Off The Shelf with Morgann Book

This week on Off The Shelf, Morgann sits down with bestselling Canadian author Marissa Stapley, whose novel Lucky became Reese's Book Club's first-ever Canadian pick and is now being adapted into an Apple TV+ series starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Drew Starkey, and Annette Bening. Marissa shares the heartbreaking story behind writing Lucky while caring for her mom, how Reese Witherspoon discovered the book, what it was really like keeping the Reese's Book Club secret, and why she always pictured Anya Taylor-Joy as Lucky.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Intro & Welcome
00:35 - Why Marissa always knew she'd be a writer
03:25 - Her first novel that never made it to shelves
04:40 - How journalism shaped her writing career
06:02 - Ranking her wildest jobs (including cemetery gardener)
09:06 - Why she writes under multiple pen names
11:06 - How co-writing a novel actually works
12:44 - TV writing vs. novel writing
14:30 - The inspiration behind Lucky
17:06 - Creating Lucky Armstrong
20:22 - Writing Lucky while caring for her mom
22:30 - Becoming Reese's first Canadian Book Club pick
25:23 - Keeping the Reese's Book Club secret
27:56 - How the Apple TV+ adaptation came together
30:40 - Manifesting Anya Taylor-Joy as Lucky
35:04 - Visiting the set of Lucky
40:11 - The biggest changes from book to TV series
42:09 - Which episode Marissa can't stop thinking about
44:04 - What to expect from the Lucky sequel

FOLLOW US:

Morgann Book
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@morgannbook?lang=en
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgannbook/?hl=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MorgannBook
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/morgannbook

Marissa Stapley
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marissastapley/
Find her books at Indigo: https://www.indigo.ca/pages/contributor/Marissa-Stapley
Find her books at Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/search?attributes.contributorId=16235074&contributorName=Marissa%20Stapley

Off The Shelf
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/offtheshelf.podcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@offtheshelf.podcast?lang=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Off.TheShelfPodcast

Hosted by: Morgann Book
Created by: Bookish Media, Morgann Book, and Thomas Johnston
Executive Producers: Morgann Book & Thomas Johnston
Produced by: Stefanie Macchiusi
Associate Post Producer and Editor: Ricki Biramontes
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Off The Shelf, Morgann sits down with bestselling author June Hur to discuss her journey from writing Pride & Prejudice fanfiction to publishing Behind Five Willows. They chat about countless rejections, finding her voice as a writer, the inspiration behind her latest novel, Korean history, libraries, and why she chose to slow down her publishing schedule.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Intro & Welcome
01:14 Pride & Prejudice Started Everything
05:30 Growing Up Between Korea, Canada & the U.S.
08:23 Working at the Library & Favorite Books
10:07 15 Manuscripts, 100+ Rejections & Finding Her Voice
16:28 Why She Writes Korean Historical Fiction
18:11 Motherhood Changed Her Writing Career
21:36 Her Writing Process & Writing Korean on the Page
24:27 How Her Books Have Evolved
27:42 Where to Start Reading June Hur
28:18 Behind Five Willows Explained
31:15 Turning Pride & Prejudice Into a Romance
33:36 Book Bans, History & Why Stories Matter
35:23 Writing the Romance & Darcy Inspiration
37:03 A Love Letter to Librarians & Bookstores
39:09 What's Next for June Hur

FOLLOW US:

Morgann Book
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@morgannbook?lang=en
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgannbook/?hl=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MorgannBook
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/morgannbook

June Hur
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/junehwrites
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@junehwrites
Find her books at Indigo: https://www.indigo.ca/pages/contributor/june-hur?id=883069940
Find her books at Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/search?attributes.contributorId=20658423&contributorName=June%20Hur

Off The Shelf
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/offtheshelf.podcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@offtheshelf.podcast?lang=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Off.TheShelfPodcast

Hosted by: Morgann Book
Created by: Bookish Media, Morgann Book, and Thomas Johnston
Executive Producers: Morgann Book & Thomas Johnston
Produced by: Stefanie Macchiusi
Associate Post Producer and Editor: Ricki Biramontes
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Off The Shelf, Morgann sits down with bestselling author Elle Kennedy, the writer behind the beloved Off Campus books. Elle shares how she knew she wanted to be an author at just six years old, what it felt like selling her first novel, and why she almost never self-published The Deal. They also dive into the biggest behind-the-scenes secrets from the Off-Campus series, including the original plans for Tucker, why Dean almost ended up with someone else, what it was like visiting the set of the TV adaptation, and more!

