On this episode we welcome Jayne Allen who burst onto the fiction scene in 2021 with BLACK GIRLS MUST DIE EXHAUSTED . Jayne joins us to discuss her highly anticipated second installment in this series, BLACK GIRLS MUST BE MAGIC . With the Fab Four, Jayne discusses her inspiration for this trilogy, the deep bonds of female freindship that inform her novels, her writing process, and how she made the shift from non-fiction to fiction. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Feb 17, 2022•51 min•Ep. 154
WRITERS'S BLOCK Ron Block and Kristy Woodson Harvey are joined by Author Robert Dugoni whose book The Extraorinday Life of Sam Hell has been a long time favorite. They talk about why stories stay with us and about his stellar new book, The World Played Chess. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Feb 11, 2022•41 min•Ep. 153
On this episode we are so lucky to have THREE authors joining us! For the main event we sit down with both Marie Benedict and Fiona Davis !Marie is the New York Times bestselling author of nine historical novels (including The Personal Librarian, The Only Woman in the Room, and The Mystery of Mrs. Christie). She found her calling unearthing the hidden stories of the most complex and fascinating women of history and introducing them to readers so we can reflect on their contributions and the insi...
Feb 10, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 152
WRITERS' BLOCK Ron Block and Mary Kay Andrews speak with Linda Ketron about her stellar work with Moveable Feast and becoming a beacon to authors and readers alike. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Feb 04, 2022•39 min•Ep. 151
Welsome to another double-header episode! On the first half of the show, meet New York Times bestselling, Edgar-nominated author of 20 crime novels, Alafair Burke . Alafair’s books include The Ex, The Wife, and The Better Sister, and two series—one featuring NYPD Detective Ellie Hatcher, and the other, Portland, Oregon, prosecutor Samantha Kincaid. Alafair joins us to discuss her latest thriller, FIND ME . Released a few weeks ago, it has met with rave reviews from Laura Dave, Chris Bohjalian, a...
Feb 03, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 150
WRITERS' BLOCK Ron Block is joined by guest co-host Nancy Johnson to celebrate the paperback release of her brilliand debut, The Kindest Lie. They then speak with Lizzie Blackburn about her highly anticipated debut Yinka, Where is Your Huzband. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 28, 2022•34 min•Ep. 1
F&F is honored to welcome the incredible No. 1 New York Times bestselling author Amor Towles. Amor’s three novels RULES OF CIVILITY, A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW, and THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY have collectively sold more than five million copies and been translated into more than thirty languages. A Gentleman in Moscow spent two full years on the New York Times bestseller list. When it was published by Viking Books in October 2021, The Lincoln Highway debuted at No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller lis...
Jan 27, 2022•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 148
WRITERS' BLOCK Patti Callahan and Ron Block talk with NYT Bestsellilng Author Rachel Hawkins about her new release, Reckless Girls, an Island Gothic Thriller that explores class and gender set against a remote island setting that harbors a dark history. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 21, 2022•33 min•Ep. 1
This episode is a two-parter! On the first half of the show, we welcome internationally bestselling author of eleven novels for teens and adults, Jillian Cantor . Jillian joins us to discuss her new atmospheric historical novel, BEAUTIFUL LITTLE FOOLS , which will be released on February 1st! The book is a reimagining of THE GREAT GATSBY where the female characters take center stage.On the second half of the show we greet the writing team of Jenny Judson and Danielle Mahfood who met in high scho...
Jan 20, 2022•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 146
WRITERS' BLOCK: Ron Block and Kristin Harmel talk with Historical Fiction Authors Genevieve Graham (BLUEBIRD) and Julia Kelly (Last Dance of the Debutante) about their new books and about the art of showcasing history throuh fiction. . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 14, 2022•53 min•Ep. 145
We are so thrilled to welcome #1 internationally bestselling author Jeffery Deaver, who People Magazine calls “the master of ticking-bomb suspense.” Jeffery’s 40+ books are sold in 150 countries, have been translated into over 25 languages, and have sold more than 50-million copies worldwide. His first Lincoln Rhyme novel, THE BONE COLLECTOR, was made into a major motion picture starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie. Join us as we hear all about Jeffery’s writing process, intensive resea...
Jan 13, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 1
WRITERS' BLOCK: Ron Block talks with Best-Selling author Thrity Umrigar about her powerful new novel, HONOR and about the importance of reading outside our own experience. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 07, 2022•32 min•Ep. 143
What a way to kick off a shiny new year! Join the raucous good time as the Fab Four welcome two author guests plus two special guests to the first episode of 2022. Talented writers and dear friends with an amazing sense of humor and sisterhood, Sally Hepworth and Kelly Rimmer join us from Australia. Sally is the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels, including the smash hit bestseller THE MOTHER-IN-LAW . She joins us to discuss her latest novel, last year’s instant NYT bestseller THE...
Jan 06, 2022•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 1
WRITERS' BLOCK: Ron talks with Meg Walker to hear about her background and how she became the glue that holds Friends and Fiction together. Includes interviews with F & F fans taped in Beaufort at our live event in June! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Dec 31, 2021•39 min•Ep. 141
F&F is so pleased to welcome New York Times, Washington Post & USA Today bestselling author, Sarah MacLean as our guest on our final show of the year! Sarah is the author of many popular historical romance novels, which have been translated into more than twenty-five languages. A graduate of Smith College & Harvard University, a leading advocate for the romance genre, and a co-host of the weekly romance podcast Fated Mates , Sarah is also a columnist for the New York Times, the Washi...
