Bookwild

Kate Hergott, Bookwild Collective
  • 5.0 (25)
  • Drama
  • Updated Weekly

On Tuesdays, Kate Hergott talks with authors about their books and writing processes. On Fridays, Kate talks with multiple co-host Bookstagrammers and BookTubers about a variety of bookish topics.

  1. 3d ago

    MacKenzie Green is the Global Head of Social for Audible!

    MacKenzie Green is back, and she's now the Global Head of Social for Audible! Listen to hear about: How MacKenzie grew up dyslexic, relied heavily on audiobooks to keep up in school, and never imagined she would one day become Head of Global Social at Audible. Why people should read what they actually enjoy, DNF books that aren't working, and use whatever format—audio, ebook, or print—helps them engage with stories. How asking people what they were reading helped her build relationships, conduct informational interviews, and create meaningful follow-up conversations throughout her career, which all culminated in her new job at Audible. How reading is a way to understand other perspectives, strengthen listening skills, and connect with people through shared stories, and how audiobooks are a return to the oldest form of storytelling: oral tradition. Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    55 min
  2. From Indoctrination to Curiosity: Promise Backlund's Gospel of Lies

    6d ago

    From Indoctrination to Curiosity: Promise Backlund's Gospel of Lies

    In this episode, I talk with Promise Backlund about her book Gospel of Lies!  She shares her experience growing up in evangelical Christianity, examining how fear, purity culture, certainty, and religious identity shaped her childhood and adult life. We dive into deconstruction, religious trauma, politics, sexuality, pleasure, and the complicated process of rebuilding meaning, identity, and awe outside of rigid belief systems. Listen to hear about: How faith was woven into every part of both our childhoods—from sunsets to sickness—creating a worldview where God explained everything and fear explained the rest. How fear of hell, thought policing, and religious perfectionism can overlap with anxiety and OCD, especially when introduced during childhood. Deconstructing during the late 2010s and how political shifts exposed tensions between teachings of love and exclusion inside evangelical spaces. An examination of Biblical stories like Adam and Eve, questioning themes of obedience, curiosity, punishment, and whether religious narratives discourage questioning and self-trust. How purity culture, worship environments, and restricted access to secular art shaped identity—and how reclaiming pleasure, curiosity, art, and personal agency became part of healing. Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    1h 22m

  3. May 23

    All Our Thoughts About Good People by Patmeena Sabit with Erin Ashley

    This week, Erin Ashley is back, and we dive into all our thoughts and reactions to Patmenna Sabit's stunning debut novel Good People!  THIS IS A SPOILER EPISODE. Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    1h 7m
  4. Palestinian Joy, Stand-Up Comedy and Secret Family History: Sara Hamdan's What Will People Think

    May 19

    Palestinian Joy, Stand-Up Comedy and Secret Family History: Sara Hamdan's What Will People Think

    This week, I talk with Sara Hamdan about her journey from finance and journalism into fiction, and how writing What Will People Think became a way to explore identity, belonging, family history, and the freedom to define yourself outside of expectations. Through conversations about comedy, Palestinian representation, women’s choices, historical memory, and the many forms of love, the episode explores how fiction can create connection and make complex experiences feel deeply human. Listen to hear about: How moving from finance into journalism—and eventually fiction—helped her discover storytelling as both a craft and a way to explore her own family history and identity. Why stand-up comedy became central to the novel, including Sara’s real-life experience taking comedy classes to overcome public speaking anxiety and how humor can deliver difficult truths with softness. Code-switching, compartmentalizing identity, and the pressure many women feel to justify life choices—while emphasizing the importance of autonomy and becoming comfortable showing up as your full self. Fiction as a way to preserve cultural memory and show everyday life beyond headlines, using family stories, historical detail, and personal experiences to create empathy. Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    50 min
  5. Vietnam Vets, Addiction and Deserved Justice: Karen E Osborne's Justice for Emerson

    May 12

    Vietnam Vets, Addiction and Deserved Justice: Karen E Osborne's Justice for Emerson

