Bonus Episode: ADHD Coach, researcher, and Doctoral Candidate, Skye Waterson, spoke to me about writing a dissertation with neurodiversity, conquering burnout, and her unconventional approach to writing routines for writers with time blindness and more.

Skye Waterson is the Founder of Unconventional Organization, a worldwide, research-based ADHD support service that has helped academics, playwrights, and authors with ADHD “...build strength-focused writing routines so they can meet their goals while managing struggles with executive functioning”

An academic with over seven years of experience working in adult education, she has studied in various fields, including Psychology, Sociology, and Public Health, and is now a Doctoral Candidate in Population Health.

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In this file Skye Waterson and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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Acclaimed TV and movie writer, Adam Lorenzo, spoke to me about owning a college bar … while still in college, his work ethic and what keeps him hustling pages, and his latest college survival guide ALL I NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED FROM MY COLLEGE BAR.

Adam Lorenzo is a writer/producer who works in both live-action and animation who started as a joke writer, selling material to Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon on Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update''; Jimmy Kimmel; and David Letterman, which resulted in his first staff-writing job, on The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn (co-created and executive produced by Letterman).

Other notable TV credits include the Emmy-winning Everybody Loves Raymond, Are We There Yet? (starring Terry Crews and Ice Cube), and Everybody Hates Chris, based on the life of Chris Rock.

Before successfully pursuing his dream of being a writer, he owned a college bar... while still a student at Syracuse University.

The author’s debut in publishing, naturally, is All I Need To Know I Learned From My College Bar, a whimsical look at what Adam calls the "valuable life lessons learned working and laughing with people from all over the world in that cathedral of knowledge known as a college bar."x

The self-described “college survival guide” is based on his life and has illustrations by Antonio Giovanni Pinna of The New Yorker.

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In this file Adam Lorenzo and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award winner, James McBride, spoke to me about eschewing literary fame, his friendship with Spike Lee, and his latest novel THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE.

James McBride is a musician, screenwriter, and award-winning author of New York Times bestselling Oprah’s Book Club selection Deacon King Kong, the National Book Award–winner The Good Lord Bird (now a Showtime limited series starring Ethan Hawke), and the American classic The Color of Water.

His debut novel, Miracle at St. Anna, was turned into a 2008 film by Oscar-winning writer and director Spike Lee, with a script written by McBride. 

The author’s latest novel, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, was an Instant New York Times Bestseller and Named a Must Read for the Summer by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, Time, Town & Country, and others.

Described as “... a novel about small-town secrets and the people who keep them,” it begins in 1972 when workers in Pottstown, PA, find a skeleton at the bottom of a well. The New York Times Book Review called the book, “A murder mystery locked inside a Great American Novel.”

James McBride received a National Humanities Medal from President Obama, “... for humanizing the complexities of discussing race in America.” He is a distinguished writer in residence at New York University.

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In this file James McBride and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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Critically acclaimed memoirist, Melissa Bond, spoke to me about her dark night of the soul, crowd-funding her lauded memoir, and the paperback release of BLOOD ORANGE NIGHT: A Memoir of Insomnia, Motherhood, and Benzos.

Melissa Bond is a narrative journalist, editor, award-winning poet, and speaker/performer whose breakout debut memoir, Blood Orange Night, is a Barnes & Noble non-fiction book of the month, and was selected by both The New York Times as one of the Best Audiobooks of 2022.

Publishers Weekly (in a Starred Review) said of the book, “In this raw and captivating debut, journalist Bond chronicles her volatile descent into a benzodiazepine addiction …. Bond’s narrative casts a burning light onto the hazards of overprescribing and the threat it poses to vulnerable people. This cautionary tale stuns.”

Melissa Bond blogged and became a regular contributor for Mad in America in the years of her dependence on benzodiazepines. She is a respected speaker and writer on the perils of over-prescribing benzodiazepines and has been featured on podcasts including The New York Times Book Review, and others.

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In this file Melissa Bond and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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New York Times bestselling author, Tracey Lange, spoke to me about finding literary success later in life, her past life working with inner-city gang kids, and exploring messy family dynamics in her latest THE CONNELLYS OF COUNTY DOWN.

Tracey Lange is the author of debut novel, We Are the Brennans, an instant New York Times bestseller and Goodreads Choice Finalist, praised by The New York Times, Good Morning America, PEOPLE and more.

Her latest novel, The Connellys of County Down (Celadon, August 1), is described as “... a story about fierce family loyalty, good intentions gone awry, and the consequences of improbable love.” Kirkus called it “A compassionate look at family dynamics and a reminder that it’s never too late to heal.”

Country Living named it a "28 Best Fall Books for 2023" and wrote, "This is a novel about resilience and what it means to be a family, especially when times are really hard."

Tracey Lange has a degree in psychology, has worked in mental health, and owned and operated a behavioral healthcare company with her husband for fifteen years.

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In this file Tracey Lange and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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Critically acclaimed author, Hilary Leichter, spoke to me about why she thinks of herself as a realist, how her life imitates art, finding a novel hidden in her closet, and her latest, TERRACE STORY.

