LL Kirchner joins Let’s Talk Memoir for a conversation about compressing material and managing timelines, writing about addiction and recovery, radical compassion, polyamory, yoga scandals and sex cults, and her new memoir Blissful Thinking. 

Also in this episode:

-The toll of internalized misogyny 

-Finding teachers who energize you

-Writing groups

Books mentioned in this episode: 

Cultish Amanda Montei

Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

Blackout Sarah Hepola

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Wild Cheryl Strayed

The Liars Club by Mary Karr

Lit by Mary Karr

The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr 

memoirs by Alexandra Fuller 

When She Comes Back by Ronit Plank

L.L. Kirchner is an award-winning screenwriter and author. Her second memoir, Blissful Thinking: A Memoir of Overcoming the Wellness Revolution (Motina Books, 9/26/23), reveals how the chase for 'wellness' made her sicker until she discovered she'd been asking the wrong questions. Her writing has appeared in The Washington Post, BOMB Magazine, and The Rumpus. She's currently working on her first novel, Florida Girls. Find her on socials @LLKirchner_ or her website, llkirchner.com. There you can sign up for her monthly newsletter, Notable—inspiration from the creative front line—and get a sneak peek at her new book. 

Connect with LL:

Website: https://llkirchner.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/llkirchner_

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/llkirchner_/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@llkirchner

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LLKirchner/

Free Course: Unlock Your Story, A 5-Day Challenge: https://llkirchner.podia.com/5-days-to-get-to-the-heart-of-your-story/buy

New book to pre-order: https://www.amazon.com/Blissful-Thinking-Overcoming-Wellness-Revolution-ebook/dp/B0BZTDCPT3

Free workshop for pre-orders: https://llkirchner.involve.me/pre-order-workshop

– 

Ronit Plank is a writer, teacher, and editor whose work has been featured in The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The New York Times, Writer’s Digest, The Rumpus, American Literary Review, Hippocampus, The Iowa Review, and elsewhere. Her memoir WHEN SHE COMES BACK about the loss of her mother to the guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and their eventual reconciliation was named a 2021 Best True Crime Book by Book Riot and was a Finalist in the National Indie Excellence Awards, the Housatonic Book Awards, and the Book of the Year Awards. Her fiction and creative nonfiction have been nominated for Pushcart Prizes, the Best of the Net, and the Best Microfiction Anthology, and her short story collection HOME IS A MADE-UP PLACE won Hidden River Arts’ Eludia Award. She is creative nonfiction editor at The Citron Review and lives in Seattle with her family where she is working on her next book.

More about Ronit: https://ronitplank.com

Sign up for monthly podcast and writing updates: https://bit.ly/33nyTKd

Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ronitplank/

More about WHEN SHE COMES BACK, a memoir: https://ronitplank.com/book/

More about HOME IS A MADE-UP PLACE, a short story collection: https://ronitplank.com/home-is-a-made-up-place/

Connect with Ronit:

https://www.instagram.com/ronitplank/

https://twitter.com/RonitPlank

https://www.facebook.com/RonitPlank

Background photo: Canva

Headshot photo credit: Sarah Anne Photography

Theme music: Isaac Joel, Dead Moll’s Fingers