Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Harlan Coben has sold 90 million books and produced 12 series on Netflix, but he insists that aside from being a writer, he has "no other marketable skills." Harlan tells Stephen Dubner how he went from a mid-list author earning $5,000 a book to the head of a global fiction empire. But why does he refuse to do research? Why does he treat writing like plumbing rather than art? And why does he think most of the advice on your feed is garbage?
Harlan talks about what it was like to go to college with David Foster Wallace and Dan Brown, the charity that lets you become a murder victim in one of his books, and why all writers still get nervous about people reading their work — even Stephen King.
#betterinperson #freakonomicsradio #HarlanCoben
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This is how a conversation works.
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Harlan Coben Turned His Books Into 12 Netflix Series | Better in Person
youtu.be/MTFmvXXxv04
Harlan Coben has sold 90 million books and produced 12 series on Netflix, but he insists that aside from being a writer, he has "no other marketable skills." Harlan tells Stephen Dubner how he went from a mid-list author earning $5,000 a book to the head of a global fiction empire. But why does he refuse to do research? Why does he treat writing like plumbing rather than art? And why does he think most of the advice on your feed is garbage?
Harlan talks about what it was like to go to college with David Foster Wallace and Dan Brown, the charity that lets you become a murder victim in one of his books, and why all writers still get nervous about people reading their work — even Stephen King.
#betterinperson #freakonomicsradio #HarlanCoben
Airs weekly on Tuesdays. Don't miss an episode! Subscribe NOW: youtube.com/channel/UCXjf7anLJA4NqUv8kPFIJWA?sub_confirmation=1
Introducing ChatGPT Work - Put ChatGPT to work on your most ambitious ideas and projects. Download the new ChatGPT desktop app today at chatgpt.com
ABOUT BETTER IN PERSON:
Everyone has a public story. Stephen Dubner wants the rest.
On Better in Person, Dubner invites remarkable people into his home for a kind of conversation that’s hard to find: curious, free-wheeling, even profound. They talk, play, eat and drink, argue and laugh. The result? Less interview, more shared discovery.
This is how a conversation works.
FOLLOW BETTER IN PERSON:
Instagram: instagram.com/betterinpersontv
TikTok: tiktok.com/betterinpersontv
FOLLOW STEPHEN DUBNER:
Instagram: instagram.com/stephenjdubner
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/stephen-dubner-2a066578
Substack: stephendubner.substack.com
FOLLOW FREAKONOMICS:
Instagram: instagram.com/freakonomics
Facebook: facebook.com/freakonomics
TikTok: tiktok.com/@freakonomicsradio
Twitter: twitter.com/freakonomics
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/freakonomics-media
Threads: threads.com/@freakonomics
Harlan Coben Turned His Books Into 12 Netflix Series | Better in Person
youtu.be/MTFmvXXxv04
