Try Reading with Laura R. Samotin

New York Times Bestseller, Tiffany D. Jackson joins me on Try Reading this week! Tiffany talks about her childhood love for thrillers, how she knew she'd be an author at the age of four, where she gathers inspiration for her thrillers and horrors, and how she shifted from writing YA to middle grade stories. Tiffany discusses her forthcoming middle grade thriller, Ghost in the Night; how a ghost tour in Georgia inspired the story, why grief in middle grade is important for readers of all ages, what she hopes readers will take away from this book, why it'd make a great narrative podcast, and much more!Tiffany’s Links: linktr.ee/writeinbkTiffany’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/WriteinbkTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

Victoria Wlosok is back on Try Reading this week! She joins me to talk all about the experience of putting her debut out into the world and then we dive into her sophomore novel, Six Must Die! Victoria discusses how past friendship breakups and a love for escape rooms inspired this story, the amount of escape room research she got to do, the daunting journey of writing a second book, what lessons this sophomore journey taught her, why her book would make a great escape room, how I'm the #1 fan of Victoria's debut, and much more! Victoria’s Website: victoriawlosok.comTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

Sydney Langford is back on Try Reading this week! They join me to talk all about their sophomore novel, Someone to Daydream About! Sydney talks about how fanfiction they wrote at 12 inspired this story, how they experienced the sophomore slump with their third novel instead of their second, and why having marginalized characters living amazing lives on the page is so valuable. Sydney and I also discuss why this book would make a great album, we discuss the new music from Harry Styles, how Sydney's slowly collecting 1D members like infinity stones, and much more! Sydney’s Links: linktr.ee/slangwritesTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

In the second half of this two-part interview, Adam Silvera dives into the world of They Both Die at the End. He shares the inception of the world and first book, how it became a series, what it was like writing a book for the series that takes place over a week compared to just 24 hours, and why TBDATE would make a great stage play. Most importantly, Adam reveals the title for the next two books in the series: the first is about Mateo's father and Adam explains how it differs from his previous book, and then Adam teases the "Avengers Endgame" style TBDATE book that follows it! Adam’s Links: linktr.ee/AdamsilveraTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

#1 New York Times Bestselling and life-changing author (for me and many readers), Adam Silvera, is on the podcast this week! Adam joins me for a two-part interview where we dive into how he fell in love with reading, his urge to tell stories, the experience of putting his debut out into the world, being a Barnes and Noble bookseller, his love for comics, and Adam dives into my favorite book of his, What If It's Us. He shares memories from writing the book with Becky Albertalli, how they got two iconic narrators, the uphill journey of writing the sequel, and getting to see Jonathan Groff spit during Hamilton. Don't miss the second half of this interview when it drops on 6/9/26! Adam’s Links: linktr.ee/AdamsilveraTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

Cindy Pham is on Try Reading this week! Cindy joins me to talk all about her debut novel, The Secret World of Briar Rose! Cindy talks about how she found a love for reading after childhood, her long-time love for storytelling and retellings, how she found her way to BookTube, and what led her to her debut novel. She discusses the ways in which her past life experiences influenced this story, how this book taught her things about herself on the writing journey, why it'd make a great animated series, the ways in which she hopes it connects with readers, what it's been like going from BookTube into the author space, and more!Cindy’s Website: readwithcindy.comTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

Try Reading All-Star and icon Laura R. Samotin is back on the pod this week! She's back to talk about all that has happened since debuting and what led her into the horror genre for her forthcoming book, The Way It Haunted Him. Laura discusses how a love for history and archives inspired this novel, how a cat helped sell it, the psychological aspects of writing a locked-room horror, and why it'd make a great theme park ride. Laura and I also rave about Heated Rivalry, obsess over vampires, and plot out an AO3 Heated Rivalry x medieval literature fanfic.Laura’s Links: https://linktr.ee/laurarsamotinTry Reading Links: https://linktr.ee/tryreading

The iconic Keturah Maree, aka K.M. Colley, is on the pod this week! Keturah talks about her childhood love for reading and storytelling, how she met Morgan Freeman as a kid, and how details of her debut novel, The Roaring Ridleys, came from a childhood summer camp. Keturah talks about why she chose to set her book in 1920s New York City, how the video of her pitching the book to a stranger went viral, the importance of having diverse voices on the page, and why her book would make an amazing museum exhibit. Keturah and I discuss Cynthia Erivo's greatness, our favorite thriller shows, and much more!Keturah’s Links: linktr.ee/KeturahmareeTry Reading Links: linktr.ee/tryreading

Erin Baldwin is back on the podcast this week to talk all about the experience of putting her debut novel out into the world and diving into her sophomore novel, Good Luck, Babe! Erin discusses how The Amazing Race inspired this novel, how it feels to have a Chappell Roan song as a title, why representation is so important, especially now, and why there should be a writer's retreat themed off of her book. We talk about how Erin predicted the Heated Rivalry obsession, which Bob's Burgers characters should read Erin's books, and how we are living our own "Rise and Fall of an *East* Coast Princess" lives. Erin’s Links: https://bio.site/erinbTry Reading Links: https://linktr.ee/tryreading

Angela Montoya and Melanie Schubert, two iconic Try Reading All-Stars, are back on the pod this week! Angela and Melanie are back to discuss their most recent joint endeavor: the Jingle These Bells holiday romance anthology! Melanie and Angela discuss what inspired them to create an anthology and they talk about the ups and downs of the creator and editorial journey. We talk about the stories each of us contributed to this book, our favorite holiday romances, and how spicy romance is becoming popularized beyond the book community. Angela’s Links: https://linktr.ee/AngelaMontoyWritesMelanie’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melanie_schubert_writer/Get your copy of Jingle These Bells: https://books2read.comListen to Of the Publishing Persuasion: https://linktr.ee/pubpersuasionTry Reading Links: https://linktr.ee/tryreading