Tommy Tomlinson reads an excerpt from "The Elephant in the Room: One Fat Man's Quest to Get Smaller in a Growing America," backed by an original Storybound remix with sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Tommy Tomlinson has written for publications including Esquire, ESPN the Magazine, Sports Illustrated, Forbes, Garden & Gun, and many others. He spent 23 years as a reporter and local columnist for the Charlotte Observer, where he was a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize in commentary, and he is currently working on a new book about the Westminster Dog Show.

He is also the host of the podcast “SouthBound” at WFAE, Charlotte’s NPR news station, and he also does weekly commentaries for the station. He has taught at colleges, workshops and conferences across the country. He’s a graduate of the University of Georgia and was a 2008-09 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University.

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Daniel A. Olivas reads an excerpt from "How to Date a Flying Mexican," backed by an original Storybound remix with sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Daniel A. Olivas is the author of ten books and editor of two anthologies. His latest books are "How to Date a Flying Mexican: New and Collected Stories," "The King of Lighting Fixtures: Stories," and "Crossing the Border: Collected Poems." Widely anthologized, Daniel has also written for the New York Times, Los Angeles Review of Books, The Guardian, La Bloga, BOMB, High Country News, Huffington Post, Alta Journal, Los Angeles Times, El Paso Times, and the Jewish Journal.

Daniel is also a playwright. He is a member of the Dramatist Guild, and his first full-length play, "Waiting for Godínez," was selected for the Playwrights' Arena Summer Reading Series in 2020, and The Road Theatre's 12th Annual Summer Playwrights Festival in 2021. Daniel was selected for Circle X Theatre's inaugural Evolving Playwrights Group where he adapted his novel, "The Book of Want," for the stage. Daniel's play, "Waiting," had its world premiere with Playwrights' Arena on July 24, 2021.

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Danté Stewart reads an excerpt from "Shoutin’ In The Fire: An American Epistle," backed by an original Storybound remix with sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Danté Stewart is a theologian, essayist, and cultural critic. He is author of "Shoutin’ In The Fire: An American Epistle." Named by Religion News Service as one of “Ten Up-And-Coming Faith Influencers”, his work has appeared on CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, ESPN’s The Undefeated, Sojourners, and more.

He received his B.A. in Sociology from Clemson University. He is currently studying at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Debbie Millman discusses her book "Why Design Matters," featuring David Byrne, Saeed Jones, Ira Glass, and more, backed by an original Storybound remix with sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Debbie is the author of seven books, including two collections of interviews that have extended the ethos and editorial vision of "Design Matters" to the printed page: "How to Think Like a Great Graphic Designer" and "Brand Thinking" and "Other Noble Pursuits." Both books have been published in over 10 languages. Her most recent book, "Why Design Matters: Conversations with the World’s Most Creative People," was published in 2021. She is also the co-owner and Editorial Director of PrintMag.com. 

Debbie’s podcast, "Design Matters" is one of the first and longest running podcasts, and as host and founder, Millman has interviewed nearly 500 of the most creative people in the world over the past 17 years. "Design Matters" won a 2011 Cooper Hewitt National Design Award, in 2015 Apple designated it one of the best overall podcasts on iTunes, and in 2021 designated it one of their “All Time Favorite Podcasts.” In addition, the show has been nominated for six Webby Awards, and has been listed on over 100 “Best Podcasts” lists, including one of the best podcasts in the world by Business Insider and Vanity Fair. 

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Storybound, from 2021 KCRW Radio Race winner Jude Brewer, returns for a fifth season with new voices, new music, and more conversations on March 8th.

Storybound is a radio theater program designed for the podcast age. Hosted by Jude Brewer, the podcast features today’s top literary voices reading their essays, poems, and fiction.

Season 5 begins publishing next Tuesday, March 8th.

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Chuck Klosterman reads two stories from "Raised in Captivity: Fictional Nonfiction," backed by an original Storybound remix with Lindsey Bitson, and sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Chuck Klosterman is the bestselling author of eight books of nonfiction (including "Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs," "But What If We’re Wrong?" and "Chuck Klosterman X") and two novels ("Downtown Owl" and "The Visible Man"). He has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, GQ, Esquire, Spin, The Guardian, The Believer, Billboard, The A.V. Club, and ESPN. Klosterman served as the Ethicist for The New York Times Magazine for three years, appeared as himself in the LCD Soundsystem documentary Shut Up and Play the Hits, and was an original founder of the website Grantland with Bill Simmons.

Lindsey Bitson is a Sacramento-based indie-rock musician. Her latest album, "Bathing in Yesterday’s Fires," was released in 2021.

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Brianna Barrett presents "Florence Fane in San Francisco," backed by an original Storybound remix with Jaymay, and sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Brianna Barrett is a playwright and storyteller whose full-length theatrical work has been developed at Artists Repertory Theater, Theatre33, Fertile Ground Festival, HART Theatre, and UCLA. Her TV work has been developed with Stuber, Farah Films, Hollywood Laundromat and ICM. She's performed at venues such as Pickathon, FolkLife Festival, and her own limited series podcast with Bag&Baggage Productions. Her work has been published by Samuel French/Concord Theatricals, Applause Books and Smith & Kraus.

Jaymay is a New York City based anti-folk singer/songwriter who has played shows with everyone from Bon Iver to Bright Eyes. Her music has been featured on "How I Met Your Mother" and Josh Radnor's "Happythankyoumoreplease."

Thanks to the Regional Arts & Culture Council for helping make this episode possible.

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Tamara Winfrey-Harris reads an excerpt from "Dear Black Girl: Letters From Your Sisters on Stepping Into Your Power," backed by an original Storybound remix, and sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer.

Tamara is the author of two books: "The Sisters Are Alright: Changing the Broken Narrative of Black Women in America" (Berrett-Koehler Publishers 2015) and "Dear Black Girl: Letters From Your Sisters On Stepping Into Your Power" (Berrett-Koehler Publishers 2021). The award-winning Sisters, now in its second edition, has been optioned by Wise Entertainment and Gabrielle Union’s production company I’ll Have Another to be turned into a dramedy for television. 

Tamara’s work has been published in media outlets, including including The New York Times, The Atlantic, Cosmopolitan, New York Magazine and The Los Angeles Times. And her essays appear in The Lemonade Reader: Beyonce, Black Feminism and Spirituality (Routledge, 2019); The Burden: African Americans and the Enduring Impact of Slavery (Wayne State University Press, 2018); Black in the Middle: An Anthology of the Black Midwest (Black Belt Publishing, 2020); and other books.

Tamara is co-founder of Centering Sisters, LLC, an organization that unapologetically addresses the needs and issues of Black women and girls; and the Black Women’s Writing Society, a monthly virtual space for Black femme creatives.

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