Author2Author

Bill welcomes author Philip Kenney to the show. Philip Kenney writes and practices psychotherapy in Portland, Oregon. In the Spring of 2019, Mr. Kenney began writing haiku to help lubricate his mind from the stress of the Pandemic. By June he had written over a hundred and fifty and began putting together the chapbook, Only This Step, which was published by Finishing Line Press in February of 2023. Mr. Kenney is also the author of The Writer’s Crucible: Meditations on Emotion, Being and Creativity. That book was a finalist for The Red City Review 2018 Non-Fiction Book of the Year. It was written with the intent of supporting writers in their struggles with the emotional vulnerabilities they face living a creative life. In 2018, his essay, The Rebirth of Masculinity: What We Can Learn from Harvey Weinstein and Co. was published in issue #7 of The Timberline Review.

Bill welcomes debut novelist Becky Chalsen to the show. Becky is a film/TV development executive at the production company Sunday Night. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, and now lives in New York City. Becky is a quadruplet and married to her high school sweetheart -- an identical twin -- whose family has spent summers on Fire Island for more than three decades. Kismet is her first novel.

Bill welcomes fantasy and science fiction author Cassandra Khaw to the show. Cassandra is an award-winning game writer and former scriptwriter at Ubisoft Montreal. Khaw's work can be found in places like The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Lightspeed, and Tor.com. Khaw’s first original novella, Hammers on Bone, was a British Fantasy Award and Locus Award finalist, and their novella, Nothing But Blackened Teeth, was a USA Today bestseller, Bram Stoker Award nominee, and Indie Next Pick. The Salt Grows Heavy is their latest novel.

Bill welcomes debut novelist Katie Lumsden to the show. Katie Lumsden read Jane Eyre at the age of thirteen and never looked back. She spent her teenage years devouring nineteenth-century literature, reading every Dickens, Brontë, Gaskell, Austen, and Hardy novel she could find. She has a degree in English literature and history from Durham University and an MA in creative writing from Bath Spa University. Her short stories have been shortlisted for the London Short Story Prize and the Bridport Prize, and have been published in various literary magazines. Katie’s YouTube channel, "Books and Things," has more than twenty-five thousand subscribers. She lives in London and works as an editor, and her debut novel is The Secrets of Hartwood Hall.

Bill welcomes writing team John and Leanne Yarrow to the show. John, a lifelong Texan, dreams as big as he writes. Leanne is her husband's collaborative partner. Their fascination with what could be imbues the couple's storytelling with fast-paced, futuristic worlds in which witty compelling characters struggle for an enduring humanity. John's background includes degrees in English, Education, and an MS in Cognitive Systems. He honed his skills in The Creation Factory Writer's Workshop, adapted a novella for National Public Radio, and published articles in educational and technology journals. Leanne draws from her careers in education and program development to help bring fresh insights, incredible imagery, and clarifying details to their work. Future’s Dark Past is their debut novel!

Bill welcomes author, artist, director and producer Leopoldo Gout to the show! Leopoldo is a Mexican immigrant, award-winning producer and filmmaker, visual artist and author, who has written, packaged, published and developed books for more than a decade, both under his own name with several major publishers, and with other writers under his own imprint at Simon & Schuster: Leopoldo & Co. He was co-president of the James Patterson Entertainment company for many years; and he is currently producing award-winning author Marlon James’ original debut for television: GET MILLIE BLACK (Channel 4 & HBO). He and his brother, award-winning writer-director Everado Gout (Netflix's Kaleidoscope) are show-runners of AMERICAN JESUS, a Netflix / Mark Millar series. Leopoldo along with Radical Media won the Critics Choice Award for FILTHY RICH (Netflix), a documentary series on Netflix. He is the creator and writer of NO MAN’S LAND (Starz), and SPYMASTERS (Madison Welles Media). Gout is also developing a Pulitzer Prize finalist book IN THE DISTANCE into a film with the Larrain Brothers and he was the originating producer on the Oscar-nominated, MOLLY’S GAME, a project that he worked from book to screen. Other producer credits include INSTINCT (CBS), ZOO (CBS), MIDDLE SCHOOL: The Worst Years of My (Participant Media and LIONSGATE) and Everardo Gout’s directorial debut DAYS OF GRACE which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival and won over 20 awards internationally. He has a thriving art studio in NYC and lives there with his wife and two kids: a cat called Lola and a dog called Lupe.

Bill welcomes bestselling novelist Bethany C. Morrow to the show. Bethany is a national bestselling author writing for adult and young adult audiences. She is the author of the novels Mem, A Song Below Water, A Chorus Rises, and So Many Beginnings: A Little Women Remix, and most recently, Cherish Farah. She is the editor/contributor to the young adult anthology TAKE THE MIC, which won the 2020 ILA Social Justice in Literature award. Her work has been featured in The LA Times, Forbes, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and more. She is included on USA TODAY's list of 100 Black novelists and fiction writers you should read.

Bill welcomes debut novelist and legal analyst Brian Buckmire to the show. Brian is a senior staff NYC public defender in the Criminal Defense Practice and Homicide Defense Task Force at the Legal Aid Society, representing indigent clients in Brooklyn, NY. He is the anchor for Law and Crime Daily, a nationally syndicated show covering the hottest cases and controversies from courtrooms nationwide. He is also a legal contributor for ABC and has covered events like the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, the trials against Harvey Weinstein and R. Kelly, and many more. In addition, he serves on the board of trustees for Coney Island Prep, a charter school in South Brooklyn. Born in Toronto, of Caribbean heritage, Brian, his wife Victoria, and their son Reid live in New York. Come Home Safe is his debut novel.

Bill welcomes bestselling historical author Julia Kelly to the show. Julia is the award-winning author of books about ordinary women and their extraordinary stories. In addition to The Lost English Girl, her novels include The Last Dance of the Debutante, The Last Garden in England, The Whispers of War, and The Light Over London. In addition to writing, she’s been an Emmy-nominated producer, journalist, marketing professional, and (for one summer) a tea waitress. Julia called Los Angeles, Iowa, and New York City home before settling in London.

Bill welcomes debut novelist Brittany Butler to the show. Brittany is a former CIA targeting officer with first-hand knowledge in the recruitment and handling of spies, and the dismantling of terrorist networks abroad. A staunch advocate for Middle Eastern women’s rights, Brittany has worked to promote the rights of disenfranchised Afghan women and girls, and now works within her local community to resettle Afghan refugees. The first in a series, THE SYNDICATE SPY combines fascinating facts with heart-stopping fiction, telling the story, as only Brittany can tell it, of how female intelligence officers utilize both their intellect and skills to see beyond religious and cultural barriers in order to bring peace to this war-torn region.