Big Idea Category
The Big Idea: Rob Wilkins
Posted on September 29, 2022 17 Comments
Rob Wilkins was close enough to beloved author Terry Pratchett that the two of them shared the same Twitter account. From that vantage point Wilkins was able to see Pratchett as a friend, as a writer and as a human being – one who had a thing for hats, magical, metaphorical, and material. All of […]
The Big Idea: Laura Kat Young
Posted on September 27, 2022 4 Comments
Laura Kat Young was determined to write a story that she wanted to read, even if at first it was difficult to find a place for it amongst the shelves. Read on to see how The Butcher came to be. LAURA KAT YOUNG: An Eye for an Eye A horrible crime had just shocked the nation, and […]
The Big Idea: William C. Tracy
Posted on September 23, 2022 3 Comments
Always have a backup plan. And if that doesn’t work, have another back up plan… and another after that. Let’s just say Plan A didn’t work out for the characters in William C. Tracy’s new novel, Of Mycelium and Men. Follow along in his Big Idea as he tells you of their Plan B, and Plan […]
The Big Idea: R. B. Lemberg
Posted on September 22, 2022 5 Comments
It can be hard to find the right words to express yourself. For author and linguist R. B. Lemberg, it might help that they have several languages to choose from. Come along in their Big Idea as they tell you about how language can be ever-changing, adaptable, or even restricting, and how this plays into […]
The Big Idea: Jennifer Estep
Posted on September 20, 2022 2 Comments
Sometimes, combining your favorite things can result in something even better than the individual things you put together. Like pineapple on pizza, or peanut butter on pickles. Or in author Jennifer Estep’s case, genres. Come along in the Big Idea for her newest novel, Only Bad Options, to see which genres she chose to perfectly […]
The Big Idea: Gemma Amor
Posted on September 15, 2022
Author Gemma Amor was in a different state of mind when she was writing Full Immersion, and that state of mind made a mark on what she wrote… and how she wrote it. GEMMA AMOR: How much is a woman’s life worth? Not only to others, but to herself? How far would one go to […]
The Big Idea: Max Brallier
Posted on September 14, 2022 9 Comments
The third time’s the charm! Or the fifth. Or perhaps the twelfth? Or maybe, just maybe, the first time was the charm all along? Follow along in author Max Brallier’s Big Idea as he tells you about his journey to crafting the series he truly wanted to, and its newest installment, The Last Kids On […]
The Big Idea: Stacey McEwan
Posted on September 13, 2022 2 Comments
Humans can make a life in almost any circumstance, but when things get really rough, what sort of life can it be? Stacey McEwan has been thinking about this a lot, and in Ledge, she’s got a few answers, at least as they will apply to the folks in her book. STACEY McEWAN: How would […]
The Big Idea: Victor Manibo
Posted on September 8, 2022 5 Comments
The grind never stops. Except for sleep, of course, but what would our world look like if you could remove that part of the equation? Author Victor Manibo had this same question, and decided to create a whole world to answer it in his newest novel, The Sleepless. VICTOR MANIBO: The story seed for The Sleepless […]
The Big Idea: Katherine Cowley
Posted on September 6, 2022 2 Comments
Napoleon is many things: Emperor, exile, enemy. And in Katherine Cowley’s newest novel, The Lady’s Guide to Death and Deception, he is one other thing: Inspiration. Although, as Cowley explains in this Big Idea, not exactly in the way one might think. KATHERINE COWLEY: After Napoleon Bonaparte escaped from his confinement on the Isle of […]
The Big Idea: Jody Keiser
Posted on September 1, 2022
Author Jody Keisner comes to us today with some classic advice: face your fears. Or at least, don’t ignore them. Open up about them! Explore them. That’s exactly what she does in her memoir, Under My Bed. JODY KEISNER: My Big Idea started as My Big Humiliation. “What is your greatest fear?” I asked the room […]
The Big Idea: Bob Smietana
Posted on August 30, 2022 16 Comments
For years now, Bob Smietana has been a writer, reporter and editor for the Religion News Service, and as such has had a front row view of the changes in, and challenges of, religious organizations and entities here in the United States. Where is it all going — and where should it be going? In […]
The Big Idea: Randee Dawn
Posted on August 26, 2022 2 Comments
Life is short… but TV is forever. Author Randee Dawn plays with a fantastical variant of this sentiment with her new novel Tune In Tomorrow. RANDEE DAWN: Who wants to live forever? One great thrill we get from writing and reading fantasy, science fiction or even horror is about imagining creating and watching creatures who […]
The Big Idea: David Quantick
Posted on August 25, 2022 2 Comments
You have to hand it to David Quantick: He took a wild idea, and then, as the kids used to say, let his fingers do the walking (on the keyboard. I’m sorry. I will stop with the puns now). In this Big Idea, learn how the author finally got the idea for Ricky’s Hand out […]
The Big Idea: Dan Koboldt
Posted on August 24, 2022 7 Comments
Heists! Dan Koboldt has been thinking about them — strictly for fictional purposes, honest! — and in this Big Idea for Silver Queendom, Koboldt gets into the nitty-gritty of what makes them work. DAN KOBOLDT: I love a good heist movie. It probably says something about me that my favorite film genre involves cleverly stealing […]
The Big Idea: R.R. Virdi
Posted on August 18, 2022 5 Comments
All legends have an origin. Author R.R. Virdi tells us a bit about how stories change, shift, and adapt over time in the Big Idea for his newest novel, The First Binding. R.R. VIRDI: Something I wanted to tackle with The First Binding is the nature of stories: how they’re created, how they travel, change their […]
The Big Idea: Kate Heartfield
Posted on August 17, 2022 3 Comments
Author Kate Heartfield brings us an original story based in the wildly popular videogame series Assassin’s Creed universe. Come along as she unwinds the history of her newest novel, The Magus Conspiracy. KATE HEARTFIELD: Queen Victoria survived eight attempts on her life over the course of her reign, by seven assassins (one guy tried twice). […]
The Big Idea: Robin C. M. Duncan
Posted on August 10, 2022 5 Comments
Writers often use what they experience in their lives in their fiction; for Robin C.M. Duncan, a particular medical issue gave him an insight that informed his novel The Mandroid Murders. What was it and how did it have an impact on the writing? Read on. ROBIN C. M. DUNCAN: I began writing my novel […]
The Big Idea: Naseem Jamnia
Posted on August 9, 2022 2 Comments
When the odds are stacked against you, life can feel pretty overwhelming. Author Naseem Jamnia gives us a look into a world with a protagonist who has more than their fair share of hardships. Follow along in their Big Idea for their newest novel, The Bruising of Qilwa. NASEEM JAMNIA: I frequently rant about the […]
The Big Idea: Sarah Henning
Posted on August 8, 2022
In author Sarah Henning’s third and final installment of her The Kingdoms of Sand & Sky novels, The King Will Kill You, we’re taken on a journey through what real change looks like, and are shown how it is both quick and slow at the same time. SARAH HENNING: I’m extremely lucky that this is my third […]
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