Author Matt Browning Talks Books, Business, and His Love for Gilmore Girls
An exclusive interview with a pop culture references expert!
It’s any fan’s dream to turn their fandom into a creative endeavor or service for other fans just like them. For Matt Browning, fan, bookstore owner, and author, that dream is a reality! Browning is the author of 2021’s book, The Definitive “Golden Girls” Reference Guide, a comprehensive glossary of all the pop culture references in the classic, beloved sitcom. There’s at least one other show we know and love that is heavy on cultural deep cuts and mentions, and even the biggest fan of Gilmore Girls needs a primer to help define all the references–even the ones you didn’t catch until your tenth rewatch. Matt is on the case! His new book, Gilmore Girls Pop Culture Reference Guide, hits shelves March 3, 2026.
I was so thrilled to catch up with Matt in an exclusive interview to discuss his thoughts on fandom, love for the franchises he’s written about, and his work as a bookstore owner of Plot Twist Books in Charleston, West Virginia. A dream for any book lover! You can check out Matt’s upcoming book tour on his website (including a launch event with John Cabrera), and make sure to follow and connect with him on Instagram and Facebook. Check out our conversation below!
Tell me about your fandom origin story: what fandoms do you consider yourself a part of?
I’ve realized that when I become a fan of something, I’m a fan for life, whether it’s TV, music, movies, books—you name it. I was one of those kids raised on television back in the day, so there are plenty of TV show fandoms I consider myself a part of. I’ve been a major fan of The Golden Girls and its spinoff series, Empty Nest, since elementary school—long before I understood half the jokes they were making. In fact, back in 1998, I made a little fan website for Empty Nest simply because no one else had done it. That’s what we did back then, make fan websites. Well, that little site found its audience and still exists today. I’ve ended up becoming friends with members of the cast and crew, interviewing several of them, and hosting a couple reunion panels at conventions. All because of simply being a fan.
What made you want to write about Golden Girls, and now Gilmore Girls?
If there is a show that gives Gilmore Girls a run for its money in the frequency of pop culture references, it’s The Golden Girls. I remember watching it one day, and Bea Arthur has a line in an episode where she mentions The Katzenjammer Kids. I grabbed my phone and was googling that when I thought to myself, “Boy, wouldn’t it be nice if there was a book that explained all these references?” I went to my agent with the idea, and he thought it had potential. We sold it within a few weeks of shopping the proposal. It ended up doing quite well, and Gilmore Girls was the very next show I knew could work in this kind of format. (By the way, The Katzenjammer Kids was a comic strip!)
Gilmore Girls Pop Culture Reference Guide sounds self explanatory, but tell me about why you chose to delve into the fandom from this angle?
When the Golden Girls version of this idea did well, I knew Gilmore Girls would, too. But, I’ll admit, I was hesitant. I’ve loved the show for years, but I knew that the quantity of references was probably three or four times the number from Golden Girls. It was intimidating to think about writing, but there are references all throughout the show that gave me that same vibe as that Katzenjammer Kids reference I mentioned above. In fact, that reference appears in Gilmore Girls, too! But there’s an episode where Jess and Lorelai mention Euell Gibbons that was really the catalyst. My first thought was, “Who?” And my second thought was, “Yeah, fans definitely need this book.”
What’s something surprising you learned about the show, or the fandom, while writing?
I don’t know if it surprised me, because I knew it was a lot, but the volume of references was wild to see all compiled. With Golden Girls, there was space in the manuscript to include the dialogue for context. If we had done that with Gilmore Girls, I’d have been looking at a book as long as the Oxford English Dictionary. Lane has always been one of my favorite characters, but, dang, she and the Hep Alien guys drop so many band names! It got to the point where I would dread seeing John Cabrera’s name in the guest credits, because I knew I was in for a lot of work! (But I love you, John!) As for the fandom, I mean, come on! Talk about devotion! I’ve gone to a couple of Gilmore Girls fan events recently, and the love they have for the show—and for one another—is truly a beautiful thing. Same for Golden Girls, really. There was an event called Golden-Con that happened a couple years around the time that book was released, and it had the same loving, welcoming vibe as the Gilmore fandom. It’s really such a pleasure to be part of it.
You own a bookstore in Charleston, WV: tell me about that journey and what it’s like having any book lover’s dream job?!
I’ve loved books and bookstores since I was a kid. I host a podcast called Bookstore Explorer, where I chat with independent bookstore owners about the business, and I would tell the guests, “I want to do what you’re doing when I retire.” They encouraged me not to wait—to do it while the industry is healthy and while I’m young enough to lug around boxes of heavy books. (My lower back would argue that I’m already past that point!) It’s been a blast, and we’ve done well in our short three years. We have an Airbnb attached to the store where folks can spend the night roaming the stacks, and we encourage aspiring booksellers to come stay with us and learn about the industry—kind of an immersive “behind the shelves” experience. We’ve had a few guests open their own stores since staying with us, and we’re super proud to be a tiny part of other people’s journeys.
You can invite 3 Stars Hollow townies to dinner: who are you picking and why?
Well, I have a soft spot for Lane, so she’s definitely on the guest list. If I’m hosting this dinner, I don’t suppose I can ask her to cook, but I’ll invite Sookie in hopes that she’ll bring along maybe a side dish or a dessert. And I’m going to go with a bit of a deep cut next: Andrew, so we can talk books. (I know I could talk books with Rory, but she’d probably make the evening all about whatever crisis of the week she’s dealing with!)
A followup: which GG character, besides Rory and Jess, would write a book you’d love to sell in your store? Personally, I wanna tell-all memoir from Miss Patty…
Oh, I would definitely read Miss Patty’s memoir! You know who else I imagine would have a page-turning autobiography? The enigmatic Morey!
Make sure to grab your copy of Gilmore Girls Pop Culture Reference Guide for you and your friends! Whether you’re studying for trivia, looking for inspiration for what other media to dig into that the writers snuck into the dialogue, or simply want bragging rights of knowing every single pop culture inside joke, you won’t regret getting your hands on this book!
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