In 'Romantic Friction,' 'The Fact Checker' the publishing world is fodder for fiction

Summary

NPR's Book of the Day: Exploring the Intricacies of the Publishing World

Release Date: May 9, 2025

In this episode of NPR's Book of the Day, host Andrew Limbong delves into the competitive and often tumultuous world of publishing through two compelling novels: "Romantic Friction" by Lori Gold and "The Fact Checker" by Austin Kelly. Both narratives offer a humorous yet insightful portrayal of the literary industry, highlighting the human elements behind the creation of beloved books.

---

"Romantic Friction" by Lori Gold

Overview: "Romantic Friction" centers on Sophie Wilde, a highly successful fantasy romance author who faces unexpected challenges when a new writer emerges, claiming to use artificial intelligence (AI) to emulate Sophie's distinctive style. This confrontation not only threatens Sophie's career but also ignites a broader conversation about the role of AI in creative writing.

Key Discussions:

1. AI in Writing and Authorial Authenticity

   • Lori Gold addresses whether "Romantic Friction" serves as an anti-AI narrative:

     "My goal and my aim was to show both sides, people who would be pro, people who would be con, both as writers and as readers. And so that was what I hoped to do. I didn't want to come out and dominate with my own feelings. I wanted the reader to read both sides and be able to make their own decision." (03:35)

   • She further expresses her personal concerns about AI's impact on the writing industry:

     "My own honest feelings is I'm anxious and I'm worried and I'm scared. You know, I'm scared for my career. ... if AI can come in and write books faster, cheaper, maybe better than we can, where does that leave us?" (04:02)

2. Character Development and Industry Satire

   • Sophie Wilde is portrayed as a "lone wolf" whose dedication to her career has strained personal relationships. Gold explains this character choice:

     "She is a self proclaimed outcast... Her career and her Fans are all she needs. That was a purposeful storytelling aspect for me to work on because I felt like that's the kind of character who will be even more offended..." (07:11)

3. Social Media's Role in Modern Publishing

   • The novel critiques the manipulation of book popularity in the age of social media, a sentiment Gold shares:

     "Publishers do push you on social Media, there are paid influencers... It's hard to not have some sort of cynicism on that." (08:54)

4. Personal Reflections and Industry Insights

   • In her afterword, Gold reveals that much of the book draws from her own experiences and those of her peers:

     "Absolutely everything that happens in this book... is either directly from my own experience or from authors I know well..." (10:39)

5. Highs and Lows in an Author's Life

   • Gold shares personal anecdotes mirrored in the book, exemplifying the emotional rollercoaster of maintaining a writing career:
     • Low Day: A disheartening interaction with a bookseller questioning the appeal of her genre (11:01).
     • High Day: The pride and joy of having her candid portrayal of the industry published by HarperCollins (11:51).

Concluding Thoughts: "Romantic Friction" serves as both a love letter and a critical examination of the publishing industry's pressures and evolving dynamics. Lori Gold successfully balances humor with poignant commentary, encouraging readers to ponder the future of writing in an AI-driven landscape.

---

"The Fact Checker" by Austin Kelly

Overview: Austin Kelly's debut novel, "The Fact Checker," offers a satirical glimpse into the life of Scott Simon, a fact checker at a prestigious magazine. Engaged in verifying details for articles, Scott becomes entangled in a mysterious case involving a farmer accused of shady dealings at a New York City farmer's market.

