Best JAMES MAHOGANY Podcasts (2025)

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Let's Talk About Publishing with Deesha Philyaw 1:08:13

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4M ago1:08:13

1:08:13

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with author Deesha Philyaw about the new writing resource she created with graphic designer Diamonde Williamson, Writer Beware. The 20 page infographic takes a look at the distinctions among different publishing paths in order to dispel misinformation a…

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Everyone Has a Mystery with Rachel Howzell Hall 56:37

4M ago56:37

56:37

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published Nikesha speaks with Rachel Howzell Hall, the author of the thriller Fog and Fury. The publication of this books marks twenty three years since Rachel’s publishing debut. In our conversation, Rachel discusses why it’s important for authors to know and lean into their br…

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Keep on Singing with Laura Pegram 46:07

4M ago46:07

46:07

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Laura Pegram, the editor of Sing The Truth: The Kweli Journal Short Story Collection. The anthology comes 15 years after Kweli debuted as the premier online literary journal focused on nuturing the voices of emerging writers who identify as Black, …

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Different Ways of Being Black with Nancy Johnson 51:52

5M ago51:52

51:52

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Nancy Johnson, author of People of Means. It's a dual timeline historical fiction novel about the choices a mother and daughter make as they pursue excellence in a time of intense activism. In our conversation, Nancy discusses what triggered her to…

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Family Values with James Stewart III 42:12

5M ago42:12

42:12

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with James Stewart, III, the author of the novel, Defiant Acts. It’s a non linear story about an interracial family that couples the mundanity of everyday life with the incendiary explosiveness of racial reckoning out in the world. In our conversation, …

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Become Your Own Elder with Honorée Fannone Jeffers 43:56

5M ago43:56

43:56

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Honorée Fannone Jeffers, the author of Misbehaving at the Crossroads: Essays and Writings. The book blends, history, cultural criticism and memoir seamlessly to weave a story about Black women in America, their worth, their value, and their inheren…

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Hope for Love with Kristina Forest 51:21

5M ago51:21

51:21

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Kristina Forest the author of The Love Lyric. It’s the final installment of Kristina’s romance trilogy about three sisters who are named after flowers. In our conversation, Kristina’s discusses how working on both sides of the aisle in the publishi…

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We All Cousins with Nikkolas Smith 45:16

5M ago45:16

45:16

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Nikkolas Smith about his new picture book The History of We. It's a book he says shows the lineage for every human on Earth beginning with Black people in Africa. In our conversation, Nikkolas discusses why he's grateful for the winding path that l…

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Bearing Witness with Mahogany L. Browne 55:25

6M ago55:25

55:25

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Mahogany L. Browne, the author of the new YA novel A Bird in the Air Means We Can Still Breathe. The story is a real time exploration of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York told through a chorus of young voices and borne out of Mahogany’s own battle …

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The Intimacy of Black Boys with Kiese Laymon & Alexis Franklin 50:47

6M ago50:47

50:47

Order Your Copy of The Seven Daughters of Dupree! This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Kiese Laymon and Alexis Franklin about their new picture book, City Summer, Country Summer. It's a story about an up north city kid who goes down south to visit his country cousins for the summer. In our conversation, Kiese & Alexis discuss how the…

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Coming From the Jungle with Dwight Thompson 39:38

6M ago39:38

39:38

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Dwight Thompson, author of the novel, My Own Dear People. It’s a story about a young man reflecting on the harm he and his friends caused a young teacher while they were in high school and why even as a spectator the protagonist was still a perpetrator. In our conversation, Dwight explains how his…

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Happy to be Here with Denne Michele Norris 50:46

6M ago50:46

50:46

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Denne Michele Norris author of the novel, When the Harvest Comes. The story is one Denne has been working on for 14 years but couldn’t unlock until she freed herself first. In our conversation, Denne discusses how she worked through her issues of gender, race, and sexuality using her characters an…

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Free Yourself First with W.J. Lofton 39:48

7M ago39:48

39:48

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with W.J. Lofton, author of the poetry collection, boy, maybe. The collection explores William’s difficult and at times traumatic childhood, how he survived, and how he’s living now as young, Black queer man in America. In our conversation, Williams explains the reason he says that even though he cross…

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Be Loud with Arriel Vinson 49:26

