Writers at Work

Joining me on this episode of Writers at Work is Wesley Brown, whose latest novel is LOOKING FOR FRANK WILLS. It's part of McSweeney's “Of the Diaspora” series that also included Wesley's debut novel, TRAGIC MAGIC, originally published in 1978 and celebrated by James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, and others. Wesley Brown is the author of three novels, a novella, a short story collection, and five plays....

Here today on this episode of Writers at Work is Erica Wright, whose latest novel is THE MUSEUM OF UNUSUAL OCCURRENCE: A PSYCHIC CITY MYSTERY. It's a bit of a departure for Erica, who may be best known for her genre fiction written with a literary flair. Her previous novel, HOLLOW BONES, was inspired by Shakespeare's "Measure for Measure," for example. One reviewer called it an incredible, rich wo...

With me today on Writers at Work is Kevin Wade, best known for his work on the police drama Blue Bloods, where he served as writer, showrunner, and executive producer. The show ran for 14 seasons on CBS. Prior to that, Kevin wrote or co-wrote such feature films as Working Girl, Mr. Baseball, Meet Joe Black, and Maid in Manhattan, and polished the script for the James Bond film GoldenEye, among oth...

With me today on Writers at Work is Gayle Feldman, author of NOTHING RANDOM: BENNETT CERF AND THE PUBLISHING HOUSE HE BUILT. There was a time when Cerf, co-founder of Random House, was a household name in America. In a massive and meticulously researched biography, and thoroughly enjoyable, I should add, Gail tells us how he came to be that and more. In doing so, she also tells us how publishing p...

With me today on Writers at Work is Allegra Goodman, whose latest two books reveal the range of her abilities as a novelist and author of short fiction. Published in 2025, ISOLA, is a masterful work of historical fiction based on the true story of Marguerite de La Rocque, a sixteenth-century French woman who, abandoned on a remote island to end a forbidden romance, fights to reclaim her life. It w...

With me today on Writers at Work is Andy Kroll, a reporter for ProPublica, the nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Based in Washington, Andy covers justice and the rule of law. Earlier this year, he won the coveted George Polk Award for political reporting for "The Shadow President," a fascinating and comprehensive article about Russ Vought, a conservative, self-described Christi...

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Graham Nash, singer, performer, band leader, photographer, activist, and for our purposes, songwriter. Graham is a two-time member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for his role in The Hollies and Crosby, Stills, & Nash and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Also a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, he's composed pop songs that are known to...

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Jane Smiley, whose latest novel is LIDIE: THE FURTHER TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES OF LIDIE NEWTON. If that title rings a bit of a bell, it's because in 1998, Jane published THE ALL-TRUE TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES OF LIDIE NEWTON. That novel, set in the 1850s as our country crept toward a civil war, told of Lidie Harkness of Quincy, Illinois, a young, resolute...

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is author Chris Grabenstein. If you don't know Chris, I can assure you that your kids--and their kids--do. With his many series for young readers--Mr. Lemoncello, The Smartest Kid in the Universe, I Funny, Treasure Hunters, some of which were written with James Patterson--Chris has influenced thousands and thousands of young people to become enthusiastic...

On this episode of Writers at Work, I'm joined by Alex Lin, playwright and screenwriter, whose métier per Forbes magazine is the lives of, "complex women in power while also working to bridge the gap between scientific discovery and pop culture." I quote Forbes because its editors recently placed Alex on its 30 Under 30 list, naming her one of America's brightest young talents. Alex's achievements...

With me on this episode of Writers at Work is Mark Braude, author of THE TYPEWRITER AND THE GUILLOTINE: AN AMERICAN JOURNALIST, A GERMAN SERIAL KILLER, AND PARIS ON THE EVE OF WWII. The American journalist is Janet Flanner, best known for her work for The New Yorker. The German serial killer is a wormy, self-deluded, lifelong criminal, and the setting is, as stated, Paris during the build-up to th...

I'm pleased to be joined today on Writers at Work by Ron Charles, the book critic best known for his reviews published in the Washington Post, his former employer. If you know Ron's work, it goes without saying that his unceremonious exit from the Post represents another blow to the relevance of books and literature in American mainstream media. On his Substack, Ron discussed his situation with ch...

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Don Winslow. His latest, THE FINAL SCORE, marks his return following his announced retirement in 2022. It's a six-story crime collection Stephen King called, "The best crime fiction I've read in 20 years." Having read them as if I were starving for Don's style of storytelling, I will tell you that the collection will make you very glad he's back. Prio...

