Author Mike Lynch discusses his diverse writing career, creative processes, and the transition from novel writing to screenwriting.

Maggie explores Mike's background as an author of science fiction, romance, and nonfiction. His early works included a nonfiction history of Dublin, California. His science fiction work includes the series of When the Sky Fell, which he co-wrote with author Brandon Barr.

He also co-authored Alcatraz: The Last Escape with Ken Widner, which inspired an Alcatraz podcast and a television project for the Discovery Channel.

His Inspiration stems from "what if" scenarios, societal observations regarding the role of the church, or accidental misinterpretations of words (e.g., the title Mind Writer came from someone suggesting Mind Rider).

Despite working across various genres, certain recurring elements define his body of work. He likes an underdog narrative. His overarching themes involve ordinary people thrust into extraordinary or impossible situations who must navigate challenges to survive intact.

Maggie Lynch interviews author David Starkey, a novelist, poet, and non-fiction writer. His most recent book is The Fairley Brothers in Japan. He is adept at combining humor along with deep emotional situations. He is most known for his poetry and served as Santa Barbara’s 2009-2011 Poet Laureate. David is also the Publisher and Co-editor of Gunpowder Press. Over the past thirty years, he has published eleven full-length collections of poetry with small presses and more than 500 poems in literary journals such as American Scholar, Georgia Review, Prairie Schooner and Southern Review. As an educator, he has written and edited a number of non-fiction books David is also a founding editor of the California Review of Books and the host of Santa Barbara’s Creative Community. You can learn more about him and his books on his website: https://davidstarkey.net/

In this episode I interview Children's mystery book writer, Sherrill Joseph. She is a retired K-12 literacy teacher. Her current work is The Botanic Hill Detectives Mysteries series, written for children ages 9-14. (Though I have to say, some adults will enjoy these as well) She has garnered multiple awards for these books. I won’t list them all but among these awards are: the Mom's Choice Book Awards, the Moonbeam Children's Book Awards, and a Reader’s Favorite Book award.

She says she has been inspired by the children she taught, and she uses her writing to stay connected with "kids who rock." Her stories present responsible, role-model children detective characters who provide readers with a fun mystery to solve and something to learn, while showing that being respectful and helpful citizens can be cool!

She lives in San Diego, California, in a 1928 Spanish Mission Revival bungalow. Her inspirations for her series include her historic neighborhood, the Nancy Drew mysteries she grew up reading, and her unique brain which includes lexical-gustatory synesthesia. We we talk about during the interview. To learn more about sherrill, check out her website at https://sherrilljoseph.com