Dec 30, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 140
WRITERS' BLOCK: Toasting to the holiday season through memories, traditions and a look at the year ahead! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Dec 24, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 139
Friends & Fiction welcomes New York Times bestselling bilingual novelist, short story writer, screenwriter, and film producer, María Amparo Escandón . María is the author of #1 L.A. Times bestseller ESPERANZA’S BOX OF SAINTS and GONZÁLEZ & DAUGHTER TRUCKING CO. She joins us to discuss her third novel, L.A. WEATHER , which was selected as a Reese’s Book Club pick and a Best Book of the Month by Barnes & Noble, People, PopSugar, Bustle, CNN, E! News, and GMA. Named a writer to watch by...
Dec 22, 2021•55 min•Ep. 138
WRITERS' BLOCK: Our own Mary Kay Andrews unearths a holiday short story, Fatal Fruitcake and reads it for a Holiday Surprise! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Dec 21, 2021•34 min•Ep. 137
WRITERS' BLOCK: Esteemed Nashville singer/songwriters, Kim Richey and Gretchen Peters continue their convesation with Ron Block and perform songs bothe written by them and by each other. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Dec 17, 2021•41 min•Ep. 136
For our super special F&F Christmas episode, we invited EIGHT amazing author guests to join us. Join the fun for a special group reading of a custom adaptation of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas penned by our own Kristin Harmel. Each of our eight guests also talks about their latest book and answers a few questions from the Fab Four. You won’t want to miss all the festive holiday fun! Meet F&F’s 12 Authors of Christmas: VIOLA SHIPMAN, The Secret of SnowJULIA KELLY, The Last Dance of the...
Dec 16, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 135
WRITERS' BLOCK: Comedian Amy Phillips and Chef Stuart O'Keefe talk with Ron about the delectable cookbook parody the two have put together. They also talk about their mutual adoration of anything Real Housewives! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Dec 10, 2021•50 min•Ep. 27
We are so pleased to welcome Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney whose 2016 debut novel THE NEST has been translated into more than 28 languages and is in development with Amazon Studios as a limited series. The Nest spent more than six months on the New York Times bestseller list, was a B&N Discover pick, a Goodreads Choice Award finalist, and a best book of the year pick by People, the Washington Post, NPR, and Amazon among others. Cynthia joins us to discuss her latest novel, GOOD COMPANY , which was...
Dec 09, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 133
WRITERS' BLOCK: Kimmery Martin, ER Doctor turned Novelist talks to Ron Block and Patti Callahan about her novel, Doctors and Friends written about a global pandemic with eerie similarities to what the world has just gone through. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Dec 03, 2021•38 min•Ep. 132
Join us as we welcome two fabulous author guests! Meet John Hart , the author of six New York Times bestsellers (his latest: THE UNWILLING , Feb '21, St. Martin’s Press) and the only author in history to win the Edgar Award for consecutive novels. Meet acclaimed Southern mystery master, Christopher Swann who joins us to talk about his third novel, A FIRE IN THE NIGHT (Sept '21, Crooked Lane Books). With these two masters of the craft, we talk all about plot and character and setting, and what ma...
Dec 02, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 131
WRITERS' BLOCK: Esteemed Nashville singer/songwriters, Kim Richey and Gretchen Peters join Ron Block to explore the storytelling process in music and share insider tips and songs See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Nov 26, 2021•37 min•Ep. 25
A good time is had by all on the 100th episode extravaganza! Joining us is #1 mega-bestselling author and dear friend of the show, Elin Hilderbrand , along with the marketing whiz behind Nantucket’s two indie bookshops, Nantucket Book Partners , and the Nantucket Book Festival, Tim Ehrenberg (known to his legions of social media followers as Tim Talks Books ). There are guessing games with prizes and a series of lightning round questions covering everything from holiday traditions to favorite bo...
Nov 25, 2021•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 129
WRITERS' BLOCK: Mary Alice Monroe talks with publishing elite Alyson Heller and Faye Bender about writing for children. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Nov 19, 2021•43 min•Ep. 128
Join us as we welcome award-winning cookbook author, TV personality, chef and restaurateur, Vivian Howard . Her first cookbook, DEEP RUN ROOTS , was a New York Times bestseller and was named “Cookbook of the Year” by the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Vivian created and stars in the public television shows Somewhere South and A Chef’s Life , for which she has won Peabody, Emmy and James Beard awards. Vivian runs the restaurants Chef & the Farmer in Kinston, NC; Benny’s ...
Nov 18, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 127
WRITERS' BLOCK: Mary Kay Andrews speaks with Pam Dorman & Stuart Krichevsky about life in publishing as Agents, Editors and Publishers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Nov 12, 2021•52 min•Ep. 23
On this episode we welcome two author guests. First we talk to Cuban-American author Armando Lucas Correa , a journalist who has worked at People en Español for 24 years, the past 14 as editorial director. He joins us to discuss his new memoir, IN SEARCH OF EMMA: How We Created Our Family , the moving story of his lifelong dream of becoming a father and the long emotional road to making that dream come true. Then we sit down with Katherine Reay , the national bestselling and award-winning author...
Nov 11, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 125
