Freelance Writing Direct with Estelle

When William Dameron's memoir, The Lie, was optioned for a feature film, he expected to step back. Then he and the producer started talking about what drove the people in his story. Those conversations turned into a writing partnership, and Bill found himself adapting his own memoir for the screen. Bill returns to Freelance Writing Direct to talk about that collaboration and how he found his way into fiction. His novel The Way Life Should Be began as a memoir proposal. When his publisher passed on a pandemic memoir but liked the premise, Bill started imagining what the people he knew might do in situations they'd never faced. In this episode, we cover: How Bill builds a character around what they want, what they need, and the flaw that gets in their way Why he outlines each chapter in two or three sentences and uses cause and effect to keep readers turning pages How a producer discovered The Lie after hearing Bill on Dani Shapiro's Family Secrets What a viewer can see in a scene where a wife cuts her husband's hair that neither spouse can see in the moment Why Bill is revising his historical novel from two points of view while his novel about family estrangement is on submission Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KwPFWj_kO0 About Bill William Dameron is the author of The Lie: A Memoir of Two Marriages, Catfishing & Coming Out, a New York Times Editors' Choice, and the novel The Way Life Should Be, a Washington Post Notable Book. His essays and other writing have appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Salon, and Oprah Magazine. Links Listen to Bill's episode of Family Secrets: The Last Haircut. Get More From Estelle Erasmus Latest Substack post:  How to Write for Electric Literature, a recap of my NYU Editor-on-Call conversation with Denne Michele Norris. Upcoming Events Artists Against Antisemitism Mifgash, New York, NY: December 6, 2026. I'll be on the panel "Beyond the Novel: Short Form Writing." Find out more here. AWP Conference & Bookfair, Chicago: March 17–20, 2027. I'll be on a panel about AI. Watch Estelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My Book Writing That Gets Noticed Named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers" and a 2025 Reader Views Literary Awards Gold Winner in Writing & Publishing, Classics Division. Listen/Watch Freelance Writing Direct 2026 Silver Signal Award winner in Education 2026 Podcast of the Year in Business, American Writing Awards About Estelle Estelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Follow Estelle Instagram TikTok Twitter/X Bluesky Website Substack If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to Freelance Writing Direct and leave a rating or review.

Last chance to sign up! Join me for exercises, a quiz, and plenty of examples. Today's  Writer's Digest Webinar Join me today, October 29, for The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, a live interactiveWriter's Digest webinar about creating an opening that captures readers, agents, and editors from the start. Even if you can't make it, all registrants will receive a video recording.  Register here.   Now for the Episode What's sitting in your drafts folder that deserves another look? In this encore episode of the award-winning Freelance Writing Direct, I revisit one of my favorite strategies: finding new possibilities in writing you've already done. I'm sharing it again because writers often focus on the next idea without considering how much material they already have. Drawing on my experience as a writer and editor, I explain how to give older work a fresh angle, a different format, or a new audience. That essay you put aside or pitch that didn't land may still have somewhere to go. In This Episode Turn older essays and articles into micro-memoirs, service journalism, or new narratives. Revisit rejected pitches with a timely angle. Mine personal writing for talks, profiles, and reported pieces. Find opportunities with local and regional publications. Explore Substack, Medium, and literary journals as places to reach readers. Related Resources For another way to earn from previously published work, listen to Episode #18: Repurposing Writing Through Reprints. Get More From Estelle Erasmus Latest Substack post:  How to Write for Electric Literature, a recap of my NYU Editor-on-Call conversation with Denne Michele Norris. Upcoming Events Artists Against Antisemitism Mifgash, New York, NY: December 6, 2026. I'll be on the panel "Beyond the Novel: Short Form Writing." Find out more here. AWP Conference & Bookfair, Chicago: March 17–20, 2027. I'll be on a panel about AI. Watch Estelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My Book Writing That Gets Noticed Named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers" and a 2025 Reader Views Literary Awards Gold Winner in Writing & Publishing, Classics Division. Listen/Watch Freelance Writing Direct 2026 Silver Signal Award winner in Education 2026 Podcast of the Year in Business, American Writing Awards About Estelle Estelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Follow Estelle Instagram TikTok Twitter/X Bluesky Website Substack If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to Freelance Writing Direct and leave a rating or review.

