“I’m always learning about structure. Always.” —Susan Orlean (@susanorlean)
Oh, hey, welcome to the show, CNFers, and, my, my, my are you in for a treat. Susan Orlean, @susanorlean on Twitter, a New Yorker staff writer and the best selling author of The Orchid Thief, Rin Tin Tin, and now her latest book, The Library Book (Simon & Schuster, 2018), is out now. And it’s everything you’d expect from her work.
Eli Saslow, Pulitzer Prize winner, stopped by the show.
By Brendan O’Meara
[Pull Quotes TK]
Welcome to The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to the best artists about the art and craft of telling true stories. Leaders from narrative journalism, doc film, memoir, essay, radio, and podcasting stop by to share their stories and how they go about the work so you can apply those tools of mastery to your own work.
Eli is one of the good ones. You can tell by talking to him that he’s an energy giver, you know what I mean? You talk to the guy and you want to go out and do your best work. I felt similarly when I spoke with Elizabeth Rush and Andre Dubus III.
Fact is, Eli’s work alone makes you want to go out and do good work because it’s top notch and major league. His latest book is a masterpiece so you need to go out and buy a copy for you and a pal. It is published by Doubleday.
You’re gonna learn a lot of great writing and reporting tips from your time spent listening to this episode.
Be sure to follow the show and me on Twitter @BrendanOMeara and @CNFPod. Why not sign up for my monthly newsletter? I give out reading recommendations. Once a month. No spam. Can’t beat it.
Go like the Facebook page too and consider leaving a nice review on Apple Podcasts.
Allison K. Williams embodies the spirit of a true creative.
By Brendan O’Meara
“Fame does not equal success, and success does not equal fame.” —Allison K. Williams
“Every project I do has made me more fit and better to do my next project.” —Allison K. Williams
It’s The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to the very best in the genre of telling true stories, how they got to where they are and the tools, tips, and tricks that make them so good at what they do. I’m your host Brendan O’Meara.
Today’s guest is none other than Allison K. Williams. She’s @GuerillaMemoir on Twitter and you can visit her website at idowords.com.
“The great thing is if you find the right story it often is more interesting than fiction because it’s weird and quirky.” —Matthew Polly (@MatthewEPolly)
This is The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to the best in narrative journalism, doc film, radio, podcasting, essay, and memoir about the art and craft of telling true stories.
Today’s guest is Matthew Polly. He’s the author of three books of nonfiction, most recently Bruce Lee: A Life. He’s a graduate of Princeton and a Rhodes Scholar, so you can say my 1050 SAT score didn’t exactly level me up any in this conversation.
Tweetables from Jennifer Goforth Gregory (@ByJenGregory)
“The persistence is the difference.”
“If you don’t follow up, you’re leaving money on the table.”
“We’re not each other’s competition; we’re each other’s colleagues.”
Well, well, well, look what your subscription dragged in. Another episode of The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to the best in narrative journalism, doc film, radio, essay, and memoir about the art and craft of telling true stories so you can better at your own work.
You are subscribed, right? Head over to iTunes/Apple Podcasts and lay it down. We’re also on Spotify! Yeah, that’s right. The whole catalog is over there streaming if that’s your thing. Please leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts because that’s how we prove to the newcomers that we’re doing something special over here at CNF Pod HQ.
Scott Neumyer is a writer and hosts the wildly popular Anxiety Diaries Podcast.
By Brendan O’Meara
Tweetables from Scott Neumyer (@scottneumyer):
“The more you do, the more apt you are to get an assignment.”
“I want to make something happen and I just work really hard to do it.”
Today’s guest has a voice as smooth as velvet. It’s a voice you want to listen to over and over again and you know what? You can!
Today I welcome Scott Neumyer to the show. Scott is a writer who has been published by The New York Times, Rolling Stone, Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, GQ, Esquire, Wired, Men’s Fitness, and many more publications. He is a contributor to the anthology Life Inside My Mind: 31 Authors Share Their Personal Struggles, which Simon Pulse published in 2018. He is also the creator and host of the popular Anxiety Diaries Podcast. He lives in central New Jersey with his wife, two daughters, and two cats.
This is the show where I speak to the best creators about telling true stories, how they’re told, and why it matters so you can apply those tools of mastery to your own work.
Scott has been working hard on his new podcast, Anxiety Diaries, and it’s raw, it’s honest, and it showcases interesting people across the mental health-sphere.
