Fantasy FanReads x Sarah Beth Durst

Summary

Fantasy FanReads x Sarah Beth Durst – Episode Summary

Podcast: Fantasy Fangirls
Episode: Fantasy FanReads x Sarah Beth Durst
Date: April 14, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this warm and engaging interview, Jess, host of the new Fantasy Fan Reads podcast (part of the Fantasy Fangirls Media Network), sits down with acclaimed cozy fantasy author Sarah Beth Durst. The conversation centers on the magic of cozy fantasy, the value of joyful reading, and Sarah's personal journey as a reader and writer. As always, the episode balances thoughtful analysis with plenty of laughter and bookish enthusiasm, offering both practical recommendations and heartfelt takes on why stories matter.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Allure of Cozy Fantasy (01:37 – 04:27)

• Sarah: Currently both reading and writing cozy fantasy books, looking for “that warm hug, cozy thing” in literature.
• Recs from Sarah:
  • Sangu Mandanna: “Definitely recommend her. Love her books. Oh, and she's got a really good middle grade... Vanya and the Wild Hunt is really good too.” (02:54)
  • Cozy Sci-Fi: Mossed in Space by Rebecca Thorne. Features a sentient moss, some of which was “inspired partially by Kaz.” (03:26)
  • Retelling: Until the Clock Strikes Midnight by Alicia Dow: “It's basically, you know, that Cinderella retelling with Whitney Houston as a fairy godmother. It's like that. But about that character.” (03:46)
• Sarah: Craving “happy books lately” as a response to a challenging world.

  “You know, world falling apart. I need the happy.” (04:11)

2. The Importance of Joyful Reading & Escapism (04:27 – 05:12)

• Jess and Sarah share a mutual dislike of the term “guilty pleasure,” advocating instead for unapologetic joy in reading.
  • Sarah:

    “Joy is so rare. You just have to seize it when you can. And I think escape is necessary … you just can't keep hurling yourself against a brick wall all the time. You have to, like, heal your bruises a little bit before you go back out there. So escape is good.” (04:27)

  • Jess:

    “Where's the guilt in joy? Don't do it, people.” (04:51)

3. Cozy Rituals & Hypothetical Literary Hangouts (05:12 – 07:33)

• Favorite Cozy Beverage:
  Sarah: “My absolute favorite is hot chocolate. I like fancy hot chocolate, but I also like the giant Costco sized box of Swiss Miss.” (05:27)
  • Jess introduces Sarah to the “dirty hot chocolate” (hot chocolate with a shot of espresso). (05:48)
• Book Character Hot Chocolate Hangout:
  • Sarah’s picks:
    • Calissa from the Faraway Inn – “She bakes amazing cakes…” (06:19)
    • Dax from Sea of Charms – “He is a world class musician... There would be hot chocolate. It would be excellent.” (06:19)
  • Jess’s picks:
    • Kaz (“Hot chocolate might calm him down a little bit”) and Turloo (“She's someone I want to give a hug”) from Sarah’s own books. (06:59-07:29)

4. The Deep Joy and Magic of Reading (07:33 – 09:47)

• Sarah: Describes books as “magic,” enabling connection with “impossible beings” and forming shared experiences that transcend time and place.

  “We have this ability to fall in love with something that doesn't and can't possibly exist, with people that aren't real yet they stick inside our heart, and we get to carry them around forever.” (07:49)

  • “Books exist in that liminal space between the writer and the reader... what every single book, what it's saying at its core is, you are not alone.” (09:05 & 09:21)

• Mutual Agreement: Jess echoes the sentiment, emphasizing the power of books to evoke emotion and form unique connections for each reader. (08:38-09:33)

5. Sarah Beth Durst’s Path as a Writer and Reader (09:47 – 12:36)

• Lifelong Connection to Books: Sarah describes a childhood spent devouring as many books as she could physically carry.

  "I was like that small child in the library that was taking out more books than I am tall... I like to have choices." (10:10)

• Books and fantasy stories offered Sarah both refuge and courage; dragons were a special obsession.

