Literary Nomads

Literary Nomads

By Steve ChisnellScienceSocial SciencesEducationArtsBooksCourses
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Literary Nomads episodes

  • Stephen King Meets Shel Silverstein: Formalism and Trope in Story

    25 July 2025

    Episode 6.06 - Stephen King Meets Shel Silverstein: Formalism and Trope in Story

    What do a children’s story and horror film have in common? Maybe our Suffering Child question, with very different approaches to it. In the meantime, we break down some of the keys to understanding form, genre, trope, medium–and throw some shade of formula, cliches, and stereotypes.

    Terms from today’s episode:

    Formalism - A literary theory which considers structure before content in considering meaning. Some of its principles:

    • Texts stand alone; consider only the text, not outside factors
    • Close Reading is an active strategy for thinking about how texts are built
    • Defamiliarization (ostranenie) is when something in the text is subverted, changed, varied, to upset our comfort levels
    • Organic Unity is the idea that every single part of a text works towards building the meaning of the whole work

      • Terns of structure discussed today:

      • Form
      • Genre
      • Trope
      • Medium
      • Formula, cliche, and stereotype

        • New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

        Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

        • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

          • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

          CHAPTERS

          00:00     Building Story

          07:50     Opening Theme
          08:23     From What to How
          17:32     Blueprints: Choosing Form
          21:03     Genre: Breaking the Unwritten Contract
          28:16     Pattern Recognition: Tropes
          33:24     Medium: The Material of Story
          38:46     Formula, Cliché, & Stereotypes: The Shadow Side of Formalism
          43:48     The Hideous Bargains
          49:38     Glimpse into the Fantastic
          52:55     Closing Theme and Credits

          ===

          Transcript: https://waywordsstudio.com/general/transcript/6-06-stephen-king-meets-shel-silverstein/

          Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

          ===

          Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

          Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

          Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

          Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

          Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

          Facebook: Waywords.Studio

          YouTube: Waywords Studio

          LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

          CREDITS:

          Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

          Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

          USING THIS WORK:

          This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

          MLA CITATION:

          Chisnell, Steve. “Stephen King Meets Shel Silverstein: Formalism and Trope in Story,” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 25 July 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

          55 min
        • Negotiating for Space: Compromise and Flag-Planting

          18 July 2025

          Episode 6.05 - Negotiating for Space: Compromise and Flag-Planting

          This is getting challenging. What are we to do with the Suffering Child question? And on which form of suffering do I plant my flag of resistance? Dostoevsky and Langston Hughes both offer clues.

          • The complete reading of Dostoevsky’s “Rebellion” in The Brothers Karamazov: https://drive.google.com/file/d/17z89hjeEz1Rl_hcx4jUdkQi1M0jzbwv2/view?usp=drive_link 
          • Langston Hughes: “Let America Be America Again” - https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/147907/let-america-be-america-again

            • New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

            Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

            • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

              • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

              CHAPTERS

              00:00     Our Suffering Child

              02:19     Opening Theme
              02:52     And Yet We Know, Too
              09:47     A Plethora of Principles
              15:35     A Different Hideous Bargain
              23:38     Rebellion, Revolution, Reconciliation
              28:03     Reading: Langston Hughes “Let America Be America Again”
              33:09     Closing Words
              34:45     Closing Theme and Credits

              ===

              Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-6-05-negotiating-for-space-compromise-and-flag-planting

              Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

              ===

              Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

              Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

              Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

              Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

              Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

              Facebook: Waywords.Studio

              YouTube: Waywords Studio

              LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

              CREDITS:

              Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

              Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

              USING THIS WORK:

              This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

              MLA CITATION:

              Chisnell, Steve. “Negotiating for Space: Compromise and Flag-Planting,” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 18 July 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

              37 min
            • Reading: “Rebellion” from Dostoevsky’s ‘The Brothers Karamazov’

              11 July 2025

              Episode 6.04 - Reading: “Rebellion” from Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov

              Still another famous writer has posed the Le Guin question, and he did it in one of Russia’s most famous novels, The Brothers Karamazov. This chapter precedes the more famous and discussed ‘The Grand Inquisitor.’  Here it is.

