37 Of The Best Writing Podcasts Available: Listen Now!

If you want to improve your writing skills, spend a little time learning from the other writers who host podcasts.

I regularly spend an hour or two a week listening to top shows like the Creative Penn so I can learn what’s working in publishing and get craft advice. I also share my insights on the Become a Writer Today podcast.

So what should you listen to?

Take a look at some of the best podcasts on writing and learn more about how they can help your creative work! Of course, the podcasts aren’t in order of best to worst.

Because they’re too hard to rank! Let’s dive in.

The best writing podcasts available

1. Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

This podcast is designed to help writers who are looking to improve their knowledge of the English language. Episodes offer listeners advice on how to weave interesting details into their stories while also remaining grammatically correct.

Some of the most popular recent episodes target grammar myths and strategies for tackling writer’s block and becoming a better writer.

2. The Career Author 

Hosted by Zach Bohannon and J. Thorn, this podcast seeks to host helpful conversations that will help aspiring writers. Episodes focus on creativity, writing, marketing, and the growth of self-publishing.

Specific episodes have focused on soliciting feedback from peers, finding a mentor, and exploring the pros and cons of a publishing deal.

3A Way With Words

This is an NPR podcast that discusses language through different historical lenses. By taking a look at writing from different cultural perspectives, writers will have the opportunity to explore different methods of storytelling.

Episodes also focus on slang, new words, semantics, and eclectic topics in the world of writing.

4. The Segilola Salami Show

Segilola Salami is a mother and author who tackles topics related to books and publishing. The podcast is equal parts entertaining and educational as it welcomes guests of all backgrounds in the writing industry.

Guests share their stories of how they got from the beginning to where they are now via publishing novels.

5. I Should Be Writing

Hosted by Mur Lafferty, this is an award-winning podcast that frequently features authors who have a new book coming out. The goal of this podcast is to inspire new writers to believe in themselves and start writing.

Popular episodes talk about rejection in the publishing industry and the problems of naming a character after a living person.

6. The Writing Life Podcast 

This podcast caters to all writers. Hosted by the National Center of Writing, the podcast interviews writers of all backgrounds regarding their writing journeys, their techniques, and their styles.

Guests include everyone from early-career self-publishing writers to narrative designers.

7. Portfolio Life by Jeff Goins

Author Jeff Goins hosts this podcast and explores topics regarding life, artistry, and collective work. The podcast features inspirational messages that encourage writers to follow their dreams and build a writing career.

The podcast also follows the journeys of different writers and shows there is no one way to make a living writing. When I got started blogging, Jeff Goin’s blog and his podcast served as inspiration for what’s possible

8. StoryADay

This podcast challenges writers to discover how much they are capable of writing in a month. The podcast explores how writers can become more committed to their craft with short, 15-minute episodes.

Writers will get writing prompts, creativity challenges, and published posts focusing on the writing process.

9. The Story Grid Podcast

This podcast is hosted by veteran author Shawn Coyne and writer Tim Grahl, who calls himself a struggling writer. This podcast explores ways to create a story and the craft of writing a book.

As a unique twist, the podcast critiques the works of the hosts, seeking to provide serious insight with a humorous twist that keeps the audience entertained.

10. So You Want to Be A Writer?

This extensive podcast is hosted by authors Allison Tait and Valerie Khoo. With more than 250 episodes, this is a versatile podcast that explores all aspects of writing, including publishing.

Whether listeners want to learn more about the latest trends in publishing or would like tips on how to grow their writing business, this podcast will touch on it at some point.

11. StoryCorps

For those who are looking for inspiration from interesting stories, this NPR podcast focuses on interviews with individuals from all backgrounds. The podcast doesn’t focus directly on writers but instead tells stories that could serve as a source of ideas.

Most of the conversations tackle difficult, compelling topics that can act as a platform for a new story.

