Content Warning: This episode discusses sensitive topics including child abuse, trauma in the medical field, sexual assault, and other forms of abuse.

Maddie is proof of the magic that happens when you put yourself out there and take a chance on the unknown. Her fascination with gothic literature opened the door to her interest in psychiatric medicine—something she taught me a lot about in this episode.

Drawing from her own experiences with trauma, Maddie has turned pain into purpose. We explore the nature vs. nurture debate—are monsters born, or do we create them?—and dive into her unique decision to create vampires with a soul in her debut novel, Mortals End.

She also shares the medical reasoning behind why we fear what we don’t understand, defines what it means to be a gothic literature romance author, and reflects on Anne Rice’s legacy—what modern urban fantasy authors can still learn from the trail she blazed.

You can connect with Maddie on her instagram here.