Today we interview Debra Curtis about her book, LAWS OF LOVE AND LOGIC. This is Debra’s debut novel, at the age of 62! Debra is a retired professor of cultural anthropology at Salve Regina University, where she specialized in gender and sexuality. She is the mother of grown-up twin girls and lives in Rhode Island with her husband. Debra’s book was published in February (2026) by Thousand Voices press, a new venture of Jenn Bush Hager. Thanks to Thousand Voices for sending us Advance Reader Copies so we could read this book Debra tells us the idea of writing a novel snuck up on her in her 50s. She was an undiagnosed dyslexic and only got into college on probation. It wasn’t until she was working at Stanford as a 26- or 27-year-old research assistant, that her dyslexia was identified. As a teenager, she loved emerging feminist poets and would copy their poetry and try to emulate it. She also copied lyrics of songs she loved. She was accepted into Rutgers PhD anthropology program and became a professor. She wrote funny Christmas letters that her friends said they really enjoyed. She then started experimenting with fiction writing and audited an undergraduate course in creative writing. She told us the manuscript was rejected by 180 agents, but finally, through suggestions from prophetic voices, queried agent Felicity Blunt in London, who accepted her. Emily sold the book rights to presses in other countries, and finally to Thousand Voices. Debra is fresh from an appearance on the Today Show, and a dinner honoring her thrown by Jenna Bush Hager. Debra tells us that this story about sisters was influenced by her experience as a sister and as the mother of twin sisters. She is in constant contact with her three sisters. Debra says she can’t imagine her life without her sisters and that sense of loyalty and love pervade the relationship between the two sisters, Lily and Jane, in LAWS OF LOVE AND LOGIC. So much of this book is a celebration of the lives of women, and Nancy and Linny especially loved their mom. She taught her girls that supposedly contrary things can be held, like the belief in science and in God; the importance of being a strong woman, and of finding a good man; and seeking social justice, and personal meaning. Debra tells us that she is inspired by the characters; they inspire her and reveal the plot to her. As we talk, we learn that Debra has imbued this character with a lot of her own experience as a mother! Jane becomes addicted to drugs and alcohol, probably pretty early in her life. That addiction does create a barrier to the sister, just as it does in many families. Debra tells us it was important to her to include drug and alcohol addiction in the book because she is an addict, herself. She hasn’t had a drink in 32 years. We learn a lot about birds in this book! Marshall is a professor of Ornithology, and for many years is at Cornell. Nancy discovered that there actually is a Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Debra tells us she doesn’t have a connection with the Cornell lab. However, does walk to the national refuge on her island to walk. While she was teaching, a colleague of hers was an ornithologist. He exposed her to the field and reviewed her manuscript to ensure the bird sections were accurate. Debra also read books about birds and called experts. Throughout the book, Lily’s high school boyfriend is only known as “the boy.” Debra says she didn’t intentionally not give him a first name. To her, his name is his last name: Cooper. Debra tells us how a Massachusetts psychic and a Parisian sculptor led her to Felicity. Felicity came up with the title of the novel (she had originally titled it ASK THE BIRDS FOR FORGIVENESS and then just BIRDS). Debra believes the laws of love and logic refers to the two competing forces that have authority in our lives. Sometimes they compete. Sometimes they overlap. These forces capture Lily and Jane’s stories. Debra says people can hold multiple loves. We put limits on the capacity of love. If we’re lucky we’ll have a lot of love. Nancy mentions C.S. Lewis’ THE FOUR LOVES. Debra picks up that Nancy calls Linda, “Linny.” Linny says Nancy is the only one who does this and it’s her special privilege. LAWS OF LOVE AND LOGIC has a lot of literature, but also music. Debra says music is important to her and she listens to music, over and over for days, when she’s writing. Before we know it, we’re all singing Harry Nilsson’s WITHOUT YOU. Debra tells us she writes in bed, in her pj’s, on a yellow legal pad! Her sisters questioned the amount of time she spent in bed, thinking she was spending her days posting on TikTok. Debra says, she is as surprised as anyone that she, with no pedigree, has seen this success in her debut novel. She feels almost like it’s not real. Debra tells us she has already written her next novel. Felicity hasn’t read it yet. It’s the story of a young anthropologist PhD in the 1980s who travels to Mongolia to do field work among the herders. Governed by the USSR and oppressive to intellectuals and dissidents. She then falls in love. Debra has an Instagram: deb.curtis.906 Debra tells us Jenna has made a playlist on Spotify with all the songs in the book. It is the LAWS OF LOVE AND LOGIC playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2mvod57iH749WbJgNMm8sn Debra, Nancy, and Linda hope to meet. Linda attempts to lure Debra to Pennsylvania with promise of chocolate.