Key Discussions:

1. Blend of Fact-Checking and Detective Work

   • Kelly describes the protagonist's journey as embodying the essence of a detective, albeit in a more "nerdy" capacity:

     "I think when I worked as a fact checker, I always thought there was a little bit of detective work that you would do every day." (19:34)

2. Plot Development and Character Motivation

   • The narrative kicks off with Scott being assigned a seemingly minor piece about a farmer's market, which he scrutinizes for potential inaccuracies. This fixation leads him deep into an investigation:

     "He has this story, and it's a story, as you said... but [he] gets fixated on her [Sylvia]." (14:49)

3. Realism vs. Fiction in Fact-Checking

   • While "The Fact Checker" is a work of fiction, Kelly incorporates elements from his real-life experiences as a fact checker at The New Yorker:

     "There are many ridiculous things about him and silly lapses. I hope I don't have those, but probably I do." (19:57)

4. Interpersonal Dynamics and Mystery Elements

   • The relationship between Scott and Sylvia blurs the lines between professional curiosity and personal interest, adding depth to the mystery:

     "He's very idealistic, and he sees something idealistic about this tomato farmer and he's interested in her." (17:22)

5. Memorable Anecdotes from Fact-Checking

   • Kelly shares a real-life fact-checking moment involving Shaquille O'Neal's tattoo, highlighting the meticulous nature of his previous job:

     "She had to take his shirt off to check the spelling of the tattoo that was right next to his navel..." (18:40)

Concluding Thoughts: "The Fact Checker" offers a humorous yet insightful look into the behind-the-scenes world of journalism. Austin Kelly masterfully intertwines his professional expertise with a captivating narrative, creating a story that resonates with readers familiar with the intricacies of fact verification and the quest for truth.

---

Final Reflections

Both "Romantic Friction" and "The Fact Checker" illuminate different facets of the publishing and writing industries, from the existential threats posed by AI to the meticulous nature of fact-checking. Through engaging storytelling and authentic character portrayals, Lori Gold and Austin Kelly invite readers to explore the challenges and triumphs faced by authors and journalists alike.

As Andrew Limbong aptly summarizes, these novels not only entertain but also provoke thoughtful discussions about the future of writing, the influence of technology, and the enduring passion that drives storytellers.

---

This summary is based on the transcript provided and aims to encapsulate the essence of the NPR podcast episode. For a deeper understanding, listeners are encouraged to tune into the full episode of NPR's Book of the Day.

Transcript

[Andrew Limbong]

A quick note before we start today's show. You may have heard that President Trump has issued an executive order seeking to block all federal funding to npr. This is the latest in a series of threats to media organizations across the country. The executive order is an affront to the First Amendment rights of public media organizations, and it's also an affront to the First Amendment rights of the American people. NPR remains committed to serving the public. That's you. We bring you stories and conversations that spark your curiosity and challenge your perspective. Conversations that you won't find anywhere else. This is a pivotal moment. It's more important now than ever that every supporter who can contribute comes together to pitch in as much as they're able. Visit donate.NPR.org now to give and if you already support us via NPR or another means thank you. Your support means so much to us. You help make NPR shows freely available to everyone. We are proud to do this work for you and with you. Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. Today we've got two funny novels that take a peek inside the publishing world. And don't worry, they're not navel gazy state of the books industry type novels. Instead, they make the point that the people who make these books that we all read and enjoy are are human. In a bit, we'll talk to a writer who used to work at the New Yorker as a fact checker about his book about a fact checker. But first, Lori Gold's new book, Romantic Friction is about a romance writer at the top of her game. Or maybe she's not. Maybe she's just past the peak of her prime because there's a new hotshot writer coming up right behind her. Gold talks to Here Now's Tizianna Dearing about how the book was inspired by the highs and lows of the writing industry. That's ahead.

[Scott Simon]

This message comes from Schwab at Schwab. How you invest is your choice, not theirs. That's why when it comes to managing your wealth, Schwab gives you more choices. You can invest and trade on your own. Plus get advice and more comprehensive wealth solutions to help meet your unique needs. With award winning service, low costs and transparent advice, you can manage your wealth your way at Schwab. Visit schwab.com to learn more.

[Austin Kelly]

This message comes from Capital One. Your business requires commercial banking solutions that prioritize your long term success with Capital One. Get a full suite of financial products and services tailored to meet your needs today and goals for tomorrow. Learn [e-mail] Commercial Member FDIC. This message comes from Progressive Insurance. Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try [e-mail], progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.