12.You’re Wrong About 

In writing, fact-checking is a must, and this podcast will teach writers how to fact-check quickly and accurately.

That applies even if you’re self-publishing a book.

Hosted by journalists Michael Hobbes and Sarah Marshall, the team tackles events that have been misinterpreted through the imagination of the public.

The podcast is helpful for those who write fiction, mystery novels, and, of course, news articles.

13. The Literary Salon

Damian Barr hosts this podcast where authors read excerpts from their books in glamorous locations. There is always a live audience and the podcast provides listeners with a chance to hear some of the best stories in the world told live.

Okechukwu Nzelu recently read a passage from his second book, titled The Private Joys of Nnenna Maloney.

14. Minorities in Publishing

This podcast focuses on issues related to a lack of diversity in writing. Listeners are encouraged to focus on the impact of not only what they write but also what they don’t.

The podcast explores ways to tackle tough issues in society through writing.

15. Writing Class Radio

This podcast serves as an invitation to a writing class. Listeners can hear advice from experts who share helpful tips on storytelling. Episodes tackle everything from inspiration to developing an identity to finding an agent.

16. The Drunken Odyssey with John King

This is a podcast hosted by John King, a literary reviewer, and discusses how writers can foster a sense of community and encouragement. The podcast also tackles challenging issues in the writing process, mostly geared toward story and novel writers.

17. Ditch Diggers

Mur Lafferty and Matt Wallace provide advice to writers with deadlines. The goal is to help writers press through upcoming deadlines while still paying the bills. While the podcast has some popular language, this is helpful for writers who are just getting started in the field.

18. Mythcreants Podcast

This is a weekly podcast that provides an opportunity for writers to geek out on fantasy and sci-fi stories while trying to uncover ways to find fresh, new, creative ideas. Episodes tackle everything from writing about conflicts in stories to how to explain a point of view and character development.

19. The Copywriter Club Podcast

This is a podcast for copywriters, subject matter experts, and technical writers. This is a growing niche in writing, and the podcast offers resources for writers who seek to make a living in this business.

The podcast also tackles common issues that copywriters and editors might encounter.

20. Happier by Gretchen Rubin

Gretchen Rubin, a bestselling author, hosts this podcast. In her episodes, she focuses on the life of a writer and trying to find joy in the writing process. The podcast features interviews from numerous bestselling authors who share habits that have made them successful in the industry.

21. Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach

Ann Kroeker is a writing coach and she hosts this podcast to help writers hone their talent. She provides practical tips, insights, and inspiration. Episodes tend to last about fifteen minutes and focus on fast solutions to common writing issues.

This might include proofreading, cutting down a manuscript, and character development.

22. Helping Writers Become Authors

KM Weiland, an award-winning author, hosts this podcast and provides advice to aspiring writers. Tailored to those who want to write novels, the podcast provides practical advice on numerous topics related to story structure.

23. Between the Covers

This is a literary radio show hosted by David Naimon. The podcast features in-depth conversations with writers from a variety of genres and backgrounds. Episodes usually last an hour and explore details of the creative writing process behind some of the top books in the world.

24. The Creative Penn Podcast

The Creative Penn Podcast focuses on writing, publishing, book marketing, and making a living through writing. Led by Joanna Penn, who is an award-nominated New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author, podcast episodes are posted every Monday.

I’ve listened to this show for years and am a Patreon supporter. It’s one of the best writing podcasts. Joanna features interviews, inspiration, and information on writing, self-publishing, entrepreneurship, and book marketing.

25. The Writing University Podcast

This podcast features recordings of famous talks from bestselling writers, poets, essayists, and other featured guests who provide lectures at the University of Iowa’s Summer Writing Festival. Some of the top talks on this podcast explore the power of emotions, mixed feelings, and controversial ideas in writing.

26. Beautiful Writers Podcast

This podcast features conversations with some of the top writers in the world. Hosted by Linda Sivertsen, some of the authors to come on the show include Dean Koontz and Elizabeth Gilbert.

