Mystery/Thriller Episodes

390
Sept. 1, 2023

Interview with Peter Heller - THE LAST RANGER

In this interview, Peter and I discuss The Last Ranger, setting the story in Yellowstone National Park, how he became interested in the wolves in the park, his writing process and how his background influences that, the questions he gets from readers, his dearest hope for this book, and much more.
Guest: Peter Heller
379
July 21, 2023

Interview with Nicole Baart - THE LONG WAY BACK

In this interview, Nicole and I discuss The Long Way Back, social media and how it is impacting our lives today, using a multimedia format to write the story, how the title and cover came about, crafting a mother-daughter relationship, and much more.
Guest: Nicole Baart
378
July 18, 2023

Interview with Bruce Borgos - THE BITTER PAST

In this interview, Bruce and I discuss The Bitter Past, his research, what surprised him the most when writing this book, creating a strong sense of place, the title and cover, how this is the start to a series, and much more.
Guest: Bruce Borgos
371
June 29, 2023

Interview with Riley Sager - THE ONLY ONE LEFT

In this interview, Riley and I discuss The Only One Left, writing a gothic novel, his writing process, what surprised him the most while writing this one, creating all of the twists and turns, the emotional depth in this story, and much more.
369
June 21, 2023

Interview with Wendy Walker - WHAT REMAINS

In this interview, Wendy and I discuss What Remains, cold cases, her Patreon episode with Megan Miranda, how she writes and edits her books, selecting character names and running Google searches on those names, and much more.
Guest: Wendy Walker
368
June 20, 2023

Interview with Matthew Quirk - INSIDE THREAT

In this interview, Matthew and I discuss Inside Threat, Raven Rock Mountain Complex, what surprised him the most while writing this one, The Night Agent's limited series on Netflix, the challenges of writing a locked room mystery, how he started writing political thrillers, and much more.
Guest: Matthew Quirk
367
June 16, 2023

Interview with Danielle Trussoni - THE PUZZLE MASTER

In this interview, Danielle and I discuss The Puzzle Master, how she came up with the ideas for this one, working with a puzzle constructor for this book, her research, Sudden Acquired Savant Syndrome, how she writes her first drafts by hand on legal pads, the complicated cover process, and much more.
360
May 25, 2023

Interview with Jaclyn Goldis - THE CHATEAU

In this interview, Jaclyn and I discuss The Chateau, when the setting is a character, the inspiration for the chateau in the novel, setting the story in Provence, writing from multiple points of view, what surprised her the most when writing The Chateau, creating distinctive voices for her main characters, and much more.
Guest: Jaclyn Goldis
357
May 18, 2023

Interview with Lisa Brideau - ADRIFT

In this interview, Lisa and I discuss Adrift, climate fiction, why she chose to set the book in 2038 and the world building she did, helping people gain an understanding of the importance of preserving and spending time in nature, how her day job informs her writing, and much more.
Guest: Lisa Brideau
349
April 25, 2023

Interview with Elly Griffiths - THE LAST REMAINS

In this interview, Elly and I discuss The Last Remains, how she chose Norfolk for the setting of the series, ending the series at least for now, creating her pseudonym years ago, her favorite books in the series, running contests for people to have their names used for characters in her books, and much more.
342
April 11, 2023

Interview with Megan Miranda - THE ONLY SURVIVORS

In this interview, Megan and I discuss The Only Survivors, the event that inspired this story, setting books by the water or by the woods and how both can feel comforting but also dangerous, why she chose the Outer Banks, how the number 7 factors into this book, and much more.
Guest: Megan Miranda
338
March 31, 2023

Interview with Amulya Malladi - A DEATH IN DENMARK

In this interview, Amulya and I discuss A Death in Denmark, setting a book in Copenhagen, writing a mystery series, creating a character who fits the city of Copenhagen, her highlight of writing the book, and much more.
333
March 14, 2023

Interview with Kristen Bird - I LOVE IT WHEN YOU LIE

In this interview, Kristen and I discuss I Love It When You Lie, writing a Southern story, mirroring her own family life, creating a mystery where the reader doesn't know who died, and much more.
Guest: Kristen Bird
328
March 7, 2023

Interview with Jessa Maxwell - THE GOLDEN SPOON

In this interview, Jessa and I discuss The Golden Spoon, setting the book during a baking competition, the hardest part of writing the book, her stunning cover, crafting a story where the reader does not know who dies until the end, and much more.
Guest: Jessa Maxwell
327
March 3, 2023

Interview with C.J. Box - STORM WATCH

In this interview, C.J. and I discuss Storm Watch, weaving together two central mysteries into each book, how there is now more fiction focused on the outdoors than there used to be, the Joe Pickett TV series, incorporating a political element into his books because of the large amount of public land in Wyoming, crypto-mining, and much more.
321
Feb. 14, 2023

Interview with Amy Tector - THE FOULEST THINGS

In this interview, Amy and I discuss The Foulest Things, writing a series and mysteries as a pantser, why she created the fictional Dominion Archives, incorporating art theft into her story, and much more.
Guest: Amy Tector
315
Jan. 20, 2023

Interview with Grady Hendrix - HOW TO SELL A HAUNTED HOUSE

In this interview, Grady and I discuss How to Sell a Haunted House, his decision to write about dolls and puppets, how he started writing horror, world building, and much more.
Guest: Grady Hendrix
312
Jan. 10, 2023

Interview with Sara Rosett - High Society Lady Detective series

In this interview, Sara and I discuss her High Society Lady Detective series, how she decided to write the series, how it has changed over time, why she chose the indie author route, her recent Kickstarter campaign, her podcasts, and much more.
Guest: Sara Rosett
299
Nov. 22, 2022

Interview with Elly Griffiths - BLEEDING HEART YARD

In this interview, Elly and I discuss Bleeding Heart Yard, the inspiration for the story and title, how her writing process has changed over her career, dark academia and its appeal, how working in the publishing industry affected her writing process, her recent Miss Marple short story, and much more.
297
Nov. 15, 2022

Interview with Alice Henderson - A GHOST OF CARIBOU

In this interview, Alice and I discuss A Ghost of Caribou, the importance of old-growth trees for mountain caribous' existence, how the loss of one species impacts an entire ecosystem, her favorite scenes to write, what surprised her the most when writing this book, her personal barren-ground caribou research, and much more.
295
Nov. 8, 2022

Interview with Clare Mackintosh - THE LAST PARTY

In this interview, Clare and I discuss The Last Party, setting the book on the border between Wales and England, the increased importance and focus on borders as a result of COVID, living in Wales and writing about it, choosing character names, writing a series versus a standalone novel, and much more.
294
Nov. 4, 2022

Interview with Robert Crais - RACING THE LIGHT

In this interview, Robert and I discuss Racing the Light, how Elvis and Joe have evolved over time, incorporating current events into his novels, creating new storylines over a 19-book series, whether he is a plotter or a pantser, and much more.
Guest: Robert Crais
277
Sept. 7, 2022

Interview with Deanna Raybourn - KILLERS OF A CERTAIN AGE

In this interview, Deanna and I discuss Killers of a Certain Age, where the idea for this book originated, writing a contemporary story, how creating this story differed from creating the Veronica Speedwell books, the title she wanted for the book, how society's perception of aging has changed in the last several decades, and much more.
272
Aug. 2, 2022

Interview with Gillian McAllister - WRONG PLACE WRONG TIME

In this interview, Gillian and I discuss Wrong Place Wrong Time, plotting this one out, creating the right pacing for the story, finding the right title, the difficulty of building in twists, her podcast, not feeling constrained by the thriller genre, ruminating on how much time changes people, and much more.