7M ago49:26

49:26

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with, Arriel Vinson, author of the YA romance novel, Under the Neon Lights. It’s a story that sets the budding love between Jaelyn and Trey against a backdrop of their shifting community landscape and Jaelyn’s fight to maintain her safe place. In our conversation, Arriel explains the reason she grounde…

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Love in the Wide Open World with Cher Terais 44:28

7M ago44:28

44:28

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Cher Terais, author of the wanderlust romance novel, Tempest in Tulum. In crafting her novels, Cher says while her settings may be exotic and lush for love, what the characters go through will always be grounded in reality. In our conversation she explains why she was never a fan of Prince Charmin…

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The Sound of Sudan with Hana Baba 50:23

7M ago50:23

50:23

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Hana Baba the storyteller on the new podcast Folk Tales from Sudan. The first season will feature 10 stories Hana grew up hearing from her uncle, but was uncertain if she should or could step into his role behind the mic. A radio journalist by trade, Hana fell in love with voice, how it could emot…

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Inspiration for Survival with Dolen Perkins-Valdez 49:16

8M ago49:16

49:16

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Dolen Perkins-Valdez, about her new historical fiction novel, Happy Land. The books is based on the true story of how a group of Black people founded their own Kingdom on more than 200 acres of mountain land that straddled North and South Carolina. In writing Happy Land, Dolen is correcting the hi…

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The Novel Soundtrack with Myah Ariel 44:42

8M ago44:42

44:42

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Myah Ariel, author of the novel, No Ordinary Love. Myah, who is a journalist, film enthusiast, and lover of all things pop culture said she decided to try her hand at writing after spending the pandemic reconnecting with her love of reading romance novels. In our conversation she discusses how she…

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The Conspiracy is Not Always Theory with Esme Addison 40:22

8M ago40:22

40:22

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Esme Addison, author of the novel An Intrigue of Witches. The historical mystery novel takes the reader on a treasure hunt with the main character to discover the hidden history of unruly women. In our conversation, Esme discusses who prophesied her writing and publishing career over her life. Plu…

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Into the Underground with Jacqueline Crooks 44:44

8M ago44:44

44:44

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Jacqueline Crooks, author of the novel, Fire Rush. It's a book that took her 16 years to bring into the world after getting a late start in writing even though it was something she knew she always wanted to do. In our conversation, Jacqueline explains why she considers her upbringing as an outside…

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There's More to the Truth with Jill Tew 48:42

9M ago48:42

48:42

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Jill Tew, author of the YA dystopian romance novel, The Dividing Sky. It's a book Jill says she hopes disrupts old norms for her young audience In our conversation, Jill explains how she fell into the productivity trap in corporate America and the two major life changes that brought her back to th…

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Knowing When You're Ready with Olufunke Grace Bankole 57:47

9M ago57:47

57:47

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Olufunke Grace Bankole, author of The Edge of Water. The book began as a short story and Olufunke has been working to bring it to fruition as a novel for the last twenty years. In our conversation she discusses, how she received the gift of patience from an industry insider that relieved the press…

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What the Daughter Knows with Jodi M. Savage 47:37

9M ago47:37

47:37

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Jodi M. Savage, author of the essay collection, Death of a Jaybird: Essays on Mothers and Daughters and the Things They Leave Behind. It’s a collection that reckons with Jodi’s grief before and after the deaths of her mother and grandmother and how she found comfort in the space a blank page provi…

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The National Black Writers Conference with Donna Hill 28:19

9M ago28:19

28:19

This week, Nikesha speaks with Donna Hill, the newly named executive director of The Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, right in the heart of Brooklyn. Today, as in Thursday March 27, 2025, kicks off the center’s signature event, the National Black Writer’s Conference. This year is their two-day biennial symposium highlighting mid…

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The Sanctity of Solitude with Aaliyah Bilal 46:12

9M ago46:12

46:12

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Aaliyah Bilal, author of the short-story collection Temple Folk. The collection is made up of ten short stories about Black Americans who identify as Muslim and who were at one time members of the Nation of Islam. In our conversation, Aaliyah explains why "normalcy" is the main message she wants r…

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The Thread of Connection with Jamila Minnicks 48:59

10M ago48:59

48:59

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Jamila Minnicks, author of the novel, Moonrise Over New Jessup. It's a book written about a small, Black, Alabama enclave in the 1950s facing pressure to integrate despite resistance from the town’s male leaders and the women who make their work possible. A native of Alabama, Jamila says she sees …

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Leading with Meaning with Laysha Ward 45:38

