Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk chat with Mimi Herman, author of The Kudzu Queen, and Dale Neal, author of Kings of Coweetsee, about Southern fiction, the "seeds" of literary work, and the research and inspiration required to make them "grow." Joi

The past is never past (Faulkner) - Southern Fiction and Sour Mash Writers at Regal

Mar 10th, 2023 56m 38s

Join us for a deep dive into Southern fiction and Regal House's Sour Mash series with Marjorie Hudson, author of Indigo Field, and Culley Holderfield, author of Hemlock Hollow. Thanks for listening! Browse our catalog and follow us on Twitter,

Writer as Recording Artist: Power and Empathy in Fiction

Oct 17th, 2022 43m 11s

We welcome Roxanne Doty, author of Out Stealing Water, and Amy L. Bernstein, author of The Protero Complex, to our podcast to discuss Writers as Recording Artists: Power and Empathy in Fiction. Novelists writing of their contemporary world are

Crossing Boundaries in YA and MG Fiction

Sep 26th, 2022 51m 2s

One of the most common themes in literature for young people is boundaries crossed—in friendship and family. Young people are changing rapidly, and they often find it very hard to know their own boundaries, or when they've crossed the boundari

Rural Settings: The Rich Opportunity for World Building with Non-Binary Characters

Aug 17th, 2022 52m 49s

Gary Eldon Peter, author of The Complicated Calculus (and Cows) of Carl Paulsen, and Valerie Nieman, author of In the Lonely Backwater, join us to discuss the rich opportunity for YA fiction world building with non-binary characters in rural se

Middle Grade Fiction: Empowering Young Readers

Apr 13th, 2022 1h 1m

Ginger Park, author of The Hundred Choices Department Store, Frank Morelli, author of Breaking News, and Diana Renn, author of Trouble at Turtle Pond join us for a lively discussion about trends, gatekeepers, and the authenticity of voice in mi

Writing About Mortality

Mar 10th, 2022 56m 27s

We are delighted to welcome Michele Herman, author of Save the Village, Laraine Herring, author of A Constellation of Ghosts: A Speculative Memoir with Ravens, and David R. Roth, author of The Femme Fatale Hypothesis to discuss mortality in lit

Education in Literature

Jun 28th, 2021 53m 55s

M.B. McLatchey‘s memoir Beginner’s Mind and Kevin McIntosh‘s novel Class Dismissed address similar educational themes and explore some of the same tensions in and out of the classroom. M.B. McLatchey and Kevin McIntosh will be joining Jaynie Ro

Navigating the Indie Publishing Scene with Jon Sealy, founder of Haywire Books & author Heather Bell Adams

May 19th, 2021 1h 1m

Jon Sealy, founder of Haywire Books and author of The Edge of America, The Whiskey Baron, So You Want to Be a Novelist, and The Merciful and Heather Bell Adams, author of Maranatha Road and The Good Luck Stone (published by Haywire Books),

All Hail the Mighty Underpup: Writing the Underdog Hero in Children’s Literature

Mar 18th, 2021 1h 1m

In anticipation of the release of our 2019 Kraken Book Prize-winning title, Thomas Creeper and the Gloomsbury Secret, J.R. Potter will be joining us on A Conspiracy of Lemurs to chat about would-be heroes in crisis, heroes who have nothing to

The Impact of the Pandemic on Writers, Artists, and the Creative Community:

Mar 9th, 2021 49m 49s

Joey Garcia and Joni Renee Whitworth, contributors to the upcoming upcoming release (Her)oics: Women’s Lived Experiences During the Coronavirus Pandemic, will be joining us to discuss the impact of the pandemic on their experience and work as

Surviving Racism in a Global Pandemic: Being Black or Brown in America during the Coronavirus

Feb 23rd, 2021 43m 58s

Alicia Mosley and Ella deCastro Baron, contributors to the upcoming release (Her)oics: Women’s Lived Experiences During the Coronavirus Pandemic, and Joanell Serra, coeditor of (Her)oics, (Pact Press, March 2021) will discuss their contributed

