Andrew Bridgeman has sold everything from carpets to insurance, but like so many of us, his lifelong dream was to publish a novel. And now he’s done it. At the age of 59, he just released his debut, Fortunate Son, a political thriller with memorable characters and plot twists that will keep you reading through the night. On the pod, Andrew talks to…

This week is Banned Books Week, which draws attention to the number of book ban attempts in U.S. schools and libraries. So far, in 2024, the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 414 attempts to censor books, with 1,128 unique titles challenged. American Library Association President Cindy Hohl joins the show to tal…

“Writing is my happy place,” says this week’s guest, bestselling mystery writer J.A. Jance. With 70 books under her belt, she’s spent a lot of time typing with a smile on her face. (That makes one of us) Her latest novel, Den of Iniquity, features the return of beloved private investigator J.P. Beaumont. How did this former high school teacher, who…

William Cope Moyers, son of famed journalist Bill Moyers, thought he conquered his addiction demons after hitting rock bottom. But 20 years into recovery, prescribed painkillers triggered a relapse that challenged everything he knew about the path to sobriety. In this revealing conversation, Moyers opens up about his new book, Broken Open, sharing …

Conspiracy theories such as QAnon have had devastating political consequences as they’ve exploded in popularity. But what’s often overlooked is their heartbreaking effect on families. In her new book The Quiet Damage, investigative journalist Jesselyn Cook tells the stories of five American families shredded by true believers whose journey down the…

Love it or hate it, AI is here to stay. Writers ignore it at their own peril, especially when it comes to marketing their work. Guest Gini Dietrich, a marketing and PR expert, has been proactive in her embrace of artificial intelligence, using it to enhance her work and its reach. Gini's media company and blog 'Spin Sucks' is a go-to source for sta…

Hot off the presses, my new book, Write About Now: Successful Authors on Overcoming Obstacles, Finding Inspiration and the Birth of Their Careers, just dropped. The book features the inspirational origin stories of some of the most successful writers who have ever appeared on the podcast. In this episode, I share my recent appearance on The Bleeder…

Will Selber is a former Middle East Foreign Area Officer with 20 years of experience in the intelligence community. He served for nearly 1500 days in Iraq and Afghanistan during heavy combat operations. How retired, his life's mission is to shed light on the current situation in Afghanistan and help many of the U.S.'s allies escape the country and …

Boys are in a crisis. They're "isolated, emotionally repressed, and adrift," says guest Ruth Whippman. The research bears her out. Boys are four times more likely than girls to commit suicide, three times more likely to be addicts, and they're dropping out of high school and not going to college at record rates. Whippman, a journalist, cultural cri…

Culture writer Anne Helen Petersen has spent years researching and writing about burnout —that feeling of chronic stress and exhaustion that plagues so many in our always-working culture. On this special replay edition of the show, Anne explains how burnout differs from regular stress, why millennials seem particularly susceptible to it, and how we…

Fifty years ago, The New York Times Magazine featured Joyce Maynard on its cover for an essay she wrote entitled “An 18-Year-Old Looks Back on Life.” That story would catapult her to national prominence but also mark a traumatic beginning to a celebrated career as a prolific novelist and memoir writer. Unwittingly, Maynard became part of a MeToo sc…

Guest Steve Almond has written a terrific new book called Truth is the Arrow, Mercy is the Bow: A DIY Manual for the Construction of Stories. In it, he shares the insights he gleaned over three decades as a teacher, mentor, and author of 12 books of fiction and non-fiction. He also talks about his strategy for confronting the all-too-commom fear of…

How much do you know about the history of the day you were born? Could you tell me any significant event, aside from your birth, that happened on your birthday? If you are born on July 4th or January 6th, that’s cheating. We're taking about less infamous days. Guest Dan Bova has written a fun new book for the History Channel called: This Day in His…

When Ithaca College's president asked Jason DeLand to give this commencement address at his alma mater, he didn't hesitate for one second. DeLand, the co-founder of a big-time advertising firm called Anomaly, has quite the inspiring, rags-to-riches story. He grew up penniless on a street called Swamp Road. But he put himself through college and est…

There has been a worrisome escalation of anti-Semitism over the past few months around the world. But what's behind it? Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza or something deeper, more complex? Jonathan Small sits down with Gavriel Rosenfeld, President of the Center for Jewish History and author of "Fascism in America, Past and Present," to delve into the…

Does it make your skin crawl when people use words like "like," "um," and "dude," like literally every hella second? You're not alone. But guest Valerie Fridland argues that these linguistic ticks are actually useful and important ways of communicating. Fridland is a sociolinguist at University of Nevada Reno, and the author of Like, Literally, Dud…

On this episode, we go behind the scenes with author Trish Lundy to find out what it takes get a YA novel written, sold, and published by a major house. Trish just released her eminently readable debut YA Thriller novel, “The One That Got Away with Murder.” She talks about the process of writing multiple manuscripts before getting it right, her jou…

