GiantPandaPodcast

Today on the podcast I have audiobook narrator Emily Lawrence. Emily is an award winning actor and writer. She’s narrated more than 325 audiobooks, including titles from all Big Five publishers, and has also worked in film, television, and theater. Born and raised in New York, Emily moved to Los Angeles shortly after receiving her BFA in drama from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. She also had the privilege of living in London while studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic...

Today on the podcast I have novelist Elizabeth Leban. She is here today to talk about her new novel ‘Beside Herself’. She is also the author of The Restaurant Critic’s Wife, Not Perfect, and Pretty Little World, which she co-authored with Melissa DePino. In addition, she wrote the young adult novel The Tragedy Paper, published by Knopf, which has been translated into eleven foreign languages, and The Grandparents Handbook, which has been translated into seven foreign languages. Buy ‘ Beside...

Today on the podcast I have YA author Katya de Becerra. This is her second time on the podcast. Go back to episode 6 of the podcast to listen to us talk about her first book ‘What the Woods Keep.’ Today she is here to talk about her new supernatural thriller “Oasis.’ Katya de Becerra was born in Russia, studied in California, lived in Peru, and then stayed in Australia long enough to become a local. She was going to be an Egyptologist when she grew up, but instead she earned a PhD in...

Today on the first episode of the new year I have fantasy author Laurie Forest.. She is the author of THE BLACK WITCH (Book 1.0, The Black Witch Chronicles), THE IRON FLOWER (Book 2.0), WANDFASTED (Book 0.5) and LIGHT MAGE (Book 1.5). Her latest book, THE REBEL MAGES (2019), is a paperback edition of WANDFASTED & LIGHT MAGE bound together. Book 3.0 of The Black Witch Chronicles “ The Shadow Wand’ will be released in June of 2020. Learn more about Laurie http://laurieannforest.com/ Buy ‘The...

Today on the podcast I have Valerie Nieman . Her most recent novel is ‘To the Bones’. Valerie is also the author 3 previous novels: Blood Clay, a novel of the New South, Survivors, a novel about the Rust Belt of the 1970s, and her first book, Neena Gathering a classic in the post-apocalyptic genre. She is also an accomplished poet. Her most recent poetry collection is, Leopard Lady: A Life in Verse. She is also the author of the poetry collections Hotel Worthy, Wake Wake Wake, and a...

Today on the podcast I have novelist Sara Faring. She’s the author of ‘The Tenth Girl’ which is a YA ‘ gothic psychological thriller’ with a twist you won’t see coming. Born in Los Angeles, Sara is a multi-lingual Argentine. After working in investment banking at J.P. Morgan, she worked at Penguin Random House. She holds degrees from the University of Pennsylvania in International Studies and from the Wharton School in Business. She currently resides in New York City. “The Tenth Girl’ is her...

Today on the podcast I have novelist Kate Hope Day. She’s here to talk about her debut book “If, Then” The novel is about four neighbors in the mountain haven of Clearing, Oregon, who find their lives upended when they begin to see themselves in a parallel reality. At first the visions are relatively benign, but they grow increasingly troubling--and in some cases, frightening. On today’s episode we talk about alternate selves, alternate timelines and counterfactuals. She shares the genesis...

Today on the podcast I have premiere pet photographer Lori Fusaro. Lori collaborated with writer Laura T. Coffey to put out the book “My Old Dog: Rescued Pets with Remarkable Second Acts” Lori works as a staff photographer at Best Friends Animal Society-Los Angeles and runs her own business, Fusaro Photography, whose clients include DreamWorks Studios, Paramount Pictures and many animal-rescue organizations. She also serves on the advisory council for HeARTs Speak, a group that connects...

Today on the Podcast I have novelist Layne Fargo. She’s here to talk about her debut psychological thriller ‘Temper’ which is set in the Chicago Theater community. Layne has a background in theater and library science. She’s a Pitch Wars mentor, a member of the Chicagoland chapter of Sisters in Crime, and the co-creator of the podcast Unlikeable Female Characters. On today’s episode we learn about the real-life incident that inspired ‘Temper’. We also talk about the Chicago theater scene and...

Today on the podcast I have YA author Kelly Devos. Her newest novel ‘Day Zero’ is out now. She’s a second time guest. Listen to episode 27 of the podcast to hear her talk about her fantastic first book ‘Fat Girl on a Plane’, which was named one of the ‘50 Best Summer Reads of All Time’ by Reader’s Digest magazine. On today’s episode we talk about her new book and she tells us what’s coming after the ‘Day Zero’ duology. She talks me into visiting Arizona, and we discuss the end of library...

