Debut novelist Tara Badstubner joins us on Big Blend Radio's "Toast to the Arts Podcast" as her first novel, "Every Room Remembers" (Sibylline Press), arrives on September 25, 2026.

The novel follows SJ Monroe, an interior designer grieving the sudden death of her husband, and Wyatt, a ghost in a liminal state who must watch in silence as she mourns everything left unresolved in their marriage.

Tara shares the three experiences that sparked the story: anxiety about losing loved ones during COVID, an accident across the street that drew her whole town to mourn, and an extraordinary haunting during a writers' visit to a house in upstate New York.

She talks about why grief calls for treading lightly, how she wrote an imperfect marriage, and the animal signs that appear at pivotal moments in the book, including a black snake, a fox, green beetles, and a Carolina wren. She also tells the story of the bluebird that keeps tapping at her own windows, and takes us to the Osprey House restoration in Beaufort, South Carolina.

Tara reads a passage from the book, and we talk about book clubs, reading through grief, favorite rereads, her writing habits, and advice for first-time novelists.

"Every Room Remembers" is available for pre-order now. A must-read for fans of "Remarkably Bright Creatures" and the film "A Ghost Story."

Visit: https://www.tarabadstubner.com/

Debut author Jane Brookwood joins Big Blend Radio's "Books & Authors" series with Books Forward to talk about her new tarot-themed cozy mystery, "The Hanged Man," out September 15, 2026.

Jane shares how she built the fictional town of Pineridge Hollow, the real cat named Rosie who inspired Fiona's feline familiar, and how her own tarot practice — including a recurring relationship with the Devil card — shaped the book's themes.

The conversation covers tarot symbolism, synchronicity, the archetypes behind her characters, and what's next for the Raven-verse.

The Hanged Man is available for pre-order now. Learn more about Jane Brookwood: https://ravenversebooks.com/

Listen to more Big Blend Radio Books & Authors episodes: https://bigblendmediahouse.com/

Learn more about Books Forward: https://booksforward.com/

Screenwriter-turned-mystery-novelist Jule Selbo joins hosts Matt Cost and BJ Magnani on this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "Pets, Plots & Poisons" Podcast to talk about her award-winning Dee Rommel mystery series — a countdown series that just landed its fifth book, "Six Days." The conversation covers building a lead detective with a below-the-knee amputation, the Falmouth, Maine coffee-shop friendship that shaped her research, a scene-stealing Pomeranian named Prince Zhao, and how Seven Days turned PFAS "forever chemicals" into a plot device. Matt and Jule also trade plotting tips, and BJ closes out the episode with this month's poison: batrachotoxin, harvested from Colombia's golden poison frog.

Learn more: - Jule Selbo: https://www.juleselbo.com - BJ Magnani: https://www.bjmagnani.com - Matt Cost: https://www.mattcost.net - Pets, Plots & Poisons Podcast: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/pets-plots-poisons-podcast