Ep.19 – Candice Millard – Writing Her Own History

Candice Millard is a New York Times best-selling author who has written four incredible books in the narrative non-fiction space:

• The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey

• Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President

• River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile

• Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill

Candice has an amazing talent for turning history into absolutely thrilling, page-turning drama. In this conversation, Greg and Candice go deep on everything from her research and writing process, to the inside scoop on some of her books, to her own experience as a parent and someone who’s dealt with tragedy in her own life at times – similar to the characters she writes about.

Episode segments:

(07:24) -- How suffering forges (and reveals) character

(11:39) -- The unbelievably talented James A. Garfield

(16:33) -- How damn hard it was to live in the 1800’s & early 1900’s

(22:58) -- How Candice dealt with tragedy striking in her own life

(34:34) -- Breaking down her five-year (!) writing process

(38:08) -- The absolute magic (and necessity) of research trips

(41:33) -- When something shocking fell from an envelope in the Library of Congress

(51:00) -- Building narratives and the art of storytelling

(01:00:17) -- Inspiring a love of reading and writing

(01:05:57) -- Candice’s own reading habits

(01:09:36) -- The importance of legacy and how Candice thinks about hers

(01:14:11) – One thing that Candice has figured out in life

(01:17:15) -- The scoop on Candice’s next book!!

You can find Candice’s work anywhere books are sold, and can learn more about her at candicemillard.com or by following her on Twitter @candice_millard

Link to (very raw) transcript: https://share.descript.com/view/Agew4WNqe9c

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