In this episode, I'm chatting with Crystal King, author of In the Garden of Monsters listed in the Visual Arts category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/WElAb9vxuAI

• The genesis of In the Garden of Monsters and the decision to write a novel that incorporated elements of fantasy and the Gothic
• Inspired by the sacro bosco (sacred wood) at Bomarzo in Italy and its relationship to Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí in the 1950s and to the Hades and Persephone myth
• Video of Salvador Dalí in Bomarzo made in 1954 - view it on Crystal's website at https://www.crystalking.com/
• Deep dive into the life and work of Salvador Dalí and his problematical opinions - he'd be cancelled in two seconds today! But he was a brilliant artist.
• Role of pomegranates in the novel and their relationship to the retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth
• Summary of the original myth - Demeter, Hades, Persephone
• The role of food in the novel; a downloadable cookbook is available from Crystal's website.
• Reading from In the Garden of Monsters
• Role played by memory (or lack of) in the novel
• Women artists and Dalí's opinions of them and his problematical relationship to women in general
• One thing Crystal learned from writing this novel that she didn't know before
• What Crystal is working on now

Press Play now & be sure to check out In the Garden of Monsters on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels/in-the-garden-of-monsters

Crystal King's website: https://www.crystalking.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links.

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with novelist Alex Connor, author of several art thrillers listed in the Visual Arts category on Art In Fiction, including Rembrandt's Secret, The Caravaggio Conspiracy, and The Incubus Tapes.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Fbi3aA7gPl8

• Why Alexandra has chosen to center her novels, mostly art thrillers, around art.
• Seeing Caravaggio's Supper at Emmaus in the National Gallery when she was six.
• What led Alexandra to "follow her bright light" and focus on her dual careers as a writer and a painter.
• How Alexandra decides which artists to base a novel aroundl she's written novels related to Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Klimt, Fuseli, Bosch, and many more.
• Story behind the story of Rembrandt's Secret  and how Alexandra likes to go behind the scenes to find interesting and often little known stories connected with an artist.
• Inspiration for The Incubus Tapes.
• The story behind Fuseli's famous painting The Nightmare and how it forms the basis of the dual-time narrative in The Incubus Tapes.
• Pacing when writing a thriler.
• Reading from The Incubus Tapes.
• Some of the challenges related to writing an art-based thriller.
• Why a writer should keep writing and not let other people dampen their passion.
• What Alexandra is working on now.

Press Play now & be sure to check out Alex Connor's novels on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels?q=alex+connor

Alex Connor's website: https://www.alexandra-connor.co.uk/

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

In this episode, I'm chatting with Judith Lindbergh, author of Akmaral listed in the Other category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/gGdvLEpGrZw

• The genesis of Akmaral from two points of reference in Judith's personal life: her obsession with archeology and her young son's obsession with pretending to be a knight in shining armor
• How Akmaral explores one woman's journey as a warrior, spiritual leader and priestess and her drive to protect her people and her family
• Setting of Akamaral in 500 BC on the Russian steppes
• History of the Amazons from Herodotus and their relationship to the characters and culture in Akmaral
• Fascinating exploration of a culture where, seemingly, a woman was permitted to both warrior and mother
• Use of weaponry and craftsmanship in Akmaral
• The study of artifacts as a way into the lives of ancient peoples
• Animals and their importance to the nomadic culture portrayed in Akmaral
• How Judith is a little famous in Kazakhstan!
• Shamanism in Akmaral and parallels to the practices of nomadic cultures today
• How long it took to write and then publish Akmaral
• Judith's lush, poetic writing in Akmaral
• Reading from Akmaral
• How Judith's background in the arts led to her becoming a novelist
• The founding of the Writers Circle in New Jersey with courses now available worldwide online
• One thing Judith learned from writing this novel that she didn't know before
• What Judith is working on now

Press Play now & be sure to check out Akmaral on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels/akmaral

Judith Lindbergh's website: https://judithlindbergh.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links.