[Lori Gold]

In the new novel Romantic Friction, Sophie Wilde is a wildly successful fantasy romance author. She's been booked to headline a big readers convention. Life couldn't be better, except at her own book event, she finds herself overshadowed by a newcomer billed as the next sort of Sophie Wilde. And as if that weren't enough, the newcomer claims that she is using AI to write books directly drawn from Sophie's. Sophie goes on a rant, which of course winds up on social media and lands her in a firestorm of criticism. Again, the book is Romantic Friction. The author, Lori Gold, joins us in the studio. Welcome, Lori.

Thank you for having me. It's great to be here.

So I have read the book, embraced it all, and I'm still going to ask you if, is it an anti AI book or not?

My goal and my aim was to show both sides, people who would be pro, people who would be con, both as writers and as readers. And so that was what I hoped to do. I didn't want to come out and dominate with my own feelings. I wanted the reader to read both sides and be able to make their own decision.

Okay, but now you can tell me your own feelings. So do.

Well, my own honest feelings is I'm anxious and I'm worried and I'm scared. You know, I'm scared for my career. My writer friends and I teach creative writing, and I have so many who are looking to break into this field. So if AI can come in and write books faster, cheaper, maybe better than we can, where does that leave us?

So let's move now to Sophie Wilde in the book, this book, Romantic Friction, where she clearly has a, you know, oh, hell no approach to this. One of the things that struck me was you could have situated this story in any genre. Right? It's kind of meta. It's a book about somebody who writes books. And you pick fantasy romance. I mean, that is a very specific genre. So why is Sophie Wilde a fantasy romance writer?

So I was thinking of Sophie in some ways, of what I love to consume. And I love big, epic fantasies that often incorporate romance. Game of Thrones is my kind of one of my favorite TV shows of all time. And I was thinking of her creating that kind of universe because that universe has such rabid Fans and romance readers are well known for being ravenous and they read every book that their favorite romance writer puts out. So to me, if I'm thinking about who is an author in the best position to have fans root for her and be behind her, it's an author with a huge following that the fans are used to embracing their author fully. And she's gonna find out her fans maybe aren't so much behind her. Some of them are embracing this new.

AI author well, and this was fascinating. And this plot development I'm going to give here is early in the book, so I'm not spoiling the whole book. But we find out pretty quickly that this quote new Sophie Wilde named Hartley argues that she used AI to write Sophie Wilde ish books because she wasn't getting enough Sophie Wilde from Sophie Wilde, which was a really interesting idea. It's like fan fiction meets RoboCop.

Yeah, that's really true. And I think part of that is a little bit of a critique of our world of entertainment because we're used to getting things now, you know, whether it's a Amazon delivery or whether it is entertainment, you can go on Netflix and binge 20 seasons of Meredith Grey on Grey's Anatomy in a weekend if you've got that much time. We're used to getting I love Meredith and I love Grey's Anatomy, but that would be a lot of time. Right? But we're used to that. We're used to being able to click and get what we want. So if we can't get that from authors because it takes much longer to write a book, what does that mean? And are we just going to eventually get used to that? And we want our entertainment now and instantly.

So Sophie Wilde then, in this situation now she's got this conflict in this drama, right? And we have two other things going on here which are fascinating to me. One is she is sort of the stereotypical lone wolf. And that's by her own admission that she's almost the stereotypical lone wolf. But she finds herself in a situation where she's with another, a large group of other women authors who want some interdependence that she doesn't want. And the gender dynamics there, especially in this romance fantasy writer space, felt pretty intentional.

She's a self proclaimed outcast. She is focused on her career and she spent her whole life to the detriment of friendships and family building this career she has. She is not bonding with the other authors because she feels like she doesn't need them. Her career and her Fans are all she needs. That was a purposeful storytelling aspect for me to work on because I felt like that's the kind of character who will be even more offended, feel even more indignation and even more betrayal when this career she's worked so hard for is about to be taken down.

