...But Make It Books

Join Niccara as she welcomes Baltimore-born columnist, author, and truth teller Leslie Gray Streeter to the pod! We talk about her debut novel Family & Other Calamities — a sharp, funny, and deeply human story about a journalist who returns home to Baltimore to bury her late husband's ashes and discovers that the friend who stole her story 30 years ago is now making it into a movie, and she's the villain. We get into what it costs to leave and how your absence gives some license to tell your story, the danger charm and how that allows others to get away with too much, why being right doesn't mean your hands are clean, and how younger generations can hold us accountable. Plus: our shared Baltimore love, the Ivy Hotel, Marta brunch, and why you need to talk to your elders while you still can.Perfect for readers who love sharp, character-driven fiction about women reckoning with the truth: about the news, about their families, and about themselves. Make sure you pick up Family & Other Calamities wherever you get your books and then go read Black Widow because she's been doing this, and it shows.Follow & Find Leslie Gray Streeter: lesliegraystreeter.com | @lesliegraystreeter on Instagram, Threads & Blue Sky | Baltimore BannerFollow Us: @butmakeitbookspod | @thebookishhottie | bookishlyhealing.comShop With Us: Use our Mahogany Books link with code BMIBDon't forget to rate, subscribe and review!Keeping healing...but make it books. Peace y'all Mentioned in this episode:The Seven Daughters of Dupree Pre-Order Offer Nikisha Elise Williams, the host of the Black and Published podcast, is celebrating the release of her forthcoming novel, The Seven Daughters of Dupree. This historical fiction novel is about the secrets kept between mothers and daughters over the course of seven generations and is told backwards in time from 1995 to 1860. The Seven Daughters of Dupree will be released on January 27th, 2026, but is available for pre-order now at MahoganyBooks.com. Please consider pre-ordering The Seven Daughters of Dupree today.African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African AncestryAfrican AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African Ancestry

Join Niccara as she welcomes award-winning author, journalist, and two-time Emmy Award-winning television producer Nikesha Elise Williams to the pod! We talk about her sweeping debut with Simon & Schuster, Seven Daughters of Dupree: a multigenerational saga tracing seven generations of Black women from 1860 to the present day, bound together by legacy, love, loss, and a curse that only a daughter can break. We get into the enslaved ancestor whose story sets everything in motion, why hair is both inheritance and survival in this novel, what secrecy truly costs the women of this bloodline, the intimacy Black people have always had to carry about white folks just to stay safe, and the quiet call of the land pulling Black people back to the South. Plus Nikesha reads from the prologue and we spiral beautifully into hot combs, Saturday nights, and every Black girl's sensory memory.Perfect for readers who love multigenerational Black family sagas, stories rooted in the Black South, and honest reckoning with what we carry, what we keep secret, and what we dare to pass on differently. Make sure you pick up The Seven Daughters of Dupree wherever you get your books, and run it up!Follow & Find Nikesha Elise Williams: @nikesha_elise | newwrites.com | Black & Publish PodcastFollow Us: @butmakeitbookspod | @thebookishhottie | bookishlyhealing.comShop With Us: Use our Mahogany Books link with code BMIBThe Seven Daughters of DupreeDon't forget to rate, subscribe and review!Keeping it real...but make it books. Peace y'allMentioned in this episode:African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African AncestryThe Seven Daughters of Dupree Pre-Order Offer Nikisha Elise Williams, the host of the Black and Published podcast, is celebrating the release of her forthcoming novel, The Seven Daughters of Dupree. This historical fiction novel is about the secrets kept between mothers and daughters over the course of seven generations and is told backwards in time from 1995 to 1860. The Seven Daughters of Dupree will be released on January 27th, 2026, but is available for pre-order now at MahoganyBooks.com. Please consider pre-ordering The Seven Daughters of Dupree today.African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African Ancestry

