KidLit Craft Podcast
At KidLit Craft we look at mentor texts to discover ways to improve our own writing. Our Deep Dive series looks at one novel over multiple weeks.
Episodes
May 21, 2026
May 21, 2026
48 min
Anne-Marie is joined by freelance editor Denise Santomauro. We break down what a developmental edit is, why you might want one, and how to work with a freelance editor, from initial contact through contracts to the final edit letter.
Denise works as a freelance editor and book coach. You can find her at denisesantomauro.com.
Things we talk about:
Angellela Editorial
Reedsy
Editorial Freelance Association (editorial rates)
The Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Save Lives by Daisy Fancourt
Find more content like this at kidlitcraft.com
To help support the podcast, buy us a coffee! buymeacoffee.com/kidlitcraft
Buy T-shirts and sweatshirts (click on “small logo” or “big logo” for a range of styles)
Email us at podcast@kidlitcraft.com
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Jun 4, 2026
Jun 4, 2026
40 min
Anne-Marie talks with Rocky Callen, author of A Breath Too Late, about writing about difficult topics, including suicide, suicidal ideation, and domestic violence. We cover what to consider in drafting and revision, as well as how to take care of yourself as an author.
If you or someone you know is struggling with any of these issues, you can reach out to the National Suicide and Crisis Hotline at 988 (https://988lifeline.org) or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE (thehotline.org)
Rocky’s debut novel, A Breath Too Late, will re-release in September and is available for pre-order now: abreathtoolate.com
She is also a contributing co-editor of Ab(solutely) Normal: Short Stories that Smash Mental Health Stereotypes (co-edited with Nora Shalaway Carpenter) and the author of the YA novel Crashing into You.
KLC article on Rocky’s story “The Call Me Hurricane”: Crafting the Short Story
KLC interview with Rocky: Stories fo Mental Health are Absolutely Necessary
Things we talk about:
The Silence that Binds Us by Joanna Ho
The Coldest Winter I Ever Spent by Ann Jacobus
The Hero is You by Kendra Levin
Daniel Nayeri
KLC series on Sidewriting
Louise Hawes
People Magazine published Rocky’s list of books that center mental health
The Memory of Light by Francisco X. Stork
Find more content like this at kidlitcraft.com
To help support the podcast, buy us a coffee! buymeacoffee.com/kidlitcraft
Buy T-shirts and sweatshirts (click on “small logo” or “big logo” for a range of styles)
Email us at podcast@kidlitcraft.com
Sign up for our newsletter
A Deep Dive
At KidLit Craft, we look at mentor texts to figure out the mechanics of how writers do what they do, so we can improve our writing. Each series of the KidLit Craft podcast will focus on a different novel or shorter work.
Season one focuses on the YA novel Buffalo Flats by Martine Leavitt. We encourage you to read along as you listen.
If you like what you hear, you can support KidLit Craft on Patreon.
We also have T-shirts and sweatshirts. Find them at Cotton Bureau.
Tell your writer friends about the podcast.
We can't wait to nerd out with you.
Your Hosts!
Erin Nuttall (left) holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts and is an active member of SCBWI and ALAN. She lives outside of Chicago with her family where she writes stories for middle grade and young adult readers that offer a humorous take on friendship, identity, feminism, and romance. She is a regular contributor to KidLit Craft.
Anne-Marie Strohman (right) writes everything from picture books to young adult novels, and writes flash fiction and short stories, too. She is an active member of SCBWI and holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She teaches courses on writing for kids, lectures at regional conferences, and co-founded and edits KidLit Craft. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she finds all her best ideas on long hikes.