Did you know Sophie Wilds in your own career?

So I will say Sophie is not me. She's not any author I know. She's an amalgamation of all of the authors I know who are struggling really hard to do this career. And I do know some who are quite successful and they are rightly very protective of their career and how they present themselves and what they present to their readers. And you are, you're now in the public eye when you get to that level. So she's a little bit of pieces of everybody I know in the industry as a whole.

[Andrew Limbong]

So.

[Lori Gold]

So last other sort of theme here is the social media theme, right? We first sort of trip that tripwire when she makes a rant. And as she's ranting, you just know, right? You just know somebody's videotaping this, right? You just know it's gonna wind up on social media always. But there is this engine to the fame, especially as this book conference happens, right, that completely exists in the world of social media. And you paint my word, not yours, a somewhat cynical picture of the way books that seem to go viral are in fact very heavily manipulated to be popular in this new social media world. Do you feel cynical about that?

You know, I will admit that I do feel cynical about that and I think it's partly a fact that there's so many books published. I think the statistic from the last year is something like 500,000 traditionally published books and 2 million a year total, which then includes self published books. That's a lot of competition. How do authors stand out in that world? When you're talking about the traditionally published world, you're looking at publishers who buy a lot of books and they frankly can't support them all at the same level. So some authors are going to get more support and for those who don't know, that means more marketing support in terms of an ad in Times Square on a billboard. It's a book tour that they're gonna put you on, it's a festival they're gonna send you to. You get more support at different levels of your career. So that is an inherent fact of the industry that I think many people don't know. And as part of that is publishers do push you on social Media, there are paid influencers. I don't think that comes as a surprise to many people that influencers get paid. Many influencers, not all, but many do get paid in some capacity, whether it's a sponsorship or actually monetary, to support any kind of product. And a book is a product, and it is marketed that way as well. So it's hard to not have some sort of cynicism on that. The other side of that, which I do hope comes across in the book as well, is there are people who are just love books and they're this bookstagram community that they do. Many people do put it out on their own, and they're very supportive of authors and books. So there's this push pull between that cynicism of it and frankly, the dollars and cents behind it. But then there are the fans who really do just love books and are trying to promote books. And I wanted to show both of that.

So you say in your afterword that this book is, quote, an open love letter to an industry that has the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. Somewhere in this book, in Sophie's highs and lows, do we see echoes of your own?

Absolutely everything that happens in this book, whether it's to Sofie or other authors or other experiences that are related in the book, is either directly from my own experience or from authors I know well who have shared their private experiences with me. And again, everything has changed. So it's not exactly someone's experience, but sure, there is that. And I have high days and I have low days, as I think any author does at every level.

What's a low day?

So a low day can happen in lots of different ways, but I actually will pull for something from the book that is from my own experience. And it's Sophie's experience. She discusses being at a festival, and a bookseller is in front of her, and a bookseller is flipping through a book that is very much in Sophie's style, a fantasy romance. And the bookseller says something along the lines of, oh, yeah, I read that kind of stuff. Fantasy or romance? Well, I don't really read it. I listen to it, you know, on audio, you know, when I'm unpacking the dishwasher or on the treadmill, when I don't really have to pay attention. Ouch. And that was something that was said to me at a festival from a bookseller directly about my genre at that time, which was young adult contemporary fantasy. That was a hard day and hard moment. And I don't know what the response to that is. But you have to kind of pick yourself up and move on and take that with you and maybe put it in a book one day.

And how about a high day?

High day is today, being here talking with you and talking with you about a book that I really feel like my heart is in. And I really love this book and I really am proud of what I did. And frankly, to counter the cynicism that we just discussed, a traditional publisher of HarperCollins published this book that shows the industry, warts and all. That's not something I actually thought would happen as I was writing this, to be honest. I wasn't sure if this was going to get to be a published book because it does expose kind of the good and the bad of the industry.

