CR 016: Chelsea Bieker on Mining Fact for Fiction

The author discusses her latest thriller, "Madwoman," and how her personal life has influenced her writing.

Chelsea Bieker, photo by Wondra

Chelsea Bieker’s writing has been referred to as “fascinating and entertaining” (The Brooklyn Rail), “endlessly readable” (Entertainment Weekly), and “larger than life and darker than hell” (Kirkus). Her debut novel, Godshot, was named an NPR Best Book of 2020, while her short story collection, Heartbroke, won the 2023 California Gold Medal Book Award for Fiction. Her latest novel, Madwoman, is already garnering significant praise, with The Washington Post referring to it as “a thoroughly modern addition to feminist fiction about mental illness and motherhood.”

A riveting page-turner, Madwoman tells the story of Clove, a wellness-obsessed, hashtag-wielding parenting influencer and mother of two who happens to have a shopping addiction, a mountain of debt, and dark secrets that even her husband knows nothing about.  When Clove receives an unexpected letter from her imprisoned mother, she realizes she must reckon with the traumatic past she has tried so har…