Author Insights from Mai Nguyen, Lindsay Wong and Laurie Frankel

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In part one of this week’s triple author interview, literary agent Carly Watters sits down with Mai Nguyen to discuss her deeply personal novel ‘ Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead’ . Mai shares the heartbreaking real-life loss that inspired the book and how writing fiction became a vessel for processing grief. They dive into the challenge of portraying “bed-rotting” grief on the page, balancing darkness with humor, and why a funeral home setting became the perfect device to move the story—and the character—forward. The conversation also explores envy in grief, the taboo of infant loss, and how community and connection can bring someone back to life. Part two pivots to Carly Watters chatting…