YA Author, Angela Bier joins us this week to discuss her latest, Voices

Author Name: Angela Bier

Book Title: Voices

Book Genre: Young Adult Fiction

Release Date: June 19, 2025

Publisher: Black Rose Writing

Welcome, Angela! Please tell us a bit about Voices.

Elena Tannin is super worried when she starts hearing voices; she gets downright frantic when the full-on conversations start.

What sparked the idea for this book?

I was inspired by the concept of mitochondrial DNA and Mitochondrial Eve. You might remember mitochondria from high school biology as “the powerhouse of the cell.” Well, mitochondria have their own DNA that is exclusively inherited from one’s mother. This is in comparison to chromosomal DNA which is a combination of contributions from both parents. If you think about this for awhile, this means that every person alive today has inherited their mitochondrial DNA exclusively from their mothers, and ultimately, all mitochondrial DNA lineages converge on one woman, who is referred to as Mitochondrial Eve. What if there was a trait that was passed down exclusively from mothers to daughters? And, what if some girl got the trait, somehow, from her father? None of this scientific musing really comes to bear, at all, in the narrative of Voices. But it’s where the idea started!

What drew you to writing a novel aimed at a young adult audience?

I think that I felt particularly compelled to write in the world of teenagers because, when I started the book, my older daughter was just becoming one. At the same time, I feel like my own adolescence was just a couple of weeks ago, even though I am turning 50 in December! As I started writing it, I wanted to add a third voice to that of the two teenage main characters: that of Elena’s mother. I enjoy YA fiction, and I read somewhere that something like a quarter of readers of the genre are actually adult women. So although the novel is written with an adolescent to older adolescent audience in mind, I hope that women outside of that age range will find something for them as well.

What do you hope readers will take away from this story?

I hope that moms and daughters will finish the story and have perhaps a bit more empathy for the other’s position, and for the earlier (and future) versions of themselves.

Any words of wisdom you give your pre-published writer self (or to a new
writer)?

Quit doubting yourself and just get the words out!

What are your interests outside of writing and reading?

I recently started a new job as the Executive Director of a small theatre company, Forte Theatre. I love it and the challenge of the position! I’ve recently become obsessed with pilates and get to the studio at least five days a week if I can. I serve on our local school board, and I enjoy getting to know new people and just chatting. In the summer I love sitting outside in my Adirondack chair and sipping wine in the front yard, hoping that the neighbors will come over to join in. I love to travel. I love watching my daughters grow up and become interesting young adults. I also love napping and generally take a 20 minute power nap every day.

Are you working on a new project? Please tell us about it.

I’m currently working on my first work of historical fiction, title yet to be determined. The inspiration is a series of postcards from the early 1900s found in my genealogical archive collection. Kept originally for their artwork, the scribbled lines on the back provide an intriguing framework to the love story of my great-grandparents. That’s what I’m writing, with a bit of time-hopping thrown in to keep things lively. After that, I’m feeling really compelled to continue the story of Elena with a sequel to Voices!

What was the last book you read? What did you think of it?

The last book I finished was The Briarwood Club, by Kate Quinn, shared with a book club. Oh, I loved it. I love books that alternate between characters’ points of view, and I love a work of historical fiction that is so grounded in meticulous research.

Where can readers find you?

Website: angelabier.com
Instagram handle: bierlady
Upcoming events:
● July 17, 6:00 pm: Book launch at Write On, Door County in Carlsville, Door County, WI
● July 19, 8:00 am – 12:00 pm: Door County Book and Author Fair at Martin Park in Sturgeon Bay, WI
● August 9, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm: Local Author Fall Event at Barnes & Noble in Madison, WI
● August 10, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm: Book Signing Event at Ink & Ivy Book Boutique in Madison, WI

Thank you, Angela! Voices is out NOW.

Voices

When Elena Tannin moves to Belvedere her junior year, she worries about fitting her high-achieving self into a new, small-town school. But Elena quickly adjusts academically and socially, finding friends in the Nerd Herd and even a possible boyfriend. Things are going well, despite also earning a beautiful frenemy named Kat.

But Elena begins to falter when she begins hearing voices that bring up all sorts of worrisome family secrets that she tries desperately to ignore. Soon, however, Elena is no longer able to force the voices out of her mind or the secrets back in the closet. Elena is eventually forced to confront the voices when things get personal and secrets can no longer be ignored.

Told from the points of view of Elena, her mother, and Kat, Voices is a classic coming of age story with a dash of magical realism thrown in. Angela Bier captures the complex, gorgeous, convoluted relationships between women of all ages and unravels the stories we tell ourselves, our loved ones, and the outside world.

Author Bio:

Angie is a former pediatrician, mother, and a Wisconsinite from birth. Her interests run the gamut from genealogy to the obsessive collecting of perennials, from pilates to creative napping. Voices is her second book, the first was a work of nonfiction genealogical mystery titled The Accidental Archivist. She is a student of AllWriters Workplace & Workshop and a member of the Door County Published Authors Collective. She lives between Franklin and Gills Rock, Wisconsin, with her husband, two daughters, and two dogs.