Spill The Spice Podcast

Our special TWO-HOUR episode with the incredible Billie Nicks is officially LIVE, and trust us, we had a LOT to talk about! 😂📚

From dark romance, feminine rage, morally gray characters, Greek mythology, secret societies, and some seriously questionable fictional men, Billie brought all the chaos we could have hoped for.

But this conversation goes so much deeper than the books. 💜

We’re spilling the spice on the creative process, the power of storytelling, trauma and healing, empathy for flawed characters, identity and representation, and why fiction can provide such a meaningful space to explore the darker parts of life.

Plus, our shared obsession with true crime, hilarious bookish tangents, unexpected life adventures, the importance of finding your people in the book community, and plenty of moments that had us laughing along the way.

What started as a conversation about books turned into two hours of laughter, vulnerability, meaningful discussions, and the kind of connection that reminds us exactly why we started this podcast. 🥹💜

Billie, thank you for bringing your stories, your humor, and all three raccoons to Spill the Spice! 🦝😂

This episode is sponsored by Bloom Stories.

Paranormal romance… but make it a little deeper than witches and werewolves. 👀🐺🔮🌶️

We’re spilling the spice with M.J. Etkind, and this conversation goes EVERYWHERE in the best way.

We’re talking about her journey from writing fanfiction to becoming a published romance author, creating paranormal worlds that still feel incredibly human, and writing characters who are allowed to be messy, complicated, and in charge of their own happiness.

We get into mental health and ADHD representation, relationships and career, addiction, reproductive rights, writing heavier real-life experiences into romance, and why an HEA doesn’t have to mean every part of someone’s life is suddenly perfect.

Plus, we obviously talk The Witch of Wall Street, The Lone Wolf Paradox, cozy small-town werewolves, world-building, indie publishing, what she might be writing next, and all the wonderfully chaotic bookish tangents you expect when you give us microphones.

A little magic. A little spice. A lot of heart.

This episode is sponsored by

www.bloomstories.com

www.heathensandheartbreakers.com

CURSES, CANDLELIGHT & DARK DESIRES 🕯️🖤

This week, we’re stepping into the shadows and spilling the spice on Gothic Romance.

From haunted castles and dark academia to curses, monsters, complicated love interests, and stories that blur the line between fear and desire, we’re talking about what makes Gothic Romance so damn captivating.

We dive into the books we’ve been reading, including Gothikana, Fairydale, The Cruel Dark, One Dark Window, Necromance, My Darling Dreadful Thing, and Crown Me Dead, and unpack everything from atmosphere and timelines to morally complicated characters, magic systems, emotional devastation, and the difference between Gothic Romance and Dark Romance.

But naturally, we had to go deeper.

Why are we drawn to darkness? Why can fictional monsters feel so alluring? What happens psychologically when fear, curiosity, attraction, and desire collide? And why does our moral compass suddenly become a little questionable when you add a haunted manor and some candlelight?

Plus, we talk spooky season, audiobooks, dark academia, our own fears, questionable fictional men, and play a little Red Flag or Gothically Romantic?

Grab your headphones, light a candle, and come into the darkness with us. 🕯️🌶️🖤

Sponsored by Bloom Stories and Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash.

This week we’re spilling the spice with Alise Monroe, the best-friend romance co-author duo behind the Ripple Effect series! 💗

We’re talking writing together, creating Indigo Hill, deeply flawed characters who still deserve their HEA, mental health, healing, second chances, LGBTQ+ representation, found family, and why romance can give us something even bigger than happiness: hope.

Plus… unexpected plot twists, bourbon, Bigfoot, writing spice with your best friend 😂, rival tattoo artists, and what they’re creating next. 👀

This episode is proudly sponsored by:

💜 Bloom Stories Immersive audio stories, audiobooks & fantasies made for your headphones. 🎧🔥
Use code SPILLTHESPICE for up to 30% off a premium subscription.

