Author Express Authentic Connections

On today’s episode we’re traveling south to Virginia to speak with Sharon Wishnow, a women’s fiction author who is more than a little obsessed with pelicans and writing about what is outside her back yard. Sharon’s writing career spans thirty years, starting as a freelance writer in the Netherlands where she established a beat in the supermarket and food industries. When she returned to the US, she garnered her experience along with a few professional degrees into a communications career before turning to fiction. She’s currently the executive editor for WriteON! the magazine of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA). She’s the former Vice President of Communications for WFWA and the founder of Women’s Fiction Day celebrated yearly on June 8th.
Sharon’s novel, The Pelican Tide is about a Cajun chef, Josie Babineaux and her family living in Grand Isle, Louisiana during the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill that devastated the entire Gulf Coast of the United States. While the book is fiction, it closely follows the actual 87-day timeline of events from the oil well explosion to when it was capped. The story features Gumbo, a quirky brown pelican who has adopted the family as his people. Gumbo is modeled after a real pelican, Big Bird, a great white pelican that was rescued in Tanzania. His humans taught him how to fish and survive.
Sharon’s story is one of a family on the brink of financial and social collapse while their home is facing an environmental collapse. Her stories often highlight how changes in the environment change people. She’s quick to say she doesn’t write about dystopian stories but rather stories of strong women who fight for what is most important to them. Along with the lighthearted antics of Gumbo the pelican is a hot sauce competition. The book also includes recipes from Chef Josie that Sharon hopes will be shared along with her story.
As a seasoned nonfiction writer, her writing is always informed by actual events. In 2021, eleven years after the Deepwater Horizon spill, Grand Isle was destroyed by Hurricane Ida. The barrier island took a direct hit and 100% property damage. Sharon is now working with the nonprofit Restore Grand Isle to help raise funds and talk about the important work that still needs to be done to rebuild the island and preserve its unique ecosystem. The island is an important rest stop for migrating birds around the world. The people are extraordinary too.
You can learn more about Sharon, her book, Grand Isle, and subscribe to her newsletter Research for Writers and Other Curious People on her website www.sharonwishnow.com. You can also connect with her on Instagram @sjwishnow.
Sharon also encourages readers to visit Restore Grand Isle to learn how they can help https://restoregrandisle.com

On today’s episode we chat with Nancy Taber, an author whose stories are inspired by women’s forgotten histories, her military service, and her love of the fantastical. Nancy grew up in a military family, joined the military herself, graduated from military college, and served as a Sea King helicopter Tactical Coordinator. When she completed her service, she earned her Master’s and PhD degrees, and became a university professor researching the intersection of gender, militarism, and learning. Nancy is a facilitator for Writers Collective of Canada, was named a Top Woman in Defence 2022 by Esprit de Corps magazine, and is a member of the International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame.
The idea for her debut novel, A Sea of Spectres, began when her mother sent her an article about their ancestors' experiences in the 1758 Acadian expulsion from Prince Edward Island. The focus of the article was on a man, with only brief mention of his wife, Madeleine. And she thought, I can't have that - Madeleine deserves to be the heroine of her own story. So she intertwined Madeleine’s narrative with Acadian folklore and two point-of-view descendants, inspired by Acadian history, an 1864 almanac, and her research about women's service in contemporary (para)military contexts.
Nancy believes in the importance of highlighting women’s stories, demonstrating how past connects to present, families lose and find each other, and the fantastical dwells beneath the surface of everyday life. In A Sea of Spectres, she deftly braids three timelines together, each as engaging and fully drawn as the other. With whip-smart contemporary dialogue and moving, evocative historical writing, she brings to life three different generations of Acadian women in a riveting, crackling, chilling mystery.
Please visit https://www.nancytaber.ca to connect with Nancy and for links to order her novel.
Support your local bookstore & this podcast by getting your copy of A Sea of Spectres  at Bookshop.org https://bookshop.org/a/90599/9781773661575 
A little about today's host-Author and musical composer Kathleen Basi is mother to three boys and one chromosomally-gifted daughter. Her debut novel, A SONG FOR THE ROAD, follows a musician on an unconventional road trip. Bestselling author Kerry Anne King writes, “In a novel filled with music, heartbreak, and surprising laughter, Basi takes us on a journey that encompasses both unimaginable loss and the powerful resilience of the human heart.”
Meaty, earnest, occasionally humorous, and ultimately uplifting, Kathleen’s fiction highlights the best within ourselves and each other. She writes monthly reflections on life, writing and beauty on her newsletter. Subscribe at https://kathleenbasi.substack.com/. 

