Bookwild

This week, I talk with Kate Williams about her new romance spy thriller Fake Out Make Out! Kate's journey from self-publishing and writing across genres to landing a traditional publishing deal with Fake Out, Make Out. How Kate built a spy romance, balanced action with emotional beats, and embraced genre mashups. How she drew from her own autoimmune journey and the importance of seeing disabled and chronically ill characters on the page. How she approaches outlining action scenes, creating compelling character dynamics, and finding the perfect title for the book. Lessons from years of writing, and encouragement for aspiring authors navigating publishing. Check Out Author Social Media PackagesCheck out the Bookwild Community on PatreonCheck Out My Stories Are My Religion SubstackGet Bookwild MerchFollow @imbookwild on InstagramOther Co-hosts On Instagram:Gare Billings @gareindeedreadsSteph Lauer @books.in.badgerlandHalley Sutton @halleysutton25Brian Watson @readingwithbrianMacKenzie Green @missusa2mba 

This week, Emma West, Kara Confer and I talk with Emma Brodie about her love story Into the Blue! Listen to hear about: How a single character—Noah—kept appearing across multiple abandoned projects until he became the foundation of Into the Blue A behind-the-scenes look at how Emma's theater classes, improv training, and fascination with performance shaped the book's unique portrayal of acting and creative connection. The emotional reality of publishing while working in the publishing industry, including the vulnerability of releasing work when you're surrounded by people who understand exactly how the business works. Emma's approach to writing about chronic illness, grief, fame, and the idea that we can never fully know what's happening inside another person—even someone we deeply love The incredible journey from writing Into the Blue as a deeply personal "heart song" to becoming a Reese's Book Club pick and a Read with Jenna selection Check Out Author Social Media PackagesCheck out the Bookwild Community on PatreonCheck Out My Stories Are My Religion SubstackGet Bookwild MerchFollow @imbookwild on InstagramOther Co-hosts On Instagram:Gare Billings @gareindeedreadsSteph Lauer @books.in.badgerlandHalley Sutton @halleysutton25Brian Watson @readingwithbrianMacKenzie Green @missusa2mba 

This week, Elizabeth Rose Quinn and I discuss revelations we had while reading Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Each Other by Sophie Gilbert. Listen to hear about: How Sophie Gilbert's Girl on Girl traces a throughline from the 1990s to today, revealing how pop culture, celebrity media, and entertainment industries shaped modern misogyny and women's relationships with each other. A discussion of the "post-privacy era," from Pamela Anderson's stolen sex tape to social media, influencer culture, and the normalization of treating women's lives and bodies as public property. Why movements that begin as authentic expressions of female empowerment—like Riot Grrrl and "girl power"—often get repackaged, commercialized, and stripped of their original political meaning. An exploration of reality TV, celebrity culture, diet culture, and the male gaze—and how they continue to influence the way women are expected to look, behave, and present themselves. Misogyny as a cultural system: why women are often disbelieved, how abuse tactics show up in institutions and media, and what happens when we stop viewing these incidents as isolated events and start seeing the larger pattern. Check Out Author Social Media PackagesCheck out the Bookwild Community on PatreonCheck Out My Stories Are My Religion SubstackGet Bookwild MerchFollow @imbookwild on InstagramOther Co-hosts On Instagram:Gare Billings @gareindeedreadsSteph Lauer @books.in.badgerlandHalley Sutton @halleysutton25Brian Watson @readingwithbrianMacKenzie Green @missusa2mba