Betsy Lerner is the author of the recently released novel, Shred Sisters (Grove Press, October 2024). She is also the author The Bridge Ladies, The Forest for the Trees and Food and Loathing. With Temple Grandin, she is the co-author of the New York Times bestseller Visual Thinking: The Hidden Gifts of People Who Think in Pictures, Patterns and Abstractions. She received an MFA from Columbia University in Poetry where she was selected as one of PEN’s Emerging Writers. She also received the Tony Godwin Publishing Prize for Editors. After working as an editor for 15 years, she became an agent and is currently a partner with Dunow, Carlson and Lerner Literary Agency.

• The surprising origin of the Shred Sisters and the reason a temporary title became so much more [3:51]

• How Betsy’s life informed the book’s backstory and is reflected in multiple characters [7:16]

• Writing a coming of age story with a twist [7:22]

• The difference between writing fiction and nonfiction, and why Betsy enjoys this latest genre so much [7:57]

• The value of good transitions to move the reader along and hook them into the story [10:46]

• Betsy’s ‘acorn’ theory and how she dropped seeds throughout her book [15:22]

• The key to structure and why many writers struggle with it [21:51]

• What Betsy really thinks about the process of revision and why slowing down is essential [24:06]

• The other side of her work, acting as a literary agent [25:01]

• How Betsy ended up going viral on TikTok and becoming a book influencer [26:28]

• Betsy’s dream for her book, and who she would cast in the movie [32:50]

• Why a writer should never write for an audience [36:32]

Connect with Betsy

Photo Credit: Maryana Karayim

Website: https://betsylerner.com

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@betsylerner

The New York Times Book Review of Shred Sisters

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/30/books/review/shred-sisters-betsy-lerner.html

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