Current:Home > ScamsTV host, author Tamron Hall talks her writing process, new book and how she starts her day -LegacyBuild Academy
TV host, author Tamron Hall talks her writing process, new book and how she starts her day
View
Date:2025-04-15 21:53:49
It's no mystery that Tamron Hall has a lot going on.
Hall's self-titled ABC daytime TV talk show is in its fifth season, she's a mom and she continues her work with true crime series.
And the longtime journalist is also an author: her second mystery/thriller novel, "Watch Where They Hide," is out now.
Her new book and her debut novel, "As The Wicked Watch" (2021), both follow Chicago TV reporter Jordan Manning as she investigates – and helps solve – criminal cases she's covering.
"Writing a crime series is not only was something that I was passionate about, it was something that was cathartic for me, Hall says in an interview with USA TODAY.
"My writing process has been very different for both books," Hall says. "The first book, I started writing during the pandemic in 2020. I pitched the series prior to that, but really started to flesh out Jordan and who I saw her as. We were having different beat to our lives. We were in this malaise, we were in this dark uncertainty for so many months."
More:Issa Rae says Hollywood needs to be accountable. Here's why diverse shows are so important
But working on the second book was different for Hall.
"I was back in the city, and there's an energy to it," she says. She also wanted the book to feel like a TV show you might binge.
While her books were partly sparked by the Nancy Drew series she loved growing up, Hall also has another inspiration: life.
"I mean, it's the ultimate motivator, right?" Hall says. "It's the common thread, right? It's the uncertainty of how it turns out, the complexities of how it turns out. It's the unexpected joy. It's the unknown variable. It's the book that you can't write the ending to."
And Hall's life is also woven into her novels.
"They're both inspired by cases that I covered while on 'Deadline: Crime,'" she said of the series she hosted for six seasons on Investigation Discovery.
Hall tries to be as strategic as possible with her time.
"I'm an early riser. I've probably awakened before 5 a.m. since I've been in the business," she says. "My body is very much regimented that way. So I wake up, I make my coffee. That's my ritual. I have a corner in my house. Nothing elaborate, nothing really complex, but just a cozy spot. And I'm able to write during the hiatus of my show."
Hall also likes trying out tech and tries to make use of it when she can.
"I voice dictate everything, Hall says. "I have terrible insomnia, and I've learned to live with it. I keep my phone or recording device on the side of my bed."
Hall will record ideas, character beats and storylines as they strike, even if they come in the middle of her sleep. She will then send her recordings to her collaborator, T. Shawn Taylor, who writes them out for her and sends them back, so Hall can tweak the story.
If the stylish and ambitious main character of Jordan Manning sounds familiar, she's also drawn from Hall herself and other real-life reporters.
In Hall's novels, Jordan sometimes goes rogue on the job, getting herself in dangerous situations in her pursuit of truth and justice. But it's intentional.
"I want you to root with for her, and I want you to question her decisions," Hall says. "Here she is, on the cusp of becoming an anchor, this coveted position, and she's compromising it to find out what's happened to a woman that she's never met."
And names are a big deal to Hall, too.
"Names matter in my house," Hall says. "My son is Moses, his dog is Exodus."
And the name of her bird that interjected chirps during the interview? "Josephine Birder" (after singer and actress Josephine Baker).
So when it came to the character for her book series, Hall turned to a couple of sports icons.
"With Jordan Manning: I have a secret collection of Jordan sneakers, probably a lot more than I have high heels. And so Jordan Manning is Michael Jordan and Peyton Manning."
And what's next for Hall?
"I have a cookbook coming out in September," she says. "It's a love letter to my father, who I lost in 2008. He was a phenomenal cook and loved just doting on his family with beautiful meals. Not elaborate meals, but just delicious, heartfelt, hearty meals that I missed so dearly."
veryGood! (1)
Related
- Finally, good retirement news! Southwest pilots' plan is a bright spot, experts say
- Rooney Mara Is Pregnant, Expecting Baby No. 2 With Joaquin Phoenix
- Tom Hiddleston Gives Rare—and Swoon-Worthy—Shoutout to Fiancée Zawe Ashton at People's Choice Awards
- Adam Sandler jokingly confuses People's Choice Awards honor for 'Sexiest Man Alive' title
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- Kelly Osbourne says Ozempic use is 'amazing' after mom Sharon's negative side effects
- NBC anchor Kate Snow announces departure from Sunday edition of 'NBC Nightly News'
- Men's college basketball bubble winners and losers: TCU gets big win, Wake Forest falls short
- Intellectuals vs. The Internet
- 1 dead, 5 others injured in early morning shooting at Indianapolis Waffle House
Ranking
- Could your smelly farts help science?
- 4 men killed in shooting at neighborhood car wash in Birmingham, Alabama
- Navalny’s widow vows to continue his fight against the Kremlin and punish Putin for his death
- Some video game actors are letting AI clone their voices. They just don’t want it to replace them
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- NCAA men's basketball tournament top 16 reveal: Purdue, UConn, Houston and Arizona lead
- Cómo migrantes ofrecen apoyo a la población que envejece en Arizona
- OpenAI's new text-to-video tool, Sora, has one artificial intelligence expert terrified
Recommendation
Charges tied to China weigh on GM in Q4, but profit and revenue top expectations
George Santos sues Jimmy Kimmel, says TV host fooled him into making embarrassing videos
Former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki's Son Found Dead at 19 at UC Berkeley
A suspended Pennsylvania judge charged with shooting her ex-boyfriend as he slept
South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
Kelly Osbourne says Ozempic use is 'amazing' after mom Sharon's negative side effects
Redefining old age
US senators to submit resolution condemning democratic backsliding in Hungary