The Author's Inscape

In this episode of The Author's Inscape, we present a special dramatic reading of “Leave the Lights On,” a spooky story by Atticus Pixton, narrated by Anna Sedova.

Atticus G. Pixton is a Theatre Arts Major with an emphasis in Playwriting from Chicago. Atticus has been writing since he was six and is also an actor who played the Post Office Clerk in “The Cherry Orchard” and Hamlet in “Hamlet and Zombies.” He has also done voice-over work for Inscape Journal’s Instagram Account. He wrote a ten-minute play, “Catching Icarus,” which premieres at BYU’s Microburst New Play Festival on November 5th and runs through the 7th.

Dante Di Stefano is the author of five poetry collections and a chapbook, including, most recently, The Widowing Radiance, published in 2025 which we will be discussing today. His writing has appeared in American Poetry Review, Best American Poetry 2018, Poem-a-Day, Prairie Schooner, The Writer's Chronicle, and elsewhere. He's also won many poetry awards including, but not limited to, Auburn Witness Poetry Prize, the On Teaching Poem Prize, and the Manchester Poetry Prize. He holds a PhD in English Literature from Binghamton University. He teaches high school English in Endicott, NY and lives in Endwell, New York with his Wife, daughter, son, and their goldendoodle.

Lynn Buchanan is a fantasy writer based in the foothills of some impressive, chilly mountains in Utah. She is a 2019 graduate of the Odyssey Writing Workshop and holds an MFA in fiction from Brigham Young University, where she taught creative writing. When she isn’t writing about monster-fighting dolls, moody painters, and mummified arms used as dancing props, she enjoys playing the oboe, buying houseplants, and watching Ghibli films.

For this episode of The Author’s Inscape, we will have a special dramatic reading of a spooky story. We may be a ways out from Halloween, but some of the best pieces of fiction focus on what scares us. From spiders to heights, to death itself, we wouldn’t be human without experiencing fear. Please join us for Eli Tillemann’s dramatic reading of his own story: Toes, Teeth, and the Thing Under the Bridge.

Ally Braithwaite Condie is the author of the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling Matched Trilogy, the instant USA Today bestseller and Reese’s Book Club Pick novel The Unwedding, the Edgar Award Finalist novel Summerlost, and many other nationally published works across multiple genres (picture books, middle grade fiction, young adult fiction, adult fiction, and short stories). She holds a B.A. in English Teaching and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Her work has been published in 30+ languages and optioned for film. She lives in Utah Valley, where she loves hiking with her four wonderful children.

Lance Larsen is the former poet laureate of Utah and a current professor at Brigham Young University. He is the author of six poetry collections. His work has appeared in The New York Review of Books, The Times Literary Supplement, Southern Review, The Sun, Harvard Review, Brevity, and elsewhere. His awards include a Pushcart Prize, an NEA fellowship, and first-place honors in recent contests sponsored by Missouri Review, Sewanee Review, and Swamp Pink. He’s made the notables list six times in Best American Essays. Join us today to discuss his most recent poetry collection, Making a Kingdom of It.

We know Valentine's Day has passed, but we hope you enjoy this episode as The Author's Inscape's homage to the month of love. Brydee will be the guest host for today's episode full of love poems. Brooke Miller, a volunteer at Inscape: A literary Journal, will be reading two poems by Hollie Dugas and one poem by Dante Di Stefano, both accomplished poets.

Ann Dee Ellis is the author of six books for young readers. She is a professor of creative writing and literature at Brigham Young University. Join us today to talk with Ann Dee about her writing process and inspiration behind her newest novel, This Cookie Will Change Your Life, a Junior Library Guild Pick. The book was published in May of this year and follows a group of unlikely friends who meet in the library and embark on an adventure to start a cookie business.

Music Credit: Alia Alexander