Debut Author Podcasts
 Each Debut Author Podcast is a conversation between our moderator Maggie Smith and a debut women's fiction author.
Maggie Smith, a member of WFWA since 2015, hosts our podcast. Her debut novel, TRUTH AND OTHER LIES, released in March 2022 by Ten 16 Press, was the winner of our 2023 Star Award for Debut Fiction and she indie published her second book, a psychological suspense called BLINDSPOT, in May 2024. She blogs on writing-related topics for the Rocky Mountain Fiction Association and serves as the Managing Editor of the Chicago Writer’s Association’s on-line literary publication The Write City E-Zine. A confirmed workshop junkie and avid Instagrammer, Maggie makes her home in Milwaukee.
If you are a WFWA member and would like to submit your debut women's fiction for podcast consideration, please visit our submissions page.
Latest Podcast Episode
Debut Author Podcast: Marcy Lane
 
Marcy Lane writes character-driven fiction rooted in the quiet resilience of ordinary people navigating extraordinary challenges. Her debut novel, A Mercy of Widows (2023), explores grief, assisted dying, friendship and second chances—drawing on her lived experience of losing two life partners to cancer. After a long career leading a local charity, she turned to fiction in early 2021, diving headfirst into workshops, retreats and critique groups with a beginner’s mindset and a deep curiosity for craft.
Born to parents with itchy feet, Marcy grew up as an army brat, living across Canada, the UK, and Germany—experiences that lend authenticity to her settings. Today, she lives in a small cottage in southwestern Ontario with her two opinionated dogs, Bug and Lucy. She draws inspiration from art supplies, Lake Erie’s moods, and the layered history of her adopted community. She’s currently working on a cozy mystery set in Erie Bluff, a fictional lakeside town steeped in small-town warmth and buried secrets.
Previous Podcasts
| First Name | Last Name | Debut Title (click for podcast) |
|
|---|
|
Marcy
|
Lane |
A Mercy of Widows |
|
|
Rosey
|
Lee |
Gardins of Edin |
 |
|
Lorraine
|
Norwood |
Solitary Sparrow |
 |
|
Beth
|
Uznis Johnson |
Coming Clean |
 |
|
Kathryn
|
Dodson |
Tequila Midnight |
 |
|
Raven
|
West |
Vashti's Daughter |
 |
|
Marie
|
McCurdy |
The Wolf Queen |
 |
|
Sheila
|
Athens |
Neena Lee Is Seeing Things |
 |
|
Gayle
|
Brown |
A Deadly Game |
 |
|
Olivia
|
Sparrow |
Secret of the Sassafras |
 |
| Amy |
Hagstrom |
The Wild Between Us |
 |
|
Kerry
|
Fryar Freeman |
Sedona |
 |
|
Karen
|
Klink |
At What Cost, Silence? |
 |
|
KJ
|
Fieler |
Shadow Runner |
 |
|
Janie
|
Emaus |
The Advice Columnist |
 |
|
Cheryl
|
Walsh |
Unequal Temperament |
 |
|
Ann Marie
|
Jackson |
The Broken Hummingbird |
 |
|
Deborah
|
King |
Glory Bishop |
 |
|
Lynne
|
Golodner |
Woman of Valor |
 |
|
Delise
|
Torres |
One Tough Cookie |
 |
|
Kristin
|
Kisska |
The Hint Of Light |
 |
| Nigar |
Alam |
Under The Tamarind Tree |
 |
| Joanna |
Monahan |
Something Better |
 |
| Cindy |
Maynard |
Esperanza's Way |
 |
| Barbara |
Dullaghan |
Secrets In The Hollow
|
|
| Donna |
Norman-Carbone |