Join Niccara as she links up with Lana and Samra of She Well Read for a conversation that starts with a book and ends up saying everything. We dig into Amy DuBois Barnett's If I Ruled the World — a 90s New York story following a Black editor navigating ambition, power, and survival at the intersection of hip hop and high fashion — and we don't let it go without pulling the thread all the way through. We talk about what it costs Black women to be seen in industries that were never built for them, the misogyny baked into hip hop then and now, how we were raised on shame instead of power, and the quiet ways we make concessions just to stay in the room. Plus: natural hair, predators with platforms, men crashing out, and why Nikki at the end of the book is absolutely who you want to have brunch with.Perfect for readers who love stories about Black women's ambition and self-discovery, and for anyone reckoning with the 90s: nostalgia, rose-colored glasses and all. Make sure you pick up "If I Ruled the World" from where you get your books and stay tuned because it's becoming a TV show!Follow & Find She Well Read: @shewellread | TikTok, Instagram & ThreadsFollow Us: @butmakeitbookspod | @thebookishhottie | bookishlyhealing.comShop With Us: Use our Mahogany Books link with code BMIBIf I Ruled the World Don't forget to rate, subscribe and review!Keep healing...but make it books. Peace y'allMentioned in this episode:African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African AncestryThe Seven Daughters of Dupree Pre-Order Offer Nikisha Elise Williams, the host of the Black and Published podcast, is celebrating the release of her forthcoming novel, The Seven Daughters of Dupree. This historical fiction novel is about the secrets kept between mothers and daughters over the course of seven generations and is told backwards in time from 1995 to 1860. The Seven Daughters of Dupree will be released on January 27th, 2026, but is available for pre-order now at MahoganyBooks.com. Please consider pre-ordering The Seven Daughters of Dupree today.African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African Ancestry

Season 3 is officially HERE, and we are opening the doors with the collab you didn't know you needed. Join Niccara as she welcomes the dynamic duo behind Refined & Ratchet — Charlee and Nisha — to the pod for a conversation that's equal parts unfiltered and essential. We get into what it really means to be a reader in the age of the algorithm, the real difference between community building and networking (because they are NOT the same thing), and why the book community is sometimes harder on itself than it is on anyone else. Plus, hot takes, book recs, and a rapid-fire round that reveals who's a dog-earer and who absolutely is not.Perfect for readers who are deeply invested in Black book culture, content creation, authentic community, and the love of the game — especially when the algorithm isn't on your side. If you've ever asked yourself why you're in this space, this episode is your mirror.Follow & Find Refined & Ratchet: @refinedandratchet | YouTube: Refined & RatchetFollow Charlee: @ohcharleeplease Follow Nisha: @nextchapternishFollow Us: @butmakeitbookspod | @thebookishhottie | bookishlyhealing.comShop With Us: Use our Mahogany Books link with code BMIBDon't forget to rate, subscribe and review!Keeping healing...but make it books. Peace y'allMentioned in this episode:African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African AncestryThe Seven Daughters of Dupree Pre-Order Offer Nikisha Elise Williams, the host of the Black and Published podcast, is celebrating the release of her forthcoming novel, The Seven Daughters of Dupree. This historical fiction novel is about the secrets kept between mothers and daughters over the course of seven generations and is told backwards in time from 1995 to 1860. The Seven Daughters of Dupree will be released on January 27th, 2026, but is available for pre-order now at MahoganyBooks.com. Please consider pre-ordering The Seven Daughters of Dupree today.African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African Ancestry

She's back. We're back. And this season? We are not playing around.Welcome to Season 3 of ...But Make It Books — the podcast that makes reading cool, celebrates diverse voices, and brings the culture to the literary world. This trailer gives you a taste of everything we've been cooking up, and the lineup is stacked.This season we're sitting down with authors, podcasters, and creatives including She Well Read, TL Martin, BNB Book Designer, Sedona Rose, Leslie Street, Kehinde Winful, Nikesha Elise Williams, Dr.Jenn Jackson, Refined & Ratchet, and more — and every single conversation is one you are going to want to share.New episodes drop biweekly on Thursdays starting April 16th.Follow the show so you never miss an episode, and tag us when you're listening — we love to see it.📖 Follow us:Instagram: @butmakeitbookspodWebsite: bookishlyhealing.comMentioned in this episode:The Seven Daughters of Dupree Pre-Order Offer Nikisha Elise Williams, the host of the Black and Published podcast, is celebrating the release of her forthcoming novel, The Seven Daughters of Dupree. This historical fiction novel is about the secrets kept between mothers and daughters over the course of seven generations and is told backwards in time from 1995 to 1860. The Seven Daughters of Dupree will be released on January 27th, 2026, but is available for pre-order now at MahoganyBooks.com. Please consider pre-ordering The Seven Daughters of Dupree today.African AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African AncestryAfrican AncestryWe are the pioneers of genetic ancestry tracing for Black people globally, reconnecting you to your specific African roots–the country and the people. Our scientists compare your DNA markers to the largest African reference database in the world in order to find your African origin up to 2000 years ago.African Ancestry