Hello Literarians.

We have a quick update about the Reed, Write, & Create podcast. We’ve officially changed the name to the “Your BIPoC Writing Coach” podcast.

Why the Name Change

Over here at Reed, Write, & Create headquarters, we know our podcast rocks. We have the most amazing line-up of guests, from award-winning authors (Bernice McFadden, Ilyon Woo, Tia Williams) to publishing insiders (Regina Brooks) to the most innovative book-fluencers around (Jeannine A. Cook). We provide inspiring content to help our listeners optimize their writing lives by sharing the life lessons gleaned from our most beloved literary ancestors, from Maya Angelou to Sor Juana de la Cruz. And we’re always coming up with new ways to keep our listeners motivated to keep writing because we firmly believe the world needs more stories by more BIPoC writers.

Same podcast, new name. “Your BIPoC Writing Coach”

So, we know we have a good thing going with our podcast. Dare we say, it’s a great thing going. But not enough people know we exist. There is no podcast algorithm, and podcasts aren’t really searchable. But when people do plug in a search term in the podcast directories, we realized they are not searching for Reed, Write, & Create if they’re trying to find a podcast to help them with their writing life. So, we changed the name so we can be found by the writers who need us. And moreover, we wanted the name of the podcast to reflect what it was really about.

Each episode is meant to feel like a bite-sized coaching session from a passionate, knowledgeable and enthusiastic writing coach, who has a heart for BIPoC writers. And that’s what Lori L. Tharps is all about.

Who is Lori L. Tharps? Your BIPoC Writing Coach

Lori L. Tharps is an award-winning author, journalist, educator and writing coach. A recognized voice in the areas of race, identity politics, and African-American culture, Lori has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Glamour and Essence magazines, among many others.

A graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, Lori is the author of three critically acclaimed nonfiction books, Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America (St. Martin’s Press) Kinky Gazpacho: Life, Love & Spain (Atria) and Same Family, Different Colors: Confronting Colorism in America’s Diverse Families (Beacon). Lori also penned the novel, Substitute Me (Atria).

In 2021, Lori moved with her family to the south of Spain, where she launched Reed, Write & Create, a podcast and platform that celebrates and supports BIPoC stories and storytellers through coaching, community, and content. Here’s what one coaching client, Erica, said about working with Lori:

“Lori Tharps is an inspiring and encouraging writing coach. She has a keen ability to zoom in and see the heart of people's writing projects, sometimes before they can really see it for themselves.”

What’s Next for the ‘Your BIPoC Writing Coach’ Podcast?

Since we won the Best Literary Podcast Award by the Black Podcasting Award in 2023, we really feel like we have nothing to prove. Except to our audience of BIPoC writers. So the plan moving forward for the Your BIPoC Writing Coach podcast is to keep creating educational and inspiring content for BIPoC writers. We want to be the resource that helps BIPOC writers get their stories out of their heads and into the world. Last season, we did our first themed season, focusing on the people who work behind the scenes in the book business. We enjoyed doing a themed season so much, we’re going to do it again. Season six of the podcast will be all about book promotion. We will be talking to the experts who will share their tips, tricks, and advice on how to sell the hell out of your book. Stay tuned for that. And in the meantime, go back and listen to the incredible interviews from Season Five of the show.

Help Spread the Word

The new season of the Your BIPoC Writing Coach podcast will launch in September 2025. Until then, in addition to listening to past episodes you might have missed, please help spread the word about the show by sharing this blog post, or sharing a link to your favorite episode from the show on social media or in your monthly newsletter. We’re pretty convinced that if the right people find the show they will be fans for life, so we just gotta find those fans. Thank you in advance for helping us spread the word about the Your BIPoC Writing Coach podcast.