Booktalking - NaNoWriMo's line in the sand, Robo-narration side hustles, a penguin glow-up(?), and more
Kobo in Conversation
In our second installment in this new series, hosts Michael Tamblyn and Nathan Maharaj sat down to go over some of the latest goings-on since summer in the business of books. Topics covered in this episode: Is AI a no-go for NaNoWriMo? Audible announces AI narration—as a side hustle for human narrators B&N needs more shovels (to deal with AI) Bestselling nonfiction author Steven Johnson on employing AI as research assistant on steriods - Odds on an AI writing a bestselling book Fewer booksellers at Apple Books A leaner, meaner penguin* in the Penguin Random House logo (or, the...
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katherena vermette on crafting a real story out of fakery
Kobo in Conversation
Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with writer katherena vermette, author of the award-winning 2016 novel , the graphic novel series , as well as a number of and . Her latest novel is . It’s the story of a pair of sisters, lyn and June, whose mother’s claims to Indigenous identity come under more scrutiny than they can bear.
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Jamaluddin Aram on leaving space for the reader to work
Kobo in Conversation
Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with writer and filmmaker Jamaluddin Aram, winner of the 2024 for Literary fiction for his novel . It’s a tapestry of stories about different people—shopkeepers, tradespeople, doctors, children, and their parents—while in the background, often very deep in the background, a war is being fought.
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Amanda Peters on the art of thought-provoking storytelling
Kobo in Conversation
Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with Amanda Peters, author of the 2023 novel , a book about a 4-year-old girl who goes missing while her family is visiting Maine for the summer to pick blueberries. It’s a book that won both the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction and the Crime Writers of Canada’s first novel award, among many other accolades. Her new book is a collection of short stories called .
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Keziah Weir's literary influences are no mystery to her
Kobo in Conversation
Michael Tamblyn spoke with Keziah Weir, winner of the in the category of Mystery for her novel, . It’s the story of Sal, a writer who’s hit a very rough patch in every aspect of her life. But then she discovers a short story written by an author she met some time ago—about her and her and that moment of meeting. She learns that the story is a part of a larger book and that the author is deceased. This sets her on a path of investigation into the author, his widow, and ultimately the heart of storytelling itself.
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Rainbow Rowell wants to write about "messy" characters
Kobo in Conversation
Host Nathan Maharaj spoke with fiction and comics writer Rainbow Rowell, author of the novels and , as well as the 2017 revival of Marvel’s Runaways comic book series, the current run of , and many other and . Her newest book is , the story of a couple of grown-ups who’ve been friends since they were kids, but didn’t manage to stay friends through early adulthood. 14 years after they last spoke to one another, they set about trying to figure out what kind of relationship they have now, and whether they might not have been exactly right...
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Live at MOTIVE: Thrills from Start to Finish
Kobo in Conversation
At Toronto's Harbourfront Centre, Nathan interviewed Ian Hamilton, author of the , and Steve Urszenyi, author of . Ian's latest book is (possibly) the last in the series, while Steve's book kicks off the series.
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Spending time with Maurice Vellekoop
Kobo in Conversation
Michael spoke with artist, illustrator, and fashion designer, Maurice Vellekoop. Over a career spanning four decades, Vellekoop's work has been published in magazines including The New Yorker, Vogue, Rolling Stone, Fashion, and Cosmopolitan, and he’s the author and illustrator of the books, The World of Gloria Badcock: A Comic for Adults, A Nut at the Opera, and Maurice Vellekoop’s Pin-ups, to name just a few. His newest book is . It’s a memoir of his childhood and early adulthood in a suburb of Toronto, the youngest of...
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Kobo in Conversation - Booktalking
Kobo in Conversation
We're sweeping up the glitter after awarding the 10th annual to a trio of brilliant authors just a few days ago (more on that to come). We'll be back in your feed with more author interviews soon. In the meantime... When hosts Michael Tamblyn and Nathan Maharaj aren't reading books and interviewing authors for this show, they're working in the business of selling eBooks, audiobooks, and eReaders. In this episode, Nathan sat Michael down to get his takes on a bunch of book biz news making headlines now.* It's kind of an experiment, and we'll do it again soon—but we'll keep changing it...
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Stephen Maher offers readers a glimpse of The Prince
Kobo in Conversation
Michael spoke with writer Stephen Maher, author of . Informed by interviews with hundreds of people close to the events covered, as well as Maher's own conversations with Trudeau himself, it’s a portrait of a complex person leading through complex times.
info_outlineMichael welcomed poet and novelist Michael Crummey to the Kobo office studio to talk about his new novel, The Adversary. Set in a fictional Newfoundland village called Mockbeggar, it's the story of a lifelong rivalry between two entrepreneurs that escalates into violence and revenge.