Discover answers to the questions most often asked about the Wren Island series, an interactive serialized fiction experience.
What are Wren Island stories about? Will I like them?
These feel-good, contemporary stories go deep with challenging relationships between endearing characters. The stories are set on an island in the Pacific Northwest and feature the local landscape, including our beloved whales. They’re free of harsh language and unnecessary violence. They sometimes include threads of slow-burn romance (without bedroom scenes) and lighthearted mystery.
I haven’t read any Wren Island stories yet. How do I catch up? How do I start influencing what happens next?
To start reading, check out the published books.
To start influencing what happens next, become a Wren Islander. You’ll receive installments of a continuing fiction series a few times a year. Between installments, you’ll be included in behind-the-scenes peeks at the developing story and invited to share your opinion.
Does it cost anything?
Interesting Enough: A Wren Island Novel is available for purchase.
It’s free to subscribe to receive email updates from Laura Joy Lloyd (become a Wren Islander!). You’ll receive the current Wren Island Companion e-book as a gift and hear about opportunities to influence the developing story. The Read with Laura Joy podcast is free to listen to.
How many stories are there? Will the series ever end?
As long as readers continue to ask for Wren Island stories, I’ll continue to write them. Here’s what’s happened so far.
Wren Island was released as interactive serialized fiction from fall 2022 to spring 2024. It’s not currently available in print but has been read aloud on the Read with Laura Joy podcast and is an early draft of what became Interesting Enough: A Wren Island Novel.
Wren Island with Wallace Around was released as interactive serialized fiction from summer 2024 to spring 2025. It’s not currently available in print but has been read aloud on the Read with Laura Joy podcast and is an early draft of a Wren Island novel to be released in summer 2026.
Wren Islanders have and will continue to influence the novel being released in summer 2026. Wren Islanders will influence the next story too!
Is there an audio version?
Plans are in the works to release Interesting Enough: A Wren Island Novel as an audiobook. Wren Island and Wren Island with Wallace Around can be listened to on the Read with Laura Joy podcast.
There’s also a Wren Island music playlist!
Can my book club read Wren Island stories? Would you join our conversation?
Interesting Enough: A Wren Island Novel makes a great club read. Check out the discussion guide.
Does your book club meet in my beautiful part of the country? Maybe I can join you in person! Video chat is always an option too. Learn more.
Does Wren Island actually exist? What about the hydrophone and gong?
Wren Island is fictional. Geographically, it’s based on the Pacific Northwest’s San Juan Islands and British Columbia’s Gulf Islands.
In the Salish Sea, there are several hydrophones (underwater microphones) in place to help people listen in on our beloved whales. Scientists monitor the hydrophones to learn more about how whales communicate with each other. The rest of us listen in just for fun! Wherever you are in the world, you can listen to our Pacific Northwest whales sing.
The gong on Wren Island is part real, part fiction. It’s inspired by a ship’s bell in a park on Whidbey Island in Washington State. Locals ring the bell when whales can be seen from shore.
Have a question you don’t see answered here?
I love hearing from readers! Send me a message.
