Stories Without Borders

Hollyn
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Books

15-year-old book enthusiast Hollyn Alpert hosts the Stories Without Borders podcast, in which she interviews authors, artists, entrepreneurs and others who use the power of stories and service to build connection, empathy and understanding around the world. 

  1. 3d ago

    Author-Board Game Designer LIZZY IVES (Fat Witch Summer, Bookwyrm) on Cozy Fantasy, Body Positivity and Centering Friendship

    A cozy fantasy can be soft without being shallow, and Lizzy Ives proves it. We sit down with the author of Fat Witch Summer and Thick Witch Travels to talk about how you build a whimsical YA fantasy road trip that still challenges anti-fat bias, questions unfair systems, and leaves room for real joy. Along the way, Lizzy shares the quote that shaped her worldview as a teen, and why expanding perspective is one of the most powerful things stories can do. We get specific about craft and career: how a film production background sharpens scene work, how years of revisions (including Pitch Wars and agent feedback) can strengthen a debut, and how to protect your creative vision while still staying open to collaboration. We also dig into why romance so often gets pushed into YA for commercial reasons, and why friendship-centered storytelling can feel more honest, more refreshing, and more representative of readers who don’t experience attraction in the “expected” way. Then we zoom out into publishing and play. Lizzy talks about founding Sword and Rose Press, what independent publishing makes possible for niche and under-served books, and why body positive representation can’t depend on trends. Finally, she introduces Bookwyrm, her cozy board game about organizing a dragon’s overflowing bookshop, complete with a shop cat that causes trouble in the best way. If you care about cozy fantasy, plus size representation, writing process reality, and storytelling that actually changes how we see the world, hit play. Subscribe, share this conversation with a friend, and leave a rating or review so more listeners can find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  2. Oct 24

    Author-Journalist EMILY BARTH ISLER (Aftermath, Always Enough Love) on Neurodivergence, Memory and Storytelling as Advocacy

    Some conversations make you rethink what a “kids’ book” is allowed to hold, and this is one of them. I’m joined by critically acclaimed storyteller Emily Barth Isler, author of the middle grade novels Aftermath and The Color of Sound and the picture book Three Pieces of Broken Glass, to talk about writing for young readers when the real world feels too heavy to explain and too urgent to ignore.  We start with Aftermath, a novel that threads grief, friendship, and healing through the reality of school shootings and community trauma. Emily shares how her own anxiety and OCD shaped the fear behind drafting the book, what she learned from gun safety organizations about responsible language, and why she donates proceeds to groups working for change. We also talk about the legacy of her grandfather’s gun control editorials and what it means to use the written word as a form of activism.  Then we shift into neurodivergence, synesthesia, and mental health. Emily breaks down synesthesia in a way that finally clicks, including why naming a brain difference can dissolve shame overnight. We dig into The Color of Sound, time travel as an emotional tool, and what it looks like to write characters with layered intersectional identities, including Jewish identity, without pretending any community is a monolith.  We wrap with picture books, Holocaust memory, sustainability, hand-me-down culture, and her pick for an organization doing high-impact work right now: The States Project, where state legislatures shape rights that affect daily life. Subscribe for more author interviews, share this with a friend who loves story-driven conversations, and please leave a rating and review so more listeners can find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  3. Oct 10

    Author-Advocate WINNIE M. LI (Dark Chapter, Complicit) on Media Narratives, Sibling Dynamics & Art as Healing

    We talk with author, educator, and survivor-advocate Dr. Winnie M. Li about addressing trauma through fiction without letting it define a whole life or career. We dig into how the media shapes public narratives about sexual assault, why art can build community, and what it takes to maintain balance and perspective in a creative life.  • Winnie’s path from film industry work to novels and activism  • Writing Dark Chapter after a long recovery period  • Media coverage, anonymity, and the erasure of victim identity  • Why she writes from a perpetrator’s perspective without defending harm  • Creating the Clear Lines festival to address consent through the arts  • MeToo, workplace power, and what outsiders miss about reporting abuse  • Craft choices in Complicit, including the journalist interview structure  • What We Left Unsaid, sibling dynamics, family trauma, and healing  • Wanting future work to expand beyond sexual violence while honoring its impact  • Teaching creative writing, resilience, and surviving the emotional grind of publishing  Please rate and review the show on your favorite podcast platform. You can learn more online at storieswithoutborders.org or follow us on Instagram @stories_withoutborders And if you like watching our podcast, subscribe to our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@Stories_WithoutBorders Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  4. Sep 26

