Uncorking a Story

I was once eating dinner alone at a bar in Petaluma, CA when a fellow solo diner started a conversation by saying, “I’m no conspiracy theorist but…” and what came out of his mouth would make Dan Brown raise an eyebrow. When I was offered the chance to speak with Colin Dickey, who recently wrote a book on the history of conspiracy theories, I jumped at the chance.  Meet Colin Dickey Colin is a writ...

Given my love of Columbo, I love it when a guest has a good Peter Falk story, and Alison Gaylin doesn’t disappoint. She doubled down when expressing her appreciation for The Love Boat—and now I think I have to marry her. Don’t tell our spouses. Meet Alison Gaylin Alison is the Edgar and Shamus award-winning author of 12 books and many short stories. A USA Today and international bestseller, she jo...

My twin brother and I are very close—so close in fact that we can finish each other’s sentences. That said, I couldn’t imagine writing a book with him, let alone a series of books. That’s just one of the things that amazes me about sisters Lynne and Valerie Constantine, who are today’s guests on Uncorking a Story. Meet Liv Constantine Liv Constantine is the pen name of sisters Lynne and Valerie Co...

While many of us dream of being writers from a young age, the truth is, not all of us can do it early on in our lives and find that we have to defer that dream for another time. Jenny Jackson, whose debut novel Pineapple Street is quite possibly the most buzzed about book of the spring/summer isn’t any different—she spent decades in publishing learning the craft by working with some of the world’s...

Today’s guest, Peter Maeck, inspired me with his words of advice for his younger self—”If you have an impulse and are young enough to start at an entry level, do it! Don’t worry about the risks and the outcomes.” These were words that I wish I heard in my late teens and early twenties as acting on them might have helped me get off my butt and explore my authentic self instead of making decisions t...

They say you can never go home again, but no one told that to Andrew Ridker. During the height of the Covid 19 pandemic, Andrew left his apartment in Brooklyn, NY to head back to his childhood home in Brookline, MA. It was being back in his hometown, sharing his childhood home with his wife and sister, where his latest novel, Hope, started to take shape. Meet Andrew Ridker Andrew’s debut novel, Th...

Sometimes it takes a while to find out who we truly are, particularly if we didn’t give ourselves the time to explore life prior to settling down and starting a family. Those of us who did that young may find that, after our kids have grown, we really don’t know who we are. Today’s guest, Melissa Giberson, discusses her experiences coming out as a lesbian well into her 40s after being married and...

Giving yourself the right to write badly is excellent advice for aspiring and established authors. Writing is a muscle which has to be exercised in order to get stronger. Not everything we write will be gold, but every rep serves a purpose—to make our writing stronger. This is just one of the lessons I learned from today’s guest, Jennifer Cody Epstein.  Meet Jennifer Cody EpsteinJennifer is the in...

Josh Winning is the author of the critically acclaimed The Shadow Glass. He is a senior film writer at Radio Times, has written for Total Film for over a decade, and is the co-host of movie podcast Torn Stubs. During his years as a film journalist, he has been on set with Kermit the Frog (and Miss Piggy), devoured breakfast with zombies on The Walking Dead, and sat on the Iron Throne on the Dublin...

Elevator pitches are critically important when selling your book. Ideally, you’d answer the question, “So, what’s your book about?” with a one sentence description that gets the agent/publisher/reader interested in knowing more. Today’s guest, Karen McManus, used “It’s like the breakfast club, but with murder,” as her elevator pitch for One of Us is Lying and that’s when I knew I had to have her o...

I loved connecting with Whitney Hanson and hearing her path to publishing. Originally independently published, Whitney caught the attention of an acquisitions editor at Penguin Random House after achieving, what Borat would call, great success on TikTok. She has a great story and I’m so glad she let me uncork it with her. Meet Whitney Hanson Whitney is a poet and through her vulnerability and auth...

Meet Lynne Hugo Lynne Hugo is a National Endowment For The Arts Fellowship recipient who has also received repeat individual artist grants from the Ohio Arts Council and the Kentucky Foundation for Women. Her publications include ten novels, as well as a memoir, Where the Trail Grows Faint, which won the Riverteeth Creative Nonfiction Book Prize. She joined me on Uncorking a Story to discuss her c...

Karen Mangia is a WSJ Best Selling Author and one of the most sought after thought leaders in the world, sharing her thought leadership with over 10,000 organizations during the course of her career. She is the author of four books including:  Success from Anywhere: Create Your Own Future of Work From the Inside Out Working from Home: Making the New Normal Work for You Listen Up! How to Tune in to...

