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From rebellion leaders to scream queens and everything in-between, women have shaped sci-fi and fantasy since its inception. Each week Fangrrls founder & managing editor Cher Martinetti, contributing editor and author Preeti Chhibber, and associate editor Courtney Enlow celebrate the countless badass women in geek culture through funny, witty, and unfiltered deep dives into the nerdverse.
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We’re Ashley and Liz, two real-life besties who’ve loved books since we first learned to read, so naturally, we started a podcast! We would say the rest is history but in actuality, it's just the beginning. So come join us in the next chapter of our lives as we introduce ourselves, and laugh our way through the world of books with a focus on Fantasy, Romantasy, and Dark Romance. Of course we have love for all book genres, but those are our absolute favorites! Don't be shy, subscribe! New Pod ...
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The Writing Life

National Centre for Writing

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We’re a podcast for anyone who writes. Every week we talk to writers about their writing journeys and techniques, from early career debuts to self-publishers and narrative designers. We’ve featured Margaret Atwood, Jackie Kay, Sara Collins, Antti Tuomainen, Val McDermid, Sarah Perry, Elif Shafak and many more! The Writing Life is produced by the National Centre for Writing at Dragon Hall in Norwich.
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#StrongWomenWrite is a unique literary organization for female authors who want to Write Better Fight Scenes, Strong Female Characters, and call attention to their work. Our podcast will connect you with women writers at various stages who will share their writing, their journey, & inspire you with tangible ways to create the write-life you desire. Visit our website for more about us, events, or to become a guest or sponsor. Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/stron ...
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Pour Her Stories

Jenae and Emma

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Pour Her Stories is the ultimate book club for women who love a great read, a bold glass of wine, and unfiltered conversations. Hosted by two sisters who share a passion for books and wine, each episode uncorks a carefully paired bottle and dives into stories featuring strong female characters, thrilling twists, and unforgettable moments. Expect deep discussions, honest reactions, and a few sips (or gulps) along the way. Whether you’re here for the book recs, the wine pairings, or just the v ...
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What A Combo

Sony Music Entertainment

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Ever dunked your chips in a milkshake? Or sprinkled Bombay mix over an ice cream? Comedian Fern Brady is inviting some of her famous pals for a feast like no other - tucking into a bunch of the best (and worst) food combos about. Fern Brady is one of Britain’s most exciting comedians – according to The Daily Telegraph she’s the 48th funniest person of the 21st Century! You might know Fern from Taskmaster, Live At the Apollo, or her Sunday Times best-selling memoir Strong Female Character, bu ...
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Every week on Nerd Rage: The Great Debates, your moderator, Marc Abrigo, challenges the funniest stand-up comics, podcasters, and even pro-wrestlers to take sides and square off to settle some of geekdom’s hottest (and often times, weirdest) debates: how many muscle cars does Vin Diesel need to beat Captain America? Is Steven Universe a better frontman than Super Mario? And just what the hell will a lightsaber accomplish in the world of the Matrix? All will be settled -- are you ready to rage?
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Virginia Woolf is one of the most influential and controversial feminine figures in the literary life of the London society. Night and Day is one of her first novels published in 1919 which displays the moral and spiritual issues that people confront. The author herself was an emotionally unstable person, her episodes of mental illness and suicidal depression being recurrent and always brought into the public attention. The novel revolves around the life of the main character, Katherine Hilb ...