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Join host Shawna Rodrigues on this exciting episode of Author Express as she welcomes bestselling and award-winning authors Kimberley Woodhouse and Tracie Peterson. You'll learn about this dynamic duo's long-standing friendship and collaboration that has produced nearly 200 books. Discover intriguing facts about their hometowns and learn how a fan letter sparked a 30-year bond and successful partnership. Listen in as they share their love for settings like Kalispell, Montana, and their passion for weaving deep, layered stories. Get inspired by their expert insights on writing, research, and maintaining creativity. Tune in for an engaging conversation that promises to offer both laughter and valuable takeaways for aspiring writers and avid readers alike.
Support your local bookstore & this podcast by getting your copy of With Each Tomorrow at Bookshop.org -https://bookshop.org/a/90599/9780764238994
A little about today's host-Shawna Rodrigues left her award-winning career in the public sector in 2019 to consult and publish her first novel Beyond the Pear Blossoms. Her desire to connect and help others led to the launch of her podcast The Grit Show shortly thereafter. When she learned women host only 27% of podcasts, her skills and passion led to the founding of the Authentic Connections Network. She now helps mission-driven entrepreneurs better connect with their audiences by providing full-service podcast production and through a community for Entrepreneurs & Podcasters – EPAC. Podcasting is her primary focus, so she continues to support the writing community through this podcast, and her writing time is mostly focused on anthologies.
She offers a free 7 Steps to Perfect Your Podcast Title to anyone interested in launching a podcast. You can also follow her on Instagram-@ShawnaPodcasts, and learn more about the network and community at https://linktr.ee/37by27.

Be sure to follow or subscribe to Author Express wherever you listen to podcasts and to follow us on Instagram @AuthorExpressPodcast
Learn more about our hosts, the guests we've had, and their books -
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After running marketing and communications campaigns for organizations like The Andy Warhol Museum, Carnegie Mellon University, and the The TriBeCa Film Festival, L.L. Kirchner ditched the corporate world and moved to India. She moved to New York City to write and teach yoga, and how she’s an award-winning screenwriter and Pushcart-nominated author whose life and work as an expat in Asia became the basis of two memoirs, including BLISSFUL THINKING: A Memoir of Overcoming the Wellness Revolution, and AMERICAN LADY CREATURE: My Change in the Middle East. A Qatar Memoir (named one of Bustle’s “11 Books to Battle the Blues").
Her forthcoming trilogy, the Queenpin Chronicles, debuted with her novel, FLORIDA GIRLS which released May 28, 2024. You can support your local bookstore & this podcast by getting your copy now through Bookshop.org at this link- https://bookshop.org/a/90599/9798985815245
Author Express listeners, get a free audio bonus of LL Kirchner reading the intro to Florida Girls at http://tinyurl.com/FloridaBookIntro
Get her latest writing as well as craft and publishing tips at https://illbehavedwomen.com.
To find your ideal meditation style, check out https://llkirchner.com/short-moments and click around!
Find her on Instagram at @LLKirchner_ and TikTok @LLKirchner
A little about today's host-Kristi Leonard is a modern Renaissance woman deeply rooted in the book world. When she's not immersed in crafting novels, she's orchestrating writing retreats through her business, Writers in the Wild, or lending her voice to non-fiction audiobooks. She leads the Women’s Fiction Writers Association as the president of the board, and interviews her writer pals as one of the hosts of the Author Express Podcast. She will start querying her first book in 2024.
Beyond the realm of words, Kristi embraces the Florida sunshine by hiking with her writer-hiker group and leisurely walks on the beach. She and her husband juggle a couple side businesses and take turns sharing the couch with their goofy Golden-doodle, Maddie. Kristi enjoys travel adventures with her twin sister and living vicariously through her grown children. You can learn more about her and connect at: https://linktr.ee/kristileonard.

