Master storytellers discuss the stories and struggles that go into writing the first page of their books. Why? Because the first page is often the most re-written page of any book because it has to work so hard to do so much—HOOK YOU. Learn how the most talented writers work their magic with host, novelist and writing coach, Holly Lynn Payne.
In EP. 65, host Holly Lynn Payne welcomes award-winning Bay Area author Nina Schuyler back to The Page One podcast to discuss Schuyler’s fifth novel, Open the Floodgates, inspired by real-world laws granting personhood to rivers. Schuyler discusses her choice to make the river a point-of-view character and to visually shape the text so it sways across the page to mimic water’s movement and the river’s disorientation with “clock time” and court. They explore the legal and psychological shift from treating nature as property to personhood, the book’s multiple viewpoints (humans, animals, trees, the river), and Schuyler’s craft approach—building connective tissue between perspectives, varying register, prioritizing rhythm and sentence music, revising pacing, and sustaining tension through the court case. Schuyler frames her recent work as climate-focused literary activism, cites influences including Virginia Woolf and Max Porter and praises independent presses like Reverberation Books for supporting experimentation in literature.
14 Aug 2026
EP 64: FREYJA_Margret Ann Thors
In EP. 64, I interview Icelandic author Margaret Ann Thors about her gripping debut thriller, FREYJA, set in Reykjavik and steeped in Icelandic folklore. Thors explains how the novel evolved through multiple iterations—from an early draft centered on a male protagonist shaped by her near-death experience (a 2010 stroke caused by a hole in her heart from birth) to a version unlocked by motherhood and a willingness to blend literary prose with suspense. We dig deep into using skepticism within the protagonist to integrate folklore without turning the story into fantasy, employing structure to sustain an 80,000-word arc, and how her willingness to embrace genre provided the “architecture” that enabled her creative freedom. I love how Thors discusses revision, describing it as essential discovery and she credits her agent Erin Harris for her patience in the years-long development of this stunning debut. This might be one of my favorite interviews of 2026 as we discovered so many parallels—suriving near death experiences at the age of 22 and choosing to write as single mothers of young children. Thors told me, “I feel I met a kindred spirit.” I could not agree more. I am so excited to introduce this debut novelist, and am so grateful she had the courage to leap from her background in non-fiction and into the wild, precarious and more daunting discipline—and art of fiction.
17 Jul 2026
EP 63: The Forest Becomes Her_Julie Carrick Dalton
In EPISODE 63, I interview author Julie Carrick Dalton about her latest book, The Forest Becomes Her. I love this episode as it captures an uncommon conversation in traditionally publishing about working collaboratively with both her agent and her editor. I rarely hear authors discuss how much they love the input of their publishing team, and that winning combination for Julie Carrick Dalton resulted in a wise decision to use three points of view in her latest novel.. Julie shares openly about revising nearly twenty drafts and how her editor encouraged her to ‘let the weird out,’ how to meet deadline strategies and the importance of accountability partners. We also dug deep into the process of finding the right agent. I hope you enjoy this episode and can check out The Forest Becomes Her, which bestelling author Lilly Brooks-Dalton calls “a lush, aching meditation on loss, transformation and the quiet power of women who refuse to be quiet.” Learn from a masterstoryteller and let me know what you think @hollylynnpayne.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.8 / 5
17 ratings
Spotify
4.2 / 5
5 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 45 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
62
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
71
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Holly Lynn Payne host the show. Published by Holly Lynn Payne.
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