Inside the Writer's Head

In this episode, McClain and Jan-Michele Lemon-Kearney, who gave McClain her first journalism job in 1997, discuss journalism, the history of the Black press, publishing, objectivity, the upcoming 2020 election, and more.

Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney is the president of Sesh Communications, publisher of award-winning The Cincinnati Herald, The Northern Kentucky Herald, The Dayton Defender, seshPRIME magazine, and more. She is also the co-host of WLWT Channel 5’s “Let’s Talk, Cincy” weekly public affairs program and a realtor and attorney in private practice. Before joining Sesh, Ms. Lemon Kearney practiced law with the firm of Taft Stettinius & Hollister before branching out into a solo law career. She was born in Cincinnati and attended Rockdale elementary school and Walnut Hills High School. She graduated cume laude from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. While there, she attended an exchange program at an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) Talladega College in Talladega, Alabama. She earned a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School and was selected first class marshal of her law school class and gave the commencement speech at graduation. Ms. Lemon Kearney is married to former state senator Eric H. Kearney, Esq. who now is the president of the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky African American Chamber of Commerce and they are blessed with two children.

Welcome to season 5 of Inside the Writer’s Head with our 2020 Writer-in-Residence, Dani McClain! In her inaugural episode, McClain sits down with local author Kathy Y. Wilson, who was the Library’s first Writer-in-Residence in 2014 and a friend and mentor of McClain. Together they discuss everything from writing, health, the marginalization of the voices of Black women and girls, art, and more.

Wilson is an acclaimed writer, performer, educator, and art collector, largely known for her provocative column “Your Negro Tour Guide”. Her column was published for eight years from 2000-2005 and again from 2013-2016 in Cincinnati’s alt-weekly City Beat. “Your Negro Tour Guide” was later adapted as a book and a one-woman play. In addition to her multiple creative iterations of “Your Negro Tour Guide”, Wilson has received national exposure through her NPR commentaries on All Things Considered and has been a contributing writer for the monthly Cincinnati Magazine, developing longer-form content about challenging Cincinnati issues and local profiles. She’s also taught writing as an adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati. Wilson has won accolades for her writings from the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists, the Cleveland Press Club, and the Associated Press Society of Ohio. Twice, a fellow for the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism at the University of Maryland, she was also a finalist for a National Magazine Award for her profile on Cincinnati-based conservative talk radio host Bill Cunningham. In September of 2014 the Library Foundation named Kathy Y. Wilson its inaugural Writer-in-Residence. In May of 2016, Wilson received the Rosa F. and Samuel B. Sax Fund Prize awarded by secret committee giving recognition to her many contributions to Cincinnati’s cultural life and civic discourse.

In this episode of Inside the Writer's Head, Jessica Strawser introduces us to her successor here at the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, 2020 Writer-in-Residence Dani McClain.

Known for her in-depth reporting on race and reproductive health, Dani McClain is a contributing writer at The Nation and a fellow with Type Media Center (formerly the Nation Institute). Her writing has appeared in Time, Slate, Talking Points Memo, Colorlines, EBONY.com, The Rumpus, and other prestigious outlets. Her work has received a James Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism, as well as recognition by the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association, the National Association of Black Journalists, and elsewhere. A former staff reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, McClain has worked as a strategist with organizations including Color of Change and Drug Policy Alliance. Her book, We Live for the We: The Political Power of Black Motherhood, was published April 2019 by Bold Type Books.

In this episode, they discuss McClain's path to finding her voice as a writer, making it heard, coming back to her Cincinnati hometown as a mother, and what she has in store for the Library community in the year ahead.

Comedian Gabe Kea's unbridled enthusiasm for entertaining audiences is what truly sets him apart. With a personality as big as his 6'5" frame, Gabe melds well-crafted, storytelling-based jokes with his comedic physicality to create an unforgettable show.

Gabe started performing in St. Louis after spending most of his youth living in both the United States and Canada. He eventually relocated to southwestern Ohio, where he won the "Funniest Person in Cincinnati" contest. He has made several appearances on the nationally syndicated Bob & Tom Show, has opened for Joel McHale at Gilda's Laugh Fest, and is a regular here in town at Go Bananas Comedy, The Funny Bone, and elsewhere. He has also been featured in various comedy Festivals; Limestone in Bloomington IN, Laughing Skull in Atlanta GA, the Flyover in St. Louis MO, and of course Cincy Brew Ha-Ha.

In this episode of Inside the Writer's Head, Gabe joins Writer-in-Residence Jessica Strawser to delve into what writers and comedians can learn from one another, how humor can enhance any type of storytelling, and how to get your message across in an entertaining way.

