R.O. Kwon is the author of the nationally bestselling novel The Incendiaries, which was named a best book of the year by more than forty publications. On today’s show, Annmarie and R.O. discuss her new book, Exhibit, an exhilarating novel that’

One of Our Kind with Nicola Yoon

21 days ago 45m 6s

Nicola Yoon is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Instructions for Dancing, Everything, Everything, and The Sun Is Also a Star, and she was the first Black woman to hit #1 on the New York Times Young Adult bestseller list. On today’s s

A Very Inconvenient Scandal with Jacquelyn Mitchard

May 28th, 2024 1h 4m

Jacquelyn Mitchard is the best-selling author of 23 books, including A Very Inconvenient Scandal, The Good Son, and The Deep End of the Ocean, which was the inaugural selection for Oprah Winfrey’s book club. In today’s episode, Jacquelyn and An

Briefly Perfectly Human with Alua Arthur

May 14th, 2024 42m 21s

Alua Arthur is the most visible and active death doula working in America today. She’s a recovering attorney and the founder of Going with Grace, a death doula training and end-of-life planning organization. Her TED Talk titled, “Why Thinking A

Writing for the Ear

Apr 30th, 2024 54m 53s

Today, we have something new. This past spring, Annmarie gathered with eight local writers to try a podcasting project. Over the course of six weeks together, they wrote side-by-side, saying YES to whatever stories arose. About friendship and l

Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghost with Crystal Wilkinson

Apr 16th, 2024 1h 3m

Crystal Wilkinson is the award-winning author of several books including Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks. She was Poet Laureate of Kentucky from 2021 to 2023, and currently tea

Broughtupsy with Christina Cooke

Apr 2nd, 2024 57m 21s

Christina Cooke was born in Jamaica and is now a Canadian citizen who lives and writes in New York City. BROUGHTUPSY is her debut novel. In today’s episode, Annmarie and Christina discuss cultural upbringings, the cruelty of children, the joys

The Familiar with Sarah Kain Gutowski

Mar 19th, 2024 59m 27s

Sarah Kain Gutowski is the author of Fabulous Beast and along with interdisciplinary artist Meredith Starr, she’s co-creator of Every Second Feels Like Theft, a conversation in cyanotypes and poems, and It's All Too Much, a limited edition podc

Faltas with Cecilia Gentili

Mar 5th, 2024 49m 47s

Originally from Argentina, Cecilia Gentili came to the U.S. pursuing a safer life as a transgender woman. She lived undocumented for 10 years. After surviving arrests and an immigration detention, she accessed recovery services and won asylum.

Splinters with Leslie Jamison

Feb 20th, 2024 1h 6m

Leslie Jamison has written two essay collections, The Empathy Exams and Make It Scream, Make It Burn. She also gained prominence for her critical memoir, The Recovering: Intoxication and Its Aftermath. She’s out now with a new book, Splinters,

Warrior Girl Unearthed with Angeline Boulley

Feb 6th, 2024 45m 55s

Angeline Boulley, an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, is a storyteller who writes about her Ojibwe community in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. She is a former Director of the Office of Indian Education at the U.S.

The Loneliness Files with Athena Dixon

Jan 23rd, 2024 54m 29s

Born and raised in Northeast Ohio, Athena Dixon is a poet, essayist, and editor. She is the author of The Loneliness Files, The Incredible Shrinking Woman, and No God In This Room, winner of the Intersectional Midwest Chapbook Contest. In this

Niksen: The Dutch Art of Doing Nothing with Olga Mecking

Jan 9th, 2024 49m 18s

Olga Mecking is a writer, journalist, and translator based in the Netherlands, and she’s the reporter who made Niksen (“doing nothing”) go viral. Her New York Times article on the subject was shared over 100,000 times. In this episode, Annmarie

When They Tell You to Be Good with Prince Shakur

Dec 26th, 2023 45m 43s

Prince Shakur’s debut memoir, When They Tell You to Be Good, is a political and personal exploration of his coming of age as a writer and activist. In this episode, Laura Maylene Walter talks to Prince Shakur about how race and identity shaped

The People Who Report More Stress with Alejandro Varela

Dec 12th, 2023 1h 1m

Alejandro Varela is the author of THE TOWN OF BABYLON, a finalist for the National Book Award, and THE PEOPLE WHO REPORT MORE STRESS, which The New York Times called “a master class in analyzing the unspoken” and praised Varela for shedding lig

I Fell in Love with Hope with Lou-Andrea Callewaert

Nov 28th, 2023 49m 40s

Lou-Andrea Callewaert was a chronically ill child who learned to write through her pain. She’s the author of I FELL IN LOVE WITH HOPE, the story of young hospital patients who support one another throughout their terminal diagnoses and promise

This Is Salvaged with Vauhini Vara

Nov 14th, 2023 54m 26s

Vauhini Vara’s debut novel, THE IMMORTAL KING RAO, has been published around the world, is being adapted for television, and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. She’s out now with a new story collection, THIS IS SALVAGED, which Lit Hub and E

Radiant Rebellion with Karen Walrond

Nov 2nd, 2023 54m 4s

Karen Walrond is the author of THE LIGHTMAKER’S MANIFESTO and THE BEAUTY OF DIFFERENT, and she’s out now with a new book, RADIANT REBELLION, in which she urges all of us to reexamine the myths and celebrate more of the opportunities of growing

The Heart of It All with Christian Kiefer

Oct 19th, 2023 51m 45s

Christian Kiefer is the director of the low-residency MFA at Ashland University. He’s the author of The Infinite Tides, The Animals, and Phantoms which was one of Kirkus Reviews and the BBC’s Best Books of 2019. And he’s out with a new novel, T

In Memoriam: Echo Brown

Oct 12th, 2023 44m 11s

On Sept. 16, 2023, one of our beloved guests, Echo Brown, passed away. We were incredibly saddened by the news, this is for her.Echo Brown’s recent memoir, THE CHOSEN ONE, examines the opportunities and costs of an Ivy League education, and th

The Leftover Woman with Jean Kwok

Oct 6th, 2023 44m 41s

Jean Kwok immigrated from Hong Kong to Brooklyn when she was five, where she lived with her family in an unheated, roach-infested apartment. Her 2010 book, GIRL IN TRANSLATION, is a fictionalized account of how Jean worked in a clothing factor

Alive at the End of the World with Saeed Jones

Sep 21st, 2023 48m 14s

Saeed Jones is a Pushcart Prize-winning writer whose first collection of poetry, PRELUDE TO BRUISE, was a 2014 finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. His 2019 memoir, HOW WE FIGHT FOR OUR LIVES, won the Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction

That’s a Hard No with Heather Drago

Sep 14th, 2023 30m 18s

Heather Drago is the Founder and Chief Strategist of Clever Girl Marketing and the host of the That’s a Hard No podcast. A recent cancer survivor, Heather has been on a journey lately of turning down situations, experiences, and people who do n

The Way Life Should Be with William Dameron

Sep 7th, 2023 43m 1s

In both fiction and memoir, William Dameron writes about coming out as a gay man, and what it might look like to start again with a great love affair in the second half of life. Dameron is the award-winning author of THE LIE, A MEMOIR OF TWO MA

Owner of a Lonely Heart with Beth Nguyen

Aug 24th, 2023 45m 53s

At the end of the Vietnam War, when Beth Nguyen was eight months old, she and her family fled Saigon for America, but Beth’s mother stayed behind. In this episode, Annmarie and Beth discuss OWNER OF A LONELY HEART, Beth’s recent memoir. They ta