Emily Holleman is the critically acclaimed author of Cleopatra’s Shadows and The Drowning King (both Little Brown & Company), the first of which was long-listed for the HWA Debut Crown. After her novels were optioned, developed, and eventually mothballed for the silver screen, she caught the television bug out of sheer stubbornness. Her pilot Say Something, a grief odd couple buddy dramedy set in post-9/11 Manhattan, was recognized as a finalist by the 2023 Austin Film Festival and as a quarterfinalist by the 2023 PAGE International Screenwriting Awards. Her essays have appeared in The Cut, Alta, Elle, LitHub, and Salon, among others. A native New Yorker, Emily is surprised to find herself putting down roots (and unironically using terms like “putting down roots”) in Portland, Oregon.