Libro.fm Podcast – Episode 26: “Interview with Casey McQuiston”

On today’s episode, we sat down in person with Casey McQuiston, bestselling author of Red, White, and Royal Blue, One Last Stop, and I Kissed Shara Wheeler. We discussed audiobooks, their writing process, their upcoming novel The Pairing, and what it was like to work at Cold Stone Creamery and sing whenever they got tipped.

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About our guest

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Audiobooks by Casey McQuiston

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Audiobooks we discussed

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Full transcription

Karen Farmer:

Hi, and welcome to the Libro.fm podcast, where we talk to authors, narrators, booksellers, and more. I’m Karen-

Craig Silva:

And I’m Craig. On today’s episode, we sat down with the author Casey McQuiston, um, in real life, which has become one of our new favorite things. Um, you may know Casey from Red, White & Royal Blue, One Last Stop, I Kissed Shara Wheeler, among other things.

Karen Farmer:

Yes, and you are soon to know Casey McQuiston of their newest novel, which comes out this summer. And we got all kinds of really cool information, sneak-peaks,-

Craig Silva:

Yes.

Karen Farmer:

… tiny spoilers, from. the author themself, about this title.

Craig Silva:

Yes, yes, yes. Um, I’m loving doing these in person. I feel like it totally changes the vibe, and it’s so fun to get to meet the authors… And bring books, and say, “Can you please sign my book?”

Karen Farmer:

Yeah. Yeah.

Craig Silva:

Yes.

Karen Farmer:

Uh, it definitely increases my nervousness quite a bit, especially with Casey, for example, of whom I am a massive fan. Um, but everyone always is so nice and normal, and just puts you right at ease. It’s been a great experience.

Craig Silva:

It really has. Um, it’s good that neither of us ever like fanboy too much… Oh, wait. I’m so sorry. Can you please tell the story about how you talked to Casey about an article of clothing that they had?

Karen Farmer:

If, if I must. Uh, so-

Craig Silva:

You must, actually.

Karen Farmer:

Okay.

Craig Silva:

It’s a requirement.

Karen Farmer:

So Casey’s author photo in the back of I Kissed Shara Wheeler includes a very cool shirt that they’re wearing, which I loved, and then I reverse image-searched it, and found it online and purchased it. And I kinda went back and forth on whether or not I should reveal this information to one of my favor- favorite authors of all time. After the interview I was like, “I think this will go well,” and I told them… And, it was well-received, and b, they said, “Oh, I have absolutely done the exact same thing.”

So, um, that kinda made my day.

Craig Silva:

Yeah, I was glad it went that way. As you were telling the story, I was like, “Ooh, boy. Ooh, boy. Here we go.” I’m glad that Casey was so kind and lied to you about doing the same thing, so that you didn’t feel badly. 

Karen Farmer:

Listen. All right, well, we’re moving on from this. We want you all to hear everything about Casey’s new novel that’s coming out. Um, we’re gonna play a quick clip from I Kissed Shara Wheeler, so that you can learn a little bit more about that title, hear a little bit of the audiobook.

Craig Silva:

Yes, I will roll the clip in just a second. And as always, stick around at the end of the episode to hear what Karen and I are currently reading and loving, and we will tease what we have coming out next.

Enjoy the interview.

Casey McQuiston:

Days since Shara left, nine. Days until graduation, 34.

Of all the weird parts of life at Willowgrove, Chapel Day was the hardest for Chloe to get used to. Once a week, classes shift to an abbreviated schedule to make room for a compulsory hour-long service in the sanctuary on campus. Usually it happens on Wednesdays, but since they also have part of this week off for Easter, it’s a special Monday Chapel Day.

There’s a praised band of Willowgrove upperclassmen plotting through Christian Rock songs, then a sermon, usually led by a teacher, or principal Wheeler himself. Sometimes a student will be moved by the spirit to do a shaky 15-minute personal testimony at the microphone, like the time Emma Grace Baker explained that her diabetes has brought her closer to Jesus.

Before Willowgrove, the closest Chloe had ever been to church was listening to her Mama practice Mozart, and Chapel Day has made sure she won’t ever be back.

Sermons have ranged from Halloween is satanic, to a sophomore sent her boyfriend nudes, and he forwarded them to all his friends… So now we are going to do a very shame-y talk on modesty, then next week she’s going to switch schools while her boyfriend experiences exactly zero consequences.

