Tony Perrottet is a journalist, historian, and author of six books.
His latest piece is “The Butcher of Havana,” this for The Atavist Magazine.
We talk about the central figure, Herman Marks, an American who became the chief executioner for the Cuban revolutionaries. It’s an incredibly gripping read.
Continue reading “Episode 285: Tony Perrottet and ‘The Butcher of Havana’”
Jen A. Miller makes her return to the podcast after nearly five years. She said it best, “I feel old…and tired.”
She has a new ebook out called Where to Find New Freelance Writing Clients and Turbocharge Your Career: A Road Map to Freelance Writing Success. It’s $10 and it just might alter the course of your life. I don’t say that lightly. She also wrote How I Made $135,000 in One Year of Freelancing. It’s not gloating. She tells you how.
Jen also is the author of the memoir Running: A Love Story.
In this episode, we talk about:
Continue reading “Episode 283: Freelancing, Abundant Mindsets, and Writing from a Place of Anger with Jen A. Miller”
By Brendan O’Meara
Susan Orlean makes her third trip back to the podcast (Ep. 61 and 121), this time to celebrate her latest book, a collection of her magazine work on animals titled … On Animals.
She’s the best selling author The Library Book, Rin Tin Tin, and The Orchid Thief. She’s been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1990s and, as many of you know, seeing a Susan Orlean byline is something like appointment reading. It’s special.
In this episode, we talk about:
Continue reading “Episode 281: Susan Orlean Tackles Ledes, Generating Story Ideas, and ‘On Animals’”
Sponsor love: West Virginia m Wesleyan College’s MFA in Creative Writing and The Facing Project’s Empathy Prize for Nonfiction
What a treat!
It’s Athena Dixon (@AthenaDDixon), the author of the essay collection The Incredible Shrinking Woman (Split Lip Press).
Had a great chat about day jobs and threading the work you want to do around that, how there’s no “writer’s life,” but rather just a “writer living.” That’s a direct quote from her Hippocamp talk this year.
Her essay collection delves into her identity as a Black woman, divorce, relationships, sex, the masks we where, and so on. Highly recommend.
Continue reading “Episode 279: Athena Dixon on Opening Doors, Day Jobs, and the Personal Essay”
Earl Swift returns!
He’s back as we take a deep dive into Across the Airless Wilds: The Lunar Rover and the Triumph of the Final Moon Landings, an epic book that details the creative genius and the people behind the “moon car” and the three greatest feats of human exploration, largely forgotten.
Earl is an incredible reporter and writer, spinning intrepid yarns that are densely packed but not weighed down. Incredible stuff.
In this episode we dig into:
Sponsors: West Virginia Wesleyan College’s MFA in Creative Writing and Hippocamp 21!
Shanna B. Tiayon came on the show to talk about her Pipe Wrench Magazine piece “If We Can Soar.” It’s a remarkable piece.
We talk about that and much, much more.
Check out her TEDx talk about her experience at the Grand Canyon, and read about it on Longreads.
As always, keep the conversation going @CNFPod and consider becoming a member at Patreon, patreon.com/cnfpod.
Cecilia Brown (@cecilbrownn) is on the show to talk about “So Nice to Hear Your Voice,” her This American Life essay about her grandmother. We get into the behind-the-scenes of the piece. Great stuff.
What else do we get into?
Continue reading “Episode 269: The Visionary Life of Cecilia Brown, Making Pictures, and This American Life”
Sponsors: West Virginia Wesleyan College’s MFA in Creative Writing and HippoCamp 2021.
Become a Patron!Alison Herman (@aherman2006) is a staff writer for The Ringer, who writes about all kinds of TV and movies and the like.
What prompted this conversation was her piece about David Gelb, the filmmaker behind Jiro Dreams of Sushi and Chef’s Table.
In this episode we talk about:
Continue reading “Episode 268: Overcoming Bad Viewing Hygiene with The Ringer’s Alison Herman”
Lovely sponsors: West Virginia Wesleyan College’s MFA in Creative Writing and HippoCamp21.
Become a Patron!The writer Suzanne Roberts (@suzanneroberts28) came by CNF Pod HQ to talk all things writing and memoir and Bad Tourist: Misadventures in Love and Travel (University of Nebraska Press, 2020).
Had a wonderful time talking to her about:
Continue reading “Episode 267: Suzanne Roberts on Big Wins, Rejection Clubs, and ‘Bad Tourist’”Become a Patron!View on Zencastr
Kristen Radtke is the author of Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness. Let me tell you, CNFers, this book spoke to me like few others do. Such is the life as a lonely podcaster.
Continue reading “Episode 266: The Expansive Nothing You Have to Fill with Kristen Radtke”