This week, we talk to Jennifer Ouellette, author of two books of essays on science for the layperson. Both Black Holes and Quantum Cats and her latest, The Physics of the Buffyverse, are published by Penguin and are available in paperback.

We talk about writing, research, science books, successful blogs, television shows worth getting addicted to, and why Jennifer owes her marriage to TypePad.

Visit Ouellette's blog, Cocktail Party Physics, and check the TypePad Bookstore for more about "The Physics of the Buffyverse."

Jennifer Ouellette, The Physics of the Buffyverse (20:08)

Show Notes:

• Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• The Physics of Star Trek, Lawrence Krauss
• The American Physical Society
• Cocktail Party Physics
• Cosmic Variance
• Seed
• Pharyngula
• The Intersection
• Dooce
• David Bodanis
• Margaret Wertheim
• Where Does the Weirdness Go?, David Lindley

This month, we talk to Brendan Halpin, author of two memoirs and three books of fiction. His latest, Dear Catastrophe Waitress, is a simmering romance between two scarred souls who have each been on the wrong side of a hit break-up song. Music plays a big part in this novel and all of Halpin's work, and we talk to the author about his take on pop in 2007, as well as his life as a teacher and a writer, and the ins and outs of marketing yourself as a novelist on the Internet. Visit Brendan's TypePad blog and check the TypePad Bookstore for the opportunity to buy Dear Catastrophe Waitress or any of Halpin's previous work.

Brendan Halpin, Dear Catastrophe Waitress (27:08)

Sign up for TypePad with the promo code GUITAR and get a free copy of Dear Catastrophe Waitress.

This month, we're expanding our podcast schedule. To this point, we've been picking one author per month to promote, interview, and otherwise honor with the title of TypePad Book of the Month. Well, it just isn't enough. We've got so many great writers using the TypePad platform that 12 per year can't even begin to tell the story. Starting with this podcast conversation with Brian Bailey, author of the newly released book The Blogging Church, we'll be bringing as many authors as we can to this podcast and to the TypePad Bookstore.

We recently talked to Bailey about his own experience as a blogger (at Leave It Behind), what led him to write a book about creating blogs for religious ministries, and what surprised him the most about the creative process.

You can listen to the podcast (19:56) by clicking on the icon below, or right-click to download the entire MP3 to your local computer or music player.

Brian Bailey, The Blogging Church

This month author Amy Stewart joins Six Apart's Harold Check to discuss her new book, Flower Confidential, which was just released by Algonquin Books. It tells the inside story of the global flower business, from breeders to growers to brokers to florists and finally to the bouquet that you keep in a vase on your kitchen counter. It's a $40 billion per year industry that touches us all. Listen to the interview to hear Stewart tell the story of her research, her life, and her work as a writer and a  blogger. Stewart blogs on TypePad at blog.amystewart.com and GardenRant.

You can listen to the podcast (24:38) by clicking on the icon below, or right-click to download the entire MP3 to your local computer or music player.

Amy Stewart, Flower Confidential

Sign up for TypePad with the promo code BLOOM and get a free copy of Flower Confidential.

You can also see our blog interview with Amy at Featured TypePad interviews.

This month, Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba join Anil Dash, Six Apart VP and resident evangelist, to talk about their new book, Citizen Marketers, and how the Internet is changing the way people interact with companies and organizations. They classify common profiles of online influencers -- fanatics, filters, facilitators, and firecrackers -- and talk about how businesses can begin to understand that the people who care about their products are, ultimately, the message that companies send.

You can listen to the podcast (27:42) by clicking on the icon below, or right-click to download the entire MP3 to your local computer or music player.

Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba, Citizen Marketers

Sign up for TypePad Pro, annual subscription, with the promo code PEOPLE and get a free copy of Citizen Marketers.

This month, authors Kimberly Wrenn and Mary Watkins join guest-host Jesse Thorn, the man behind the popular Sound of Young America radio show. The trio discuss Threadbared, Wrenn and Watkins' brilliant new book that satirizes several decades worth of dubious sewing and crafting imagery, from crocheted swimwear to terror-larious "fun masks." After reading Threadbared, the book or the blog that spawned it, you'll never look at knitwear the same way...

You can listen to the podcast (23:32) by clicking on the icon below, or right-click to download the entire MP3 to your local computer or music player.

Kimberly Wrenn and Mary Watkins, Threadbared

This month, author Steven Johnson joins TypePad’s Michael Sippey and  Anil Dash to discuss "The Ghost Map" and the scientific mystery story surrounding a devastating 1854 outbreak of cholera in London. Other topics include Outside.In’s take on local conversations and how authors use blogs to fuel and further their work.

Download the pocast

Download the podcast

Download the podcast

Download the podcast