              • The Complete Reading as pdf: https://drive.google.com/file/d/17z89hjeEz1Rl_hcx4jUdkQi1M0jzbwv2/view?usp=drive_link 
              • Also mentioned: William James: “The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life” - https://archive.org/details/jstor-2375309/page/n1/mode/2up

                • New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

                Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                  • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

                  CHAPTERS

                  00:00     The Question in Non-Fiction & Fiction

                  05:53     Opening Theme
                  06:31     Reading of “Rebellion” from The Brothers Karamazov
                  36:05     Next Week
                  37:04     Closing Theme and Credits

                  ===

                  Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-6-04-reading-rebellion-from-dostoevskys-the-brothers-karamazov/

                  Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

                  ===

                  Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                  Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                  Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                  Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                  Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                  Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                  YouTube: Waywords Studio

                  LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                  CREDITS:

                  Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                  Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                  USING THIS WORK:

                  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                  MLA CITATION:

                  Chisnell, Steve. “Reading: ‘Rebellion’ from Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov,” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 11 July 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

                  39 min
                • Otium and The Moral Philosopher – William James

                  4 July 2025

                  Episode 6.03 - Otium and The Moral Philosopher - William James

                  Le Guin leans on an essay by William James, but what does that have to do with all our garden talk? It’s about our blind spots and our privilege. Here’s James’s argument and how it sets up a pragmatic popular ethic that may be worrisome.

                  William James: “The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life” - https://archive.org/details/jstor-2375309/page/n1/mode/2up

                  New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

                  Listener Survey Available!  Please let me know what you thought of Season 5, and get some free stuff, too!

                  • https://forms.gle/rZEaGFhniuv78BwF7

                    • Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                    • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                      • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

                      CHAPTERS

                      00:00     The Cranky Professor

                      05:25     Opening Theme
                      05:59     Oppositions to Work
                      12:51     Otium as Privilege
                      23:22     Hideous Bargains: William James
                      29:40     Back to Our Garden
                      32:37     Closing Theme and Credits

                      ===

                      Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-6-00-trailer

                      Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

                      ===

                      Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                      Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                      Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                      Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                      Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                      Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                      YouTube: Waywords Studio

                      LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                      CREDITS:

                      Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                      Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                      USING THIS WORK:

                      This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                      MLA CITATION:

                      Chisnell, Steve. “Otium and The Moral Philosopher - William James,” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 4 July 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

                      34 min
                    • Marvell’s Garden and Ours – Otium

                      27 June 2025

                      Episode 5.18 Marvell’s Garden and Ours: Otium

                      Speaking of links back to Andrew Marvell’s poetry–weren’t we?–we add a new concept into our repertoire which exposes some of our misapprehensions about nature, leisure, and work. And we read Marvell’s poem “The Garden” while we think green thoughts about it.

                      Confused about our episode numbering? Don’t be! Since this episode is more about Andrew Marvell’s work, it appears as a Journey 5: Andrew Marvell episode, though it aired in the context of Journey 6 where the concept of otium became important to us!

                      New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

                      Listener Survey Available!  Please let me know what you thought of Season 5, and get some free stuff, too!