The episodes are detailed and feature anecdotes from some of the top creative minds in the industry.

27. First Draft: A Dialogue On Writing

Hosted by Mitzi Rapkin, this is a literary podcast that has been on the air for five years. Episodes feature in-depth interviews with writers in a variety of genres who share some of the impressive messes that made up their first drafts.

The podcast is a conversation about the author’s topics while also providing a deep dive into the writing craft from beginning to end.

28. Savage Lovecast

Hosted by Dan Savage, this podcast focuses on exploring the lives of human characters in stories. Episodes focus on how to develop and explore romantic relationships in writing.

The podcast encourages writers to use real-life experiences to inform their fiction because reality is often more interesting anyway.

29. Write-minded

This podcast releases new episodes weekly and is hosted by Brooke Warner (from She Writes) and Grant Faulkner (from NaNoWriMo). Each episode has a theme that is built around an interview from someone in the writing industry.

Each episode has a takeaway, but the podcast wants listeners to learn that everyone can become a writer, and their stories always matter.

30. Dead Robots’ Society

This is a fun podcast that shares insights that are usually tailored toward those who would like to write novels. The podcast explores the writing process from word choice to sequels, trilogies, and more.

They also explore interesting topics in fiction writing ranging from fantasy to science fiction, thrillers, and mystery novels.

31. Create If Writing

This podcast is geared toward creatives, writers, and bloggers who seek to build an online platform without being labeled as snobby or smarmy. Hosted by Kirsten Oliphant, episodes focus on everything from coming up with fresh ideas to digital marketing and publishing deals.

32. Writing Excuses

This podcast is hosted by writers who offer quick tips for tackling problems in writing. Podcasts are only 15 minutes long, but they are packed full of content.

With 13 seasons, past episodes have covered structural issues in writing, telling stories in different genres, and tips for outlining a new story.

33. The Subtext 

This podcast focuses on playwrights who want to talk about some of the most controversial topics in playwriting. Hosted by The American Theatre, a general-circulation magazine that focuses on theater, the podcast talks about topics that irk, agitate, inspire, and motivate.

The podcast seeks to uncover what makes writers tick.

34. The Writer Files

The Writer Files are hosted by Kelton Reid and focus on exploring the habits of some of the top writers in the world. Reid also interviews writers of all backgrounds, providing listeners with a chance to check out the minds of accomplished wordsmiths in various genres.

35. Mark Dawson’s Self-Publishing Formula

I’ve taken several of Mark’s courses over the years and he’s a knowledge guy about writing and book marketing. He’s also sold over a million books! 

On his writing podcast, which he co-hosts with James Blatch, Mark features case studies, interviews and best practices.

36. Story Studio Podcast

This popular podcast is hosted by Johnny B. Truant, Dave Wright and Sean Pratt. It’s an informal show that covers self-publishing, the craft and everything going on the the host’s creative lives.

The authors write everything from science fiction to books with practical writing advice. I also recently interviewed them.

37. Become a Writer Today

Humble-brag alert!

If you are looking for a podcast that will help you learn about how to start and build a profitable career through writing, then check out my show

I feature interviews from best-selling authors who share some of their own writing tips, marketing strategies, and publishing advice. I also cover topics like how to write a book.

I was also featured in Feedspot’s top 20 creative writing podcasts.

The Final Word on the Best Writing Podcasts

These are a few of the best podcasts about writing. As you can see, there’s a lot to choose from. I usually listen to one or two shows while out for a run or in the gym using the Pocketcasts app.

Each podcast has a unique approach to writing, so check out a few of them and learn more about they can improve your approach to your work.

Author

  • Bryan Collins is the owner of Become a Writer Today. He's an author from Ireland who helps writers build authority and earn a living from their creative work. He's also a former Forbes columnist and his work has appeared in publications like Lifehacker and Fast Company.

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