Karen Farmer:

Hello, everyone. Today we are here in person with author Casey McQuiston. Welcome to the podcast, Casey.

Casey McQuiston:

Hi. I’m so excited to be here. Thank you for having me.

Craig Silva:

Yeah, thanks for taking the time. I’m sure you have like a million publisher dinners and things to be going to, so we really appreciate it. Um, for folks who may not be familiar with your work, we’d love if you could give us a little brief intro?

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah. Um, so I write romantic comedies, uh, for adults and young adults. I have three books out? Oh my God, I just forgot how many books I had for a second. I have three books out so far, with my fourth coming later this year. So, my first two are queer adult rom-coms. Uh, the first one is called Red, White & Royal Blue. You may have seen the movie on Amazon Prime this summer. Um, it’s about, uh, the son of the United States and the spare heir to the British throne falling in love.

Um, book two is One Last Stop. It’s about a lesbian time-travel, subway-romance.

Um, and then my book coming out this year is called The Pairing, and it is about two bisexual exes who are reunited against their will on a three-week food and wine tour through Europe.

Karen Farmer:

Amazing. I am a huge fan of your work,  and I am just so excited that you have a new book coming out in August. I’ve been finding teasers wherever I can. I saw there was an article in Today, that spoke a little bit about it. Um, I was wondering if there are any spoilers you can share with us, or anything, anything you can tell… Um, I’m gonna say our listeners, but really it’s for me, anything you can tell us about it?

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah. Yeah, I would love to. I’m constantly… I was sitting on the secret for so long, that I feel like I’ve been… Uh, like, I have so much pent-up to say about it. Um, so one of the most exciting things that people don’t know is that it’s actual dual POV, which is my first ever dual-POV book. So the first half of the book is from one character’s point of view, and the second half is from the other’s.

Um, and that was so fun on a craft level to do, s- ’cause what I did was I wanted each half of the book to feel complete, and like it had an arc, and like, like when we leave one character halfway through the book, we don’t feel like, “Wait. Wait, wait.”

Craig Silva:

Yeah.

Casey McQuiston:

You know? Um, and so, I plotted out basically two mini books. So, I did a full three-act structure for each half of the book. Um, and it was just such a fun creative challenge. I was really kind of experimenting and pushing myself on a craft level to see what I could do. Um, and I think it turned out pretty well.

I’m, I’m so, so happy with it. Um, it’s my favorite book I’ve ever written. Um, it’s the smuttiest book I’ve ever written. So for the fans of spicy romance, um, who have been longing for more than fade-to-black for me, I have good news for you.

Um, and it’s just, it’s a great time. Um, it’s all about food, and wine, and indulgence, and pleasure, and, um, finding your way back to that one person, um, and I, I’m really excited for people to read it.

Craig Silva:

That’s such a unique way to do that. I feel like a lot of like dual POVs, like it’s every other chapter,-

Casey McQuiston:

Right.

Craig Silva:

… every other few chapters. I’ve ne-… I don’t think I’ve ever read one where it’s like a full on half-and-half.

Casey McQuiston:

Well, I have to give credit where credit is due. So I was originally trying to figure out, I was… Uh, this is, um… Back in 2022 I went on tour in Brazil with Emily Lockhart, E. Lockhart, um, with like [inaudible 00:07:39]. Um, and she… I was… I remember like literally we’re like on a gondola up a mountain, and I’m just like venting to her about how I’m so stressed, I can’t figure out how to like create tension in a dual POV while alternating chapters… Because like the part of romance, part of tension in romance, is the mystery of how does the other person feel? And she was like, “Well, what if you did…” Like, “I read a book once where it was two halves,” and I was like, I read a book once where it was two halves, and I was like, “Say more.” (laughing). And, and that was like really a huge like, crack moment for the book. Like I, oh, I’ve cracked it. Um, so shout out to E. Lockhart, (laughing), for that advice.

Karen Farmer:

Very good.

Craig Silva:

That’s amazing.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Craig Silva:

I know it doesn’t come out until August, right? Um, so do you know the, um, who, uh, the audiobook narrators are gonna be?

Casey McQuiston:

Yes. We haven’t announced it yet, but we did just cast them. Um, and they are so perfect. Um, our, uh, Alicia, who is our, um, Audiobook Producer at, um, Macmillan Audio did an incredible job with the casting. Um, they’re both just, you know, the narrator for Theo has like this really kind of, raw warmth to their voice. And then the narrator for Kit sounds like a fairy prince.