What makes a literary agent see potential in a book idea? And how do you turn that idea into a proposal that gets an editor's attention? In this episode of Freelance Writing Direct, I speak with literary agent and former editor Matthew Carnicelli about developing nonfiction books, writing effective queries, and finding the right publishing home for your work. Matthew shares why he loves working with an idea that isn't fully developed yet, what draws him to a memoir, and how he helps writers make complex subjects accessible. We also discuss when personal experience strengthens a nonfiction book and when it can interrupt the narrative. In this episode, we cover: What Matthew looks for in nonfiction queries, including credentials, an original idea, and well-chosen comps. Why you should have your proposal ready before you query. His short writing exercise to clarify what your book is about and why you're the person to write it. How to build an argument that keeps readers engaged instead of repeating the same point. The pivotal moment or shift in understanding he looks for in memoir. How agents identify editors who might be a good fit for a project. Why a celebrity following doesn't guarantee book sales. When to reconsider a proposal based on editors' feedback. Impersonation scams targeting writers and the email detail that can give them away. Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=103Ouz7Fx84 About Matthew Matthew Carnicelli is president of Carnicelli Literary Management. A former editor at Penguin USA, Contemporary Books, and McGraw-Hill, he founded his agency in 2004. His work focuses on helping authors develop original book ideas and shaping those ideas for publication. Connect with Matthew Carnicelli Literary Management Submission guidelines Get More From Estelle Erasmus Latest Substack post: How to Write for Electric Literature, a recap of my NYU Editor-on-Call conversation with Denne Michele Norris. Upcoming Writer's Digest Webinar Join me on October 29 for The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, a live Writer's Digest webinar about creating an opening that captures readers, agents, and editors from the start. Register here. Upcoming Events Artists Against Antisemitism Mifgash, New York, NY: December 6, 2026. I'll be on the panel "Beyond the Novel: Short Form Writing." More information coming soon. AWP Conference & Bookfair, Chicago: March 17–20, 2027. I'll be on a panel about AI. Watch Estelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My Book Writing That Gets Noticed Named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers" and a 2025 Reader Views Literary Awards Gold Winner in Writing & Publishing, Classics Division. Listen/Watch Freelance Writing Direct 2026 Silver Signal Award winner in Education 2026 Podcast of the Year in Business, American Writing Awards About Estelle Estelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Follow Estelle Instagram TikTok Twitter/X Bluesky Website Substack If you enjoyed this conversation, subscribe to Freelance Writing Direct and leave a rating or review.

One Quick Announcement! Join Me in NYC on October 21! I'm moderating a Women's Media Group panel, Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, featuring Regina Brooks, Bethany Saltman, Laura Carney, and Hyeseung Song. It's at Penguin Random House in the Toni Morrison room, and two agents will be weighing in. We'll be talking about the many ways writers can expand the boundaries of memoir. I'd love to see you there! Register here for tickets. Now to our program: I loved chatting with Diana Daniele on her Instagram program, Musing Time, about writing, publishing, and my work in progress. With her experience as both a writer and a literary publicist, I thought she'd be an excellent guest for Freelance Writing Direct, and I'm delighted to share our conversation. Hiring a publicist can feel like a big leap. What are you paying for? What should you expect? And what can you do yourself? Diana generously shares her perspective on how authors can prepare, ask the right questions, and make the most of that relationship. Make sure to check below for a free pdf resource Diana offers FWD listeners and viewers. In this episode, we discuss: What a publicist can and can't do for your book What to ask for in a proposal before signing a contract When to begin planning publicity and building your launch team How essays, podcasts, and Substack can help you reach readers Why regular communication and activity reports matter Red flags to watch for, including promises of guaranteed coverage Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WELHqPB_c78 About Diana Diana Daniele is a writer and literary publicist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Newsweek, Business Insider, Brevity, HuffPost, and Zibby Magazine. Her book manuscript was recently longlisted in the Tall Poppy Writers Contest. She