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Episode 172: Christopher McDougall — ‘Running with Sherman,’ ‘Born to Run,’ and Finding Your Stride

“Like all writing is re-writing. All reporting is re-reporting.” —Christopher McDougall (@chrismcdougall)

This was a thrill. This was a blast. I know you’re going to love this too. Christopher McDougall, the bestselling author of Born to Run, Natural Born Heroes, and Running with Sherman is here to talk about his books, but also the speed bumps of his career.

How did he get his start? Where were the hiccups, and how did getting fired from a pretty steady gig in Philly turn him loose to write the book that effectively changed his life? Yeah, it’s all here, baby.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter @CNFPod and @BrendanOMeara. Instagram has been a little lax of late, but that’s @cnfpod. It’s all a mess, man!

Hope you’ve been enjoying the CNF Snacks that I’ve been putting out on Monday. Creating without Judgement and Be a Fan are the first installments. The tapas of CNF Pod.

Thanks to Bay Path University for the support and for Riverteeth’s promotional support.

Episode 171: AC Shilton — Arrival Fallacy, ‘The Innocent Man,’ and Chickens

By Brendan O’Meara

“At the end of the day, you need to get paid for you work because it is work. And one assignment is not going to change your resume.” —AC Shilton (@ACShilton)

“Somebody else’s success doesn’t limit your own.” —AC Shilton

AC Shilton steps onto the @CNFPod main stage this week, dropping freelance bombs like Ian Frisch and Seyward Darby, just to name a couple.

We talk about her farm and her chickens, but also her role in the Netflix documentary The Innocent Man, as well her New York Times piece on arrival fallacy and whether or not we’ve reached peak PBR, her first “viral” story.

You know what to do, subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts. Leave a kind review on Apple Podcasts and link up to the show on social media.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter @CNFPod and on IG @cnfpod. It’s a lousy place to promote a show, but it’s a great place to have a dialogue and talk about what resonated with you.

Episode 167: Steven Hyden—Woodstock ’99, ‘Break Stuff,’ and Books as Roadtrips

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“You tend to agree more with the people who don’t like what you do more than the people who do like what you do.” — Steven Hyden (@steven_hyden)

Hey, CNFers, glad you could make it. Got Steven Hyden for you. He’s a rock critic for Uproxx and his podcast Break Stuff about Woodstock ’99 is the stuff of legend. So I reached out to him.

We talk about that, books as roadtrips, and how you can have, perhaps, “questionable” taste, but still be a good read.

He makes mention of Chuck Klosterman being an inspiration given they come from similar backgrounds: remote upbringing yet somehow made a go of it in mainstream rock criticism.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. I hope I’ve made something worth sharing, so share widely. And if you’re feeling kind, leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

Books by Steven Hyden

Your Favorite Band is Killing Me: What Pop Music Rivalries Reveal About the Meaning of Life
Twilight of the Gods: A Journey to the End of Classic Rock
Hard to Handle: The Life and Death of the Black Crowes—A Memoir

Episode 162: Seyward Darby — Editing as Collaboration at The Atavist

“Let me be your sounding board for how the piece should come together.” — Seyward Darby (@seywarddarby)

“Writing reminds you what it’s like to stare at a blank page and how hard it is to create a first draft,” Seyward Darby said on Episode 162 of the podcast.

She’s the executive editor of The Atavist Magazine, an online jam that produces one longform feature a month. It’s awesome. It’s on my bucket list as a place to have work published.

So many great nuggets in this episode specifically about pitching/querying. It’s another master class in what she finds strong. See episodes with Evan Ratliff and Ian Frisch. You gotta have a good fastball, baby.

Subscribe to the show wherever you get your pods. Spot. App. Goog. Stitch. We like one syllable.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter @CNFPod. Instagram is @cnfpod and Facebook is @CNFPodcast or The Creative Nonfiction Podcast. Go jump in. It’s fun. The water’s refreshing.

Share this with a fellow CNFer and link up to it on your preferred social network.

Enjoy the show!

Episode 156: Sonya Huber—Creative Infidelities

Want the transcript to this episode?! PayPal brendan at brendan omeara dot com $5 and I’ll send you the PDF!

By Brendan O’Meara

“I think that’s why people stop writing: the not knowing what you’re doing feels so terrible.” —Sonya Huber (@sonyahuber)

Hey…hey, you, how are you?

