essays – Home of The Creative Nonfiction Podcast

Episode 378: Steven Moore

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I feel like I don’t understand an essay until I’ve ready it a few times.
Steve Moore, Ep. 378

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By Brendan O’Meara

Look who came back! It’s Steven Moore! He’s the author of The Distance from Slaughter County: Lessons from Flyover Country (UNC Press). Growing up in Iowa and spending the last several years on the west coast — many in Oregon — Steven toggles between when it meant to grow up in the midwest and the view from afar.

His essays range from riffs on the sitcom “Home Improvement,” Blockbuster Video, Shania Twain, Garth Brooks, and political coverage of a state that had voted for Obama, then flipped, you know, the other way.

Steven also is the author of The Longer We Were There: A Memoir of a Part-Time Soldier, which won the AWP Award for Creative Nonfiction.

In this episode we talk about:

Episode 358: Erica J. Berry

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By Brendan O’Meara

Look who’s back! It’s Erica J. Berry (@ericajberry) and she’s here to talk about Wolfish: Wolf, Self, and the Stories We Tell About Fear (Flatiron Books).

Erica came on the show back in 2017 (I shudder to think of the audio) and it’s worth revisiting, and it’s nice that nearly six years later her work has evolved so greatly that we now get to talk about her magnificent book.

In this episode, we talk about:

Episode 353: Isaac Fitzgerald

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By Brendan O’Meara

Are you holding onto a railing? OK, good, Isaac Fitzgerald (@IsaacFitzgerald) is here, CNFers! He’s the author of the incredible memoir-in-essays Dirtbag, Massachusetts: A Confessional (Bloomsbury).

Isaac is a frequent contributor on The Today Show, offering book recommendations to the masses. His CV has The Rumpus, McSweeney’s, BuzzFeed Books, among others. He’s also the author of How to be a Pirate, Pen and Ink, and Knives and Ink.

Episode 347: Emily Fox Kaplan

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By Brendan O’Meara

It’s been a long time since we featured a writer from the Pipe Wrench Magazine roster, so it was it nice to welcome Emily Fox Kaplan to CNF Pod HQ to talk about her piece “Searching for Zarahemla.”

It’s a trippy travel piece that has a very David Foster Wallace vibe to it, though Emily hasn’t read any DFW. Just as well. Far be it from me to be a the bro to say, ‘You gotta read him.’

But read his tennis writing …

Episode 344: Rachel Dickinson

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By Brendan O’Meara

Rachel Dickison is here to talk about her new book The Loneliest Places: Loss, Grief, and the Long Journey Home. It’s is published by Three Hills Press.

No way to sugar coat what this book deals with: Rachel’s son Jack died by suicide in 2012. He was 17. And this book stays within the boundaries of Rachel’s experience, her headspace, her grief.

Yes, her three daughters and her husband were deeply affected by this tragedy, but you won’t hear from them much, not really until the end of the book where Rachel interrogates her selfishness and withdrawal and, in some cases, abandonment. It would be easy to judge Rachel in this book, even her editor wondered how “likeable” she was as a character and that speaks to how honest Rachel was about her processing of this unthinkable experience.

This is something I’ve never done before, but I think it should be brought up, as I have heard other podcasts do this. If you or someone you know is dealing with suicidal thoughts and may harm themselves, call or text 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988. This will route people to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline where they can speak with a trained counselor.

Episode 288: And the Category Is … Ricky Tucker!

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By Brendan O’Meara

Ricky Tucker (@Rick_Tuck_Lit) is a writer, teacher, and voguer. That last one is significant because he’s the author of And the Category Is … : Inside New York’s Vogue, House, and Ballroom Community (Beacon Press).

In it, Ricky takes us into the subculture of ballroom and refuge and freedom it provided the LGBTQ+ community. In this conversation we talk about the fine line between appreciation and appropriation, house mothers and fathers, finding family, writing as service, and how Ricky found his way to being a writer.

Episode 286: Jen Winston on Essay Collection as Memoir

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Sponsor love: West Virginia Wesleyan College’s MFA in Creative Writing

By Brendan O’Meara

This was a treat, getting to speak with Jen Winston, the debut author behind Greedy: Notes from a Bisexual Who Wants Too Much (Atria).

In this episode we talk about:

Episode 277: Allison K. Williams Talks Planned Practice, Living a Writer’s Life, and Her New Craft Book ‘Seven Drafts’

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By Brendan O’Meara

Allison K. Williams is back! (@guerillamemoir) She is here to talk about her incredible new craft book Seven Drafts: Self-Edit Like a Pro from Blank Page to Book, a book that digs into the nitty gritty of editing.

What is so great about this book is you can be a seasoned, skilled writer/editor and this book will level you up. The book is a gift, and so too is Allison.

She’s the 2021 Literary Citizen of the Year for Hippocamp. She’s also the social media editor (?) for Brevity Magazine, and many of her craft essays for Brevity are adapted in Seven Drafts. Dig it.

In any case, we dig into lots of stuff about editing, story holes, retyping entire manuscripts, and what it means to cultivate a “writer’s life.”

Consider supporting the podcast and the audio magazine by heading to Patreon.com/cnfpod. There, you can earn transcripts, coaching, editing, and get exclusive access to the audio magazine.

Call for submissions: Heroes CLOSED TO SUBMISSIONS

By Brendan O’Meara

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It’s that time!

For Issue 3 of the audio magazine, the theme is HEROES. Hero worship. Hero sandwiches. Fallen idols. Should you meet your heroes? Superheroes. Is Batman a superhero? HEROES!

I want your best essays on heroes. Essays are meant to be read aloud and should be no longer than 2,000 words.

Email with HERO in the subject line your best essay to creativenonfictionpodcast at gmail dot com.

Deadline is Nov. 1, 2021! DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 31, 2021

This issue, like Issue 2, is available to members of the Patreon community. This is what allows me to pay writers for their work should I accept their essays.

If you like what we’re doing with the interview product, as well as the audio magazine, then please become a member. Check it out: patreon.com/cnfpod.

Episode 256: G’Ra Asim and His Mixtape to His Brother ‘Boyz in the Void’

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By Brendan O’Meara

G’Ra Asim is the author of Boyz in the Void: A mixtape to my brother (Beacon Press). He’s @notjadedpunk on Instagram.

He’s a punk rocker and a killer spinner of yarns. It’s a fantastic book on “navigating Blackness, masculinity, and young adulthood: all through wry social commentary and a music/pop culture critique.

We talk a lot about the DIY nature of art, punk rock, straight-edge culture and why he chose to write this book to his younger brother.

Strap in for a fun one, CNFers.

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Brendan’s Monthly Newsletter: First of the month! No spam! Can’t beat it!