The Downtown Writers Jam

Author Louise Mumford stopped by the Bunker to talk about her debut book, Sleepless, which is out in stores now. A former middle-grade English teacher, Louise struck gold after being discovered at a literary festival in 2019. Her novel has since been optioned for television!

But, she and Brad also took some time to talk about camping (!!) and the leap she took a few years ago to become a full time writer.

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Author Colleen van Niekerk stopped by the Bunker to talk about her debut novel, A Conspiracy of Mothers (October, 2021), which blends together life in apartheid South Africa and northern Appalachia. And so, Colleen and Brad went on a deep exploration of Colleen's life growing up in Cape Town, her love all Tom Robbins and magic realism, and her journey exploring the world. (We had a long talk about parrots, but that's for another show!)

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Author Eddy Boudel Tan stopped by the Bunker to talk about his latest book, The Rebellious Tide, which is out in stores now. But, Brad had more than just book talk on his mind. The two writers talked about Eddy's Sidewalk Supper Project, which is a neighborhood initiative he co-founded to provide homeless people with home-cooked meals. They also discussed the changing economic landscape of Vancouver, where Tan lives with his husband.

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Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. We are all talking about those three ideas these days. But one of the big challenges is how to create systemic change built around those ideas. Author Minal Bopaiah stopped by the Bunker to talk about her book Equity: How to Design Organizations Where Everyone Thrives. And, she and Brad weren't just talking about the book. They also took a deep dive into what Minal's company Brevity & Wit does to help companies and groups build better working environments.

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Buckle up, good people, because actor, screenwriter, and author Tommy Swerdlow stopped by the Bunker to talk about his novel Straight Dope. While you have probably seen the movies he's written—Cool Runnings, The Grinch, and Little Giants—and the movies he's acted in—Real Genius and Hamburger Hill, he and Brad had a LOT to more to discuss: addiction, writing, famous friends, and the joy of storytelling. It's one of those GenX Writers Collide interviews (even though Tommy isn't technically GenX. But, he kinda is.)

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Author Roz Nay is one of Brad's favorite types of people: a traveler and adventurer. She's been to twenty-eight countries, and has spent a lifetime making semi-questionable decisions while exploring the world. And now, she's turned her eye to creating rich worlds on the page. Her third book, The Hunted, is a story about two people who weren't quite so lucky with their bad traveling choices!

But this show isn't so much about them as it's about Roz and Brad! Well, mostly Roz!

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Author Nydia Hetherington has been creating worlds in her head since she was a child in Leeds, dreaming about fairies and the sea. She channeled that energy into...well, a lot of things: working as an actor, a clown, and eventually creative writing. She stopped by the Bunker to talk with Brad about her first book, A Girl Made of Air.

And David Bowie. She loves David Bowie.

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Scottish author Philippa East came out of the gate hot when her first book Little White Lies was longlisted for the Guardian's prestigious "Not The Booker" prize. Her her second book Safe and Sound came our earlier this year, and she stopped by the Bunker to talk with Brad about growing up in Scotland, her wonderful group of creative friends, her training as a psychologist and philosophy at Oxford, and the trauma of success.

Plus: castles. There's a surprising amount of talk about castles.

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There is nowhere better than here! You’ll know when you know. Author Tim Ewins came to the Bunker to talk about his book, We Are Animals. But, of course, you know he and Brad spent a lot of time talking about traveling, comedy (Tim was a stand-up comedian), and the long, weird road to writing fiction. 

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Drs. Gale Sinatra and Barbara Hofer are the latest researchers to stop by the Bunker to talk about their work understanding why people are rejecting science these days. Their book, Science Denial, is out now. Gale, Barbara, and Brad took a deep dive into the psychology of why people deny some parts of science and discussed the ways we can understand the underlying fears and concerns people have. This is a Don’t Miss Episode!

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