• Pivotal Read: Alanna by Tamora Pierce

  “I read that when I was 10 … if Alanna can become a knight, I can become a writer. And it was just one of those, like, empowering books.” (11:50)

• Why Fantasy Matters:
  Sarah: “Fantasy is 100% discussing the human condition,” allowing for an “extreme sport of empathy.” The genre offers both universal resonance and a safe distance from real-world hardship. (12:55-14:42)

  “We really are putting ourselves in the footsteps of these people... it is reflecting back some aspect of what it means to be human.” (13:59)

6. Reflection on Cozy Living, Optimism, and Real Life (15:01 – 16:46)

• Jess: Notes that Sarah’s books are “synonymous with that [cozy] feeling” and asks if she’s cozy in real life.
• Sarah:
  • Admits to being “pretty cozy” and deeply optimistic, though her primary skill is writing rather than baking or gardening like her characters.

    “I believe that everybody deserves magic. I believe that everyone deserves love and a second chance and that there is the potential for great inside of everybody, so long as they're open to it and open to other people and so long as they're kind.” (15:30)

  • Humorously notes her lack of culinary expertise:

    “I still can't make a baguette that doesn't come out like a baseball bat... But in my imagination, it's delicious.” (16:16)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Escapism:

  “Joy is so rare. You just have to seize it when you can. And I think escape is necessary.” — Sarah Beth Durst (04:27)

• On Books as Magic:

  “Books exist in that liminal space between the writer and the reader, and what every single book, what it's saying at its core is, you are not alone.” — Sarah Beth Durst (09:05-09:21)

• On Fantasy & Empathy:

  “I often think of it as the extreme sport of empathy because we really are putting ourselves in the footsteps of these people that are like blue or have wings or fangs or whatever.” — Sarah Beth Durst (13:59)

• On Optimism:

  “I really am as optimistic as my books, but I possess no skill other than stringing sentences together.” — Sarah Beth Durst (15:30)

• On Lifelong Reading:

  “I was like that small child in the library that was taking out more books than I am tall... I like to have choices.” — Sarah Beth Durst (10:10)

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Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:37: Jess introduces Sarah Beth Durst; the theme of cozy fantasy.
• 02:54: Sarah’s reading recommendations and why she loves cozy books.
• 04:27: The importance of joyful, escapist reading; redefining "guilty pleasure."
• 05:27: Hot chocolate, cozy rituals, and literary character hangouts.
• 07:33: The joy and magic of reading: connection, empathy, and shared experience.
• 09:47: Sarah’s childhood as a reader and the impact of Alanna by Tamora Pierce.
• 12:55: Why fantasy is deeply human and important.
• 15:01: Sarah reflects on her own coziness and optimism.
• 16:46: Sarah jokes about her lack of baking skills, keeping the conversation light and real.

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Tone & Style

The conversation is warm, witty, and earnest, brimming with mutual appreciation and enthusiasm for books. Sarah Beth Durst’s infectious optimism and love for her craft shine throughout, and Jess’s questions are a perfect balance of fun, thoughtful, and relatable.

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This snippet offers a satisfying taste of the full episode’s heart and substance, giving listeners plenty of inspiration, practical book recs, and thoughtful insights into both cozy fantasy and the deeper purposes of storytelling.

Transcript

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 1]

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Fantasy Fan Reads Podcast. We are thrilled to announce the newest bookish podcast under the Fantasy Fangirls Media Network.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 2]

What you're about to hear is the first little bit of this brand new podcast, Fantasy Fan Reads, which is hosted by the delightful Jess of Lost Books of Jess. Each episode is all about celebrating the joys of reading through cozy coffee conversations, author interviews, and so much more.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 1]

These first few episodes of Fantasy Fan Reads will be having little snippets posted on the Fantasy Fangirls feed where you're listening to our beautiful voices right now. If you want to listen to the full episode, you can do so over on the Fantasy Fan Reads Podcast feed. Link is in the show notes.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 2]

Be sure to follow the Fantasy Fan Read Podcast feed. And hey, it's on YouTube too. New episodes drop every single Tuesday. Give the podcast a follow on Instagram at Fantasy Fan Reads.

[Jess]

And so without further ado and with

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 1]

all of your follow buttons, hit. We hope you enjoy this snippet of Fantasy Fan Reads.

[Jess]

Hey there. How are you? Welcome to the Fantasy Fan Reads Podcast where we gather as friends to chat about our shared love of all things reading. I'm Jess, an avid lifelong reader and lover of cozy conversations. So go ahead and grab yourself a cup of something wonderful and come on in. Today's episode is a super exciting author interview for me. I'm joined by Sarah Beth Durst, author of recent books such as the Spell Shop, the Enchanted Greenhouse, the Warbler and so many more. How are you doing today Sarah?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I am doing great. I'm so excited to be talking with you. Thanks for having me here.

