Chloe Benjamin & 'The Immortalists': Complicated Conversations Series

Pop Fiction Women

Mild spoilers in this generous, enlightening, complicated conversation with bestselling author Chloe Benjamin! We begin by talking about expectations and surprising inspiration during a global pandemic and how Chloe tries to let go of the “shoulds” and lead with compassion.

** The Immortalists is a wonderfully ambitious novel about four siblings who learn the date of their deaths from a fortune teller and how each wrestles with this information. It tackles BIG questions and Chloe shares why she loves these high concept premises with intimate character work. (07:44)

** The fortune teller’s prophecy affects each of the characters differently and Chloe shares how she managed to wrap up each character’s story while still providing ambiguity and complexity that leaves the reader guessing in the best possible way. (14:50)

** We talk about the complicated women of The Immortalists, Clara and Varya, and Chloe tells us about her inspiration for these women and the challenges presented in writing them. You don’t want to miss hearing about how she took inspiration from a story about an immortal jellyfish! (18:49)

** We love discussing the unlikely bedfellows of magic and faith and all the different ways we search for things as a way to grapple with our humanity. Chloe reminds us that none of us have all the answers, many of us need coping mechanisms, and what form that takes is different for everyone. (25:05)

** Chloe blows our mind again as we discuss the beauty and freedom in uncertainty, in learning to surrender, in being open to letting things unfold, and in allowing space for intuition. (29:04)

** Chloe’s #CoronaCorrespondence post for The Sewanee Review has us talking about the magic that happens when we let go of our expectations, but how hard her journey has been along the way. (32:10)

** The writer’s journey for Chloe brought her and professor Kiese Laymon together in college and the effects were profound. (40:45)

** We ask Chloe to share her biggest piece of advice to aspiring writers on the issue of getting published and the answer involves experimenting, playing and reading. (45:55)

** Chloe’s social media shows that she doesn’t take herself too seriously and we love that she loves literary fiction, but also the Real Housewives. The most important thing is to be authentic. (49:22)

** Chloe shares what she's loving right now and it includes one of our favorites: Brit Marling! (57:14)

** We can’t leave without discussing astrology. Chloe is our first Scorpio, but her rising sign is a Leo so Kate is immediately smitten! (62:43)

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