Three new radio interviews celebrating the release of THE GATEPOST
May 20, 2026 § Leave a comment

I love talking about books, literature, and related topics, so I’m very grateful to these generous radio show/podcast hosts for bringing me on to talk about them in the context of my new novel, The Gatepost. Each of these shows was converted to the podcast format after airing, which means that you can listen to the recordings at any time by clicking on the links or images below!
Writer’s Voice with Francesca Rheannon, a multi-syndicated public radio show that airs on public radio stations around the country. Francesca is a brilliant interviewer and I found our conversation particularly fascinating because it took us to some unexpected and personally revealing places.
We talked about The Gatepost, new mythology, the challenges and prospects for shifting the current paradigm about humanity’s relationship to the rest of nature, the history and uses of psychedelic or entheogenic drugs, archaeology, quantum theory, Mesoamerican stelae & glyphs, the role of modern storytelling, grief, consciousness, and much more.

The Inner Game with Gwen Garcelon on KDNK radio. This delightful conversation covered topics of spirituality and nature including awe, rhe miracle of life on this planet, humanity’s need to reclaim a spiritual relationship with the natural world, and one particular scarlet tanager.

I was particularly honored by Gwen’s takeaways about the book, including this one:
“The Gatepost is a really moving novel about human development and love and what may be possible in other realms of consciousness.” — Gwen Garcelon
Write on Four Corners with DelSheree Spinner on KSJE radio. In this fascinatingly in-depth conversation that may be of particular interest to writers we talked about The Gatepost and how it straddles several genres, grief, the power of fiction to help us figure out our own lives, and how fictional protagonists allow us to use our compassion to explore the experience of being human.
We also talked about why novels are an antidote to loneliness, the work of bringing literature to the new generation, character relatability, the power of place and how good descriptive writing is a mechanism for fictional transportation, hallucinogens, geological time, the Eleusinian mysteries, and more!

Order THE GATEPOST at your FAVORITE INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORE or:
ORDER A SIGNED COPY from New Hampshire’s The Toadstool Bookshop. Just use this link to complete your preorder; the signature will be added before shipping or pickup.

Vermont Public Radio Interview
May 14, 2026 § Leave a comment
Such a fun conversation recently with Mikaela Lefrak, the host of Vermont Edition, up at Vermont Public’s headquarters in Colchester! We talked about my novel THE GATEPOST, its Vermont setting, the origin of its characters, psilocybin, dreams and hallucinations in fiction, and much more. My gratitude to Mikaela and the show’s producer, Jon Ehrens, for their hospitality and professionalism. You can listen to the whole twenty minute interview here.
The Colorado Sun kicks off early media coverage for THE GATEPOST with excerpt, podcast, & print interview
February 3, 2026 § Leave a comment

My sincere gratitude to Kevin Simpson and The Colorado Sun for their early interest in THE GATEPOST, launching May 26, 2026!
In addition to the podcast, The Sun published an excerpt of the novel’s first chapter and a wide-ranging print interview in which we talked about Oaxaca and the inspiration for the novel, the writing process, Mesoamerican shamanism, hallucinogenic mushrooms, the multiverse, and more.

Where the Climate Things Are: podcast & video interview
October 20, 2025 § Leave a comment

This 59 minute interview with the delightful Addie Thompson of Where the Climate Things Are was so much fun! We talk about, among other things:
Growing up between Vermont and Denver and discovering a love of winter and skiing
How fly fishing — in various locations throughout the US, including Addie’s favorite, Kennebago Lake — became a lifelong practice
Trip leading, group dynamics, and what time in the wilderness reveals about human connection
Why geological time, mass extinctions, and perspective can help with climate anxiety
The role of fiction in shifting climate paradigms and building new climate mythologies
Click here to watch the whole interview

Burlington Free Press book round-up & a new interview at Cleaver
July 24, 2025 § Leave a comment
Just getting back from the inspiring whirlwind of The Afterlife Project book tour and almost missed a few things:

The Burlington Free Press featured The Afterlife Project in their “Summer Reading Guide of Books By Vermonters.” Needless to say, it’s an honor to be included!
Also an honor, and a conversation I very much enjoyed having, is this interview with Andrea Caswell, editor of the well-known Philadelphia-based literary magazine, Cleaver.