[Jess]

Oh, you're so welcome Sarah. I'm frankly thrilled through the moon to talk to you today because your books are such a warm hug that really cemented my love for the cozy fantasy genre, so I can't wait to dig into all of that with you. A quick heads up as we get started. This episode will be mostly spoiler free Sarah's books, but since I can't help myself, there will be a few questions at the end of the episode that head into spoiler territory. I'll be sure to give you a warning first before we spill the tea. Fantasy Fan Reads is also the newest podcast in the Fantasy Fangirls Media Network and as a new show, your support means the world. Please give us a follow Antasy Fan Reads on social media rate and review the podcast and spread the word to your friends. Plus, if you want to help support every show under the Fantasy Fangirls Media Network, you can join The Fantasy Fan Club for exclusive, exclusive content, early access and ad free episodes, live Q&As, book club, private discord, community events, and so much more. Go on over to fantasyfangirls.com fanclub for more information about the fantasy fanatics and deep divers tiers and benefits where you get all show access. Well, now that that's out of the way. Sarah, Sarah, I gotta talk to you as a reader and a human first before I talk to you as an author. Are you reading anything right now?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

What?

[Jess]

What kind of books are you into? Yeah, what? Which one?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I'm firmly in my cozy era, so pretty much all the books that I'm reading and all the books that I'm writing right this second are that warm hug, cozy thing. I was like, wait, I can download like 20 of them. Always. Sengu Mandana definitely recommend her. Love her books. Oh, and she's got like a really good middle grade. This isn't cozy. I'm immediately veering away.

[Jess]

That's okay.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Her middle grade, Vanya and the Wild Hunt is really good too.

[Jess]

I have not read that yet. See, I'm getting recommendations today. That's why I asked this question.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

But I just read a cozy sci fi that I'm excited about. It's called Mossed in Space by Rebecca Thorne. And there's a sentient moss that Rebecca's told me was inspired partially by kaz. So I was like, already in love.

[Jess]

Well, I'm in love now too, because I might be the president of the KAZ fan club.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Oh yeah, I love that. So that one was really great. And until the Clock Strikes Midnight by Alicia Dow. It's basically, you know, that Cinderella retelling with Whitney Houston as a fairy godmother. It's like that. But about that character, I feel like

[Jess]

you're my book soul sister right now, because everything you're saying, I'm like, I need all of these.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I've just really been craving happy books lately. You know, world falling apart. I need the happy.

[Jess]

Yes. And books are such a good place for like either escaping what we don't want to face or facing something in a safer way. But sometimes we need the cozy escape for sure.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

And I think there's nothing wrong with that. People keep saying, like, the. I hate that phrase, guilty pleasure. Because joy is so rare. You just have to seize it when you can. And I think escape is necessary. You know, you just can't keep hurling yourself against a brick wall all the time. You have to, like, heal your bruises a little bit before you go Back out there. So escape is good.

[Jess]

I had never thought about it that way. About how when something brings us a lot of joy, we fall into calling it a guilty pleasure. Sometime like now, I'm gonna be thinking on that. Where's the guilt and joy? Don't do it, people.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Right. If making yourself happier means that you have more inside you to give to the world. So I think there's nothing guilty or bad about it.

[Jess]

Oh, my gosh. We could stop now. I love that so much. Okay. Because I also need to know, in my opinion, cozy reading and warm beverages go hand in hand. Do you have a go to cozy warm beverage? What's your favorite?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

My absolute favorite is hot chocol. I love hot chocolate. I like fancy hot chocolate, but I also like the giant Costco sized box of Swiss Mess. That'll do just fine. Yes.

[Jess]

Yeah, we can't be fancy all the time. Sometimes we just need hot chocolate.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Especially if you're doing it in quantity.

[Jess]

I know. Somebody introduced me to a dirty hot chocolate where you get the coffee shop to put a shot of espresso in your hot chocolate. So you get both. But it's like, better than a mocha. It was a life altering experience for me.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

That sounds. I have not tried that. That sounds beautiful.

[Jess]

So if you could drink hot chocolate with any two book characters, who would you cozy up with? And they don't even have to be from your books. It could be anyone. But okay.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Like I can think of from my books.