All That Is Sacred
|
 |
| JJ |
Elliott |
There Are No Rules For This
|
 |
| Tracey |
Buchanan |
Toward The Corner Of Mercy And Peach
|
 |
| Rachel |
Corsini |
Sushi And Sea Lions |
 |
| Dorette |
Stover |
Tales Of The Mistress |
 |
| Kelly |
Huston |
Tex Miller Is Dead |
 |
| Jane |
Rubin |
In The Hands Of Women |
 |
| Hope |
Gibbs |
Where The Grass Grows Blue |
 |
| Michelle |
Paris |
New Normal |
 |
| Amanda |
Speights |
Love's Arrival |
 |
| Laurie |
Beach |
The Firefly Jar |
 |
| Gabi |
Coatsworth |
A Beginner's Guide to Starting Over |
 |
| Feisty Deeds |
Anthology |
Feisty Deeds |
 |
| Cynthia |
Bogard |
A History of Silence |
 |
| Barbara |
Bellesi Zito |
Lucky Stiff |
 |
| Kyle Ann |
Robertson |
White Picket Fences |
 |
| Patricia |
Bernstein |
A Noble Cunning |
 |
| Special Episode |
2023 Star Award Finalists |
Erin Litteken, Lyn Liao Butler, Anna E. Collins |
|
| Susan |
Carew |
Take The Plunge |
 |
| Heidi |
McIntyre |
Sea Magic |
 |
| Kimberly |
Young |
In The Event of Death |
 |
| Lisa |
Williams Kline |
Between the Sky and the Sea |
 |
| D. |
Liebhart |
House on Fire |
 |
| D.K. |
Silver |
The Weight of Flowers |
 |
| Annie |
Cathryn |
The Friendship Breakup |
 |
| Audrey |
Burges |
The Miniscule Mansion of Myra Malone |
 |
| Kimberly |
McMillan |
Never Enough Time |
 |
| Caitlin |
Avery |
Life of Cyn |
 |
| Barbara |
Miller |
When You See Her |
 |
| Allyson |
Rice |
The Key to Circus-Mom Highway |
 |
| Roxana |
Trabulsi |
Of Mud & Honey |
 |
| Brynn |
Brynn Barineau |
Jaguars and Other Game |
 |
| Patricia |
Hudson |
Traces |
 |
| Kathy |
Maresca |
Porch Music |
 |
| Georgia |
Day |
Of Sand and Bone |
 |
| Amy |
Watson |
Closer to Okay |
 |
| Linda |
Moore |
Attribution |
 |
| Karen |
Heenan |
Coming Apart |
 |
| Wendy |
Adair |
The Broken Hallelujah |
 |
| Gloria |
Mattioni |
California Sister |
 |
| Nancy |
Yeager |
When We Were Friends |
 |
| Anastasia |
Zadeik |
Blurred Fates |
 |
| Suzanne |
Moyers |
'Till All These Things Be Done |
 |
| Judith |
Turner-Yamamoto |
Loving the Dead and Gone |
 |
| Jacqueline |
Boulden |
Her Past Can't Wait |
 |
| Carol |
Van Den Hende |
Orchid Blooming |
 |
| Tamatha |
Cain |
Song of the Chimney Sweep |
 |
| L |
Maristatter
|
Tiny Tin House |
 |
| C.J. |
McGroarty |
Clara in a Time of War |
 |
| Leslie |
Kain |
Secrets in the Mirror |
 |
| |
Special Episode |
WFWA's 10th Anniversary |
 |
| Adele |
Holmes |
Winter's Reckoning |
 |
| Carol |
Dunbar |
The Net Beneath Us |
 |
| Angela |
Cairns |
Touch |
 |
| Sharon |
Peterson |
The Do Over |
 |
| Dianne |
Braley |
The Silence in the Sound |
 |
| Rita |
Rowe |
Becoming Ruthless |
 |
| Maggie |
Ginsberg |
Still True |
 |
| Carolyn |
Clarke |
And Then There's Margaret |
 |
| D.F. |
Kennedy |
The Truth |
 |
| Staci |
Greason |
All the Girls in Town |
 |
| Lisa Williamson |
Rosenberg |
Embers on the Wind |
 |
| |
Special Episode |
WFWA Founders |
 |
| Nina |
Wachsman |
The Gallery of Beauties |
 |
| Chris |
Posti |
Falling Apart, Falling for You |
 |
| E.J. |
Tanda |
Queen of Secrets |
 |
| Karla |
Huebner |
In Search of the Magic Theater |
 |
| Jen |
Craven |