Hilary Leichter is an award-winning short story writer, and author of the novel Temporary, which was a finalist for The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and an NYPL Young Lions Fiction Prize, that was also longlisted for the PEN/Hemingway Award, was named a New York Times Editors’ Choice as well as a Best Book of 2020 by NPR, Elle, Vulture, and Publishers Weekly.

Her latest novel, Terrace Story (Ecco; on sale: August 29, 2023), is described as “... an intimate exploration of time, a fable about love,[and] an epic daydream for a broken-hearted world.” Booklist said of the book, “Terrace Story is fun and profound, fickle and erudite. It is an irresistibly cool book.”

Hernan Diaz, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Trust, said of the author, ”Hilary Leichter, [is] one of our most original novelists, [and] amazes us again with a beautifully unclassifiable novel. Step out onto the terrace, where space and time, cause and effect, and fiction and reality have been redefined and gorgeously subverted. Terrace Story isn’t a novel you merely read; it’s a book you inhabit.”

Hilary teaches at Columbia University where she is the Undergraduate Creative Writing Adviser in Fiction. Her writing has appeared in The New Yorker, n+1, The New York Times, Conjunctions, and elsewhere. Her work in Harper’s Magazine won the 2021 National Magazine Award in Fiction.

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In this file Hilary Leichter and I discussed:  

Show Notes:

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New York Times bestselling author and journalist, Andrea Bartz, spoke to me about her previous life as a magazine editor, how to write feminist psychological thrillers, and all the tension, twists, and toxic relationships in her latest novel THE SPARE ROOM.

Andrea Bartz is a Brooklyn-based writer and editor whose last thriller, We Were Never Here, was a Reese’s Book Club pick and an instant New York Times bestseller that’s in development at Netflix.

Her latest, The Spare Room, is described as a “... a dark, twisted, sultry tale about a lockdown pod that turns deadly,” and was named ​​a People Magazine Best New Book, Marie Claire’s July Book Club Pick, an Elle.com Best New Summer Book, a Glamour Best New Summer Thriller, and a Goodreads’ Most Anticipated Mysteries & Thrillers of 2023, among many others.

People Magazine called it, “A fresh and sexy ride, perfect for reading poolside,” and #1 New York Times bestselling author Lucy Foley called it, “Sexy, atmospheric, deliciously creepy, and ingeniously plotted: the best kind of up-all-night page-turner.”

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In this file Andrea Bartz and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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Critically acclaimed author, Andrew Lipstein, spoke to me about failure as an MFA, how he sold his first novel, why time spent not writing is also important, and his latest THE VEGAN.

Andrew Lipstein is a Brooklyn-based writer who also works in finance and has a mathematics degree. His debut novel, Last Resort, was named a Top 10 Book of the Year by Slate, a 2022 Best Book by The New Yorker, a 2022 Best Book by Vulture, and a New York Times Editors’ Choice.

His latest, The Vegan is described as a book about “....high finance, moral reckonings, veganism … guilt, greed, and how far we'll go to be good.” It was named one of Town & Country’s Must-Read Books of Summer, an i-D Magazine, ELLE, Literary Hub, and Our Culture Magazine’s Most Anticipated Book of 2023.

Author Andrew Martin called it, “Crime and Punishment for the Brooklyn brownstone set," and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Joshua Cohen called it, “... a meaty comedy with a bleeding heart, highly recommended for all animals who read."

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In this file Andrew Lipstein and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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#1 New York Times bestselling author, Susan Wiggs, spoke to me about why writers need to follow their bliss, how her stories come together like patchwork quilts, and her most “summery” novel yet, WELCOME TO BEACH TOWN.

Susan Wiggs is the award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of over 50 published novels, with a combined 25 million copies in print, published in 30 countries, and translated into over 20 languages.

Her latest, Welcome to Beach Town: A Novel, is described as the “... tale of an idyllic California beach town forced to reckon with scandal when a high school valedictorian’s speech reveals secrets that shake the town to its core.”

Kristy Woodson Harvey, New York Times bestselling author of The Summer of Songbirds called the book ​​"... a masterclass in storytelling…. a novel, [where] one thing is for sure: In this beach town, there is always more happening than meets the eye," and Booklist called it, "The perfect beach read...full of surf, rediscovered love, and second chances."

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In this file, Susan Wiggs and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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New York Times bestselling author and educator, Helen Schulman, spoke to me about her winding path to bestseller, why a writing career is 90% sweat and rejection, and how the #MeToo movement inspired her latest novel, LUCKY DOGS.

Helen Schulman is the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels, including Come with Me and This Beautiful Life, and she is currently the Fiction Chair of the Creative Writing Program at The New School.

Her latest, Lucky Dogs, is described as a novel that “... lays bare what happens to women—no matter how fortunate they may appear to be on the surface—whose lives have been warped by brutality and misogyny.”

Best-selling author Jennifer Egan called the book, "Part thriller, part Hollywood satire [and] a brash, sometimes heartbreaking saga in which trauma and self-preservation converge across decades and continents. This is Helen Schulman's best novel yet."

Helen Schulman’s fiction, non-fiction, and reviews have appeared in such places as Vanity Fair, Time, Vogue, GQ, The New York Times Book Review, and The Paris Review. She also serves as Executive Director for WriteOn NYC, a fellowship program that provides free creative writing instruction to underserved New York City school children.

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In this file, Helen Schulman and I discussed: 

Show Notes:

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