[Jess]

You could do that too. You could do that too. Who do you want to hang out with from your books?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I would do Calissa from the Faraway Inn, which is coming out soon because she bakes amazing cakes and I feel like she would bring them to our hot chocolate. And I would also pick Dax from Sea of Charms, which also isn't out yet because you fall in love with the books that you're writing next. He is a world class musician and I feel like he would be playing music, I would be eating cake. There would be hot chocolate. It would be excellent.

[Jess]

That is, I love that your choices are. Because they were gonna, like, enhance the experience. You're like, we'll have food, we'll have music. You bring the hot chocolate. So set.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

That would be lovely. How about you? What would you. Who would you pick?

[Jess]

Oh, my gosh. That is a great question.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I.

[Jess]

Well, I'm gonna answer from your books, I think, because that's kind of where we're at. And I have to. I have to pick Kaz. I have to. I want to Talk to Kaz. I think hot chocolate might calm him down a little bit. We could mellow that out. And I also. I have a deep love for Turloo. I love her so much. She's someone I want to give a hug like. I want to have hot chocolate with her and be like, I. Like. I. I don't know. I relate to her in some ways.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I think she would be a good hugger, too. I think she would be all in.

[Jess]

Yes. Oh, she's so wonderful. Last question before we dig into, like, the writing side of things is how does reading bring you joy? Like, I'm a big believer in the power of the joy of reading. So what about reading brings you that joy?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Absolutely. And that's part of why we do it, is just to put ourselves in touch with something bigger than ourselves. I just. I have always, always thought that books are magic. We have this ability to fall in love with something that doesn't and can't possibly exist, with people that aren't real yet they stick inside our heart, and we get to carry them around forever. And just that joy of connection of these impossible beings that can be loved universally from people that we'll never meet, people in different times of different ages and stuff. I just think that is such a joyous thing, that connection on an imaginary plane. Does that make sense?

[Jess]

It totally makes sense. No, I'm with you. I've always said that the magic of reading for me is the fact that something that was born in someone else's imagination is so real to me, like what you were just saying and is evoking emotions for me. And maybe it's not even the emotions that the author intended, but the fact that their words had the power to reach me randomly on planet Earth and impact me in some way is. You can't beat that feeling.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Yeah, it's this. It's this shared dream. I feel like books exist in that liminal space between the writer and the reader, and that that space can be accessed by everyone, I think is so beautiful because I think what every single book, what it's saying at its core is, you are not alone.

[Jess]

Yes.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

That's what I love about books. That magic of that invisible line that connects people's hearts that they don't even know is there, but it is, and it ties us together. It's so cool.

[Jess]

It really, really does. And I think it's magical that different people get different things out of that same book. Like, the connection that I find is different than the person down the street, but we experienced the Same story, right?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

It belonged to all of us. And that you can experience a book at different stages of your own life. Back to a story, and it means something else to you.

[Jess]

Oh, it is so cool. It really is. So along these lines, tell me a little bit about your journey into writing. Have you been a lifelong reader and writer? Did you find your way into this career differently? What was your path?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Yeah, lifelong. Yeah. My mom introduced me to books at a. At a super young age. I was like that small child in the library that was taking out more books than I am tall. And she'd have to invent rules that I could only take out as many books as I could carry. And libraries would be like, are you really going to read all this? And I was like, I like to have choices. So I've always loved books. I was super shy as a kid, and this was a place where I could be brave, where I could make friends that would stay with me and I could ride dragons and defeat dragons and befriend dragons and pretty much, you know, the whole dragon thing.

[Jess]

All the dragons.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

All the dragons. All the dragons, yeah. In fact, when I wasn't reading, my parents would be like, sarah, you need fresh air, Go outside. And I would spend it searching for a dragon's egg. So it was pretty much just all dragons. As soon as I realized about age 10, that these books that I was so in love with were written by, you know, humans, which kind of hadn't really occurred to me before then, that's the only thing I ever wanted to do. So I didn't look back. I just started writing, and that's pretty much all I do.

