The Reading Culture

In this episode, Shannon shares about growing up in a deeply conservative culture and how writing unearthed her true voice from where it had been simmering beneath the surface. We discuss everything from anxiety to the family cat to boys’ relationship with the color pink. Oh, and we have a special visitor, Shannon’s husband and co-creator, Dean Hale, to discuss their combined writing journeys!

In this episode, Dhonielle Clayton traces the magic in her books back to its roots in African folklore, details the challenge of stepping out from the long shadow of Harry Potter, and outlines her mission to hire her own collective of diverse writers. She is a one-woman powerhouse!

In this episode, Minh discusses how he overcame his insecurities to achieve his dream of becoming a picture book author. He also recounts the transformative experience of writing the biography of the beloved Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh, and shares an absolutely breathtaking story about their encounter. Minh shares his philosophy on why we should all blur the lines between the real and the imaginary.

In this episode, Julie Murphy discusses the double-edged sword of her self-deprecating humor and how she feels about the response she gets not just from her young readers but especially from their moms. She also discusses the evolution of body politics. She shares the college class that bored her into oblivion, leading her to discover the Twilight series and sparking the chain reaction that landed her in the literary world.