It’s that Atavistian time of the month and Mira Ptacin (@miramptacin) is here! She is a writer, journalist, teacher, and did you see that sweater in her pic? Her story for The Atavist Magazine, “The Crash of the Hammer,” details how one town in rural Maine ran a new-Nazi (Christopher Polhaus, aka Hammer) out of town.
The crux of the piece is this notion of the paradox of tolerance. When you become tolerant of intolerant people (because tolerance) you invite the conditions for greater intolerance. Tolerating intolerance ultimately squashes out tolerance. Hence the paradox.
Heavy one, CNFers, heavy one, this for the Atavist. Rhana Natour and Eman Mohammed profile Layan Albaz, a Palestinian teenager who lost her legs in an Israeli airstrike. This is the journey of a young girl who came to the U.S. to be fitted for prosthetics, but as Rhana writes, it’s like learning two musical instruments at the same time.
Not only that, Layan’s story is one of THOUSANDS of children who have lost limbs during these horrific bombings. Rhana and Eman speak about this far better than I can describe, so let’s give you some info on them.
After a horrific accident, doctors told Todd Barcelona that he’d likely never run again. So he and his wife decided to run farther than they ever had before.
Maggie used to be a trial attorney, and she made the pivot to freelance writing during the height of the pandemic, so we dig into how she made that change and what skills transferred over.
Brian Fairbanks is a freelance journalist and author and he is featured in The Atavist Magazine for his piece “The Last Shall be First” about a corrupt New Orleans cop and wreckage he left in his wake.
It’s a wild story and calls into question the structures that are supposed to keep citizens safe, as if we needed any more questioning. History repeats, so what do we do with that?
In this episode, we also hear from editor-in-chief Seyward Darby about the 150th issue of The Atavist, which is crazy, right?
For a couple weeks, visit combeyond.bu.edu, use the promo code NARRATIVE25 at checkout and get 25% your tuition for the two-day Power of Narrative Conference. And, no, I don’t get any dough.
Jessica Camille Aguirre (@jessicacaquirre) is a freelance journalist based out of Berlin, Germany, and she’s got a ripping piece for this month’s Atavist, “Watch It Burn.” Two scammers, a web of betrayal, and Europe’s fraud of the century.
It deals with carbon credits and the scammers were quick to pounce on this upstart industry.
William Ralston is a freelancer journalist and he comes on the show to talk about “Mayday,” his long feature about a harrowing rescue of four children after a deadly plane crash for The Atavist.
Right from the start, William grabs the reader and doesn’t let you go, man. Maybe you’ll consider subscribing to The Atavist Magazine. I don’t get any kickbacks, so I do it out of the goodness of Grinch-sized heart (before he serves up the roast beast).
William’s work has appeared all over the place. He’s a dogged reporter, so we get into that quite a bit.
This conversation gets into trust, as well as learning how to write before you’re ready. Jonah Ogles also stops by to give some of those valuable insights into the editor side of the table.
And you know I’d rather you sign up for my rage-against-the-algorithm. Signup form is below you and to your right. Book recs, book raffles, cool stuff curated by me for you, CNFin’ happy hour or writing group, writing prompts, fun and entertaining. First of the month. No spam. Can’t beat it.
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In this episode we dig into how she reported this piece and how her central figures sought retribution for the damages inflicted upon them, often without their consent.
We also hear from Seyward Darby, editor-in-chief for The Atavist, about her goals for the upcoming year for herself and the magazine, as well as what she’s looking for in pitches.
And you know I’d rather you sign up for my Up-to-11 Newsletter. Signup form is below you and to your right. Book recs, book raffles, cool stuff curated by me for you, CNFin’ happy hour or writing group, writing prompts, fun and entertaining. First of the month. No spam. Can’t beat it.
Consider supporting the show via Patreon patreon.com/cnfpod. Shop around if you want to support the community. You make that possible. The show is free but it ain’t cheap.
Free ways to support the show?
Subscribe and download and share across your socials. And don’t forget to consider leaving a kind review on Apple Podcasts. Those go a LONG way.
Katya Cengel (@kcengel) is a journalist and author, and she’s the journalist behind “The Truth is Out There” for The Atavist Magazine. A father’s disappearance, dark family secrets, and the hunt for Bigfoot.
It’s a touching story on “searching for elusive truths,” that weaves together cryptozoology and a family in search of their father.
So in this episode we unpack who Katya dug up this story, earning trust, and getting comfortable with untidy endings.
We also speak with editor Jonah Ogles about getting pitches over the hump and the value in pitching again and again.
Tom Donaghy, a playwright and screenwriter, needed to find out.
Harry Anglemeyer was a fixture of Ocean City with a fudge empire on the Jersey Shore, The Copper Kettle. He wanted to lift up and move forward the ocean-side city. He was openly queer in a time that wasn’t as accepting. In 1964, he was murdered and the case was never solved.
