In this episode of "The Pens & The Bookmarks" we’re chatting about raising readers. We’re all moms in this group with different ages of kids. So, we’ll be puzzling over the big question of how to raise readers. Questions like can it be done on purpose? How did we become readers ourselves? How are we raising readers? And some helpful tips from us to all the parents out there trying to raise readers.

In this episode of "The Pens & The Bookmarks" we’re going to be talking about story stakes and their impact on fiction with guest author, Liz Delton. We’re going to be asking questions like: What exactly are stakes? Do you enjoy both types of stories, and do you have a preference? Do stakes affect pacing? Why do readers enjoy stakes in a story?

In this episode of The Pens & The Bookmarks, we're going to be talking about a rather divisive topic: Book Reviews. Who are they for? Why is there such ontroversy? As a podcast of readers AND writers, we feel it’s our duty to address this issue.

In this episode of The Pens & The Bookmarks, we're going to be talking fictional relationships with guest author J.L. Vampa. We're asking questions like do you prefer romantic or platonic relationships, what happens when readers 'ship' characters together, and how all these relationships are managed across multiple books. J.L. Vampa makes the perfect guest for today’s episode because she’s a master at creating fictional relationships that we can’t help but get sucked into.

In this episode on The Pens & The Bookmarks we’re talking about killing off story characters. We’re asking questions like: Who among us is FOR killing off characters? Is anyone staunchly against it? Under what circumstances, as readers, do you think it’s okay? Writers—why do we do it? Are we all just terrible people? And what’s the most memorable character death(s) in a book we’ve read?