Guess who’s back? It’s Chip Scanlan (@chipscanlan), and he’s here to talk about 33 Ways to Not Screw Up Your Journalism.
It’s a zippy little book that uses contemporary examples that point out blindspots in our reporting and writing and help us fix them for the next day’s work, the next piece.
He hopped on the pod for Ep. 292 about his book Writers on Writing, which is a multi-vitamin of inspiration and writing tips. Actionable to boot.
Continue reading “Episode 316: Chip Scanlan”
Tad Friend (@tadfriend) needs little introduction, but here it goes: He’s a staff writer for The New Yorker and has written some of my favorite pieces. There’s the profile on Bryan Cranston, Master Class, and Impossible Foods.
Most recently, he’s the author of the memoir In the Early Times: A Life Reframed (Crown). In it, Tad tries to better understand his father, but comes to grips with his own role as a father and husband, a writer and … squash player. It’s a wonderful book, but, then again, did you expect anything less?
Tad also is the author of Cheerful Monday: Me, My Family, and the Last Days of Wasp Splendor as well as the collection Lost in Mongolia: Travels in Hollywood and other Foreign Lands.
In this episode we talk about structure, tension, reporting and running toward the doom. Lots of great stuff to unpack and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Continue reading “Episode 315: Tad Friend”
Sponsor: Athletic Greens, athleticgreens.com/EMERGING
Listen … just discovered “Top Chef” (don’t judge) on account of Peacock.
I’ve always been inspired by chefs and how they go about the work. When I was watching “Chopped” several years ago, I remember one chef talking about how he was on onion duty in the kitchen. And instead of lamenting it, he vowed to be the best damn cutter of onions. It’s a great attitude, something we can all heed.
The parallels between high-level cooking and writing are similar. We started with Season 18, Top Chef: Portland. Why? Well, we live in Oregon so we jumped into that, spoilers of past winners be damned.
And in the first episode, Richard Blais, restaurateur and one of the judges told the chefs to have “authorship” of their dishes. Another, Melissa King, said you have to “edit” your plates and choose what to leave on the plate and what to leave off.
Sound familiar?
Continue reading “Episode 314: How ‘Top Chef’ Can Help Your Writing”
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Katia Savchuk speaks fluent Russian. She went to Harvard. She went to the Columbia School of Journalism. She’s written for The New Yorker, The Washington Post, Forbes and … The Atavist!
And that’s what brings Katia (@katiasav) to the podcast this week as we talk about her piece “A Crime Beyond Belief.” It’s an incredible feat of reporting, writing, structure, tension, all the things.
We talk about her Talk of the Town in a recent issue of The New Yorker, “Vlog of War.” We talk about how her viral tweet got her grandmother and father out of Kyiv.
My 94 yo grandmother, a Holocaust survivor, is trapped in her Kyiv apartment with my father. She can’t really walk, and he can’t drive due to a disability. If anyone knows of any resources that can help with evacuation, please let me know.
— Katia Savchuk (@katiasav) March 5, 2022
A rare instance of social media doing some good in this world.
Anyway …
We also talk about tape recorders, empathy, organization, it’s a great chat.
The show’s Instagram handle, @creativenonfictionpodcast, and you can always keep the conversation going on Twitter @CNFPod.
And you know I’d rather you sign up for my rage-against-the-algorithm, Up-to-11 Newsletter. Here’s the latest. 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. I just paid out the writers from the last audio magazine. 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.
Ever have a dog that fundamentally changed the course of your life? One who disrupted just about everything you knew about dogs and about yourself and about your marriage?
Meredith May has the book for you in Loving Edie: How a Dog Afraid of Everything Taught Me to be Brave (Park Row Books).
Meredith thought she knew just about all there was to know about raising a golden retriever puppy, but Edie came along and showed everyone that dogs are very much individuals and sometimes we have to accommodate them. They don’t always integrate neatly into our lives.
Great book. You might also like The Honey Bus, her 2019 memoir about her grandfather and bees and so much more.
In this conversation, we talk about writing community, lifting people up, opening doors, changing expectations around dogs, the privilege of being able to afford the care some need, and lots more.
Continue reading “Episode 312: Meredith May”
Jane Friedman came back, CNFers!
She’s practically running a school for writers with the incredible offerings she has over at janefriedman.com. If you want to be a better writer and, more importantly, have a greater understanding of what it means to marry your art with commerce, Jane’s work is required.