In this episode we dig into his origin as a writer, influential writers, lots about the craft of interviewing, and how to launch a successful podcast.
If you dig the show, please subscribe and leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Joe Rogan (love you Joe!) doesn’t need anymore. I need them. Me. Okay, CNFers, thanks for listening, let’s get right into it.
Thanks for listening CNFers. Thanks again to Hippocamp 2018 for the support. Be sure to use that CNFPOD coupon code to save $50 on your registration fee.
Again, if you’d leave a review on Apple Podcasts, I’ll edit a piece of your writing of up to 2,000 words. Just send me a screenshot and I’ll coach up your writing. That’s only fair.
The Creative Nonfiction Podcast is sponsored by Hippocamp 2018. Now in its fourth year, Hippocamp is a three-day creative nonfiction writing conference that features 50+ speakers, engaging sessions in four tracks, interactive all-conference panels, author and attendee readings, social activities, networking opps, and optional, intimate pre-conference workshops. The conference takes place in lovely Lancaster, Pennsylvania from Aug. 24 through the 26th.
Visit hippocampusmagazine.com and click the “Conference” tab in the toolbar and if you enter the keyword CNFPOD at checkout you will receive a $50 discount. This offer is only good until Aug. 10 or until all those tickets are sold. There are a limited number so act now!
Katie Baker is a staff writer for The Ringer and damn good writer.
By Brendan O’Meara
“Working outside of journalism before working in journalism can be a useful thing in terms of seeing how the world works.” —Katie Baker (@katiebakes)
Hey there, CNFers, it’s The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to the best artists about telling true stories, whether that’s narrative journalists, documentary filmmakers, essay and memoir writers and radio producers, I try unpack their lives and their work so you can apply those tools of mastery to your own work.
Tweetable by Rebecca Fish Ewan (@rfishewan on Instagram):
“I couldn’t, as an adult, get past the story of how her life ended. And I wanted to tell the story of she lived.”
It’s The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to the best artists about telling true stories.
For Episode 106, I welcome Rebecca Fish Ewan, author of By the Forces of Gravity (Books by Hippocampus 2018), a love story between friends that ends in tragedy told through free-verse poetry and cartoons. It’s a great reading experience and a wonderfully told story of adolescence in the 1970s Berkley. You can buy the book by visiting books.hippocampusmagazine.com or via Amazon.
In this episode we dig into:
How Rebecca chose to write the story in the way she did
The power of community
Writing from the POV of her 12-year-old-self
And dealing with self doubt
Rebecca is @rfishewan on Instagram, her preferred social network and is @rfishewan on Facebook. Go check her out.
If you’re not subscribed, be sure to hit up Apple Podcasts, Google Play Music, and Stitcher so you get a fresh delivery every Friday. Share this with people you think will dig it. Ad let me know what you think of it, what you got out of it. I’m @BrendanOMeara and @CNFPod on Twitter and @CNFPodcast on Facebook. Pick a network, any network and let’s connect.
If you dig the show and you have a minute, please leave a review over on Apple Podcasts. If you show me evidence of your review, I will edit a piece of your writing of up to 2,000 word.
Sign up for my monthly reading list newsletter. Four books and what you might have missed from the world of the podcast. Once a month. No spam. You can’t beat that.
The Creative Nonfiction Podcast is sponsored by Hippocamp 2018. Now in its fourth year, Hippocamp is a three-day Pennsylvania writing conference that features 50+ speakers, engaging sessions in four tracks, interactive all-conference panels, author and attendee readings, social activities, networking opps, and optional, intimate pre-conference workshops. The conference takes place in lovely Lancaster, from Aug. 24 through the 26th.
Past keynotes have been Lee Gutkind, Mary Karr, Dinty W. Moore, and Jane Friedman (all have been past guests on the podcast. Whaaaat?) This year Abigail Thomas will be the featured speaker.
Visit hippocampusmagazine.com and click the “Conference” tab in the toolbar and if you enter the keyword CNFPOD at checkout you will receive a $50 discount. This offer is only good until Aug. 10 or until all those tickets are sold. There are a limited number so act now! Like RIGHT NOW.
The registration is $429 ($379 with the discount) through Aug. 10 then goes up to $449 on site. If you sign up through this portal before the conference starts, you’re actually saving $70!
