Elaine's Literary Salon

Today at Elaine's Literary Salon in Alexandria, VA, we are thrilled to bring back to town author Bill Rapp, who began his professional life as an academic, teaching European History at Iowa State University. A graduate of Notre Dame (B.A.), the University of Toronto (M.A.), and Vanderbilt (Ph. D.), Bill has always been particularly intrigued by German history. He says the last 35 years working for the U. S. Government has broadened his perspective to all of Europe and much of the Middle East. His career has taken him around the world, including to Berlin as the Wall fell and Germany was reunified. read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Meet the Author: Jennifer began her writing journey at the age of 10 when she started her own neighborhood newspaper, “The Santa Clara Times,” printed it herself, and walked up and down her street, passing it out to all the neighbors. She graduated from the School of Journalism, Mass Communications, and Public Relations at San Jose State University in Northern California, and went on to have a ten-year career as a journalist.

Her works have appeared in countless print and digital publications including the the Huffington Post, the San Jose Mercury News, Silicon Valley Community Newspapers, AOL, Patch, Silicon Valley Accent Magazine, and Alexandria Living Magazine, among others, and has had several articles picked up or quoted by the Washington Post. read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Meet the Author: Wanda Rawlings is a Christian fiction author, Bible study teacher, and speaker with over three decades of experience as a civilian Federal employee and a lifelong passion for encouraging spiritual growth through storytelling and the Word of God. She is the creator and facilitator of the Root of the Matter Virtual Women’s Bible Study, a thriving ministry she has led for more than five years, guiding women deeper into their relationship with Christ.

Wanda is the author of the A Christian Journey series, including Chloe’s Missing Piece, Chloe’s Season of Storms, and Chloe’s Journey to Joy. Through relatable characters and faith-filled narratives, the series explores themes of identity, perseverance, healing, and learning to hear God’s voice in every season of life. In addition to her novels, Wanda has written devotionals for women in family shelters and is available to teach, speak, and minister at conferences and faith-based events. read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

About Original Sound: A story about the rhythm of ambition, collaboration, and the price of authenticity.

Driven by the pulse and rhythm of Brooklyn and Queens, beat maker Danny Solis may have found his big break when his track is pilfered by pop star Ryan Reed. To keep Danny quiet, Ryan's manager brokers a deal in which Ryan and Danny will collaborate on a few songs. Their work together introduces Danny to Manhattan's music scene and leads Ryan to pivot her career. Despite disappointment and betrayal, Danny perseveres, finding solace and strength within his original sound. read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Meet the Author: Chandrani Ghosh is a former journalist (Time, Forbes, and Business Standard) who, many years ago, traded her press pass for a carpool one. Now that the carpoolers are drivers, she returns to the page. Drawing on her experiences of growing up in the chaotic worlds of Kolkata and Delhi, spending her twenties in London, Geneva, and Kathmandu, and eventually settling in Washington, Ghosh makes her literary debut with Heartlines. Learn more: cghosh.com

About Heartlines: Sharmila Basu has curated the perfect life. He is the one variable she never planned for. As an Indian American political journalist, Sharmila appears to be living the ultimate American Dream: a high-powered career, vintage wardrobe, and a swanky home in the power corridors of Washington, DC. She lives with her boyfriend, America's reigning heartthrob and favourite TV news anchor, Lionel Stern. Even Lionel's notoriously icy mother has welcomed her into the fold. read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Meet the Author: Daniel Grace is a London-born, California-bred, former owner of an international advertising agency who produces critically acclaimed Tuscan wines at his family winery, Il Molino di Grace, in Panzano-in-Chianti, Italy. He is a storyteller by trade and a mythologist at heart. Daniel splits his time between San Francisco and Tuscany with his wife, three daughters and English Setter. In the Wake of Golgotha is his debut novel. For more, visit danielmarkgrace.com

About In the Wake of Golgotha: There is no crime to fit this sentence; there is no sentence to fit this crime. Roman Prefect Pontius Pilate's words are echoed by the zealot Judas Iscariot only hours before history takes a bloody turn on a cross atop Golgotha on Calvary Hill. Two thousand years later, these words are found scrawled in blood in New York next to three crucified men hanging on a basement wall. read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Hello friends! If you missed the book launch party at Elaine's Literary Salon on April 2, listen and watch the impressive interview between Jeff and award-winning noir author Christopher Chambers, ChrisChamberNoir.com.

Help us celebrate the release of book 4 in the 4-part Nathan Burke series. "I wanted to write a story about what happens when devotion and duty collide, giving my protagonist — FBI Agent Nathan Burke — a heart-pounding challenge to uncover a global conspiracy to save his wife, and the nation," explains Jeff, whose critically-acclaimed books are referred to as "pulse-pounding and a must-read." read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Meet the Author: Dr. Joan Naidorf is a board-certified emergency physician trained at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and Einstein Medical Center Philadelphia. After growing up in Highland Park, NJ, she obtained her undergraduate degree at the University of Virginia. She practiced for nearly thirty years in the busy emergency departments of Inova Alexandria Hospital and Fort Belvoir Community Hospital in Virginia. As an author and speaker, she has been sharing important ideas with students, residents and practicing physicians through various online and direct engagements. She was recently appointed to the editorial advisory board of The DO magazine. Her proudest accomplishment has been raising three compassionate and intelligent children along with Toby, her devoted husband. Toby supplies many stories of the patients who challenge him from his busy gastroenterology practice. In her spare time, Dr. Naidorf enjoys reading, traveling, playing tennis, tasting wine, and walking with Dolly, the miniature poodle. Learn more: drjoannaidorf.com read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!

About Bonnie Naradzay: As a mother, professional, teacher, and longtime volunteer, leading poetry sessions in prisons, a retirement community, and among the homeless, Bonnie has gathered much of both the lost and found, culminating in the publication of Invited to the Feast, a collection of poems and literary debut coming in her eightieth year.

Her poems appear in AGNI, New Letters (Pushcart Nomination), RHINO, Kenyon Review online, Tampa Review, Florida Review online, EPOCH, Pinch (Pushcart Nomination), American Journal of Poetry, One Art (Pushcart Nomination), Potomac Review, Poetry Miscellany, Dappled Things, The Birmingham Poetry Review, Crab Creek Review, Cumberland River Review, and others. Her poetry manuscript, Invited to the Feast, was published October 28, 2025 by Slant Books. Her essay on friendship was published in the anthology, Deep Beauty, in 2020. At Harvard University in the late 1960's, she was a student in Robert Lowell's class, "The King James Bible as English Literature." read more...

Click here to listen to the podcast!