Try Reading Podcast

Victoria Wlosok is back on Try Reading this week! She joins me to talk all about the experience of putting her debut out into the world and then we dive into her sophomore novel, Six Must Die! Victoria discusses how past friendship breakups and a love for escape rooms inspired this story, the amount of escape room research she got to do, the daunting journey of writing a second book, what lessons this sophomore journey taught her, ...

Sydney Langford is back on Try Reading this week! They join me to talk all about their sophomore novel, Someone to Daydream About! Sydney talks about how fanfiction they wrote at 12 inspired this story, how they experienced the sophomore slump with their third novel instead of their second, and why having marginalized characters living amazing lives on the page is so valuable. Sydney and I also discuss why this book would make a gr...

In the second half of this two-part interview, Adam Silvera dives into the world of They Both Die at the End. He shares the inception of the world and first book, how it became a series, what it was like writing a book for the series that takes place over a week compared to just 24 hours, and why TBDATE would make a great stage play. Most importantly, Adam reveals the title for the next two books in the series: the first is about M...

#1 New York Times Bestselling and life-changing author (for me and many readers), Adam Silvera, is on the podcast this week! Adam joins me for a two-part interview where we dive into how he fell in love with reading, his urge to tell stories, the experience of putting his debut out into the world, being a Barnes and Noble bookseller, his love for comics, and Adam dives into my favorite book of his, What If It's Us. He shares memori...

Cindy Pham is on Try Reading this week! Cindy joins me to talk all about her debut novel, The Secret World of Briar Rose! Cindy talks about how she found a love for reading after childhood, her long-time love for storytelling and retellings, how she found her way to BookTube, and what led her to her debut novel. She discusses the ways in which her past life experiences influenced this story, how this book taught her things about he...

Try Reading All-Star and icon Laura R. Samotin is back on the pod this week! She's back to talk about all that has happened since debuting and what led her into the horror genre for her forthcoming book, The Way It Haunted Him. Laura discusses how a love for history and archives inspired this novel, how a cat helped sell it, the psychological aspects of writing a locked-room horror, and why it'd make a great theme park ride. Laura ...

The iconic Keturah Maree, aka K.M. Colley, is on the pod this week! Keturah talks about her childhood love for reading and storytelling, how she met Morgan Freeman as a kid, and how details of her debut novel, The Roaring Ridleys, came from a childhood summer camp. Keturah talks about why she chose to set her book in 1920s New York City, how the video of her pitching the book to a stranger went viral, the importance of having diver...

Erin Baldwin is back on the podcast this week to talk all about the experience of putting her debut novel out into the world and diving into her sophomore novel, Good Luck, Babe! Erin discusses how The Amazing Race inspired this novel, how it feels to have a Chappell Roan song as a title, why representation is so important, especially now, and why there should be a writer's retreat themed off of her book. We talk about how Erin pre...

Angela Montoya and Melanie Schubert, two iconic Try Reading All-Stars, are back on the pod this week! Angela and Melanie are back to discuss their most recent joint endeavor: the Jingle These Bells holiday romance anthology! Melanie and Angela discuss what inspired them to create an anthology and they talk about the ups and downs of the creator and editorial journey. We talk about the stories each of us contributed to this book, ou...

USA Today and nationally bestselling author and Try Reading All-Star, Kamilah Cole joins me on the pod this week! Kamilah talks about seeing readers fall in love with her debut novel and the process of writing and putting the sequel, This Ends In Embers, out into the world. She discusses the ups and downs of a second book, the new cover art, and what it was like concluding a duology. She talks about her excitement for her adult deb...

Try Reading All-Star, Jennifer Chen is back this week! Jennifer talks about seeing readers' reactions to her debut novel and the experience of doing research at the Huntington Library for a historical fiction novel. She shares what inspired Hangry Hearts, her sophomore novel, the choice behind writing dual POVs that alternate within the chapters, the importance of queer and BIPOC voices on the page, and the important work of sensit...

Adeline Kon is on Try Reading this week! They join me to talk all about their debut graphic novel, Just Between Us. Adeline discusses their childhood love for reading and cartoons, how art school led them into graphic design and drawing cartoons, and how a deep dive of old olympic figure skating videos inspired their debut! They talk about the drawing and writing process of this book, the importance of authentic characters on the p...

This week on the podcast, I'm joined by the award-winning, Jonny Garza Villa! Jonny talks all about their early love for books and storytelling, what led them into writing, and the experience of publishing their debut novel. I of course ask Jonny all about Ander and Santi Were Here (a JGV favorite of many readers), and Jonny talks all about their most recent book Futbolista; what the inspiration was, the songs and musicians that in...

This week, I'm joined by another amazing Try Reading All-Star, Elle Gonzalez Rose! Elle comes back on the podcast to talk about all that has happened since we chatted about her debut novel. Elle talks about quickly jumping from debut life to sophomore novel life, she talks about her pivot into writing thrillers and what it was like writing The Girl You Know. Elle describes her writing process for this book, the importance of authen...

This week, I'm joined by the New York Times Bestselling author, F.T. Lukens! F.T. talks about their childhood love for reading and Dr. Seuss, their first experiences of writing stories, and the journey of publishing books through a small press compared to publishing under a major publishing house. F.T. talks about their most recent NYT Bestseller, Love at Second Sight, how many different research ventures inspired it, what the cove...

On today's episode of Try Reading, I am joined by bestselling author and Try Reading-All Star, Ryan La Sala! Ryan comes back on the podcast to talk all about his latest instant bestseller, The Dead of Summer! Ryan talks about how a stroll on the beach and a pizza delivery during a storm inspired this novel, what it was like writing the first book in a duology but leaving more story to tell, and the important themes and messages Rya...

On today's episode, I am joined by award-winning poet and author and Try Reading All-Star, Hannah V. Sawyerr! Hannah comes back on the podcast to chat with me about all that has happened since publishing her debut novel! She talks about watching readers find her stories, the experience of narrating her debut novel for the audio book, and then we dive into her latest publication, her sophomore novel in verse, Truth Is! Hannah talks ...

On today's episode, New York Times Bestselling cartoonist and author, Gale Galligan, joins the Try Reading Podcast! Gale joins the pod to talk about their long-time love for stories, what led them to cartoons, how they became an assistant to Raina Telgemeier, and how Gale became the artist for the adaptations of four Baby-Sitters Club graphic novels! Gale talks about their favorite memories of adapting the BSC, their favorite BSC m...

Today, I get the honor of chatting with another Try Reading All-Star, the internationally bestselling, Lauren Magaziner! Lauren joins me yet again on the podcast to catch up since our last chat. She talks about completing her middle grade fantasy series, The Mythics, and why it'd make a great puppet show. She talks about starting a new fantasy series and the journey of writing her latest book, The Incorruptibles, which was the firs...