On today’s episode we speak with author Zachary Downing, a coming-of-age novelist who enjoys writing funny and relatable characters trudging through the everyday, frantic and transformative trials of life.

His first novel, Flounder, was published in 2022, and concerns a college Freshman who stops going to class, but keeps going to parties. Downing wrote it to be the crazy college version of “The Little Engine That Could.”

In 2023, Downing has published his second novel, Manhattan to Montauk, which involves a whirlwind summer romance between a 22-year-old man and a 17-year-old woman. Set in 1995, in New York City and the Long Island vacation community of Montauk, this book examines early-adulthood love through changing seasons, setting and circumstance.

You can purchase Manhattan to Montauk and Flounder, through his website: zdowning.com. You can also follow Zach on Instagram at: Zachary_Downing_writes.

A little about today's host-

Shawna Rodrigues left her award-winning career in the public sector in 2019 to consult and publish her first novel Beyond the Pear Blossoms. Her desire to connect and help others led to the launch of her podcast The Grit Show shortly thereafter. When she learned women host only 27% of podcasts, her skills and passion led to the founding of the Authentic Connections Network. She now helps mission-driven entrepreneurs better connect with their audiences by providing full-service podcast production and through a community for Entrepreneurs & Podcasters – EPAC. Podcasting is her primary focus, so she continues to support the writing community through this podcast, and her writing time is mostly focused on anthologies.

She offers a free 7 Steps to Perfect Your Podcast Title to anyone interested in launching a podcast. You can also follow her on Instagram-@ShawnaPodcasts, and learn more about the network and community at https://linktr.ee/37by27.

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