When I was a sophomore in college, I took a literature class on the expatriate writers who gathered in Paris after the first World War (Gertrude Stein, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Dos Passos, and Sherwood Anderson, among others). An optional book on the class syllabus was Living Well is the Best Revenge by Calvin Tomkins, the very first biography of the Murphys. Over the decades that followed, I never stopped thinking about them …

Kirsten Mickelwait – 27 May 2025 Continue reading →

There was a hit-and-run that killed a small child in my neighborhood about twenty years ago. I noticed a police officer there in the afternoons filming the intersection. I learned he was one of the first officers on the scene and was devastated by it. This image stayed with me.

Karen F. Uhlmann – 25 May 2025 Continue reading →

The character’s kind of reveal who they are to me over time. I find I learn more about the character’s as I write the story. It’s a very strange experience—but wonderful!

Catharina Steel – 22 May 2025 Continue reading →

Since few people outside of Peru seem to have heard about the many cultures that thrived long before the Incas and the famed Machu Picchu, I wanted to bring one of them to life. I chose the Nasca culture because it faced environmental issues that are relevant to today’s world and is also full of enigmas and mystery. 

K.M. Huber – 20 May 2025 Continue reading →

The book is based loosely on childhood summers I spent in Greece visiting the Greek half of my family

Mima Tipper – 18 May 2025 Continue reading →

When middle-class or affluent people use drugs, it’s considered okay or even cool. But when poor people use drugs, it’s considered bad and dirty. I wanted to write about the humanity of drug use: the reality that a lot of people use drugs to help them deal with their lives.

Mattea Kramer – 15 May 2025 Continue reading →

I was not prepared for the extraordinary obstacles I would find within the public education and medical systems as I tried to ensure my son got the education and services he needed. I was also not prepared for our family’s and friends’ reactions.

Amy Mackin – 12 May 2025 Continue reading →

I want people to know that no matter how dark life gets, there’s always a way forward. It’s not easy, and it takes time, but you can rebuild. You can heal. My story is proof that even in the hardest moments, you can find strength, purpose, and ultimately, hope.

Mary L Devine – 9 May 2025 Continue reading →

My ideal reader is curious about Victorian London, magic, the history of tarot, dueling magicians and earning your place in the world by hard won lessons.

Susan Wands – 6 May 2025 Continue reading →

Shaping the story were experiences I had in college being part of three-women friendship groups; relationships with cousins close to my age; visits to Yale and New Haven that I made because my best friend from high school went there; and living in New Haven with my husband for three years when he was an assistant professor at Yale. 

Jessica Levine – 2 May 2025 Continue reading →