Writers on Writing

Short story author and novelist David James Poissant joins Marrie Stone to talk about his latest book, Lake Life, which will be released on July 7, 2020. Jamie shares how a story from his collection, The Heaven of Animals, evolved into this novel; how chapter 11 eventually became chapter 1; tackling challenging points of view (and those characters he feels unqualified to tackle); the importance of place and setting; and so much more. Download audio. (Broadcast date: July 1, 2020)

Actor, writer, and producer Kari Lizer joins Marrie Stone to talk about her hilarious collection, Aren't You Forgetting Someone: Essays From My Mid-Life Revenge. Kari was the co-executive producer of Will & Grace, and the creator of the CBS sitcom, The New Adventures of Old Christine. She talks about how writing for television and screenplays helped her in this essay collection, her path into writing, the importance of the revision process, the use of humor during dark days, the difference between an anecdote and an essay, and so much more. Download audio. (Broadcast date: June 17, 2020)

Lydia Millet joins Marrie Stone for the hour to talk about her latest novel, A Children's Bible. She talks about how she conquered her plot problems, managing a big cast of characters, how the novel spoke to the quarantine into which it was released, and much more. Download audio.  (Broadcast date: June 3, 2020)

Courtney Maum, author of Before and After the Book Deal: A Writer's Guide to Finishing, Publishing, Promoting, and Surviving Your First Book (Catapult), talks with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett about the art, craft, and business of writing. Download audio. Intro and outro music by Travis Barrett. Find him on Spotify and YouTube. (Broadcast date: May 27, 2020)

Gish Jen, author of The Resisters, joins Marrie Stone for the hour to talk baseball, knitting, artificial intelligence, and the role of the fiction writer in today's world. She shares her wit, her wisdom, and writing advice. Download audio.  (Broadcast date: May 20, 2020)

Novelist S.M. Hulse, author of Eden Mine, joins Barbara DeMarco-Barrett to talk about the art, craft, and business of writing--and why she uses initials instead of her first name.  Download audio. (Broadcast date: May 11, 2020) Intro and outdo created by Travis Barrett. Find his music on Spotify and his videos on YouTube.

Poet, teacher, and activist Carolyn Forché has witnessed, thought about, and put into poetry some of the most devastating events of 20th-century world history. An articulate defender of her own aims as well as the larger goals of poetry, Forché is perhaps best known for coining the term “poetry of witness.” Her memoir about her time in El Salvador, What You Have Heard Is True, was a finalist for the 2019 National Book Award in nonfiction. Carolyn joins Marrie Stone to talk about In the Lateness of the World, her fifth collection of poetry, and the first collection in nearly two decades. She discusses the importance of poetry during times of political and social strife, the role of the witness, as well as many other important insights into poetry’s role and the process by which she creates work.   Download audio.  (Broadcast date: May 6, 2020)

Debut novelist Elizabeth Wetmore joins Marrie Stone for the hour to talk about her novel, Valentine. On the morning after Valentine's Day, 1976, a 14-year old Hispanic girl turns up on the doorstep of a ranch house outside Odessa, Texas after being brutally raped in the oilfields. What follows is the portrait of a Texas oil town—with all its complexity, racism, and heartbreak—as told by seven of the town's women. Elizabeth talks about the book's origins, bringing this town to life, and the fully realized and complicated women who won't leave your mind well after the book is done. She also shares writing wisdom she accumulated both from life, working a long series of various jobs, as well as from her professors at the Iowa Writers Workshop. She talks about the big questions—writing from the POV of other cultures and the importance of asking for help. She also discusses the smaller stylistic decisions: not using quotations marks, choosing tense and POV, and keeping notebooks. There's so much wisdom and inspiration in this hour. Download audio.  (Broadcast date: April 29, 2020)

Randy Kraft joins Marrie Stone to talk about her latest short story collection, Rational Women. She talks about how she's staying productive during these unprecedented times, her pandemic reading list, and the biggest changes to her writing life in the past weeks. Randy also shares a number of fantastic insights into constructing a compelling short story, including the difference between a situation and a story, the importance of understanding place, her thoughts about white writers tackling racial issues, and much more. Download audio.   (Broadcast date: April 15, 2020)

Novelist Jill Ciment, author of The Body in Question and Heroic Measures (made into the film, Five Flights Up, with Morgan Freeman and Diane Keaton) talks with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett about the art, craft, and business of writing. Download audio. (Broadcast date: March 11, 2020) Musical intro and outro by Travis Barrett. Find him on Spotify.