Tami Charles talks about her new young adult novel – Muted – and why she became a writer. “It was through my teaching that I rediscovered my love of writing and my continued passion for books ” “it was my students who said, because we were writing stories together, .., Miss Charles you should really Read More
Historical Fiction writer Jane Healey describes the core of her fascinating new WW2 spy novel -The Secret Stealers. “The Secret Stealers is based on the trues stories of the women of the OSS, the office of strategic services, which was the precursor to the CIA in WW2… it’s also based on some of the true Read More
Writers Voices talks with Jennifer Jordan and Liza Rodman co-authors of -The Babysitter – My summers with a serial killer. A true crime memoir about Liza’s childhood caretaker, serial killer Tony Costa. Liza talks about her writing – ” I wrote my first book when I was ten years old…100 pages. After that I wrote Read More
Alan Gratz takes on 9/11 for young adult readers in his novel – Ground Zero. “I was getting requests from kids, ( they know I write about tough topics) – ‘ Write about 9/11! Write about 9/11!’. And I kept thinking, I don’t know if I can do that emotionally; if I’m ready to go Read More
Judithe Little talks with us about her latest work of historical fiction – The Chanel Sisters. “ I was first drawn to the idea when I found out Coco had a sister, because I had no idea that she even did. And then I was just so intrigued by the idea of what it would Read More
Jenny Lacoat speaks with WRiters Voices about – The Girl from the Channel Islands – a World War II novel based on real events “The channel islands were the only ( part of Britain) that was occupied during the war…. The islanders were left completely defenseless against the might of the Wehrmacht (Nazi.s)” “This was Read More
I dream of Popo, a richly illustrated children’s book, shares it’s creators childhood immigrant experiences. It’s author, Livia Blackburn immigrated from Taiwan with her family at age five. The illustrator, Julia Kuo’s family immigrated from Taiwan before she was born, Both of them leaving their culture and extended families behind. “There are a lot of Read More
Writing team Maika and Maritza Moulite talk with us about their latest book – One of the Good Ones – and about what got them started wring in the first place. “We had grown up reading a ton of books… because our parents didn’t allow us to watch TV during the week. So we went Read More
Stacey Wise introduces us to a world of secrecy and revenge in her new novel -Lie, Lie Again. “I think a lot of (the book) was definitely inspired by just looking a round and seeing what is going on in my own neighborhood. And how, whether it’s on the soccer field or at dance class Read More
Michael Kaufman shares the premise of his new dystopian mystery novel – The Last Exit. “This is a world of growing inequality, of rising unemployment because of… automation, and growing population…By this point big pharma companies have developed longevity treatments,… they’ve made it staggeringly expensive – the ultra rich can live if not forever, then Read More
Annette Libeskind Berkovits on what led to the writing of her collection of poems – Erythra Thalesse a brain disrupted. “My son was 46, six years ago, when he had a massive brain bleed, which is called a hemorrhagic stroke. He was perfectly healthy, big strapping 6 foot 3, father of 3 little girls ..He Read More
Joy Jorden-Lake talks about -Under A Gilded Moon. A southern novel of historical fiction. “There’s something fascinating about the gilded age and this era…Very charming but also very worrisome The immense wealth that could be used in beautiful ways … some used their wealth in ways that some of us would be kind of horrified Read More
The Paris Apartment author Kelly Bowen talks about how she got started “When I had my first son I was on maternity leave and I actually sat down and thought, ‘I should try writing a novel. I love writing. Now seems to be a good time to do it’…. I love history, so I decided Read More
“Though this book tackles some really difficult subjects, it’s ultimately a really hopeful book.” Jennifer Dupee talks about the creation of her new novel. – Little French Bridal Shop. ” “As I began to delve into the writing, I realized Larissa ( the main character) is kind of engaging in more and more deception; and Read More
It is a novel that reads like a memoir. Rebecca Warner’s “My Dad, My Dog” gives us a window into the life a of a woman caring for a father with dementia. It is a heartfelt tribute to care givers everywhere. “About 53 million Americans provide care without pay to an ailing or aging loved Read More
Bill Konigsberg takes on teen suicide in his new novel for young adults, ‘The Bridge’. “I myself have a history of severe depression and I’ve had a suicide attempt in my life. Depression can be all encompassing and our brains begin to lie to us .I know that when I’ve been depressed my brain tells Read More
Politics and the unreliability of the media in a scandal ridden race for class president. “Sources Say” is a young adult novel by Lori Goldstein and is a fun romp through high school politics and the modern problems of “fake News”. Lori got the idea for the novel talking to her nephew about social media Read More
