Creative, Inspired, ALIVE

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is V.E. Schwab, #1 New York Times bestselling author of 25 books, including The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue . Her latest novel, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil , is out now. Today, we talk about: * the curse of perfectionism and how Victoria copes with it, * fighting Imposter Syndrome, * why it's important to her to share both the victories and dis...

How I found balance between big dreams and small, personal moments. Welcome to Letters from the Creative Life , a new feature on my podcast and Substack. These occasional essays explore the quieter corners of living: small reflections on art, ambition, and the tender balancing act of building a meaningful life in a noisy world. Think of them as letters from my life to yours. Enjoy! (If you'd like...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Adam Met, multi-platinum recording artist (he's the A in the band AJR) . He is also a professor, and now author of a new book, AMPLIFY . Today, we talk about: * the kinds of books Adam likes to read * the process of co-authoring a book with another writer * how to outline a non-fiction book * breaking rules to build fanbases * sto...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Mike Sowden, the author behind the hugely popular Substack, “ Everything is Amazing .” He is also a former archaeologist and travel writer, and one of the humblest writers I know. (Don't be fooled when he starts out the interview by telling you he has no idea what he's doing.) Today, we talk about: * What is Substack, and is it too late to get started...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Katherine Center, New York Times Bestselling author and one of the reigning queens of hopeful, feel-good fiction. She’s also had two books adapted into hit movies on Netflix. Her latest novel, The Love Haters , is out now. Today, we talk about: * finding inspiration which Katherine describes catching butterflies * discovering your...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Andrea Bartz, New York Times Bestselling thriller author . Her books have been a Reese’s Book Club pick, a Good Morning America Bonus Buzz pick, and a Marie Claire book club pick; one of them was optioned by Mila Kunis and another is in production at Netflix . Andi’s latest thriller, The Last Ferry Out , is out next week. Today, we talk about: * who A...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Allegra Goodman, New York Times bestselling author of Sam and , more recently, Isola . Allegra's books have also been a National Book Award Finalist, a Reese's Book Club pick and a Read with Jenna/TODAY Show pick . Today, we talk about: * what Allegra would do if she won a book-shopping spree, * how reading has influenced the way she writes, * why wri...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Sarah Penner, New York Times Bestselling author of The Lost Apothecary , which has sold over 1 1/2 million copies . Her latest novel, The Amalfi Curse , is out now. Today, we talk about: * the books that influenced young Sarah as a reader, and later, as a writer, * behind-the-scenes of Collector's Editions—how an author finds out about special endpape...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Téa Obreht, winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction, National Book Award Finalist, and international bestseller of The Tiger's Wife and other novels. Her latest book, The Morningside , is out in paperback now. Today, we talk about: * how being an immigrant influences her storytelling, * writing in English while sometimes translatin...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is author Gretchen Schreiber . She is also the Manager of Books at Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine . Gretchen's latest novel, All the Stars Align , is out now ! Today, we talk about: * how Gretchen landed the dream job at Hello Sunshine, * reading for Reese's taste versus reading for her own * what Gretchen has learned about the p...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is a E mma Pattee, a climate journalist, playwright, and author of novel Tilt . Today, we talk about: * tapping into a character's vulnerability and using your personal experiences to deepen your work, * using "writing containers" (like setting the story in one day) to structure your novel * writer's block--what it really is and how...

My guests today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY are Jennifer Acker and Emily Everett, the Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor of literary magazine The Common . Jennifer and Emily are also both accomplished novelists. Today, we talk about: * what an editor at a literary magazine does * how they find submissions and how they choose what to publish at The Common * what makes a great writing mentor * the...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Eowyn Ivey, Pulitzer Prize finalist and UK National Book Award winner for her novel, The Snow Child . Her latest book, Black Woods Blue Sky , is out now. Today, we talk about: * how her experience as a bookseller and a journalist helped when she began to tackle writing a novel, * whether the Pulitzer nomination put pressure on her for her next book, *...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Erin Crosby Eckstine, whose debut novel, JUNIE, is this month's Good Morning America book pick. Today, we talk about: * using family stories as inspiration for a novel * deciding when to insert real history and when to make it flexible in historical fiction * what happens behind the scenes on the set of Good Morning America for author interviews, * ho...

My guests today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY are three massively popular creators in the book space on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Bindery: Jaysen Headley (a.k.a. Ezeekat), Zoranne Host, and Marines (Mari) Alvarez. Today, we talk about: * how they discover books and how they choose which books they promote on their social media channels * weathering the changes that platforms like TikTok and ot...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Margarita Montimore, bestselling author of Oona Out of Order , which was a Good Morning America book club pick. Her latest novel, The Dollhouse Academy , is out now! Today, we talk about: * pep talks for yourself to get through the ups and downs of publishing * how many rejections she weathered before landing a book deal * dealing with professional je...

My guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Olivia Wolfgang-Smith, whose latest novel, Mutual Interest , has been described as a witty and joyful, queer Edith Wharton in gilded age New York. Today, we talk about: * the most important benefit of having writer friends or critique partners * finding the belief in yourself that you can write a full-length novel * the difference between publishing a...

Word-of-mouth, including through book clubs, is such an important way for readers to discover books, so I am very excited that my guest today on CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY is Mackenzie Newcomb, founder of the Bad B***h Book Club, which has 32,000 members. Today, we talk about: * what makes a great book club book? Aka what kind of books are more likely to be chosen for a book club? * readers' surpri...

My guest today is Kate Fagan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of four non-fiction books and a brand new novel. She is also an Emmy Award-winning journalist who has worked at Sports Illustrated , ESPN, and more. Today, we talk about: * building a varied career with different kinds of writing, * making a name for herself in the traditionally male-dominated field of sports journalism, * her shif...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today is Heather Demetrios, a critically acclaimed novelist and writing coach who specializes in guiding writers in finding their voice, bringing their ideas to their full written potential, mindfulness, mental health in creative practices, and more. Today, we talk about: * the differences between a writing coach and a freelance editor * mental health practices that s...

My guest today is Suzanne Young, New York Times author of over 20 novels , including The Program series. She's also written a novel with a rock star. But the dream I alluded to is that last year, Suzanne packed her bags, sold her house, and moved to Italy, where she now spends her days writing under the Italian sun and hosting writing retreats in gorgeous villas from Tuscany to Venice . Today, we...

Hello, Protagonists! My guest today is J.C. Cervantes, New York Times Bestselling author . Her books for children, young adults, and adults have been published in more than twelve countries and have appeared on national lists, including the American Booksellers Association New Voices, Barnes and Noble’s Best Young Reader Books, as well as Amazon’s, Apple’s, and Audible’s Best Books of the Month. T...

The podcast is on a short break for Thanksgiving, so today I have a piece I wrote that was originally published on Beyond with Jane Ratcliffe . We have a lot of new community members here at CREATIVE. INSPIRED. HAPPY, so I wanted to share a part of me that you might not know. Thank you for being here. 💛 ~evelyn This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get...

My guest today is Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author and an icon in the historical fiction space. Today we talk about: * writing what you're drawn to and if/when marketability goes into that decision * The Hero's Journey vs The Heroine's Journey for character development and plotting * how to draw the line between fact and fiction when writing about real life people or historical events...

My guest today is Taran Matharu, New York Times bestselling author with over 3 million copies sold . Taran is also co-founder of a small publishing house , Portal Books. Today, we talk about: * how Taran got his start on Wattpad during NaNoWriMo, and then landed multiple book deals with traditional publishers, * advice for anyone participating in a novel writing challenge this month, * why he deci...