Episodes

  • Sylvia Plath, Mental Health, & Writing Fiction with Lee Kravetz

    Sylvia Plath, Mental Health, & Writing Fiction with Lee Kravetz
    Jan 28 2022
    * Lee Kravetz is author of the acclaimed nonfiction, Strange Contagion and SuperSurvivors. He has written for print and television, including The New York Times, New York Magazine, The Atlantic, Psychology Today, The Daily Beast, The San Francisco Chronicle, and PBS. Lee’s new book is a work of fiction, his novel The Last Confessions of Sylvia P. * The Last Confessions of Sylvia P. is told through three unique interwoven narratives that build on one another, reimagining a chapter in the life of the poet and novelist Sylvia Plath, telling the story behind the creation of her classic, The Bell Jar. * Lee gave an introduction to Plath, explaining that she was best known as a poet, until The Bell Jar, her semi-autobiographical novel about struggles with mental illness, became a huge posthumous success. * Podcast host Matthew Félix asked Lee about his decision to transition from nonfiction to fiction, including pushback he got initially from his agent—and why he persisted in spite of it. * Matthew and Lee discussed the challenges he faced as a man writing from the perspective of three first-person women narrators, as well as the challenges of effectively weaving together three stories taking place at different times. * One of the novel's main story lines entails a rivalry between a fictional poet and Sylvia Plath. Lee spoke about his decision to build much of the story around that rivalry, as well as the process of creating both characters and the rivalry itself. * Lee, who has a background in psychotherapy, explained the role of mental illness both in Plath's work and his novel. Matthew also asked Lee about the role Sylvia and other poets in the Confessional Poetry moment played in opening society to discussions about mental health. * Lee addressed the commonly held belief that there is a correlation between being "crazy" and creativity. * Lee elaborated on the notion, expressed by one of the characters in the novel, that insight into the past—while often considered essential to resolving mental health issues—can also trap a person there. * Matthew and Lee explored two other recurring themes of the book: the importance of objects and our relationships with them, and the notion that people's lives often come full circle. * Regarding craft, Lee shared his thoughts on and approach to writing suspense, pacing, and more. * The Last Confessions of Sylvia P. is out March 8.
    Show More Show Less
    57 mins
  • Storytelling with "Story Power" Author Kate Farrell

    Storytelling with "Story Power" Author Kate Farrell
    Jan 14 2022
    * A graduate of the School of Library and Information Studies, UC Berkeley, Kate Farrell has been a language arts classroom teacher, an author, a librarian, a university lecturer, and a storyteller since 1966. She founded the Word Weaving Storytelling Project, and she has published numerous educational materials on the art of storytelling. Kate edited the anthology, Wisdom Has a Voice: Every Daughter’s Memories of Mother, and co-edited two others: Times They Were A-Changing: Women Remember the ’60s & 70s and Cry of the Nightbird: Writers Against Domestic Violence. She is past president of the San Francisco Chapter of the Women’s National Book Association and a presenter for the San Francisco Writers Conference. * Podcast host Matthew Félix asked Kate about the importance of stories. He also asked about the history of oral storytelling, as well as the resurgence it has enjoyed since the 1970s. * Kate explained the difference between telling a story orally and writing it down, highlighting the role that a live audience has as cocreator in the experience. She also discussed how storytelling foments change, both for the audience and the storyteller themselves. * Storytelling is not just for the stage, but also has practical, day-to-day applications, as illustrated by three types of stories: defining, signature, and personal branding, which Matthew and Kate discussed. * Kate explained the benefits of having a repertoire of stories at the ready for different circumstances. * Kate shared ways of gathering stories, as well as how to choose which ones might best be suited to storytelling. * Matthew asked Kate about the features essential to every story, and they reviewed the seven steps to preparing a story to be told—Kate emphasizing that stories should not be memorized. * Kate shared key things to keep in mind while performing, including important aspects of vocalization and the importance of making eye contact with the audience. * Matthew asked Kate about what she referred to as the cutting edge of storytelling: weaving or braiding archetypes with personal narratives. Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube   Links https://katefarrell.net/
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 6 mins
  • Travel, Travel Writing, & 108 Beloved Objects with Jeff Greenwald

    Travel, Travel Writing, & 108 Beloved Objects with Jeff Greenwald
    Nov 25 2021

