Booked Solid With Han + Steph

Are we dreaming or did we really sit down with Katherine Center for the bookish chat of a lifetime?! Tune in for this week’s interview with the New York Times bestselling author + all-time favorite of ours (and so many of you)! We leave no page unturned in this fun-filled, inspiring, comprehensive conversation with one of the best in the biz.

What makes a good love story? What does a year-in-the-life look like for Katherine Center? How did she get her start? 

We’re serving it all + more today, besties! Thank you so much for listening! Leave a review, send us your questions, drop us a hi anytime!

Find Katherine on Instagram (@katherinecenter) and her website!

Find us on Instagram (@bookedsolidpod,@hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack)!

TODAY’S SOLID SPONSOR:

Today's episode of the Booked Solid podcast is brought to you by Kelly Greer, luxury + family travel advisor. Get Booked Solid—on your perfect getaway!

“Traveling leaves you speechless and then turns you into a storyteller.” — Kelly Greer

Find Kelly on her website, Instagram, and/or email her directly with inquiries: [email protected].

TODAY’S SOLID READS:

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

How to Walk Away by Katherine Center

The Bodyguard by Katherine Center

Thinks You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center 

Hello Stranger by Katherine Center 

The Science of Storytelling by Will Storr

The Summer Pact by Emily Giffin 

Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder

From the earliest spark of the Booked Solid podcast, Han + Steph have been dreaming up today’s episode—and hopefully many like it to come! This week we giddily share our first-ever conversation with a LITERARY AGENT! Not to mention, a bestselling author, brilliant mind, and beautifully solid woman + leader we admire in #alltheways!

Welcome, Kristy Cambron! Where do we even begin with our love for this guest + episode?! Avid readers, querying writers, and established authors alike will connect with something special in here—we're SURE of it!

Grab your popcorn + pods, BBs! Dive in with us as we cover:

- Kristy’s invaluable dual perspective as an agent AND author

- The essential things Kristy seeks in a query

- Is the query process still effective in matchmaking agents + clients?

- Key trends in the market

- How much DOES platform matter for aspiring fiction authors?

… and oh-so much MORE!

Find Kristy on Instagram + her website!

Find us on Instagram (@hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack, @bookedsolidpod)!

TODAY’S SOLID BOOKS:

The British Booksellers by Kristy Cambron

The Paris Dressmaker by Kristy Cambron

The Butterfly and the Violin by Kristy Cambron

Wild by Cheryl Strayed

Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez

Memory Lane by Becky Wade

Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed 

Walking on Water by Madeleine L’Engle

The Women by Kristin Hannah

It's Han here sharing my Friday Five for this week! Listen along as I dive into my five faves for podcasting!

As always you can follow along on Instagram @bookedsolidpod where you can find links to everything you need to start your own podcast!

Connect with Han @hannahbooksit on Instagram and be sure to catch the full-length video on reels and Youtube just search Hannah Books It on there!

Welcome to the Friday Five, where we share FIVE things we are loving this week with you!

From potato clocks to viral athletic rompers, we are covering our FIVE latest Amazon purchases and we want to hear what yours are as well!

Happy Friday, bookish besties!

TODAY'S SOLID AMAZON FINDS:

Women's Workout Bodysuit

Viral Hair Identifier Spray for Face

White Coverup Crochet Dress

Owala Kids Flip Insulated Stainless-Steel Water Bottle

Free People Dupe Loungewear Set

Lumineux Teeth Whitening Strips

The Complete Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

Giant 5,000 Sticker Pack

Potato Clock DIY Kit

Supergoop! Play 30 SPF Antioxidant Body Mist

Hi, bookish besties! Tap play + treat yourself to our very own Hannah Caitlin Parker’s publishing story! From avid reader and #bookstagrammer, to agented writer and official author with a two-book deal from Tyndale House, Hannah has been on a RIDE since 2021!

How did she get here? (God!) How has her life changed? (Dramatically!) How on earth did she know which agents to query? (Don’t miss her insight!)

We know you’ll gather some tricks, treasures + tidbits from Hannah’s highly unique real-life tale!

Like we always say: No two publishing journeys are ever the same!

Stay tuned in the coming months for Steph’s path from indie author to newly agented gal preparing for sub on book #3!

We hope you love this one! Drop a review, say hi on the gram, and let us know what you’d like to hear!

Find us on Instagram (@hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack, @bookedsolidpod) and wherever you get your pods!

