Finding the Throughline with Kate Hanley

Latest Episodes:

[Alma Katsu, inner stuff]: Navigating the crosshairs of ageism and sexism Ep 1231 Oct 15, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to part two of my interview with Alma Katsu, award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of nine novels, including the historical horror novels, "The Hunger," "The Deep," and "The Fervor," and the spy novels, "Red Widow" and "Red London." Alma's newest book is "Fiend," which examines our fascination with the ultra rich in a setting that mixes dark fantasy with horror.
In this episode, we get into the nitty gritty of the ideas, thought processes, and beliefs that fuel her work, including:
- How she makes the world of her novels richly detailed and her characters multi-faceted
- How writing for the POTUS helped her deal with the novel editing process
- The part of the publishing process that always makes her “depressed for a day”
- The fascinating reason why she’s squeamish about being on social media
- Thoughts on how being in her mid-60s impacts her career
- How’s she’s encountered–and handled–sexism
- Why Hollywood is interested in so many of her novels–and the differences between the movie business and the book business
Connect with Alma on Substack: https://substack.com/@almakatsu
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Alma Katsu, practical matters]: Using fiction to change minds Ep 1230 Oct 13, 2025

Show notes

My guest this week is Alma Katsu, the award-winning, critically acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author of nine novels. Alma has written two spy novels, "Red Widow" and "Red London," inspired by her 35-year career working in intelligence. She also writes novels that combine historical fiction with supernatural and horror elements.
"The Hunger" was a re-imagining of the story of the Donner Party and named one of NPR's 100 favorite horror stories. Her first book, "The Taker," was named one of the top 10 debut novels of 2011 by Booklist. And her latest novel, brand new, hot off the presses, is "Fiend," which examines our fascination with the ultra wealthy through a lens that combines dark fantasy and horror. Think Succession meets Angel Heart, if you're old enough to remember that movie.
Alma's books have been translated into over a dozen languages and several are in various stages of film and television development. She's also a contributor to the Washington Post book world where she reviews thrillers.
We covered:
- How she came to work in US intelligence for 35 years, despite having early ambitions of being a writer
- Why she writes so many different genres (spy thrillers, horror, speculative fiction)
- An inside peek at just an absolutely fascinating government career
- The illness that got her writing again
- The challenges of building a readership
- Why she thinks writing a novel that’s inspired by the news is more persuasive than writing an article
- How her background in intelligence helps her come up with ideas for her novels
- Unlearning old habits of driving herself too hard
- Recommitting to exercise so she has stamina for book tours
Connect with Alma on Substack: https://substack.com/@almakatsu
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Aqua Tru. Visit aquatru.com and use code KATE to save 20% off a great countertop reverse osmosis water filter that I have been using and loving for years now. Comes with a 1-year warranty and a 30-day money back guarantee.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Dolen Perkins-Valdez: What’s coming up]: Thinking carefully about how to use time more wisely Ep 1229 Oct 03, 2025

Show notes

In this final installment of my interview with Dolan Perkins Valdez, the New York Times bestselling author of “Wench,” “Bomb,” “Take My Hand,” and most recently, Happyland, we get a peek at where her personal throughline is leading her next and hear her answers to my fast final five questions about what she’s currently reading, listening to, and dreaming of eating.
We covered:
The visual artists who are currently inspiring her, some living, some dead
Her favorite historical fiction authors
The AMAZING sounding historical fiction writers conference that cemented her path as a historical fiction author
How she’s re-thinking how she spends her time now that her older daughter is going off to college
The romance novel she stayed up too late reading and the Netflix series about high school girls she watched with her daughter
The music she listens to when her energy flags
Connect with Dolen on Instagram @dolenperkinsvaldez
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Dolen Perkins-Valdez, inner stuff]: Writing what’s in your heart, not what you think will sell Ep 1228 Oct 01, 2025

Show notes

Dolan Perkins Valdez, multiple award-winning author of “Wench,” “Bomb,” and “Take My Hand.” Her newest book, “Happyland,” is inspired by the true story of a secret community of formerly enslaved people in Appalachia.
In this episode, we get into the nitty gritty of the ideas, thought processes, and beliefs that fuel her work, including:
The part of writing a novel that can make her feel like “the book is taking years off my life”
The surprising number of drafts it takes to get to a publishable manuscript
How to elicit feedback that is actually helpful from early readers
Identifying your “good readers”
The research habit that can bite her in the butt
The part of the writing process where her writerly demons tend to pop up the most
Building your day around when your brain is at its best
Why she writes every book as if it’s her last
Why she views all writing as political
Writing what’s in your heart, not what you think will sell
The question she asks herself when she’s writing things that scare her
Connect with Dolen on Instagram @dolenperkinsvaldez
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Dolen Perkins-Valdez, practical matters]: Teasing out–and trusting–your process Ep 1227 Sep 29, 2025

Show notes

My guest this week is Dolan Perkins-Valdez, the New York Times bestselling author of the novels “Wench,” “Balm,” “Take My Hand,” and most recently, “Happy Land.” Her books are all inspired by fascinating facets of American history that are in danger of being forgotten. They have earned awards from the NAACP, the Black Caucus of the American Library Association and the American Bar Association. And they've been named best books of the year by Goodreads users and Amazon editors. Dolan is a three-time nominee for a United States Artists Fellowship and an associate professor in the literature department at American University.

We covered:
- Why she goes to the special archives in the library in any town she visits
- Why emails from readers are the best gift
- How she recovers from book tour
- What teaching offers her (beyond benefits and a 401K)
- Her specific writing process
- The handicraft that makes her “most at peace”
- Her pre-writing morning routine
- How she measures her writing process (hint: it’s not word count)

Connect with Dolen on Instagram @dolenperkinsvaldez

For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.

