In the first of three conversations with Turner Grant, author of To Venus and Back: One Man’s Quest to Rediscover Love, we start where midlife dating really begins for so many people: after loss, reflection, healing, and a new start in the search for love.

Turner shares the story of losing his wife suddenly at 53, raising twin sons (including one with disabilities), and being pushed back into life by a blunt but loving comment from his mother-in-law. From there, we walk into his “Rookie Year” of dating — starting organically the old-fashioned way at a gala invite, awkward first kisses, and the surreal experience of being featured in the Washington Post Date Lab.

This episode gives Boomers and Gen Xers a front-row seat to what it feels like to re-enter the dating world with a full life behind you, grief still in the room, and no idea what comes next. If you’re wondering whether you’re “doing it wrong” or if it’s supposed to feel this weird… this conversation says: you’re not alone.

In this episode, Baby Boomers and Gen Xers will learn:

• Why Turner decided to write a brutally honest dating memoir as a midlife widower (and why he used a pseudonym).
• How grief, parenting, and career shaped his mindset before he ever went on a date.
• What pushed him from “I’m done” to “maybe I should try dating again” — and how that actually looked in real life.
• The story of Joyce and the gala: how being “arm candy” for one night became a turning point.
• What it’s like to be set up by the Washington Post Date Lab — from red-carpet treatment to public scorecards and comment-section criticism.
• Early lessons about dating in your 50s when you realize everyone has baggage (including you), and why widowers and divorcés often get treated very differently.
• A teaser of what’s coming next as Turner moves from “organic” dating into the wild world of online dating.

About Turner Grant:

From the Book's Back Cover:

Two Years after the Unexpected death of his wife, Turner Grant was ready to consider love once more. Yet everything changed, and he soon found himself adrift in the digital-dating world.

At age fifty-one, Turner Grant became a widower and single parent to his twin boys. Deep in grief, he often found daily routines difficult and his work arduous. But after two years, Turner embarked on a journey to find his future, both in life and love.

What Turner discovered shocked him. After tentative steps into the shallow dating waters, he was quickly immersed in a deep ocean filled with unexpected riptides and crosscurrents within a digital-dating universe that didn’t exist when he last dated decades earlier.

In three years, he met fifty-four single, middle-aged women who took him to a totally different world—Venus. It was a journey—a journey that’s, well … complicated.

Website: https://tovenusandback.com/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BKS8GQHQ/

About The Midlife Dating Podcast / 50 Dates at 50

Paul Nelson is the host of the Midlife Dating Podcast and creator of the 50 Dates at 50 website. Helping Gen X and Baby Boomer singles learn to date smart, enjoy the process, and move from right swipe to real-life meetups with frameworks like the 3-1-1 Rule and Right Swipe Discipline.

• Learn more and grab resources at 50 Dates at 50 – https://50datesat50.com/

Questions, Comments, or Podcast Topic Suggestions: questions@50datesat50.com