“Matched” trilogy author, Ally Condie, (novels of young adult science fiction) speaks about the creation of dystopian fiction and the questions that her novels were created to explore.. “At the heart of it is the same question – What happens when we don’t get to choose who we love.” About the dystopian novel in general Read More
Nancy Burke is a successful writer of short stories, plays, a nonfiction book and a young adult novel. Her latest project, “Only the Women Are Burning” was an ember in her mind for many years, and was a challenge to write because of the complexity of the story, the research required, and the many genres Read More
This episode of Writers’ Voices focuses on government, politics, and activism. In the first half, Monica and Caroline speak with Jeff Foster, Parkland, FL advanced placement government teacher, about his new illustrated guide for young (and old) readers: “For Which We Stand: How Our Government Works and Why It Matters.” This was recorded a week Read More
Our conversation with debut novelist Regina Buttner, author of “Absolution,” which explores the consequences of allowing what happens to you define you, is a great listen for anyone new to fiction writing who needs some tips on how, exactly, to go about it. We discuss plotting, writing scene by scene, developing a disciplined writing habit, Read More
Lisa Unger looks and sounds like a normal, nice person, who is drawn to the question “What does a normal person do on their worst day?” Or put another way – what evil lurks in the hearts of men (and women?) But as she says, “the person who sits down to write is not the Read More
Shortly after graduating from Yale, NYT best-selling author Jeff Hobbs wrote a novel, which he says he was lucky to get published but “I don’t recommend that book to anyone.” Then he found his true calling in what is called “Immersion journalism,” where the writer immerses himself in a situation and tells the story from Read More
Perhaps it is no surprise that Simon Stephenson is a former Pixar screenwriter – when I read his debut sci-fi novel, “Set My Heart to Five,” I kept thinking “They should make a movie out of this.” What is surprising is that he was originally a physician, inspired by watching the TV series “ER” as Read More
We spoke with Brad Fox during his much-longer-than-expected stay at the edge of the Peruvian jungle, where he was stranded due to COVID flight restrictions. But if anyone can adapt to such unusual circumstances, it would be this author – like the characters in his debut novel in English, “To Remain Nameless,” Brad Fox has Read More
Russia was changing rapidly during the late 1980’s under Gorbachev’s policies of perestroika and glasnost. Frank Thoms was one of first Americans to get a glimpse of this new Russia, as an exchange teacher. Despite being raised in the 1950’s, when Russia and Communism were most definitely “the enemy,” Thoms always had a fascination with Read More
“The White Man Who Stayed” is, according to its author James Autry, “a memoir of somebody else’s life.” That somebody else is James’ cousin and personal hero, Douglas Autry, who returned to his native Mississippi following his service in WWII to become the rural Benton County superintendent of education during the period of time when Read More
They say there’s nothing new under the sun. This interview with former tech journalist, computer game designer, poet, futurist and archaeology writer (and more!) Rob Swigart pays tribute to this truism in a couple of ways. In “Mixed Harvest: Stories from the Human Past,” Swigart uses the ancient art of story-telling to both entertain and Read More
I have to admit that when I started reading “Sorrow”, I was annoyed that Joe, the hero, was such a loser. But as I got further in, not only did Joe start to grow on me, but I also came to appreciate the way Tiffanie DeBartolo wove important themes into this novel without being obvious Read More
“Lyrics for Rock Stars” is a collection of short stories by Pushcart-nominated author Heather Mateus Sappenfield. All of these stories are set in the American West, a region which the author, a native Coloradoan, describes as “always present and influential in my writing.” In this conversation, we talk about why short story writing is a Read More
“I love to set my books in Minnesota. There’s just something that I find so unique about the people here and the culture. We’re so quirky, we’re deserving of books” Join us as we spend an hour talking with Gretchen Anthony as she shares with us the writing of her latest novel – The Kids Read More
“Looking for a way of making sense of things that I encounter, or experiences I’ve had;, reading I’ve done, people I’ve met. Trying to think about it for myself; and convey what I think I’ve found to others.” David Hamilton talks about his writing process and the essays in his new book – A Certain Read More
“An old Hungarian proverb: ‘Adam ate the apple and our teeth still ache.’ At what price do we choose incorrectly.” David Bluder talks about the writing of his novel – The Great Gamble. A thriller about the seamy side of sports. ” I’m a plot person so this is kind of plot heavy…. It kind Read More
Liza Nash Taylor says she came to writing late, after a successful career in fashion design. Stuck at home in her 1830’s Virginia farmhouse for 8 weeks with a broken ankle, she was inspired to write “Etiquette for Runaways.” She signed up for a low-residency MFA at Vermont College to work on the manuscript. While Read More