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Send us a text According to Miriam Webster, the Bildungsroman is a novel about the moral and psychological growth of a main character. Today, we’re kicking off our Anne of Green Gables bonus episode series with an introduction to the genre, a basic examination of life on Prince Edward Island, the 7th Canadian province where the Anne books primarily…
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Send us a text What time is it? Unhinged would you rather time!! Get to know Liz and Ashley, your wonderfully open-bookish podcast hosts through a series of would you rathers, generally off the rails asks, and smash or passes that don’t hold back. Oh! And this episode is entirely spoiler free! We gathered a collection of would you rather submission…
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In this episode of The Writing Life, award-winning writer Val McDermid shares insights on writing contemporary crime fiction, and the importance of learning patience as a writer. One of the UK’s most accomplished and respected novelists, Val McDermid has sold over 19 million books to date across the globe and is translated into more than 40 languag…
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Send us a text It’s our mid-year one sentence spoiler free book review episode! How is it the middle of 2025? We have no idea how we got here but we know we only did it through a healthy amount of disassociation and yapping… courtesy of books. Stick around if you want to hear 85+ rapid reviews on every single book we’ve read for the podcast, for pe…
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In this episode of The Writing Life, writer and Dragon Hall Cottage resident Wen-yi Lee shares insights into building a writing career, and the process of taking a project from conception to completion. Wen-yi Lee likes writing about girls with bite, feral nature, and ghosts. She is the author of historical fantasy When They Burned the Butterfly an…
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Send us a text We interviewed Penn Cole, we took a deep dive into Spark and Glow of the Everflame, and today we’re continuing on with our deep dive into book 3: Heat of the Everflame. With the first fifteen minutes being spoiler free, and including our basic star and spice ratings! Check out our full Kindred's Curse Saga Playlist | https://www.yout…
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Send us a text Today we’re bringing you a spoiler free (with possibly a teaser or two we’ll warn you about 😉) author interview episode with none other than indie published romantasy, contemporary romance author T.J. Lundin! We’re looking forward to celebrating the upcoming launch of her National Treasure inspired book Among the Cursed Gods, out on …
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In this episode of The Writing Life, prize-winning poet and writer Michael Pedersen shares his experience writing between genres, and how pushing the boundaries of literary categories can enhance your writing. Michael Pedersen is a prize-winning poet and author of the memoir Boy Friends, which was a Sunday Times Critics Choice and shortlisted for t…
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Send us a text "In this episode of Besties and the Books, Liz and Ashley dive deep into Glow of the Everflame, book two in Penn Cole’s Kindred’s Curse Saga. They start off with their spoiler-free reviews, giving the book high praise for character growth, richer world-building, and a masterful slow-burn romance. They give a brief 5 sentence book sum…
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Send us a text What is the good old US of A at its core? Well, we decided to take that magical school bus trip to the center of America and what did we find? Not molten lava, The Statue of Liberty, or even bald eagles like you might suspect. We found hotdogs. And boy, were there many. Today we’re resuming our “Am I the A Hole?!” Holiday Series with…
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In this episode of The Writing Life, prize-winning writer Julia Armfield shares insights on world building in horror fiction, and writing catastrophic and intense circumstances. Julia Armfield's work has been published in Granta, The White Review and Best British Short Stories 2019 and 2021. In 2019, she was shortlisted for the Sunday Times Young W…
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Send us a text "In this episode of Besties in the Books, hosts Liz and Ashley dive into Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole, the first book in the Kindred Curse Saga. As a fresh romantasy read from a New York Times bestselling debut author, this novel blends strong female leads, a compelling magic system, and light feminist themes that set it apart…
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Send us a text Today’s episode is officially our second non fiction / memoir that we’re reviewing on the podcast and a follow up to our “books that made us” series covering our college years. Ashley and Liz both presented five of the books that helped shape our personalities as early 20-something’s in the world, put all the titles into our trusted …
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In this episode of The Writing Life, writers Eleanor Anstruther and Simon K Jones discuss the world of Substack, and how they use the platform to publish and share their work. Eleanor Anstruther is the author of A Perfect Explanation, and A Memoir In 65 Postcards & The Recovery Diaries. Her new novel, In Judgement of Others, is out now. You can fin…
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Send us a text In this episode we’re chatting with none other than THE Penn Cole! Bestselling fantasy romance author of her debut series The Kindred’s Curse Saga, also known as Spark, Glow, and Heat of the Everflame, with Burn of the Everflame on the way! Today’s episode will be completely spoiler free aside from a potential 5 minute spoiler sectio…
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Send us a text Well… Ashley and Liz put a hold on their neverending TBR pile and rearranged the entire podcast schedule to yap with y’all about this book. Silver Elite by “New York Times bestselling author” Dani Francis (🤔) has taken the book world by storm seemingly overnight and had to investigate for themselves with their very first conspiracy e…
