Juliet Izon in conversation with Andrew Forrester: The Encore

Juliet Izon has spent years writing about other people's glamorous lives, for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Vogue, and Architectural Digest, among others. Now she's telling one of her own, sort of. Her debut novel, The Encore, follows driven pianist and singer Anna Buckley and composer wunderkind Will Pendleton, who meet as students at Boston's Brookfield Conservatory in 2003 and spend four years fueling each other's ambition and art, until one night on the eve of graduation changes everything.

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Early praise has called it a novel that captures the pleasures and perils of chasing a dream, with Ashley Winstead calling it a story to lose yourself in and dream about with stars in your eyes, and Bustle likening its music-soaked coming-of-age energy to Daisy Jones & the Six.

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She'll be in conversation with Andrew Forrester, a former English and creative writing teacher and the author of How the Story Goes, a debut about a young widower finishing his late wife's beloved children's book series. Come hear two Austin-adjacent storytellers talk ambition and reinvention.

About the author

Juliet Izon is a journalist and author based in New York City and the Hudson Valley. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Vogue, and Architectural Digest, among others. Before going freelance, she held editorial roles at Bauer Publishing, Niche Media, and Modern Luxury. The Encore is her first novel. She lives with her husband, daughter, and two Ragdoll cats.

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About the conversation partner

Andrew Forrester is a writer and former English and creative writing teacher who has led workshops and coached and edited manuscripts across genres. How the Story Goes is his debut novel. He lives in Austin with his family.

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