It started with a footnote. While researching Alexander the Great in graduate school, Janell Rhiannon came across a detail in Plutarch — that Alexander slept with a copy of the Iliad under his pillow. Curious about what could compel someone like Alexander to do that, she picked up Homer. More than twenty years later, she hasn't put him down.

In this episode, Janell joins Andrew to talk about the Homeric Chronicles — her six-book epic fantasy saga that rebuilds the entire Trojan War chronologically, weaving together Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, ancient Greek plays, archaeology, and dozens of myths into one sweeping human story. As a historian trained under Victor Davis Hanson, Janell brings a scholar's rigor and a storyteller's heart to characters we thought we already knew — Paris, Achilles, Hector, Helen, Clytemnestra, and the women whose voices have waited three thousand years to be fully heard.

They dig into the craft of retelling myth at epic scale, the psychological cost of war that Homer understood better than most modern writers, why these stories refuse to stop being relevant, and what Christopher Nolan is up against bringing the Odyssey to the screen.

A rich, wide-ranging conversation about history, storytelling, and what it means to be human — which, it turns out, is exactly what the Greeks were always writing about.

Find out more about Janell: https://www.janellrhiannon.com

Find out more about Andrew: www.hellorhighwinter.com

In this episode of Plotting About, Andrew Rubin, author of Hell or High Winter, sits down with Stefanie Leder, author and TV writer-producer whose credits include Netflix's Boo Bitch, MTV's Faking It, TBS's Men at Work, and ABC Family's Melissa and Joey. Her debut novel "Love, Coffee and Revolution" is set in the lush, transformative landscape of Costa Rica. Today, we're going deep on setting: how writers find, build, and inhabit the worlds of their stories.

In this first episode of Plotting About, I sit down with J. Todd Scott, former federal agent with a 30-year career who transitioned into a bestselling crime novelist and TV writer. From undercover operations and high-speed pursuits to writing for the Yellowstone universe (Dutton Ranch), JT brings a rare perspective on storytelling grounded in real experience.

We talk about:
*The truth about real car chases vs Hollywood versions
*How JT went from DEA agent to Hollywood writer
*What most crime shows get wrong about law enforcement
*Writing novels vs writing for TV and film
*Behind-the-scenes insights from the Yellowstone universe
*How real investigations shape compelling stories
*Finding your writing process and breaking through creative blocks
*JT shares stories from decades in federal law enforcement, including undercover work, surveillance, and high-risk operations, and how those experiences influence his writing today.
*If you’re into crime stories, thrillers, screenwriting, or Yellowstone, this conversation is packed with insight.

⏱️ Timestamps
0:00 From DEA Agent to Novelist: How It All Started
1:31 Inside a 30-Year DEA Career (What the Job Is Really Like)
4:05 The Mullet, Undercover Work & Blending In
6:10 Real Surveillance Stories from the Field
7:25 What Real High-Speed Car Chases Are Actually Like
11:42 Hollywood vs Reality: What Crime Stories Get Wrong
17:33 The Transition: From DEA Agent to Writer
22:53 How He Writes Crime Stories That Feel Real
37:44 Breaking Into Hollywood & Writing for TV (Yellowstone Universe)
62:44 Writing Process, Creativity & Finding Your Voice
79:46 What’s Next: Future Projects & Final Thoughts