Shows
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly22: Windy on the river, EastIt’s time we try our hand at another creative medium: visual art! This week, we design our book covers. One of us stuns in new photos and the other should probably stick to the written word. Also this week, Molly displays signs of a mental health crisis by visiting Shondaland and Claire finally finds herself alone in the suburbs. One thing we can never seem to find? The damn dessert table at a wedding.2025-07-241h 26
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly21: The average Joe is so dimEver heard of playing through the injury (Nuuly induced sciatica)? That’s what Claire does this episode, and my god it’s magnificent. We dive deep into the subgenre of Cowboy Romance, reviewing Lyla Sage’s Done and Dusted, and we’re relatively rattled by our first rodeo. You should also listen to this episode if you want to hear the whole plot of Netflix’s Dept. Q from someone who was mostly on her phone while watching.2025-07-171h 21
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly20: Lowkey, you're taking me out of the ordinaryWell, it’s looking like this might be the summer we finally turn pretty. This week, Molly is visited by a witch on Long Island and it turns out she also has “an unsettling energy”. We also review My Oxford Year and continue our conversation about Carly Fortune. Plus, a hilarious writing exercise finds us writing erotica in an italian restaurant during biblical times.2025-07-101h 06
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly19: Hit 'em with bleachThis episode, we examine effective dialogue from some of our favorite films and books in pursuit of writing Good Chat. We hope this study will translate to our own work better than a hankie travels from nostril to eyeball (Claire should stop doing this). We also talk through some favorite recent reads including Sandwich by Catherine Newman and Beach Read by our lord and savior Emily Henry.2025-06-261h 25
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly18: Mistress, but a manThis week, Molly and Claire both get fooled — Claire by a married man and Molly by a Young Adult novel, again. Molly read Divine Rivals and found a new rival of her own. Meanwhile, Claire watched Sirens and Stolen Girl, both shows about young women who are lost in a sense. We also chat about creating flawed female characters, writing at the beach, and crafting the first ten pages.2025-06-191h 20
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly17: Anyone wanna play a little pickle?Hey, Sharks! This week we’re pitching short form content ideas, seeking investors and consumers. Claire drops a new crush on an old man, Molly has her head in the slush pile, and Emily Henry eases our originality complexes (Great Big Beautiful Life IS The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo but better! We’ll bravely say it!).2025-06-121h 34
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly16: This is a two handerLove abounds this week as we reflect on what makes our favorite fictional couples work, how to transition bar banter from fraternal to flirtatious, and what happens when you give a ring bearer a lollipop (he’s gonna want another). We also talk about getting in Hugh Jackman’s jeans. 2025-06-051h 34
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly15: Penn Badgley You'd me“Cutting a bob.” “Flotussy.” “Twinicide.” These are all phrases said for the first time ever on this week’s episode. We also review Emily Henry’s Great Big Beautiful Life (good!) and men reading performatively in public (bad!). 2025-05-291h 20
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly14: Go piss, epistleClaire’s been busy in The Pitt (still) and Molly’s reading Letters from Paul to the Ephesians. Meanwhile, we’ve reached our first deadline — 10,000 words. But here’s the thing, we didn’t. But we have good reasons!2025-05-221h 31
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly13: Keep scoochingForgive us if we seem distracted this week— Claire can’t stop thinking about Dr. Robby, and Molly can’t stop thinking about a specific picture of Rudy Giuliani. We compare notes on McNally Jackson’s Debut Novel 101 panel and find that we both wrote down NERDS in all caps?? Listen on for more insights!2025-05-151h 21
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly12: This jazz hits!Not to brag but we’re WRITING! It’s slower and more painful than we expected, but it’s also… rewarding? If you’re listening to this episode, picture Claire in a French cut swimsuit. If you’re watching this episode, excuse her second consecutive sweatsuit. 2025-05-081h 21
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly11: Capital H Him“She wrote feverishly.” Tune in to see why we think that sentence sucks! Spoiler: we’re considering eliminating all pronouns and adverbs from our writing. We also share the results of a brief writing exercise, because we’ll do anything but work on our damn manuscripts.2025-05-011h 14
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly10: Never let them see you chew (feat. Erin Woods)We sit down with 2022 Black List screenwriter and 2023 victim at our murder mystery party, Erin Woods. She shares best practices for developing credible characters, getting projects across the line, and working with different creative (and financial) stakeholders. But don’t fall in love with her! She has a boyfriend.2025-04-171h 18
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly9: At least you're having fun with Jughead! (feat. Kalee Maider)In this episode, we’re joined by Kalee Maider — professional writer, avid reader, buxom brunette— and we’re drinking WINE. We compare notes on our respective writing processes and what makes us go ahwooga in a romance novel. Kalee takes advantage of her 5 minutes to roast the pod.2025-04-101h 22
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly8: This podcast is body horrorWe hit our first major milestone: Claire finished reading (and we can finally stop talking about) The Bodyguard. We discuss heeding the vocational call of jury duty, which starts with opening your mail. And finally, we talk about finishing our outlines— but is an outline ever really, truly finished?2025-04-031h 17
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly7: Hard for girls who don't like plansWe have started outlines to satisfy our innate need for structure and accountability (and NOT because Joops has taken away our iPads until they’re done). This episode also deals in light themes such as seceding from the economy, the plight of the Irish, and miscommunication between lovers!2025-03-271h 32
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly6: You sick piggyDo you know our protagonists? If so, could you introduce us? This week, we talk about the process of discovering and refining our leading ladies, and— you guessed it— it’s harder than we thought. We also preview some new themes in our personal lives: Claire’s home renovation (“the reno”) and Molly’s Fourth Wing-induced mental illness. 2025-03-201h 28
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly5: Only vanity will make me drinkIt’s time to pitch, bitch! We share our respective book concepts through a format favored by cover-judgers everywhere: the book jacket blurb. We also talk about tracking each other’s scents, Chris Evans (again), and the importance of engaging strangers on the subway. 2025-03-131h 02
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly4: About time to put pen to paper, CrackerjackToday, we discover that we are both stronger than babies and smarter than Noah Centineo. In this ep, we dig into the ingredients for a great romance novel — from our favorite tropes to our preferred spice level. And we mentally prepare to actually write something!2025-03-061h 27
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly3: Popeye's got his spinachIn this episode, an Eagles fan (by birth) and a Commanders fan (by marriage) reach across the Amtrak aisle to find common ground. We test our understanding of the “save the cat” novel writing framework and find that we’ve got some work to do.2025-02-271h 04
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly2: Honey, they all have itSince Episode 1, we’ve each created a robust outline and workback schedule to ensure we deliver on time. Just kidding. Can you imagine? We read (half of) a couple books on writing and use this episode to compare our notes. Spoiler: Stephen King saves the cat. 2025-02-201h 14
Bookstupid with Claire and Molly1: Meet BookstupidMeet Claire and Molly: long time romance readers, first time romance authors. In this first episode, we cover the YA fiction we read as kids (and adults), our transition into spicier lit, and why we think we’re ready to write it ourselves— with a challenge and a podcast holding us accountable.2025-02-1333 min