Yeah. Lori Gold, her new novel is Romantic Friction. Lori, thanks.

Thank you so much for being here. This was great.

[Austin Kelly]

This message comes from Thuma. Create your oasis with Thuma, a modern design company that specializes in furniture and home goods, by stripping away everything but the essential. Thuma makes elevated beds with premium materials and intentional details with clean lines, subtle curves and minimalist style. The Thuma Bed collection is available in four signature finishes to match any design aesthetic. To get $100 towards your first bed purchase, go to Thuma Co, NPR this.

[Scott Simon]

Message comes from bluehost. Bluehost can make building a great website easy and offers a 30 day money back guarantee. Customize and launch your site in minutes with AI, then optimize with built in search engine tools.

[Austin Kelly]

Get your great [e-mail] this message comes from BetterHelp. This Mental Health Awareness Month. BetterHelp is encouraging everyone to take care of their well being and break the stigma associated with mental health. BetterHelp works to make people healthy and happy because when people are taken care of, everyone benefits, including families, colleagues and communities. Visit betterhelp.com NPR to get 10% off your first month.

[Andrew Limbong]

Austin Kelly's new novel the Fact Checker doesn't just get into the inner workings of the magazine writing industry. It also gets into the guts of another infamously shady and petty industry, the farmer's market. Here's npr.

[Scott Simon]

Scott Simon, a fact checker at a respected magazine, didn't expect the Mandeville Greenpeace about a farmer's market in New York City, 2004, to be an oozer, as he puts it. It's a food piece, the unnamed narrator narrates. It's not going to kill anyone. But the fact checker reads that a tomato grower named Sylvia refers to Nefarious business at the market. He finds Sylvia to ask what she means, and that's when the quest for real facts begins. The Fact Checker is the first novel from Austin Kelly, a former New Yorker magazine fact checker. In fact, he joins us from our studios in New York. Thanks so much for being with us.

[Austin Kelly]

Thank you.

[Scott Simon]

You'll be fact checking this interview, won't you?

[Austin Kelly]

Yeah, I hope not.

[Scott Simon]

And an oozer.

[Austin Kelly]

Yeah, an oozer, I would say one that you're not quite sure where things are going or what's solid and what's not.

[Scott Simon]

I'm going to use that a lot from now on. Tell us a little more about how the story unfolds. There is something that gets kind of handed to him, isn't there?

[Austin Kelly]

Well, he has this story, and it's a story, as you said. He doesn't expect to be a big deal because it's a farmer's market story. And he's usually busy working on things that are about the war in Iraq or Afghanistan. So this is sort of a lighthearted piece. But when he gets to this one line that he feels is a negative portrayal of the farmer's market, he suddenly gets kind of fixated on that. And when he meets Sylvia, this farmer who supposedly said those negative things, he gets fixated on her. Then when she disappears and doesn't really give him any explanation, the rest is trying to find out what really happened to her.

[Scott Simon]

Sylvia grows. Is it rampoho tomatoes. How do we pronounce it?

[Austin Kelly]

Ramapo, I think, is the way I pronounce it in my head. And I believe that's what they said at Rutger's. Those tomatoes were actually developed originally, as.

[Scott Simon]

I found out, because I thought, oh, he made this up. But no, it was developed at Rutgers. That's an actual New Jersey tomato, isn't it?

[Austin Kelly]

Yeah. And every year they have Rutgers has a tomato festival. I like to go. I've gone a couple of times.

[Scott Simon]

I have to ask, did you ever do anything remotely like this as a fact checker at the New Yorker?

[Austin Kelly]

No, not really. I mean, there are some kernels of truth in there, little bits and pieces from the real experience of checking facts, which I hope come across to the reader.

[Scott Simon]

Oh, yeah. But what makes the fact checker suspect that the nefarious business at this farmer's market isn't just buying tomatoes at Costco and reselling them for three times the price?

