Send us Fan Mail

My guest today is Herb Williams-Dalgart, author of Jingle Boys listed in the Music category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/azuaBStafaI

• Herb's personal origin story behind the novel: named after his grandfather who died in WWII, a man he never knew, which sparked a lifelong fascination with the era.
• How the role of music in wartime, harmony versus the disharmony of war, became the central thematic engine of the novel.
• The surprising historical truth behind the jingle-as-secret-code premise, including Herb's research into declassified military records at the New York Public Library.
• Writing all the jingles and song lyrics himself and what he learned about the craft of songwriting in the process.
• His protagonist Walter Lipkin's anxiety neurosis (stress-triggered fainting) and why a hero whose greatest enemy is his own brain felt both authentic and timely, written as it was during COVID.
• The recurring theme across Herb's work: finding courage in unlikely places, and why that feels both personal and hopeful.
• His screenwriting background (UCLA certificate) and what it gives him as a novelist: cinematic pacing, three-act structure, and crisp, character-revealing dialogue.
• The fascinating true story of the Steinway Victory Vertical, the olive-drab piano the US government authorized for every theater of war, and how it found its way dramatically into the novel.
• Reading from Jingle Boys.
• Herb's take on plotting versus pantsing, and why he calls himself a "paraglider."
• His next project: Everything the Sea Brings, Book 1 of a trilogy set in Northern Ireland, told from the dual perspectives of a lighthouse keeper's wife and a German sailor who washes ashore with secrets.

Read more about Herb Williams-Dalgart on his website: https://www.herbthewriter.com

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out Art In Fiction at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2300+ novels inspired by the arts in 11 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany, A Woman of Note, The Muse of Fire, and The Choir. Find out more on her website.

Send us Fan Mail

My guest today is Chanel Cleeton, author of The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes listed in the Literature category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FN2q5JDLLEk

• Chanel's inspiration for the novel as her love letter to books and a celebration of the power of reading.
• Her passion for exploring more about Cuban American history and her own heritage as the child of Cuban immigrants.
• Use of three time periods in the novel and the role played by the Spanish-American war in 1900, particularly the cultural exchanges between the US and Cuba that took place.
• How the novel feels topical given the current political situation.
• Challenges of writing a triple time novel with three main characters.
• Use of suspense in the novel.
• Which of the three characters (Ava in 1900, Pilar in 1966 and Margo in 2024) Chanel identifies with most.
• Chanel's favorite book (or books)!
• Reading from The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes.
• One thing that Chanel learned from writing this novel that she didn't realize before.
• What Chanel is working on now.

Read more about Chanel Cleeton on her website: https://www.chanelcleeton.com/

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out Art In Fiction at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2300+ novels inspired by the arts in 11 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany, A Woman of Note, The Muse of Fire, and The Choir. Find out more on her website.

Send us Fan Mail

My guest today is Barbara Stark-Nemon, author of Isabela's Way listed in the Textile Arts category on Art In Fiction.

View the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/R-0wUhdrD00

• How Barbara got the idea to write a novel set in the 17th century during the Inquistion: inspiration resulting from a cycling trip in Portugal.
• History of the Inquistion in Europe and how it was not formally ended until 1837.
• Use of embroidery and symbols as a way to communicate while fleeing the Inquistion.
• Value as an author to engage in a character's pursuits (for example, embroidery) as a way to research.
• Barbara shows off the embroidery she did that became the cover of Isabela's way.
• How traveling helps research.
• Plausibility and the role it plays in writing historical fiction.
• Character of Ana in Isabela's Way--a strong woman who is both a healer and a role model.
• Reading from Isabela's Way.
• One thing that Barbara learned from writing this novel that she didn't realize before.
• Writing as a voyage of discovery.
• What Barbara is working on now.

Read more about Barbara Stark-Nemon on her website: https://www.barbarastarknemon.com/

Are you enjoying The Art In Fiction Podcast? Consider giving us a small donation so we can continue bringing you interviews with your favorite arts-inspired novelists. Click this link to donate: https://ko-fi.com/artinfiction.

Also, check out Art In Fiction at https://www.artinfiction.com and explore 2300+ novels inspired by the arts in 11 categories: Architecture, Dance, Decorative Arts, Film, Literature, Music, Textile Arts, Theater, Visual Arts, & Other.

Want to learn more about Carol Cram, the host of The Art In Fiction Podcast? She's the author of several award-winning novels, including The Towers of Tuscany, A Woman of Note, The Muse of Fire, and The Choir. Find out more on her website.