how being a part of two critique groups has had a profound positive effect not only on her braided novels, but on her own continued development as a creative artist.

Cynthia J. Bogard has reinvented herself as a novelist after a successful career as a Professor of Sociology and Women’s Studies at Hofstra University in New York. Born and raised in rural Wisconsin she’s lived in Kuwait, Greece, Mexico, New York, Texas, Vermont, and in Madison, Wisconsin.

World traveler, longtime feminist and environmentalist, Greece, mid- 20th century jazz, and Mother Nature are all close to her heart. These days, Cynthia lives with her spouse and two rescue dogs in Montpelier, Vermont.

To learn more about Cynthia, click here.

This week we talk to Barbara Bellesi Zito (Lucky Stiff, Literary Wanderlust, January 2023). In an interesting twist to our usual interview, Barbara’s debut features a male protagonist but one who exactly fits the WFWA definition of a “main character’s emotional journey” as he processes his lottery win and what it means to his work, his family relationships, and his own growth as an individual. Written initially as a screenplay, Barbara credits that version with honing her skill at both dialogue and story structure. We discuss whether living in a publishing hub like NYC is an advantage to a writer, how she found her publisher through a Twitter Pit Mad event, and what’s crucial to remember when injecting humor into your women’s fiction story.

Barbara Bellesi Zito is a freelance writer covering lifestyle and home trends for Apartment Therapy, The Spruce, REAL SIMPLE, Better Homes & Gardens, and other digital publications. She earned her BA from Wagner College and her MFA from Emerson College. She lives in Staten Island, New York with her husband and their dog. She is working on her second novel and has recently begun coaching other writers and creators. In her ongoing efforts to champion other women writers, she curates @thewomenwritersclub page on Instagram.

To learn more about Barbara, click here.

Our feature podcast guest this week is Kyle Ann Robertson (White Picket Fences, Fulton Books, March 2023). Kyle shares how a children’s story she imagined as a “book within a book” for an adult novel morphed into a series of ten published picture books she authored before coming back to her first love of women’s fiction. She describes how journaling was her entry into writing and then we discuss the workshops she leads where she uses prompt cards to break through writer’s block and help in brainstorming plot solutions.

Kyle Ann, the author of WHITE PICKET FENCES and NOT SO LITTLE THINGS, writes contemporary women’s fiction that sinks its teeth into families’ miscommunications, misperceptions, and the chaos they cause, even in the name of love. She’s also the creator of Journaling for Fiction Writers and Embrace Your Muse Creative Writing Workshops. She enjoys traveling to visit her 4 children and 7 grandchildren and currently resides in southwest Florida with her husband and Bichon-poo Mia.

To learn more about her and her writing workshops, click here.