Historical Fiction Episodes

In this interview, Ann and I discuss The Storyteller's Death, how the book is a love letter to Puerto Rico and her family there, the importance of including the sense of smell when creating an immersive setting, why she set the book in the 1970s, her incredible opening sentence, magical realism as a symbol of hope, and much more.

In this interview, Kristina and I discuss The Ways We Hide, including MI-9 in her book and why people are so much less familiar with it, how the game of Monopoly was used as spy craft, her Book Club Guide online, the highlight of writing this book, all of the research she conducted, and much more.

In this interview, Vanessa and I discuss Sister Mother Warrior, providing the historical context for her book. which character was the hardest to write, having 2 books publishing so close in time to each other, the lasting implications from the Haitian Revolution, and much more.

In this interview, Piper and I discuss By Her Own Design, telling Ann Lowe's little-known story, how she went about filling in the gaps of Ann's life, writing biographical historical fiction, why Jackie Kennedy Onassis remains so popular, how historical fiction teaches while also telling a story, and much more.

In this interview, Geraldine and I discuss Horse, how she learned about the horse Lexington, her research and visiting the Smithsonian's Museum Support Center, how popular horse racing was in the 1800s, tackling 3 timelines, the significance of the title, and much more.

In this interview, Chanel and I discuss Our Last Days in Barcelona, writing a dual timeline story, how readers wanted to learn Isabel's story, why writing historical fiction starts with research, the connection between all of her book titles, and much more.

In this interview, Joy and I discuss The Grand Design, why she decided to write about the Greenbrier and Dorothy Draper, the Greenbrier's rich history and political connections, understanding how Dorothy Draper went from heiress to interior designer, her gorgeous cover and recently recreating it, and much more.

In this interview, we discuss The Surgeon's Daughter, writing together as a duo and what that process is like for them, setting their books in the real scientific world with fictional characters, how surgery used to be a man's world, the advent of the caesarean section and anesthesia, and much more.

In this interview, Natalie and I discuss Bloomsbury Girls, why she chose to set her novel in a bookstore, the bookstores that inspired her fictional Bloomsbury Books, how the 51 Rules for the bookstore came about, her legal background and how it informs her writing, including famous literary figures as cameos in the story, and much more.

In this interview, Adriana and I discuss The Good Left Undone, writing an epic family saga, taking a jewelry-making class at Christie's and how it inspired portions of the book, her title's origin, creating Adriana Ink,, and much more.

In this interview, Reyna and I discuss A Ballad of Love and Glory, shedding a light on a lesser-known time period, writing in a variety of genres and how they compare, her favorite character to write in this book, what she wants her readers to take away from the novel, and much more.

In this interview, Kimberly and I discuss The Lost Book of Eleanor Dare, the inspiration and historical background for this book, providing Eleanor Dare with her own story, writing about America's oldest known mystery, her gorgeous cover, and much more.

In this interview, Dolen and I discuss Take My Hand, the inspiration for this book, her research, how she selected Civil's name, creating the court transcript, the hardest part about writing the book, and much more.

In this interview, Bonnie and I discuss Lessons in Chemistry, the event that inspired the story, why Elizabeth Zott is resonating with everyone, how the title came about, her amazing publishing journey, having Brie Larson star in the screen adaptation, creating the Spotify playlist for the book, and much more.

Tony and I discuss The White Girl, crafting strong female characters, the two sections of the book that were the hardest for him to write, why he created the fictional town of Deane, the strong sense of place in his writing, the importance of the bath tub on the cover, and much more.

Libbie and I discuss The Prophet's Wife, working with two publishers simultaneously, basing her book on the true events surrounding the creation and early years of the Mormon church, the Broadway musical "The Book of Mormon", the difficulty in creating a cover for this book, and much more.

Elise and I discuss Angels of the Pacific, writing about the Pacific arena during World War 2, her research trip and snorkeling around a World War 2 war ship, how different the war in the Pacific was from what was happening in Europe, restoring her great-grandmother's dollhouse, and much more.

Erika and I discuss Sisters of Night and Fog, how one of her characters appeared in her dreams asking for Erika to tell her story, creating a poll so readers could help select the book's title, her Author's Note, writing about Ravensbruck, grief, and much more.

Adele and I discuss The Tobacco Wives, the dangers the tobacco companies knowingly ignored and covered up, her stunning cover, the role marketing and advertising plays in shaping public perception, her favorite character to write in the book, and much more.

Brit and I discuss The Vanishing Half, why writing her sophomore novel was more difficult, what she loves to hear from her readers, balancing research and writing, her paperback release, and much more.

Kim and I discuss Love & Saffron, her personal inspiration for the book, drafting an epistolary novel, writing letters on a typewriter, capturing the way food brings people together, how working at a bookstore impacted her writing. and much more.

Bryn and I discuss The Last Grand Duchess, why she decided to focus on Olga's story, telling the family's personal story, how the Romanovs are the most documented family in history, why the Romanovs were ill-suited to rule of Russia, Olga's political astuteness, and much more.

Ruta and I discuss I Must Betray You, life in Romania under Nicolae Ceausescu, conveying what it was like to live under constant surveillance, the incident that kickstarted the book, using fiction to cumulate many people's stories, and much more.

Fiona and I discuss The Magnolia Palace, choosing the Frick Collection for this book, why and how she created the scavenger hunt in the book, what surprised her most during her research, writing about Henry and Helen Frick, the magnolia connection, and much more.