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In this episode of Write the Damn Book Already, I spoke with Diana Naranjo about her memoir (which is currently on submission). She recounts a pivotal moment where a professional connection with author Abraham Verghese (Cutting for Stone, The Covenant of Water) led to her first agent connection.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• How Diana learned to write after completing her first draft
• The nuanced difference between memoir and creative non-fiction
• Her strategies for finding agents and the value of learning from the author community's experiences. 
• The challenge of identifying as "a writer" 

ABOUT DIANA
Dr. Diana Naranjo is a professor at Stanford University and a clinical psychologist. She’s a leading expert in children's health and equity, and has written a memoir. THE ART OF FLYING is a story about growing up with her Ecuadorian father who suffered from bipolar disorder. 

In her journey from academic writing to creative writing, she’s been as excited about the process of learning how to write and about the writing industry as she has been the actual writing. When tasked with “growing her platform” from feedback on submission as a debut memoir author who isn’t “famous,” she almost lost hope. But then, in a serendipitous moment taking The Shit No One Tells You About Writing’s Deep Dive course, she heard from Dr. LaToya Watkins about her writing process. LaToya is a method-writer, taking her characters to therapy. Diana thought, "Wow, now that’s something I would love to do!" And that’s how her podcast idea THE CHARACTERIST was born—where she is the therapist for fictional characters and brings authors onto the show to take their favorite characters for therapy.  

CONNECT WITH DIANA
Instagram: @dnaranjo

WHAT DIANA'S READING NOW

Tell Me Everything: The Story of a Private Investigation by Erika Krouse

RESOURCES MENTIONED

In a Not So Perfect World by Neely Tubati Alexander

The Covenant of Water and Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

Everyone But Myself by Julie Chavez

Tough Titties by Laura Belgray 

The Ultimate Podcast Starter Pack

The Coffee Builders coffee shop (Phoenix, AZ)

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🔑 BOOK FORMATTING SOFTWARE FOR SELF-PUBLISHED AUTHORS

This episode is sponsored by Atticus, the all-in-one writing and book formatting software for self-publishing authors. From drafting to professional ebook and print layout, Atticus makes it easy to format your manuscript for KDP, IngramSpark, and beyond. Learn more at Atticus.io.

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You've Been Thinking About This Book Forever. So let's get it written (for real this time). 

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Write the Damn Book Already is a weekly podcast featuring interviews with authors as well as updates and insights on writing craft and the publishing industry. 

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Email the show: elizabeth [at] elizabethlyons [dot] com

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