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This week, I talk with return guest Karen E. Osborne about her newest mystery Justice for Emerson!
Listen to hear about:
- How Karen approached a dual-timeline mystery that blends a present-day murder investigation with the long emotional aftermath of the Vietnam War, addiction, race, and trauma.
- How Karen’s research process is deeply people-centered—drawing from her husband’s Vietnam experiences, veterans, recovering addicts, and sensitivity readers to create emotionally authentic characters without judgment.
- How she crafted her protagonist: a widowed nonprofit CEO balancing grief, self-doubt, romance, family tension, and danger while unraveling a conspiracy.
- The way survival—through volunteering, recovery, or writing—gives meaning and accountability can help people endure trauma, addiction, and reinvention.
- Karen's approach to writing, creativity, discipline, and timing, and how small daily habits (like 15 minutes a day) can build a creative life.
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Follow Co-hosts On Instagram:
Gare Billings @gareindeedreads
Steph Lauer @books.in.badgerland
Halley Sutton @halleysutton25
Brian Watson @readingwithbrian
MacKenzie Green @missusa2mba
Erin Ashley @bellametaphor
