Why Authors Write

Kyleigh Leddy on "Worse Than Strangers"

In this sparkling, summer-themed episode of Why Authors Write, host Kristie Dickinson sits down with Kyleigh Leddy, author of the memoir The Perfect Other and her debut novel Worse Than Strangers, for a deeply honest, hopeful conversation about creativity, the healing, almost magical power of writing from the heart, and the challenges of making a living as an author.   Kyleigh shares how she craved an escapist fiction project after writing "The Perfect Other" and ended up plotting "Worse Than Strangers" during a single stressful corporate meeting. Set on Nantucket and inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion, the novel follows Rose and Lily Gardner, a mother-daughter duo whose close, funny, and emotionally rich relationship is rooted in Kyleigh’s own bond with her mom. She talks about what it means to “write the version of a place only you can see,” and how her adjacent-to-local view of Nantucket allowed her to show both the glossy beach-read side and its quieter, more introspective depths.   As a licensed therapist and writing instructor, Kyleigh recently helped to design a new Boston College graduate program that combines creative writing with psychological humanities. Kyleigh explores the intersection of psychology and storytelling—how concepts like theory of mind, mental health, and self-knowledge naturally live on the page. She also opens up about creative self-doubt, rejection, and how she has learned to reframe failure as redirection. From the line, “There’s nothing more irresponsible than ignoring a dream,” to her belief that writing contains a kind of magic that can manifest change in our lives, Kyleigh offers both practical insight and soulful encouragement to aspiring authors. Kristie also digs into Kyleigh’s experience with adopting productive writing tools (hello, Scrivener), her strategy of developing multiple income streams, and why play—not rigid discipline—is at the heart of sustaining a long-term writing life.   Highlights & Insights * How a bad corporate day birthed a Nantucket beach novel * Turning lived experience into layered, fictional characters * Blending mental health, psycho-education, and character-driven fiction * Navigating self-doubt, rejection, and “investing in luck” * Practical talk: money, advances, and building sustainable income as a writer

Jessica Keener on Evening Begins the Day

Why Authors Write host Mary J. Cronin welcomes Jessica Brilliant Keener to discover why emotional betrayal and broken trust were issues that haunted her while writing Evening Begins the Day. Keener shares how her interest in fractured family relationships, marital infidelity, and the complexity of human motives became the emotional core of this book. Rather than lean on clichés about leaving a relationship or drawing a line, she digs into the complicated reasons people hurt each other deeply, then stay connected for better or worse. A turning point in writing Evening Becomes the Day was Keener’s discovery of the counting of the Omer, a 49‑day spiritual practice from Jewish tradition that she integrated into lives of all her characters in revising the story. She recounts a moving real-life encounter involving her son and a young man named Nate, whose simple act of generosity led her to discover this ritual of reflection and healing. Keener explains how the counting of the Omer became a “lightweight but profound” framework that unites the novel’s characters, from teenagers to deeply wounded adults, without ever becoming heavy-handed or dogmatic Mary invites Jessica to open up about her writing process and the strategies she relies on to complete her novels.  Keener’s discipline includes sitting down to write 500 words, five days a week with no excuses. That routine, however, doesn’t prevent period of self-doubt and agonizing decisions to throw out big sections of her manuscript and start over when early drafts go off track.  She wraps up her reflections on authorship with generous, hard-earned advice for writers at every stage of plot development and publication, including the importance of surrounding yourself with people who truly want your work to thrive. Insights * Exploring themes of broken trust and betrayal * Power of a religous ritual in a secular setting * Wrestling with self-doubt and permission to "make a mess" on the page * Writing routine and process Chapters * 00:00 Exploring Broken Trust and Betrayal * 05:28 Writing Routine and Process * 12:58 Transition to Book Promotion

M.L. Rio's Wild Trip Writing "Hot Wax"