Be sure to follow or subscribe to Author Express wherever you listen to podcasts and to follow us on Instagram @AuthorExpressPodcast
Learn more about our hosts, the guests we've had, and their books -
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On today’s show we get to meet Margaret Johnson, who’s published by Lake Union Publishing under the pen-name Kitty Johnson. Margaret doesn’t mind whether people call her Margaret or Kitty – she answers to both names!
Margaret first started writing in her twenties after finishing a Fine Art degree. Faced with an uncertain future – making money from art is a notoriously precarious prospect – Margaret had the bright idea of writing a best-selling novel to finance her painting career. This first novel was never published – she says she basically swapped one precarious way of living for another - but by the time it was completed, Margaret had firmly caught the writing bug. Since then, her writing career has included romance novels published by small publishing houses, a raft of graded readers for academic publishers which have sold around the world, as well as women's fiction which she self-published before she snagged an agent – the wonderful Carly Watters of PS Literary – via a pitch event organized by the Women’s Fiction Writers Association. That was her gateway to publication by Lake Union Publishing – Five Winters was published on the 1st of January 2023, and Prickly Company is to be published on 28th May 2024. A third novel – Closest Kept – will be published sometime in 2025.
Margaret frequently draws on her life and experience for her writing – with Five Winters, she used her memories of hopeless crushes in her teens and twenties, as well as her strong yearning to have a child. Prickly Company was partly inspired by the small community where she lives, as well as by her experience as a volunteer for the charity Hodmedods Hedgehog Support. She also drew on her observations of students at the beginning of a new course – the way different characters come to the fore, and others stay back, and how some people can dominate proceedings if the teacher isn’t careful.
You can learn more about Margaret on her website at https://www.kittyjohnsonbooks.com and follow her on Instagram @kittyjohnsonbooks-which will be the best place to be kept up to date on her next release!
Support your local bookstore & this podcast by getting your copy of Five Winters or pre-ordering your copy of Prickly Company from Bookshop.org.
A little about today's host-Author and musical composer Kathleen Basi is mother to three boys and one chromosomally-gifted daughter. Her debut novel, A SONG FOR THE ROAD, follows a musician on an unconventional road trip. Bestselling author Kerry Anne King writes, “In a novel filled with music, heartbreak, and surprising laughter, Basi takes us on a journey that encompasses both unimaginable loss and the powerful resilience of the human heart.”
Meaty, earnest, occasionally humorous, and ultimately uplifting, Kathleen’s fiction highlights the best within ourselves and each other. She writes monthly reflections on life, writing and beauty on her newsletter. Subscribe at https://kathleenbasi.substack.com/. 

Be sure to follow or subscribe to Author Express wherever you listen to podcasts and to follow us on Instagram @AuthorExpressPodcast
Learn more about our hosts, the guests we've had, and their books -
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Elizabeth Goddard was an avid reader from a very young age and always longed to write, but it wasn’t until she had her first child at age 29 that she resigned from corporate America and finally answered the call of her heart. She started the long and arduous road to publication. Elizabeth chose the traditional route and attended writing conferences for years until she was finally published. With her latest Missing in Alaska series, Elizabeth has found her stride with action and adventure romantic suspense novels set in stunning locations.
Now, she’s the USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of more than sixty novels, including Christy Award winner Cold Light of Day and Shadows at Dusk, as well as the Rocky Mountain Courage and Uncommon Justice series. Her books have sold nearly 1.5 million copies. She is a Carol Award and Reader’s Choice Award winner and a Daphne du Maurier Award and HOLT Medallion finalist. When she’s not writing, she loves spending time with her family, traveling to find inspiration for her next book, and serving with her husband in ministry.
You can learn more about her books at www.ElizabethGoddard.com where you can subscribe to her newsletter, and you can follow her on her Amazon page.
Get your copy of HIDDEN IN THE NIGHT, the last installment of Missing in Alaska, today!
A little about today's host-Shawna Rodrigues left her award-winning career in the public sector in 2019 to consult and publish her first novel Beyond the Pear Blossoms. Her desire to connect and help others led to the launch of her podcast The Grit Show shortly thereafter. When she learned women host only 27% of podcasts, her skills and passion led to the founding of the Authentic Connections Network. She now helps mission-driven entrepreneurs better connect with their audiences by providing full-service podcast production and through a community for Entrepreneurs & Podcasters – EPAC. Podcasting is her primary focus, so she continues to support the writing community through this podcast, and her writing time is mostly focused on anthologies.
She offers a free 7 Steps to Perfect Your Podcast Title to anyone interested in launching a podcast. You can also follow her on Instagram-@ShawnaPodcasts, and learn more about the network and community at https://linktr.ee/37by27.

Be sure to follow or subscribe to Author Express wherever you listen to podcasts and to follow us on Instagram @AuthorExpressPodcast
Learn more about our hosts, the guests we've had, and their books -
https://linktr.ee/AuthorExpressPodcast