Carter Wilson's Making It Up

Xio Axelrod is a USA Today bestselling author who writes different flavors of contemporary romance and what she likes to call, “strange, twisted tales.” Her love for writing started with writing fanfiction due to a passionate response to how an episode of Buffy ended. Now, her most recently published novel is titled, The Girl With Stars In Her Eyes . Among other things, Carter and Xio discuss grow...

After nearly four years of newsletters I decided to do something a little different this month. The audiobook newsletter! Same great content, but now I get to ramble on with a microphone instead of a keyboard.  Enjoy!

Clare Whitfield was born the fourth child to ex-Armed Forces parents and grew up on St Helier Estate in Morden before moving to Sutton. After studying contemporary dance at Middlesex University, she worked as an editorial assistant for a publishing company, tried her hand at freelance writing, and eventually worked in marketing where she spent her free time writing. In her 30s she took an MA in cr...

Sabrina Jeffries is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 novels and works of short fiction (some written under the pseudonyms Deborah Martin and Deborah Nicholas). She is a sought-after speaker, as evidenced by her 2010 gig as emcee for the National Romance Writers of America’s 30th Anniversary Awards Ceremony. She continues writing romance and even plays with adding in a little M...

Mark Sullivan is the acclaimed author of eighteen novels, including the #1 New York Times bestselling Private series, which he writes with James Patterson. He’s received numerous awards for his writing, including the WHSmith Fresh Talent Award, and his works have been named a New York Times Notable Book and a Los Angeles Times Best Book of the Year. After Beneath A Scarlet Sky far surpassed what h...

Erika Englehaupt has spent more than a decade writing and editing for top science publications, including National Geographic, Science News, Scientific American, the Philadelphia Inquirer and NPR. Her niche is exploring the gross and horrifying realities of nature. She decided to take it a step further, diving even deeper than her beloved blog, and write a book called Gory Details .  Among other t...

Emily Bleeker is a busy woman. She's a mother of four, an improv actor, an aspiring guitarist and, oh yeah, the Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author of six novels. Combined, her books have reached over a million readers. She is a two-time Whitney Award finalist and was recently listed as one of the top 100 Kindle authors “of all time.” Her latest novel, What's Left Un...

Julia Heaberlin is the author of the international bestseller Black-Eyed Susans , Paper Ghosts , and We Are All the Same in the Dark , her newest crime novel set in the moody landscape of Texas where she grew up. Heaberlin’s psychological thrillers, all set in her home state, have sold to more than twenty countries.  Among other things, Carter and Julia discuss murder in a small town, how persiste...

Graham Hurley is the author of 25 novels, and shows no signs of slowing down. In his previous life, he worked as a script-writer with Southern Television before becoming a researcher and later a director. His latest novel is The Last Flight to Stalingrad , which The Times called "historical fiction of the highest order." Among other things, Carter and Graham discuss his lifelong love of...

Steven James is a kind and gentle soul who writes about dark, gritty things. He's the author of more than thirty books, including the critically acclaimed Bowers Files, an eleven-book series of psychological thrillers which includes Opening Moves , Every Crooked Path , and Every Deadly Kiss . The series has received four Christy Awards, which is a damn big deal.  Among other things, Carter an...

Mark Stevens is a helluva good writer and an all-around good dude. Best known for his Allison Coil mystery series, Mark’s novel Antler Dust was a Denver Post best-seller in 2007 and 2009. Buried by the Roan , Trapline , and Lake of Fire were all finalists for the Colorado Book Award (2012, 2015 and 2016 respectively). Trapline won. Mark has been named Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers' Writer of...

Lynne Constantine is an internationally bestselling author who writes with her sister as Liv Constantine ( The Last Mrs. Parrish ) and solo as L.C. Shaw ( The Silent Conspiracy ). Her books have been translated into 28 languages, are available in 33 countries, and are in development for both television and film. Among other things, Carter and Lynne talk about her father working for Spiro Agnew, th...

K.J. Howe lived all over the world growing up, and those experiences turned her into a bestselling and award-winning storyteller with global reach. Among other things, Carter and K.J. talk about meticulous research, the kindness of thriller writers, and kidnapping conferences in Miami. At the end of their conversation they make up a short story starting with a sentence from William Goldman's...

Sean Eads writes for himself and is unapologetic about it. Not only is Sean a talented and amazingly prolific author of countless novels and short stories, he and Carter are in the same critique group. Carter and Sean talk about audience, character development, and the lasting pain from accidentally deleting a manuscript. At the end of their conversation they make up a short story starting with a...

David Bell has been fascinated by murder since he was a kid. Fortunately, his career path led him to writing stories about it rather than committing it. He's the USA Today bestselling author of ten standalone thrillers and his eleventh, KILL ALL YOUR DARLINGS, releases in July 2021. Among other things, Carter and David discuss the highs and lows of publishing, the wisdom he imparts on his wri...

USA Today bestselling novelist Carter Wilson talks to writers of all backgrounds in order to find out why they do what they do. He and his guests discuss childhood influences, roots of creativity, luck and loss, tools of the craft, and the highs and lows of publishing. At the end of their conversation, they pick a random sentence from a random book and use it to create an impromptu short story. Vi...

Julie Clark still tells people she's an elementary school teacher, which she is. But she's also the New York Times bestselling author of the 2020 breakout thriller The Last Flight . Carter and Julie talk about working multiple jobs, the unpredictability of the publishing industry, and how to continuously become a better writer. At the end of the conversation, they make up a surreal circu...

Alex Marwood was a journalist who worked extensively across the British press. Her first novel, The Wicked Girls , achieved widespread acclaim and international bestsellerdom. It was shortlisted for ITW, Anthony and Macavity awards, was included in Stephen King’s Ten Best Books of the Year list, and won the prestigious Edgar Award. Carter and Alex talk about the other famous writers in her family,...

Joe Clifford's writing career was immensely helped when he was hit by a bus. Today, this bestselling mystery and crime writer has a dozen books to his name and life is good, even if it requires a cane. Carter and Joe discuss Joe's past struggles with heroin addiction, his inability or desire to hold down a 9-5 job, and love and heartbreak within the publishing industry. At the end of the...