brings more than 20 years of experience in public relations to her work helping authors build visibility and connect with readers. Links Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianadanielepr/ Substack (Musing Time) https://musingtimewithdianadaniele.substack.com Website: https://dianadanielepr.com A Resource from Diana Diana also put together a Timeline for a Successful Book Launch pdf  especially for our listeners and viewers. Thank you, Diana, for sharing this helpful resource! Download her PDF:  Visit Diana's Substack for a giveaway: https://musingtimewithdianadaniele.substack.com Get More From Estelle ErasmusLatest Substack post: How to Write for Electric Literature. This is a recap from my Editor-on-call event with Denne Michele Norris, in collaboration with NYU. https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/how-to-write-for-electric-literature *]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-WEB:621d64ba-6042-470a-b4fa-818f0a8de1e0-3" data-turn-id-container= "request-WEB:621d64ba-6042-470a-b4fa-818f0a8de1e0-3" data-testid= "conversation-turn-8" data-turn="assistant"> Upcoming Writer's Digest Webinar Join me on October 29 for The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, a live Writer's Digest webinar about creating an opening that captures readers, agents, and editors from the start. Register here: https://writersdigestuniversity.mykajabi.com/the-first-five-pages  Meet Estelle at An Event Women's Media Group panel (NYC),  Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, October 21, 2026  Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) ( Chicago),  March 17-20, 2027 (I'm on a panel about AI) Artists Against Antisemitism Mifgash, New York, NY (info coming) WatchEstelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My BookWriting That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers." Listen/WatchFreelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026 Signal Awards Finalist — Education; 2026  Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards)  About EstelleEstelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine. Follow Estelle Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Freelance Writing Direct, and share it with the writers in your life.

What are publishing leaders talking about, and what can writers learn from those conversations? In this solo episode of Freelance Writing Direct, I share my takeaways from the 2026 AALA People of Publishing Conference in New York City, co-founded by Regina Brooks and Lynn Johnston. This event is sponsored and planned by the Association of American Literary Agents. From women's leadership to publishing trends and the possibilities of "memoir plus," the day offered plenty to think about as both a writer and an editor. I also share what stood out to me about the relationships behind successful books and the sense of community that made this conference feel so welcoming. In this episode, I cover: • Lessons from women leading major publishing companies, including the value of paying attention to the people doing the work. • My Estelle's Edge on finding kind mentors, supporting other women, and knowing when to say no. • Takeaways from the trend presentation on adult fiction, audiobooks, and how publishers are engaging readers. • What came up in the narrative nonfiction roundtable about memoir and the additional threads that can broaden a personal story's appeal. • How agents and editors collaborate on a book's positioning, marketing, and an author's readiness for public attention. • Why meeting people in person and building relationships remain so valuable in a changing industry. I also share a little about my own narrative nonfiction project, which weaves memoir, reporting, and cultural critique. Additional Statistics and Resources from Circana's Trendspotting Presentation 27% of consumers planned to reduce screen time to support their wellness goals in 2026. 79% of adults ages 18 to 35 expected to attend more in-person events in 2026. Resources: Circana: Turning the Page on 2026 Book Trends Eventbrite: 2026 Social Study, Reset to Real CivicScience: Americans Lean on a Diverse Mix of Comfort Media for Emotional Relief Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRpTf7fKZys Join me on October 21 in New York City for the Women's Media Group panel "Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes" at Penguin Random House. I'll be moderating a conversation with Regina Brooks, Laura Carney, Hyeseung Song, and Bethany Saltman. Find info here.  And some exciting news: Freelance Writing Direct is a 2026 Signal Awards finalist in Education! I'd love your support in the Listener's Choice voting. Go here to vote. You can vote until October 15. Thank you so much! Subscribe to Freelance Writing Direct, and follow me on Substack at estelleserasmus.substack.com for more writing advice and subscriber-only extras.

