In this episode, I chat with Hannah Mary McKinnon about her newest thriller, "Never Coming Home," which releases May 24, 2022.

Learn more about Hannah at: https://hannahmarymckinnon.com/

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In this episode of Tea with Jess, I chat with John Scalzi, a New York Times best seller in fiction. His first published series novel, "Old Man's War," was a Hugo Award for best novel Nominee, ranked #1 on the Locus Online reader poll, and is listed on the NPR.com reader poll of the Top 100 Science Fiction and Fantasy Book/Series.

Since then awards won include the Hugo, the Locus, the Audie, among others, and John is the recipient of the 2016 Governor’s Award for the Arts in Ohio. His works have been translated into 30+ languages.

He is also creative Consultant for the Stargate: Universe television series. Writer for the video game Midnight Star, by Industrial Toys. Former president (7/10 – 6/13) of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Executive Producer for Old Man’s War and The Collapsing Empire, both currently in development for film/TV. Writer of five short stories adapted into episodes of the Netflix series Love, Death + Robots.

John and I chat about the writing process, creative inspiration, a coin flip and a church purchase, plus more!

Learn more about John at  https://whatever.scalzi.com/  Don’t miss an episode of Tea with Jess! Subscribe via your favorite podcast App.

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C.L. Pauwels (aka, my friend Cyndi) and I chat about her newest novel, "Unwelcome Ties," what it's like to write a "prequel," in this case a novel that includes a character who is the main character in novels C.L. has already published ("Forty and Out" and "Burned Bridges"), staying connected and motivated as a writer in the best of times and the pandemic of times.

I first met C.L. as one of her mentors as she worked on her master's thesis--a very early version of what has grown and developed into "Unwelcome Ties," a thriller set in Toledo. Then, through the Antioch Writers' Workshop, we became colleagues and friends.

This is one of the biggest joys of the creative life--meeting other creators along the way and being part of their journey!

Learn more about C.L. at https://clpauwels.com/ Don’t miss an episode of Tea with Jess! Subscribe via your favorite podcast App.

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In this episode, I take a tea break to chat with author Meredith Doench about her newest book, "Whereabouts Unknown." It's also her first standalone thriller, so we talk about making the transition from series books to a standalone, her inspiration for the novel, how she does research and selects themes, and more.

I first met Meredith through the Dayton, Ohio writing community and now serve with her on the board of the Midwest Chapter of Mystery Writers of America (MWA). She's always interesting to talk with, and I know you'll discover that too as you listen in on our chat!

Meredith is the author of the Luce Hansen Thriller Series from Bold Strokes Books. Crossed, the first in the series, was published in August of 2015 and was the runner-up for the 2015 IndieFab Awards in the Mystery Genre. The next two in the series are  Forsaken Trust and Deadeye, both of which were mystery/thriller Goldie Award finalists in their respective years from Golden Crown Literary Society.    Whereabouts Unknown, Doench’s fourth thriller and stand alone novel, will release in March 1 2022 available from publisher Bold Strokes Books and becomes available March 15 from all retailers.

In addition to her work on the MWA Midwest chapter board, Meredith is a member of Golden Crown Literary Society and Sisters in Crime. Meredith lives in Dayton, Ohio where she is a senior lecturer of creative writing, literature, and composition at the University of Dayton.

Learn more about Meredith at https://www.meredithdoench.com/ Don’t miss an episode of Tea with Jess! Subscribe via your favorite podcast App.

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Christina Consolino is a writer and editor whose work has appeared in multiple online and print outlets. Her debut novel, Rewrite the Stars, was named one of ten finalists for the Ohio Writers' Association Great Novel Contest 2020.

I first met Christina through the Antioch Writers' Workshop, where she served as a member of the Board of Directors, and I served as Director of the workshop. I quickly came to appreciate Christina as a kind and generous human, with a great passion for writing and helping other writers. And I greatly enjoyed reading her debut novel, "Rewrite the Stars." So it was particularly enjoyable to chat with her about her experiences as a debut novelist.

Listeners, I think you'll find a lot of inspiration in our chat and Christina's insights!

Learn more about Christina at https://christinaconsolino.com/

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Katrina Kittle is the author of four books for adults—"Traveling Light," "Two Truths and a Lie," "The Kindness of Strangers," and "The Blessings of the Animals"— and one novel for tweens, "Reasons to Be Happy. "

"The Kindness of Strangers" was the winner of the 2006 Great Lakes Book Award for Fiction. Katrina teaches creative writing workshops for all ages, focusing on craft and motivation (and is especially good at jumpstarting stalled writers). She teaches online and in the Dayton-Cincinnati-Columbus area through Word’s Worth Writing Connections, and is a Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Dayton. She is a public speaker, most often leading her “Leap and the Net Will Appear” and “Happy Class” workshops, and she has been a Dayton TedX speaker.

Learn more about Katrina, her writing and her classes at www.katrinakittle.com

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I had the honor of reading Kimi Cunningham Grant's novel, "These Silent Woods," before its publication and blurbing it. The novel is beautifully evocative and quietly yet powerfully suspenseful.

So I was quite excited to chat with Kimi about her novel, her inspiration and her writing process. We talk about our love of nature and how we find it both restorative and empowering, the writing life, encouragement for writers, and more.

Besides "These Silent Woods," Kimi is the author of Fallen Mountains and Silver Like Dust. She is a two-time winner of a Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Memorial Prize in Poetry and a recipient of a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts fellowship in creative nonfiction. Her poems and essays have appeared in Fathom, Literary Mama, RATTLE, Poet Lore, and Whitefish Review.

 Learn more about Kimi at https://www.kimicunninghamgrant.com/

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In this episode, I take a tea break and chat with Karen Odden, Author of "Down a Dark River," set in 1870s London, and introducing Inspector  Michael Corravan, who must investigate when a deceased young woman is found in a small boat floating down the Thames River.

Karen and I chat about the joys and challenges (and rabbit holes) of researching historical fiction, what drew her to the era she writes about, creative challenges, and more!

Karen earned her Ph.D. in English from New York University and subsequently taught literature at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She has contributed essays to numerous books and journals, written introductions for Victorian novels in the Barnes & Noble classics series, and edited for the journal Victorian Literature and Culture (Cambridge UP). Her previous novels, also set in 1870s London, have won awards for historical fiction and mystery. A member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime and the recipient of a grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts, Karen lives in Arizona with her family and her rescue beagle Rosy.

Learn more about Karen here, https://karenodden.com

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