    Author-Artist DAVID YOON (Frankly in Love, City of Orange) on Humor, Sense of Self and Creativity as a Habit

    You can feel it when a writer has lived inside their questions, and David Yoon has. We sit down with the New York Times bestselling author of Frankly in Love, Super Fake Love Song, Version Zero, and City of Orange to talk about what happens when identity, family, and ambition all tug on you at once and why the “hard” work is often the honest work. We start with David’s origin story as a latchkey kid and immigrant son who writes to be heard, then jump into how Frankly in Love grew from a fake dating rom-com into a story shaped by fatherhood, grief, and the urgent need to understand your parents while you still can. David shares what it took to humanize characters with racist beliefs, how forgiveness can be complicated, and why flawed people on the page can create real empathy off the page. From there, we lean into performance and code switching through Super Fake Love Song, where personas collide, lies spiral, and comedy becomes a tool for telling the truth. We also go deep on technology ethics and data privacy with Version Zero, drawing on David’s years in the tech industry and the surveillance economy. The conversation turns to AI safety, groupthink, and the unsettling idea that the people shaping the internet may be improvising with everyone else’s lives. We close with City of Orange, online culture as apocalypse fuel, and Joy Revolution, the romance imprint David co-founded to publish love stories by and about people of color with joy at the center. If you like thoughtful conversations about writing craft, immigrant family dynamics, identity, representation in publishing, and the real-world cost of social media, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a rating and review. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  5. Jan 17 ·  Bonus

    ADVICE TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF: Words of Wisdom from Stories Without Borders Season 1 Guests

    What if you could mail one page of hard-won wisdom back in time? We close our first season by stitching together intimate, practical letters to younger selves from our Season 1 slate of bestselling authors and advocates. The result is a generous chorus on patience, courage, and the long game of becoming—told through personal stories that feel both specific and startlingly universal. You’ll hear how fear of judgment kept powerful ideas in the dark, and how choosing excitement over approval brought them into the light. Guests reflect on growing up feeling different, the ache of early loneliness, and the steady relief that comes from finding your people. We talk about trading perfection for progress, asking mentors for guidance, and trusting that slow work is still real work. There’s even space for humor, like the beloved pair of wildly bright running shoes that became a tiny rebellion and a lesson in owning your style. These reflections aren’t abstract pep talks; they’re field-tested reminders shaped by rejection letters, late drafts, and the quiet hours where craft is built. If you’re early in your journey—or simply need a reset—you’ll find clear takeaways: keep going when results lag behind effort, share discouragement with a friend who can cheer you forward, and return to the ideas that make you feel most alive. Growth is the goal. Belonging will meet you on the path. If this season finale moved you, tap follow, leave a quick review, and share it with someone who needs a kind nudge today. Tell us: what would your note to your younger self say? Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  6. Jan 3

    Author NICOLA YOON (Everything, Everything, One of Our Kind) on Love, Truth, and Joy Revolution

    A life-changing writing class, a fierce love for language, and a new mom’s clarity: that’s the spark behind Nicola Yoon’s leap from engineering and finance to bestselling novelist. We sit down with the author of Everything, Everything, The Sun Is Also a Star, Instructions for Dancing, and One of Our Kind to unpack how vulnerability, precision, and curiosity power stories that become empathy machines. Nicola shares how maternal protectiveness inspired her debut (Everything, Everything), what it felt like to watch lines she wrote come alive on set, and why the movie isn’t a replacement but “more art” about characters she loves. We dig into the difference between a controlled, solitary novel and the logistical jazz of filmmaking; how real conversations with her husband informed Natasha and Daniel’s philosophical chemistry in The Sun Is Also a Star; and the craft choices—subtext, gesture, rhythm—that turn everyday dialogue into scenes that breathe. We also go deep on grief and hope. Instructions for Dancing was born in hospital waiting rooms and confronts the hardest question of all: if love always ends, is it still worth it? Nicola opens up about writing One of Our Kind, an adult novel that’s intentionally bleaker, the cultural pressures that shape identity, and the misremembered feminism of The Stepford Wives that influenced her structure and suspense. Then we shift to joy: building the Joy Revolution imprint to champion swoony YA romances starring people of color, nurturing debuts with revision-heavy care, and proving that stories of delight belong alongside stories of struggle. Plus: short stories vs novels, writer’s block cures (including first-person shooters!), setting books in Los Angeles, and a playful lightning round. If you care about storytelling, adaptation, romance, representation, or the exact order of words in a sentence, you’ll feel right at home here. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves book-to-film stories, and leave a review to help more listeners find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  7. 12/20/2025

