How #1 NY Times Bestselling Author Ruta Sepetys Writes

The Writer Files: Writing, Productivity, Creativity, and Neuroscience

#1 New York Times bestselling author, Ruta Sepetys, spoke to me about what she learned in the music industry, the secrets to strong, vivid writing, and her non-fiction debut YOU: THE STORY: A Writer’s Guide to Craft Through Memory.

Ruta Sepetys is an award-winning and internationally acclaimed, #1 New York Times bestselling author of historical fiction published in over sixty countries and forty languages. Her acclaimed “crossover” YA literature includes the Carnegie Medal-winning Salt to the Sea.

Her latest is the creative guide to writing, You: The Story: A Writer’s Guide to Craft Through Memory (available May 16, 2023), which “... provides aspiring writers with a roadmap to crafting compelling stories by encouraging them to look inward and excavate their own memories in order to discover authentic voices and compelling details.”

In a starred review Booklist said of the book, “Part writing guide, part memoir, Sepetys’ fresh, fun handbook is all inspiration.”

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In this file, Ruta Sepetys and I discussed:

• What she learned about storytelling working in the music industry
• Why she’s drawn to underrepresented stories and “history in hiding”
• How to discover the Four Hs of the "excitement of life"
• Her intensive research process for each book
• Why writers need to examine their own lives for authenticity
• And a lot more!

Show Notes:

• rutasepetys.com
• You: The Story: A Writer's Guide to Craft Through Memory by Ruta Sepetys (Amazon)
• Ruta Sepetys Amazon Author Page
• Ruta Sepetys on Instagram
• Ruta Sepetys on Twitter
• Kelton Reid on Twitter

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