Today’s guest is novelist Laura Taylor Namey. Laura is a Cuban-American Californian who lives in San Diego. She’s here to talk about her debut YA novel The Library of Lost Things . On today’s episode we talk about her former life as a elementary school teacher and how she preferred to teach ‘through literature.' We discuss her writing process and she tells she’s a not a plotter or a pantser but a 'Planster" She shares that she doesn’t outline; however she does write extensive characters bios...

Today on the podcast I have author Melanie Golding speaking about her debut novel, the thriller ‘Little Darlings’, soon to be a major motion picture. Melanie is a UK based author with a wide range of interests, including music and folklore. https://www.indiebound.org/search/book?keys=little+darlings https://www.melaniegolding.com/ Podcast theme music ‘In Retrospect’ by Black Market Karma http://www.blackmarketkarma.com/black-market-karma Visit our website at...

Today on the podcast I have novelist Laura Sims. She’s the author of the psychological thriller ‘Looker.” Sims has also published four books of poetry, including, most recently, Staying Alive; her first poetry collection, Practice, Restraint, was the winner of the 2005 Fence Books Ottoline Prize. In 2014, she edited Fare Forward: Letters from David Markson. On the episode today we delve into her transition from writing poetry to writing narrative fiction. We discuss her love of the ‘Walking...

Today on the podcast I have novelist Wendy Walker. Her latest novel is the psychological suspense tale ‘The Night Before’. She is also the author of ‘All is Not Forgotten’ and ‘Emma In The Night’. On today’s episode we talk about her transition to from writing women’s fiction to psychological thrillers. She speculates why so many lawyers or former lawyers are good at writing suspense novels. In addition she tells us a lot of her next book and we talk quite a bit about online dating and how...

Today on the podcast I have author, screenwriter and director Shamim Sarif speaking to me from London. She’s here to talk about her new novel ‘The Athena Protocol’ which is an all-female contemporary action thriller. Her debut novel ‘The World Unseen’ was inspired by her family’s South African Indian heritage. The book won a Betty Trask award and the Pendleton May First Novel award. She’s also the author of the novels ‘ I Cant think Straight’ and ‘Despite The Falling Snow.’ Her First 3...

Today on the podcast I have YA novelist Nancy Richardson Fischer. Her newest YA novel is ‘The Speed of Falling Objects’ was released yesterday. Nancy is a returning guest. She was also my guest last year (Episode 20, Nov. 2018) to promote her debut novel ‘When Elephants Fly’, one of my favorite books of 2018. If you enjoy this episode please go back and listen to episode 20, where we talk about her time working for the Circus, writing for LucasArts and about the numerous athlete...

Today on the podcast I have Middle Grade author M. G. Hennessey. She’ s here to talk about her newest novel ‘The Echo Park Castaways’ about a group of foster children who come together and create their own small family as they navigate the LA foster care system Her previous novel was ‘The Other Boy’ about a transgender teens journey towards acceptance. In addition to writing books she mentors teens at the Lifeworks program/LA LGBT Center and volunteers as a Court Appointed Special Advocate...

Today on the podcast I have George Brewington to talk about his debut middle-grade book ‘The Monster Catchers: A Bailey Buckleby Story’ . George writes fantasy stories for both adults and children. His short stories have been included in several anthologies including DARK MAGIC: WITCHES, HACKERS & ROBOTS and PICK YOUR POISON. The sequel to The Monster Catchers- REVENGE OF THE WHIFFLES - arrives on July 14,...

Today on the podcast I have author Victoria Lee. Her debut novel is the YA sci-fi thriller ‘The Fever King’ This is the first book in ‘The Feverwake’ series. Book two ‘The Electric Heir’ will be out in March of next...

Today on the podcast I have author Catherine Mckenzie. Her newest novel is ‘l’ll Never Tell’. Catherine’s previous novels SPIN, ARRANGED, FORGOTTEN, HIDDEN, SMOKE, FRACTURED, and THE GOOD LIAR are bestsellers and have been translated into numerous languages, including French, German, Portuguese, Polish, Turkish, Slovakian and Czech. SMOKE was named one of the Top 100 Books in 2015 by Amazon and one of the Best Books of October 2015 by Goodreads. FRACTURED was named one of the Best Books of...