A Christmas Novel, a Football Story, and Mental Health and the Struggling Writer

Charlotte Readers Podcast

Episode 319 is full of holiday cheer! Paul Reali joins us as a guest co-host and we have an interview with internationally bestselling author Wade Rouse, aka Viola Shipman, about his new heartwarming Christmas rom-com A Wish for Winter. We also feature Carey Henry Keefe's book A Tide of Dreams: The Untold Backstory of Coaches Paul "Bear" Bryant, Carney Laslie, and Frank Moseley, and we discuss Lucy McLaren's blog post about mental health for writers.
Today’s Featured Authors:
Wade Rouse aka Viola Shipman: Time Stamp: 9:20
A Wish for Winter, named a Country Living must-read holiday novel for 2022, follows a Christmas-obsessed bookseller on the verge of 40 whose friends and family set her up on a year’s worth of dates (all on major holidays) so that she may find her one true love. Learn more at https://www.violashipman.com/.
Carey Henry Keefe: Time Stamp: 44:38
A Tide of Dreams is the true story of three football coaches from the University of Alabama whose coaching style was put to work in a little-known program for the Navy during WWII. Learn more at https://authorcareyhkeefe.com/.
Lucy McLaren: Time Stamp: 1:05:50
Lucy McLaren shares her blog post “Mental Health and the Struggling Writer” (https://charlottereaderspodcast.com/mental-health-and-the-struggling-writer/), which explores how to push back against the negative energy that sometimes haunts writers.
Book Recommendations: Time Stamp: 1:21:20
Libro.fm’s credit bundles are a great way to purchase audiobooks for yourself or to give as holiday gifts. This year, anyone who purchases a credit bundle gets a free seasonal audiobook for themselves. Choices include Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris, Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory, The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer, and more. For details: https://tidd.ly/3EaWlbL
Sarah recommends:
Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh
Landis recommends:
Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan
Paul Reali recommends:
Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
Mark West, Storied Charlotte Blog (https://pages.charlotte.edu/mark-west/blog/author/miwest/), recommends:
Carol by Darin Kennedy
Alyssa Pressler, That’s Novel Books (https://www.thatsnovelbooks.com/), recommends:
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
2-Minute Tip: Time Stamp: 31:30
Don’t miss Charlotte Lit co-founder and executive director Paul Reali’s tip about Gifts for the Writer in Your Life, Which Might Be You.
One of the gifts he recommends is the gift of craft books for writers. He recommends:
On Writing, by Stephen King
Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott
The Emotional Craft of Fiction, by Donald Maass
Your Life as Story, by Tristine Rainer
Meander, Spiral, Explode, by Jane Alison
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win the Inner Creative, by Steven Pressfield
Writing and Marketing Tips:
Lucy McLaren shares her blog post “Mental Health and the Struggling Writer.” (https://charlottereaderspodcast.com/mental-health-and-the-struggling-writer/)
Community Voices:
Thanks to the following authors for sharing their elevator pitches:
Mary Salisbury
Marianne Sprangers
Ellyn Bache
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