10M ago45:38

45:38

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Laysha Ward author of the leadership book, Lead Like You Mean It: Lessons on Integrity and Purpose from the C-Suite. Laysha spent more than 30 years in corporate America, most of that time at Target. Our conversation took place before Target announced their roll back of DEI initiatives but we stil…

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Family Business with Bernice L. McFadden 46:07

10M ago46:07

46:07

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Bernice L. McFadden, the author of several award winning historical fiction novels. She’s out today with her memoir, First Born Girls, a book that weaves the story of her road to publication with her debut novel Sugar, with the story of the women in her family and what they endured. In honoring he…

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Love Notes to Children with Amber McBride 47:35

10M ago47:35

47:35

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with National Book Award Finalist and Corretta Scott King Award Winner, Amber McBride, about her latest novel, Onyx and Beyond. The novel tells the story of 12-year-old Onyx who’s growing up in the DMV area in the tulmutuous times of the late 60s and early 70s. There’s assassinations and moon landings …

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The Little Spoon with Jason Reynolds 54:12

10M ago54:12

54:12

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with author and MacArthur genius Jason Reynolds about his YA romance novel, Twenty-four Seconds from Now: A Love Story. The novel explores the budding relationship between Neon and Aria. High school seniors who’ve been together for two years and are both ready to take their relationship to the next lev…

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The Proof is in the Writing with Victoria Christopher Murray 50:06

11M ago50:06

50:06

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with return guest, Victoria Christopher Murray about her latest novel, Harlem Rhapsody. The novel tells the story of Jesse Redmon Faucet. A complex and ambitious woman who moved to New York to be nearer to her lover W.E.B. DuBois, and also to run his magazine, The Crisis. Between the scandal she had to…

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Pursuing Passion with Shanora Williams 43:13

11M ago43:13

43:13

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author, Shanora Williams, about her new romance novel, Beautiful Broken Love. The novel is the second chance love story of Davina Klein-Roberts and Deke Bishop. Reeling from tragedy and trying to rebuild her life, Davina is not prepared for Deke, the NBA st…

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Anchored in History with Tara Roberts 47:13

11M ago47:13

47:13

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Tara Roberts, author of the memoir, Written in the Waters: A Memoir of History, Home, and Belonging. It’s an epic story of Tara fulfilling her childhood desire of becoming a writer commingled with her active decision to embrace a past she’d always run from. A storyteller, adventurer, and traveler,…

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The Power of Belief with Iris Mwanza 50:14

11M ago50:14

50:14

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Iris Mwanza, author of the novel The Lion’s Den. It’s a thriller featuring a young lawyer fighting for justice in the case of a queer teen, that has her going up against every oppressive system in Zambia from the President and police to her priest and the doctrine of the Catholic Church. Iris is Z…

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Witnessing From the Empire with Fady Joudah & Lena Khalaf Tuffaha 56:00

11M ago56:00

56:00

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Palestinian-American poets, Fady Joudah and Lena Khalaf Tuffaha. Fady is a physician, in addition to being a poet. His latest collection [ . . . ] chronicles the beginning of the genocide in Palestine in late 2023 and was a finalist for the 2024 National Book Award in poetry. Lena is a poet, essa…

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What Writing Can Do - Season 5 Trailer 3:31

12M ago3:31

3:31

This season on Black & Published . . . It’s time to get real about what writing can do. Whether we write about love or compassion, broken systems or the parallels between the past and the present; writing is active! It is both a portal and an archive. And while publishing is a business, the work on the page is still pure. This season the journeys c…

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Bonus: Writing Past Rejection with Nikesha Elise Williams 48:42

1y ago48:42

48:42

In this bonus episode of Black & Published, Nikesha is sharing her story about becoming a writer and finding her way in the publishing industry. From exploring and utilizing both traditional and independent avenues, Nikesha discusses when she knew she was a writer, the 7-year-long journey of publishing her debut novel, Four Women, founding her comp…

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Bonus: Enjoying the Life You've Built with Minda Honey 47:17

1y ago47:17

47:17

This week on Black and Published, Nikesha speaks with Minda Honey, author of the memoir, The Heartbreak Years. A retrospective for the twenty-somethings who are ready to stop leaping into the lives of the men they like and instead choose themselves and a life they love. The book is born out of Minda's series of essays for Longreads on dating politi…

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BONUS: A Living Language with jarrett hill & Tre'vell Anderson 48:54