David Parrish loves biology and science, and he wants you to love it too. In “The Gyroscope of Life: Understanding Balances (and Imbalances) in Nature,” Parrish explores the scientific murkiness of concepts that we often consider to be binary – dead or alive? Male or female? Plant or Animal? And perhaps most controversial – science Read More
“The challenge is to keep cutting, to get to the essence,” Hal Goldstein speaks about the making of his new book, “Meditating Entrepreneurs – Create Inner Freedom and Outer Abundance. – A curated collection of talks by entrepreneurs in the Fairfield Iowa meditating community. “One of the things that characterized all these entrepreneurs is how Read More
I learned a lot from this conversation with Michael Elias, a prolific and skilled writer. Elias is an author, screenwriter, playwright and director. Whatever interests him, he wants to write about and, he says, “I’m an all-over-the-place guy,” That’s worked out well for him – he has had success in many places. Screenwriting credits include Read More
Freddy Niagara Fonseca didn’t care for poetry when he was a boy living in South America, but at age 29, he was inspired by the inscription on a statue of Lord Byron in a park in Rome and immediately began writing poetry in his second language, English. In this conversation, we explore many forms of Read More
I have always been drawn to Spain, although I’ve only visited there twice, once the summer I graduated from high school, and again about 15 years ago. Reading “Finding Hemingway” and talking with author Ken Dortzbach was a treat, because I have memories (and stories to tell) of many of the location he visits in Read More
Debut novelist Brady Hammes, author of “The Resolutions” has a great day job – as a documentary film editor. One recent project, “Tom vs. Time” about NFL quarterback Tom Brady, won a 2018 Sports Emmy. In our conversation with Brady, he talks about why he wanted to write novels too, what he brings from one Read More
Scott Spencer has a pretty impressive writing resume. “An Ocean Without a Shore” is his twelfth novel. Two earlier novels were National Book Award Finalists, and four have been made into movies. He has taught writing at several universities, including Columbia and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and at Eastern Correctional Facility as part of the Read More
Many American school children of a certain generation, or perhaps several generations, were introduced to writing poetry through the Japanese form – haiku. It is very simple, and allows for great creativity within a defined structure – 3 lines, 17 syllables total, 5 – 7 – 5. Easy enough for even a child, but never Read More
“Beyond the Ghetto Gates” is Michelle Cameron’s third published book. She is also a partner in The Writers Circle, teaching creative writing to writers of all ages. In this interview, we discuss historical fiction, why Cameron focuses on less popular moments in history, writing from multiple points of view, and how The Writers Circle changed Read More
Ann Crawford’s tenth published book, “Life in the Hollywood Lane,” was inspired by her brief stint in talent management in LA, which she says is the best day job she ever had. In her trademark intimate confessional style, Crawford explores the depths of despair that can overwhelm even the most beautiful and talented aspiring actors, Read More
Two time National Book Award finalist Deborah Wiles is leading the way in writing documentary novels for young adults (and adults too) as well as middle grade fiction and children’s picture books. Her 60’s trilogy, “Countdown”, “Revolution” and “Anthem” recount historical events of her own childhood from the perspective of a fictional narrator. Talking with Read More
Phyllis Melhado has had a quote from renowned author Phyllis Whitney tacked up on her board for years. “Never mind the rejections, the discouragement, the voices of ridicule (there can be those too.) Work and wait and learn, and that train will come by. If you give up, you’ll never have a chance to climb Read More
In the South Asian archipelago known as the Andaman Islands, aboriginal tribes thrived for 60,000 years before the onset of British colonialism nearly wiped them out. Best selling novelist Aimee Liu struggled for years to set a book there, but got nowhere until she finally had the opportunity to visit the islands and learn of Read More
The San Francisco neighborhoods that Barbara Sapienza describes in such glorious detail are almost another character in her novel, “The Laundress.” After retiring as a clinical psycholgist, Barbara pursued her dream of writing. “The Laundress,” published by hybrid publisher She Writes Press, is her second novel. Barbara describes the flow between heart, mind and body Read More
Carol Ann Davis’ new book, “The Nail in the Tree: Essays on Art, Violence and Childhood” is as much a memoir of hope as it is of loss. She and her family were relative newcomers to Newtown, CT when the Sandy Hook shooting tragedy shocked our nation. By a quirk of school zoning, her young Read More
Alka Joshi began writing her novel, “The Henna Artist” at age 51, after leaving a successful career as an advertising copywriter, creative director and marketing consultant. She says that writing ads taught her a lot about the art of creating an engaging story, even if it lasted less than a minute. She was inspired to Read More