Welcome back to the final installment of my interview with Debbie Urbanski, author of the novel “Afterworld,” in which an AI witnesses the last days of the last person on earth, and the story collection “Portalmania,” which combines sci-fi, horror, fantasy, and realism to explore a long list of juicy topics, including betrayal, revenge, parenthood, open marriages, asexuality, neurodiversity, and second chances.
We covered:
- Why she’s learning everything she can about caves, the deep ocean, and whales
- Exploring the things that scare her in her writing
- Looking to writers who let themselves experiment and change over time as role models
- The book she’s read multiple times that gives her the courage to keep experimenting
- Sensing that the themes she wants to explore are changing as she enters a new life stage
- The series she’s re-watching and the graphic novel that was so beautiful, she had to force herself to slow down while reading
- The YouTube video that captures the creative process in real time and gets her fired up to write
- Why Fridays are the best day
Follow Debbie on Instagram and/or Substack @debbieurbanski
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!

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