The Writing Table with Kris Clink

Sarah Flocken is an upmarket fiction author. She is also a public relations professional, comedian, improviser, and pun contest host (yes, it’s a thing). Sarah’s poetry, essays, and short stories were published in school literary journals throughout her teen and early adult years. After that, she turned her attention to building a career in public relations, where she’s written millions of words f...

David Ellis is a judge and an Edgar-award-winning author of ten novels of crime fiction, as well as eight bestselling books co-authored with James Patterson. His novels have been translated into more than ten languages worldwide. In December 2014, Dave was sworn in as the youngest-serving Justice of the Illinois Appellate Court for the First District. He lives outside Chicago with his wife and thr...

Amy Archer is from Doncaster, South Yorkshire. She has loved writing since becoming her grandad’s pen-pal at the age of six. Growing up on the boundary of various cricket pitches across the north whilst her brother played, she took to carting a laptop around to scribble down stories, poetry and copious amounts of fanfiction. Since then, Amy had graduated from Faber Academy and was longlisted for t...

Brooke Fast is a lover of dystopian, fantasy, and all things romance. When she’s not writing new worlds, you can find her curled up on the couch with her husband and their pups in their self-built tiny house in the mountains of Maine. She’ll either be consuming copious amounts of coffee and thumbing through the latest romantasy release or sharing book reviews and writing snippets under her alter-e...

Writing domestic suspense under the pseudonym Cleo Ballard, Nan Fischer also writes young adult novels, such as When Elephants Fly and The Speed of Falling Objects. Additional author credits include Junior Jedi Knights, a middle grade Star Wars trilogy for LucasFilm, and co-authored sport autobiographies for elite athletes including #1 ranked tennis superstar Monica Seles, Triple Crown race winnin...

Stephanie Mack is an author, speaker, and podcast host with a passion for the art of great storytelling. Her novels blend women’s fiction and romantic elements with meaningful insights for readers navigating the complexities of modern life. Throughout her career, she has been trusted to craft language for individuals, publications, and Fortune 500 companies. As a podcast host, she has interviewed...

Kate Khavari is the USA Today bestselling author of fiction ranging from historical mysteries to high fantasy epics. She has her parents to thank for her fascination for historical mysteries, as she spent the majority of her childhood memorizing Sherlock Holmes’s and Poirot’s greatest quips. A former teacher, Kate has a deep appreciation for research and creativity, not to mention the multitasking...

What does it take to fold a lifelong career in cardiology into one as a successful thriller writer?  Dr. Cristina LePort, accomplished cardiologist and Amazon bestselling author, captivates readers with her medical thrillers, which merge her rich medical background with gripping narratives. Cristina’s novels, including Dissection, Change of Heart, and Defrosted offer a unique blend of suspense, me...

Jasper Craven is an investigative journalist covering the military and veterans’ issues. His writing has appeared in Harper’s , Politico, The Intercept, The Boston Globe , and The New York Times . He is also a fellow at the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute.  His latest book is God Forgives, Brothers Don't. Learn more by following Jasper at @Jasper_Craven on X and @jaspercraving on Instagr...

Eloisa has published over 30 historical romances, many of which have hit the bestseller lists. She also wrote a bestselling memoir, Paris in Love , as well as a contemporary novel, Lizzie and Dante . Her books are published in 28 languages and 30 countries, from Slovakia to Sweden. Worldwide, she has approximately 7 million books published in print or electronically. She lives in New York City and...

Debut novelist Andrew Forrester is a writer and former English teacher whose work has appeared in McSweeney's and Parents magazine. He holds a PhD in nineteenth-century British literature and lives in Austin, Texas, with his family. How the Story Goes is his first novel. Learn more at andrewforresterbooks.com Special thanks to NetGalley for early previews.  Intro reel, Writing Table Podcast 2...

Kate Clark Stone’s fiction features strong and vulnerable heroines, a lot of heart, and endless love for flyover states. Kate attended her first Indianapolis 500 at six years old and wrote her first book at eleven. A former attorney, Kate relishes watching fast cars, swimming and paddling sports, the Oxford comma, and traveling here/there/everywhere.  Kate lives in southeastern Tennessee with her...