Though we didn’t delve into book proposals, a CNFin’ faux pas if there ever was one (my b), but I had taken a book proposal refresher with her as part of Creative Nonfiction Magazine’s offerings. She’s a pro. (@janefriedman)
So we dig into plenty of stuff that’s germane to your journey like author platform, building a newsletter audience, social media (and its trappings) and the tension you can glean from a show like Better Call Saul.
Continue reading “Episode 311: Jane Friedman”
photo “courtesy” of CNN.com
Become a Patron!This is the way.
The Mandalorian and his kind live by a simple code, always punctuated by saying “This is the way.”
What codes do you live by? What codes were you at one time or another TOLD to live by? Do you admire codes and singular devotion, or do you feel unfairly shackled to a way of life? Has a code led you to the right path or down the wrong? Capt. Fantastic (“Power to the people. Stick it to the man.”) lived by a code, but it put his several children at odds with the world and nearly paralyzed one child.
Essays should be no longer than 2,000 words (a 15-minute read, bear in mind that, in the end, these are audio essays. Write accordingly.). Email submissions with CODE in the subject line to creativenonfictionpodcast at gmail dot com. Original, previously unpublished work only, please.
There is cash on the line, so send me your best, fully formed pieces and consider becoming a patron to help put money in the coffers that helps put money in the pockets of writers.
DEADLINE: Oct. 31, 2022. CLOSED!
Simultaneous submissions are fine, but if your piece is accepted elsewhere or you’re holding out for a more “prestigious” publication, please let me know ASAP as I read these essays very closely and even give rejected essays detailed notes for improvement.
This is the way.
It’s not often this show features stone-cold, bad ass editors. But that’s what we bring you today. I’m sure Leah Flickinger (@LeahFlickinger) will recoil at the remark, but it’s true.
She has edited pieces that made their way to Best American Sports Writing, won the National Magazine Award, and, oh, by the way, the Pulitzer Prize.
Yeah, that thing.
That was “Twelve Minutes and a Life” by Mitchell S. Jackson about the life and murder of Ahmaud Arbery. Leah edited Kim H. Cross’s incredible story “Leon + Noel” with the now-famous palindrome structure. (Don’t try this at home, kids).
So Leah is here to talk about how she developed these pieces and how she frames conversations with writers to get the most out of them and the pieces they’re working on.
Continue reading “Episode 310: Leah Flickinger”
The Atavist has dropped yet another blockbuster, “The Caregivers,” this by the filmmaker and journalist Kelly Loudenberg.
It’s a great piece that is tender and well-handled by Kelly.
We start this episode by speaking with Seyward Darby, editor-in-chief at the Atavist, about restraint and how writers have more in common with drummers than lead singers.
When Kelly takes the stage, we talk about how doc film influenced her journalism, how giving birth to a premature baby gave her an extra level of connection with the caretakers at the heart of this story, and how she goes about building scenes.
Consider subscribing to the Atavist so you get full access to the incredible work they’re doing month to month, year to year.
The show’s Instagram handle, @creativenonfictionpodcast, and you can always keep the conversation going on Twitter @CNFPod.
And you know I’d rather you sign up for my Up-to-11 Newsletter. Here’s the latest. 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. I just paid out the writers from the last audio magazine. 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.
By Brendan O’Meara
Hey CNFers, welcome to CNF Pod, the creative nonfiction podcast, the show where I usually speak to badass people about the art and craft of telling true stories. I say usually because this week I don’t have a guest.
Booooo…
Hey, hey, hey before you start hurling tomatoes up that the stage, hear me out. My guest this week wasn’t feeling good so we had to reschedule. You might be like, “BO, thought you had some of these in the can. Get your house in order.” And yes, in an ideal world I have a few in the can, but you’d be surprised how many of these interviews are done the week of and packaged soon thereafter.
I could’ve scrambled for a guest but I wanted to try something new. I don’t think this’ll be a regular thing in the podcast feed. I DO think it’ll be a normal thing for the Patreon crew so consider heading to patreon.com/cnfpod to support the podcast to get special podcasts like this one you’re about to hear.
So what’s the deal? In an effort to up the production value and to make the show seem a little bit more zippy, I’ve always been inspired by the structure of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Here are these episodes that focus on one guest, they film all day, so hours and hours of footage, for what, 15 minutes of final product? What must that edit be like?
Continue reading “Episode 308: The Year the Mountain of Manure Was Hit by a Flood”