Passions & Prologues

Rachel Harrison has quickly established herself as one of THE defining voices of the horror genre. She exploded onto the scene several years ago with her terrifying and unnerving debut The Return before following that up with the equally spooky Cackle. Both books were not only atmospheric and gothic, but they also were extremely well written, the pages flying by. Her newest book, Such Sharp Teeth,...

Alexis Henderson took the world by storm with her debut novel, The Year of the Witching , back in 2020 and now she’s back with another gothic book just in time for spooky season! Eventually, we discuss House of Hunger , where A young woman is drawn into the upper echelons of a society where blood is power but first Alexis shares where her aesthetic was born: The early 2020s Tumblr scene.  We get i...

Alexis Henderson took the world by storm with her debut novel, The Year of the Witching, back in 2020 and now she’s back with another gothic book just in time for spooky season! Eventually, we discuss House of Hunger, where A young woman is drawn into the upper echelons of a society where blood is power but first Alexis shares where her aesthetic was born: The early 2020s Tumblr scene.  We get int...

Emily Austin has thought a great deal about religion and anxiety in her life. Growing up in a blended religious household, she saw first hand the ways religion can affect how we interact with one another. It left her questioning her beliefs and her heart and, eventually, led to the powerfully beautiful novel, Everyone in this room will someday be dead . In this discussion, Adam and Emily discuss t...

Emily Austin has thought a great deal about religion and anxiety in her life. Growing up in a blended religious household, she saw first hand the ways religion can affect how we interact with one another. It left her questioning her beliefs and her heart and, eventually, led to the powerfully beautiful novel, Everyone in this room will someday be dead. In this discussion, Adam and Emily discuss th...

Claire North, author of the new book Ithaca , interacts with words and colors in a different way than almost anyone you have ever met. Claire has synesthesia, a condition that means she interacts with words and colors in a very unique way. This helps her in her "day" job where she lights live music performances. In this discussion, we talk about her experience with live music lighting, the colors...

Claire North, author of the new book Ithaca, interacts with words and colors in a different way than almost anyone you have ever met. Claire has synesthesia, a condition that means she interacts with words and colors in a very unique way. This helps her in her "day" job where she lights live music performances. In this discussion, we talk about her experience with live music lighting, the colors o...

New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron is a theater nerd to her very core. She was raised in a house of musicals, having been introduced to the likes of Sweeney Todd and Phantom of the Opera early on in her life (perhaps too early!) In this chat, Adam and Kalynn chat about their shared obsessions with musicals, talk about their own experiences growing up with them, and the ones they still...

New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron is a theater nerd to her very core. She was raised in a house of musicals, having been introduced to the likes of Sweeney Todd and Phantom of the Opera early on in her life (perhaps too early!) In this chat, Adam and Kalynn chat about their shared obsessions with musicals, talk about their own experiences growing up with them, and the ones they still...

For Gilly Segal, hockey is about family. It’s one of her connections to her dad and now it’s a massive part of life for Gilly and her son. In this discussion, Gilly and Adam chat about how sports bond us to family in ways that go beyond just wins and losses, the positive effects sports have on the lives of children, the difference between the dream and reality of working in sports, and much more. ...

For Gilly Segal, hockey is about family. It’s one of her connections to her dad and now it’s a massive part of life for Gilly and her son. In this discussion, Gilly and Adam chat about how sports bond us to family in ways that go beyond just wins and losses, the positive effects sports have on the lives of children, the difference between the dream and reality of working in sports, and much more. ...

Kimberly Jones knows the importance of history. Her powerful book, How We Can Win is all about the history of systemic racism in the United States and leveling the playing field. The New York Times bestselling I’m Not Dying with You Tonight , co-written with Gilly Segal, is based on actual race riots. Also, she’s currently working on a biography of her mother, a trailblazer in multiple ways.  She...

