This week’s guest is Kerry F. Freeman (Sedona: A Novel, The Wild Rose Press, November 2023). Kerry’s book, a reimagining of The Wizard of Oz set in present-day Sedona, was written as an antidote to COVID-isolation and has proved a hit with book clubs as they chase down the Easter Eggs Kerry planted from the original source material, including who’s the lion, the tinman, and the scarecrow. We discuss how she started a feature on her website called Books and Bevies which led to a fan base even before she was published and how that led to partnering with a well-known Charlotte brewery to produce an exclusive IPA beer for her launch.

Kerry Fryar Freeman crafts fiction as if it were a new puzzle. The settings are real and well-researched, the details are rich and layered, and the stories absorb and propel readers one piece at a time. Kerry’s debut novel, SEDONA: A NOVEL, was published by Wild Rose Press in November of 2023 and was long-listed for the Santa Fe Writers Project Literary Award and a 2023 finalist for Indie Ink’s Best Setting Award. Kerry also writes a blog called “Books and Bevies” where she features an array of authors from New York Times and Amazon bestsellers to debut Indie gems. Books and Bevies can be found on her website www.KerryFryarFreeman.com or by following her on X @KerryFFreeman and Instagram @Books_and_Bevies. Kerry resides in North Carolina and is a member of the NC Writers’ Network and the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.

To learn more about Kerry, click here.