The Writer Files: Writing, Productivity, Creativity, and Neuroscience Podglomerate

NOTE: This is an updated replay of an amazing chat I had with New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award winner, James McBride. His latest novel, THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE, was named Amazon’s #1 Book of the Year Pick, and Barnes & Noble's Book of the Year, among many other accolades for 2023. Congrats James!
New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award winner, James McBride, spoke to me about eschewing literary fame, his friendship with Spike Lee, and his latest novel THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE.
James McBride is a musician, screenwriter, and award-winning author of New York Times bestselling Oprah’s Book Club selection Deacon King Kong, the National Book Award–winner The Good Lord Bird (now a Showtime limited series starring Ethan Hawke), and the American classic The Color of Water.
His debut novel, Miracle at St. Anna, was turned into a 2008 film by Oscar-winning writer and director Spike Lee, with a script written by McBride. 
The author’s latest novel, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, was an Instant New York Times Bestseller and Named a Must Read for the Summer by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, Time, Town & Country, and others.
Described as “... a novel about small-town secrets and the people who keep them,” it begins in 1972 when workers in Pottstown, PA, find a skeleton at the bottom of a well. The New York Times Book Review called the book, “A murder mystery locked inside a Great American Novel.”
James McBride received a National Humanities Medal from President Obama, “... for humanizing the complexities of discussing race in America.” He is a distinguished writer in residence at New York University.
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In this file James McBride and I discussed: 

Why he finds no joy in being well-known

How The Color of Water changed his career

The lessons he learned from Michael Jackson

The hyperbole of the literary world and standing on the shoulders of giants

How we’re all more alike than we are different

Why writers must seek out their mentors

And a lot more!

Show Notes:

jamesmcbride.com


The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store: A Novel by James McBride (Amazon) 

James McBride on Facebook

James McBride on Instagram

Kelton Reid on Twitter


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Publishing legend, art historian, and author, Charles Scribner III, spoke with me about growing up surrounded by publishing, Hemingway’s Three Rules to Life, and his memoir/family history SCRIBNERS: FIVE GENERATIONS IN PUBLISHING.
Charles Scribner III is an art historian, author, editor, and lecturer, who received his BA, MFA, and PhD from Princeton University in art and archaeology. 
He worked in publishing for nearly thirty years and is a prominent authority on Caravaggio, Bernini, Rubens, and other artists. He has written biographies on Rubens and Bernini; articles for Vanity Fair, Art & Antiques, among other publications; and has lectured at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery, the Smithsonian, Christie’s, and various universities. 
His forthcoming family history, Scribners: Five Generations in Publishing, is about the inside story of 5 generations – over 150 years – at the legendary publishing house of Charles Scribner's Sons.
“The author, the fifth of the Charleses to work at that house of celebrated authors, provides … an inside view – ‘between the covers’ of illustrious and notorious books – of the family members, editors, and authors of this colorful literary history.”
Kirkus Reviews called it "A charming memoir of a life in books," and Publishers Weekly called it “... a lively and refreshing must-read for those interested in the history of book publishing.”
Charles remained at Scribners through three changes in ownership (Macmillan, Maxwell, and Viacom), overseeing the publication of its literary classics. He was also a commentator for TV documentaries on Edith Wharton (BBC/PBS), Fitzgerald and Hemingway (A&E Biography).
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In this file, Charles Scribner III and I discussed: 

How manuscripts and galleys symbolized the world he grew up in 

Why he chose now to share the stories of the literary lions his father worked with

Some of the greatest editors of the 20th Century

How to write a book in two months

Why loyalty is the most important thing in publishing

The secret behind Hemingway’s will

And a lot more!


Show Notes:

charlesscribner.com


Scribners: Five Generations in Publishing by Charles Scribner III (Amazon)

Kelton Reid on Twitter


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#1 New York Times bestselling author, Jim Butcher, spoke with me about how he outlined a hit 20-novel series (years before he had an agent), why all steampunks wear goggles, and the second book in his Cinder Spires series, THE OLYMPIAN AFFAIR.
Jim Butcher is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Dresden Files, the Codex Alera, and the Cinder Spires novels.
The long-anticipated second novel in his Cinder Spires series is The Olympian Affair, described by the author as “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen meets Sherlock meets Hornblower,” in a series “... about noble families, magic-wielding warriors, and airship battles.”
Library Journal called it “... an exciting epic fantasy, set in the sky and filled with airships, magic, and the connections of blood and found family." And New York Times bestselling author David Weber said of the book, “It’s steampunk meets magic with a dose of sci-fi for seasoning.”
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In this file, Jim Butcher and I discussed: 

Why “breaking into print is an arduous and discouraging process”

The Genre Fiction Novel class that changed his writing for good

Keeping your writing time sacred

When your fans become your boss

How to write a “steam opera”

His most important legacy as a writer

And a lot more!

