Today we interview Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne about their book, THE MIDNIGHT SHOW. This is the first time we’ve had co-authors on the Front Porch! So, twice the fun. THE MIDNIGHT SHOW isn’t the first book they’ve co-authored, either. They’ve co-written three previous novels together: THE ANTIQUITY AFFAIR, THE STARLETS, and MY FAIR FRAUDS. They are also independent authors. Lee Kelly is the author of the acclaimed speculative fiction novels CITY OF SAVAGES, A CRIMINAL MAGIC, and WITH REGRETS. Lee has practiced entertainment law in Los Angeles and New York. She lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children. Jennifer Thorne is the USA Today bestselling author of DIAVOLA, LUTE, and coming in September 2026, NEWBOURNE PARK. She has also written several books for younger readers. Jenn lives in a cottage in the Cotswolds in England with her husband and two sons. She performs locally as a light lyric soprano. Lee, tells us that she and Jennifer were debut authors together. They were fans of each other’s books. They met in person at their self-devised writing retreat. They found out they had lots of similarities and were in the same life stage. Their Pennsylvania high schools even competed against each other. Jenn pitched the idea of co-writing to Lee via text. Neither really knew what co-writing would look like. They threw out book ideas to each other over Skype. They found out they were very efficient writers together, Their writing style has evolved. For their first novel, THE ANTIQUITY AFFAIR, they were responsible for a character and they were very polite with each other. Linda and Nancy are thrilled to hear that THE ANTIQUITY AFFAIR features two sisters in an Indiana Jones-type adventure. Linda claims the whip. By the second book, THE STARLETS, Lee and Jennifer still captained different characters but they got into each other’s writing more deeply. By the time they wrote MY FAIR FRAUDS, they no longer assigned each other characters. By THE MIDNIGHT SHOW, they were writing simultaneously in a Google document, constantly punching up each other’s lines. They did “own” certain points of view, however, and that was helpful for the different perspectives. Lee says she and Jennifer have different senses of humor. Lee likes impressions, spoofs, and long-running gags. Jennifer is more cerebral. They brought their senses of humor to the characters, some of whom are comedians. They both love character-based humor, primarily. Nancy notes that she and Linny grew up in PA and asks where Lee and Jennifer went to high school. Lee tells us she went to Havertown, Marian Mercy High School and Jennifer lived in Bryn Mawr and Newtown Square and went to Shipley High School. Jennifer says she was not much of an athlete, instead more theatre-focused. Lee left PA for 20 years and recently returned, as have her sisters. It’s been an experience being back in the area. Nancy notes that Jennifer wrote that books were your constant companion growing up and wondered when she added writing to your reading habit. Jennifer says she always wrote, but got more serious as a theatre major when she found she was writing herself out of scripts. She then decided it was time to try writing a book. On the other hand, Lee always knew she wanted to be a writer. But her parents wanted her to study for an actual job. She did the paralegal bit in New York City and then went to law school and became an entertainment lawyer. While she was going to start negotiating fewer hours at the law firm, she got an agent and decided to pursue writing. Jennifer says they came up with the concept of THE MIDNIGHT SHOW because they knew they wanted to do something in comedy, historical/contemporary, and a mystery. They also love comedy shows. This was the book that they talked about while they were writing their earlier books. They wrote THE MIDNIGHT SHOW in three months, astounding Nancy and Linday. Lee says they always knew they wanted to do a Saturday Night Live-like book. Jennifer says they’ve gotten better at problem solving together. Lee says they know how to write together more efficiently, too. They are very close, personally, and know when to shorten their writing sessions. Though sometimes, they say they’re only going to talk for 20 minutes and before they know it, they’ve outlined the entire novel. Lee’s analogy is they like to wade into the ocean of writing, rather than jump in the pool. Lee says they do write with an outline. Lee especially loves a sortable spreadsheet. They know where the novel is going and how it’s going to end. Linny asks if they also know how the characters develop and how they sound. Lee says they wrote, but then sharpened the characters through very specific ideas about who the characters were. Bobby especially was drawn out to amplify his self-regard. Nancy reports that she and Linny loved the oral history/mixed media format of the novel and wonders what made them want to experiment with such an unusual story telling form. Lee says they’ve always had a documentary element in their books. Jennifer was the one who suggested they really rely on mixed media as the form for this book. Jennifer likes how it makes the novel seem as though it really happened. Lee said, however, figuring out the order of the segments was a challenge. Linny says she really captures 1980s New York in all its gritty glory and asks how they captured that era of New York. Jennifer tells us that her earliest memories are of living in New York’s upper east side with her single mom who worked in finance. She knew a SNL band member and participated in after parties. She had first person knowledge about club life in the city. Lee says they also found a lot of sources about 1980s New York: books and articles. These started to crystalize the era that was a shining spot between disco and AIDS. One of the major themes in the book is the challenges of being a funny woman in the 1980s. The female cast members of THE MIDNIGHT SHOW face a lot of sexism. They each deal with it in their own way. Jennifer, says this was a theme they wanted to explore because it’s still relevant. There’s an idea that woman can’t or shouldn’t be funny. On dates, men didn’t like that she was funny, rather they wanted her to be entertained by them. Lee notes that the book does deal with two different generations and their perspectives on sexism then and now. Woman tend to be more typecast. Jenn says women are more polarizing in the public eye. There’s been a lot written about men in comedy in the 1980s. They liked taking a female lens to era. Lee notes it is a privilege to audit a previous generation’s actions, though it’s hard to criticize because it’s hard to understand the entire context of that time when women were trying to trailblaze in the workforce. It’s a complex issue. Women are expected to be likable, even when we’re yelled at by strangers to “smile.” Jennifer says she is working on her next horror book, as her next solo novel. Jennifer says she and Lee can’t stop working together. It is another large ensemble piece that takes place on a Disney-like cruise ship and is a murder mystery. Lee’s next solo book is an early 2000’s poker-based literary novel.