While Gerstenblatt has been writing in various forms for years, Daughters of Nantucket marks her debut as a traditionally published author at 52 years old. Gerstenblatt will explain how she took the seed of an idea from history and developed it into a novel. She will discuss her writing process and the creation of her characters, and touch on the novel’s structure while highlighting some of the research involved.

This conversation will be lively and engaging and will speak to both readers and aspiring novelists. The talk will be followed by an audience Q and A and book signing.

Julie Gerstenblatt holds a doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from Teachers College, Columbia University and has taught everything from middle school to graduate school and indoor cycling. Her essays have appeared in The Huffington Post and Grown & Flown, among others. When not writing, Julie is a college essay coach. A native New Yorker, Julie now lives in coastal Rhode Island with her family and one very smart poodle mix. She likes to say that she moved from New York to Rhode Island to get closer to Nantucket, where she has been vacationing since the 1970’s. Daughters of Nantucket, which received a starred review from both Booklist and Shelf Awareness and has been included on several “most anticipated” lists for 2023, is her debut novel.