It’s like, perfect. It’s perfect. Um, and I have personally become a huge audio reader in the last couple years, and so, to me, this time around more than… I mean, I always care about it, but this time around I was like, “Put me in coach. Like, I wanna be, I wanna be able to like, see how this all, how the sausage gets made here.”

Craig Silva:

Sure.

Casey McQuiston:

You know? And that was so much fun. Yeah.

Craig Silva:

Um, so, going back to your first book, um, your debut novel, Red, White and Royal Blue was massive. Like, everyone I knew read it, and then like, you know, translated into many languages, a movie, et cetera.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Craig Silva:

I’m curious, like, that had to have been an insane experience, especially for your first book.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Craig Silva:

Like, how did that impact how you felt about going into the second book?

Casey McQuiston:

It was, it was such a surprise. I, I mean, I always felt like that book, if it could find its people, would do well amongst its people. And by its people, I mean, like other depressed millennials and older Gen Z, you know?.

Craig Silva:

Nailed it.

Casey McQuiston:

Um, and I, it just so exceeded my expectations, everyone’s expectations. Um, and yeah, going into book two, it was like, when you’re writing your first book and you don’t have representation and you don’t have a publisher, there’s, it’s literally just like love of the game baby. Like, it’s just like, you’re just there to have fun. Um, and then, book two is like, I have deadlines, I have, I have to earn out my advance. I have to meet the expectations of not only my editor, but the readers who’ve read my first book. And, and it really got in the way of like, my first draft of that book, you know?

Craig Silva:

Yeah.

Casey McQuiston:

It really made it hard to get out of my, like self-consciousness.

Craig Silva:

Sure.

Casey McQuiston:

To connect with my main character. And it took me until the second draft of that book to really understand even, who August was as a main character. Um, and to kind of, I, I literally had to shut everything out and like, go, like, leave my house and like go to the mountains for a weekend and be like, “I’m gonna write this for me and like, get through this creative block.” Um, and I have since developed many, many healthy coping strategies, with those feelings, and I go to therapy and I like, you know?

Craig Silva:

Yeah.

Casey McQuiston:

It’s great now, but it was definitely an adjustment period. Yeah, for sure.

Karen Farmer:

Um, I recently listened to the audio for, um, One Last Stop. I love that book.

Casey McQuiston:

Yes.

Karen Farmer:

And I read that on paper and I’m like, “I wanna, I wanna hear it now too.”

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Karen Farmer:

Um, I saw that, so Natalie Naudus narrated the audiobooks for One Last Stop and I Kissed Shara Wheeler.

Casey McQuiston:

Yes.

Karen Farmer:

Um, One Last Stop won awards and AudioFile Magazine, um, it’s just like, so lauded as an audiobook. Um, with those two novels, what was your experience like with that audiobook casting process? Um, the creation of those?

Casey McQuiston:

Um, oh, I’m trying to think back. I mean, I feel like we had, I, I feel like by the time I heard Natalie’s audition, they had kind of narrowed it down to like, this is our favorite. And then they sent me Natalie’s audition and it was like, I think I had the option for them to be like, if you don’t feel like this is the right direction, you know, you can, we can go back, we can try other people. And I listened and I was like, “Don’t do that.” (laughing). You know?

Karen Farmer:

Perfect.

Casey McQuiston:

Natalie, Nat is so, so great at her craft, so talented. I mean, the voices that Nat’s doing in that book, the way that Jane is voiced in that book, it’s like, it got the exact right note of like the hottest person you’ve ever seen. You know, like how that person sound.

Karen Farmer:

Totally.

Casey McQuiston:

Um, and then when it came down to Shara, I think that time around it was not, it was more of a question of like, “Can we get Nat again?” You know? Um, because I had loved working with her so much on One Last Stop. She did such an amazing job. And she also, I think her, her YA Work is also like so fun and so different and like effervescent and, um, you know, finding an actor who has that kind of range is really special. Um, and so we just, we knew, I could hear her as Chloe and then that one, I was way more involved with her in working through the voices. Like, we would have calls and I would send her like, mood boards, and stuff and, um, and we would talk through like, like… We got into like, “Let’s talk like you’re theater trading.” Like, “Let’s talk this and that.”

