This week on Pen Pals, Krisserin and Kelton sit down with debut novelist Alli Hoff Kosik to discuss her buzzy new novel, Too Blessed to Stress — a sharp, funny, and unexpectedly tender story about Christian influencers, megachurch culture, and the complicated women behind perfectly curated feeds.

Alli shares how a pandemic-era fascination with influencer culture inspired the book, why she wanted to approach her characters with empathy instead of judgment, and how social media, capitalism, faith, and performance intersect online. They also discuss writing motherhood into real life, balancing creativity with burnout, MFA programs, multiple POV novels, and the challenge of building a writing life while raising small children.

Plus: Secret Lives of Mormon Wives comparisons, parasocial internet rabbit holes, writing routines, podcasting, and whether Krisserin and Kelton actually sound the same.

Books Mentioned in This Episode
The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard
The Giver by Lois Lowry
Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Come and Get It by Kiley Reid
Maame by Jessica George
Love by the Book by Jessica George
Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
Long Bright River by Liz Moore
Nightshade by Eli Raphael

Find Alli Hoff Kosik
Website: Alli Hoff Kosik Official Website
Instagram: @allihoffkosik
Substack: https://allihoffkosik.substack.com/
Podcast: Is This a Thing? with Abby Wolfe
Buy Too Blessed to Stress on Bookshop.org

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Krisserin's Substack: krisserin.substack.com

Music by Golden Hour Oasis Studios