                      • https://forms.gle/rZEaGFhniuv78BwF7

                        • Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                        • Ursula K. Le Guin: “Vaster Than Empires and More Slow”:  https://eyeofmidas.com/scifi/LeGuin_VasterThanEmpires.pdf
                        • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                          • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

                          CHAPTERS

                          00:00     Reverie in Roma

                          04:32     Opening Theme
                          05:05     Building Nature
                          11:15     Reading” The Garden” by Andrew Marvell
                          15:14     Green Thoughts
                          23:05     Otium
                          37:35     Closing Theme and Credits

                          ===

                          Transcript: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-5-18-marvells-garden-and-ours-otium/

                          Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

                          ===

                          Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                          Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                          Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                          Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                          Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                          Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                          YouTube: Waywords Studio

                          LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                          CREDITS:

                          Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                          Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                          USING THIS WORK:

                          This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                          MLA CITATION:

                          Chisnell, Steve. “Marvell’s Garden and Ours: Otium,’” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 27 June 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

                          39 min
                        • Vaster Than Empires – Le Guin

                          20 June 2025

                          Episode 6.02 - “Vaster Than Empires” - Le Guin

                          What does it mean to embrace “Other”? And how might we understand carpe diem if we truly had “world enough and time?” Le Guin shows us in her famous science fiction short story.

                          New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

                          Listener Survey Available!  Please let me know what you thought of Season 5, and get some free stuff, too!

                          • https://forms.gle/rZEaGFhniuv78BwF7

                            • Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                            • Ursula K. Le Guin: “Vaster Than Empires and More Slow”:  https://eyeofmidas.com/scifi/LeGuin_VasterThanEmpires.pdf
                            • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                              • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

                              CHAPTERS

                              00:00     Pastoral Splendour

                              04:29     Opening Theme
                              05:03     Living Fast and Slow
                              12:05     The Story: “Vaster Than Empire and More Slow”
                              18:13     Le Guin and Marvell
                              28:50     Veggie Minds and The Other
                              40:58     Green Silences
                              47:42    Closing Theme and Credits

                              ===

                              Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-6-02-vaster-than-empires-le-guin/

                              Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

                              ===

                              Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                              Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                              Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                              Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                              Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                              Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                              YouTube: Waywords Studio

                              LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                              CREDITS:

                              Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                              Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                              USING THIS WORK:

                              This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                              MLA CITATION:

                              Chisnell, Steve. “Vaster Than Empires - Le Guin” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 20 June 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

                              49 min
                            • Signpost – Pretty Gardens in Paint

                              13 June 2025

                              Episode 6.01 - Signpost: Pretty Gardens in Paint

                              Where we’ve been and where we’re going, and we take a pause in a museum gallery, too!

                              New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

                              Listener Survey Available!  Please let me know what you thought of Season 5, and get some free stuff, too!

                              • https://forms.gle/rZEaGFhniuv78BwF7

                                • Thomas Gainsborough painting: Mr. and Mrs. Andrews (1750): https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/thomas-gainsborough-mr-and-mrs-andrews

                                Literary Terms Reviewed:

                                • narrative distance
                                • dramatic irony
                                • inter-textuality
                                • ekphrasis
                                • allusion
                                • polysemy
                                • sfumato

                                  • Reading Strategies Reviewed:

                                  • Embracing uncertainty and ambiguity
                                  • Asking why questions
                                  • Our interpretation process: notice, significance, pattern, coherence
                                  • Engaging our experience; engaging others

                                    • Authors & Titles Reviewed:

                                    • Andrew Marvell, “To His Coy Mistress”
                                    • Horace, Ode 1.11
                                    • Roman Krznaric, Carpe Diem Regained
                                    • Rilke, “Archaic Torso of Apollo”

                                      • Concepts and Themes Reviewed:

                                      • Carpe diem as “pluck” or “harvest”
                                      • Accountability
                                      • Uncertainty
                                      • Ethics of Choice
                                      • Ethical Attentiveness

                                        • Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                                        • Ursula K. Le Guin: “Vaster Than Empires and More Slow”:  https://eyeofmidas.com/scifi/LeGuin_VasterThanEmpires.pdf
                                        • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                                          • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