Before we get to the episode, I have news: Freelance Writing Direct is a Signal Awards finalist in Education! If the podcast has helped you with your writing, I'd love your vote for the Listener's Choice Award. Vote here by October 15. Thank you for cheering me on! Now for today's episode: What happens when the person selling the story starts questioning the story she's been sold? In this episode of Freelance Writing Direct, I talk with Lu Chekowsky, author of Don't Buy What I'm Selling: On Breaking Up with Advertising and Finally Learning to Love My Whole Fat Self, about advertising, ambition, body image, approval, and the stories we absorb about who we're supposed to be. Lu shares how she turned decades inside the advertising industry into a deeply personal book that also examines the culture of selling, beauty, success, and self-worth. In this episode: • What advertising teaches us about desire and identity • The connection between ambition, approval, and self-worth • Blending memoir with cultural critique • Writing candidly about body image, grief, and family Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSsu2Vg3jIA About Lu Lu Chekowsky is a writer, Emmy Award-winning creative director, and author of Don't Buy What I'm Selling. Her career has included senior creative roles at Facebook, Comedy Central, MTV, and Wieden+Kennedy. For her complete bio go to https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast (see episode #211) Link Website: https://www.lchekowsky.com Get More From Estelle Erasmus *]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-WEB:621d64ba-6042-470a-b4fa-818f0a8de1e0-3" data-turn-id-container= "request-WEB:621d64ba-6042-470a-b4fa-818f0a8de1e0-3" data-testid= "conversation-turn-8" data-turn="assistant"> I'm teaching my eight-week NYU course, Write to Publish: How to Get Your Work in Print and Beyond, live online beginning October 13. You'll learn how to develop personal and reported essays, create a compelling story arc, pitch online and print publications, and revise your work. We'll also hear directly from visiting editors and authors, and explore a curated list of publication opportunities. Learn more and register here. Latest Substack post: Detail with a Pulse to Make Your Writing Sing. A great detail doesn't just describe a scene. It carries emotion, tension, character, or meaning. Here's how to find the one detail that makes a scene come alive. Plus, paid subscribers can send me up to three paragraphs for feedback. https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/detail-with-a-pulse-to-make-your. Upcoming Writer's Digest Webinar Join me on October 29 for The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, a live Writer's Digest webinar about creating an opening that captures readers, agents, and editors from the start. Register here: https://writersdigestuniversity.mykajabi.com/the-first-five-pages  Meet Estelle at An Event Women's Media Group panel (NYC),  Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, October 21, 2026  Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) ( Chicago),  March 17-20, 2027 (I'm on a panel about AI) Artists Against Antisemitism Mifgash, New York, NY (info coming) WatchEstelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My BookWriting That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers." Listen/WatchFreelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026 Signal Awards Finalist — Education; 2026  Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards)  About EstelleEstelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine. Follow Estelle Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Freelance Writing Direct, and share it with the writers in your life.

In this episode of Freelance Writing Direct, I talk with bestselling author, podcaster, and Zibby Media founder Zibby Owens about her new memoir in essays, Between Chapters: How I Started Over, Took Some Chances, and Found the Plot. Zibby shares how she sorted through approximately 500 pages of essays and found the structure that could hold stories about divorce, remarriage, motherhood, friendship, grief, Jewish activism, mental health, weight loss, and work. We discuss how she balanced humor with more painful material, why she asked her children for permission before including a hilarious parenting story, and how she approaches writing about the people she loves. Zibby also reflects on childhood shyness, her drive to create, and why it's never too late to reinvent yourself. In This Episode Why she arranged the book to feel like a conversation with a friend Balancing funny, poignant, and painful stories Protecting loved ones while writing honestly How childhood shyness strengthened her powers of observation Finding purpose through work, books, and literary community Why reinvention happens one decision at a time Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wf_1O8O-vE About Zibby Owens ZIBBY OWENS is the bestselling author and editor of seven books including Between Chapters: How I Started Over, Took Some Chances, and Found the Plot, Blank: A Novel, Bookends: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Literature, and On Being Jewish Now: Reflections from Authors and Advocates, which has spent 29 weeks on the USA Today bestseller list. Zibby has interviewed more than 2,000 authors on her award-winning podcast Totally Booked with Zibby and weekly TV show Totally Booked on JBS. In 2021 she founded Zibby Media with the launch of boutique publishing house Zibby Publishing and unique year-round hosted retreats and events for book lovers. In 2023, she opened indie bookstore Zibby's Bookshop in Santa Monica, CA. A frequent speaker (repped by UTA), moderator, and broadcast guest, Zibby, dubbed "NYC's Most Powerful Book-fluencer" (Vulture) is known for highlighting the book industry's most anticipated new releases and emerging authors in "the Zibby-verse" (L.A. Times). Links Newsletter subscription: https://www.zibbyowens.com/subscribe Substack: https://www.zibbyowens.