Ursa Short Fiction

ZZ Packer on the 20th Anniversary of ‘Drinking Coffee Elsewhere’

Listen Later

In our Season Two premiere, co-hosts Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton talk with the beloved ZZ Packer, author of Drinking Coffee Elsewhere, a collection first published in 2003 that went on to inspire countless writers. Packer talks about how she found her voice, style, and authenticity as a young, Black, female writer who hadn’t even planned on becoming a writer. She addresses ideas of navigating both physical and figurative spaces and learning how to find a place in the literary world.


Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned

  • Drinking Coffee Elsewhere (ZZ Packer)
  • Zora Neale Hurston
  • Toni Morrison
  • Flannery O’Connor
  • James Alan McPherson (Elbow Room and Hue and Cry)
  • Lorrie Moore
  • Stuart Dybek
  • Percival Everett
  • James Baldwin
  • Anton Chekhov
  • Edward P. Jones (Lost in the City and The Known World)
  • Alice Munro
  • Imani Perry
  • Bryan Stevenson (Just Mercy)
  • Edwidge Danticat


    • Read more from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton: 

    • The Secret Lives of Church Ladies (Deesha Philyaw)
    • The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)


      Ursa Short Fiction is 100% independent and supported by our listeners. Become a Member today to help us keep going: ursastory.com/join 


      Episode editor: Kelly Araja

      Associate producer: Marina Leigh

      Producer: Mark Armstrong

      Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

      Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

      ...more
      View all episodesView all episodes
      Download on the App Store
      Ursa Short FictionBy Ursa Story Company
      • 3.8
      • 3.8
      • 3.8
      • 3.8
      • 3.8

      3.8

      218 ratings

      More shows like Ursa Short Fiction

      View all
      The Book Review by The New York Times

      The Book Review

      3,892 Listeners

      Selected Shorts by Symphony Space

      Selected Shorts

      2,812 Listeners

      The New Yorker: Fiction by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

      The New Yorker: Fiction

      3,313 Listeners

      Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry by David Naimon, Tin House Books

      Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry

      443 Listeners

      Library Talks by The New York Public Library

      Library Talks

      318 Listeners

      The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

      The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker

      2,082 Listeners

      Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso by Lemonada Media

      Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

      1,222 Listeners

      Code Switch by NPR

      Code Switch

      14,520 Listeners

      It's Been a Minute by NPR

      It's Been a Minute

      8,914 Listeners

      How to Survive the End of the World by How to Survive the End of the World

      How to Survive the End of the World

      2,093 Listeners

      City Arts & Lectures by City Arts & Lectures

      City Arts & Lectures

      376 Listeners

      The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily by American Public Media

      The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily

      1,183 Listeners

      Throughline by NPR

      Throughline

      15,964 Listeners

      NPR's Book of the Day by NPR

      NPR's Book of the Day

      596 Listeners

      Vibe Check by Zach Stafford, Saeed Jones, Sam Sanders

      Vibe Check

      1,685 Listeners

      Reckon True Stories by Ursa Story Company

      Reckon True Stories

      111 Listeners