Salt Lake Dirt

Exploring Appalachia and Craft with E. Davis Enloe

Today on Salt Lake Dirt, Kyler chats with E. Davis Enloe about his novel, Into the Night Woods. Set in 1961 western North Carolina, the story follows 12-year-olds Boyd and Roger as they venture into the forest toward a hidden cave. Drawing from his own childhood in Rutherford County, Enloe captures a rural past while grounding the plot in real danger: Boyd must navigate his friend's home life to protect Roger from an abusive father.

The conversation also highlights Enloe’s background in poetry and short fiction. Studying under mentors like Lee K. Abbott taught him to focus on tight prose, strong verbs, and steady revision. Rather than using rigid outlines, Enloe relies on discovery writing and honest feedback to build tension. Readers can grab a copy of Into the Night Woods through major retailers or visit edavisenloe.com.

Episode Links:

• EDavisEnloe.com
• Purchase Into the Night Woods

Today on Salt Lake Dirt, Kyler sits down with Michigan-based tattoo artist and TikTok creator Sydney Mulvaney. Her TikTok (@sydneytattoos) and personal painting projects have built a dedicated following.

In the interview, she opens up about landing her first apprenticeship at 17, navigating a chaotic and male-dominated shop culture in the early days, and the grit it took to build her career.

Sydney also talks about the day-to-day realities of the job, like acting as an accidental therapist for clients in vulnerable moments. She contrasts the strict, highly planned nature of tattooing with the total creative freedom of her personal painting, where she can just experiment and pivot when a piece isn't turning out as expected. From behind-the-scenes stories about developing her online persona to her strong stance against using AI in her designs, Sydney keeps it entirely real about her path as a modern creator.

Thanks for listening!

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Episode Links:

• Art by Sydney Mulvaney
• TikTok: @sydneytattoos

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I sat down with author Alexa Morris to discuss her book, The Courtyard, which chronicles how her father-in-law, Ben, survived Nazi-occupied Paris as a young boy. For over two years, Ben and his family hid inside a courtyard warehouse, entirely protected and kept alive by their working-class neighbors and local shopkeepers. Alexa spent a decade collaborating with Ben to capture this history, creating a narrative focused on community duty and what it truly means to look out for the people around you.

In our interview, Alexa shared behind-the-scenes moments from their writing journey, including a 2016 trip back to Paris where current residents welcomed Ben back into his childhood hideaway. She also discussed the experience of talking with teenage readers at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and her current mission to locate descendants of the neighbors who risked everything to save Ben's family.

Incredible book! Thanks for listening.

Kyler

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Episode Links:

• Purchase The Courtyard
• For more information, visit AlexaMorris.com

I sat down with author Pauline Steinhorn to talk about her book, Dreaming of the River, which draws from the 1945 journals her mother and grandmother kept immediately following their liberation from a displaced persons camp. Pauline spent years sorting through boxes of family papers to piece together this history, which shows how her Polish family used music, quick wit, and incredible survival instincts to endure slave labor and munitions factories.

We discussed her grandmother’s immense bravery—including smuggling medicine into a camp to save sick inmates—and how Pauline has taken on her late mother's legacy as a Holocaust educator to teach students about being upstanders. She also shared how she turned to painting as a healing outlet while processing these heavy family accounts.

Amazing conversation and book! Check it out.

Kyler

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Episode Links:

• Purchase Dreaming of the River
• DC locals can find the book at Politics and Prose
• PaulineSteinhorn.net

Today I welcome author and physician Jonathan Hammel to discuss his powerful historical novel, The Jewish Hospital. Inspired by his grandmother—a wartime nurse who survived deportation and later founded the Holocaust and Human Rights Center of Maine—Hammel spent a decade researching the incredible history of Berlin’s Jewish Hospital. Operating under direct Gestapo supervision, the institution remained open throughout World War II, creating a deeply complex environment where Jewish medical staff treated patients under constant threat. Hammel beautifully blends rigorous research with narrative prose, relying on his own medical background to write about this claustrophobic reality with absolute authority.

Our conversation also went into the profound ethical concept of "dual loyalty" in medicine and the immense emotional toll carried by healthcare workers. Because of these deep themes, the novel is quickly becoming a vital educational tool, earning spots on bioethics and medical school curricula at universities like Case Western and UPenn. Beyond his writing, Jonathan Hammel is a talented jazz pianist who released the solo album Shadowboxing for Comfort, and he previously hosted The Blood Flow Podcast.

Great book, great chat!

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Episode Links:

• Purchase The Jewish Hospital
• Jonathan's Website
• Listen to Shadowboxing for comfort on Spotify

Author and poet Scott Laudati joins me to discuss his latest poetry collection, Rainbow Road. The book offers a raw, observant, and humorous look at the chaotic realities of touring the independent poetry circuit across the United States. Scott shared some of the wild experiences that inspired the work, from having a gun pulled on him by a fellow writer in Little Rock to sleeping on a sidewalk in Sioux Falls. Ultimately, the collection captures a sharp shift from the romanticized ideals of the Beat generation to a more grounded perspective on the toll of a transient, artistic lifestyle.