                                          CHAPTERS

                                          00:00     Pastoral Splendour

                                          06:38     Opening Theme
                                          07:16     Signposting
                                          09:19     Literary Terms
                                          17:22     Interlude: The Andrewses
                                          21:28     Strategies for Meaning
                                          28:52     Interlude 2: The Andrewses
                                          33:21     Authors and Titles
                                          37:23     Interlude 3: The Andrewses
                                          40:47     A Few Themes
                                          47:43     Final Visit: The Andrewses
                                          51:20     Closing Theme and Credits

                                          ===

                                          Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-6-01-pretty-gardens-in-paint/

                                          Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

                                          ===

                                          Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                                          Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                                          Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                                          Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                                          Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                                          Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                                          YouTube: Waywords Studio

                                          LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                                          CREDITS:

                                          Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                                          Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                                          USING THIS WORK:

                                          This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                                          MLA CITATION:

                                          Chisnell, Steve. “6.01 Signpost: Pretty Gardens in Paint,’” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 13 June 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

                                          53 min
                                        • Trailer: Journey 6

                                          30 May 2025

                                          Episode 6.00 - Trailer

                                          Looking ahead at Season 6: Ursula K. Le Guin’s story, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas,” and all the wrestling we do with dilemmas of ethics.

                                          New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

                                          Listener Survey Available!  Please let me know what you thought of Season 5, and get some free stuff, too!

                                          • https://forms.gle/rZEaGFhniuv78BwF7

                                            • Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                                            • Ursula K. Le Guin: “Vaster Than Empires and More Slow”:  https://eyeofmidas.com/scifi/LeGuin_VasterThanEmpires.pdf
                                            • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                                              • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

                                              CHAPTERS

                                              00:00    Trailer

                                              ===

                                              Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-6-00-trailer

                                              Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

                                              ===

                                              Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                                              Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                                              Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                                              Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                                              Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                                              Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                                              YouTube: Waywords Studio

                                              LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                                              CREDITS:

                                              Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                                              Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                                              USING THIS WORK:

                                              This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                                              MLA CITATION:

                                              Chisnell, Steve. “Journey 6 Trailer,’” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 30 May 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.

                                              5 min
                                            • What I Get Wrong

                                              23 May 2025

                                              Episode 5.17 - What I Get Wrong

                                              We close out the journey with a needed reflection, a look at what I’ve been doing, how it fits our collective needs, and what we might see for changes ahead. I reflect on the integration of skills in language, the role of thinking skills, and why reading and interpretation cannot be about objective deliverables.

                                              Listener Survey Available!  Please let me know what you thought of the season, and get some free stuff, too!

                                              • https://forms.gle/rZEaGFhniuv78BwF7

                                                • Reading Ahead, Journey 6:

                                                • Ursula K. Le Guin: “Vaster Than Empires and More Slow”:  https://eyeofmidas.com/scifi/LeGuin_VasterThanEmpires.pdf
                                                • Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

                                                  • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/andrew-marvell-coy-mistress/

                                                  CHAPTERS

                                                  00:00    Announcement

                                                  00:56    Reflecting on the Wrong
                                                  08:13    Opening Theme
                                                  08:45    Nuts & Bolts
                                                  14:52    More Bolts Than Nuts
                                                  17:13    Interpretation and Intimidation
                                                  26:42    Getting It Right?
                                                  32:53    The Wrong Of It
                                                  39:47    A Bit of Daring
                                                  44:38    Outro and Credits

                                                  ===

                                                  Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-5-17-what-i-get-wrong

                                                  Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/MmhqcGgeLcjCaVK97

                                                  What are your thoughts on our discussion?  Email me: [email protected]

                                                  ===

                                                  Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                                                  Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                                                  Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                                                  Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                                                  Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                                                  Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                                                  YouTube: Waywords Studio

                                                  LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                                                  CREDITS:

                                                  Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                                                  Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                                                  USING THIS WORK:

                                                  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                                                  MLA CITATION:

                                                  Chisnell, Steve. “What I Get Wrong,’” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 17 May 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/andrew-marvell-coy-mistress/.

