The Downtown Writers Jam

Author Steven Tingle stopped by the Bunker to talk about his book, Graveyard Fields. And, along the way, Brad and he discussed his circuitous route into writing books, which included stops working at a golf course and writing for luxury brand magazines.  

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You ever meet one of those people who just seem to be good...at everything? Well, you're about to meet one! Author, screenwriter, producer, and documentarian Bonnie MacBird stopped by the Bunker to talk about her latest Sherlock Holmes novel, The Three Locks. But, she and Brad took a long, deep dive through her life growing up around art and science, her screenwriting career (Tron, anyone?), the horrible obstacles a woman in Hollywood faced, and her drive to continue writing and telling stories.

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Short story writer and author Evan Morgan Williams stopped by the Bunker to talk about his latest collection, Stories of the New West, an examination of personal risks and the aftermath that comes with those. He and Brad also talked about the joys of building a writing community, finding a home with a press, and the differences between writing books and short stories.

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Poet and author Jiordan Castle stopped by the Bunker to talk about her recently acquired memoir in verse, Disappearing Act. Even though it won't hit stores until 2023, Brad convinced her to come on the Jam to talk about her most recent writing successes (including a poem in The New Yorker), her work with the New York reading series Pigeon Pages, and maybe most importantly her dog, Hacksaw!

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This is a very special and wonderful episode with children's book author and actor Greg McGoon. Greg stopped by to talk about his latest Oliver Gilmore: A Doxie's Diary, but he and Brad took a deep, heartfelt, and hilarious dive into why he's spent his life helping people. It's a long journey—running a candy store in elementary and middle school (yes, you read that correctly), finding himself through theater, working as a resident assistant, writing children's books, and founding and running a creative nonprofit for children—but one you are going to want to hear!

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Author Claire Cox stopped by the Bunker to talk about her debut novel, Silver Beach. But before she and Brad got to that, they covered a lot of ground: religion, family trees that have some mis-shaped branches, misfits in high school, never quite fitting in, and teaching and writing. Don't let the laughing fool you. They took a deep dive into the what it means to be a writer.

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Wanderer, drifter, lawyer, teacher, and author Simon Van Der Velde stopped by the Bunker to talk about his book, Backstories. An award-winning short story writer at heart, Simon combined his childhood love of heroes with his adult love of meeting people from around the world. So, he and Brad sat down to commiserate on the nature of truth, traveling, and people. You know: the little stuff.

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Dog lovers of the world: unite: Author Alice Kaltman stopped by the Bunker to talk with Brad (and Maxx) about her book, Dawg Towne, a series of interconnected stories of people sharing the same space. And, you know, dogs. It's a lovely conversation about their shared love of animals and the strangeness of turning short stories into a book.

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Author Vanessa Carlisle stopped by the Bunker to talk about her latest book, Take Me With You, a novel she wrote while getting her PhD in Creative Writing, Literature, & Gender Studies. (Stick around for that story!) But, she’s more than just a brilliant writer. She’s hosted a radio program about sexuality. She appeared on Season One of Showtime’s Polyamory. And she’s currently a sex worker and death doula. 

So, naturally she and Brad talked about growing up working class, the struggle to find oneself, and all of the things they each did just because somebody told them they couldn’t!

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Drs. Sara and Jack Gorman stopped by the Bunker to talk about one of the most important issues we’re facing: science deniers. The father and daughter doctor combo just released a revised edition of their book Denying to the Grave: Why We Ignore the Facts That Will Save Us. And that co-founded a company, Critica, that is working to advance that mission. And uncharacteristically for Brad, he stayed entirely focused on that topic. So take a deep breath because these two brought a whole lot of smart to the Jam.

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