Episodes

Christina and I discuss her debut novel The End of Men, publishing a book about a pandemic during the current pandemic, how the pandemic in the book is reverse engineered for her purposes, writing speculative fiction, what happens when there …

Sanjena and I discuss her debut novel Gold Diggers, the responsibilities that come with assimilation, conceptual orphans, writing the research problem she encountered into Gold Diggers, her background as a journalist, Mindy Kaling optioning her story for a TV series, …

Renee and I discuss her new book The Social Graces, how she decided to write about the legendary feud between Caroline Astor and Alva Vanderbilt, the research she conducted, the way her title and cover came about, and much more.

Karen and I discuss her new book The Last Night in London, her inspiration for this story including her time living in London, how the title of this book came about, highlighting the unsung heroes of World War 2, Tradd …

Lisa and I discuss her new book Eternal, the secret reason she named the book Eternal, what she learned when switching genres, how Philip Roth helped inspire her to write this story, how her research led her to purchase a …

Elizabeth and I discuss her job as a book buyer at the indie bookstore Fabled Bookshop and Café, what the job entails, the fortuitous way she landed the job, her favorite genres, how she decides what to buy, how bookstores …

Stephanie and I discuss The Women of Chateau Lafayette, writing three timelines and weaving them together, what she discovered while researching one of the characters for this novel that required her to rewrite the book several times, the highlight of …

Katie and Desiree join me today to discuss bookstagram (book accounts on Instagram), how they got started, developing relationships with publishers, the best and worst things about the platform, the books they loved and some they didn’t, and much more.

Danielle and I discuss Glimmer As You Can, bringing 1960s Brooklyn to life, the inspiration for the Starlight, women’s experiences in the 1960s, her reading recommendations, and more.

Kathleen and I discuss Are We There Yet?, how social media and cell phones play such major roles in teens’ lives today, parents who believe their self-worth and social standing are tied to their children’s, parenting in 2021, balancing oversight …

Bianca and I discuss If You Want to Make God Laugh, creating cultural context and awareness in her writing, her podcast and why she launched it, how to become a more responsible traveler, the importance of Own Voices stories, the …

Kim and I discuss The Memory Collectors, the way inanimate objects hold power over us because of the memories tied to them, her favorite character to create in this book, her fascination with witches and magic, connecting with readers, and …

Jill and I discuss Everything After, how a Counting Crows song helped spark the title of this book, encouraging open conversations about miscarriage, maintaining individuality and identity after getting married, the one thing that Jill wanted for her recent birthday …

Hala and I discuss The Arsonists’ City, the character she enjoyed writing the most, wanting to provide a deeper understanding of Lebanon to her readers, how and why intergenerational conflict and secrets provide great fodder for writers, and more.

Patti and I discuss her latest book Surviving Savannah, how she found a door into this story, the way the Pulaski and its passengers spoke to her, how Friends and Fiction came about and what the group is doing now, …

J.T. and I discuss her latest mystery Her Dark Lies, closed circle versus locked room mysteries, the trip that lead to her creating Her Dark Lies, the character that she really struggled to write, writing books in a series compared …

Jennifer and I discuss her debut The Little French Bridal Shop, the inspiration for both her story and the bridal shop in the book, how small falsehoods can easily turn into a web of lies, how she balances her day …

Kate and I discuss her latest book The Rose Code, writing about the unsung women code breakers at Bletchley Park who helped shorten the war by at least two years, the amount of secrecy required of those who worked at …

Mark and I discuss his new Gray Man novel Relentless, the inspiration for Court Gentry, the character he enjoys writing the most, what it was like working with Tom Clancy and continuing his series, writing two books a year, the …

Lauren and I discuss her latest book Band of Sisters, how she learned about this courageous group of women, how often women’s stories have been erased from the historical narrative, the one issue that almost broke the Smith College group, …

Julia and I discuss her new book Come Fly the World, how she discovered and decided to tell these women’s stories, approaching the issue of memory and recall with her interviews, the importance of stewardesses’ contributions to the feminist movement, …

Jennifer and I discuss her book The Yellow Bird Sings, her impetus for telling this story, the significance of the violin and the color yellow in the book, what she learned on her research trip to Poland and how that …

Bella and I discuss The Diabolical Bones, the Brontë novels that inspire the books in this series, the Brontë sister who influenced her pen name, the joy she feels writing these books, how she came up with the word detectors, …

Sarah and I discuss her debut The Sanatorium, having her novel chosen as a Reese’s Book Club selection, how she created such a strong sense of place, making the sanatorium a character in the novel, writing a closed circle mystery, …