[Jess]

Wow, that's. That's amazing. I am a lifelong. Like, I knew I wanted to be a teacher the second I went to school. So I can relate to that. Like, when you feel that thing within yourself that you. You knew you wanted to do, it's such a cool moment. Were there any books in your childhood that you can think of right now that were pivotal ones? Some certain stories that really hit you when you were a kid.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

One I always mention because it was so pivotal was Alanna by Tamara Pierce. I don't know if everybody listening has read it, but in case you haven't, it's about a girl who dresses up as a boy to become a knight in a land where only boys can become knights. And I just. I read that when I was 10, and I have this clear memory of closing that book and thinking to myself, if Alana can become a knight, I can become a writer. And it was just one of those, like, empowering books. Which is, I think why I'm drawn to fantasy is because I love those. Those books that make you feel stronger than you thought you were, that make you feel braver, that say, yes, yes, you can do this. Yes, you can defeat the big bad. Yes, you can meet a magical whatever.

[Jess]

Yeah. You know, sometimes I encounter people who aren't as big of a fantasy reader as I am. Or they're always like, there's the fantasy naysayers. They're like, what do you mean you want to read about magic and dragons? And I always say to them, it's more about us than you think. Like, yes, it's a dragon, but oh no.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Yeah. Fantasy is 100% discussing the human condition. In fact, I would argue that it's is able to do it in a much more extreme and in depth way because it is fantasy than other forms of literature. Because you can take a concept and explore it to its very extreme beyond the rules of physics and the known world. And you can push that idea of revenge, you can push the idea of love, of second chances, of hope, of hopelessness. I don't write that one, but I do see once. But you can do it in a real extreme, extreme way. And I often think of it as the extreme sport of empathy because we really are putting ourselves in the footsteps of these people that are like blue or have wings or fangs or whatever. And it is reflecting back some aspect of what it means to be human, what it means to move through the world and react to. To the world. Yeah. I like fantasy.

[Jess]

I mean, you and me both. I feel like you just stole every thought out of my brain. Like when I try to explain to people how impactful fantasy is as a genre because I also think it gives you just enough of detachment from like sometimes it's hard to read about very realistic things, especially when they involve tragedy or hardship. That can be challenging. And sometimes when it has that fantasy twist on it, you can still get that emotional impact. You can investigate it as a reader. You can, like you said, think about the human condition, but you're not necessarily faced with characters that feel like your next door neighbor. You get that little like one step away from how scary the real, real world can be.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

Yes. Yeah, absolutely. It lets you explore things within a journey that you know that you're going to come back from.

[Jess]

Yeah, hopefully. Although I have closed a few books in my day and been like, I don't know that I will ever recover from what just happen.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

That is fair I will, I will

[Jess]

say, though, your books don't leave me feeling that way because so many of us, so many of us know you as a curator of all things cozy. Like, I feel like you are synonymous with that feeling. So I need to know, like, in your real life, are you also a cozy person? Like, are you someone who does cozy hobbies? Or like, what does your life outside of writing look like?

[Sarah Beth Durst]

I don't have a life outside of writing. Oh, no, no, no.

[Jess]

It'

[Sarah Beth Durst]

writing makes me happy. I am a pretty cozy person. I do have a very sunshiny view of the world in general. I believe that everybody deserves magic. I believe that everyone deserves love and a second chance and that there is the potential for great inside of everybody, so long as they're open to it and open to other people and so long as they're kind. I really am as optimistic as my books, but I possess no skill other than stringing sentences together. So.

[Jess]

Oh, I mean, that's a pretty amazing skill to have, Sarah. It's a pretty fabulous skill.

[Sarah Beth Durst]

That's it. I'm often asked how you must have amazing garden. You must be a great baker. I'm like, no, I still can't make a baguette that doesn't come out like a baseball bat. I've tried many times and it's people keep asking me for after Enchanted Greenhouse for my honey cake recipe and I'm like, I'm not really the one who should be asking this. I did try and it wasn't good. But in my mind, my imagination, it's delicious.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 1]

Oh, my insides feel ooey and gooey and oh, so warm. We love jazz.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 2]

If you want to listen to the rest of this episode, head on over to the Fantasy Fan Reads podcast feed where you'll find all of the full episodes of Fantasy Fan Reads. Link is in the show notes.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 1]

And hey, since you already listened to this episode or a little snippet of this episode, why don't you head on over to the podcast feed and rate the show five stars. It is one of the best things you can do for every podcast, but especially baby new little baby podcasts. Also, be sure to follow Fantasy Fan Reads podcast feed so that you stay in the know every single Tuesday when episodes drop. And give the show a follow on Instagram at Fantasy Fan Reads.

[Fantasy Fangirls Host 2]

Thank you so much for listening. Bye bye bye.