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.
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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
Looking Forward to…
Christopher Mirabile
The Washashore
What convinces a lifelong entrepreneur and venture investor to pivot from business success to become a full time mystery writer?
In this episode of Why Authors Write, Christopher Mirabile tells Mary J. Cronin what inspired him to create Silas Lopez as a quirky and deeply decent outsider detective hero in “The Washashore.” Mirabile opens up about applying his entrepreneur’s mindset to a career pivot into full-time fiction writing, his decision to launch a new mystery series set in Provincetown and Cape Cod, and how falling in love with his book’s main characters is an unexpected bonus.
M. L. Rio
Hot Wax
Would you sell your house and spend 18 months living out of your car to make yout road trip story authentic? That’s what bestselling author M.L Rio did to write her blistering rock‑and‑roll novel "Hot Wax."
In this episode of Why Authors Write, host Mary J. Cronin sits down with Rio to unpack the wild, 10‑year journey that brought Hot Wax to readers everywhere.
Jessica Brilliant Keener
Evening Begins the Day
Why Authors Write host Mary J. Cronin welcomes Jessica Brilliant Keener to discover why emotional betrayal and broken trust were issues that haunted her while writing Evening Begins the Day. Keener shares how her interest in fractured family relationships, marital infidelity, and the complexity of human motives became the emotional core of this book. Rather than lean on clichés about leaving a relationship or drawing a line, she digs into the complicated reasons people hurt each other deeply, then stay connected for better or worse.
Kyleigh Leddy
Worse than Strangers
Susan Donovan Bernhard
Westerly
Emily Franklin
Love & Other Monsters
Anthony Tardiff
The Final System