Contemporary Fiction Episodes

In this interview, I chat with Annabel Monaghan about Dolly All the Time, choosing Rhode Island as the setting for the book, why she invented a fictional town, her favorite male love interest that she has created, serving as a caregiver and honoring that role, designing a suitable breakup, and much more. Annabel's recommended reads are: The Day You Were My Husband by Rosie Walsh Down With the Shipmans by Meg Mitchell Moore Leave and Come Back by Lavanya Lakshmi Fossil Feud by Maggie North ...

In this interview, I chat with Sarah Damoff about The Burning Side, exploring family dynamics, memory, and the early years of motherhood, how she decided who would tell the story, her writing process, the beautiful cover, and much more. Sarah's recommended reads are: Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves Start at the End by Emma Grey Land by Maggie O'Farrell (and all of her backlist) Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page Winter Reading Guide ⁠⁠...

In this interview, I chat with Craig Thomas about That's Not How It Happened, having his book selected for Book of the Month, how he decided to write a book, weaving the craziness of Hollywood into his story, Darcy's character and how she is resonating with readers, casting the amazing audiobook, and much more. Craig's recommended reads are: The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride Wonder by R.J. Palacio Election by Tom Perrotta A Heart That Works by Rob Dulaney The Curious Inci...

In this interview, I chat with Tory Henwood Hoen about ⁠Before I Forget, tackling Alzheimer's in fiction, making Arthur an oracle, decisding who would tell the story, writing in first person, how the audiobook narrator was selected, having her book selected as a December Book of the Month pick, her title and cover, and much more. Tory's recommended reads are: The Correspondent by ⁠Virginia Evans⁠ Heart the Lover by Lily King My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell Good Material by Dolly A...

In this interview, I chat with Libby Page about This Book Made Me Think of You, her inspiration for the book, selecting the books she wanted to include, creating the letters from Joe, the title and cover, stories about finding community, and much more. Libby's recommended reads are: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans The Lovelight Farms series by B.K. Borison The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page Winter Reading Guide ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠h...

In this interview, I chat with Beck Dorey-Stein about Spectacular Things, having her book selected as a Reese's Book Club pick, writing about sacrifice and grief, tackling the sister relationship in fiction, writing about soccer, the hardest character for her to write, her title and cover, and much more. Beck's recommended reads are: Heart the Lover by Lily King Wreck by Catherine Newman Thanks so much to those of you who have donated to the show. Donate to the podcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

In this interview, I chat with Eliana Ramage about To the Moon and Back, writing about the Cherokee Nation and its history, setting a portion of the story in Oklahoma, her research, writing a family saga, Star Trek, how the title and cover came to be, and much more. Eliana's recommended reads are: Nothing More of This Land by Joseph V. Lee Brotherless Night by V. V. Ganeshananthan Before the Mango Ripens by Afabwaje Kurian Looking for some great summer reads? Check out my printa...

In this interview, I chat with Bruce Holsinger about Culpability,⁠ why his publishing date moved up by three months (now we know it's an Oprah pick!), the research he conducted for this one, P(doom) numbers, his stunning cover, and much more. Bruce's recommended reads are: Dream State by Eric Puchner Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte Trust by Hernan Diaz Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner Small Rain by Garth Greenwell Looking for some great summer reads? Check out my printable 1...

In this interview, I chat with Lidija Hilje about ⁠⁠⁠Slanting Towards the Sea⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, writing about present day Croatia, her father's health and how it inspired this story, writing in her second language and why she chose to write the book in English, her title and cover, and much more. Lidija's recommended reads are: The Anthropologists by Aysegul Savas We Were the Universe by Kimberly King Parsons Joanna's Room by James Baldwin Looking for some great summer reads? Check out my p...

In this interview, I chat with Laura Wood about ⁠⁠Let's Make a Scene⁠⁠, the challenges she faced while writing her first dual timeline and dual POV book, her favorite tropes, her fascination with how fame impacts a person in today's world, referencing her favorite rom-coms in this one, giving cameos to the character from Under Your Spell, the title drama, and much more. Laura's recommended reads are: The Slowest Burn by Sarah Chamberlain Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood ...

In this interview, I chat with Renée Ahdieh about Park Avenue , crafting the Park siblings, exploring the Korean American immigrant experience, writing her first adult novel and how it differed from writing YA, the symbolism of the Birkin bag for Jia, the story of her stunning cover, and much more. Renée's recommended reads are: E mily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett These Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean Looking for some great summer reads? Check out my printable 18-p...

In this interview, I chat with Ali Brady about Battle of the Bookstores , the You've Got Mail inspiration, writing the steamy scenes, creating a guy who loves romance novels, using Beta readers and how that impacted the original ending, choosing character names, and much more. Bradeigh's recommended reads are: Digging Dr. Jones by Olivia Jackson Code Word Romance by Carlie Walker Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka Alison's recommended reads are: The Last Letter of Rachel...