The conversation also tracked Scott's unconventional path, which began with high school road tours as a merchandise manager during the early 2000s pop-punk boom. After studying journalism, he dedicated himself to independent literature, developing a disciplined late-night writing process that relies on a sharp ear for authentic dialogue and meticulous editing. He also noted a unique aesthetic choice in Rainbow Road: the complete omission of page numbers to keep readers entirely focused on the text. Scott is currently preparing for a series of independent readings across the Midwest this summer. Rainbow Road is available on Amazon, and readers can connect with him on social media at @ScottLaudati.

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Episode Links:

• Purchase Rainbow Road
• Follow Scott on Substack
• IG: @scottlaudati
• Linktree

I recently had the chance to read an incredible book that completely blew me away. It is easily one of the best things I have read in the last couple of years, and I was thrilled to sit down with the author, Krystle Ratticus, to talk all about her debut book, Ornery Cuss.

Designed with a pocket-sized, dime-store pulp novel aesthetic, Ornery Cuss sits in a fascinating space right between fiction and memoir. Krystle pulls from her own lived experiences, altering just enough of the details to protect the guilty and keep the narrative compelling. The result is a highly observational, deeply empathetic look at navigating difficult circumstances, chaotic roommates, and relationships with some truly eccentric characters.

Before putting together this book, Krystle spent 25 years deeply embedded in the self-publishing world making personal zines and fanzines. We had a great time diving into her roots in the Chicago zine scene, the pure community aspect of independent publishing, and our shared, obsessive love for historical cemeteries.

Ornery Cuss is a beautiful piece of independent art from a singular voice. You can grab your own copy of the book and explore more of her work directly at WeirdoDuJour.com.

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Episode Links:

• Purchase Ornery Cuss
• Weirdo Du Jour - Krystle's Website

I recently sat down with Emmy-winning comedy writer Brent Forrester, whose credits include The Simpsons, The Office, King of the Hill, Judd Apatow’s Love AND Mr. Show with Bob and David. We discussed his path from a television-free childhood reading Mad magazine to breaking into the industry under the mentorship of The Golden Girls creator Susan Harris. Brent shared how he taught himself the mechanics of television writing by breaking down the exact structures of sketches and scripts that made him laugh. We also talked about the realities of navigating a career in the entertainment industry and how building a small team or writing group can help writers manage the uncertainty of freelance work.

Brent is currently bypassing the traditional network development system to focus on self-produced, independent material. He recently launched a YouTube channel under his teaching nickname, Professor BFo, where he premiered his self-funded, micro-budget workplace comedy series, Historic Freedomburg. Alongside releasing his own creative projects, Brent runs writing seminars designed to teach upcoming artists how to write, shoot, and distribute their own work without relying on corporate backing. You can check out his new series on YouTube and find information on his upcoming comedy classes at BrentForrester.com.

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Episode Links:

• BrentForrester.com
• YouTube: ProfessorBFo
• TikTok: brentforrestercomedy
• IG: @forrestercomedycourse

I recently sat down with co-directors Ivan Malekin and Sarah Jane to discuss their new feature film, After the Act. The movie follows three friends over a single day and night in Berlin as they face the fallout of a sudden betrayal.

The film's remarkably natural dialogue relies entirely on improvisation. Working from a concept outline rather than a traditional script, the filmmakers collaborated closely with their actors to build the scenes organically. Their background in documentary filmmaking heavily shaped this approach, resulting in fluid, long takes and an emphasis on authentic emotional tension.

After the Act is available to rent or purchase on major streaming platforms. You can explore more of their work and find their complete film catalog at NexusProductionGroup.com.

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Episode Links:

• Watch After the Act
• IG: Nexus Production Group
• Linktree
• YouTube Channel

My next guest on Salt Lake Dirt is Sam Farhi, author of the novel The Sapsuckers. The book centers on two brothers, Pete and Rem, and the eerie, unsettling fallout that follows Rem's mysterious death. Rather than a straightforward mystery, Farhi pieces the narrative together through a non-linear timeline, utilizing diary entries, transcripts, and shifting perspectives that examine how we consume stories. It is an intricate, atmospheric read that captures the complicated truth of human contradictions.

Our conversation digs into the years of drafting that shaped the novel, including how Farhi wrote the dialogue aloud to find the distinct voices of his characters. We also discuss his brilliant cover art collaboration with his twin brother, his history with film, and the tactile joy of discovering literature without an algorithm.

Highly recommended! Thanks for listening.

Kyler

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Episode Links:

• Purchase The Sapsuckers
• Sam's Website