The Written Scene

Throughout her life, author and licensed clinical social worker Ashley Hanna-Morgan has encountered many characters. In the fictional stories she writes, it's important she stays true to a character when writing them.

In this episode of The Written Scene, Ashley discusses the ways our muse and our health interact, feeling pulled in two career directions, lessons learned from writing her first fiction book, being able to separate non-creative work from creative work, taking book notes while walking the baby, incorporating real-life parenting experiences in order to make it universal to her readers, getting her love of poetry from her grandmother, being pulled more to fiction than memoir, having poetry as a lifelong faithful companion, looking for good character development in stories she reads, staying true to the character, when friends know they may be a character in a story someday, reading things we normally wouldn't read, and so much more.

Please be sure to subscribe, rate, review, and share this and all episodes of The Written Scene. You can also subscribe to our once-a-month newsletter by clicking or tapping here.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

Life is not one single track. For Ashley Hanna-Morgan, an author and licensed clinical social worker, this is especially true, and that's by design.

Please enjoy this teaser ahead of next week's full episode of The Written Scene with Hanna.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

If there's ever a time where libraries need support, it's now. If there's a person that's perfectly built for the job, it's Patrick Stewart, the CEO of the Library Foundation SD.

In this episode of The Written Scene, Patrick discusses the many ways the library system in San Diego is underfunded, growing up with a healthy respect for teachers and the education system, the importance of maintaining libraries and the history they encapsulate, examining the ways other libraries around the country design libraries, his CB radio handle, pushing back on book bans, playing a supportive role in the writing world, how art and culture has always been at the core of who he is, what a degree in Philosophy of Aesthetics & Literature is, ensuring the many different backgrounds of San Diego residents are represented, maintaining the mentality that we are artists and creatives above all else, following your creative path no matter how difficult it gets, and surprisingly more.

Please be sure to subscribe, rate, review, and share this and all episodes of The Written Scene. You can also subscribe to our once-a-month newsletter by clicking or tapping here.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

If you were to ask the CEO of the Libary Foundation SD, Patrick Stewart, what roles a library plays in a community, it's more than just a building with books. Much more.

Please enjoy this brief teaser with Patrick ahead of next week's full episode of The Written Scene.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

It's one thing to be excited about the arts. For author and historian Debbie Wastling, it's a passion, and you can hear it in every word.

In this episode of The Written Scene, Debbie talks about having famous relatives in the arts back in the early 20th century, a brief geography and history lesson, mixing her love of music into her books and stories, famous writers from her childhood home, how her music writing is storytelling, not shying away from politics, the ways the railroad system in every country is historically relevant, trying to remain historically accurate in her novels, the evolution of her art after moving from England to Los Angeles, how knowing Shakespeare helps her write historical fiction, experiencing Shakespeare and other theater productions in Ashland, OR, writing poetry to understand and process feelings at an early age, reading out loud the things we write, learning discipline in writing through theater, writing grants for music education, and much more.

Please be sure to subscribe, rate, review, and share this and all episodes of The Written Scene. You can also subscribe to our once-a-month newsletter by clicking or tapping here.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

For historical fiction author Debbie Wastling, her childhood experiences with libraries and powerful teachers makes giving back to libraries and schools very easy.

Please enjoy this teaser with Debbie ahead of next week's full episode of The Written Scene.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

Whether you're running a tennis club or a practicing lawyer, all of it matters if you want to write. For author Gene Desrochers, this is especially true.

In this (long) episode of The Written Scene, Gene discusses growing up in a historical building and landmark, losing your virginity in weird and creepy places, writing about where we used to live instead of where we currently live, using story location as a character, the ways where you grow up factors into the writer inside, switching back and forth between writing novels and short stories, having low daily word count writing goals, when you get in your own way of writing a story, the ways legal trials are all about telling a better story, why it's fun to be on a jury, what different jobs in life can do for a writer's skillset, lessons tennis can teach you about yourself and your writing, how restrictions in a story can make for a better story, and so much more.

Please be sure to subscribe, rate, review, and share this and all episodes of The Written Scene. You can also subscribe to our once-a-month newsletter by clicking or tapping here.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

They say to write what you know. For author Gene Desrochers, it was the loss of a childhood friend—an event he didn't know about until he was much older—that eventually became the kernel of his books.

Please enjoy this teaser with Gene ahead of next week's full episode of The Written Scene.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

For author and environmentalist LaDaryn Lockett, the world of writing has unlocked a joy of storytelling he didn't know existed at first.

In this episode of The Written Scene, LaDaryn talks about finding the joy of Dungeons & Dragons in a college dorm basement, using ChatGPT but also making sure to give back in a more human manner, finding early influences in stories involving animals, writing to preserve positive growth as a person, not knowing where story concepts come from but still writing them anyway, the reward of challenging storytelling, how reading and writing should be habits for authors, telling stories that aren't about identity and encountering expectations that come with being a Black author, his love of reading and writing Germanic folklore, marrying his love of the environment and writing adventure stories, writing about animals in a way that doesn't further any harmful human behaviors toward them, getting out of your comfort zone to be less fearful about other things in life, and much more.

Please be sure to subscribe, rate, review, and share this and all episodes of The Written Scene. You can also subscribe to our once-a-month newsletter but clicking or tapping here.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era

Saying yes to an invitation into someone's basement can come with some risk. Fortunately, for author and environmentalist LaDaryn Lockett, it worked out well.

Please enjoy this teaser ahead of next week's full episode of The Written Scene.

Music: Addis Ababa by Eshi Era