Award-winning author, filmmaker and storyteller Luz Maria Mack is bringing a new perspective to literary conversations with the launch of The Missing Book Podcast, a series exploring the people, experiences and cultural influences behind the books that shape communities.
Launched July 1, 2026, the podcast is available on Spotify, Pandora, Castbox, Podbean, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Podchaser and YouTube, with a KweliTV launch planned. The series focuses on authors, educators, advocates, artists and other creative voices whose work contributes to literature and culture.
Rather than functioning solely as a platform for authors to promote their latest releases, The Missing Book Podcast looks at the personal stories behind the books. Mack uses conversations with creators to explore identity, inspiration, publishing, literacy and the experiences that ultimately influence the stories people choose to tell.
The concept grew out of Mack’s own experiences as an author. Through school visits, conferences, book festivals and social media, she said she repeatedly encountered creators whose stories deserved greater attention.
As both a traditionally published and self-published author, Mack is also familiar with the challenges of getting books in front of readers. That experience helped inspire her to create a space where literary professionals could discuss not only their work, but also the journeys that shaped it.
Each episode features conversations with members of the literary and creative communities, including authors, illustrators, educators, publishers, librarians, literacy advocates, artists and changemakers. Books provide the starting point, but discussions extend into broader questions about culture, identity, representation and the communities influenced by literature.
The podcast also examines the publishing industry and the reasons some books receive significant attention while others struggle to reach audiences. By creating room for those conversations, Mack hopes to highlight voices and titles that might otherwise remain outside the mainstream literary spotlight.
A recurring social media feature, the Missing Book Shelf, extends each episode’s conversation by spotlighting books worth discovering. The series gives listeners and readers another way to connect with authors and titles featured throughout the podcast.
For Mack, the project is ultimately about recognizing the people behind the literary work.
The podcast comes at a time when conversations about representation in publishing continue to grow, particularly around whose stories receive visibility and which voices are included in mainstream literary conversations. By combining interviews with cultural storytelling, The Missing Book Podcast aims to make those discussions accessible to a broader audience.
Through the podcast and its accompanying Missing Book Shelf, Mack is creating a platform that goes beyond book promotion to examine the people, experiences and perspectives that make stories meaningful—and to help readers discover books that may otherwise be missed.