Instagram story viewer> @debolinunferth> Tagged

Deb Olin Unferth

@debolinunferth

3.4K

followers

1867

following

📚🌱 7 books including EARTH 7 (June 2026) and Barn 8

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

What kind of book could make Nancy Pearl (@nancy_pearl_books) say it “kind of saved me”? One that’s heartbreaking, hilarious and wonderfully "quirky." The Book Lust host sits down with author Deb Olin Unferth (@debolinunferth) to explore "Earth 7," a love story unlike any other. Tap the link in our bio to watch the full interview.⁠
⁠
Accessible video description: Nancy Pearl sits at a desk in a room full of books as she interviews author Deb Olin Unferth.

5

0

Massive thanks to @sofestofbooks and @parnassusbooks for an incredible weekend. It was wonderful to meet so many authors, readers, volunteers, and other folks passionate about books and storytelling. These are truly my people. (And yes, I probably should have taken more/better photos, but I was too wrapped up in experiencing the experience 🙃)

#theradiantdark

33

5

The @sofestofbooks was an incredible experience from start to finish. I’m grateful to have had the chance to speak on a panel with @debolinunferth and @alicejmartin where we discussed revision, research, and building watery worlds. And I got to see so many brilliant writers, from Claudia Rankine and Ann Patchett to @asaldrake, @jordanritterconn, @maria.zoccola, @kwoyafagin, and @mar_mercedes. Thank you to @parnassusbooks for selling my books and to @humanities_tn and @porchtn for all your work on this event!

81

14

"How many prophets have been silenced by the sheer stubbornness of the world, its insistence on going on?"

In the latest installment of our Resurrector series, @debolinunferth revisits Hal Hartley's 1998 film The Book of Life. Read the full column at the link in our bio.

Illustration by @kristianhammerstad.

74

4

I love this time of year when I can share what I’ve been working on and what I have coming up. Every last title is a gem because if freelancing isn’t about choosing books you absolutely love, I don’t know why anyone would do it.

“Well-crafted . . . [an] insightful story of modern love.” —Publishers Weekly

“Growing up when the Internet grew up was a magical time. The world still felt small, meet-cutes still felt serendipitous. Thakkar perfectly captures the magic of love (and heartbreak) during that time in Blow Yourself Up.”
—Debutiful, the Most Anticipated Debut Books of 2026

“It might just be one of the best novels ever about our passion for pop music. Perfect for fans of Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity, Roddy Doyle’s The Commitments and Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Daisy Jones and the Six. Equally, anyone who’s enjoyed classic sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll memoirs from the likes of Mötley Crüe, Keith Richards or Ozzy Osbourne will almost certainly love it.”
—Matt Nixon, The Daily Express (UK)

Tour dates: https://mlrio.com/events/

“A fantastic novel—I loved it. Please buy immediately and read!”
—Gus Van Sant

“The extraordinary Jon Robin Baitz, with his singular voice and total command of his craft, has given us a book about the most important considerations, at a most urgent time. At the heart of his elegant and haunting story of family loss and tenderness is a great hope: the human part of us may be harder to extinguish than we think.”
—Sarah Jessica Parker

“Ebonya Lia’s debut novel is a riveting, mesmerizing tale of Harmony, a Black woman trapped in a body that violently reacts to almost every known irritant of our synthetic world, causing her to retreat to the relative safety of her Manhattan apartment. In the vein of Moshfegh’s My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Lia takes the metaphor of bodily illness to Kafkaesque extremes. Not since the works of Gayl Jones has the impact of institutional racism on the body of a contemporary Black woman been expressed so viscerally. With prose that cuts like a knife, this is a novel that will get under your skin—just as it should.”
—David Santos Donaldson, author of Greenland, finalist for the 2023 Carnegie Medal

“Lib

41

5

322

5

This Thursday, 10/15, nationally acclaimed author Deb Olin Unferth will visit Marian University, discussing the art of fiction with Marian professor Dr. Rachel Cochran. The event will be held from 12:30 - 1:45 p.m. in Marian Hall 305.

Unferth is the author of seven books, including the novel Barn 8 (now in development by Searchlight Pictures) and her acclaimed new novel Earth 7, out this summer. Her fiction and essays have appeared in over fifty publications, including the New York Times.

9

0

A week from now, I'll be at the @sofestofbooks to talk about UNDERLAKE, future Earths, and the allure and devastation of water alongside @alicejmartin and @debolinunferth. I hope to see you there!

#sofestbooks26 #nashville #nashvillethingstodo #nashvilleevents #literaryfiction

42

8

Why was Deb Olin Unferth speaking to billionaires for the writing of her book?

And did it lead to the title of her novel EARTH 7?

What you’ll hear in my interview with @debolinunferth is how much research she does, and that’s something that can lead her to conferences about space travel to Mars and conversations with billionaires.

While humans’ prospects are quite grim in Deb’s novel, you also get a sense from this research of the extent humanity goes to try and preserve certain forms of life.

Have you heard of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault for instance? It’s essentially a backup of the world’s food and agricultural supply, storing millions of seeds of crops worldwide in case they get destroyed.

And I think this ultimately shows how you can turn real fantastical sounding innovations into inspiration for your own work.

So find what both fascinates, inspired and potentially scares you!

17

0

We noticed that just in time for the change in season, our front table was looking quite autumnal! 🧡🍂

We’re always refreshing this table, keeping it up to date with some of the latest paperback releases in both fiction and non-fiction (as well as some gifty hardback editions) and it’s particularly inspiring right now.

Some staff favourites include: Heart the Lover, Earth 7, The Sleep Thief, and Shadow Ticket, but you’ll have to swing by to see what they’re about! 👀

Open 10-6 every day of the week. :)

166

2

✨ We’re so excited for our December 2026 Antioch MFA Residency!

📚 Some of the incredible faculty joining us include John Cariani, Reyna Grande, and Terry Wolverton, along with special guests Deb Olin Unferth and Tananarive Due!

✍🏽 We are accepting applications! Study Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Writing for Young People, Playwriting, Screenwriting, Literary Translation, or pursue a dual-genre concentration.

💻 You can attend the residency in person at our Los Angeles campus, online, or a combination of both. Scholarships are available!

🔗 Learn more about our faculty and program at the link in our bio.

#MFAProgram #MFAinCreativeWriting #CreativeWritingPrograms #CreativeWritingCommunity #LowResidencyMFA

29

0

🌍Will the end of the world be beautiful?

The answer to this question reminded me of a @thebookerprizes winner and a shortlisted novel as well as my latest guest’s book @debolinunferth

I was reminded of ORBITAL @penguinrandomhouse because of how Deb writes about the Earth and its beauty as if looking at it from outer space.

Its also how Deb is writing about something on a vast and celestial scale, writing across time and space, while compressing time in her novel through her writing.

We’re in the hands of a really skilled writer here.

Along with that, we’re reading a novel that is about the end of the world, but yet is able to still show and depict beauty in the world. Without this, I think we’d be in a totally different novel altogether

I expand on some of these themes and ideas in my latest Rippling Points Podcast on the Rippling Pages Patreon. Otherwise, listen to what Deb has to say about Harvey’s and her novel on your favourite podcast provider.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
#literarypodcast #writersoftheworld #indieaesthetic #debolinunferth #pushcartprize

24

0