📚 Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash
We’re proud to be sponsored by Heathens & Heartbreakers, coming to Dallas June 24–26, 2027! Authors, readers, panels, vendors, karaoke & a Midsummer Night’s Dream Ball. ✨

What happens when you sit down with a literary agent to talk publishing and end up talking about motherhood, romance, taking risks, the realities behind success, and everything in between?

You get a very Spill the Spice conversation. 🌶️

This week, Veronica & Lizzy are joined by Angie, founder of Lunar Literary Agency, for an honest look behind the curtain of the publishing world.

Angie shares her journey from editing more than 200 books to launching her own literary agency, why she believes in nurturing an author’s career rather than simply representing a book, and what writers should know about querying, rejection, trusting their creativity, and finally having the courage to hit send.

We talk about the parts of publishing that don’t always make the highlight reel, the pressure to succeed, competition in the literary world, championing diverse voices, balancing motherhood with building a career, and why every author-agent relationship looks a little different.

And because this is Spill the Spice, we don’t stay strictly in the publishing lane. 😂 We get into romance, emotional connection, the stories that stay with us, self-expression, the changing landscape of literature, and what it means to take a chance on yourself and your work.

We first met Angie at Villains & Vixens a year ago, making this conversation feel especially full-circle. Now we finally get to sit down, spill the publishing spice, and introduce you to the woman behind Lunar Literary Agency. 🌙

Whether you’re staring at a finished manuscript wondering if it’s good enough, already navigating the publishing world, or simply love hearing what happens behind the scenes of the books on your shelf, this episode is for you.

🌙 Learn more about Lunar Literary Agency:
https://lunarliteraryagency.com/

THIS EPISODE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY:

💗 Bloom StoriesImmersive audio storytelling for the romantics, the spice lovers, and anyone who likes their stories with a little extra heat. Use code SPILLTHESPICE to explore Bloom.

Explore Bloom Stories⁠

🖤 Heathens & Heartbreakers Book BashA weekend made for romance readers, authors, creators, and the bookishly obsessed. Spill the Spice is proud to be a sponsor of Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash.

Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash⁠

Sometimes the only way to find out what your story can become is to give it the chance. ✨

This week, we’re joined by Inez Ocon, author of the Shattered Queens series, for a conversation that goes far beyond dark romance.

We dive into the inspiration behind her emotionally powerful stories, writing trauma with authenticity, breaking generational cycles, body image, self-acceptance, mental health representation, and creating heroines who prove that being shattered doesn’t mean being broken.

Of course, we couldn’t resist talking about the spice too! From unforgettable quotes to the chemistry between her characters, we cover everything readers love about the Shattered Queens world.

If you’ve ever found healing through a story, connected with a character who felt real, or believe romance can be both emotionally powerful and incredibly spicy, this episode is for you.

✨ This episode is proudly sponsored by Bloom Stories. Discover immersive audio romances and fantasies, and save up to 80% with our code SPILLTHESPICE at www.bloomstories.com.

✨This episode is sponsored by Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash, an unforgettable weekend in Dallas 2027 celebrating romance authors, readers, and all things bookish.

What was your favorite moment from today’s episode? 👇

This week we’re joined by USA Today bestselling author Bailey Hannah, the mind behind the beloved Wells Ranch series! 🤠🌾

From writing her first drafts on her phone to building one of romance’s favorite cowboy universes, Bailey shares the story behind her journey as an author, the inspiration for Wells Ranch, and why authentic, messy characters are at the heart of everything she writes.

We dive into:
The real-life inspiration behind Wells Ranch
Writing wherever inspiration strikes (yes, even on her phone!)
Tackling trauma, healing, and difficult topics in contemporary romance
Building unforgettable cowboys and emotionally complex heroines
Character development, reader connections, and how stories evolve in unexpected ways
Why Bailey hopes readers finish her books feeling hopeful

Of course, we couldn’t resist talking about our favorite Wells Ranch moments, behind-the-scenes writing secrets, and the scenes readers can’t stop talking about.

