The ALL NEW Big Wakeup Call with Ryan Gatenby

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From March 15, 2022: Austin Kleon made a return appearance to talk about STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative -10TH ANNIVERSARY GIFT EDITION.

About the author: 

AUSTIN KLEON is the New York Times bestselling author of Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work!, The Steal Like an Artist Journal: A Notebook for Creative Kleptomaniacs, and Keep Going. His work has been translated into over twenty languages and featured on NPR’s Morning Edition, PBS NewsHour, and in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. New York magazine called his work “brilliant,” the Atlantic called him “positively one of the most interesting people on the Internet,” and the New Yorker said his poems “resurrect the newspaper when everybody else is declaring it dead.” He speaks about creativity in the digital age for organizations such as Pixar, Google, SXSW, TEDx, and the Economist. In previous lives, he worked as a librarian, a web designer, and an advertising copywriter. He lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife and sons.

Website: www.austinkleon.com

Twitter and Instagram https://austinkleon.com

Facebook @Mr.Austin.Kleon

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From April 22, 2021: Comedian and actor Roy Wood Jr. returned to the show for a chat about his new podcast Roy's Job Fair.

ROY WOOD JR. SHORT BIO

Roy Wood Jr.'s comedy has entertained millions across stage, television and radio. In addition to stand-up comedy, producing and acting, during his tenure on "The Daily Show," Roy has used the show's brand of satire to shed a light on serious issues like Chicago gun violence, police reform, LGBTQ+ discrimination, ICE deportations and PTSD in the black community. He also recently appeared in a guest-starring role on the AMC series "Better Call Saul" and will be seen on "The Last O.G." on TBS and on the Netflix comedy "Space Force."

ABOUT HIS PODCAST ROY'S JOB FAIR

Work is like sex or food - you're either getting it or looking for it. Comedian Roy Wood Jr. (correspondent on Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Trevor Noah) explores the human condition every week through the prism of employment. Roy sits down with real people from ALL lines of work about their most memorable jobs, employment vacancies they're looking to fill, scams they've run at the office, and of course, the cringe-worthy office romances. Roy's famed humor is matched by his true empathy and curiosity for people. Join him on an entertaining exploration into the battle all of us fight every day. Balancing our need to provide with our need for emotional fulfillment. Learn from the people who got it right. Laugh with the rest of us, who constantly get it wrong. Welcome to the Job Fair.

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From October 28, 2020: Merrill Markoe is a national treasure in the world of comedy, one the best television writers in the history of ever.   Her newest book is “We Saw Scenery.”  

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From October 26, 2017: "The Book of Leon: Philosophy of a Fool" is a new book written by Leon Black as told to J.B. Smoove. We discussed how Leon took over his book deal, how he gets inside the mind of the character, and why everyone needs their own personal Leon.

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Author and historian Hannah Durkin discusses her new book, THE SURVIVORS OF THE CLOTILDA: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the American Slave Trade.

About the author:  

DR. HANNAH DURKIN is a historian specializing in transatlantic slavery and African diasporic art and culture. She holds a Ph.D. in American Studies from the University of Nottingham and a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism from Leeds Trinity University. She has taught at Nottingham and Newcastle universities, and recently served as a Guest Researcher at Linnaeus University in Sweden. She is an advisor to the History Museum of Mobile, which is working to memorialize the Clotilda survivors, and was the keynote speaker at Africatown’s 2021 Spirit of Our Ancestors Festival founded by the Clotilda Descendants Association. She is the recipient of more than a dozen academic prizes, including a prestigious Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship. She lives in the southeast of England.

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Crime fiction writer and essayist E.A. Aymar called in for a lively chat about his novel When She Left. E.A. received 2,565 bonus points for being a listener to the show, which he will be able to cash in for valuable prizes on his next appearance. (points may not be honored.)

About the author:

Multiple Anthony Award–nominated E.A. AYMAR’S thriller No Home for Killers was published to praise from the New York Times, Kirkus Reviews, and South Florida Sun Sentinel and was an instant bestseller. His thriller They’re Gone received rave reviews in Publishers Weekly and Kirkus (starred) and was named one of the Best Books Of 2020 by the South Florida Sun Sentinel. He is a former member of the national board of International Thriller Writers and is an active member of Crime Writers of Color and Sisters in Crime. He runs the DC Noir at the Bar series, was born in Panama, and now lives and writes in―and generally about―the DC/MD/VA triangle.

Aymar also runs a popular and well-regarded newsletter called Crime Fiction Works featuring upcoming top crime fiction novels, interviews, and monthly prizes for subscribers. For more information:

https://eaymar.substack.com/

https://www.instagram.com/eaaymar/

https://www.facebook.com/EAymarWriter

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To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Beatles invading America, we revisit my conversation with the legendary radio DJ Cousin Brucie about his role in their historic first visit.

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Alanna Shipley from DoorDash joined the show for a fun chat about Super Bowl eats. What will people order on the biggest game day of the year?  What’s the largest order ever?  What’s the strangest order ever?  What’s the smallest order ever?  Alanna knows it all!

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Hena Khan called in for a lively chat about her new book for young readers, Drawing Deena.

HENA KHAN is a Pakistani American writer, and winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Children’s Literature She is the author of the middle grade novels Amina’s Voice, Amina’s Song, and More to the Story, Drawing Deena, and the Zara’s Rules series and picture books Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns, Under My Hijab, and It’s Ramadan, Curious George, among others. Hena lives in her hometown of Rockville, Maryland, with her family. You can learn more about Hena and her books by visiting her website at HenaKhan.com or connecting with her @HenaKhanBooks and https://www.instagram.com/henakhanbooks/

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Author Matthew Blake joined the show to talk about his debut novel, one of the most anticipated of the year, Anna O.

Matthew Blake is a London-based author who has also worked as a screenwriter with the BBC, ITV Studios, and numerous other UK indies.

 Matthew worked as a researcher and speechwriter at the Palace of Westminster. He studied English at Durham University and Merton College.  A fan of writing and reading horror since he was a boy, he keeps busy between writing and raising his daughter.

Author Matthew Blake will be available from his home in London for an eye-opening interview on Wednesday, January 24th.