A story can become more meaningful after listening to an author's motivation for writing. There are three great podcasts that have best-selling authors stop by talk about their books. They are all free to download, or they can be streamed. Some of author podcasts are short interviews with authors about their crafts or their new books. Some podcasts are of the authors reading or performing sections of books.
Barnes and Noble: Meet the Writers Podcasts
Every Monday, Barnes and Noble releases a new Meet the Writers podcast. The themes are as varied as the authors; Carl Hiaasen discusses letters he has recieved from fans, David Sedaris talks up his diary skills, and Rick Riordan shares his favorite childhood books. There are different genres of authors, so kids, teens, and adults are likely to find someone familiar.
Meet the Writers varies in length, but they are usually about 909. They are produced by Barnes and Noble, and they can be downloaded from iTunes or through the direct Meet the Writers feed. By going to the direct Barnes and Noble podcast feed, you can see a list of authors, including video options, and genres, such as children's authors and illustrators. All of the podcasts are produced by Barnes and Noble.
Apple.com: Meet the Author Podcasts
Apple's Meet the Author podcast series is not updated as regularly as Barnes and Noble's Meet the Writers, but the podcasts are all wonderful interviews and recordings. Sometimes they are direct author discussions, like James Patterson's conversation about Double Cross. Other times, they are performances, like Stephen Colbert's reading of I am America and So Can You.
Mary Pope Osborn's interview is a highlight of the series, because she talks about the Magic Tree House books and the musical associated with the series. Her husband helped write the musical, so he appears in the podcast and some of the music is featured. All of the Meet the Authors Podcasts are produced by Apple, and they can be downloaded from the iTunes store or the Meet the Authors feed.
Amazon.com: Amazon Wire Interviews
Amazon's weekly Amazon Wire podcast series is not soley devoted to authors, but writers frequently appear to promote books. The Amazon Wire podcasts can be streamed from Amazon, downloaded through RSS, or you can sign up for an email subscription with information about the weekly featured artist. The Amazon Wire feed is not updated as frequently as the email subscription information, but there are a lot of authors in the Amazon Wire podcast feed.
Amazon also has an audibook preview podcasts, which is a monthly sample of new audbiobooks. You can sign up for the Book Clips audiobook podcast through Amazon.com. Although the stores do not always update their podcasts as often as they intend to, Barnes and Noble, Apple, and Amazon offer a tremendous collection of famous authors sharing their works.
Alex Sharp - Alex Sharp is a teacher who has been keeping Suite101 readers up to date with the latest in audio- and e-book gadgetry since 2008.
