Analyzing Today’s Novels
In each episode we analyze and discuss one novel that has been published within the past 12–18 months. We do this because we are writers who read with intent—studying content and form—to uncover techniques that we can apply to our own writing.
We read like writers, turning our favorite authors into our writing teachers.
Literary Forensics
We do this through Literary Forensics, a set of tools that allow us to look beyond the surface of plot points, down into the tapestry of themes, contexts, and symbols that hold the very intentions of the author.
This reference guide, a companion text for Writers Who Read, will be published on January 6, 2026, in paperback and hardback, available at bookstores everywhere. You can pre-order the ebook here.
The Group
Before a novel makes it to this podcast, it first passes through a group of writers who have been meeting in downtown Boulder, Colorado, almost every month since 2018, to discuss novels that have been published within the past 18 months. We meet in person and online on the first Sunday from September through June, and you can join us if you’d like.
Upcoming novels will become upcoming episodes of this podcast. You can find our complete schedule, including all past novels, here. You can read along with us, in preparation for our next meeting or our next podcast.
The Voices
Mira Landry, Whitney Pinion, and Gary Alan McBride
at the Boulder Public Library