[Austin Kelly]

This fact checker, this narrator, is particularly skeptical, essentially. So at one point in the novel, he thinks maybe there's A drug sales going on at the farmer's market or something is being sold that shouldn't be. I thought the farmer's market was kind of an interesting setting because we think of that food as being so pure and so straight from the earth that it would be interesting to have a character be even skeptical of that.

[Scott Simon]

The fact checker and Sylvia meet. They drink, they dine, they become involved.

[Austin Kelly]

Yeah. I think that that confusion between whether or not this character is sort of interested in this woman and curious about her or whether he's really trying to find the heart of the truth in the story is something that he's not quite sure about and that he kind of gets mixed up about as well. And I think it's both. He wants to know Sylvia better, and he's very idealistic, and he sees something idealistic about this tomato farmer and he's interested in her. So he's kind of pursuing both, and they get compounded, I guess.

[Scott Simon]

Could I get you to read from your novel the note that Sylvia leaves on the fact checker's pillow?

[Austin Kelly]

Sure. The note said, dear Fact Checker, sorry to leave so early, but I have to take care of some things. You were right about that. Anyway, thanks. I'll call you in a few days. Xo, Silvia. P.S. yes. Let's do it.

[Scott Simon]

Let's do what?

[Austin Kelly]

Yes, let's do what? I mean, that's the big question that I think he wants to pursue at the end, and he doesn't know what exactly she meant by that.

[Scott Simon]

Yeah. Can you share with us a fact that you checked years ago at the New Yorker that still kind of astounds you?

[Austin Kelly]

Well, right. In the very beginning of the novel, I mention talking to Shaquille o' Neal's girlfriend.

[Scott Simon]

Yes.

[Austin Kelly]

And this came from a real profile of Shaquille o' Neal about the tattoos, as I recall. Yeah. She had to take his shirt off to check the spelling of the tattoo that was right next to his navel, which I think was Lil Warrior. And I remember it very well because I could hear him kind of snickering in the background. And meanwhile, she was checking not only the spelling, but the punctuation, what was capital, what was the lowercase? So we were thorough.

[Scott Simon]

I bet that's memorable for him, too. Are fact checkers, as we learn from this one, detectives at heart?

[Lori Gold]

Yeah.

[Austin Kelly]

I think when I worked as a fact checker, I always thought there was a little bit of detective work that you would do every day. And I always thought that was an interesting and fun part of it. I thought The Fact Checker was kind of a funny version of the classic detective, a little bit more nerdy.

[Scott Simon]

Is this Fact Checker an alter ego for you?

[Austin Kelly]

I hope not, but probably. I mean, there are many ridiculous things about him and silly lapses. I hope I don't have those, but probably I do. We never know.

[Scott Simon]

Austin Kelly, his new novel, the Fact Checker. Thank you so much for being with us.

[Austin Kelly]

Thank you so much. What a pleasure.

[Andrew Limbong]

That's it for this week on NPR's Book of the Day. If you want more, you can sign up for our [e-mail] Newsletter Books. I'm Andrew Limbong. The podcast is produced by Chloe Weiner and edited by Megan Sullivan. Our founding editor is Petra Meyer. The show elements for this week were produced and edited by Adriana Gallardo, Barry Gordimer, Michael Scotto, Todd Munt, Ashley Locke, Melissa Gray, Gabe O' Connor, Michaela Rodriguez, Samantha Rafelson, Emiko Tamagawa, Ed McNulty and Samantha Balaban. Yolanda Sanguini is our executive producer. Thanks for listening.

[Austin Kelly]

This message comes from Mint Mobile. Mint Mobile took what's wrong with wireless and made it right. They offer premium wireless plans for less and all plans include high speed data, unlimited talk and text and nationwide coverage. See for [e-mail] Switch this message comes from Bombas. Nearly 30% of marathoners end their race blistered. Bombus running socks are strategically cushioned to help. Say bye to blisters. Run to bombus.com NPR and use code NPR for 20% off your first purchase.