    This week, I talk with return guest Karen E. Osborne about her newest mystery Justice for Emerson! Listen to hear about: How Karen approached a dual-timeline mystery that blends a present-day murder investigation with the long emotional aftermath of the Vietnam War, addiction, race, and trauma.   How Karen’s research process is deeply people-centered—drawing from her husband’s Vietnam experiences, veterans, recovering addicts, and sensitivity readers to create emotionally authentic characters without judgment.   How she crafted her protagonist: a widowed nonprofit CEO balancing grief, self-doubt, romance, family tension, and danger while unraveling a conspiracy.   The way survival—through volunteering, recovery, or writing—gives meaning and accountability can help people endure trauma, addiction, and reinvention.   Karen's approach to writing, creativity, discipline, and timing, and how small daily habits (like 15 minutes a day) can build a creative life. Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    57 min
  6. Haunted Houses and the Horrors of Domestic Motherhood: Aimee Pokwatka's Accumulation

    May 12

    Haunted Houses and the Horrors of Domestic Motherhood: Aimee Pokwatka's Accumulation

    This week, I talk with Aimee Poktwatka about her hew horror book Accumulation! Listen to hear about: Aimee's unconventional path to becoming an author—from anthropology and veterinary work to creative writing—and how curiosity has shaped her storytelling.   How Accumulation was inspired by Aimee’s real 18th-century home, a creepy doll her husband found in the yard, and her fascination with haunted house stories as metaphors for domestic life.   How the novel blends haunted house horror, psychological suspense, and social commentary to examine motherhood, invisible labor, and the slow erosion of self.   Aimee's “inefficient” writing process—heavy outlining followed by intuitive drafting—and how revision uncovers deeper emotional truths.   Why horror, especially domestic and psychological horror, can uniquely explore trauma, gender roles, and the unsettling transformation of everyday spaces into something terrifying. Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    36 min

  7. May 8

    Kara Confer and Emily Hone Are Getting Introverts to Go Out: The Wild Geese Event Staff

    This week, you get to meet the book girlies who I haven't been able to stop talking about!  Kara Confer and Emily Hone are the event team at Wild Geese Bookshop, and they are bringing some incredible authors to Indiana.  Hear about how they have evolved into their current positions, some book event BTS, starting their podcast Fill Your Cup, and books that define their reading tastes! Books Kara Mentioned The Secret Lives of Church Ladies — Deesha Philyaw The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman — Deesha Philyaw Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead — Emily Austin Remarkably Bright Creatures — Shelby Van Pelt Done and Dusted — Lyla Sage Books Emily Mentioned The Hunger Games series — Suzanne Collins Superfan — Jenny Tinghui Zhang  The Song of Achilles — Madeline Miller Exquisite Things — Abdi Nazemian A Good Vampire’s Guide to Blood and Boyfriends — Jamie D’Amato The Strength of the Few — James Islington The Poppy War — R.F. Kuang Seek the Traitor’s Son — Veronica Roth Phoebe Berman's Gonna Lose It — Brooke Averick Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    1h 2m
  8. Privilege, Payback, and Pay-to-Stay Prison: Elizabeth Rose Quinn's Payback

    May 5

    Privilege, Payback, and Pay-to-Stay Prison: Elizabeth Rose Quinn's Payback

    This week, I talk with repeat guest and friend Elizabeth Rose Quinn about her new, somewhat locked room thriller Payback! Listen to hear us discuss: Payback’s fascinating “weekend prison” premise and how it critiques privilege within the carceral system Balancing social commentary with a genuinely fun, propulsive thriller Crafting a large cast of distinct, memorable characters The psychological implications of our current judicial and carceral systems How Quinn's work as a therapist informs how she creates character arcs Check Out Author Social Media Packages Check out the Bookwild Community on Patreon Check Out My Stories Are My Religion Substack Get Bookwild Merch Follow @imbookwild on Instagram Other Co-hosts On Instagram: Gare Billings @gareindeedreads Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland Halley Sutton @halleysutton25 Brian Watson @readingwithbrian MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba

    1h 11m
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5
out of 5
25 Ratings

About

On Tuesdays, Kate Hergott talks with authors about their books and writing processes. On Fridays, Kate talks with multiple co-host Bookstagrammers and BookTubers about a variety of bookish topics.

Information

  • Creator
    Kate Hergott, Bookwild Collective
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    391
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2024 Bookwild Collective
  • Show Website
    Bookwild

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