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In this episode of The Writing Life, bestselling author André Aciman shares the intricacies of writing romance, from the magic of first meetings to the nuances of portraying older characters falling in love. André is the New York Times bestselling author of Call Me By Your Name, Find Me, The Gentleman From Peru, Out of Egypt, Eight White Knights, F…
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Send us a text "Ashley and Liz interview Chelsea Cole, food blogger and author of A Feast of Thorns and Roses: The Unofficial Cookbook of A Court of Thorns and Roses. Chelsea shares the inspiration behind her ACOTAR-themed cookbook, which creatively brings meals from the beloved fantasy series into real-life kitchens. She discusses her background i…
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Send us a text Today is the epic conclusion of our Fifty Shades of Grey miniseries fondly titled "Fifty Shades of May" series, and boyyy are we excited. Come on this first time journey with us as we do the ultimate book and movie ranking / showdown of the entire trilogy! We give our overall star and spice ratings of the Fifty Shades of Grey book tr…
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Send us a text "In this episode of the Besties and the Books podcast, Liz and Ashley excitedly kick off their first nonfiction memoir feature by diving into Fahrenheit 182 by Mark Hoppus of Blink-182. Longtime fans of the band and deeply connected to the early 2000s pop-punk scene, they reflect on how the book transported them back to their youth, …
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In this episode of The Writing Life, novelist and screenwriter Eimear McBride on the power of language, and the ways literary fiction can evoke emotion and connection. Eimear McBride is the award-winning author of four novels: A Girl is a Half-formed Thing, The Lesser Bohemians, Strange Hotel and The City Changes Its Face. Her debut novel A Girl is…
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Send us a text In this third episode of the Besties in the Books mini-series Fifty Shades of May, hosts Ashley and Liz dive deep into Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James, the final installment of the original Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. They explore how the controversial dark romance series influenced pop culture, the rise of dark romance in mainstr…
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Send us a text What iconic things from millennial “yesteryear” do you miss? We kick off this super nostalgic episode with an ode to simpler times. Let’s take a moment of collective silence for: the mall (in general), Borders Books (and more!), cheap concert tickets (like $50!??), and makeup when it was creative (what a time to be alive!). Our faves…
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Send us a text Guess What? It’s officially grey! We are in it. Oh my! It’s Fifty shades of May over here on the Besties and the Books podcast. Welcome back to our spring mini episode series all about the extremely popular yet widely discredited book series: Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James. We’re officially into book two and things are not exactl…
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Send us a text Welcome to our newest series reading “UnPopular Books by Popular Authors”! Today we’re kicking it off with Sarah J Maas and Catwoman: Soulstealer! ***A huge thank you to The Bookish Queen for Sponsoring this episode!*** **Check out the ultimate bookish shop and use discount code “BESTIEBOOKS15” to save 15% on your order @ https://boo…
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In this episode of The Writing Life, writer Joanna Miller shares her insights into writing strong female characters in historical fiction. Joanna Miller studied English at Exeter College, Oxford and later returned to the University to train as a teacher. After ten years in education, she set up an award-winning poetry gift business. She is an alum …
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Send us a text Guess What? It’s gonna be grey… It is grey! It’s Fifty shades of May over here on the Besties and the Books podcast. Welcome to our spring mini episode series all about the extremely popular yet widely discredited book series: Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James. If you’ve been following along and watched our “Dark Romance Enters the …
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Send us a text Today Ashley and Liz are setting the stage for our mini episode series about the infamous 50 Shades of Grey trilogy which starts this Friday and continues on for five episodes, including the original three books, a surprise bonus book, and a wrap up episode covering the movies and all of our final thoughts! But today, buckle up for a…
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Send us a text Liz and Ashley are locked and loaded and ready to talk about everything This Monster of Mine by Shalini Abeysekara. Today’s episode is the spoiler-y follow up to our spoiler FREE author interview that dropped last month for Shalini’s big romantasy debut! Watch our Author Interview with Shalini Abeysekara here | https://youtu.be/dMoOS…
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Send us a text Today's episode is exactly how it sounds. We read off 1⭐️ reviews of our favorite books, try to get the other person (and you guys!) to guess what it is, then reveal it with its official star rating on Goodreads. We have everything from SJM and The Empyrean to lesser known books involving vampires, shadow daddies, and robots. Dark ro…
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This week on The Writing Life, we’re diving into the world of romantasy — a genre that blends the best of romance and fantasy. Romantasy novels have taken the publishing world by storm in recent years, with sales expected to hit a staggering $610 million in 2024. And on TikTok, the #Romantasy tag has amassed over 800 million views. What is it about…
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Send us a text Today we have a very special spoiler free* interview with romantasy writer and Library Journal’s science fiction / fantasy debut author of the month for February, Shalini Abeysekara! We chat all things This Monster of Mine to celebrate the release of her very first published book! (*Author interviews will always be spoiler free so ev…
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Send us a text Welcome back for our sixth and final episode in Ashley & Liz’s dystopian sci fi episode bonus series: The Hunger Games! We have had the best (and most emotional 😭) time covering these heart-wrenching books at such an appropriate point in our history. We covered the origin of dystopias of all kinds, where the idea and genre came from,…
