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Bill welcomes screenwriter and novelist Brian Herskowitz to the show. Brian has worked as a writer on series such as THE LEGENDARY JOURNEY’S OF HERCULES, BLOSSOM, DREAM ON, and TOUR OF DUTY.  He directed ODESSA OR BUST with Red Buttons, Jason Alexander, George Wendt, and Jason Schwartzman, MURRAY GHOST (short content series), and Produced Candace Bushnell’s The Broadroom (web series). Brian has taught the craft of screenwriting for over thirty years, starting with a stint with Writer’s Bootcamp, then at UCLA extensions, and for the last seventeen years, he has led the Boston University Writer in Hollywood Program. As an author, Brian’s first book was a textbook on screenwriting, PROCESS TO PRODUCT. His second book, CONCEPTUS, is a novel that grew out of one of his screenplays.

Bill welcomes debut novelist Julia Sullivan to the show. Julia started working on Bone Necklace more than twenty years ago, after visiting the Big Hole Battlefield in Wisdom, Montana. Julia first became interested in the Nez Perce story because of the great injustice that the tribe suffered. What kept her interested was their conduct during the war. While under attack, the Nez Perce won the respect of the soldiers sent to fight them and the civilian population. At the end of the war, Canada offered them political asylum. Julia is a lawyer in the United States and a solicitor in England & Wales. Throughout her career, she has worked to expose and root out injustice.

Bill welcomes YA novelist Sara Bennett Wealer to the show. Sara grew up in Manhattan, Kansas, where she sang in all the choirs and wrote for the high school newspaper. She majored in voice performance at the University of Kansas before deciding she had no business trying to make a career as an opera singer. She then transferred to journalism school, where no one cares if you can hit a high C or convincingly play a Valkyrie, and became a reporter covering everything from house fires to Hollywood premieres. These days, she writes event scripts and marketing copy while the sun is out. By night, she writes books for young adults, including her most recent, Grave Things Like Love.

Bill welcomes author Michael Oren to the show. Former Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Michael is the winner of both the Los Angeles Times History Book of the Year Award and the National Jewish Book Award (both for Six Days of War: June 1967 and The Making of the Modern Middle East), as well as a celebrated historian and diplomat. With Swann’s War, Michael Oren returns to his first love, fiction writing, bringing his immense creativity, intelligence, imagination, historical perspective and expertise to this unique crime novel.

Bill welcomes author and inspirational speaker Randye Kaye to the show. Randye harnesses the power of words in her work as a radio personality, improv and stage actor, drama teacher, humorist, podcast host, writer, motivational speaker, voice talent, and audiobook narrator. Her mission is to share her lessons of resilience, humor, and the power of words to help others live happier, with the energy to reach their goals. She wrote Happier Made Simple in response to readers of her first book, the memoir Ben Behind His Voices, and attendees of her presentations, who always asked, “With all you’ve been through, how do you stay so positive?”. Randye enjoys speaking to groups of doctors, nurses, medical students, families, providers, and legislators regarding the family experience when mental illness hits.

Bill welcomes debut novelist Mark A. Salter to the show. Like many Americans, Mark A. Salter has a deep love for football–both college and professional. He has an insider’s perspective on both worlds, given that he played the sport in high school and at Canisius College and even had a brief stint with the New York Giants before earning his master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University. While numbers had ruled his career, writing literary fiction and reading philosophy have been his favorite pastimes for decades. He resides with his wife in Jupiter, Florida, where he is a member of the South Florida Writers Association and has won several short story contests. In his debut novel, The Sins of the Tribe, Salter explores the impact of intense tribalism and its resulting dehumanization through the gripping tale of two Southern brothers on the fictional but all-too-realistic Bastille University Tribe football team.

Bill welcomes National Book Award winner Andrea Barrett to the show. Andrea is the author of ten works of fiction, including the National Book Award–winning Ship Fever and Pulitzer Prize finalist Servants of the Map, and her most recent, Natural History. She is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and an NEA Fellowship, as well as a finalist for the Story Prize and a recipient of the Rea Award for the Short Story. Having lived in Rochester, New York, and western Massachusetts, Barrett now resides in the Adirondacks.

Bill welcomes podcaster, essayist and debut novelist Conner Habib to the show. Conner the host of Against Everyone with Conner Habib, an author, a lecturer, and a sex workers’ rights advocate. Conner gives lectures around the world about sexuality, spirituality, ography, science, and art. He served for two years as the elected Vice President of the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee and is a member of PEN America. His essays and poetry have appeared in dozens of print and online publications, including CR Fashion Book, The Stranger, Vice,Salon, Slate, and several anthologies. Hawk Mountain is his debut novel.

Bill welcomes author and teacher Peter Gibb back to the show. Peter is a writer, speaker, workshop leader, coach, and musician. He is the author of the critically acclaimed, multiple award-winning memoir, King of Doubt (2017) and non-fiction, Mindful Conversation: Speak Openly, Connect Deeply, Live Joyously (Atmosphere Press, 2022).Following his graduation from Brown University, Peter worked with the U.S. Foreign Service. He has taught at the high school and college levels; served 4 years with U.S. Air Force in Germany; and was Executive Director of a non-profit community center in San Francisco. Peter has lived and worked in Peru, Germany, U.K., Ireland and Greece. For 25 years, he taught leadership and communication skills in 16 countries and three languages. Among his clients have been individuals, couples, many Fortune 500 companies, business and government leaders from around the world. He has worked with the Democratic Caucus of the U.S. Congress, with leaders of the emerging democracies in Eastern Europe, and with hundreds of just plain folk eager to communicate and connect better.

Bill welcomes bestselling novelist and writing coach Colleen M Story to the show. Colleen is a novelist, freelance writer, writing coach, and speaker with over 20 years in the creative writing industry. Her latest release, The Beached Ones, and her previous novel, Loreena’s Gift, was a Foreword Reviews’ INDIES Book of the Year Awards winner, among others. Colleen has written three books to help writers succeed. Your Writing Matters was a bronze medal winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards (2022). Writer Get Noticed! was a gold-medal winner in the Reader’s Favorite Book Awards and a first-place winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards (2019). Overwhelmed Writer Rescue was named Book by Book Publicity’s Best Writing/Publishing Book in 2018.A lifelong musician, Colleen plays the French horn in her local symphony and pit orchestras. When not writing, she’s reading, practicing yoga, listening to music, exploring the beautiful Northwest, and making up more challenging games for her smart German Shepherd to play.