                                                  46 min
                                                • Writing Back 2: Getting Over Our Essay Anxiety

                                                  16 May 2025

                                                  Episode 5.16 - Writing Back 2: Getting Over Our Essay Anxiety

                                                  It’s time for the end of our carpe diem journey, and we celebrate with a congratulatory essay! Hey, why so glum?

                                                  We look at what has caused all this anxiety over the ostracized essay, rant against how traditional schooling has abused it, and offer some introductory ideas on how the best essays are essential to the literary tradition. And we all get to write one now, too!

                                                  Key Terms:

                                                  • Conduit metaphor - A linguistic concept, that if we can structure, control, and limit the connotative diction in our writing, that our communication might travel from speaker to audience with minimal misunderstanding.
                                                  • Essai - Verb, after the pioneering creator Michel de Montaigne; to try, to attempt, to explore, especially the exploring of one’s own thinking

                                                    • Steve’s Poetic Response to Marvell: “To His Bold Master”: https://waywordsstudio.com/verse/to-his-bold-master/

                                                    Longform Essay YouTubers Recommended:

                                                    • Deep Cuts - for lovers of music: ww w.youtube.com/c/deepcuts
                                                    • In Praise of Shadows for horror history: w ww.youtube.com/@InPraiseofShadows
                                                    • Defunctland for history of extinct theme park: w ww.youtube.com/@Defunctland
                                                    • Jacob Geller, for video games, history, politics, empathy: w ww.youtube.com/@JacobGeller
                                                    • Solar Sands, “of waking up”: ww  w.youtube.com/@SolarSands
                                                    • Jenny Nicholson, for popular culture: ww w.youtube.com/@JennyNicholson
                                                    • PhilosophyTube with Abigail Thorn, giving away a philosophy degree: ww  w.youtube.com/@PhilosophyTube

                                                      • Traditional Essays Recommended:

                                                      • Zadie Smith, Intimations
                                                      • Margaret Atwood, Negotiating with the Dead: A Writer on Writing
                                                      • James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time
                                                      • Martin Amis, The Rub of Time: Bellow, Nabokov, Hitchens, Travolta, Trump
                                                      • Umberto Eco, Travels in Hyperreality
                                                      • Jorge Luis Borges, Labyrinths

                                                        • Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/andrew-marvell-coy-mistress/

                                                        CHAPTERS

                                                        00:00    Irony So Common It’s Cringe

                                                        05:59    Opening Theme
                                                        06:31    Why Write Back?
                                                        10:58    But Why Oh Why an Essay? The Conduit of Fear
                                                        23:33    Writing for Uncertainty
                                                        27:23    But What Do I Write About?
                                                        31:47    Yeah, But Who Is Reading This Thing?
                                                        35:19    Outro and Credits

                                                        ===

                                                        Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/transcript-5-16-writing-back-w-getting-over-our-essay-anxiety

                                                        Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/MmhqcGgeLcjCaVK97

                                                        What are your thoughts on our discussion?  Email me: [email protected]

                                                        ===

                                                        Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

                                                        Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

                                                        Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

                                                        Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

                                                        Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

                                                        Facebook: Waywords.Studio

                                                        YouTube: Waywords Studio

                                                        LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

                                                        CREDITS:

                                                        Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

                                                        Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

                                                        USING THIS WORK:

                                                        This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

                                                        MLA CITATION:

                                                        Chisnell, Steve. “Writing Back 2: Getting Over Our Essay Anxiety,’” Waywords Studio, 16 May 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/andrew-marvell-coy-mistress/.

                                                        37 min

                                                      About Literary Nomads

                                                      From the publisher's feed

                                                      Join me, Steve Chisnell, as we find and lose meaning across modern and classic tales, through ancient and distant verse, atop everything in our many cultures which might be read. For teachers,…