    Author ALEXANDRA BROWN CHANG (By Invitation Only) on Paris, Friendship, And A Debut To Remember

    Glamour can distract, but it can also reveal what truly matters. We sit down with Alexandra Brown Chang, the New York Times bestselling author of By Invitation Only, to explore a Parisian debutante world where status is loud, traditions are ancient, and friendship ends up being the quiet force that wins. Alexandra pulls back the curtain on the real-life experiences and customs that inspired the novel—from portrait sittings to Le Bal’s media frenzy—and explains why she built the story with Paris as a living character. We compare Piper’s first‑time wonder with Chapin’s seasoned skepticism, revealing how the city refracts identity, class, and desire in different lights. Alexandra shares how being multiracial informed Piper without defining her, and why she’s determined to write characters whose identities are rich, layered, and never reduced to a single attribute. The creative journey is as vivid as the setting. Alexandra spent five years shaping the manuscript, querying hundreds of agents, and turning a misdirected email into a breakthrough connection. Once the book sold, editing became a collaborative masterclass that sharpened structure and voice. We talk routines, flow states, and the surprising truth that you can come of age at any age—through college, early careers, and the messy, thrilling spectrum of your 20s. Along the way, Alexandra cites influences like Jenny Han, Lisi Harrison, and Cameron Crowe, and highlights two causes close to her heart: Inside Out Writers and the Peninsula Humane Society. If you love YA coming‑of‑age, female friendship, fashion, and stories where setting shapes destiny, this conversation will light you up. Listen now, share it with a friend who loves Paris, and leave a quick review so more curious readers can find the show. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

  8. 12/06/2025

    Author NYDIA ARMENDIA-SÁNCHEZ (Not Far From Here, Frida Kahlo's Flower Crown) on Language, Heritage, and Family Stories

    Joy doesn’t always arrive on schedule. For Nydia Armendia-Sánchez, it showed up when she started writing the stories her kids couldn’t find on the shelf—tales that honor migration, bilingual families, and the quiet power of a mother’s voice. We sit down with Nydia to trace her path from early art student to award-winning children’s author, and the moment she chose to turn family history into Not Far From Here, a tender picture book about belonging, hope, and the journeys that shape us. Language lives at the heart of Nydia’s work. She explains why Spanglish belongs on the page, how bilingual choices can feel intuitive and musical, and why leaving “here” undefined invites every reader to see their own roots. We then wander into Frida Kahlo’s Flower Crown, where Nydia offers a fresh lens on a cultural icon through the motifs of plants, animals, and growth. With research fueled by Casa Azul webinars and virtual tours, and luminous art by Loris Lora, the book pairs lyrical biography with an interactive plant hunt that quietly teaches kids about native species and conservation. Nydia also shares a preview of two Guatemala-set books: The Women Before Us: Weaving Stories in My Huipil, a celebration of Mayan backstrap weaving and the symbols women carry, and Vroom Vroom Vámonos, a playful journey narrated by a retired school bus reborn as a chicken bus. Along the way, we talk about the craft and constraints of picture books, the collaborative magic between writers and illustrators, and why representation in children’s literature is not a trend but a necessity. If you care about bilingual books, Latine stories, Frida Kahlo, or simply want to feel inspired by creative courage, this conversation will stay with you. If you enjoyed the show, follow and subscribe, share this episode with a friend, and leave a quick review to help more readers and families discover these stories. Follow, subscribe and learn more about Stories Without Borders on: Instagram: @Stories_WithoutBorders YouTube: @Stories_WithoutBorders Website: StoriesWithoutBorders.org

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About

15-year-old book enthusiast Hollyn Alpert hosts the Stories Without Borders podcast, in which she interviews authors, artists, entrepreneurs and others who use the power of stories and service to build connection, empathy and understanding around the world. 

Information

  • Creator
    Hollyn
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    14
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Stories Without Borders
  • Show Website
    Stories Without Borders