Calgary writer Theanna Bischoff talks about her new novel SWALLOW, the complexities of sister-sister relationships, and the challenges of writing a book about suicide without alienating potential readers.

Calgary playwright Clem Martini discusses his new collection MARTINI WITH A TWIST, ponders the usefulness of absurdity, and reveals which part of the elephant is the softest one to kiss.

Dianne Meili talks about the process of writing her seminal 1991 collection of elder profiles THOSE WHO KNOW, and revising and updating it for its brand-new 20th Anniversary Edition.

Barb Howard discusses her hilarious new short story collection WESTERN TAXIDERMY, roadside tourist attractions, and the art of back-fat defleshing.

Sarah de Leeuw talks about her new book of poetry GEOGRAPHIES OF A LOVER, the challenges of writing poetry about intimate sexual experiences, and how her work as a geographer informs her depictions of place and landscape. NOTE: This episode contains explicit language that may offend some listeners.

Cassie Stocks talks about her first novel, the delightful comic fable DANCE, GLADYS, DANCE, artistic self-doubt, the genius of Kurt Vonnegut, and her former job as the caretaker of her boyfriend's hydroponic pot factory.

Saskatchewan author Barbara Langhorst talks about her debut poetry collection RESTLESS WHITE FIELDS and the violent real-life incident that inspired it.

Edmonton playwright Stewart Lemoine talks about his history with the Edmonton Fringe Theatre Festival, and the three masterful Fringe plays that make up his new collection WITNESS TO A CONGA AND OTHER PLAYS.

Michael Boughn talks about his new modern-day-Nick-and-Nora-Charles mystery novel BUSINESS AS USUAL, and his unlikely transformation from avant-garde poetry to light-hearted crime fiction.

Calgary author Garry Ryan talks about MALABARISTA, the fifth book in his award-winning series of mysteries featuring indefatigable Calgary cop Detective Lane.

B.C. author Robert Pepper-Smith discusses his new novel HOUSE OF SPELLS, the second installment in the "Wheel Keeper Trilogy" following 2002's THE WHEEL KEEPER, also published by NeWest Press.

Ted Ferguson shares some of the most memorable anecdotes from his new book STRANGE DAYS: AMAZING STORIES FROM CANADA'S WILDEST DECADE, a hugely entertaining evocation of Canada in the 1920s.

Author Alice Zorn (RUINS & RELICS) discusses her new novel ARRHYTHMIA, how she drew upon her day job at a Montreal hospital to create the world of her characters, and the reader who figured out where one of those characters lived so that he could punch him in the face.

Andy Weaver discusses his new poetry collection GANGSON, and how he drew inspiration from Herbert Asbury's classic study of New York City organized crime THE GANGS OF NEW YORK.

Edmonton author Wendy McGrath discusses her poetic new novel SANTA ROSA, the sadness of vanished neighbourhoods, and the challenges of writing literary fiction from the point of view of a child.

Edmonton author Gayleen Froese discusses her new paranormal mystery GRAYLING CROSS, the hugely entertaining sequel to her 2005 NeWest Press title TOUCH.

B.C. author Roy Innes discusses the latest entry in his series of Blakemore/Coswell crime novels, MURDER IN THE CHILCOTIN.

B.C. author Tanna Patterson-Z discusses her gripping new novel BUTTERFLIES IN BUCARAMANGA and the real-life kidnapping incident that inspired it.

First-time Saskatchewan author Myrna Dey discusses her novel EXTENSIONS, which is both a contemporary crime novel and a historical drama.

B.C. author Rosella Leslie (THE GOAT LADY'S DAUGHTER) discusses her new novel DRIFT CHILD.

Calgary playwright Ken Cameron reveals the stories behind the creation of his plays HARVEST, MY MOROCCO, and MY ONE AND ONLY, all of which are included in the new anthology HARVEST AND OTHER PLAYS.