Shakespeare’s Shorts: Alexis Kienlen, novelist

Move aside, poets! (But just for one second!) Here near the end of our Shakespeare’s Shorts season, we finally caught hold of another fiction aficionado! Alexis Kienlen’s first novel, Mad Cow, came out this April from Now Or Never Publishing, but she’s also a two-time published poet. (We told you, poets: just hold on for one second.) In this episode we discuss about how Alexis did research for her book by simply doing her job as an agricultural reporter, and we meditate on the theme of the urban outsider in a rural setting. Along the way, Kate and Phuc finally learn where Canada is, and we hear mention of some steamy cowboy romances. Saddle up partner, because this episode is a wild, wonderful ride.

Order a copy of Mad Cow from Bookshop.org, and while you’re at it, you can pick up Alexis’s poetry publications, 13 and She Dreams in Red, through your local indie. Finally, be sure to follow Alexis on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest bovine (and writing) news!