Political Literature: The Personal and the Political, an Intertwining Narrative

Oct 29th, 2020 51m 3s

Julie Wittes Shlack, author of This-All-at-Onceness, joins Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk to discuss and ins and outs of political literature – how it may be differentiated from propaganda, it’s role in society, and its ability to endure and reso

The Road to Redemption: Landscape, Culture, and Catastrophe As Catalysts For Character Development

Sep 25th, 2020 1h 3m

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk spend an hour with two of our Southern Mash Literature Series authors: Rebecca Baum, author of Lifelike Creatures, and Karol Hoeffner, author of Knee Deep. Together we discuss the use of landscape, culture, and cata

Traveling in Place – Stories in Which Place takes a Significant Role

Sep 15th, 2020 45m 13s

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk spend an hour with Jan Alexander, author of Ms. Ming’s Guide to Civilization, and Karen Quevillon, author of The Parasol Flower, discussing the role of place in fiction. Thanks for listening! Browse our catalog and

In a Moment of Madness – Exploring Mental Illness in Gothic Literature

Aug 11th, 2020 53m 40s

Melanie Cossey, author of A Peculiar Curiosity, and Lillah Lawson, author of Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree, join us on A Conspiracy of Lemurs to discuss the role of madness in Victorian and Southern Gothic literature. Thanks for listening!

Truth in Historical Fiction

Jul 15th, 2020 55m 31s

Karen Quevillon, author of The Parasol Flower, and Mitchell James Kaplan, author of Into the Unbounded Night, join Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk to discuss the writing of history vs. the writing of “tales.” As a novelist, are you working with “o

Girlz 'n the Hood with Dr. Mary Hill-Wagner

Jun 27th, 2020 52m 2s

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk are delighted to welcome Dr. Mary Hill-Wagner to join us on A Conspiracy of Lemurs to discuss the inspiration behind her upcoming publication, Girlz n’ the Hood: A Memoir of Mama and the challenges she faced in brin

Walking the Tightrope: The Challenges of Memoir

Jun 21st, 2020 58m 56s

On this episode of A Conspiracy of Lemurs, Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk are joined by Jane Bernstein, author of The Face Tells the Secret, and Julie Wittes Schlack, author of This All-at-Onceness. We discuss the inspiration behind their respec

Holding a River & Irreverent Prayers: Martha Kalin & Zack Rogow in Conversation

Jun 12th, 2020 41m 39s

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk welcome Regal House poets, Martha Kalin, the winning recipient of the 2019 Terry J. Cox Poetry Award for her collection How to Hold a Flying River, and Zack Rogow, author of The Irreverent Litanies and the judge of

Historical Fiction Series: Unhealed Wounds—The Legacy of the Civil War, Reconstruction, and Beyond

Jun 5th, 2020 38m 59s

In our first podcast episode of a four-part series devoted to historical fiction, Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk are delighted to welcome Marlin Barton, author of Children of Dust, and Vicki Lane, author of And the Crows Took Their Eyes, as guest

Steven Mayfield: Treasure of the Blue Whale and Writing "Small Town" America

May 22nd, 2020 39m 51s

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk chat with Steven Mayfield, author of Treasure of the Blue Whale, and discuss writing “small town” America, Depression-era fiction, economic anxiety, and the role of “feel-good” novels. Thanks for listening! Browse

Writing Under Lockdown

May 12th, 2020 32m 5s

In this episode of A Conspiracy of Lemurs, a Regal House Publishing podcast, co-hosts Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk discuss writing under lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic. They are joined by four Regal House authors, Kate Murdoch, author

Tackling Challenging Topics in Novels-in-Verse: Mary Sullivan, author of High

May 12th, 2020 48m 36s

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk chat with Mary Sullivan, author of the novel-in-verse, High.Mary Sullivan is the author of Dear Blue Sky, a middle grade novel for which she won the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle Award. Her other novels

(Her)oics: The Women Behind the Anthology

May 8th, 2020 29m 30s

Jaynie Royal and Pam Van Dyk chat with Amy Roost and Joanell Serra regarding their current submission call for the anthology (Her)oics: Women's Lived Experiences During the Coronavirus Pandemic. We are currently accepting submissions for this a