Why Authors Write features conversations with best-selling authors to discover what propelled them from inspiration to publication. Weekly episodes explore the powerful, emotional moments that shape the books we want to read.
Watch and Listen Now
Our Hosts
Mary J. Cronin, Creator and Host
Brought to you by Mary J. Cronin, entrepreneur, author, creator, researcher, and podcast host. I have always been curious about what compels my favorite authors to dedicate years to writing exactly that book that I can’t stop reading. Now I get to ask them directly on Why Authors Write.
Kristie Dickinson, Co-Host
Kristie is an author, speaker, and musician / songwriter. She worked at Apple advising on product strategy and interface design, and now writes a Substack newsletter teaching creatives how to surprise and delight the world. Besides talking with authors on Why Authors Write, Kristie is hard at work on her debut book — a hybrid memoir / novel with lyrics.
Sara Stanton, Co-Host
Sara is a writer, literary agency assistant, Boston Authors Club Board Member, and, above all, a reader. She delights in the power of a good book and embraces how writing can be used to spark change. She’s especially interested in author voice and unique settings. On Why Authors Write, Sara is excited to learn what drives each author to create and to also help each listener find their new favorite read.
Recent Episodes
Yu-Mei Balasingamchow
Names Have Been Changed
In this episode of Why Authors Write, host Mary J. Cronin talks with Yu-Mei Balasingamchow about the inspiration for her dazzling debut novel Names Have Been Changed, a gripping, propulsive story about identity, exile, and reinvention, told by an anonymous runaway criminal on her underground podcast.
Looking Forward to…
Eric Jay Dolin
The Wreck of the Mentor
What if the survival of helpless, shipwrecked Americans depended on warring tribes of Pacific islanders? Who would live and what sailors would be sacrificed? If this sound like a reality show pitch, think again. In Eric Jay Dolin’s hands, the real-life survivors of this 19th century shipwreck inspired a compelling page-turner about the clash of cultures on remote Pacific islands, with sailors' lives depending on tribal chiefs, promised rewards, daring escapes, and a belated rescue mission ordered by President Andrew Jackson.
Senaa Ahmad
The Age of Calamities
What if famous heroes of the past suddenly transformed into unstable, unsettling, and endlessly surprising characters? In this mind-bending Why Authors Write episode, host Sara Stanton speaks with Senaa Ahmad about her debut short story collection, The Age of Calamities. Senaa unpacks the personal history that inspired her to fuse historical figures, speculative fiction, metafiction, and inspired chaos into an unleashed-brain collection of singular encounters.