And like, um, and we really got into some, some cool territory working together on that of like, um, like Natalie trying out voices on me and being like, like, “How is this sound?” You know? Um, so, I mean, just working with somebody who is that invested in what they’re making is so fun and so rewarding. And, and even just talking through like, okay, so this character, like, the character of Rory at the beginning of the book, he’s going to be very much like, “I don’t care about anything. I’m not here for any of this.” And he’s going to slowly open up over the course of that book. And Nat was able to like, express that through the way that she read his lines and the way that, um, she altered his voice as the book went on. I mean, I think that’s just proof of how audio could really elevate the medium, you know?

Karen Farmer:

Do you find that now, um, now that you have several audiobooks of your work, do you think about it as you’re, as you’re writing on the page?

Casey McQuiston:

Oh, 1000%. 1000%. Ever since, I didn’t really think about it as much in my first book. Um, and then I had to, um, there’s like, if you, for some books, they’ll be a part in the process right before they start recording, where they’ll send you a list of words and like, they’re like, “Can you record yourself pronouncing these words? So we make sure they’re pronouncing it correctly.” And in my first book I put in like, the name of like, like a Welsh town that was, the joke was that it’s really hard to pronounce. And I was like, “I’m never gonna need to pronounce this out loud.”. I literally had to like phone a friend, like, get somebody from the UK to pronounce it for me and like, send that recording.

Karen Farmer:

Yeah.

Craig Silva:

Amazing.

Casey McQuiston:

Um, and so, ever since then, I think about it all the time.

Craig Silva:

Of course.

Casey McQuiston:

Not just in the sense of Nat’s-

Craig Silva:

No big words. Like-

Casey McQuiston:

Yes. Well, not just in the sense of pronunciation, but like, in the pairing. Because it is like, it is a book that it’s takes pace through France, Spain and Italy. The Tour Guide’s Italian, um, Kit, one of the main characters is like French American and has spent time in both countries. And then, the other people on the tour are like Australian, Swedish, Japanese, like all of… So I just like, the whole time I’m writing, I’m like, “Okay. Let me just go ahead and make a list for the producer now.” Like, you need to find an actor who could do all of these accents.

Karen Farmer:

All of the above. Yeah.

Casey McQuiston:

So I think about it so much, but I also think about it in the sense of, um, uh, in the sense of, being so excited knowing that the audio performance is going to bring a scene to life. And I’ll, sometimes when I’m writing, I will try and hear how it’ll be read in my head and maybe like, like adjust a little bit accordingly. Um, it’s just, I love audio. I think it’s, it is so fun and I love audio. I think it’s, it is so fun, and I love to think about it all the time when I’m writing.

Karen Farmer:

Thank you for that.

Craig Silva:

Have you ever considered narrating anything yourself?

Casey McQuiston:

I’ve, okay, I know this is a weird thing to say on a podcast. I don’t think I have a great voice for it. I think, I am like, such a victim of the millennial vocal fry, that-

Craig Silva:

Mm.

Casey McQuiston:

I don’t- I don’t know if I have the right voice for it, but I think with the pairing, we may have me do a little something.

Craig Silva:

Like a cameo or like an internal?

Casey McQuiston:

No, not a cameo. I would imagine something like the acknowledgements or like the epigraph or something.

Craig Silva:

I think you should be the Australian on the tour, you know?

Casey McQuiston:

Oh my God. Well, send me to four to six weeks of accent training, and maybe I can pull it off.

Karen Farmer:

Amazing, um, I saw a quote where you said, um, “I think maybe the highest honor you can get as a writer, is for people to want to spend more time with your work, no matter what form that takes,” and I immediately thought of audiobooks of course, because that is what we are obsessed with, um, but so that i don’t talk about this all day long, I also immediately thought of all of the incredible fan art that I see related to your work and-

Casey McQuiston:

Yes. Oh my God.

Karen Farmer:

I just wondered if you could speak about that a little bit. I can’t imagine how that much feel as a creator to have inspired all of these other creators.

Casey McQuiston:

It’s literally, it’s so cool. I’ll never forget, like, I think within the first like, week of Red, White & Royal Blue being out, seeing fan art by Vanessa Kelly, who now, like, I would say, it’s been like, four or five years now of me following Vanessa, and like, now we’re friends and Vanessa did the illustrated endpapers for the collector’s edition of Red, White & Royal Blue, and the reason I specifically asked for Vanessa for that was because hers was the first fan art that I ever saw of the book, and also, she’s incredibly talented, and she deserves it, but it is just, I feel like, such a connection to fan artists because I deeply relate to the feeling of like, caring so much about a piece of media that it inspires you to make your own, or- or the feeling of like, caring so much about something that it won’t leave your head, and you need to exercise it in the way that makes sense to you, which is art.

