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Author News & Interviews

Author Talk: Sue Monk Kidd, author of The Invention of Wings

Jan 9, 2014

Sue Monk Kidd is the bestselling author of three novels: THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES, THE MERMAID CHAIR and, most recently, THE INVENTION OF WINGS, the new pick of Oprah's Book Club 2.0. Her latest is the story of Sarah Grimké, one of the first female abolitionists and early feminist thinkers, and her slave, Hetty “Handful” Grimké, as they both strive for a life of their own, dramatically shaping each other’s destinies. In this interview, Kidd discusses what she initially found so captivating about the Grimké sisters, and all the interesting new things she learned about them while researching the book. She also opens up about why it’s more challenging to give voice to a character who really lived as opposed to a fictional one, the different challenges women face in pursuing freedom, and why she plans to continue writing stories of courage and daring for women.

Interview: Sonja Condit, author of Starter House

Jan 9, 2014

Debut author Sonja Condit received her MFA from Converse College, where she studied with Robert Olmstead, Leslie Pietrzyk, R. T. Smith and Marlin Barton. Her novel, STARTER HOUSE, is a promising start, to say the least. It’s about Lacey and her husband, Eric, who discover shortly after moving in that something sinister lurks within the walls of their dream house. To save her family --- and her unborn child --- Lacey must discover the truth about the house and confront an evil that has lingered in wait for years. In this interview with Bookreporter.com’s Kate Ayers, Condit opens up about the real-life house (which she and her husband didn’t buy) that inspired the spooky one in her book and whether or not she believes in ghosts. She also talks about writing her most challenging character, why she enjoys hearing other people’s ghost stories, and, in plenty of tantalizing detail, what she’s working on next.

Interview: Averil Dean, author of Alice Close Your Eyes

Jan 9, 2014

In 2012, after spending 20 years working in an office, Averil Dean decided to pursue her dream of writing full-time. Her efforts, it seems, have paid off with her buzzworthy debut novel, ALICE CLOSE YOUR EYES. It’s an erotic psychological thriller about Alice Croft, whose lust for revenge becomes complicated the night she breaks into Jack Calabrese’s house --- and starts lusting for darker and more dangerous things. In this interview with Bookreporter.com’s Norah Piehl, Dean talks about her obsession with all things noir, as well as how her fascination with “the interplay between deviant minds” led her to write the book. She also explains how she was able to successfully give life to an unlikable protagonist, why her personal blog is like a “lifeline,” and the reason that more women --- especially after the success of FIFTY SHADES OF GREY --- are jumping on the erotic fiction bandwagon.

Interview: Kristina Riggle, author of The Whole Golden World

Nov 7, 2013

Kristina Riggle, the acclaimed author of REAL LIFE & LIARS, returns with a thought-provoking novel inspired by real-life events. THE WHOLE GOLDEN WORLD is about 17-year-old Morgan Monetti, who shocks her parents and her community when she chooses to stand by the man everyone else believes has exploited her --- popular high school teacher TJ Hill. In this interview with Bookreporter.com's Terry Miller Shannon, Riggle talks about how she kept this story --- which deals with some heavy issues --- upbeat, as well as why she feels most comfortable writing her novels from multiple perspectives. She also opens up about channeling her inner teenager, why poetry should always be written longhand in a notebook, and why sometimes it’s easier to ask strangers strange questions.  

Interview: Antoinette van Heugten, author of The Tulip Eaters

Nov 1, 2013

Former international trial lawyer Antoinette van Heugten retired to pursue a full-time career as a novelist and penned her debut novel, SAVING MAX. Now she returns with her second book, THE TULIP EATERS, in which readers are introduced to Nora de Jong, who is determined to discover the identity of her mother's killer and the whereabouts of her missing infant daughter. In this interview with Bookreporter.com’s Terry Miller Shannon, van Heugten opens up about how her parents’ participation in the Dutch resistance during World War II inspired her to set parts of her novel during that time --- and how it didn’t hurt that she had spent time in her 20s at the Netherlands War Institute, researching that topic. She also talks about how she treasures the humanity in even the most seemingly despicable character in THE TULIP EATERS and how writing the story affected her own emotional landscape.