287: Character Dynamics in an In-Depth Scene Analysis - Interview with Kiley Reid

Published: Jan. 8, 2020, 1:15 p.m.

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Hey there word nerds!

Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Kiley Reid!

An Arizona native, Kiley Reid is a recent graduate of the Iowa Writers\' Workshop, where she was the recipient of the Truman Capote Fellowship. Her short stories have been featured and are forthcoming in Ploughshares, December, New South, and Lumina. With the latter publication, her short story won first place in the 2017 Flash Prose Contest.

In Summer 2018, Kiley attended the Cuttyhunk Island Residency as the recipient of the Paul Cuffee Scholarship. Such a Fun Age is her debut novel, and the film and TV rights have already been acquired.

In this episode Kiley and I discuss:

  • How the idea of awkwardness and ownership inspired Such a Fun Age
  • Using the imbalance of three characters to create a charged scene
  • Creating complex and multi-faceted protagonists
  • An in-depth analysis of a pivotal scene
  • Using external and internal wants to deepen characterization

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

For more info and shownotes: www.diymfa.com/287

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