Sonya Huber is here. She’s the author of these five books:

Pain Woman Takes Your Keys and Other Essays from a Nervous System
Opa Nobody
Cover Me: A Health Insurance Memoir
The “Backwards” Research Guide for Writers
The Evolution of Hillary Rodham Clinton

Be sure to subscribe to the show wherever you get our podcasts. If you leave a review of the show, I’ll coach up a piece of your writing of up to 2,000 words. Write the review, take a screenshot when it posts, email me the screenshot, and I’ll reach back out and get going.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter @CNFPod or Facebook or Instagram.

Episode 154: Julian Smith—Pitch Clubs, Falling in Love with the Work, and Aloha Rodeo

By Brendan O’Meara

“The more you can immerse yourself in a story the better you can write about it.” —Julian Smith (@julianwrites)

“You gotta fall in love with your subject and sometimes people have to pull you out.” —Julian Smith (juliansmith.com)

Julian Smith is a freelance journalist covering science, conservation, and adventure for publications like Smithsonian, Wired, Outside, Men’s Journal, National Geographic Traveler, and The Washington Post.

He co-authored Aloha Rodeo with David Wolman, a fellow journalist he worked with before on this Epic Magazine piece about two warring ice cream trucks. It’s…epic.

Julian is also the author of Crossing the Heart of Africa and Smokejumper.

Episode 145—Investigative Reporter Scott Eden Talks Structure, Sprawl, and Picking Up the Phone

Scott Eden , investigative reporter for ESPN the Magazine.

By Brendan O’Meara

“The structure should grow organically from the material.”

“At what point are you taxing the reader, knowing when the reader has had enough.”

“I hated [calling people] at first, just terrified of calling people., but I’ve gotten over it. It took years.” —Scott Eden

Here we are again. Today I welcome Scott Eden, an investigative reporter for ESPN the Magazine. His piece on maligned former NBA referee Tim Donaghy was a piece two years in the making and came out in February.

As you may or may not know, this is The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I speak to badass writers about the art and craft of telling true stories.

Episode 140—James Carl Nelson on What It Takes to be a Writer, Jumping into the Action, and ‘The Polar Bear Expedition’

James Carl Nelson, purveyor of the WWI narrative nonfiction book, joined me to talk all things Polar Bears (not the bears).

By Brendan O’Meara

“If you’re gonna be a writer, you gotta sweat.”—James Carl Nelson (Facebook)

Hey, there CNFers, what is goin’ on? You fired up? Comin’ in hot it’s James Carl Nelson, author of The Polar Bear Expedition: The Heroes of America’s Forgotten Invasion of Russia, 1918-1919.

Okay, we here are The Creative Nonfiction Podcast, the show where I talk to badass writers, filmmakers, and producers about the art and craft of telling true stories. It’s here we learn how they became the artists they are, the struggles they deal with, and the routines that allow them to get the work done, so you can apply those tools of mastery to your own work.

Episode 126—Glenn Stout on Shotgunning Ledes, Creative Chain Smoking, and ‘The Pats’

Glenn Stout is the author of several books, most recently “The Pats,” and the series editor for Best American Sports Writing.

By Brendan O’Meara

“You look for the narrative, which tells a larger story.” —Glenn Stout (@glennstout)

“I never try to write a valentine. I always try to tell the story straight.” —Glenn Stout

Buckle up, CNFers, I’m Brendan O’Meara and this is my podcast, the show where I speak to the best writers and filmmakers, producers and podcasters about the art and craft of telling true stories. I try and extract habits and routines around the work so you can apply those tools of mastery to your own work.

Episode 125—Brin-Jonathan Butler Talks “The Grandmaster,” Obsession, Madness, and the Power of Being an Outsider

Brin-Jonathan Butler, Brendan O'Meara — Brin-Jonathan Butler sporting Cuban refugee Yasiel Puig’s No. 66.

By Brendan O’Meara

Brin-Jonathan Butler has the world record for appearances on The Creative Nonfiction Podcast at four times. In honor of that, here’s a riff in 4/4 time.

You an check out his past few trips when he talked about what his ego is tied to, all things Cuba, and the blessings of struggle.

His new book The Grandmaster: Magnus Carlsen and the Match that Made Chess Great Again is a masterpiece.

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER!: Once a Month. No Spam. Can’t Beat It.

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER!: Once a Month. No Spam. Can’t Beat It.

Books by Steven Hyden

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER!: Once a Month. No Spam. Can’t Beat It.

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER!: Once a Month. No Spam. Can’t Beat It.

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER!: Once a Month. No Spam. Can’t Beat It.