Andrew Tonkovich, longtime editor of the West Coast literary arts journal the Santa Monica Review and founding editor of the online Orange County quarterly Citric Acid, joins Amy Dechary and me to preview the inaugural Laguna Beach LitFest. Andrew will moderate a lunchtime panel, Telling the California Story, and will lead a workshop entitled, Small Press Journals: Their Role in the Writer's Journey. Lisa Alvarez, Andrew's long-time publishing partner and wife (who could not make todays' show) will give the conference Key Note - Being a Literary Citizen. 

Throughout this episode, Amy and Andrew dispense invaluable writing advise, highlight numerous online resources and journals, breakdown the key points of the Laguna Beach LitFest, and give a well-deserved shoutout to Chapman professor and author, Richard Bauch, who will be presented with a literary award at the a reception on January 9, 2026.  

A co-founder and lead of the Laguna Beach-based nonprofit, the Third Street Writers, Amy Dechary spent most of her childhood in Connecticut until her dad's new job took her to four states in 8 years where books became constant friends. ​A graduate of the University of Virginia, she was staff writer for the Cavalier Daily, and went on to study publishing at the Radcliffe Publishing Course in Cambridge, MA. After a career including assistant to a literary agent in Washington, D.C., ​and a middle school English teacher, Amy returned to writing with her work appearing in OC Kids Magazine, the Laguna Beach Independent, Juste Milieu, and the Beach Reads anthology series.

In edition to his editiorial duties, Andrew hosts a weekly books show, Bibliocracy Radio, on Pacifica’s KPFK 90.7 FM in Southern California.  He co-edited the landmark anthology Orange County: A Literary Field Guide with Lisa Alvarez and is the author of two collections, The Dairy of Anne Frank and More Wish Fulfillment in the Noughties and Keeping Tahoe Blue and Other Provocations. His short stories, book reviews, essays, and journalism have appeared in Ecotone, ZYZZYVA, Faultline, Solstice, Journal of the Plague Years, the Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register, the Los Angeles Review of Books, and The Best American Nonrequired Reading. For many years he was a regular contributor to the OC Weekly.

Poet Ellen Girardeau Kempler and I get into a very robust discussion about the differences between lyrics and poetry, and related topics, during this episode. Our conversation's point of departure is the controversy around Bob Dylan's 2016 Nobel Peace Prize for Literature. Ellen expounds her views on this very interesting topic in her essay, Tangled Up In Words.

Ellen also provides some fantastic advice for anyone who wants to enhance their ability to appreciate poetry or just advance in their writing journey by listening to the spoken word. Ellen includes among her recommendations Libro FM, Poetry Unbound, and The Slow Down.

Former journalist & communications strategist, now book reviewer and lecturer, Randy Kraft is the author of three novels and two story collections in print, ebooks and audio. Randy holds an MAW [Masters in Writing] MBA & BA, Lit.Raised in NYC, writing in So. California. You can check out her on-line book reviews at OCbookblog.substack.com

A great friend to the show and a leading light in the Laguna Beach writing community, Randy joins us in this episode to talk about her latest work, Where You Are, a collection of ten short stories that asks the question: Is where you are the last stop or the next step? The stories in this new collection reflect the setbacks and second chances we encounter as we age. Loss and longing. Displacement and disenchantment. Surprising desire. New aspirations or latent ambitions. The transitions from where we have been to where we might yet be.


Randy also gives a couple of well-deserved shout-outs in this episode to the fabulous photographer artist Jacques Garnier, who generously donated the art work for the cover of Where You Are and Diane's Books of Greenwich (CT), perhaps the greatest Independent Book Store in the US.

Darrell Denny is the author of "Of Light & Lies", a heart thumping tale set on an isolated island with nowhere to hide. Helen and Juanita must decide—who can they trust? And what happens when the past won’t stay buried?

Darrell writes pulse-pounding thrillers packed with intrigue, deception, and high-stakes suspense. A former newspaper journalist, Darrell spent years uncovering real-world truths, reporting on breaking news, conducting in-depth investigations, and telling stories that shaped public discourse—now, he uses his storytelling prowess to weave tales of page-turning fiction.

The son of a military family, Darrell spent his early years moving between the U.S. and abroad, including time in Germany and Okinawa, Japan, eventually settling in Texas, where he attended high school in Copperas Cove. He has called Southern California home for the past 30 years, currently residing in Santa Ana with his wife, Mika, a graphic designer and fine artist. A proud father of four grown children and a doting grandpa to his granddaughter, he enjoys writing, reading, staying active at the gym, playing board games, and exploring new places and cultures through travel.

