Harlan Coben, author of PLOT TWIST: a memoir on writing

With over 100 million books in print worldwide, Harlan Coben is the #1 New York Times author of thirty five novels and the new memoir on writing, Plot Twist: Life, Craft, and the Messy First Draft. His books are published in 46 languages around the globe. More on Harlan at harlancoben.com

Harlan joins Barbara DeMarco-Barrett to talk about his failed novels and what kept him going, why authors should consider incremental ambition, personal themes in the work, how tragedies made him a better writer, twists, writing longhand, categories, and much more.

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(Recorded on September 4, 2026)

Host: Barbara DeMarco-Barrett
Host: Marrie Stone
Music: Travis Barrett (Stream his music on Spotify, Apple Music, etc.)

Harlan Coben, author of PLOT TWIST: a memoir on writing
Barbara DeMarco-Barrett
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Julie Orringer, author of LUNA, PHOENIX, QUEEN