Um, and so, I, it is just the coolest feeling. I think it’s what you dream of when you dream of- of having a book published. It’s like, I dream that people will care about this as much as I do. I dream that- that, um, the obsession that I have over these, like, imaginary people who live in my brain would someday be reflected back to me with really cool art. Um, and people are just so talented, and I think for somebody who has artistic talent to choose to spend that time and work on their craft through, you know, making art of characters you’ve created is- is just a tremendous compliment, and such a, so rewarding as an author.

Karen Farmer:

Uh, I love that.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Karen Farmer:

Well, I think we’re gonna move into our lightning round.

Casey McQuiston:

Ooh.

Karen Farmer:

In which we ask you a series of rapid fire questions that might be a little sillier.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah, yeah.

Karen Farmer:

Craig has the first question for you.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah, let’s hear it.

Craig Silva:

Um, did you ever identify with a book character as a child?

Casey McQuiston:

Yes, um, I really loved, oh my God, I know, this is lightning round. I can’t hesitate. Um, okay.

Casey McQuiston:

Okay, this is the first book character I ever, uh, identified with. We’ll start there. Uh, we were a Dr. Seuss family, and specifically, Horton Hears a Who! was huge in our house, and that one who yells, “Yop!” And like, pushes it over, so Horton can finally hear them. I identify with that who, ’cause I am five foot two and very loud, so-

Karen Farmer:

That’s the best answer ever.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Karen Farmer:

Um, what’s the most unexpected fan interaction you ever had?

Casey McQuiston:

I’ve been recognized twice at the airport.

Karen Farmer:

Really? I love that.

Casey McQuiston:

Um, which like, and like, I don’t get recognized often. So, for it to happen twice at the airport, both times I was like, wearing a mask. And I was like, how did this happen? Like, one time it was in New York, which like, I live in New York, so like, that’s expected. One time I was in like, on a connection, in like, Charlotte, North Carolina. And I’m like, and somebody came up to me like, “I’m so sorry. Are you Casey McQuiston? I’m a huge fan.” I was like, “Yeah, I am.” It was, yeah, I would say that.

Karen Farmer:

That’s awesome.

Craig Silva:

That’s amazing. Um, feelings on camping. Tent, cabin, or avoid at all cost?

Casey McQuiston:

Ooh, I lived in Colorado for a while, so I’m gonna say tent, so that my friends in Colorado don’t come for me.

Karen Farmer:

Uh, what’s the weirdest job you’ve ever had?

Casey McQuiston:

Um, I, my summer job in high school was, I was a, uh, what did we call ourselves? Mix master at Cold Stone Creamery.

Craig Silva:

Mix masters?

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah, it’s such an unserious job. I literally went in for my job interview and they made me get up and sing in front of everyone in the store. I didn’t even work there yet, but they just wanted to- they wanted me to prove that I would, and I got the job.

Craig Silva:

Wait, why did you have to s- I don’t-

Casey McQuiston:

So, okay, at Cold Stone, if they tip you, that’s their policy is if- if you get tipped, you have to sing a song.

Craig Silva:

What?

Karen Farmer:

No. I did not know this.

Casey McQuiston:

This is what I mean. This is an unserious business practice. Um, so yeah, they wanted me to prove that I would sing on command, um, which is like, not a thing that like, somebody working minimum wage should ever have to do.

Craig Silva:

No.

Karen Farmer:

Or anyone.

Casey McQuiston:

But I did it and I got the job.

Craig Silva:

What did you have to sing?

Casey McQuiston:

They said, “Sing anything,” and I, of course, I was- I was in choir. So, I sang, um, my solo from our choir concert, which was Hound Dog by Elvis Presley.

Craig Silva:

Nice.

Karen Farmer:

Yes.

Craig Silva:

Oh my gosh.

Karen Farmer:

That’s amazing. Okay, our last question for you in this category, we call it Instagram story time.

Casey McQuiston:

Mm.

Karen Farmer:

We look at your Instagram, find a picture, and then ask you to tell us about it (laughs).

Casey McQuiston:

Oh, yeah. Tell me about it, or I’ll tell you about it.

