[This interview was conducted online so there may be some audio variation. Intro/Outro music is by Moutaineer and licensed through Premuim Beat]

(Content Warning: At around the 20-minute mark there is mention of the video of Ahmaud Arbery’s death and the last words of Elijah McClain when Alicia mentions participating in NaNoWriMo. If this may be triggering, please skip forward by 2 minutes and 30 seconds.)

Continuing the 10th anniversary year of Minorities in Pub, Jenn welcomes Newbery honoree and Coretta Scott King awardee Alicia D. Williams! Alicia discusses her new middle-grade novel in verse MID-AIR and how the narrative form scared but called to her, the connections her books exploring the multifaceted nature of grief, the paralysis of writing this second novel after your first receives so much acclaim, the need for more representation of soft-hearted Black boys in books, and the beauty of fully being able to express yourself when you find the story that moves you.

[You can sign up for the MiP monthly newsletter with job listings, guest news, and new eps here. Transcript of this episode is TK.]

This month’s episode & newsletter were sponsored by Writeability, a nonprofit writers guild, in defense of the imagination.