Show Notes:

jim-butcher.com


The Olympian Affair (The Cinder Spires Book 2) by Jim Butcher (Amazon) 

Jim Butcher Amazon Author Page

Jim Butcher on Twitter

Kelton Reid on Twitter


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#1 New York Times bestselling author, Susan Wiggs, returns to chat with me about her island writing hideout, rescuing two puppies at the same time, holiday genre tropes, and her latest Christmas book THE TWELVE DOGS OF CHRISTMAS.
Susan Wiggs is the award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of over 50 published novels, with over 25 million copies in print, published in 30 countries, and translated into over 20 languages.
Her latest, The Twelve Dogs of Christmas: A Novel, is described as, “The ultimate holiday gift from New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs: a delightful novel about a Christmas transport of rescue puppies that’s guaranteed to warm readers’ hearts.”
#1 New York Times bestselling author of Must Love Flowers, Debbie Macomber, said of the book, "Don't miss this charming Christmas tale of thawing hearts, escaping dogs, and finding home. I couldn't help digging into this book with both paws."
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In this file, Susan Wiggs and I discussed: 

Writing on planes, trains, and automobiles

Her love of classic Christmas stories

How the latest ties into her Lakeshore Chronicles series

Why one of the easiest things in the world to do is “not write”

Getting snowed in with Toni Morrison

And a lot more!

Show Notes:

How #1 NY Times Bestselling Author Susan Wiggs Writes: Part One

Susanwiggs.com


The Twelve Dogs of Christmas: A Novel by Susan Wiggs (Amazon) 

Susan Wiggs Amazon Author Page

Susan Wiggs on Instagram

Susan Wiggs on Twitter

Kelton Reid on Twitter


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Longtime literary critic and publishing insider, Bethanne Patrick, is back to chat with me about the return of her hit podcast Missing Pages, her front-row seat to the sea change in publishing, and her life-affirming first memoir LIFE B.
Bethanne Patrick is a world-renowned literary critic, author, and host of the chart-topping and Signal Award-winning podcast Missing Pages. Her work appears frequently in the Los Angeles Times as well as in The Washington Post, NPR Books, and Literary Hub.
Missing Pages is back – the Webby Award-nominated podcast named a “must-listen” by The Washington Post and The Guardian – has a second season on deck that features authors, experts, publishing insiders, and a circus of NYC media elites.
Host Bethanne Patrick sits down with notable guests to set the record straight on the secretive world of book publishing again. From the rise of Colleen Hoover and book bans across America to the idea of who owns what in fan fiction, Missing Pages investigates it all. 
Bethanne also recently published her first memoir, Life B, “A bracing and fresh look at a lifelong struggle with depression and mental illness,” described by NY Times bestselling author Lori Gottlieb as, “Insightful, honest, [and] ultimately life-affirming …”
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In this file Bethanne Patrick and I discussed:

What it was like to have her podcast nominated for a Webby Award

The sui generis of the Colleen Hoover effect

What the ambitious second season of Missing Pages plans to tackle

The origins and evolution of the novel 

How she wrote her first memoir

And a lot more!

Show Notes:

Missing Pages on Apple Podcasts

Missing Pages on Twitter

How Literary Critic & Publishing Insider Bethanne Patrick (AKA TheBookMaven) Writes: Part One

bethannepatrick.com


Life B By Bethanne Patrick [Amazon]

Bethanne Patrick on Instagram

Bethanne Patrick on Facebook

Bethanne Patrick on Twitter

Kelton Reid on Twitter


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#1 NY Times bestselling author, Andrew Child, spoke to me about his lifelong obsession with storytelling, working with Jack Reacher co-author and brother Lee Child, and their latest in the series THE SECRET.
In addition to four Reacher novels, Andrew Child – the pen name of author Andrew Grant – has also written his own hit thriller series including RUN, False Positive, False Friend, False Witness, Invisible, and Too Close to Home. 
His brother Lee Child is the creator of the international bestselling, award-winning, 28-book series of Jack Reacher novels, and winner of Author of the Year at the 2019 British Book Awards.
NPR said of the books, “The Reacher novels are easily the best thriller series going,” and James Patterson said of the brother’s collaboration, “Two Childs are better than one.”
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In this file Andrew Child and I discussed:

His past lives in theater and the corporate world

The two saddest words in the English language

What it was like being a Beta reader for Lee’s early Reacher novels

The evolution of the Child brother’s low-tech writing process

How to outwrite self-doubt 

And a lot more!

Show Notes:

jackreacher.com


The Secret: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child and Andrew Child [Amazon]

Andrew Grant Amazon Author Page

Jack Reacher on Facebook

Jack Reacher on Instagram

Jack Reacher on Twitter

Kelton Reid on Twitter


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