Book Club: Rachael Bell-Irving

Hey isolaters! This podcast is the product of our ongoing pandemic, an idea developed during the dark days of late winter in snowy, cold Edmonton. Well, it snowed once again here this week and so winter is back in full force. With a 15 degree drop in temperature I must admit I have very little interest in going outside these days, and instead I’ve wanted to curl up with a book and get some distraction time in. What better setting than that for the first meeting of the Well That’s Cool Book Club?

As a reader, I tend to alternate between non-fiction history books and throwaway science fiction for fun. It’s the outcome of studying history for five years and working in museums for another five since, as well as a smash up of my interest in exploration and space. While reading fiction especially, I often wonder how an author can create such long and intricate storylines, develop characters that are so otherworldly, and keep it all together across a series. As a podcaster, I have the perfect platform to find out!

And thus, the book club was born, an idea to bring friends together and share what we’re reading in isolation combined with a time to talk with an author or someone from the wider literary community to learn more about this sector that inspires such curiosity and creativity. I’m very fortunate to know some published authors and to have friends as interested in books as I am who were keen to join me on Thursday night, October 22, for a live podcast recording to kick off this new series. And it is a series, I’m excited to announce a line up through January with more coming in the new year, more on that at the end of the episode.

My first guest, Rachael Bell-Irving.

My special guest for the first book club meeting was Vancouver-based young adult fantasy author Rachael Bell-Irving. Her debut novel, Demons at the Doorstep, was published in January this year. Rachael joined me by Zoom to share her process writing the book, her journey to self-publishing, and what she has in store for the next five books in the series. A big thanks also to the live virtual studio audience who asked some questions at the end of our chat.

Thanks again to Rachael Bell-Irving for starting the Well That’s Cool Book Club with her fantastical writing and experience. After our conversation, Rachael and our studio audience continued chatting about books, sharing what we’re reading these days and more about our reading styles and interests. I just finished The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay, a popular book club read that I found interesting enough to keep me reading but strange enough to keep me wondering why I was reading it. Rachael’s recommendations were A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab for magic, fantasy, and some darkness, as well as Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibanez for its vivid setting and strong young adult heroine.

If you want to learn more about Rachael’s writing and keep up with what she’s reading in the coming months, visit her website at www.rbellirving.ca or find her on social media @rbellirving. You can get your copy of Demons at the Doorstep on Amazon.

Announcing the first four special guests on the Well That’s Cool Book Club! Join a future event here.

I hope you’ll me for a future Well That’s Cool Book Club event. I’m excited to announce the lineup of special guests through to January, with more for 2021 being confirmed soon! Join me on November 12 at 8:00 p.m. Mountain Time as I talk about educating and empowering youth through storytelling and how you pick an award-winning book with Alyssa Polinsky, board member of Story Studio Writing Society and President of the Victoria Book Prizes. On December 10th I’ll be talking with Canada’s foremost popular military historian, Mark Zuehlke, who is also an award-winning mystery writer. And in January, I’ll be learning about speculative fiction with C.J. Lavigne, author of In Veritas. Learn more about my guests and find links to register for future meetings at benfast.ca/cool/bookclub.

Thanks as always to Ron Yamauchi for the theme tune and to Anna Schroeder of Annather Design for the cool podcast logo, check out her work at annatherdesign.com. Other music heard during this episode and all the other podcast stuff is done by me, Ben Fast.

You can get in touch with the podcast on Facebook or on Twitter. Say hi to the podcast or suggest something you’re curious about by sending me an email at wellthatscoolpod@gmail.com, and don’t forget to subscribe, rate and review on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts! Until next time, stay well, and happy isolation reading!