It's the Rewriting That Makes You an Author

It's the Rewriting That Makes You an Author

From The Shit No One Tells You About Writing by Bianca Marais, Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra

June 25, 2026 · 31 min · Season 31 · Episode 8

About this episode

Haili Blassingame discusses her debut novel and the transformative power of rewriting in the writing process.

Author and NPR producer Haili Blassingame joins Bianca Marais to discuss her debut novel, ‘ They All Fall in Love in the End' , a bold exploration of love, non-monogamy, identity, and self-discovery. Haili shares how her own experience in an open relationship inspired the story, how a viral essay led to finding an agent, and why learning to revise transformed her from a writer into an author. The conversation dives into crafting complex, “unlikable” yet compelling characters, using fiction as a way to interrogate political and personal realities, and the importance of sensitivity readers when writing beyond your lived experience. Note: CeCe Lyra is a literary agent at Wendy Sherman Associates. If you’d like to query CeCe, please refer to the submission guidelines at www.wsherman.com. Carly Watters is a literary agent at P.S. Literary Agency, but her work on this podcast is not affiliated with the agency, and the views expressed by Carly on this podcast are solely that of her as a podcast co-host ​and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, policies, or position of P.S. Literary Agency. Find us on our socials: Threads: https://www.threads.net/@the_shit_about_writing…

People in this episode

Host: Bianca Marais

Guest: Haili Blassingame

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NPR, Wendy Sherman Associates, P.S. Literary Agency

Books & works: They All Fall in Love in the End

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