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zibbyowens/ Zibby Media: https://zibbymedia.com Podcast: Totally Booked:  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/totally-booked-with-zibby/id1366633318 Get More From Estelle Erasmus *]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" data-turn-id= "request-WEB:621d64ba-6042-470a-b4fa-818f0a8de1e0-3" data-turn-id-container= "request-WEB:621d64ba-6042-470a-b4fa-818f0a8de1e0-3" data-testid= "conversation-turn-8" data-turn="assistant"> I'm teaching my eight-week NYU course, Write to Publish: How to Get Your Work in Print and Beyond, live online beginning October 13. You'll learn how to develop personal and reported essays, find and interview experts, conduct research, create a compelling story arc, pitch online and print publications, and revise your work for maximum impact. We'll also cover what editors look for in pitches and submissions, and hear directly from them. You'll leave with polished work and practical skills for getting published. The course is part of NYU's Storytelling and Professional Writing and Communications certificates, but it can also be taken on its own. Learn more and register here. Latest Substack post: Detail with a Pulse to Make Your Writing Sing. A great detail doesn't just describe a scene. It carries emotion, tension, character, or meaning. Here's how to find the one detail that makes a scene come alive. Plus, paid subscribers can send me up to three paragraphs for feedback.https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/detail-with-a-pulse-to-make-your. Upcoming Writer's Digest Webinar Join me on October 29 for The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, a live Writer's Digest webinar about creating an opening that captures readers, agents, and editors from the start. Register here: https://writersdigestuniversity.mykajabi.com/the-first-five-pages  Meet Estelle at An Event AALA's People of Publishing (NYC), September 30, 2026 (attending as press) Women's Media Group panel (NYC),  Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, October 21, 2026  Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) ( Chicago),  March 17-20, 2027  WatchEstelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My BookWriting That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers." Listen/WatchFreelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026  Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards) https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast  About EstelleEstelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine. Follow Estelle Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Freelance Writing Direct, and share it with the writers in your life.

In this solo episode from the Freelance Writing Direct archives, Estelle Erasmus breaks down real pitches to show what works, what doesn't, and how to make your ideas more compelling to editors.  You'll learn how to sharpen your hook, add the right details and research, show editors your access and expertise, and structure a pitch so they can immediately see how the story will come together. Estelle also shares examples from her own successful pitches and explains how small changes can make a big difference. Get more pitching advice and a Pitch Clinic chapter in her book Writing That Gets Noticed. In this episode: How to find and strengthen the hook in your pitch Why specificity, research, and expert access matter What to include when you don't have perfectly matched clips How to structure a pitch so an editor can quickly see the story Ways to bring your voice and perspective onto the page Get More From Estelle Erasmus Latest Substack post: Detail with a Pulse to Make Your Writing Sing. A great detail doesn't just describe a scene. It carries emotion, tension, character, or meaning. Here's how to find the one detail that makes a scene come alive. Plus, paid subscribers can send me up to three paragraphs for feedback.https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/detail-with-a-pulse-to-make-your.  Upcoming Writer's Digest Webinar Join me on October 29 for The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, a live Writer's Digest webinar about creating an opening that captures readers, agents, and editors from the start. Register here: https://writersdigestuniversity.mykajabi.com/the-first-five-pages Meet Estelle at An Event AALA's People of Publishing (NYC), September 30, 2026 (attending as press) Women's Media Group panel (NYC),  Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, October 21, 2026  Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) ( Chicago),  March 17-20, 2027  WatchEstelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond Order My BookWriting That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers." Listen/WatchFreelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026  Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards) https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast  About EstelleEstelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine. Follow Estelle Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Freelance Writing Direct, and share it with the writers in your life.