Molly Roden Winter wouldn't seem like the poster child for polyamory. But the married, middle-aged mom's new book, More: A Memoir of Open Marriage, has caught fire, moving the controversial topic from the margins to the mainstream. Winter joins the show to talk about her unexpected open marriage and, with it, a life-changing journey of self-discove…

Catherine Coldstream shares the extraordinary tale of joining an ancient and secretive Carmelite monastery in the UK, surrendering completely to a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. But years into leading this sheltered and isolated life of a silent nun, she started to realize the complexities and dangers of the life she vowed to live. Her e…

Hip hop recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. What started off as an underground movement in the 1970s has blossomed into a global phenomenon with no end in sight. How has hip hop managed to not stop after all these years? Why were those who kept calling it a fad so completely wrong? Guest Todd Boyd has curated a comprehensive book called Rappe…

Veteran journalist Abby Ellin almost married a pathological liar and convicted criminal, but luckily, her reporter's instincts for the truth kicked in, and she averted disaster. Her crazy story is chronicled in her book Duped and podcast Imposters: The Commander. On the show, she talks about falling for the con, discovering the truth, and what the …

Only a few months in, and it's already a bleak year for the media. Journalists lost 500 jobs in January alone, with mass layoffs at the LA Times, Business Insider, Sports Illustrated, and others. I lost my own job at Entrepreneur after working there for five years. But according to my guest Chandra Turner, where one door may be closing, others are …

In the fall of 2020, a Canadian farmer named Helen Naslund was sentenced to 18 years in prison for killing her violently abusive husband. That case and the lengthy sentence she received sparked tremendous outrage around Canada, exposing serious issues with how the justice system in that country treats abused women. Guest true crime journalist Jana …

Kristin Hannah is among the most successful American novelists working today. Her books focus on unsung heroines throughout history. Her new novel, The Women, focuses on Army Nurses during the Vietnam War. The pageturner is at once an intimate portrait of a young woman coming of age in a hellish war zone and an epic tale of an American divided duri…

Jana Monroe was the first female agent to join the agency's famed Behavioral Science Unit (BSU) to help understand who criminals are, how they think, why they do what they do. She even trained Jodie Foster for her role as Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs. Monroe has a new book out called Hearts of Darkness that chronicles her extraordinary …

Denise Hutchins and Aaron Quinn are the subject of the current top-rated show on Netflix called 'American Nightmare.' The couple's harrowing kidnapping experience and the police’s baffling response calls into question how the authorities, the press, and local government handled what became known as the real-life “Gone Girl” case. On this episode, J…

What if I told you that we spend most of our day on auto-pilot? Our brains are using half their potential and generally just respond to crisis after crisis. As a result we are not actively protecting and regulating our brain’s energy to be happier and more productive. That is the thesis behind the work of guest Deb Smolensky who is a “brain trainer…

Time is the great equalizer. Everyone of us only has 24 hours each day to get things done. How we use that time constructively separates the productive from the procratinators. Guest Laura Vanderkam is a time management expert and the author of six books on the topic, including her latest, Tranquility by Tuesday: 9 Ways to Calm the Chaos and Make T…

Jennifer McAdam is a Scottish coal miner's daughter who lost her life's savings to a multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency scam called OneCoin. She even convinced many of her friends to invest before she realized it was all a big lie. But rather than wither away in shame, McAdam fought back, creating an online Victims’ Support Group and taking legal a…

Connell Barrett is a modern-day 'Hitch,' a dating coach who helps lovelorn men approach women, be more confident, and attract a great partner. In his new book Dating Sucks, but You Don't, he offers tips and insights that have "helped thousands of single men date amazing women." We talk about navigating dating in the #Metoo, Tinder world, the best w…

Guest Lisa Cron is a story coach and author of Wired for Story, Story Genius, and Story or Die. Cron combines her wisdom of working with writers in the publishing and TV business with her fascination in the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience. She says that all humans are hardwired for story; we think in story. When writers tap into this, it trigg…

Guest Kristal Brent Cook is a journalism professor at Hofstra and author of a new memoir called The Girl in the Yellow Poncho. Growing up in the 80s as a bi-racial child, Zook was raised by Black women after she was abandoned by her white father when she was a baby. The memoir explores Kristal’s journey to find her true identity and ultimately trac…

The Talking Heads are talking again. Forty years after the release of their classic concert film “Stop Making Sense,” the movie and the band are back on the big stage—same as it ever was, or maybe even better. A remastered, 4k version of the movie was released in September, and the band is back on tour burning down the house. On this episode, host …