In this interview, I chat with Kristy Woodson Harvey about ⁠⁠⁠⁠Beach House Rules , deciding on a format for telling the story, finding the right title for this one, what surprised her the most about writing this one, why she chose a white collar crime and her reasearch on the subject, and much more. Kristy's recommended reads are: Happy Land by Dolen Perkins Valdez The Unraveling of Julia by Lisa Scottoline The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau by Kristin Harmel Listen to the Friends and...

In this interview, I chat with Annabel Monaghan about ⁠⁠⁠ It's a Love Story , her inspiration for this book, writing sex scenes, creating Jane's character, reader response to Jane, what surprised her the most when writing this one, and much more. Annabel's recommended reads are: Say You'll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez ⁠ Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess Far and Away by Amy Poeppel Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page ⁠⁠⁠⁠2025 Winter Reading Guide⁠...

In this interview, I chat with Mary Alice Monroe about ⁠⁠⁠ Where the Rivers Merge , setting the book in the ACE Basin, writing a duology, her love of the land and its ecosystems, crafting a strong sense of place, writing her first historical novel, her title and cover, and much more. Mary Alice's recommended reads are: The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry The Alchemist by Paolo Coehlo Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page ⁠⁠⁠2025 Winter Readi...

In this interview, I chat with Elisabeth Dini about ⁠⁠Bearer of Bad News, the idea of a bearer of bad news, what surprised her the most when writing this one, how she settled on the format, honoring real women through her character names, her job at the International Criminal Court and how it informed the story, and much more. Elisabeth's recommended reads are: Tartufo by Kira Jane Buxton I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue The Expert of Subtle Revisions by Kirsten Menger-Anderson Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page ⁠⁠2025 Winter Reading Guide⁠⁠ with 45 new titles vetted by me that will provide great entertainment this winter. I also include mystery series recommendations, new releases in a next-in-the-series section and fiction and nonfiction pairings. Want to know which new titles are publishing in June - October of 2025? Check out our fourth ⁠⁠Literary Lookbook⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠which contains a comprehensive but not exhaustive list all in one place so you…

In this interview, I chat with Virginia Evans about ⁠The Correspondent, how her blurbs helped her encapsulate the book's description, the role Ann Patchett has played in her life, Sybil's story arc, her lengthy cover story, the power of human connection, and much more. Virginia's recommended reads are: The Boy From the Sea by Garrett Carr The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh Looking for some great winter reads? ...

In this interview, I chat with Kristin Koval about Penitence, why she decided to write about forgiveness, choosing who would tell the story, tackling such a difficult topic, her stunning cover, how the book's title was chosen, and much more. Kristin's recommended reads are: Elita by Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum God of the Woods by Liz Moore Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page 2025 Winter Reading Guide with 45 new titles vetted by me that will provide great entert...

In this interview, I chat with Marianne Cronin about Eddie Winston Is Looking for Love, her interesting inspiration for the book, intergenerational friendships, writing her sophomore novel, what surprised her the most about writing this one, why she selected a charity shop for Eddie's job, Eddie's new wardrobe, and much more. Marianne's recommended reads are: Sandwich by Catherine Newman The Divorcees by Rowan Beaird Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page 2025 Wi...

In this interview, I chat with Callan Wink about Beartooth, his inspiration for this story, Hazen's name and how he chose it, Hazen's character, his process for writing this book, creating a strong sense of place, his thoughts on the title and cover, and much more. Callan's recommended reads are: The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien Prayer for the Dying by Stewart O'Nan Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page 2025 Winter Read...

In this interview, I chat with Tracey Lange about What Happened to the McCray's?, her personal inspiration for this story, reader response to her books, the book's release date, how guilt can overtake us, forgiveness, her title and cover, and much more. Tracey's recommended reads are: All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker Penitence by Kirstin Koval Such Kindness by Andre Dubus III Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page 2025 Winter Reading Guide with 45 ne...

In this interview, I chat with Marybeth about Every Moment Since, the inspiration for this book, her book dedication, society's current obsession with true crime, changing agents due to writing this book, how she chose who would tell the story, pouring her heart and soul into this one, her title and cover, and much more. Marybeth's recommended reads are: The Devil at His Elbow by Valerie Bauerlein What in the World?! by Leanne Morgan Want to know which new titles are publishing in January - ...

In this interview, I chat with Marissa Stapley about The Lightning Bottles, her musical muses for Jane and Elijah, including a road trip component in her story, how she approached writing about the drug use of the era, determining who tells the story and why she chose who she did, and much more. Marissa's recommended reads are: Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang Want to know which new titles are publishing in January - May of 2025? Check out our thi...

In this interview, I chat with Laura Hankin about One-Star Romance, setting the book over a longer period of time than most rom-coms, the publishing world as a backdrop, writing a rom-com versus women's fiction, and much more. Looking for some great summer reads? Check out my Summer Reading Guide Preview or my complete printable 12-page 2024 Summer Reading Guide with 45 new titles vetted by me that will provide great entertainment this summer (free to paying patrons). Want to know which new ti...