Unfortunately, we can’t keep Jeremiah Fisher’s name out of our mouths, so get ready for more TSITP fodder. We also cover Claire’s recent return to religion after being visited by baseball angels. Eventually, when we truly run out of distractions, we talk about our writing and How It’s Going. In that way, this episode emulates our writing process itself! All very meta, lowercase m.

We’re back in Cousins, baby! This week, we reckon with the idea that this might actually be a “The Summer I Turned Pretty” recap podcast. We do a deep dive on the legality of Jeremiah’s affair (we WILL be representing Belly in court.) And much like Season 3 Episode 5 of TSITP, it’s time to provide a POV from our books’ leading men.

This week we’re talking about how we’re always thinking, which is writing, in a way. Beyond a generalized catch up on how our drafts are going, we cover the celebrity couples we have in our prayer books, Hector’s new trainer (and Claire’s new crush), and some all-time favorite rom coms we’ve recently revisited.

It’s time we try our hand at another creative medium: visual art! This week, we design our book covers. One of us stuns in new photos and the other should probably stick to the written word. Also this week, Molly displays signs of a mental health crisis by visiting Shondaland and Claire finally finds herself alone in the suburbs. One thing we can never seem to find? The damn dessert table at a wedding.

Ever heard of playing through the injury (Nuuly induced sciatica)? That’s what Claire does this episode, and my god it’s magnificent. We dive deep into the subgenre of Cowboy Romance, reviewing Lyla Sage’s Done and Dusted, and we’re relatively rattled by our first rodeo. You should also listen to this episode if you want to hear the whole plot of Netflix’s Dept. Q from someone who was mostly on her phone while watching.

Well, it’s looking like this might be the summer we finally turn pretty. This week, Molly is visited by a witch on Long Island and it turns out she also has “an unsettling energy”. We also review My Oxford Year and continue our conversation about Carly Fortune. Plus, a hilarious writing exercise finds us writing erotica in an italian restaurant during biblical times.

This episode, we examine effective dialogue from some of our favorite films and books in pursuit of writing Good Chat. We hope this study will translate to our own work better than a hankie travels from nostril to eyeball (Claire should stop doing this). We also talk through some favorite recent reads including Sandwich by Catherine Newman and Beach Read by our lord and savior Emily Henry.

This week, Molly and Claire both get fooled — Claire by a married man and Molly by a Young Adult novel, again. Molly read Divine Rivals and found a new rival of her own. Meanwhile, Claire watched Sirens and Stolen Girl, both shows about young women who are lost in a sense. We also chat about creating flawed female characters, writing at the beach, and crafting the first ten pages.

Hey, Sharks! This week we’re pitching short form content ideas, seeking investors and consumers. Claire drops a new crush on an old man, Molly has her head in the slush pile, and Emily Henry eases our originality complexes (Great Big Beautiful Life IS The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo but better! We’ll bravely say it!).

Love abounds this week as we reflect on what makes our favorite fictional couples work, how to transition bar banter from fraternal to flirtatious, and what happens when you give a ring bearer a lollipop (he’s gonna want another). We also talk about getting in Hugh Jackman’s jeans.