Devon Daniels joins the show to talk about her new book, The Rom Con. Inspired by a 1958 McCall's Magazine article entitled "129 Ways to Get a Husband," the novel gives a modern spin to antiquated and, weirdly, timeless dating advice. Daniels also discusses her unorthodox approach to writing, how her 'unicorn' first book got her multiple publishing…

Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” opened this weekend, raking in an estimated $23 million at the box office. The gut-wrenching movie is based on the excellent book of the same name by my guest David Grann, who resurfaced the mostly forgotten story of a monstrous American crime in the 1920s. Known for his page-turning narratives and in-…

Guest Lori Majewski is a radio host, journalist, and co-author of Mad World: An Oral History of New Wave Artists and Songs That Defined the 1980s. She also holds the distinction of being my editor at YM magazine long ago when I wrote stories with titles like 'How to Tell If He's Crushing On You.' Lori is the biggest Duran Duran fan you will ever me…

It’s been 20 years since Ron Burgundy first appeared on the screen urging viewers to "stay classy." Film comedy historian Saul Austerlitz joins the show to talk about his new book Kind of a Big Deal: How Anchorman Stayed Classy and Became the Most Iconic Comedy of the Twenty-First Century, which celebrates this classic movie. Austerlitz shares the …

Alexander Stille talks about his fascinating new book, The Sullivanians: Sex, Psychotherapy, and the Wild Life of an American Commune. Led by a charismatic psychoanalyst, the Sullivanians flourished in Manhattan's tony neighborhood in the 1970s and 80s, attracting many brilliant, creative people as patients, including Jackson Pollack and Judy Colli…

In this episode, we're talkin' bout the generations. Guest Dr. Jean Twenge is the author of the endlessly fascinating new book Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents—and What They Mean for America's Future. Twenge dives into government surveys, databases, and scientific studies to give a revelatory…

When you think of your 'future self,' who do you see? The image is probably pretty blurry, but it doesn't have to be. My guest Hal Hershfield believes that by strengthening the connections between your present and future selves, you gain a new perspective on what's important—and create the future you want. Hershfield is the author of Your Future Se…

Guest Courtney Kocak is a writer, podcaster, and comedian based in LA. She reports frequently on taboo topics such as porn, sexuality, and sex work. On her podcast Private Parts Unknown, Courtney takes a Bourdain-like sexual tour around the world, revealing secret seductive subcultures. On this episode, she talks about why she enjoys writing about …

UFOs are back in the news. Last month, three U.S. military veterans testified to the congress that the government had possession of "non-human" biologics. And my guest Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb recently led an exhibition to the bottom of the Pacific to retrieve what he believes could be materials from an extraterrestrial spacecraft. In this e…

Ian Fleming introduced James Bond 007 in 1953, writing 14 Bond books before he died. Since then, a few well-regarded novelists have carried the torch for the world's most famous spy. But guest Kim Sherwood is the first woman to pen a James Bond book. Sherwood is an award-winning author and creative writing teacher at the University of Edinburgh. On…

Fiona Davis is one of the most successful historical fiction writers working today. Her seven novels all take place in famous historic New York landmarks. Last month, she released The Spectacular, set in Radio City Music Hall in its mid-century heyday. On the pod, she talks about her circuitous route to becoming a novelist, how she accidentally bec…

Recently, I surveyed listeners about the biggest challenge they face in achieving their goals The number one answer: Procrastination. So this episode is all about the dreaded P-word. What procrastination is, why we do it, and how to overcome it. Guest Petr Ludwig is a procrastination slayer. His book The End of Procrastination is a well-researched …

The biggest obstacle standing between you and your goals could be yourself. Even more insidious—you might not even know you're doing this. Self-sabotage is the act of unconsciously undermining our own success, often through negative thoughts and behaviors. In this episode, Dr. Judy Ho talks about the hidden reasons why we self-sabotage, the signs t…

Guest David Grann is one of the most popular authors working today. He has a new book out called The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder, which tells the fascinating true story of an 18th-century British warship that wrecked on a desolate island off the coast of Patagonia. The survivors sailed thousands of miles to safety, and later face…

Hollywood writers went on strike last week, with thousands of WGA writers joining picket lines in LA and New York. But what are the writers striking for exactly—and how will it affect us as consumers and writers? Guest Miranda Banks joins the show to make sense of it all. Miranda is the author of The Writers: A History of American Screenwriters and…

We all understand the importance of choosing the right words, but few realize that minor tweaks to how we speak and write can change people’s minds, engage our audiences, and persuade them to do things we want them to do. Podcast guest Jonah Berger has a new book out called Magic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way. Berger is a marketing professor a…

Are you looking to start a hustle that helps you earn some extra money on the side? This episode is for you. Guest Nick Loper is the host of the podcast The Side Hustle Show and the author of nine books. At any given time, he's engaged in 10 to 15 side hustles that earn him hundreds to thousands of dollars monthly. On the show, we talk about identi…