90 Episodes

  1. Ep. 89: Shannon Balloon and Karen Reeder (BookHuddle Podcast) On Our Favorite MG Books of the Year (So Far)

    Published: 7/8/2025
  2. Ep. 88: Meg Medina (Graciela in the Abyss) on Diving into a Fantasy World

    Published: 7/1/2025
  3. [LISTEN AGAIN] Ep. 34: Joel Brigham on Query Letters and First Pages

    Published: 6/17/2025
  4. Ep. 87: Katherine Marsh (the Medusa series) on Monsters, Myths, and a Girl Protagonist

    Published: 6/3/2025
  5. Ep. 86: Erin Entrada Kelly (At Last She Stood) on Her Foray into Nonfiction

    Published: 5/27/2025
  6. Ep. 85: Kate O'Shaughnessy (The Wrong Way Home) on Community and Belonging

    Published: 5/20/2025
  7. Ep. 84: Dianne K. Salerni (The Tontine Caper) on Writing Humor and an Omniscient Narrator

    Published: 5/6/2025
  8. Ep. 83: Lauren Wolk (Candle Island) on the Importance of Setting in Her Novels

    Published: 4/29/2025
  9. Ep: 82: Marie Benedict (The Secrets of Lovelace Academy) on Infusing Historical Fiction with Adventure.

    Published: 4/22/2025
  10. [LISTEN AGAIN] Ep. 46: Literary Agent Alexander Slater on Publishing in Middle Grade

    Published: 4/15/2025
  11. [LISTEN AGAIN] Ep. 58: Gayle Forman (Not Nothing) on Seeing Stories From Different Perspectives

    Published: 4/8/2025
  12. Ep. 81: Debbi Michiko Florence (Last Chance Academy) on Writing a Middle Grade Mystery Series.

    Published: 4/1/2025
  13. Ep. 80: Lisa Schmid (Hart & Souls) on Non-Scary Ghost Stories and Podcasting

    Published: 3/25/2025
  14. Ep. 79: Britnee Meiser (All My Bests) on Writing Realistic Middle Grade Romance

    Published: 3/18/2025
  15. Ep. 78: Megan E. Freeman (Alone and Away) on Her Books, Her Inspiration, and the Question Everyone is Asking . . Will There Be a Third?

    Published: 3/11/2025
  16. Ep. 77: Kyle Lukoff (A World Worth Saving) on Writing Adventure, Jewish Folklore, and Trans Youth in Middle Grade.

    Published: 3/4/2025
  17. Ep. 76: Wendelin Van Draanen (Flipped) on Writing From the Heart

    Published: 2/25/2025
  18. [LISTEN AGAIN] Ep. 31: Megan Reyes (Heroes of Havensong) on Writing a Fantasy with Four Points of View

    Published: 2/18/2025
  19. Ep. 75: James Ponti (Part 2) (The Sherlock Society) on the Joy of Storytelling

    Published: 2/11/2025
  20. Ep. 74: James Ponti (Part 1) (Spy Kids) on Crafting Spy Novels and the Inspiration Behind His Work

    Published: 2/4/2025

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On the Middle Grade Matters podcast, host Shannon Balloon talks to to authors and publishing professionals about all things middle grade. The show explores topics like the craft of writing, the journey to getting an agent and publishing a book, and why middle grade books should matter to everyone.