Meet the LITERARY LOOKBOOK, a comprehensive but not exhaustive collection of 182 upcoming 2024 releases curated by Kelly Hooker and me. The Lookbook includes titles from January-May 2024 from a variety of genres and features cover designs organized by publication date. Buy it here: Literary Lookbook

Episodes

Jan. 21, 2022

Meriel Schindler - THE LOST CAFE SCHINDLER

Meriel and I discuss The Lost Cafe Schindler, trying to better understand her father by delving into his past, researching her family's history, the current Cafe Schindler and its place in history, and much more.

Episode page
Jan. 19, 2022

Robert Dilenschneider - NAILING IT

Bob and I chat about Nailing It, his desire to inspire and encourage the younger generations to see the many opportunities available to them, how hard it was to narrow it down to 25 people, the people he wished he …

Episode page
Jan. 13, 2022

Mary O'Malley and Pamela Klinger-Horn

Mary and Pamela join me to discuss their recommended reads for January through April of 2022.

Episode page
Jan. 11, 2022

Kerri Maher- THE PARIS BOOKSELLER

Kerri and I discuss The Paris Bookseller, writing about the iconic Shakespeare and Company. in Paris, the fabulous book club kit created for this book, Princeton's Shakespeare and Company Project, the magic of 1920's Paris, the 5 authors she would …

Episode page
Jan. 4, 2022

Julia Kelly - THE LAST DANCE OF THE DEBUTANTE

Julia and I discuss The Last Dance of the Debutante, the last year Queen Elizabeth II received debutantes at court, how she enjoys focusing on time periods right before radical change, writing secondary characters, her Ask an Author series on …

Episode page
Dec. 28, 2021

Elizabeth Barnhill - Our Historical Fiction Favorites

In this episode, Elizabeth and I chat about some of our favorite books in the historical-fiction genre.

Episode page
Dec. 24, 2021

Kelly Hooker - Our Top Reads of 2021

In this episode, Kelly and I chat about our favorite books of 2021.

Episode page
Dec. 14, 2021

Olga Grlic - Cover Design

Olga and I chat about book cover designing, what the process looks like from start to finish, all of the parties that must sign off on a book cover, trends in book cover design, her fabulous Instagram book cover showcase …

Episode page
Dec. 13, 2021

Wiley Cash - WHEN GHOSTS COME HOME

Wiley and I chat about When Ghosts Come Home, why he chose to set the book in 1984, how good stories come from tension, why he is comfortable writing female characters, how the title came about, and much more.

Episode page
Dec. 8, 2021

Karen Walrond - THE LIGHTMAKER'S MANIFESTO

Karen and I chat about her new book The Lightmaker's Manifesto, her studying and writing about the intersection of joy and activism, her own claiming of the term activism, how stories provide an amazingly resonant way to connect with people, …

Episode page
Dec. 4, 2021

Mark Pearson - Libro.fm

Mark and I chat about Libro.fm, how the company began, how audiobooks are the fastest growing segment of publishing, the way the relationship between Libro.fm and bookstores works, the importance of local bookstores, curated audiobook lists on the platform, and …

Episode page
Nov. 23, 2021

Anne Byrn- A NEW TAKE ON CAKE

Anne and I chat about her latest cookbook A New Take on Cake, why she decided to do this cookbook, how cake mix baking is more common today than when she first started out with this concept, updating some of …

Episode page
Nov. 22, 2021

Nicole Baart - EVERYTHING WE DIDN'T SAY

Nicole and I discuss Everything We Didn't Say, researching cold cases for inspiration, rewriting this book three times, setting books in her home state, being selected as one of the October Book of the Month selections, what she has learned …

Episode page
Nov. 21, 2021

Jenna Blum - WOODROW ON THE BENCH

Jenna and I discuss Woodrow on the Bench, what Woodrow taught her and others that interacted with him, how each chapter of the book contains a lesson from Woodrow, writing a memoir versus fiction, the book that inspired her cover, …

Episode page
Nov. 19, 2021

Kimmery Martin - DOCTORS AND FRIENDS

For this special episode, Carol Ann Tack of Top Shelf at Merrick Library and I interview Kimmery Martin together. We talk about her new book Doctors and Friends, writing the book pre-pandemic, how it changed post-pandemic, her wonderful website, and …

Episode page
Nov. 18, 2021

Kimi Cunningham Grant - THESE SILENT WOODS

Kimi and I discuss These Silent Woods, living off the grid, the book's original title, her tweak to the cover design, how writers need to have both the thickest and the thinnest skin, her writing process and how it has …

Episode page
Nov. 15, 2021

Laurence Leamer - CAPOTE'S WOMEN

Laurence and I discuss Capote's Women, the illusion these women created for the world and how happiness was elusive for them, what surprised him the most while writing this book, the carefully chosen cover photo, his favorite of the books …

Episode page
Nov. 15, 2021

Deborah Voll - THE TELL-ALL GUIDE TO AIRBNB HOSTING

Deborah and I discuss her book The Tell-All Guide to Airbnb Hosting, her encore career, serving as an Airbnb Superhost by renting rooms in her home, some crazy Airbnb stories, tips for being a great host and a fabulous guest, …

Episode page
Nov. 11, 2021

Alice Henderson - A BLIZZARD OF POLAR BEARS

Alice and I discuss A Blizzard of Polar Bears, working as a wildlife researcher and bioacoustician, how she believes strongly in including accurate science in her novels, the animal she is focusing on in her third book in the series, …

Episode page
Nov. 9, 2021

Tabitha Forney - PAPER AIRPLANES

Tabitha and I discuss Paper Airplanes, telling this very personal story, how 9/11 transformed the United States, the chapter she found the most difficult to write, participating in Pitch Wars, her publishing journey, and much more.

Episode page
Nov. 6, 2021

Laura Morelli - THE STOLEN LADY

Laura and I discuss The Stolen Lady, her decades-long fascination with the Mona Lisa, how the Nazis sought to steal all of Leonardo da Vinci's paintings and drawings during World War 2, that the Mona Lisa was never delivered to …

Episode page
Oct. 31, 2021

Todd Doughty - LITTLE PIECES OF HOPE

Todd and I chat about his book Little Pieces of Hope, celebrating all of the things that bring us joy in life, how and why he started these lists the day WHO declared a global pandemic, looking to his daily …

Episode page
Oct. 27, 2021

Abbe Greenberg & Maggie Sarachek - THE ANXIETY SISTERS' SURVIVAL GUIDE

We discuss their new book The Anxiety Sisters' Survival Guide, how they became Anxiety Sisters, living with anxiety in today's world, the questions they are most frequently asked, how they want to provide a comprehensive understanding of what anxiety is, …

Episode page
Oct. 26, 2021

Kristy Woodson Harvey - CHRISTMAS IN PEACHTREE BLUFF

Kristy and I discuss Christmas in Peachtree Bluff, writing a holiday story versus a non-holiday story, returning to Peachtree Bluff after a hiatus and whether she will write more in the series, Friends and Fiction, and much more.

Episode page