A few weeks ago, our Writer-in-Residence Jessica Strawser had the honor of joining the world’s #1 bestselling author James Patterson onstage, in front of a packed audience of readers of all ages, at the Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts. No ticket? No problem! We’re pleased to bring you the live theater recording of their conversation as this month’s very special episode of Inside the Writer’s Head!

Listen as they discuss Patterson’s three newest releases—the adult thriller Killer Instinct (coauthored with Howard Roughan), the middle-grade adventure novel Max Einstein: Rebels With a Cause (coauthored with Chris Grabenstein), and the picture book Bigger Words for Little Geniuses (coauthored with his wife, Susan Patterson)—what it was like collaborating with President Bill Clinton, what’s up next from him (Hint: Alex Cross fans with young readers on your gift list should be very excited!) and much more.

In this episode of “Inside the Writer’s Head,” our Writer-in-Residence Jessica Strawser chats with D.M. Pulley about her experiences behind the scenes in Amazon Publishing, the historical real-life inspiration behind her suspenseful new release, and more. 

D.M. Pulley lives just outside of Cleveland with her family. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked as a professional engineer, rehabbing historic structures and conducting forensic investigations of building failures. It was a structural survey of a vacant building in Cleveland that inspired her debut novel, The Dead Key, which was the grand-prize winner of the 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. The book, a dark, haunting thriller, went on to be published by Amazon’s Thomas & Mercer imprint and to date has a staggering 10,000+ reviews on the site (with a 4+ star average). She has since published three other stand-alone novels in a similar vein: The Buried Book, The Unclaimed Victim, and No One’s Home (debuting on September 1). Follow her on Facebook and Twitter @DMPulleyAuthor and on Instagram @d.m.pulley.

Kristen Lepionka is the author of the Roxane Weary mystery series, hailed as rebooting and expanding the hardboiled genre thanks to its "private eye with little concern for her own safety (or the gender of her shifting sexual partners)" (True Crime Addict's James Renner). Her debut, "The Last Place You Look," won the Shamus Award for Best First P.I. novel and was also nominated for Anthony and Macavity Awards. Her follow-up, "What You Want to See," hit shelves last summer, and this July brings the latest installment: "The Stories You Tell" (all from Minotaur Books). Kristen's writing has been selected for Shotgun Honey, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, Grift, and Black Elephant. She lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her partner and two cats. Visit kristenlepionka.com.

David Bell (davidbellnovels.com) is the USA Today-bestselling author of eight suspense novels from Berkley/Penguin, including 'Somebody's Daughter', 'Bring Her Home', 'Since She Went Away', 'Somebody I Used to Know', 'The Forgotten Girl', 'Never Come Back', 'The Hiding Place', and 'Cemetary Girl'. His new psychological thriller, 'Layover', is due out July 2, and you can see him discuss the novel in person at Joseph-Beth Booksellers on Monday, July 8.

He is an associate professor of English at Western Kentucky University where he directs the MFA program in creative writing. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, he spends his free time rooting for the Reds and Bengals, and confusing fellow fans by being named David Bell while rooting for the Reds and Bengals. He lives in Bowling Green, Kentucky, with his wife, writer Molly McCaffrey.

In this episode of “Inside the Writer’s Head,” our writer-in-residence host Jessica Strawser chats with David about the page-turning premise of Layover—which begins with a memorable encounter in an airport—what makes a good thriller, the perks of being married to a fellow writer, and much more.

Award winning author Sonali Dev writes Bollywood-style love stories that let her explore issues faced by women around the world while still indulging her faith in a happily ever after. Her books—including "A Bollywood Affair", "The Bollywood Bride", "A Distant Heart", and "A Change of Heart"—have been on NPR, Washington Post, Library Journal, and Kirkus Best Books of the year lists, but Sonali is most smug about Shelf Awareness calling her “Not only one of the best but also one of the bravest romance novelists working today.” Her latest novel, Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors—a multicultural, gender-swapped reimagining of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice—released from William Morrow on May 7, 2019. Sonali lives in Chicagoland with her very patient and often amused husband, two teens who demand both patience and humor, and the world’s most perfect dog. Find more at sonalidev.com.

Meg Leder is a Cincinnati native who now lives in Brooklyn, New York, working as an Executive Editor at Penguin Books, where she oversees many of their lead nonfiction titles. She is also a talented author of both nonfiction and young adult fiction.

Her debut YA novel, "The Museum of Heartbreak", takes a heartfelt look at the artifacts our relationships leave behind. Her most recent novel, "Letting Go of Gravity", is a moving coming-of-age story set here in Cincinnati—now available in hardcover and forthcoming in a new paperback edition this July.

She is also the coauthor of several nonfiction books for teens and adults. In this candid conversation, she offers insight into how editors think, what gives writing its spark, and what it meant to her to bring her hometown to life for a new generation of readers.