Whether you’re already a Wells Ranch fan or looking for your next cowboy romance obsession, this conversation is packed with laughter, honesty, and plenty of bookish goodness.

Grab your favorite drink, settle in, and come spill the spice with us.

A huge thank you to our sponsors for supporting this episode!

Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash- Join us June 26–28, 2027, in Dallas, Texas for an unforgettable weekend celebrating romance books, your favorite authors, and an incredible bookish community.

Bloom Stories- Looking for your next audio obsession? Bloom Stories offers over 1,000 immersive romance audio fantasies, roleplays, and guided experiences. Use code SPILLTHESPICE through our affiliate link to save on your membership.

As always, thank you for listening and supporting Spill the Spice Podcast! 🖤🌶️

We’re back after a month away with our Spice Stack Challenge check-in!

June didn’t exactly go according to plan, but we still made our way through some incredible reads, found a few new favorites, and (of course) added even more books to our ever-growing TBRs.

In this mini episode, we’re sharing what we finished, what we’re still working through, our standout reads of the month, and whether our TBR challenge was actually a success… or just another excuse to buy more books.

Join us for a cozy catch-up before we jump back into our regular episodes!

📚 Featured reads include:• Anathema by Keri Lake• Brutal Serpent by Kate Raven• The Off-Campus series by Elle Kennedy• The Bourbon Boys series by Victoria Wilder• His Grace, The Duke by Emily Rath• Silver Elite by Dani Francis
…and more!

Because let’s be honest… buying books and reading books are still two completely different hobbies. 🌶️📖

This week, we’re diving into the Sentient Object Holiday Series, a collection of romance novellas featuring everything from bathtubs and books to rubber duckies, white t-shirts, light bulbs, mountains, and more. Yes, really.

We discuss our favorites, rank the stories, debate which object romances were surprisingly believable, and try to explain these books with a straight face. Along the way, we chat about curiosity, imagination, self-discovery, and why sometimes the most unexpected stories end up being the most memorable.

What surprised us most wasn’t the premise. It was how much heart, humor, creativity, and genuine charm each story contained.

We expected to have favorites. We did not expect to fall a little bit in love with every single story in the series.

Join us for one of the funniest, most chaotic, and unexpectedly wholesome episodes we’ve recorded in a long time.

This episode is sponsored by

www.bloomstories.com

www.heathensandheartbreakers.com

This week on Spill the Spice Podcast, we sit down with bestselling author Lucy Smoke, also known as Lucinda Dark, for a conversation that moves through darkness, healing, power, and everything in between.

We dive into her evolution as a writer, from lighter stories into the grit and intensity of dark romance and fantasy, and how personal experiences, trauma, and growth shape the characters she creates. From morally gray dynamics and taboo themes to the emotional weight behind vulnerability and connection, this episode explores what it really means to tell stories that don’t look away from the hard things.

We talk about reverse harems and why choose tropes, the role of freedom in fantasy, the balance between emotional depth and storytelling, and how humor can exist even inside the heaviest narratives. Lucy shares insight into her creative process, her approach to writing complex characters, and the importance of both reader responsibility and connection in today’s book world.

This conversation is raw, thoughtful, and unexpectedly fun, a reminder that even in the darkest stories, there’s always something deeply human at the center.

Spoiler conversations are waiting on Patreon

https://www.spill-the-spice-podcast.com/join-our-patreon

This episode is brought to you by our sponsors, Bloom Stories and Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash.

Bloom Stories offers immersive, audio-based storytelling experiences designed to bring your favorite fantasies to life.

www.bloomstories.com

Heathens & Heartbreakers Book Bash is a romance-centered book event blending authors, readers, and unforgettable experiences in a space where dark, spicy, and magical stories collide.

www.heathensandheartbreakers.com