In this episode of Freelance Writing Direct, award-winning author and memoirist Cinelle Barnes joins me to talk about how A Way Home evolved from a Philippines travel memoir into a layered story of travel, family, identity, recovery, and finding home after she suffered, and recovered from a brain aneurysm. We discuss how she braided different threads and timelines together, found connections between seemingly disparate parts of her story, and shaped a memoir that became more expansive than the book she originally planned to write, plus: • Shaping a hybrid travel and medical memoir • Using emotion and sensory details to deepen scenes • Working with motifs, refrains, and circling back • A writing exercise that everyone can use to find connections in seemingly disparate elements in memoir • Moving from "I have to" to "I get to" Watch on YouTube https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PlHxkTjzY1s&pp=0gcJCf4LAYcqIYzv About Cinelle Barnes Cinelle Barnes is the Philippine-born author of Monsoon Mansion: A Memoir, Malaya: Essays on Freedom, and A Way Home: A Memoir of Losing Yourself and the Beauty of Returning. She is also the editor of the New York Times "New and Noteworthy" A Measure of Belonging: Twenty-One Writers of Color on the New American South.    Cinelle is a survivor of a brain aneurysm rupture and sits on the Brain Injury Leadership Council of South Carolina and the Hub City Press National Council, and is the recipient of awards and fellowships from the Sustainable Arts Fund, the Authors League Fund, the National Endowment for the Arts, South Arts, the SC State Arts Commission, and the North American Travel Journalists Association, among others. She has served on the jury panels for several literary awards, including the inaugural Pulitzer Prize for Memoir. Her writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Coastal Living, Travel + Leisure, Oprah Daily, Newsweek, Southern Living, and Memoir Land, among others. Cinelle lives in Charleston, SC, with her husband, daughter, and cat.  Links  For information, visit  www.cinellebarnes.com Get More From Estelle Erasmus Latest Substack post: Detail with a Pulse to Make Your Writing Sing. A great detail doesn't just describe a scene. It carries emotion, tension, character, or meaning. Here's how to find the one detail that makes a scene come alive. Plus, paid subscribers can send me up to three paragraphs for feedback.https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/detail-with-a-pulse-to-make-your.  Meet Estelle at An Event Editor-on-Call event with NYU, Electric Literature, September 16, 12:30-1:30 pm ET (virtual) AALA's People of Publishing (NYC), September 30, 2026 (attending as press) Women's Media Group panel (NYC),  Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, October 21, 2026  Writer's Digest Webinar, The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, October 29, 2026 Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) ( Chicago),  March 17-20, 2027  WatchEstelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond BookWriting That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers." Listen/WatchFreelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026  Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards) https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast  About EstelleEstelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine. Follow Estelle Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Freelance Writing Direct, and share it with the writers in your life.

What makes humor work on the page? And how do you write about love after the meet-cute, when a relationship has lasted for decades? In this episode of Freelance Writing Direct, I talk with New York Times bestselling author Steven Rowley about his new novel, Take Me With You, a love story with a touch of science fiction that asks a fascinating question: If you had the chance to leave everything behind and explore the unknown, would you go? We talk about how Steven builds a novel around an organizing question, why he prefers writing without a detailed outline, how he creates humor from character rather than jokes, and what writers can learn from using humor to explore serious subjects. We also discuss writing relationships that evolve over time and why life experience can be an asset for writers. In this episode: How to find the central question that drives a novel Why Steven writes toward an ending without heavily outlining How humor can help writers get closer to emotional truth Why character-based humor has staying power How to differentiate characters and show them changing over time Why writers shouldn't worry if publishing success comes later in life Watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJietLH7PfE About Steven Rowley Steven Rowley is the New York Times bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus, a Washington Post notable book; The Editor, named one of NPR's best books of 2019; The Guncle, a Goodreads Choice Awards finalist and winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor; and the instant USA Today bestsellers The Guncle Abroad and The Dogs of Venice. His fiction has been published in twenty languages. Originally from Portland, Maine, he is a graduate of Emerson College and lives in Palm Springs with his husband, writer Byron Lane, and their three rescue dogs.  Link Website: https://www.stevenrowley.com Get More From Estelle Erasmus My latest Substack post is the Substack Live I did with Aliza Licht on DKNY PR GIRL, the magazine world we both knew, branding and reinvention, and her Substack serial novel Off the Record, which brings that era vividly back to life.  Private Small-Group Memoir/Essay Class My next six-week session beginning in September 2026 is sold out. Please email me to be added to the waiting list for the next session. Contact [email protected] for details. Meet Estelle at An Event Editor-on-Call event with NYU, Electric Literature, September 16, 12;30-1:30 pm ET (virtual) AALA's, People of Publishing (NYC), September 30, 2026 (attending as press) Women's Media Group panel (NYC),  Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, October 21, 2026  Writer's Digest Webinar, The First Five Pages: Making Your Memoir Impossible to Put Down, October 29, 2026 Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) ( Chicago),  March 17-20, 2027  WatchEstelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond BookWriting That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers." Listen/WatchFreelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026  Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards) https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast  About EstelleEstelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine. Follow Estelle Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Freelance Writing Direct, and share it with the writers in your life.