Jennifer Chiaverini    is the New York Times bestselling author of thirty-six novels, including critically acclaimed historical fiction and the beloved Elm Creek Quilts series. In addition to her novels, Jennifer has created six collections of quilt patterns inspired by her books. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the University of Chicago, she lives with her husband and two sons in M...

Sally Kilpatrick discusses how growing up in a rural area and being raised by a librarian informed her decision to become a novelist. She illustrates how the novel, Wuthering Heights, and the 2026 film vary in the way each manages consent between romantic partners, and introduces her latest novel, Little Miss Petty.  Sally is the USA Today bestselling author of seven novels and counting. She has w...

Alice Henderson discusses the challenges of writing thrillers set in nature, her adventures in plotting, and how listeners can contribute their own regional climactic observations to ecological research. Plus, she offers a preview into the latest installment of her Alex Carter thriller series, Storm Warning.  Alice Henderson’s love of wild places inspired her new thriller series, which begins with...

Shea Serrano is an American author, journalist, humorist, and former teacher. He is best known for his work with the sports and pop culture websites, The Ringer and Grantland , as well as his books, including The Rap Year Book , Basketball (and Other Things) and Movies (and Other Things) , all of which were The New York Times #1 best-sellers. Serrano lives in San Antonio, Texas with his wife, Lara...

Jessi Cole Jackson grew up in rural Michigan surrounded by lakes, cornfields, and hard-working pragmatists who would never call themselves artists, despite woodworking, sewing, baking, flower arranging, building, drawing, and crafting. Thus, it took her twenty long years to accept that she was, in fact, creative, just like everyone had been telling her all along. But she wasn’t quite ready to admi...

What does an author do when her debut novel becomes an instant bestseller?  Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney went right back to work on her next one, and her next-also instant hits. In this episode, Cynthia discusses growing up in the seventies, her hometown, and her parents' book collection influenced her latest novel, Lake Effect. People Magazine calls Lake Effect: “Astute and immersive with a...

Linda Rhodes began her career as a dairy cow veterinarian after she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania summa cum laude in 1978. After several years in dairy practice, she was granted a fellowship at Cornell University, where she obtained her PhD in 1988. The rest of her career was spent in the pharmaceutical industry, helping to develop medicines for many species of animals. She retired...

Regarded as a master of suspense, Lisa Unger stops by the Writing Table to talk to Kris about her writing career and how she channels inspiration into suspense-packed novels.  Lisa Unger is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of twenty-three novels. Her books have been published in thirty-three languages with millions of copies sold worldwide Unger’s critically acclaimed nove...

Inspiration doesn't always find authors at their desk, and it doesn't give a darn about deadlines. Where does a creative go when the muse is silent?  Nick Petrie's back at the Writing Table. He shares his secrets to writing adventure-filled thrillers and provides accessible tactics everyone can use to to refill their creative well.  *Plus* a peek at what goes into his Peter Ash nove...

Kate White is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of eleven psychological thrillers. In addition to writing stand-alone psychological thrillers, Kate is the author of eight Bailey Weggins mysteries. The most recent, SUCH A PERFECT WIFE, was nominated for an International Thriller Writers Award. She is a frequent speaker at libraries and conferences and loves to share her strategies...

New York Times and USA Today bestselling novelist Joshilyn Jackson’s books have been translated into a dozen languages, won SIBA’s Novel of the Year award, three times been the #1 Book Sense Pick, twice been the #1 Indie Next Pick, twice won Georgia Author of the Year, been a top ten finalist in the Goodreads Choice Awards, been the Target Book Club Pick, three times been a Books-A-Million Book Cl...

Hays Trott Blinckmann is a writer, journalist, teacher, and recovering painter. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She has written the novels: In the Salt, Where I Can Breathe, Here, Kitty, and the young adult novel Yell Out Loud , and lives in Key West, Florida, with her husband and two sons. Her lates...

Sofia Robleda is a Mexican writer who spent her childhood and adolescence in Mexico, Saudi Arabia and Singapore. She completed her undergraduate and doctorate degrees in psychology at the University of Queensland, in Australia. She currently lives in the UK with her husband and son, and splits her time writing, raising her son, and working as a psychologist, supporting people with brain injuries a...