Best Years of Your Life |
 |
| Robin |
Maass |
The Walled Garden |
 |
| Jody |
Herpin |
Relative Consequences |
 |
| Carol |
Orange |
A Discerning Eye |
 |
| Suzanne |
Mattaboni |
Once In a LIfetime |
 |
| Linda |
MacKillop |
The Forgotten Life of Eva Gordon |
 |
| Grace |
Marcus |
Visible Signs |
 |
| RLynn |
Johnson |
Cry of the Heart |
 |
| Janis |
Daly |
The Unlocked Path |
 |
| Erin |
Litteken |
The Memory Keeper of Kyiv |
 |
| Melanie |
Mitzner |
Slow Reveal |
 |
| Karen |
Winn |
Our Little World |
 |
| Judith |
Brenner |
The Moments Between Dreams |
 |
| Eileen |
Brill |
A Letter in the Wall |
 |
| Kimberly |
Nixon |
Rock Bottom, Tennessee |
 |
| Kris |
Spisak |
The Baba Yaga Mask |
 |
| Zoe |
Disigny |
The Art of Traveling Strangers |
 |
| Sarah |
Branson |
A Merry Life |
 |
| Maggie |
Giles |
The Things We Lost |
 |
| Jen |
Gilroy |
The Sweetheart Locket |
 |
| J. Marie |
Rundquist |
All I'm Asking |
 |
| Sita |
Romero |
Words We Cannot Say |
 |
| Judy |
Lannon |
Nine Days |
 |
| Lisa |
Roe |
Welcome to the Neighborhood |
 |
| Erin |
Flanagan |
Deer Season |
 |
| Shirley B. |
Novack |
The Story Of... |
 |
| Kathy |
Strobos |
Partner Pursuit |
 |
| Harriet |
Cannon |
Exiled South |
 |
| Tammy |
Harrow |
All the Salt in the Sea |
 |
| Kerry |
Chaput |
Daughter of the King |
 |
| Cheryl |
Corriveau |
The Demanding River |
 |
| Tonya |
Mitchell |
A Feigned Madness |
 |
| Kimberly |
Sullivan |
Three Coins |
 |
| Dawn |
Hogan |
Unbroken Bonds |
 |
| Georgina |
Key |
Shiny Bits in Between |
 |
| Kelley |
McNeil |
A Day Like This |
 |
| Joani |
Elliott |
The Audacity of Sara Grayson |
 |
| Maan |
Gabriel |
After Perfect |
 |
| Luisa |
Ramondo |
Beyond the Cobblestones |
 |
| JoAnn |
Catania |
A Scarcity of Virgins |
 |
| Judy |
Stanigar |
Marika's Best Laid Plan |
 |
| Pamela |
Stockwell |
A Boundless Place |
 |
| Kalyn |
Fogarty |
What We Carry |
 |
| Paulette |
Stout |
Love Only Better |
 |
| Cherie L. |
Genua |
Greetings from Tucson |
 |
| Rebecca |
Campbell |
Sandalwood |
 |
|
|
Special Podcast Episode with Star Award/Debut Finalists |
 |
| Julia |
Brewer Daily |
No Names to Be Given |
 |
| Sarah |
Adlakha |
She Wouldn't Change a Thing |
 |
| Karen |
Martin |
Dancing the Labyrinth |
 |
| C. |
D'Angelo |
The Difference |
 |
| Penny |
Haw |
The Wilderness Between Us |
 |
| Elizabeth |
de Veer |
The Ocean in Winter |
 |
| Julee |
Balko |
The Things We Keep |
 |
| Lyn Liao |
Butler |
The Tiger Mom's Tale |
 |
| Amanda |
Johnson |
East of Manhattan |
 |
| Kristina |
Parro |
Lucky: A Novel |
 |
| Amanda Jane |
Schiller |
Wicked Games and Wasted Years |
 |
| Maggie |
Smith |
Truth and Other Lies |
 |
Mary
|
Camarillo |
The Lockhart Women |
 |
| Tavi Taylor |
Black |
Where Are We Tomorrow? |
 |
Jenn
|
Bouchard |
First Course |
 |
| Kathleen M. |
Basi |
A Song For The Road |
 |
| Kris |
Clink |
Goodbye, Lark Lovejoy |
 |
Margaret
|
Rodenberg |
Finding Napoleon |
 |
| K. Blanton |
Brenner |
Appaloosa Sky |
 |
| Jennifer |
Jensen |
The Vice |
 |
| Kristi |
Lee |
The Worst Thing I Could Do |
 |
| Kate |
Allen |
Fear of Flying |
 |
| Dorothy |
Staley |
Bear Woman Rising |
 |
Leslie A.
