Working: How Divergent Author Veronica Roth Learns From Criticism
Welcome to the revamped Working. We\u2019re pivoting to creativity! New hosts Rumaan Alam, Isaac Butler, and June Thomas will be talking to writers, musicians, designers, YouTubers, and other people with creative jobs about how they spend their days.\xa0\nThis week, June talks with author Veronica Roth, who wrote the first draft of her novel Divergent when she was a senior at Northwestern University. She had sold more than 32 million books by the time she was 26, and next week, at the ripe old age of 31, she\u2019ll publish her seventh novel, Chosen Ones.\xa0\nThey talked about identifying your natural writing style, how to find the perfect person to offer feedback on your work, and making the switch from writing YA fiction. You\u2019ll also hear how Kate Winslet helped her create more believable villains.\nAfterward, Rumaan and Isaac talk about their own experiences with the workshopping process and the readers whose feedback they trust most\u2014for Rumaan that\u2019s Lynn Steger Strong, author of Hold Still; for Isaac that\u2019s Sally Franson, author of A Lady\u2019s Guide to Selling Out, and Catherine Nichols.)\n\nSend your questions about creativity and any other feedback to\xa0working@slate.com.\nPodcast production by Morgan Flannery.\nAnd if you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence\u2014and you\u2019ll be supporting the work we do here on Working. It\u2019s only $35 for the first year, and you can get a free two-week trial now at slate.com/workingplus\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices