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Forward Thrust: How Douglas Brunt Uses Narrative to Draw Connections Historians Have Missed
Forgotten history, political complexity, storytelling, and the strange ways oil, empire, and ideology have shaped the modern world.
In episode 177, I sit down with bestselling author Douglas Brunt to discuss The Lost Empire of Emanuel Nobel, a sweeping narrative history about oil, revolution, and the forgotten Nobel heir who helped power the war machine.
Doug shares how Emanuel Nobel’s story emerged from his previous book on Rudolf Diesel, why the Russian Nobel family was effectively erased from history, and how Emanuel’s oil empire collided with the rise of Stalin, Lenin, the Bolsheviks, and the violent upheaval of the Russian Revolution. Our conversation explores how narrative nonfiction can make history feel alive, why history is often more complicated than textbooks suggest, and how massive global shifts are experienced by real people on the ground.
We also dig into the craft of writing: research rabbit holes, index cards, archival discoveries, footnotes, building narrative momentum, and the challenge of turning dense historical material into a story with real forward thrust.
Episode Sponsors:
Intro Song composed and produced by Cleod9.
SOCIALS:
https://www.instagram.com/veteranmade.ck/
https://www.instagram.com/douglas_brunt/
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By Carey Kight
5
1313 ratings
Forgotten history, political complexity, storytelling, and the strange ways oil, empire, and ideology have shaped the modern world.
In episode 177, I sit down with bestselling author Douglas Brunt to discuss The Lost Empire of Emanuel Nobel, a sweeping narrative history about oil, revolution, and the forgotten Nobel heir who helped power the war machine.
Doug shares how Emanuel Nobel’s story emerged from his previous book on Rudolf Diesel, why the Russian Nobel family was effectively erased from history, and how Emanuel’s oil empire collided with the rise of Stalin, Lenin, the Bolsheviks, and the violent upheaval of the Russian Revolution. Our conversation explores how narrative nonfiction can make history feel alive, why history is often more complicated than textbooks suggest, and how massive global shifts are experienced by real people on the ground.
We also dig into the craft of writing: research rabbit holes, index cards, archival discoveries, footnotes, building narrative momentum, and the challenge of turning dense historical material into a story with real forward thrust.
Episode Sponsors:
Intro Song composed and produced by Cleod9.
SOCIALS:
https://www.instagram.com/veteranmade.ck/
https://www.instagram.com/douglas_brunt/