Would you sell your house and spend 18 months living out of your car to make yout road trip story authentic?  That’s what bestselling author M.L Rio did to write her blistering rock‑and‑roll novel "Hot Wax." In this episode of Why Authors Write, host Mary J. Cronin sits down with Rio to unpack the wild, 10‑year journey that brought Hot Wax to readers everywhere. Beyond this novel’s compelling origin story, Mary and M.L. dig into the stubbornness it takes to keep on writing in the face of rejection, falling in love with the story you are meant to tell, and the techniques that work to get a road trip novel over the finish line. Rio begins with brutal honesty about confronting the unforgiving nature of the publishing industry when first novels don’t achieve sales projections. She sold her debut novel, *If We Were Villains,” in her early 20s with every reason to think her next book would follow quickly.  Then came the shock; almost no one bought this story about a troupe of Shakespearean actors in the UK. After a trickle of dismal sales, her publisher lost interest, and the offers for her next book project evaporated.  Rio looks back and remembers absorbing the idea that her writing career was likely over.  She returned to academia, earning a doctorate in literature and kept on writing in the margins of a life built around scholarship and survival. Then, in a fiction-worthy twist of fate, during the pandemic Rio’s first book became a viral sensation on TikTok, and sales surged. Suddenly, Rio’s debut novel was an international phenomenon and she was back in demand as publishers reached out to ask about her work in progress. Rio insisted her next book had to be Hot Wax: a propulsive, emotionally charged story of a mid‑list band clawing its way across an American landscape of dive bars, bad gigs, and fraught relationships. That’s when she decided to live her fictional band’s story, driving from city to city, visiting second-rate music venues, smoky bars, and greasy spoons. She calls herself a “method writer” meaning that she is someone who needs to get as close as possible to the world she’s building on the page. That risky decision to spend so much time on the road, followed by years of revision, rethinking, and rewriting almost derailed her second book.  After 10 years in the making, publisher interest had turned elsewhere and she faced an agonizing wait for a contract.  Rio’s advice to young writers and aspiring authors of all ages is two-fold: First, “don’t rush into publication.”  Worthwhile writing requires authenticity, conviction, and willingness to keep revising until you get it right.  Great fiction is hard - -and she believes that’s how it should be. Second, as a novelist who has learned plenty about the challenges of getting into print and the need to sell books as well as create them, Rio urges every author to spend time learning how the publishing industry actually works.  Its advice born of early success, flame-out, and a hard-earned comeback.   Insights and HIghlights * Debut authors can come back from early rejection to find a loyal audience * Writing takes time and should not be rushed * Be authentic; write what you believe * Understanding the publishing industry is crucial for success and long-term survival as an author Chapters * 00:00 The Wild 10 Year Path to Writing and Publishing Hot Wax

Chrisopher Mirabile on The Washashore and Its Hero

What convinces a lifelong entrepreneur and venture investor to pivot from business success to become a full time mystery writer? In this episode of Why Authors Write, Christopher Mirabile tells Mary J. Cronin what inspired him to create Silas Lopez as a quirky and deeply decent outsider detective hero in “The Washashore.”  Mirabile opens up about applying his entrepreneur’s mindset to a career pivot into full-time fiction writing, his decision to launch a new mystery series set in Provincetown and Cape Cod, and how falling in love with his book’s main characters is an unexpected bonus. Takeaways * Career Pivot: Christopher transitioned from a successful career as an investor to a full-time author, driven by a desire to write fiction and explore new creative endeavors. * Writing Process: Christopher's writing process involves meticulous editing, dialogue-driven storytelling, and the development of characters and plot arcs over multiple books. Chapters * 00:00 Writing Process and Character Development * 13:32 Lessons Learned and Future Plans * 19:40 Book Promotion and Writing Business

Chloe Howarth on Heap Earth Upon It

Chloe Michelle Howarth, author of 'Heap Earth Upon It,' discusses drawing her inspiration from the Irish countryside, the process of researching historical settings, crafting multiple character perspectives, and exploring the theme of obsession in her latest book. The conversation delves into the creative process, sibling dynamics, and upcoming projects, offering insights into the author's writing journey. In this episode of Why Authors Write host Sara Stanton explores how bestselling novelist Chloe Michelle Howarth deals with the theme of obsession in “Heap Earth Upon It.”  Set in a fictional rural Irish town in 1965, the novel follows the O’Leary siblings—Tom, Anna, Jack, and Peggy—as they arrive in Ballycray seeking a new beginning, only to find that old secrets and dangerous fixations don’t stay buried for long. Drawing from her upbringing in West Cork, Chloe anchors her characters in the drizzly winters, eerie quiet, and isolated landscapes of rural Ireland to create the perfect backdrop for a gothic tale steeped in sapphic obsession, family tension, and identity. She and Sara dig into the craft of telling a story about obsession from multiple points of view, with each character completely convinced that their version of events is the core truth.  Chloe and Sara explore why 1960s Ireland—especially rural Ireland—was the right era for this novel. Far from the image of the swinging ’60s, Chloe points out that Irish social change and counterculture arrived much later. She wanted to place a queer protagonist in a time and place with no language, references, or community for her queerness, forcing that self‑discovery to happen in a near vacuum. To pull this off, Chloe relied heavily on the RTÉ archives, immersing herself in contemporary radio and television to capture what people were hearing, gossiping about, and angered by in that exact moment. Craft-wise, the novel is told through four distinct points of view—Tom, Anna, Jack, and Betty—and Chloe was determined that each voice feel truly separate. She even wrote each character in a different color ink to remind herself “drop into” their perspective, ensuring they didn’t all sound like variations of her own voice. The complexity of aligning their timelines, secrets, and emotional arcs was, she admits, a major editorial challenge—but also one of the most satisfying parts of making the book. Chloe owns up to enjoying centering her book on obsession and delving into the dysfunctional sibling relationships that sharpen into crisis in the course of her book.  “These characters are obsessive people, and they’re like that from the start… the brothers get away with it because their obsessions are more socially acceptable, even when their behavior is just as extreme.” Takeaways * Setting as Inspiration * Researching Historical Settings * Gothic storytelling * Sibling dynamics and perspectives on obsession Chapters * 00:00 Exploring the Theme of Obsession