Bookmarked by Reese’s Book Club

Episode: "Inside Gone Before Goodbye: How Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben Co-wrote Their New Suspense Novel"

Date: October 28, 2025
Host: Danielle Robay
Guests: Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben
Location: Apple SoHo Store, NYC (live recording)

Episode Overview

This episode celebrates the release (“pub day”) of "Gone Before Goodbye," the highly anticipated, first-ever collaborative suspense novel from Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben. Host Danielle Robay moderates an energetic, in-depth conversation (recorded live) centering on the creative partnership between two powerhouse storytellers. The discussion explores the origins of the book, the thrill and vulnerability of collaboration, crafting a layered female protagonist, the intersection of grief and suspense, and what it means for a story to finally belong to readers.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Leap Into Collaboration

• Reese’s Motivation & Nerves (06:53)

  • Reese shares her shift from acting to authorship:

    "As an actor for so many years, I would always walk into other people's stories.... This was the first time I had an idea for a character."

  • She admits feeling nervous pitching her idea to Harlan, someone she greatly admires and who had never previously collaborated with anyone.
  • On pitching to Harlan:

    "I thought he was going to give me notes and say, ‘here’s some really great thoughts and good luck.’" (09:02)

  • Harlan recalls being wary but quickly realizing they were riffing productively, not just note-taking.

• Harlan on Ground Rules (09:24)

  • The writing process: It was just the two of them, with no assistants or ghostwriters. They set out wanting this to be "the best thing we do."
  • Harlan:

    “There’s other guys who are that collaborative guy. I’m just... not me. … There wasn’t even a note taker in the room. It’s only gonna be you and me.” (09:33)

Crafting an Addictive Thriller

• First Line Aim (07:58)
  • Harlan:

    “We wanted you to get right in the story right away. … We want this to be the book that tonight you take to bed at 11 o’clock, and you think you’re going to read for 10 minutes, and next thing you know, it’s 4 in the morning and you’re cursing us out, but you’re also deliriously happy.”

• Research Deep Dives (10:42)
  • Reese admits she’s “nerdy about research,” reading memoirs of war surgeons, delving into trauma surgery, and exploring the ethics of longevity clinics in Dubai.
  • Reese’s personal connection:

    “My dad was a military surgeon in the Air Force... my mom was a military nurse... I grew up kind of around a lot of army surgeons.” (11:53)

  • The protagonist Maggie is rooted in these environments and real-life influences.

Creating a Female Lead Unlike Any Other

• Inspiration & Intention (18:27)
  • Reese:

    “I’d never seen a woman in kind of a James Bond world and be the lead. … But I’d never seen her be kind of this very intuitive, skilled person who navigates a really difficult situation.”

• Authenticity Over Likability (19:10)
  • Harlan:

    “She doesn’t have to be likeable or nice. … She has to be real, and then people will relate to her.”

  • On her escape tactics:

    “She’s thinking the same way we would be thinking. … We wanted that experience for the reader.”

• Avoiding Physical Descriptions (19:58)
  • Harlan intentionally keeps Maggie’s appearance vague so readers can project their own image (and to resist the predictability of adaptation).

    “If you write a book thinking, Oh, this is gonna make a great movie… it’s the kiss of death. … We have to give the people the best of the book experience.”

Layering Real Women's Experiences

• Everyday Contradictions (21:02)
  • Reese shares a real-life incident (comforting a young woman in a bathroom), inspiring a scene in the book. She emphasizes that Maggie always leads with care and safety—no judgment—reflecting a female doctor’s likely mindset.
  • Reese on wardrobe dilemmas:

    “It’s the worst day of her life… she wants to wear practical shoes… look put together… but can’t wear black. … The kind of mental math you have to do as a woman before you walk into any situation in the world.” (21:54)

  • Harlan delightedly admits to “using every word of this in the book.”

Blending Writing Styles & Signature Twists

• Harlan’s Twists, Reese’s Perspective (23:40)
  • Reese:

    “He was like, ‘No, we’re going to bury this story, and you’re going to think one thing, and then... I’m gonna give you the biggest shock.’ … There’s a scene with a tattoo in it... All my girlfriends called me when they read it.”

  • The team balanced Reese’s “linear” thinking with Harlan’s love for misdirection and cliffhangers.

Trusting Instincts & Vulnerability

• Taking Risks (25:13, 27:34)
  • Harlan:

    “We’re both a little terrified right now… People won’t love this book or it’s something new. ... When you write a novel, you can’t hide.”

