49. Avoiding pitfalls when writing cross-genre w/ Kellie McIntyre

Do you have a story idea that doesn’t fit neatly into one genre? 

If you’ve ever considered writing cross-genre, then stick around and learn how one author managed to successfully combine travel writing, memoir, and young adult into a single book. 

You’ll also know the key benefits of researching your idea compared to the others who’ve already published, and you’ll learn how to find quality editors who support your goals.

As a bonus, you’ll also hear about Kellie’s and Erin’s travels abroad.

Topics discussed in this episode: 

• Trying to write during maternity leave
• Traveling the world and blogging with her middle schoolers
• Binging YouTube writing craft videos
• Reading one-star reviews for similar books
• Writing the first draft in three months
• Hiring three different editors when writing cross-genre
• Finding good editors and avoiding bad experiences
• Telling her family she’s writing a memoir about them
• Don’t fret not having a formal writing degree
• Favorite books
• BONUS: Entering middle school curriculums
• BONUS: Percentages of drafted and published books

About Kellie: 

Kellie McIntyre is a Southern girl with a passion for cultural and adventure travel. She has explored 50 countries across six continents and will finally make it to Antarctica in November 2023. 

In 2013, Kellie, her husband, and their two daughters traded middle school for a global adventure. That experience led to a first-class education from economy seats. And that education has turned into her new book. It is a “Dork Diaries meets The Amazing Race” family travel memoir with a unique twist—it’s written from her 14- and 12-year-old daughters’ perspectives. 

Kellie also shares tips for planning and surviving global family (mis)adventures on her travel blog, 4 Worn Passports. 

Kellie’s daughters are now young adults, and Kellie and her husband are empty-nesters in Alabama. They work in real estate.

Get her book:

• The Passport Project: Two Sisters Ditch Middle School for a Life-Changing Journey Around the World: https://www.amazon.com/Passport-Project-Sisters-Life-Changing-Journey/dp/1737743817 

Connect w/ Kellie: 

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/4WornPassports/ 
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/4WornPassports 
• Travel blog: https://4wornpassports.com/ 

Books discussed during the show: 

• The Girl with Seven Names, by Hyeonseo Lee
• Escaping from Camp 14, by Blaine Harden
• A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, by Ishmael Beah
• First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers, by Loung Ung
• From the Land of Green Ghosts, by Pascal Khoo Thwe

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