We discuss climate fiction, deep time, research, the novelist as archaeologist, weaving together multiple timelines, the inspirations for The Afterlife Project, and more. Check it out, I think you’ll enjoy it!
Interviews & novel excerpt at The Colorado Sun and the Daily Sun-Up podcast
July 14, 2025 § Leave a comment

Very much enjoyed this interview on The Colorado Sun’s daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. You can listen to it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube.
The Colorado Sun has also published this excerpt of THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT and an extended on-line interview about the origins of the novel, the challenges of writing it, the author’s Colorado roots, and more.
All this media attention was perfectly timed to coincide with THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT’s Colorado book tour, which has been a smashing success. My gratitude to Kevin Simpson and everyone at The Colorado Sun!

New interviews, reviews, and book roundups featuring THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT
June 20, 2025 § Leave a comment

This interview with LA-based journalist, gamer, and film buff Paul Semel was especially fun because the conversation ranged into questions of film influences, including my ideal casting choices for the main characters of THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT. Read the whole interview here.
Quick excerpt: “In terms of influence, film and TV weren’t as important as other books, but my guess is that movies like Interstellar, Contact, and Arrival sort of gave me permission to pursue a story foregrounding the kind of “big” ambitious topics I was interested in, like space-time, general relativity, and the future of humanity, while TV series like Battlestar Galactica reminded me that when the survival of the human species is an open question, it can generate high stakes and robust dramatic tension. And the popularity of the great nature documentaries, like Planet Earth, showed that the awesome spectacles of life on Earth could be intrinsically riveting for mass audiences.”
Very cool: THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT was featured in a new scifi books roundup at Transfer Orbit, a newsletter run by Vermont writer Andrew Liptak that provides regular look at the latest news within the science fiction community, featuring analysis and commentary and updates about fiction, writing, and the future of reading.


Also very cool: THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT was featured in a best beach reads roundup by The Cullman Times in Cullman, Alabama—with the article also syndicated by the Rome News-Tribune in Rome, Georgia. Making inroads in the American south!
I also loved this notably glowing review from Shannon at It Starts at Midnight.

Quick excerpt: “This is hands down one of the most thought-provoking books that I have ever read. Which is saying something, because thought-provoking books are kind of my thing . . . I have so much to say about this book, but I equally want to tell you no more. Because this is the sort of story that needs to be experienced to be appreciated.” Read the whole review here.

I enjoyed reading this thoughtful and generally positive (if at times slightly grudging ;)) review from the Washington Independent Review of Books.
Finally, I very much appreciated this review of the audiobook on Instagram from @bookboundblogger.

Quick excerpt: “I am very picky about my sci-fi books. This one hit the mark! It didn’t feel like reading a novel. It felt like witnessing a slow‑motion disaster unfold with stunning imagery and quiet heartbreak. The science felt authentic. The emotion was raw. The tension never let up. It gave geography class, climate awareness, and gut‑punch storytelling all in one, but never preachy or feeling like an info-dump. Just deeply human.” Read the whole review here.
Vermont Public Radio interview with Mitch Wertlieb
June 12, 2025 § Leave a comment

What a fun and interesting conversation with Mitch Wertlieb on Vermont Public’s Vermont Edition! We talked about the inspirations and scientific research behind THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT, time travel, post-apocalyptic fiction, paleo-climatology, novel research in the great outdoors, whether stories can move the needle on the climate debate, and much more.
I drove up to VPR’s Colchester studios to record the show, and although we’ve spoken in the past this is my first time meeting Mitch in person. He’s a truly wonderful guy and a GREAT interviewer. If you’re remotely interested in any of these topics, listen to the whole interview here. (As an added bonus, the second half of the segment has beta on some great uncrowded hiking trails in Vermont!)

My thanks to Vermont Public, Mitch Wertlieb, Jon Ehrens, Andrea Laurion, Isabella Nugent, Page One Media, Podium Publishing, and the talented, lovely, and indefatigable Julia Jensen.
Television Interview: “Here We Are” with Wendy O’Connell on BCTV
May 26, 2025 § Leave a comment

Such a fun conversation! We talked about my early life, travel, writing, teaching, The Afterlife Project, and much more. Wendy is an excellent, relaxed interviewer, skilled at putting her interlocutor at ease. The words and laughter flowed, and the thirty-odd minutes went by so fast. This will be up on YouTube indefinitely, so if you’re interested bookmark it, and if you’ve got half an hour some time, give it a watch!
Interview with novelist Dariel Suarez at Fiction Writers Review
June 15, 2021 § Leave a comment
Pleased to share this lively and illuminating recent conversation about fiction, politics, Cuba, and Dariel’s new novel, The Playwright’s House. Read the full interview here.