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Intro & Welcome
02:35 Wanting to be an author at six years old
05:19 Selling her first book & publishing journey
08:41 How her writing process has evolved
12:41 Why The Deal was originally self-published
15:13 Creating Garrett, Hannah & the Briar universe
17:16 The original Off-Campus series plans
18:26 Tucker almost had a very different fate
21:07 Why Dean wasn't meant for Sabrina
24:34 Favourite scenes from the series
26:44 Which Off-Campus characters were easiest to write?
27:57 Expanding the Briar universe
30:45 Off-Campus character superlatives
32:14 Bringing Off-Campus to TV
34:43 Visiting the set & meeting the cast
39:22 Hidden Easter eggs & favourite filming moments
43:50 Season 2 teases
46:03 New YA thriller & returning to suspense
50:07 Outro

FOLLOW US:

Morgann Book
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@morgannbook?lang=en
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgannbook/?hl=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MorgannBook
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/morgannbook

Elle Kennedy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellekennedyauthor/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ellekennedyauthor
Find her books at Indigo: https://www.indigo.ca/pages/contributor/elle-kennedy?id=825593661
Find her books at Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/authors/elle-kennedy

Off The Shelf
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/offtheshelf.podcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@offtheshelf.podcast?lang=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Off.TheShelfPodcast

Hosted by: Morgann Book
Created by: Bookish Media, Morgann Book, and Thomas Johnston
Executive Producers: Morgann Book & Thomas Johnston
Produced by: Stefanie Macchiusi
Associate Post Producer and Editor: Ricki Biramontes
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Off The Shelf, Morgann sits down with Matt Haig, bestselling author of The Midnight Library, The Midnight Train, and Reasons to Stay Alive. Matt opens up about the mental health crisis that changed the course of his life, how writing became part of his recovery, and why The Midnight Library was the most freeing book he's ever written. We also discuss the upcoming film adaptation starring Florence Pugh, the inspiration behind Nora Seed, social media, AI, creativity, and what he hopes readers take away from The Midnight Train.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Introduction
01:16 Why Matt Reads His Own 1-Star Reviews
04:06 Why Children Are Better Readers Than Adults
06:24 Trouble at School, Neurodiversity & Finding Writing
08:28 The Breakdown That Changed Everything
11:56 How Books Helped Him Survive Depression
14:05 Recovery, Rejection & Becoming an Author
17:40 The Purpose Behind Reasons to Stay Alive
20:17 Mental Health Advocacy & Writing Fiction
27:26 Conquering His Fear of Public Speaking
33:07 The Origin of The Midnight Library
35:12 Writing Nora's Many Alternate Lives
37:50 How Nora Seed Got Her Name
38:52 The Midnight Library Movie Adaptation
40:27 Florence Pugh as Nora & Behind the Scenes
44:30 Inside The Midnight Train
46:14 What Matt Wants Readers to Take Away
49:20 The Dream of Opening a Bookstore
51:24 What's Next

FOLLOW US:

Morgann Book
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@morgannbook?lang=en
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgannbook/?hl=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MorgannBook
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/morgannbook

Matt Haig
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattzhaig/
Find his books at Indigo: https://www.indigo.ca/pages/contributor/matt-haig?id=811768428
Find his books at Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/authors/matt-haig

Off The Shelf
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/offtheshelf.podcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@offtheshelf.podcast?lang=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Off.TheShelfPodcast

Hosted by: Morgann Book
Created by: Bookish Media, Morgann Book, and Thomas Johnston
Executive Producers: Morgann Book & Thomas Johnston
Produced by: Stefanie Macchiusi
Associate Post Producer and Editor: Ricki Biramontes
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Off The Shelf, Morgann sits down with bestselling author Lauren Kate to talk about the teacher who inspired her to keep writing, the 76 rejection letters she still has, and how Fallen became a global phenomenon. Plus, Lauren shares the latest on the Fallen TV series and why she returned to the world of angels with her newest novel, White Lights.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Introduction
01:04 International Emmy & The Fallen Legacy
02:04 Ballet, Books & Growing Up Creative
04:12 The Teacher Who Changed Everything
10:12 Discovering Writing in College
13:08 76 Rejection Letters Before Success
16:11 The Call That Changed Her Life
17:52 Working at HarperCollins
19:54 The Origins of Fallen
23:14 Building Luce, Daniel & Cam
30:44 The Fallen Movie Adaptation
36:54 Bringing Fallen to Television
40:04 Inside Lauren Kate's New Fantasy, White Lights
42:53 Why She Returned to Angels After Rom-Coms
46:06 Easter Eggs, Book Two & What's Next
49:15 The Lasting Impact of Fallen Readers
50:16 Outro

FOLLOW US:

Morgann Book
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@morgannbook?lang=en
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgannbook/?hl=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MorgannBook
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/morgannbook

Lauren Kate
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenkatebooks
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@laurenkatebooks
Find her books at Indigo: https://www.indigo.ca/pages/contributor/lauren-kate?id=889940567
Find her books at Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/series/lauren-kates-fallen-series

Off The Shelf
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/offtheshelf.podcast/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@offtheshelf.podcast?lang=en
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Off.TheShelfPodcast

Hosted by: Morgann Book
Created by: Bookish Media, Morgann Book, and Thomas Johnston
Executive Producers: Morgann Book & Thomas Johnston
Produced by: Stefanie Macchiusi
Associate Post Producer and Editor: Ricki Biramontes

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.