1y ago48:54

48:54

This week on Black and Published, Nikesha speaks with jarrett hill and Tre'vell Anderson, the authors of, Historically Black Phrases: From "I Ain't One of Your Little Friends" to "Who All Gon Be There?" Tre'vell and jarrett both have backgrounds in journalism and they are the hosts of the award-winning podcast FANTI. Their book chronicles the livin…

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BONUS: Deeply Profound with Honorée Fanning Jeffers 46:23

1y ago46:23

46:23

On this episode of Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Honorée Fannone Jeffers, author of the epic novel, The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois. Honorée is also the author of five critically acclaimed books of poetry, including the award-winning collection, The Age of Phillis, based on the life and times of Phillis Wheatley Peters.…

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BONUS: The Doors of the Church are Open with Deesha Philyaw 50:59

1+ y ago50:59

50:59

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with author, Deesha Philyaw, her short story collection, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, which was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award.By Nikesha Elise Williams

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BONUS: Reed, Write, and Create Podcast with Lori L. Tharps 1:04:12

1+ y ago1:04:12

1:04:12

This bonus episode of Black & Published features an episode of the Reed, Write and Create podcast hosted by award-winning author and creative writing coach, Lori L. Tharps. On the podcast, Lori offers bite-sized sessions of creative writing coaching based on the lives and times of our BIPOC literary ancestors, and she interviews successful BIPOC au…

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Chicago vs. Everybody with Arionne Nettles 47:29

1+ y ago47:29

47:29

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Arionne Nettles, author of the book, We Are The Culture: Black Chicago's Influence on Everything. A university lecturer at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism as well as a culture reporter, Arionne's book is as much a love letter to her city as it is putting the world on notice… …

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Training Up Champions with Julian Randall 45:08

1+ y ago45:08

45:08

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Julian Randall author of the essay collection The Dead Don't Need Reminding: In Search of Fugitives, Mississippi and Black TV Nerd Shit. Julian, who is also the author of the Cave Canem poetry prize winning collection, Refuse, got their start as a slam poet. In making the transition from the stage…

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The Future is Now with Maura Cheeks 39:10

1+ y ago39:10

39:10

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Maura Cheecks, author of Acts of Forgiveness. The book is an outgrowth of her 2019 article, for the Atlantic, “American Wealth is Broken” which explores the necessity of reparations for Black families. Maura was awarded the 2019 Masthead Reporting Residency for The Atlantic’s first residency progr…

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For the Love of Grandmothers with Melissa Mogollon 46:34

1+ y ago46:34

46:34

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Melissa Mogollon, author of the novel, OYE. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Melissa is originally from Colombia and was raised in Florida. She now teaches at a boarding school in Rhode Island, where she lives with her partner and dog. In our conversation, Melissa explains the feedback sh…

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It's All Connected with Tomi Adeyemi 48:45

1+ y ago48:45

48:45

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with New York Times Bestselling author Tomi Adeyemi, author of The Children of Anguish and Anarchy, the final installment in the Legacy of Orisha series. As a Nigerian American who came of age in a mostly white community, Tomi says her writing grew out of reckoning with her own internalized self-hatred…

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Note to Self with Riss M. Neilson 48:59

1+ y ago48:59

48:59

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Riss M. Neilson, author of the romance novel, A Love Like The Sun. A graduate of the Rhode Island College, Riss won the English department’s Jean Garrigue Award, which was judged by novelist, Nick White. Her debut young adult novel, Deep in Providence, was a 2022 finalist for the New England Book …

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Rising to the Occasion with Shenequa Golding 41:07

1+ y ago41:07

41:07

This week on Black & Published, Nikesha speaks with Shenequa Golding, author of the essay collection A Black Girl in the Middle: Essays on (Allegedly) Figuring it All Out. Shenequa’s collection is the culmination of what happened after her essay about being Black in the workplace after George Floyd’s murder went viral. So viral, Amazon founder and …

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Introducing Reckon True Stories with Deesha Philyaw & Kiese Laymon 46:41

1+ y ago46:41

46:41

This week on Black & Published we're introducing you to a new show that we love, Reckon True Stories hosted by acclaimed authors Deesha Philyaw and Kiese Laymon. Guests for Season One include writers Roxane Gay, Imani Perry, Alexander Chee, Minda Honey, Hanif Abdurraqib, and Samantha Irby. Reckon True Stories is a celebration of new and classic non…