Meg Gardiner

Meg Gardiner is the author of fifteen acclaimed, award-winning novels. Her thrillers have been bestsellers both in the U.S. and internationally and have been translated into more than twenty languages. China Lake won an Edgar Award and UNSUB, the first in her acclaimed UNSUB Series, won a Barry Award. Her third UNSUB novel, The Dark Corners of the Night, has been bought by Amazon Studios for development as a television series.

In addition to her writing, Meg is a former lawyer, three-time Jeopardy! champion, and two-time president of Mystery Writers of America.

Meg's latest release is Heat 2, co-written with 4x Oscar-nominated writer-director Michael Mann.

Transcription available on request.

Landon Beach and Scott Brick

Landon Beach’s book Narrator has been described as “Misery meets Gone Girl” and he worked closely with Scott Brick, the audiobook’s narrator, to blur the lines between the fictional world and the real one to deliver a story readers won’t soon forget. This lively discussion will take you into the sound booth as you learn the inside scoop behind this unique collaboration.

Transcription available on request.

Alex Finlay

Alex Finlay is the author of the 2021 breakout novel, Every Last Fear, and one of Goodread’s most popular books of 2022, The Night Shift. His work has been an Indie Next pick, a LibraryReads selection, an Amazon Editor’s Best Thriller, as well as a CNN, Newsweek, E!, BuzzFeed, Business Week, Goodreads, Parade, PopSugar, and Reader’s Digest best or most anticipated thrillers of the year. Alex’s novels have been translated into seventeen languages, and Every Last Fear is in development for a major television series.

Transcription available on request.

Lisa Phillips

Lisa Phillips is a British ex-pat who grew up an hour outside of London. She is a USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author who is releasing her 61st book this fall. In this interview on The Story Blender, she shares her strategy for publishing and writing, how she deals with upcoming deadlines, and her thoughts on character arcs. If you like romantic suspense, especially inspirational suspense, check it out!

Transcription available on request.

Gabriela Pereira

Gabriela Pereira is an author, speaker, and entrepreneur who wants to challenge the status quo of higher education. As the founder and instigator of DIYMFA.com, her mission is to empower writers, artists and other creatives to take an entrepreneurial approach to their education and professional growth. Gabriela earned her MFA in writing from The New School and speaks at college campuses and national conferences. She is also the host of DIY MFA Radio, a popular podcast where she interviews bestselling authors and book industry professionals and author of the book DIY MFA: Write with Focus, Read with Purpose, Build Your Community.

Transcription available on request.

Donald Maass

Listen in as famed writing instructor, NY literary agent, and best-selling author Donald Maass unpacks some of the secrets to best-selling novels, the important of an emotional journey (for the reader!) and why you should not follow storytelling or literary trends. While you listen, check out his latest book on the craft of writing, The Emotional Craft of Fiction. Grab a cup of coffee, settle back, and click play.

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Nova McBee

After spending half her life living in diverse cultures throughout the world, Nova McBee spent seven years studying writing before penning her first Young Adult novel, CALCULATED, which is now in development for film. In this interview she shares her passion for complex stories, the importance of fractals, and how to write young adult novels that also appeal to 80-year-olds! You’ll also be amazed to find out how many times she reads through her books while editing them.

Transcription available on request.

John Gilstrap

John Gilstrap’s first novel, Nathan’s Run, hit the market in 1996 and set the literary world on fire. Publication rights sold in 23 countries, the movie rights were scooped up at auction by Warner Brothers, and John changed professions. A safety engineer by training and education, he specialized in explosives and hazardous materials, and also served 15 years in the fire and rescue service, rising to the rank of lieutenant. That “first” book was really his fourth, and that one call from an agent (after logging 27 rejections) changed the trajectory of his life. Twenty books and seven movie projects later, it’s been a good run, and it’s still running. John has spoken at events across the country and his YouTube channel, “A Writer’s View of Writing and Publishing” has thousands of subscribers and more are coming aboard every day.

Transcription available on request.

Danielle Girard

Danielle Girard is the USA Today and Amazon #1 bestselling author of Chasing Darkness, the Rookie Club series, and Exhume, Excise, Expose, and Expire featuring San Francisco medical examiner Dr. Annabelle Schwartzman. Girard’s books have won the Barry Award and the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award, and two of her titles have been optioned for movies. A graduate of Cornell University, Girard received her MFA at Queens University in Charlotte, North Carolina. She, her husband, and their two children split their time between San Francisco and the northern Rockies. Far Gone, book two of her Badlands Thriller Series, is available now. Visit her at www.daniellegirard.com.

Transcription available on request.

Alma Katsu

Alma Katsu is the award-winning author of seven novels. She’s mostly known for historical horror, including her latest The Fervor (Putnam), and The Hunger, which was recently named by Esquire as one of the top 50 horror novels of all time. She’s also written Red Widow, her first spy novel. She drew on 30+ years in intelligence with CIA and NSA to write this book, which was named a NYT Editors Choice and is in development for a TV series. She lives in the greater Washington DC area.

Transcription available on request.