Aug 23, 2026 · 33 min · 11 segments
This week on the Writers Advice Podcast I am joined by author, Kelly Anderson On this episode Kelly and I talk about: \- Her journey to writing and publishing \- Deep diving learning craft \…
Kelly AndersonGuest
Olivia HillierHost
Um, and I, I was obviously researching your podcast before we talked and I was like, Oh, it's probably going to be interesting to have someone who literally had no training in craft.
And, uh, you know, I have, I have a huge stack of all of the drafts and the very first draft I wrote, um, it's funny cause I always print them the same.
Um, but when I recently, like when I was, I was like holding the finished book in my hand and then I was like, I just want to go back and look, you know, at the first one.
I was just, I was on almost, have you heard that some poets say that when they get a poem, they just like try to run as fast as they can after the poem and write as much as before it like leaves and they're like reaching for the tail end of it.
yeah and it when i look back at the first draft and i know it wasn't all like this because there was a period near the end when i was trying to finish the book and figure out how the book ended that i did not have the ending for a very long time and we'll probably come back to that later but um the first draft i was like just trying to get ideas on paper and it was not beautiful Um, and I read a lot of books and I did a lot of programs.
Um, and I think it's like the thing that is kind of inspiring about my story is like anyone can learn this skill and craft is really a skill.
And I remember sending her my manuscript and she was like, you need to change these four things in the whole manuscript.
And they were very simple things like don't filter your character's point of view.
Instead, say like the whale surfaced with a, you know, there were very small like craft moments that just...
I think we're, and I think also just like the willingness to sit at the desk for a very long time.
Like I rewrote this book four times in full and I don't mean revise, I mean rewrite because I didn't know how to write.
Um, and I, I was obviously researching your podcast before we talked and I was like, Oh, it's probably going to be interesting to have someone who literally had no training in craft.
And, uh, you know, I have, I have a huge stack of all of the drafts and the very first draft I wrote, um, it's funny cause I always print them the same.
Um, but when I recently, like when I was, I was like holding the finished book in my hand and then I was like, I just want to go back and look, you know, at the first one.
I was just, I was on almost, have you heard that some poets say that when they get a poem, they just like try to run as fast as they can after the poem and write as much as before it like leaves and they're like reaching for the tail end of it.
yeah and it when i look back at the first draft and i know it wasn't all like this because there was a period near the end when i was trying to finish the book and figure out how the book ended that i did not have the ending for a very long time and we'll probably come back to that later but um the first draft i was like just trying to get ideas on paper and it was not beautiful Um, and I read a lot of books and I did a lot of programs.
Um, and I think it's like the thing that is kind of inspiring about my story is like anyone can learn this skill and craft is really a skill.
And I remember sending her my manuscript and she was like, you need to change these four things in the whole manuscript.
And they were very simple things like don't filter your character's point of view.
Instead, say like the whale surfaced with a, you know, there were very small like craft moments that just...
I think we're, and I think also just like the willingness to sit at the desk for a very long time.
Like I rewrote this book four times in full and I don't mean revise, I mean rewrite because I didn't know how to write.
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