On Episode 61 of The Martin Lastrapes Show Podcast Hour, I enjoyed a great chat with Emily Bleeker, author of the #1 bestselling novel Wreckage.
During my conversation with Bleeker we covered a series of topics, including:
- Emily’s love or sci-fi (especially The X-Files)
- The influence of our parents on our reading
- Emily’s love for classic literature (especially Jane Eyre and Gone with the Wind)
- Teaching creative writing to kids
- Emily's cancer diagnosis at age 24 and how it inspired her to write her first novel
- Literary agents and query letters
- Publishing with Lake Union Publishing
- The gratification of reader feedback
- Working with various editors for each step of Wreckage
- Finding time to write while raising four kids
Of Wreckage, here's what Bleeker's editor, Danielle Marshall, had to say:
"Here’s where my obsessive reading, sharing, reading, sharing cycle began: once they return home, Dave and Lillian fabricate a story about what happened on the island to protect both themselves and their families. Because the truth is...really dark. And when a hard-nosed cable news reporter won’t let the story die, their lies begin to fray around the edges, threatening to destroy everything they struggled so desperately to come home to. Bleeker’s debut has all the spectacle of our fanatical media culture: drama, suspense, secrets, and human interest. Similar to the pact Dave and Lillian made never to reveal what happened, I’ve made a pact with the author not to give anything away to you. But rest assured, I couldn’t stop telling everyone I knew about Wreckage—and I have a feeling you’ll be obsessed, too!"