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Alyson Richman, author of 9 novels listed on Art In Fiction, including The Time Keepers listed in the Other category and The Thread Collectors listed in the Textile Arts category.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vrYzy7mORwc

• Why Alyson likes to write novels inspired by the arts and the role the arts have played in her life
• How her novels answer questions such as "Can the creative spirit be extinguished in very difficult and dark times?" and "Can creativity be a form of resistance?"
• Genesis of The Time Keepers
• The use of watchmaking in The Time Keepers as a metaphor for how we process time, particularly after suffering trauma
• Research into watchmaking
• Why she decided to set her novel during the Vietnam war
• Parallels between events in the novel and current events
• Researching The Time Keepers, particularly talking with people who experienced the Vietnam war
• Prediction that more novels will be written around the Vietnam war now that it's 50 years in the past
• The theme of friendship in The Time Keepers
• Reading from The Time Keepers
• Collaborating with Shaunna J. Edwards to write The Thread Collectors
• The role Alyson's and Shaunna's ancestors played in creating characters for The Thread Collectors
• Parallels between the Civil War setting for The Thread Collectors and civil unrest and racism in our time
• Repurposing cloth and thread in the Black community as inspiration for The Thread Collectors
• One thing Alyson learned from writing this novel that she didn't know before
• Alyson's next novel, coming in October 2025.

Press Play now & be sure to check out all Alyson's novels on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels?q=alyson+richman

Alyson Richman's website: https://www.alysonrichman.com

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Ferdia Lennon, author of Glorious Exploits, a wonderful debut novel listed in the Theater category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/3ZFFQ4rg4DU

• Genesis for Glorious Exploits
• Based on true events that occurred in Syracuse, Sicily during the Peloponnesian war.
• The theme of friendship in Glorious Exploits
• Theater and research of ancient Greek theater in the writing of Glorious Exploits
• Traveling to Greece and Syracuse as part of the research process
• Why Euripedes? Discussion of Medea and The Trojan Women, the two Euripedes plays put on by the Athenian soldiers in the quarry
• The voice of Lampo and why he sounds Irish
• The similarities between Ireland as an island nation separate from and yet related to England, and Sicily, also an island separate from and yet related to the culture of Greece
• The size and breadth of the ancient world and its many influences
• Discussion of Ferdia's compelling writing style
• How Lampo's character changes and grows in the novel
• The making of the audiobook that Ferdia narrated
• Parallels between Glorious Exploits and our own time
• Reading from Glorious Exploits
• Publication journey of Glorious Exploits
• One thing Ferdia learned from writing his novel that he didn't know before

Press Play now & be sure to check out Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels/glorious-exploits

Ferdia Lennon's website: https://www.ferdialennon.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you. 

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Laura  Morelli, author of six novels listed on Art In FIction: The Gondola Maker in the Other category, and five novels in the Visual Arts category: The Painter's Apprentice, The Giant, The Night Portrait, The Stolen Lady, and The Last Masterpiece, which we will discuss in this episode.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/K1Zru2kCdtQ

• Genesis for The Last Masterpiece
• A tale of two heroines, one American and one Austrian, on opposite sides of the war
• Fascination with how different stories were constructed around a series of historical events related to works of art
• Why Florence? Its role as a mecca for art historians and the WWII experience
• How the blowing up of Florence's bridges in WWII forms the linchpin in the novel
• The remains of medieval houses in Florence; what we can still see today
• How Laura discovered a real person very much like her fictional Ava, a German photographer named Hilda Lotz Bauer
• The experiences of a WAC in Italy in WWII and the role they played in the war effort
• Shades of grey in how art was handled both by the Allied and the Axis sides in WWII
• Media and misinformation in WWII
• What is the appeal of Art In Fiction? Laura answers!
• Reading from The Last Masterpiece
• One thing Laura learned from writing her novels that she didn't know before

Press Play now & be sure to check out Laura Morelli's novels on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels?q=laura+morelli

Laura Morelli's website: https://lauramorelli.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you. 

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Laurie Lico Albanese, author of three novels listed on Art In FIction, including Hester listed in the Textile Arts category and Stolen Beauty and The Miracles of Prato (co-written with Laura Morowitz) listed in the Visual Arts category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vUuYVDmYdDQ

• Inspiration for Hester
• Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter and its relationship to Hester: who was the real Hester Prynne?
• Why the novel is not about a love affair between Nathaniel Hawthorne and Margaret Fuller
• How Isobel Gamble's story is similar to Hester Prynne's, and how it differs
• Synthesthesia in Hester and how it informs the gorgeous descriptive writing
• Why the category for Hester changed from Literature to Textile Arts
• Embroidery as a feminist act
• How women and men view the future
• The hero's journey vs. the heroine's journey
• Nathaniel Hawthorne had his issues
• Reading from Hester
• Witchcraft and slavery in Hester
• The theme of Hester
• One thing Laurie learned from writing her novels that she didn't know before

Press Play now & be sure to check out Laurie Lico Albanese's novels on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels?q=albanese

Laurie Lico Albanese's website: https://www.laurielicoalbanese.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you. 

