When <\/span>Bad on Paper<\/span><\/i>\u2019s<\/span> Grace Atwood decided to take a break from podcasting, co-founder Becca Freeman knew right away she wanted former guest Olivia Muenter to step in as her new co-host.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Unbeknownst to both at the time, Freeman and Muenter each routinely take time in January to evaluate and plan for the upcoming year. Muenter was in the middle of that process when she received Freeman\u2019s offer to co-host earlier this year.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was intimidated by this idea of taking over for Grace\u2026 to have such a huge, engaged audience,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Muenter says. <\/span>\u201cI had decided I would probably say \u2018no.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/h3>\n

Freeman understood that feeling. For her, it was in January 2018\u2014in the middle of her annual reflection\u2014when Atwood first suggested they start a book-club podcast. Already an established lifestyle blogger and influencer with 100,000 Instagram followers, Atwood was itching for a new project.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGrace realized one of the most engaged but underexplored areas of her blog was books,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Freeman recalls, reflecting on her longtime friend\u2019s pitching of the idea to host a show together. <\/span>\u201cShe caught me in January, when I was already in a new-year-new-me mindset and ready to say \u2018yes\u2019 to things. Otherwise, my gut answer would have been, <\/span><\/i>\u2018No, absolutely not.\u2019<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Freeman says they started the podcast <\/span>\u201cas a complete lark.\u201d<\/span><\/i> Being close friends, they enjoyed hanging out together and talking, so they simply started recording their conversations. <\/span>\u201cWe had no idea what we were doing, and we had no professional aspirations,\u201d<\/span><\/i> she says, adding that aesthetics was more important. So, they created a cute logo, started an Instagram page, and posted the first episode.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think anyone was going to listen, but lo and behold, we right away picked up an audience,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Freeman says, adding how she has been involved in many book clubs in her life, but they all died slow deaths because of scheduling conflicts. With <\/span>Bad on Paper<\/span><\/i>, they were able to overcome that common book-club obstacle, as they developed a community of people who were interested in reading the same books they were and having a venue to talk about them.<\/span><\/p>\n

For the first year of the podcast, the hosts read and discussed what Freeman refers to as <\/span>\u201cbad young-adult books\u2014none of which were winning a national book award.\u201d<\/span><\/i> Despite being <\/span>\u201cbad\u201d<\/span><\/i> books, this genre was what they wanted to discuss, and their audience did, too.<\/span><\/p>\n

They started with <\/span>The Selection Series<\/span><\/i>, which Freeman describes as \u201cThe Bachelor<\/span> set in a dystopian universe with teenagers\u2014it\u2019s super addictive.\u201d<\/span><\/i> But soon, they realized publishers were not releasing enough young-adult series to sustain a podcast. The second year, they expanded the content to include all contemporary literature, a monthly book club (versus biweekly the first year), and featured guests\u2014which have included Cindy Crawford, Elizabeth Gilbert, Stacey Abrams, and Graham Norton.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been really fortunate to have some incredible people on as guests,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Freeman says, adding with a laugh, <\/span>\u201cI used to say that we had a podcast as a way to catfish cool women into being our friends.\u201d<\/span><\/i> Although having popular guests was a catalyst for growth, <\/span>\u201cWe still have really strong roots in the book community, and that\u2019s part of the DNA of our podcast. It sets it apart from other interview or chat shows.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Atwood decided to step away from the podcast, but Freeman wanted to continue. They mutually agreed almost immediately that Muenter would be a perfect new co-host. <\/span>\u201cIt was a lightning-rod moment,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Freeman says, adding that she sent her prospective co-host an email January 4 with the subject line <\/span>\u201cLeft-Field Question.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was such a jerk move,\u201d <\/span><\/i>she says,<\/span> \u201cbecause she had already done all of her New Year\u2019s goals and intentions. She didn\u2019t write me back for two weeks.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/h3>\n

Muenter recalls, <\/span>\u201cI was shocked\u2026 genuinely shocked.\u201d<\/span><\/i> Planning to decline, she chose to meet with Freeman on a Zoom call anyway. <\/span>\u201cBy the end of that call, I was thinking that it made a lot of sense, and I felt really, really good about it. I decided I wouldn\u2019t let the only reason I didn\u2019t do it be because I was scared that I would disappoint people.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Afterward, they spent months meeting, brainstorming, and planning, with Muenter taking the co-host seat officially at the beginning of April. <\/span>\u201cIt feels like it\u2019s been longer\u2014way longer,\u201d<\/span><\/i> she says. <\/span>\u201cIt just fit into my entire plan for the year, which is to keep moving forward and evolving my career into something different that really works for me.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The new co-hosts have challenges, though, with Freeman living in New York City and Muenter making her home in Philadelphia. For the most part, they are recording virtually over Zoom, so they can see each other\u2019s faces and have a conversation, but they plan to meet once a month, alternating locations to record, as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGrace was one of my best friends for 10 years, so even when we were recording remotely, it was fairly natural and easy,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Freeman says, explaining that she and Muenter are not just building the podcast together, but growing a new friendship. <\/span>\u201cThe podcast is like sitting down to have a glass of wine with your girlfriends. In this case, Olivia and I are developing our relationship on air, and people get to hear it develop and evolve in real time. We want to make sure that\u2019s what sets the podcast apart\u2014that it does feel like you are part of this friend group.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Just a few months in, Muenter says being a podcast co-host is better than she could have imagined. <\/span>\u201cI am using my time how I want, growing my own audience, and focusing on something that really brings me joy\u2014books have always been that for me. Particularly in the past couple of years, I\u2019ve really leaned into that a lot more. This is kind of perfect.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Four years in with nearly 30,000 downloads a month and an active Facebook group of more than 8,000, Freeman has changed her opinion about \u201cbad\u201d books. <\/span>\u201cNo book is bad. Embrace any book that brings you enjoyment and pleasure,\u201d<\/span><\/i> she says. <\/span>\u201cThere is no such thing as a guilty pleasure.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

July 2022 Issue<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Bad on Paper\u2019s Grace Atwood decided to take a break from podcasting, co-founder Becca Freeman knew right away she wanted former guest Olivia Muenter to step in as her new co-host.\u00a0 Unbeknownst to both at the time, Freeman and Muenter each routinely take time in January to evaluate and plan for the upcoming year. Muenter was in the middle of that process when she received Freeman\u2019s offer to co-host earlier this year.\u00a0 \u201cI was intimidated by this idea of taking over for Grace\u2026 to have such a huge, engaged audience,\u201d Muenter says. \u201cI had decided I would probably say<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":12956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[365,3425,3423,3427,3429,3424,3428,3430,3426],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n