Episodes

Matt and I discuss the Texas Book Festival, what his job as Literary Director entails, the festival’s origins and how it has evolved, the hybrid schedule for this year, how authors are selected, what the Texas Book Festival learned from …

Tracey and I discuss her debut novel We Are the Brennans, her writing process, the characters she enjoyed writing the most and the least in the book, writing from multiple points of view, the Little Free Library drops coordinated by …

The Loves and I discuss their book The Redemption of Bobby Love, telling their story to Humans of New York and the amazing response they received, how Bobby had to get used to a new name, the importance of forgiveness, …

David and I discuss his new book Food Americana, creating Diners Dives, and Drive-Ins, his attempt to define American cuisine, choosing the foods and the food outlets to include in this book, the death of regionalism, the renaissance in artisanal …

Jayne and I discuss her unusual and ultimately rewarding publishing journey, her new role at Zibby Books, how her background involves working in industries at a time of significant upheaval, her trilogy, and much more.

Elizabeth and I chat about our Favorite Books of Fall 2021.

We discuss their new book Finding the Right Words, deciding on what format to use, writing together, differentiating the various diseases that cause memory loss, the importance of reading to retaining language, and much more.

Nathaniel and I discuss Travels with George, why and how Nathaniel, his wife, and his dog recreated George Washington’s travels during the first two years of his presidency, how people tend to idealize the past, wading through the myths and …

Jane and I discuss The Sweetest Remedy, writing in the third person, being selected for Book of the Month (twice), setting a book in Nigeria, crafting her second novel, and much more.

Jo and I discuss Three Rooms, how she decided to write this story, whether working as an editor helped her when crafting this book, her writing process, why she doesn’t use speech marks, and much more.

Eden and I discuss The Bennet Women, retelling Pride & Prejudice on a contemporary college campus, how she formed her writing group and decided to tell this story, her publishing journey, writing from multiple points of view, and much more.

Elizabeth and I discuss Good Apple, how her love affair with New York City began, raising kids in Manhattan, how the term evangelical has become political, the loss of any middle ground in the United States today, her hilarious book …

Julie and I discuss Eva and Eve, how she discovered her mother’s secret history, her fascination with chance encounters and the sometimes long-lasting impacts, things that did not make it into the book, following her in her parents’ footsteps as …

Kim and I chat about her bookstore, Intermission Bookshop, in Brownwood, Texas. During World War II, the shop was a theater known as the Queen Theater. Open all night, soldiers would find rest here when hotels were all full. Fully …

Stephanie and I discuss A Most Clever Girl, how she decided to write about Elizabeth Bentley, her fascination with the time period and spy craft, the format for the story, bringing forgotten women to life, our shared love of Jane …

Gill and I discuss The Collector’s Daughter, the photograph that inspired this book, finding the right way to begin telling the story, the appeal of King Tutankhamen, the curse of King Tut’s tomb and how it began, and much more.

We discuss The Parent Compass, creating a toolbox for parenting teens, guiding teens through the tough years, the process they used to write together and which chapter was difficult to create, the Varsity Blues scandal, how the pandemic altered the …

Pam and I chat about her blog Who I Met Today, how and why she started it, what she has learned from the blog, our shared love of reading and books, the cookbooks she uses regularly and recommends, and much …

Heather and I discuss celebrity and high-profile book clubs, the rise in prominence of these types of clubs, which ones we like the best, our favorite and not-so-favorite reads from these clubs, the impact they have on book sales, and …

Samantha and I discuss Dovetails in Tall Grass, the U.S./Dakota War of 1862, how she decided on her format, bringing a forgotten event to life, translating history into a compelling story that will appeal to readers, the most surprising part …

Elizabeth and I discuss our favorite narrative nonfiction books, our auto-buy nonfiction authors, categorizing the genre, the categories we gravitate toward, and more.

Nicola and I discuss The Show Girl, how she decided to write about the Ziegfeld Follies, the difference in drafting her first and second novels, which character was her favorite to create, the impact of the Ziegfeld Follies on subsequent …

Megan and I discuss The Family Plot, exploring what it is about true crime that fascinates people, what that fascination does to a person and whether it can help or hurt them, plotting a thriller with all of the twists …

Julia and I discuss Better Luck Next Time, writing a novel in the second person, rewriting this story several times, how Reno became the divorce capital of the Unites States, her fascination with obituaries, and much more.