Launch

When you really think about something, the chances of anything happening are so small. But people are planners. We make things happen. Where fate and plans align, that can be something special. Consider just writing and publishing a book, for example. What are the odds that happens?

We'll be seeing what Connie and Jodi think about all of this, how books 2 and 3 of Arlo Finch are coming along, and think about the fact that any of...

John took Arlo on the road, hitting nine cities in thirteen days. We're absolutely sure that this is what rock stars feel like. These are some of the questions and answers that you sent in via email and asked John on the road.

Thank you to our sponsors:

Squarespace - Use the offer code LAUNCH at checkout when you are ready to launch your website at: www.squarespace.com

Serial Box - check out the service that NPR calls the HBO of r...

So, this is it. This is the day. After two years of writing and editing, proofreading and obsessing, Arlo Finch is finally out in the world. This book has gone from being an idea to an actual physical thing you can buy at a store.

As a writer, John’s job is done. But as an author, he has a whole new set of responsibilities.

He’s taking Arlo Finch on the road as its ambassador. He has to talk about the book, get other people talking a...

This is the exclusive Inside Hollywood edition of printing and distributing books. Even Connie doesn’t know how it works. Paper factories make logs into pulp and presses make pages into books. The books are shipped out to be put on shelves. The most important shelves for Arlo are school libraries, and we talk to librarians about what they think of Arlo.

But what do the advance reviews say? Did Kirkus and Booklist like it? Will the N...

In this episode, we’re going to be judging a book by its cover, and we talked to Vivienne To, artist hired to come up with the design for Arlo Finch.

We’ll also be nerding out over fonts and grammar. Plus, we’ll sit down with one of the most important readers of Arlo Finch -- the guy who has to read it aloud.

Eventually Arlo Finch is here, in our hands, but how? We know where the words come from but the actual book? That’s another my...

Saying “It’s like Harry Potter” is a useful way to describe a book, but He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named should absolutely not be named in children’s publishing. Like Facebook or Instagram, it’s the unicorn that warps the industry, and “sets impossible expectations,” according to editor Connie Hsu.

Most middle-grade fantasy series are duds, so not only might Arlo Finch not become Harry Potter, it might not become anything at all.

Thank you t...

Arlo Finch sprang from a phone call in an Austin hotel room in October 2015 during an epic thunderstorm. Screenwriter John August spent the next month tracing Arlo's journey over seven chapters and realized he had a book series on his hands. After talking to other screenwriters-turned-novelists, August decided it was time to find a publishing house for Arlo. There’s a preemptive offer, with only hours to decide.

Thank you to our...

Three out of five people say they dream of writing a book. Chances are you’re one of them. 

But what does it take to actually go from dream to launch? 

Screenwriter John August wants to find out. After writing hit films like Big Fish, Go, and Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, he did something that he knew nothing about: he wrote a middle-grade novel and started recording his conversations with everyone he talked to about it.

What wil...