Craig Silva:

All right, so for listeners, this photo is of a vintage cassette player and a Red, White-

Casey McQuiston:

Oh my God.

Craig Silva:

… and Royal Blue cassette tape.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah, okay. So, I bought this cassette, wow, you really go. That is like, a deep cut. That’s from like, 2019. Um, okay, so I bought that cassette player specifically to try and get one as close as possible to the one that Jane would have in One Last Stop. So like, one thing I like to do when I’m working on a book is like, to kind of surround myself with artifacts, you know? Um, and it like, kind of helps me feel like I’m, like I don’t know. It’s- it’s like, method acting, but method writing, you know? So, I like to create the environment. So, I bought that cassette player, um, and so I started like, you can kind of see in the background, there’s the, Say Anything, um, cassette, which like, Say Anything is a big thing in the book. Um, but the- the actual tape that’s in there is, a friend of mine, Sierra, had made, like, taken one of my playlists that I made for Red, White & Royal Blue, and I don’t know how, what technology allows this to be possible, but-

Casey McQuiston:

… she put it on a cassette tape and like, made little cover art for it, and like, gave it to me for my birthday.

Craig Silva:

That’s amazing.

Casey McQuiston:

It was, yeah, very cute. Very, very good gift. Gift idea for anyone listening at home.

Craig Silva:

Yes.

Karen Farmer:

Yeah. 10 out of 10 idea.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah. Yeah.

Craig Silva:

It’s so funny you mention the mood board when we like, we had like, three or four photos that we were like, thinking would be the one. One of the other ones was the like, cassette player and the metro card-

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Craig Silva:

… and like, the jacket. We were almost gonna ask you about that, so it’s funny you brought it up anyway, yeah.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah. I mean, yeah, it’s exactly that. I really like, it’s, I will literally like, figure out what is, like what would be, like for- for August, she has like, a very specific pocket knife that she uses, and the handle is shaped like a fish, and I like, bought that pocket knife, and I would have it around when I was writing, you know? It just really helps me feel like, very much like these characters are tangible people that I can understand better.

Craig Silva:

That’s amazing.

Karen Farmer:

That’s such a great idea.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Karen Farmer:

I’m gonna try that.

Casey McQuiston:

You should. It’s fun. It’s fun.

Craig Silva:

So, we end every episode with asking you for book recommendations.

Casey McQuiston:

Ooh.

Craig Silva:

Either something you’re reading now or it’s coming out or just something you think that we and listeners should be reading.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah. Okay, um, so, okay. Okay, I’m going to cheat and get out my phone to make sure I don’t get anyone’s names wrong.

Casey McQuiston:

Um, but, okay, I will say my favorite audiobook I have listened to recently, um, is both of the audiobooks for Emily Wild. So Emily Wild’s Encyclopedia of Faeries, and then Emily Wild’s Map of the Other Lands. They’re both written by Heather Fawcett, performed by Ell Potter. Just absolutely phenomenal audiobooks. Absolutely delightful books. Uh, would highly, highly recommend more people… I mean, it’s on the list, so people are reading it, I need more people I personally know to read it so we can talk about it. So if you know me and you’re listening, go read that book. 

Um, okay, so, there’s one book I really want to recommend. Uh, I read it… I read an early copy, it’s coming out later this year, um, and I’m going to just pull it up on my phone so I can make sure I…Yeah, okay, so KT Hoffman wrote it, it’s called The Prospects. Um, and it is, like, a… Like a gay trans sports romance, um, about minor league baseball, and it’s like… It is so fun. It’s delightful, it’s sexy, it’s hilarious. Honestly, when I read a rom-com that I’ve… That, like, makes me genuinely laugh out loud, I’m like, I must tell everyone about this. So I’d recommend that. 

Um, and then what else have I been reading lately? Um, I just started listening to the adapted for audio, Persuasion. Sort of like a radio play performed by Florence Pugh with the whole cast.

Karen Farmer:

Wow.

Casey McQuiston:

Would highly recommend that.

Karen Farmer:

That sounds amazing. 

Casey McQuiston:

Um, yeah, I feel like… I mean, I- I’m going to cap it. I’m going to cap it at those.

Karen Farmer:

You successfully hand sold all of those to me. I’m like, sign me up.

Casey McQuiston:

Yeah.