|
Rasmussen |
After Happily Ever After |
 |
Elissa Grossell
|
Dickey |
The Speed of Light |
 |
Libby
|
Hubscher |
Meet Me In Paradise |
 |
| Debra |
Thomas |
Luz |
 |
| Sarah |
Penner |
The Lost Apothecary |
 |
Jill
|
Caugherty |
Waltz in Swing Time |
 |
Christina
|
Consolino |
Rewrite The Stars |
 |
| KD |
Allbaugh |
Face Down in Rising Sun |
 |
Jeannée
|
Sacken |
Behind the Lens |
 |
Beatryce
|
Ruby |
No Sweeter Touch |
 |
Gina
|
Wilkinson |
When the Apricots Bloom |
 |
| Tiffany |
Meuret |
A Flood of Posies |
 |
| Elizabeth |
Chatsworth |
The Brass Queen |
 |
Shail
|
Rajan |
The Summer Breeze |
 |
| L. |
Bordetsky-Williams |
Forget Russia |
 |
Christina
|
Tsirkas |
The Night Sender |
 |
| Judith |
Teitelman |
Guesthouse for Ganesha |
 |
| Kathy |
Sechrist |
Success is the Best Revenge |
 |
Joyce
|
Yarrow |
Sandstorm |
 |
| Denny S. |
Bryce |
Wild Women and the Blues |
 |
| Kathryn |
Holzman |
Real Estate, A Novel |
 |
| Melissa |
Hunter |
What She Lost |
 |
| Florence Reiss |
Kraut |
How to Make a Life |
 |
| Geeta |
Schrayter |
Reaching Riverdale |
 |
| Densie |
Webb |
When Robins Appear |
 |
| Bhaswati |
Ghosh |
Victory Colony, 1950 |
 |
| KJ |
Dell’Antonia |
The Chicken Sisters |
 |
| Rachel |
Mans McKenny |
The Butterfly Effect |
 |
| Jaye |
Burke |
Venice |
 |
| Grace |
Sammon |
The Eves |
 |
| Madeleine |
Van Hecke |
Once You Know |
 |
| Paula |
Adler |
Return to Magnolia Bloom |
 |
| Angela |
Terry |
Charming Falls Apart |
 |
| Katey |
Schultz |
Still Come Home |
 |
| Sarah |
McCraw Crow |
The Wrong Kind of Woman |
 |
| Mary Helen |
Sheriff |
Boop and Eve’s Road Trip |
 |
| Regina |
Buttner |
Absolution |
 |
| Nguyễn |
Phan Quế Mai |
The Mountains Sing |
 |
| Ehsaneh
|
Sadr |
A Door Between Us |
 |
|
Valerie
|
Taylor |
What's Not Said |
 |
|
Michele
|
Levy |
Anna's Dance |
 |
|
Anita
|
Kushwaha |
Secret Lives of Mothers and Daughters |
 |
|
Barbara
|
Conrey |
Nowhere Near Goodbye |
 |
|
J.L.
|
Cole |
Silver Heights |
 |
|
Susan
|
Payne |
Forever Kind of Woman |
 |
|
A.H.