Scott T. Barnes has published oral histories, a fourth grade reader, and works of young adult fiction, including the novel "Memories of Lucinda Eco", which BookLife called “a spellbinding blend of magic and mystery.” Scott’s science fiction story, “Insect Sculptor”, won the L. Ron Hubbard presents Writers of the Future Award.

Scott most recent project was as editor of "Living Memories - a Memoir by Nellie Gail Moulton" which unfolds the flamboyant life of Orange County’s ranching philanthropist, plein air painter, and founder of the Laguna Playhouse and Laguna College of Art and Design. Copies of the book can be purchased directly from the Moulton Museum in Laguna Hills.

Scott's fantasy and science fiction has been praised as lyrical and original by publications such as Publisher’s Weekly. His passions range from kenjutsu to flamenco guitar to the Old West. Scott currently lives in Southern California with his wife and two daughters who inspire him more than they know.

Local author and artist Nancy Klann-Moren joins us to discuss her writing journey, advice for writers, and her three publications - "The Clock of Life" (a novel), "Like the Flies on the Patio" (a collection of short-stories), and "Love and Protest" (a novel).

Nancy is the wife of a retired architect who now creates beautiful "architectural" ceramic art pieces, and the mother of two sons, both rock stars in their own fields. Oh, and two Tuxedo cats who don't give a damn about anything. I am a native California girl raised in North Hollywood and now live a stone's throw from the beach, if you can throw five miles, in Laguna Woods, California.

Newly-appointed Education Program Director (and long-time Festival Orchestra violinist) Dr. Lindsey Strand-Polyak  shares all the innovative details of "Coloring with Corelli", a collaboration between the
Baroque Music Festival Corona del Mar and St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church. The event,
scheduled October 12, 2025 at 3:00PM, is a free, informal, and sensory-friendly baroque chamber music concert for young people and families, featuring music by Italian Baroque composer Arcangelo Corelli, along with musical storytelling, themed coloring activities, an instrument petting zoo, and snacks.


Lindsey holds a PhD in Musicology and a Master of Music in Violin Performance from UCLA, and is a regularly-performing Baroque concert artist on violin and viola, and an inspirational music-education leader. She is a passionate educator and arts advocate, who has worked with organizations including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Young Musicians Foundation, Education through Music—Los Angeles, Elemental Music Santa Monica, and the UCLA Mentor Outreach Program. In two decades in education and outreach, Dr. Strand-Polyak has taught in nearly every corner of Southern California, witnessing the immense impact that arts education makes across the economic spectrum.

Please be sure to listen to the section of this episode that runs between minutes 48:00 and 49:05 for some of the best advice writers, and artisits in general, could ever hope to receive!

Nuka Hart, CEO of Free Wheelchair Mission, joins us in this episode to discuss the importance of mobility and the central role storytelling plays in her organization's mission to serve the estimated 80 million people across the world who need a wheelchair. Nuka has the overall operational responsibility for Free Wheelchair Mission programs and management of its team, leading the strategic planning process and implementation of programmatic strategic initiatives for the growth of the organization. Nuka graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in studio art and has two young adult children.

Free Wheelchair Mission is a humanitarian organization that designs and manufactures cost-efficient, durable wheelchairs for individuals living with disabilities in developing countries. Since 2001, Free Wheelchair Mission has distributed 1.5 million wheelchairs in 95 countries around the world, providing renewed dignity, independence, and hope through the gift of mobility, all at no cost to the recipient.

The Orange County Miracle of Mobility event is scheduled to take place on Thursday, September 4, 2025 beginning at 5:30PM PT at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. Candace Sameron Bure (DJ of the TV show Full House) will host and attendees will have a chance to see Free Wheelchair Mission's newest wheelchair model, GEN 4 JOY, in person!

As a child, today's guest Becky Ryan enrolled in art classes, which sparked an affinity for painting and established for her the value of practice. After painting casually for many years, Becky adopted a more intentional, dedicated approach, going on to earn an associate degree in fine art, enter contests, and sell work in local galleries. Becky experiences nature as grounding and motivating, finding it a source of tranquility, drama, and splendor and seeks to immerse the viewer into a scene through confident value contrast and robust color saturation to create bold liveliness.

In today's show we hope to provide listeners with some thought provoking ideas that they can apply to their own writing as we discuss Becky's approach to watercolor painting, both en plein air and in studio, and how she turns inspiration from the local hiking trails, canyons, south county coastline, and nearby destinations such as the Coachella Valley into the award winning art work that has merited her inclusion among the Festival of Arts the last two years.

Please also check out the art work that Becky donated to the Festival of the Arts to benefit The Artists Fund.