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Episode 208: From Floundering to Freelance Superstar with Wudan Yan

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, by writers for writers.

“That was always my understanding that if you want to be a freelance journalist, you’re probably going to have to do a lot of things that you don’t want to do, so it creates time, space, and resources for you to dig into the things that you want to do.” — Wudan Yan

By Brendan O’Meara

You know when an episode is especially juicy? Of course you do! and this is one of them.

Wudan Yan is a freelance superstar. You can find her on Twitter (an amazing follow) @wudanyan. She’s one of those wicked smaht people who breaks things down and makes things supah approachable and, damn, maybe you can make a go of it, too.

She’s a Seattle-based journalist and co-host of The Writer’s Co-op, a business podcast for writers. Wudan got internet famous for a blog post she wrote about chasing late fees for the $5,000 she was owed. Unfortunately this is the ugly side of freelancing, chasing late payments like Pac-Man on a ghost.

Instead of me linking up to so much of her incredible work, just go here and dig in. Get some coffee. Pour in some delicious vegan creamer into your coffee (I prefer Oatly’s barista creamer) and settle in for some world-class journalism, bruh.

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Episode 207: Every Story is a Workshop with Roy Peter Clark

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, created by writers for writers.

By Brendan O’Meara

In this conversation, Roy Peter Clark, author of Murder Your Darlings: And Other Gentle Writing Advice from Aristotle to Zinsser (Little, Brown), he says, “Every story is a workshop.”

What a great way to approach reading and writing. I love it.

Roy is the author of several books on writing including Writing Tools, The Glamour of Grammar, Writing Short, Help! for Writers, and The Art of X-Ray Reading.

In this episode we talk about a deep dive he took on a 19-year-old college freshman’s brilliant story of a man washing the stain of blood from the sidewalk after a killing.

There’s lots of great stuff I know you’ll dig in this episode, so I’ll leave you to it.

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Episode 206: Neal Bascomb on Deep Research, Failed Novels, and Locking into Nonfiction

By Brendan O’Meara

Hey there, CNFers! How are you? You hanging in there? That’s good. Keep wearing a mask.

For Episode 206, I welcome Neal Bascomb, author of Faster: How a Jewish Driver, an American Heiress, and a Legendary Car Beat Hitler’s Best (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020). It’s a great read. I really loved the characters.

In this episode we also talk about his soiree in novel writing and how writing four failed novels put him on the path he’s on now. We talk about his approach to research and how he organizes is. Lots of great stuff here.

I hope ya dig.

As always, be sure to subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts and if you’re feeling kind, leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts.

Keep the conversation going on social media by pinging the show @CNFPod on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. And if this show means anything to you and your circle of CNFers, please share it. This only spreads hand to hand.

Books by Neal Bascomb

The Racecars
The Escape Artists
The Winter Fortress
The Perfect Mile
Hunting Eichman
Red Mutiny
The New Cool
Higher

Episode 205: The Art of Biography with Larry Tye

By Brendan O’Meara

Hello, there, CNFers, we’ve got the incredible biographer Larry Tye joining us in conversation.

He’s the author of Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020).

Larry has written several biographies including ones on Satchel Paige, Super Man (!), and Bobby Kennedy, you know, your average ditch diggers.

In this episode we talk about book proposals, his approach to organizing his notes, and how being a reporter was like being in a “candy store.” Good, good stuff.

I had a lot of fun, and I hope you do, too.

If you’re feeling, leave a review on Apple Podcasts and consider signing up for the monthly newsletter. And keep the conversation going on social media. @CNFPod on Twitter, IG, and Facebook.

Episode 204: Peter Brown Hoffmeister on Self-Control, Internal Drive and Regret in Memoir

By Brendan O’Meara

Hey, there, CNFers, Peter Brown Hoffmeister returns to the show!

Peter is the author of the memoir The End of Boys and the novels Too Shattered for Mending and This is the Part Where You Laugh.

He’s also the creator of the new podcast Boring is a Swear Word, and it is a great listen. It’s not an interview show. It’s these little riffs, poems, and essays from his life. I highly recommend adding it to your podcast feed.

Speaking of podcasts, I’ve re-started the Casualty of Words feed. John Steinbeck had journals for his novels. I have a podcast to document the process and what you might glean from my rewrites. So you could say John Steinbeck was doing what I’m doing.

Anyway …

In this episode, we talk about:

Role models
Internal drive
Self-control
Taking in art to reach greater depth
Regret in memoir
And he reads a poem!

As you know, keep the conversation chugging @CNFPod across all the social networks. And if your work needs that kick in the pants, I’d be honored to serve you and your work. Email me and we’ll start a dialogue to whip that manuscript into the shape it deserves.

Episode 200: Nick Flynn as Bewilderment

By Brendan O’Meara

In our conversation, Nick Flynn, author of Another Bullshit Night in Suck City and Stay: Threads, Conversations and Collaborations, says, “There’s a certain perverse pleasure in writing a memoir because it’s a bastardized genre. It’s a little bit of the Wild West. I mean, it’s filled with charlatans, posers, and huge egos. It’s a weird genre. It doesn’t have the cachet that the novel has. There’s a bit of a carnival atmosphere to it, which I was attracted to.”

