Host Jason Blitman welcomes bestselling author Victoria "V.E." Schwab for a conversation about her remarkable milestone—her 25th book, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil. They discuss the profound power of names, exploring how identity shapes both fantasy storytelling and LGBTQIA+ narratives, the impact of representation in literature, and the moment that nearly drove Schwab to walk away from writing altogether. Later, Melissa Febos joins Jason as our Guest Gay Reader, calling in from her treadmill desk, to share what she's been reading as well as more about her new memoir, The Dry Season.

Victoria "V.E." Schwab is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty books, including the acclaimed Shades universe, the Villains series, the City of Ghosts series, Gallant, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and The Fragile Threads of Power. When not haunting Paris streets or trudging up English hillsides, she lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is usually tucked in the corner of a coffee shop, dreaming up monsters.

Melissa Febos is the nationally bestselling author of four books, including Girlhood—which won the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism, and Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative. She has been awarded prizes and fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, LAMBDA Literary, the National Endowment for the Arts, the British Library, the Black Mountain Institute, the Bogliasco Foundation, and others. Her work has appeared in The Paris Review, The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The Best American Essays, Vogue, The Sewanee Review, New York Review of Books, and elsewhere. Febos is a full professor at the University of Iowa and lives in Iowa City with her wife, the poet Donika Kelly.

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Host Jason Blitman sits down with legendary author Edmund White, a towering figure in gay literature, for what would become one of White's final recorded conversations. In this deeply personal conversation, they explore White's latest memoir The Loves of My Life, delving into his reflections on love's many forms, the intimate dynamics that sustain lasting relationships, and the remarkable literary legacy of one of America's most influential LGBTQ+ voices. White offers candid insights drawn from decades of both living and writing about love, loss, and the complexities of human connection.

Books and Boys and Big Dinners at Home How I’ll Remember Edmund White. by Christopher Bollen

A husband’s story: Michael Carroll reflects on life with Edmund White by Will Freshwater

Edmund White (1940-2025) was the author of many novels, including A Boy’s Own Story, The Beautiful Room Is Empty, The Farewell Symphony, A Saint from Texas, and The Humble Lover. His nonfiction included City Boy, Inside a Pearl, The Unpunished Vice, and other memoirs; The Flâneur, about Paris; and literary biographies and essays. He received the PEN/Saul Bellow Award for Achievement in American Fiction and the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters from the National Book Foundation. He lived in New York.

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Host Jason Blitman sits down with debut author Austin Taylor (Notes on Infinity) to talk about themes of ambition, mortality, and the challenges of being a woman in science. They also explore big questions about life, the next big thing in science, and Austin shares an insightful critique of the film When Harry Met Sally. Jason is then joined by Guest Gay Reader Nicola Dinan who talks about what she's been reading as well as her book Disappoint Me.

Austin Taylor graduated from Harvard University in 2021 with a joint degree in chemistry and English. Notes on Infinity is inspired in part by her undergraduate studies, peers, and lab work in Harvard’s chemistry department. She has also worked as a public speaking coach and in science policy. Austin is a private pilot, a registered Maine guide, and a bassist. She grew up in central Maine, where she now lives and writes.

Nicola Dinan grew up in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur and now lives in London. Bellies, her debut, won the Polari First Book Prize, was shortlisted for the Diverse Book Awards and Mo Siewcharran Prize, was a finalist for a Lambda Literary Award, and was longlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize and Brooklyn Public Library Book Prize.

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