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Send us a text We’re just girls. And today we’re just girls obsessed with pranks. Stick around if you want to hear about our fave and fail prank edition… if you like hearing about AITA pranks gone wrong…if you’re someone who observes April Fool’s Day, or if you’re someone who simply wants to call out A Holes for their participation in something tha…
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Send us a text Today we’re discussing the highly anticipated brand new book in the Hunger Games world: Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. We go back in time (yet again!) to the 50th Quarter Quell, also known as Haymitch Abernathy’s Hunger Games to answer all the questions we still have. How exactly did he become a victor and the gruff but l…
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Send us a text We’ve responded to the internet’s bookish hot takes… we responded to YOUR hot takes… and now it’s finally time for you guys to be mad at US! Today’s episode is all about Ashley and Liz’s bookish hot takes. Maybe you’ll agree, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll nod your head, maybe you’ll scream at us. But either way, we’re here with OPINI…
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Send us a text Welcome back to Ashley & Liz’s dystopian sci fi episode bonus series: The Hunger Games! Today we go back in time to discuss President Snow and his origin story. How exactly did he become a “villian” and what does his evolution into a tyrannical dictator say about the society that created him? How did Panem and the games themselves ev…
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Send us a text WE’RE ONE YEAR OLD! Today we’re celebrating our one year anniversary of podcasting over at Besties and the Books and we just want to say THANK YOU to each and every one of you for being here! You’re helping us to create this amazing community, and we couldn't be more grateful to watch it grow. 🖤 Check out the Thank You *GIVEAWAY* on …
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In this episode of The Writing Life, writers Alex Allison, George Harrison, and Ashley Hickson-Lovence share their insights into writing about sport and modern masculinity. Alex Allison is a writer from London. He is the author of two novels, published by Dialogue. His second novel, Greatest of All Time, was released on 30th January 2025. With humo…
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Send us a text Welcome back to Ashley & Liz’s dystopian sci fi episode bonus series: The Hunger Games! Today we get SERIOUS as we discuss the amazingly well written, heart wrenching grand finale to the original trilogy. What parallels do we see reflected in real life? Are the dystopian themes regarding media control, rebellion, war, government cont…
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Send us a text Get out that good ol’ stack of post it notes and your favorite annotating pen (or just use the “notes” app in your phone) because your TBR is about to get even longer! If that’s possible. Today Ashley and Liz are recapping ALL of their reads from the last ½ of 2024 to give you the good, the bad, and the ugly. The books that changed o…
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Send us a text Welcome back to Ashley & Liz’s dystopian sci fi episode bonus series: The Hunger Games! We spend ½ of this episode playing the piano (yes, you read that right) and the other ½ convincing you to read this series. If that doesn’t do it for you… we don’t know what else you could want! If you’ve been following along and watched our “From…
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Send us a text Today we’re chatting about Romantasy Bookcon, Los Angeles, 2025! This amazing convention put on by Fabled Fantasy Events was Liz and Ashley’s first, but it surely will not be our last! We talk about our overall faves and fails of Bookcon (our faves being mostly the amazing community) and consequently, what our top five tips for atten…
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Send us a text Welcome to Ashley & Liz’s dystopian sci fi episode bonus series: The Hunger Games! If you’ve been following along and watched our “From 1984 to Hunger Games” dystopian themes in media and literature episode then you know we’re fascinated with everything about this genre and needed to delve into this discussion! It just happens to be …
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Send us a text This week is. The. Week. We’re officially back in mini episode bonus mode with The Hunger Games book 1, by Suzanne Collins dropping this Friday! So today Ashley and Liz are setting us all up for success in our dystopian sci fi series with an episode about the history of dystopias! Not surprisingly, there is a lot of ground to cover, …
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Send us a text A few episodes back we brought you an exclusive interview with the extraordinarily talented Callie Hart, author of the New York Times bestselling romantasy novel Quicksilver (linked below). It should come as no surprise that Liz and Ashley both loved this book, rating it a solid five stars! So today, we’re breaking it down for you. W…
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Send us a text First there was a cringey Thanksgiving with a sack full of turkey. Then there was a cringey Christmas alien with a magic mirror, and a magic… you know what. And now, we bring to you: a very cringey Valentine’s Day featuring old timey detective vampires and a sweet stalker with Dexter-like tendencies. Today Ashley and Liz give our two…
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Send us a text Well, sh*t. 😂 Some of you are going to be screaming at your screen / headphones, upset at us that Onyx Storm just wasn’t it for us. And that’s okay! That’s what we absolutely love about reading. There’s something for everyone. And if this 3⭐️ / 2🌶️ romantasy jumble is your thing… we will listen and not judge. Promise! We just hope yo…
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In this episode of The Writing Life, writer, poetry programmer, and NCW Academy mentor Julia Bird shares her insights into developing your creative practice. Julia Bird is a highly experienced poetry programmer who has worked for organisations including the Poetry School and The Poetry Society. As a freelancer, she’s worked for literary development…
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