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Alli Frank and Asha Younis Join Forces for Hybrid Memoir-Novel 'Shared Pages'

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  //humor-quirks.news-articles.net/content/2025/12 .. forces-for-hybrid-memoir-novel-shared-pages.html
  Published in Humor and Quirks on Wednesday, December 24th 2025 at 10:16 GMT by Seattle Times

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Alli Frank and Asha Younis: A Tale of Two Voices, One Book

In a recent interview that appeared in the Seattle Times, two writers—Alli Frank, the former senior editor at The New York Times and bestselling memoirist, and Asha Younis, a rising novelist known for her lyrical prose—shared the story behind their unexpected partnership on a new book that promises to blend their distinct perspectives into a single, resonant narrative.

From Separate Careers to a Shared Project

Frank’s career has spanned journalism, editorial work, and memoir writing. Her best‑known works include The Book of My Life, a candid exploration of the author’s struggle with identity and health, and The Year We Had No Words, which delved into the dynamics of long‑term relationships. Younis, meanwhile, burst onto the literary scene with her debut novel Echoes in the Desert, a poetic meditation on migration and belonging that earned her a shortlist spot for the Booker Prize.

In the interview, the two authors recounted how they first met at a writer’s retreat in Oregon. Frank was in the “Writing in the Wilderness” session, while Younis was part of the “Poetry & Prose” group. Their initial conversation was, according to Frank, “a mix of admiration and friendly rivalry.” Younis’s conversational style, she said, made Frank think, “Why not combine our energies and see what happens?”

The collaboration was born out of a shared frustration with the siloed nature of the publishing world. “We both felt that we were writing to separate audiences, but we had a common thread,” Frank explained. “We wanted to break that mold and create something that would resonate across the literary spectrum.”

The Book’s Premise: A Shared Narrative About Creativity

The two writers described the book—titled Shared Pages—as a hybrid memoir‑novel hybrid that alternates between first‑person recollections and a fictional narrative that threads through both of their lives. While the exact title remains under wraps, the description in the interview indicates that the book will explore themes of artistic identity, collaboration, and the creative process itself.

Frank and Younis chose this hybrid form because they felt that the best stories often emerge from the overlap of fact and fiction. “When we were writing, we kept swapping drafts between each other,” Younis noted. “It became a dialogue that naturally morphed into a story that could have existed if we had never met.”

The Writing Process: Two Voices in Harmony

One of the most intriguing aspects of their collaboration, as highlighted by the Seattle Times interview, is how they managed to keep each voice distinct while ensuring that the book reads as a cohesive whole. Frank emphasized the importance of maintaining “autonomous storytelling” in each section. “We let each of us take the lead on the parts that felt most natural to us,” she said.

Younis, meanwhile, explained that she spent a great deal of time editing her own prose for clarity and brevity, while also making space for Frank’s detailed, reflective style. “The process was less about merging and more about juxtaposing,” she said. “We let the differences stand as a counterpoint.”

Their process also included a rigorous schedule of weekly meetings—often over coffee at the Seattle Times café—where they read each other’s drafts aloud and offered candid feedback. They described this ritual as a “conversation about words,” a way to ensure that the final product retained the emotional depth of each writer’s voice while benefiting from the other’s perspective.

Inspiration and Themes

Frank drew from her experience in the newsroom, where deadlines and editorial demands often clashed with creative impulses. Younis’s inspiration came from her own travels, particularly her time living in Morocco, where she felt a profound sense of dislocation that she sought to capture in a way that transcended cultural boundaries.

The book promises to touch on themes such as the paradox of collaboration—how working together can both dilute individual expression and enhance creative possibilities—and the broader cultural conversation about the role of storytelling in contemporary society.

Publishing, Release, and Where to Look

According to the interview, the book is slated for publication by a major independent press in early 2025, though the publisher’s name was withheld in the article. The authors mentioned that they had begun early promotional talks with literary magazines and podcasts, and they plan to engage with readers through a series of online discussions, virtual book clubs, and a small tour in the Pacific Northwest.

Both writers expressed excitement about how their partnership might influence other authors. “I think the idea of a writer’s partnership is still relatively new in mainstream publishing,” Younis said. “If Shared Pages resonates, it could open doors for more collaborative projects.”

Final Thoughts

Alli Frank and Asha Younis have turned an unlikely meeting at a writer’s retreat into a creative venture that promises to challenge conventional notions of authorship and narrative. With a unique hybrid structure and an intimate look at the creative process, Shared Pages is poised to become a landmark collaboration, encouraging writers—and readers alike—to consider how two voices can coexist, intersect, and ultimately create something greater than the sum of their parts.