Meet Hannah MaryMcKinnon Hannah Mary McKinnon was born in the UK, grew up in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 2010. Her suspense novels include THE NEIGHBORS, bestsellers HER SECRET SON and SISTER DEAR, YOU WILL REMEMBER ME, and NEVER COMING HOME. She joined me on Uncorking a Story to chat about her career and latest novel, The Revenge List.  Key Topics How the failure of her business led to an...

Adam Mitzner is the critically acclaimed Amazon Charts bestselling author of Dead Certain, Never Goodbye, and The Best Friend  in the Broden legal series, as well as stand-alone thrillers A Conflict of Interest, A Case of Redemption, Losing Faith, The Girl from Home, A Matter of Will, and The Perfect Marriage. He joined me on Uncorking a Story to talk about his latest novel, Love Betrayal Murder. ...

Dementia is something that has touched my family in a terrible way. My mother, whose memory was always sharp as a tack, has been battling dementia for years. While her long term memory is still very much intact, she struggles to remember anything in the recent past. When given the opportunity to interview Dr. Gary Simonds, a neurosurgeon who is an expert on Alzheimer's Disease and dementia, I jump...

Who would play Lion-O in a live action adaptation of Thundercats? Today’s guest, Sara Staggs, needed the eye of Thundera to help answer that question, but you didn’t come here for 80’s cartoons, did you?  Meet Sara Staggs Sara is an epileptic who had to leave her job as a civil litigator in Portland, Oregon as the lifestyle associated with that career triggered her seizures. As such, she had to cl...

Jenell Jones and her family opened up their home to foster, and later adopt Mercy, an eight year old girl in need of a home. Mercy came with a secret, though—her traumatic past. The traumas experienced by this young child started to manifest itself in behavioral problems that caused her adoptive family to shatter, that that is where our story begins. Meet Jenell Jones Jenell is an author and early...

I love hearing how authors come up with the ideas for their books and today’s guest, bestselling author Lindsay Cameron, doesn’t disappoint. Listen in to hear about how the Ashley Madison data breach and Lindsay’s own experience on a neighborhood parenting forum influenced the story behind her latest book, No One Needs to Know. Meet Lindsay Cameron Lindsay Cameron worked as a corporate lawyer for...

I’m thrilled to welcome Andrea Bartz back on Uncorking a Story. This time we discuss her latest novel, The Spare Room, and a big revelation! Meet Andrea Bartz Andrea is a Brooklyn-based journalist and the New York Times bestselling author of the Reese's Book Club pick WE WERE NEVER HERE. Her second thriller, THE HERD, was named a best book of 2020 by Real Simple, Marie Claire, Good Housekeeping, C...

When I was a kid, my brother Jimmy and I would watch wrestling all the time. The colorful characters, soap opera like drama, and high flying action had us hooked on the WWF like most of its superstars were hooked on Colombian marching powder. When offered the opportunity to interview author Charlie Jenkins about his book American Wrestling 1989, I leapt at the chance like Jimmy Snooka off the top...

What happens when "in sickness and in health" becomes "in sickness"? Today’s guest, author Suzanne Marriott addresses that question, and many others, in her memoir Watching for Dragonflies: A Caregiver’s Transformative Journey. She joined me on Uncorking a Story to talk about that, and so much more! Meet Suzanne Marriott Suzanne Marriott is a memoirist and deep-travel writer who shares her transfo...

I’m thrilled to welcome author and executive Emmanuel Probst on Uncorking a Story. Emmanuel’s background combines over 16 years of market research and marketing experience with strong academic achievements. He joined me to discuss his career and latest book, Assemblage: The Art and Science of Brand Transformation. Key Topics 00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:29 The Fulfilling And Compelling World Of Mar...

In this podcast episode, Mike interviews author Hanna Halperin about her latest novel, I Could Live Here Forever.  Meet Hannah Halperin Hanna is the author of Something Wild, which won the 2021 Edward Lewis Wallant Award and was a finalist for the 2021 National Jewish Book Award for Debut Fiction. She joins me today to talk about her latest book, I Could Live Here Forever. Welcome to Uncorking a S...

On today's episode of Uncorking a Story, Author Shannon Duncan discusses the use of psychedelics as a tool for healing trauma, particularly childhood trauma and complex PTSD. The conversation revolves around the idea that psychedelics can be used to unlock the subconscious and help individuals process their trauma in a way that traditional talk therapy may not be able to achieve. The speakers caut...