Karen Farmer:

Awesome. Well, it’s been such a pleasure getting to meet with you in person and, um, learn more about your work. Thank you so much for taking the time.

Casey McQuiston:

Thank you so much for having me. This has been such a delight. Everybody, listen to more audiobooks.

Craig Silva:

Thank you.

Karen Farmer:

So that concludes the interview. I know we both really enjoyed the conversation, and I hope you’re all excited about Casey’s upcoming novel this summer, The Pairing. So keep an eye out for that.

Craig Silva:

I am dying to read this book. Um, for listeners, when we were getting ready for all these interviews we asked all the, like, publicists, et cetera, like, “Can we have an ARC of their new book? So that we can prepare for the interview, et cetera.” And I asked for this one even though I knew it came out in, like, August. Surprise, we did not get one, sadly, but I’m dying to read it.

Karen Farmer:

Me too. Me too. I will be first in line. 

Craig Silva:

Especially knowing what it’s about now, one question I wanted to ask that we didn’t was, like, you know when we interviewed Abraham Verghese, I was like, “What was the research for this like?” I wanted to be like, “Casey, did you go on, like, a wine and cheese tour through, like-“

Karen Farmer:

They did.

Craig Silva:

They did?

Karen Farmer:

They did. Yep. There’s another interview they did where they talk about traveling all over Europe, um, basically exactly what you said. Wine and cheese-

Craig Silva:

What a life. What a life.

Karen Farmer:

I know. I know. It’s the best possible kind of research one could do.

Craig Silva:

Yes-

Karen Farmer:

For a novel.

Craig Silva:

Our research for these interviews is, like, sitting alone in a dark room reading and, like writing a script into a Google Doc. I am certainly not being-

Karen Farmer:

I mean, I love sitting in a dark room reading, so it’s fine with me.

Craig Silva:

I mean, me too, but I love drinking wine in France more.

Karen Farmer:

Fair. That’s- that’s fair.

Craig Silva:

Oh, Karen, it is that time of the podcast. I would love to hear what you are reading right now.

Karen Farmer:

Oh, hurray. I am currently reading… Well, currently finishing Claire Lombardo’s first novel, um, which is called The Most Fun We Ever Had, and I love this book. I love it so much. It’s a really beautiful story about a family over the course of many generations, um, parents of four daughters, multiple perspectives across both parents and the daughters. Drama ensues, but also just a really interesting close up look at family dynamics and how things change over time, and how people grow together, and I just… I don’t have enough good things to say about this book. The audiobook is incredible. This narrator will blow your mind. Please, please check it out. Um, as a teaser, we also interviewed Claire recently, uh, I think on the same day that we interviewed Casey, which was very cool. 

Craig Silva:

It was a busy day.

Karen Farmer:

It wasn’t the best day ever, so-

Craig Silva:

It was, yes.

Karen Farmer:

So double update, I guess, is that we will have a feature episode with Claire Lombardo as well to talk about, The Most Fun We Ever Had and Claire’s upcoming novel. Okay, that’s my… That’s my update. Craig, what are you reading and enjoying?

Craig Silva:

Oh, I would love to. I just finished Hanif Abdurraqib’s They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us. I slept on this book. I feel like everyone I knew was like, “Go read this book, you’ll love it,” and, yeah, for listeners, Karen is pointing at herself right in the face right now, being like, “I told you this.” And for whatever reason, I love nonfiction and I love essays and stories, but I don’t read them as much as I do, um, like, novels and fiction and fantasy and horror, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. So for whatever reason, I slept on this book, but when we were getting ready to do all these interviews in person, Hanif somehow… We somehow got lucky enough to get to speak to Hanif, so I said, today is the day. So I picked it up, this book, and, like, two chapters in, I was like, what is wrong with me? Why did I sleep on this? Absolutely loved it. His writing is beautiful. Every chapter, I was like, I loved this band, or I love this album. And, like, whatever he was writing about just felt so perfect, um, and the way he writes it is just great. So meeting him was amazing, and getting to talk about this book was amazing, and please go buy this book, everybody.

Karen Farmer:

Yay. Oh my gosh, I love that our recommendations also tie into teasers for two upcoming episodes. Good job, team.

Craig Silva:

Thank you for listening to this episode, everyone. Um, I know we’ve given you a lot of recommendations, so hopefully you will look some of those up on Libro, and if you use the code LIBROPODCAST you can get two books for the price of one when starting a new membership. And as always, thank you for listening.