Elizabeth Chamblee Birch joins me today on Writers at Work. She is the author of THE PAIN BROKERS: HOW CON MEN, CALL CENTERS, AND ROGUE DOCTORS FUEL AMERICA'S LAWSUIT FACTORY. It's Elizabeth's first book, but not the first time she's written on legal matters in such a way that can fascinate laymen. Her thoughts on mass tort lawsuits have appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, For...

Joining me on Writers at Work is Janice Page, author of YEAR OF THE WATER HORSE, a wise and often amusing memoir about her melting pot family, in particular its girls and women, for most of which are Janice's mom, Janice herself, her mother-in-law, and her adopted daughter, Zoe. Amazing how a well-told story about someone else's family can remind us of our own. With YEAR OF THE WATER HORSE, Janice...

With me on Writers at Work is Matthew Pearl, author of the novel THE AWARD. And I will say upfront that if you are a writer or want to be a writer or are curious at all about writers, this is a book for you. Matthew Pearl is the author of many highly regarded and best-selling novels, including the historical fiction works THE DANTE CLUB and THE POE SHADOW, the latter about the death of Edgar Allan...

With me on this first episode of Writers at Work of the new year is Lauren Rothery, author of TELEVISION, her debut novel. If you visit laurenrothery.net , you'll find links to a number of short films she wrote and directed. As for TELEVISION, it's an intriguing, cleverly told novel about Verity, a famous actor who, after appearing in a hit film he detests, announces he will hold a lottery to give...

As we approach the end of 2025, a special edition of Writers at Work. I speak with four writers I've known for almost 25 years: Peter Blauner, Reed Farrel Coleman, S.J. Rozan, and Peter Spiegelman. They are much-admired authors of mystery and crime fiction, with whom I've consulted and commiserated, and who have consulted and commiserated with each other as our careers as novelists careen like car...

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Grammy winning music scholar, Rob Bowman, whose new book is LAND OF A THOUSAND SESSIONS: THE COMPLETE MUSCLE SHOALS STORY 1951-1985. If the role of Muscle Shoals, a town in Northwest Alabama, in modern music history doesn't immediately pop to mind, allow me to mention a few of the landmark tracks recorded there. When A Man Loves a Woman by Percy Sledg...

With me today on Writers at Work is Marilyn Fu, screenwriter, whose ROSEMEAD starring Lucy Liu will open in New York on December 5. Directed by Eric Lynn, ROSEMEAD had its premiere at this year's Tribeca Film Festival and has been nominated for a slew of awards at such festivals worldwide. I've seen ROSEMEAD and found it deeply affecting and disturbing. I want to tread lightly because it is a fine...

With me on this episode of Writers at Work is Zorana Pringle, author of THE CREATIVE CHOICE: THE SCIENCE OF MAKING DECISIONS TO TURN IDEAS INTO ACTION. Zorana is a senior research scientist at the Yale University Center for Emotional Intelligence, where she currently serves as the director of the Creativity and Emotions Lab. She recently joined me at a live Writers at Work event in New Haven, and...

With me on this episode of Writers at Work is Todd Goddard, author of Devouring Time: Jim Harrison, A Writer's Life, the first biography of the protean American novelist, poet and screenwriter, Jim Harrison. Harrison's output indicates the magnitude of the task that confronted Todd, 21 novels and novellas, 20 volumes of poetry, essays, memoirs and other non-fiction works, and contributions to scre...

With me on this episode of Writers at Work is Robbie Arnott, whose latest novel is DUSK, the hypnotic tale of adult twins, Iris and Floyd, who are in pursuit of a deadly puma across the Tasmanian wilderness. That desperate pursuit is also an attempt to escape from the reputation of their outlaw parents and perhaps find a place where they can belong. DUSK is Robbie's fourth novel. His previous work...

With me today on Writers at Work is Addie E. Citchens, author of the new novel DOMINION, published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. A family drama set in Dominion, Mississippi, it unfolds through the eyes of two women, Priscilla, wife of an abusive and well-to-do preacher and mother to five talented sons, and Diamond, girlfriend to Wonder Boy, the youngest of those five young men. Though warm and wit...

My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Steven C. Smith, author of HITCHCOCK AND HERRMANN: THE FRIENDSHIP & FILM SCORES THAT CHANGED CINEMA. Before we proceed, a little story. Back in 2011, I proposed to the Wall Street Journal a story on the centennial of the birth of Bernard Herrmann. Securing the assignment, I traveled to the University of Southern California in Santa Barbara to exam...