So, you know, there’s that to look forward to.

This is episode 2-0-0 of CNF, the creative nonfiction podcast where I speak to badass people about the art and craft of telling true stories. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and be sure to keep the conversation going on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Tagging me and the show will let me jump in the fire with you.

I’d love to know your takeaways?

What resonated with you?

What inspired you?

Here’s to the next 200 of these things.

Also, the newsletter is where it’s at. Here’s a sample, and you can always subscribe in the form below, or the smaht bah up top, or even the pop up that’ll come on the screen.

Episode 199: Keith Law’s ‘Inside Game’

By Brendan O’Meara

I had the pleasure of hosting the great Keith Law (@keithlaw) on the show for Episode 199. He’s the author of Inside Game: Bad Calls, Strange Moves, and What Baseball Behavior Teaches Us About Ourselves (William Morrow, 2020).

In our conversation, he says, “One of the big takeaways throughout the book is get more data.”

Keith is also the author of Smart Baseball: The Story Behind the Old Stats That Are Ruining the Game, the New Ones That Are Running It, and the Right Way to Think about Baseball (William Morrow, 2017).

I loved Inside Game and had a nice time speaking with Keith about his voracious reading habit, his penchant for board games, where analytics are heading, and lots, lots more.

This isn’t a conversation deep on baseball, believe it or not. Though he did tell me why it’s best to bat your best hitter No. 2 in the lineup and why RBIs are a misleading statistic.

Be sure to subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts and be sure to sign up for monthly newsletter below. Lots of reading recommendations and what you might have missed from the world of the podcast. Keep the conversation going on Twitter, IG, and Facebook.

As always, I hope I made something worth sharing, so if you dig the show, pass it along to the others.

Episode 198: Rani Shah — Blue High Heels, Dude Hats, and Wisdom from a Humble Jellyfish

By Brendan O’Meara

Rani Shah is the mastermind behind the beautiful, fun, and quirky book Wisdom from a Humble Jellyfish: And Other Self-Care Rituals from Nature (Dey St., 2020).

Lots of fun speaking to Rani about how her parents nurtured her creative side, but were worried about she’d make a career out of creative work.

We talk about day jobs, imposter syndrome, growth/fixed mindsets, power heels, and dude hats.

She’s the founder of Fuss Class, a south Asian satire site. Very Onion-esque. Rani hangs out on Instagram @raanstermonster. She came to play ball.

I think you’ll have fun with this one and I’d love to hear from you if you did. Email the show and ping us on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.

We need more submissions to our first ever audio magazine. The theme is Social Distancing: Essays from Isolation. 2,000 words/15-minute read. Deadline is MAY 1. Email your essay with SUBMISSION in the subject line to creativenonfictionpodcast at gmail dot com. I can’t wait to hear what you come up with.

Questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out. This a community. We’re in this mess together. Share this episode with your people and encourage them to share it to. If you don’t feel the need to share it, then I’ve failed at making something remarkable. And I’ll keep working harder and harder so that it continues to earn your endorsement and, more importantly, your valuable time.

Episode 197: Eva Holland — Coping by Going into Reporter Mode

By Brendan O’Meara

Eva Holland returns to the show after a long, long absence.

In this episode, you’ll hear some of the advanced advice she knows and wants to know regarding freelancing, the nexus of memoir and deep reportage, participatory antics, and overcoming the imposter syndrome of stepping out of her comfort zone.

I’m hesitant to include or first interview because it is a rough production. Eva was great. Me on the other hand …

In any case, Eva has a new book out called Nerve: Adventures in the Science of Fear (The Experiment, 2020) and it is a trip.

“I knew right away I would be writing about my mom’s death. I knew that immediately,” Eva told me, and that was what triggered a years’ long journey into fear and her relationship to it.

Follow the show @CNFPod on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Email the show with questions or kind words creativenonfictionpodcast@gmail.com. If this show means something to you, please consider leaving a kind review on Apple Podcasts.

Episode 196: How to Be Fine with Jolenta Greenberg and Kristen Meinzer

By Brendan O’Meara

Man, this was fun, CNFers. We’ve got Jolenta Greenberg (@JolentaG) and Kristen Meinzer (@kristenmeinzer) in the CNFin’ house.

They are the co-hosts of By the Book, a podcast where they read a self-help book, follow its “recipes,” and report back. It’s a great show and the inspiration for their book, How to Be Fine: What We Learned from Living by the Rules of 50 Self-Help Books (Willam Morrow, 2020).

I think this episode pairs well with Austin Kleon, Jeff Goins, Chase Jarvis, and maybe a little Allison Fallon.

So many great insights about negative self-talk, what they feel is fundamentally lacking in most self-help books, and how to ultimately be kinder to yourself.

This book comes at a good time because things are rough. Things are topsy-turvy. We need people like Jolenta and Kristen doing their thing and thankfully their work is out there for us.

As you know, you can keep in touch on social media by following the show @CNFPod wherever. Also, if you’re feeling kind, consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Share this show if it means something to you. We’d be honored if you did.

[Again, no art because my website host hasn’t fixed the issue yet.]

First of the month. No spam. Can’t beat it!

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Books by Neal Bascomb

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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.

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.