Kimberly Jones knows the importance of history. Her powerful book, How We Can Win is all about the history of systemic racism in the United States and leveling the playing field. The New York Times bestselling I’m Not Dying with You Tonight, co-written with Gilly Segal, is based on actual race riots. Also, she’s currently working on a biography of her mother, a trailblazer in multiple ways.  She a...

Jen Doll is delightful and that is not up for debate. The author of the new young adult book, That’s Debatable , joins the show to discuss a passion she and Adam both share… Cooking! The conversation kicks off with Jen explaining how she found her love of being in the kitchen at the beginning of the pandemic and how it helped her bond with her stepson.  Adam and Jen share some recipes as well whil...

Jen Doll is delightful and that is not up for debate. The author of the new young adult book, That’s Debatable, joins the show to discuss a passion she and Adam both share… Cooking! The conversation kicks off with Jen explaining how she found her love of being in the kitchen at the beginning of the pandemic and how it helped her bond with her stepson.  Adam and Jen share some recipes as well while...

The internet’s Ryan La Sala is this week’s guest! You might know Ryan from such massive books like Reverie and Be Dazzled and he has a new book that you absolutely have to go get called The Honeys . On today’s episode, Adam and Ryan discuss one of Ryan’s MANY passions… Cosplay! Ryan explains how cosplay helps him manifest his dreams and how his second book Be Dazzled went from being partially base...

The internet’s Ryan La Sala is this week’s guest! You might know Ryan from such massive books like Reverie and Be Dazzled and he has a new book that you absolutely have to go get called The Honeys. On today’s episode, Adam and Ryan discuss one of Ryan’s MANY passions… Cosplay! Ryan explains how cosplay helps him manifest his dreams and how his second book Be Dazzled went from being partially based...

On episode three of Passions & Prologues, Julia Whelan chats with Adam about her unique passion- packing for vacation! Julia is well known for iconic voice as the narrator of hundreds of audiobooks and her new novel Thank You for Listening is a must read (or listen!).  Julia has traveled all over the world for various lengths of time and across all seasons. All of this experience has made her...

On episode three of Passions & Prologues, Julia Whelan chats with Adam about her unique passion- packing for vacation! Julia is well known for iconic voice as the narrator of hundreds of audiobooks and her new novel Thank You for Listening is a must read (or listen!).  Julia has traveled all over the world for various lengths of time and across all seasons. All of this experience has made her a ma...

On the second episode of Passions & Prologues, Brad Meltzer joins the podcast to discuss a passion that he and Adam share- THE MUPPETS! They talk about their first memories of watching Sesame Street, how they bonded over a mutual love of the holiday classic Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas, and why they both see themselves in Kermit the Frog. Brad then shares a few family memories with The Mup...

On the second episode of Passions & Prologues, Brad Meltzer joins the podcast to discuss a passion that he and Adam share- THE MUPPETS! They talk about their first memories of watching Sesame Street, how they bonded over a mutual love of the holiday classic Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas, and why they both see themselves in Kermit the Frog. Brad then shares a few family memories with The Muppets...

On the first episode of Passions & Prologues, Adam brings on his good friend Mallory O'Meara to talk about her passion for powerlifting! Mallory, the James Beard Award-winning author of Girly Drinks and Lady from the Black Lagoon , shares the story of how she fell in love with the world of powerlifting. Mallory and Adam touch on why working out has become an oasis away from their work lives, h...

On the first episode of Passions & Prologues, Adam brings on his good friend Mallory O'Meara to talk about her passion for powerlifting! Mallory, the James Beard Award-winning author of Girly Drinks and Lady from the Black Lagoon, shares the story of how she fell in love with the world of powerlifting. Mallory and Adam touch on why working out has become an oasis away from their work lives, how li...

Every week, host Adam Sockel interviews a popular member of the literary world about their passions beyond the books they're known for. These longform, relaxed conversations show listeners a new side of some of their favorite content creators as well as provide insight into the things that inspire their work.

Every week, host Adam Sockel interviews a popular member of the literary world about their passions beyond the books they're known for. These longform, relaxed conversations show listeners a new side of some of their favorite content creators as well as provide insight into the things that inspire their work.