Join us in welcoming Shannon Leyko to an episode like no episode we’ve aired before! We’re still glowing with new inspiration! Shannon is a podcaster, author, mother of three, proud coast guard wife, and former Miss New York. Most recently, she is the powerhouse behind the Paring Down Podcast: Realistic Minimalism to Live More Intentionally. (Give us more of that, please!)

We cover so much fun territory in this lively sit-down:

- What motivated Shannon to start a podcast + business surrounding this concept of simplification?

- How does time management, time blocking + thoughtful preparation bring PEACE to her schedule + life?

- How does her passion for paring down play into her bookish life—as an avid reader + lover of literature?

- What is Shannon’s book about—and what does she want to write next?

- And what about her days in the pageant elite?!

If you’re anything like us, you’ll leave this conversation with a pep in your step, fresh empowerment, and maybe a trash bag (or two) for the many things no longer serving you!

Find Shannon on Instagram (@paring_down) and wherever you get your podcasts!

Find us on Instagram (@bookedsolidpod, @hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack)!

OUR FAVORITE PLANNERS

So Typical Me

Erin Condren

TODAY’S SOLID BOOKS:

You’re Completely Normal by Shannon Leyko

The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

The City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

Welcome to our official first episode of the summer season, bookish besties! Prep your carts + your beach bags because we’ve got some READS for you!

Join Han + Steph for this rundown of our top picks for summertime 2024. Rom-coms, women’s fiction, thrills + chills… We’ve got you BOOKED! 

We’ve linked the full list below—and please let us know! What are YOU reading this summer?!

Find us on Instagram (@bookedsolidpod, @hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack)!

Please leave a review or drop us a note anytime! We’re so thankful you’re here!

TODAY’S SOLID BOOKS:

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan 

Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle

Kill for Me, Kill for You by Steve Cavanaugh 

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Sylvia’s Second Act by Hillary Yablon

Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn

Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra 

She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica

Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintura

The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

Love Overboard by Shannon Sue Dunlap

One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin

The Last Word by Taylor Adams 

The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt*

Love Her Well Kari Kampakis

The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren

Seven Summers by Paige Toon

28 Summers by Elin Hildebrand 

The Swan Song by Elin Hildebrand

(*Correction: The Anxious Generation is the book Steph meant to name in the episode; not The Anxious Child. Our apologies!)

We’re thrilled to share today’s fun + informative interview with blossoming author Jessica Gustafson! We LOVE talking to writers at every stage of their careers, with a special place in our hearts for those in the early trenches with us!

Currently agented + on submission, Jessica writes Christian historical fiction with strong romance subplots. She lives in Utah with her ten—that’s right, 10!—children.

Don’t miss this chat about her publishing path, mothering a big (like really big!) family, and everything in between!

Thank you for once again for being here, bookish besties! We appreciate you so much!

Find Jessica on Instagram (@jessicagustafsonauthor) and her website (www.jessicagus.com)!

Find us on Instagram (@bookedsolidpod, @hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack)!

TODAY’S SOLID BOOKS:

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy

A Dangerous Legacy by Elizabeth Camden (and all her works!)

Calling audiobook junkies! In perhaps our most unique episode to date, we had the thrill of sitting down with insanely talented narrator + musical artist Talon David! With 90+ audiobook credits to her name, Talon knows the ins, outs, ups, and downs of voiceover work like you’ve never heard it before! She performs books of all genres, including titles by three of our Booked Solid author guests so far: Bethany Turner, Erin Phillips, and Melissa Ferguson.

We were already dazzled by Talon’s voice + portfolio, but this conversation took our fandom to whole-new heights!

Join us for this fascinating discussion of:

- Talon’s journey, process, and dynamo heart

- A day-in-the-life of an audiobook narrator

- Vocal health: what does it mean and what should we know?

- AI’s impact on the audio world: the good, the bad, and the medium

…and more!

Thank you for listening, bookish besties! We can’t wait to hear what you think!

Find Talon on Instagram (@talondavidvoices), her website (www.talondavid.com), Spotify, and all over Audible!

Find us on Instagram (@bookedsolidpod, @hannahbooksit, @stephanienmack)!

TODAY’S SOLID BOOKS:

Cole and Laila Are Just Friends by Bethany Turner

Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other

A Crown of Chains by Erin Phillips

Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson

Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson

Suing Cinderella by Stephanie Mack