  • He compares it to being a solo athlete—no one to blame, total ownership.
  • Reese on trusting instincts as a woman and creator:

    “Being brave enough to call somebody who’s amazing at what they do and go, ‘Would you ever think about this?’ … I’ve become more bold as I’ve gotten a little older.” (27:41)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Storytelling Partners:
  • Harlan: “We both became completely obsessed. We both shared this vision of wanting what we want out of this story. … Sometimes when you get in a room with someone, either it happens, or it doesn’t. I think we both knew right away this was going to happen.” (09:24)
• On Research Authenticity:
  • "It’s not the thing that happened, it’s how he felt about it." — Reese Witherspoon (10:58)
• On Grief:
  • Harlan: “This is a novel that deals with grief a lot… we both wanted to explore that as well.” (11:26)
  • Later: “Grief is not something that you fully recover from. … To me, it’s like losing an arm. … I’m hoping…you accept and understand that.” (41:13)
• On Instincts and Agency:
  • Reese: “...everything you kind of need is inside of yourself. You just sometimes have to dig deep.” (42:09)
• On Letting the Readers In:
  • Harlan: “If you write a book and no one reads it, it’s not a book. … When you read it…a whole new Maggie and Pork Chop and Nadia... come to life in your head, different from everybody else's.” (34:06)

Important Segments & Timestamps

• Introduction to Collaboration & Book Release – 06:42
• Reese on Transitioning from Actor to Author – 06:53
• Why Harlan Said Yes to Collaborating – 09:24
• Research Deep Dive & Reese’s Personal Connection – 10:42, 11:53
• Discussing the Heroine Maggie – 18:27
• Character Building: Making Maggie Real – 19:10 – 20:36
• Wardrobe as Character Development – 21:49
• Twisty Writing Process Explained – 23:40
• Trusting Instincts and Creative Vulnerability – 25:13 – 28:47
• The “Bookmark” Segment: What's Inspiring Them This Week – 33:29
• Rapid Fire Literary Speed Read – 36:30
• Aubible Production and Favorite Audiobooks – 38:30
• Most Fun/Memorable Characters (Porkchop!) – 39:53
• “One Small Truth” for Readers – 41:13

The “Bookmark” Tradition

• Reese’s Bookmarks:

  1. “A story on Apple News about a man who fell in love with his grief bot” — paralleling book themes.
  2. “Elderberry Wine” by Wednesday — a song she shares with her loved ones.

• Harlan’s Bookmarks:

  • Hugging actor Sam Claflin on premiere day.
  • The overall joyful experience of seeing the book released and awaiting reader reactions:

    “A book is the Berkeley tree in the woods. … If you write a book and no one reads it, it’s not a book. … It was ‘gone before goodbye’—it’s not a book until you read it.” (34:06)

Literary Speed Round Highlights

• Gone Before Goodbye’s Imaginary Theme Song:

  • "Since You’ve Been Gone" by Kelly Clarkson (36:48)

• A Book That Shaped Their Worldview:

  • Reese: The Measure of Our Success by Marian Wright Edelman.
  • Harlan: Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman (37:51)

• Most Fun Moment Writing Together:

  • Harlan: Pitching the “super dark” ending and riffing on the character Porkchop.
  • Reese: Falling for the endearing character Porkchop, inspired by real-life figures and accidents of naming.

• One Hope for Readers:

  • Harlan: That readers feel the realness and complexity of grief.
  • Reese: That they realize “everything you need is inside yourself.” (42:09)

Concluding Thoughts

• On Reader Ownership: (34:06, 41:13)

  • The story now belongs to readers; each reader will create their own version of Maggie and company.
  • Grief, secrets, and agency are heartfelt themes, with the goal to break readers’ hearts and empower them.

• On Trying Something New: (27:34)

  • Reese and Harlan both advocate for creative risk at any stage of life:

    “You are never too late. I’m not going to be an NBA player anymore. That dream’s over. But anybody out here could be a published writer or write a screenplay or direct a movie.” — Harlan

Tone & Atmosphere

The episode is lively, encouraging, and unguardedly honest—blending literary “geeking out” with warmth, humor, and deep emotional insight. Listeners are repeatedly made to feel included—as fellow club members, aspiring storytellers, and readers whose participation makes the book itself real.

Memorable Quotes

• “This is not a goodbye—it’s a bad pun!” – Danielle Robay (36:11)
• “If you can verify your name is Porkchop, you get a book.” – Reese Witherspoon (40:33)
• “We hope to break your heart.” – Harlan Coben (41:13)

For those inspired to leap into storytelling, or simply hungry for a deeply twisty, character-driven thriller, this episode delivers insight, motivation, and a peek behind the curtain of two creative greats at work.