|
Kim |
A Good Family |
 |
|
Tricia
|
Zacher |
Many a Sudden Change |
 |
|
Amanda
|
Brainerd |
Age of Consent |
 |
|
Lindsey
|
Cook |
How to Bury Your Brother |
 |
|
Stephanie
|
Newman |
Barbarians at the PTA |
 |
|
Pamela
|
Raleigh |
Sandshell Island |
 |
|
Anju
|
Gattani |
Duty and Desire |
 |
|
Tracey
|
Enerson Wood |
The Engineer's Wife |
 |
|
Jacqueline
|
Kang |
The Club |
 |
|
Carol
|
LaHines |
Someday Everything |
 |
|
Diane
|
Barnes |
More Than |
 |
| William |
Schreiber |
Someone To Watch Over |
 |
| Dianne |
Romain |
The Trumpet Lesson |
 |
| Lisa |
Braxton |
The Talking Drum |
 |
| Sherri |
Leimkuhler |
What's Left Untold |
 |
| Lainey |
Cameron |
The Exit Strategy |
 |
| Marolyn |
Krasner |
The Radicals |
 |
| Shawn |
Keller Cooper |
Drawing Down the Moon |
 |
| Elizabeth |
Gauffreau |
Telling Sonny |
 |
| Kelly |
Duran |
Can't Take It Back |
 |
| Jae |
Hodges |
The Rose and the Whip |
 |
| Jamie |
Beck |
If You Must Know |
 |
| Sharina |
Harris |
(Im)perfectly Happy |
 |
| Kathleen |
West |
Minor Dramas and Other Catastrophes |
 |
| Alison |
Hammer |
You and Me and Us |
 |
| Sally |
Suen |
Crystal Cove |
 |
| Diane |
Byington |
If She Had Stayed |
 |
| Donna Koros |
Stramella |
Coffee Killed My Mother |
 |
| Rebecca |
Hodge |
Wildland |
 |
| Barbara Linn |
Probst |
Queen of the Owls |
 |
| Joanne |
Kukanza Easley |
Sweet Jane |
 |
| Linda |
Rosen |
The Disharmony of Silence |
 |
| Michelle |
Davis |
Learning to Bend |
 |
| Kimmery |
Martin |
The Queen of Hearts |
 |
| Sarah |
Robinson |
Every Last Drop |
 |
| Jennifer |
Gold |
The Ingredients of Us |
 |
| Sarah |
Jones |
Summer Squall |
 |
| Lorelei |
Brush |
Uncovering |
 |
| Ellen |
LaCorte |
The Perfect Fraud |
 |
| Leanne |
Treese |
The Language of Divorce |
 |
| Kathleen |
Barber |
Are You Sleeping |
 |
| Judy |
Kundert |
Sky Queen |
 |
| Leslie M. |
Rollins |
Good-Time Girl |
 |
| Marlene |
Adelstein |
Sophie Last Seen |
 |
| Jess |
Woods |
The Process of Fraying |
 |
| Kimberly |
Lynne |
A Pocketwatch, Spray Paint & Morphine |
 |
| Amber |
Cowie |
Rapid Falls |
 |
| Kaela |
Coble |
Friends & Other Liars |
 |
| Suanne |
Schafer |
A Different Kind of Fire |
 |
| Leah |
Decesare |
Forks, Knives and Spoons |
 |
| Erin |
Bartels |
We Hope for Better Things |
 |
| Romalyn |
Tilghman |
To the Stars with Difficulties |
 |
| Jennifer |
Klepper |
Unbroken Threads |
 |
| Leslie Schweitzer |
Miller |
Discovery |
 |
| Sarahlyn |
Bruck |
Designer You |
 |
| Heather |
Frimmer |
Bedside Manners |
 |
| Reyna Marder |
Gentin |
Unreasonable Doubts |
 |
| Megan A. |
Clancy |
A Burden of a Daughter |
 |
| Ann |
Griffin |
Another Ocean to Cross |
 |
| Julie |
Maloney |
A Matter of Chance |
 |
| Johanne |
Levesque |
Trouble & Strife |
 |
| Sally |
Crosair |
Come Back |
 |
| Irene |
Olson |
Requiem for the Status Quo |
 |
| Rachel |
Dacus |
The Renaissance Club |
 |
| Denitta |
Ward |
Somewhere Still |
 |
| Elena |
Mikalsen |
Wrapped in the Stars |
 |
| Eldonna |
Edwards |
This I Know |
 |
| Marianne |
Hansen |
The Unscripted Life of Lizzy Dillinger |
 |
| Carrie |
Mumford |
All But What's Left |
 |
| Barbara Solomon |
Josselsohn |
The Last Dreamer |
 |
| Julie |
Clark |
The Ones We Choose |
 |
| Anna |
Quinn |
The Night Child |
 |
| Jennifer |
Irwin |
A Dress the Color of the Sky |
 |
| Lori |
Henriksen |
The Winter Loon |
 |
| Sweta Srivastava |
Vikram |
Louisiana Catch |
 |
|