Thank you for listening!

And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Aqua Tru. Visit aquatru.com and use code KATE to save 20% off a great countertop reverse osmosis water filter that I have been using and loving for years now. Comes with a 1-year warranty and a 30-day money back guarantee.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Ann Tashi Slater, what’s coming up]: How looking at the sky can help us be more creative Ep 1226 Sep 19, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to the final installment of my interview with Ann Tashi Slater, author of the new book, “Traveling in Bardo, the Art of Living in an Impermanent World.”
- How staying attuned to the seasons inspires her (and the Japanese word for an aspect of summer I had never heard before but reminds me of my favorite place to spend a summer morning, AKA my porch)
- The two books (and their authors) that have shaped her writing aspirations
- An amazing metaphor for creativity that will comfort anyone who worries that at some point they’ll run out of ideas
- Moving into a different relationship with change and impermanence
- Thinking about how to fulfill a desire to spend more time off the grid
- The songs that help her stop worrying and just be happy for a little while
Connect with Ann @AnnTashiSlater on Instagram, Facebook, Blue Sky, and LinkedIn, or at anntoshislater.com.
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Ann Tashi Slater, inner stuff]: How acknowledging the pain of NOT writing can help you commit to your creative work Ep 1225 Sep 17, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to part two of my interview with Ann Tashi Slater, author of the new book, “Traveling in Bardo: The Art of Living in an Impermanent World.” Bardo is a Buddhist concept that describes a transitional state, such as between death and rebirth, but also about being alive and in between being born and dying. In Traveling in Bardo, Anne shares how we can apply Buddhist teachings on acceptance, interdependence, and impermanence to our ever-changing lives.
In today's episode, I'm asking Anne about the inner stuff that goes into writing, including:
- The Spanish movie she’s been obsessed with since she was a kid and that inspired a recent essay for Narrative Magazine
- How writing and reading are so different from talking and listening, even though they’re both conversations between two people
- How she, an extremely private person, gradually acclimated to sharing and promoting her work, and how this process reminds her of her dog
- How she quiets the inner critic
- Why she never meets anyone for lunch
- The ways her work practices have–and mostly, have not–changed since her kids have left the nest and her schedule is her own
- The things that motivated her to build the habit of writing everyday
Connect with Ann @AnnTashiSlater on Instagram, Facebook, Blue Sky, and LinkedIn, or at anntoshislater.com.
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Ann Tashi Slater practical matters]: On listening, following your obsessions, and knowing when to set the pen down Ep 1224 Sep 15, 2025

Show notes

My guest this week is Ann Tashi Slater, who for decades has written about her Tibetan American heritage and about Buddhism in Western society for the New Yorker, the Paris Review, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, among other outlets. Her brand new book, “Traveling in Bardo:The Art of Living in an Impermanent World,” helps us find meaning, happiness, and hope in an impermanent world. Ann is also a contributing editor at Tricycle, the Buddhist review, and her work has been included in the best American essays. She is joining us today from her home in Tokyo.
We covered:
- Reconnecting with her Tibetan and Buddhist heritage after growing up in the States
- Using the things you’re obsessed with as fodder for writing
- Why there are so many empty houses in Tokyo
- How having kids helped become more productive, much to her surprise
- How her writing practice is like “Top Chef”
- The simple practice that helps her get ready to write
Connect with Ann @AnnTashiSlater on Instagram, Facebook, Blue Sky, and LinkedIn, or at anntoshislater.com.
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Nancy Johnson: what’s coming up]: An inside peek at Nancy’s vision board Ep 1223 Sep 05, 2025

Show notes

Welcome back to the final installment of my interview with Nancy Johnson, author of “People of Means,” which was one of People magazine's most anticipated books of 2025, and “The Kindest Lie”, which was a book of the month club and Target book club selection.
In today’s episode, I felt like we were getting a tour through Nancy’s vision board–as well as the things she’s doing to help make those visions a reality.
- Why she’s started planning a trip to Martha’s Vineyard next summer
- The first annual Black Book Bash in Jacksonville, Florida, happening in October (mark your calendars)
- Considering a pivot from fiction to nonfiction, and how she’s preparing for that shift
- The writing goal that’s still on her vision board
- The HBO show she recently stayed up too late watching because it was so good
- Her go-to café order
- The two songs that get her energized
- The meal her Aunt Mary used to make that she can still taste today
Connect with Nancy on Instagram @nancyjauthor or Facebook at Nancy Johnson Author.
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

[Nancy Johnson, inner stuff]: Developing the faith that you are on the right path at the right time Ep 1222 Sep 03, 2025

Show notes

Welcome back to part two of my interview with Nancy Johnson, author of “People of Means,” a story of class, culture, mothers and daughters, and the fight for racial equality in the not so distant American past. Nancy's first book, The Kindest Lie, was a Book of the Month Club selection and a Target book club pick.
This episode gets into some real emotional terrain, including:
- Her love-hate relationship with the actual writing process
- Her very least favorite part of the publishing process, and how she deals with that discomfort
- The responsibility she feels as a Black author to represent Black people in a “honest, caring way”, and how that responsibility can turbo charge her inner critic
- The advice author Britt Bennett gave her about how to avoid writing stereotypes
- Why she stopped reading her Goodreads and Amazon reviews–and why she makes it a point to ask the readers she speaks to in person what didn’t work for them
- The ninja trick she developed to help her not take negative customer reviews too much to heart
- How her past struggles have shaped her faith that her journey is unfolding in the exact right way at the exact right time
- Why right now is the best time to be telling your stories
Connect with Nancy on Instagram @nancyjauthor or Facebook at Nancy Johnson Author.
For full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.
Thank you for listening!
And thanks to this week’s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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