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Margaret Ann Philbrick, author of two novels listed on Art In FIction: House of  Honor listed in the Visual Arts category and A Minor listed in the Music category.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vUuYVDmYdDQ

• Genesis of House of Honor
• Obession with the life and work of Caravaggio
• Heist of Caravaggio's Nativity (still unsolved) as inspiration for the novel
• Use of color plates of Caravaggio's work in the print and ebook editions of the novel
• Why is Caravaggio's work so compelling?
• Writing in Caravaggio's voice in House of Honor
• Researching the mafia and the Catholic church for House of Honor
• The character of Orazio Bordoni - redemption and the prodigal son
• Reading from House of Honor
• Travels in Italy and Orazio's neighborhood in Rome in the 1960s.
• Music and Alzheimer's in A Minor
• Why Margaret doesn't have a smartphone!
• One thing Margaret learned from writing her novels that she didn't know before

Press Play now & be sure to check out Margaret Ann Philbrick's novels on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels?q=philbrick

Margaret Ann Philbrick's website: https://margaretphilbrick.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you. 

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Margaret Porter, author of four novels listed on Art In FIction, including A Change of Location, The Limits of Limelight, and Beautiful Invention: A Novel of Hedy Lamarr listed in the Film category, and The Myrtle Wand listed in the Dance category.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ijPu_SVzY1c

• Why switch to a new genre - "romcom" - from historical fiction?
• Writing fiction as a "palette cleanser"
• Inspiration for A Change of Location
• Summary of A Change of Location
• Why set the novel in Somerset?
• The concept of a "smart" love story and how A Change of Location fits the bill
• Challenges of writing contemporary fiction as opposed to historical fiction.
• Reading from A Change of Location
• Discussion of Beautiful Invention: A Novel of Hedy Lamarr; why write a novel about Hedy Lamarr?
• Hedy Lamarr's eventful life - myth-busting and research
• What was Hedy Lamarr like as a person? What motivated her?
• Hedy's inventions
• Inspiration forThe Limits of Limelight
• Women reinventing themselves
• The Myrtle Wand and the re-telling of the Giselle ballet
• One thing Margaret Porter learned from writing her novels that she didn't know before
• Write what you're passionate about!

Press Play now & be sure to check out Margaret Porter's novels on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels?q=margaret+porter

Margaret Porter's website: https://www.margaretporter.com/

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you.  

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.

Join me as I chat with Zoe Disigny, author of The Art of Traveling Strangers, listed in the Visual Arts category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dYPEJThuFqk

• Inspiration for The Art of Traveling Strangers, based on an experience Zoe had while hosting art tours of Europe in the 1980s
• How her background as an art history professor helped her write her novel
• Making art accessible in The Art of Traveling Strangers
• The four Davids in The Art of Traveling Strangers: Donatello, Michelangelo, Verrocchio, and Bernini
• A favorite David?
• Intertwining the art travelogue with the story of Claire's journey to self-realization
• The long process of turning a 22,000-word travelogue into a novel
• Reading from The Art of Traveling Strangers
• The work of Niki de Saint Phalle, mentioned at the beginning of the novel
• The work of James Tyrell at Count Panza's villa in Italy
• The theme of The Art of Traveling Strangers
• One thing Zoe Disigny learned from writing her novel that she didn't know before
• Advice for authors starting their writing careers later in life
• What Zoe is working on now

Press Play now & be sure to check out The Art of Traveling Strangers on Art In Fiction: https://www.artinfiction.com/novels/the-art-of-traveling-strangers

Zoe Disigny's website: https://zoedisigny.com/

Places mentioned in the podcast:
Tarot Garden in Tuscany
Queen Califia's Magic Garden in Escondido
Villa Panza in Varese

Music Credit
Paganology, performed by The Paul Plimley Trio; composed by Gregg Simpson

This website contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you.  

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out the Art In Fiction website at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2200+ novels inspired by the arts in 10 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany and Love Among the Recipes. Find out more on her website.