    * Jeff Greenwald is a photojournalist, author, and stage performer whose experiences in Asia have framed his style of travel writing. His six books include the best-selling Shopping for Buddhas (recently republished in a 25th anniversary edition), The Size of the World (for which he created the first international travel blog), and Snake Lake, a travel memoir set in Kathmandu, Nepal during the 1990 democracy revolution. Jeff’s stories and essays have appeared in print and online publications worldwide, including Smithsonian, Afar, Outside, The New York Times, National Geographic-Adventure and Wired. His critically acclaimed solo stage show, Strange Travel Suggestions, has played to sold-out houses since 2003.

    * Podcast host Matthew Felix and Jeff talked about travel, including why we do it, how it has changed, and how it might be impacted long-term by the pandemic.

    * Jeff is co-founder of Ethical Traveler, an international community dedicated to defending human rights and protecting the environment. He talked about the organization, the difference between travel and tourism, and the ethics of getting on a plane today, given the environmental implications. He also shared why he is hopeful about post-pandemic travel.

    * Matthew asked Jeff about his start in travel writing, as well as the place of the travel writer today, given the preponderance of travel blogs and Instagram. Jeff also shared his thoughts on the challenges of making money as a travel writer.

    * Jeff recently published "108 Beloved Objects," a book and visual art project centered around the theme of "Letting Go of Stuff, Keeping Our Stories." Jeff explained the project's concept, including the challenges of and what is to be learned from giving up objects that are dear to us.

    * Readers of the book can write Jeff to request one of the 108 objects. Jeff shared his thoughts on some of the requests he has received to date.

    * Jeff shared why he published "108 Beloved Objects" independently, and what he learned from the process.

     

    Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer

    Watch on YouTube

     

    Links

    www.108objects.com

    www.facebook.com/jeffji
    Show More Show Less
    56 mins
  • The Tarot, Creativity, & Kickstarter with Elisabeth Kauffman

    The Tarot, Creativity, & Kickstarter with Elisabeth Kauffman
    Oct 29 2021
    * Elisabeth Kauffman is the Marketing Director for the San Francisco Writers Conference, as well as an independent editor, an author, and an artist. She edits fiction and memoir for independent clients as well as for publishing companies, and she coaches writers on finding their voices and connecting to the magic in their creative lives. Elisabeth offers workshops for local writing groups on topics such as using tarot in the drafting and revising process and tapping your creative potential through visual arts. * Podcast host Matthew Felix and Elisabeth discussed creativity, including how and why Elisabeth believes it is an act of self-love, tips for getting unstuck creatively, dealing with impostor syndrome, and more. * Elisabeth recently published a tarot deck and book, Lunaria , to help authors and other creatives connect with their creativity. * Elisabeth shared some of the history of the tarot, how she got interested, and why she decided to develop her own deck, in collaboration with visual artist Jennifer Gerhart. * Elisabeth described how she adapted the traditional tarot deck to one tailored to the needs of writers, including replacing the traditional arcana (e.g., Cups became Inkwells), making the deck gender neutral (e.g., Knights became Apprentices), and associating each major arcana card with a famous writer. * Elisabeth explained specific ways in which writers can use the cards for insight and inspiration. * Lunaria was funded by a Kickstarter project. Elisabeth described her experience with Kickstarter, including lessons learned from not funding the first time around and recommendations for other creatives considering using Kickstarter to fund their own initiatives.   Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube   Links www.writingrefinery.com www.facebook.com/elisabeth.kauffman.731 www.instagram.com/fairbetty/   Title The Tarot, Creativity, & Kickstarter with Elisabeth Kauffman   Keywords tarot, creativity, kickstarter, funding, writing process
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 2 mins
  • Writing to Survive & Building Worlds with Charlie Jane Anders

    Writing to Survive & Building Worlds with Charlie Jane Anders
    Oct 14 2021
    * Charlie Jane Anders is the author of The City in the Middle of the Night and All the Birds in the Sky. Her fiction and journalism have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, McSweeney's, Mother Jones, Tor.com, Wired, and elsewhere. Her TED Talk, "Go Ahead, Dream About the Future" got 700,000 views in its first week. Along with Annalee Newitz, she co-hosts the podcast Our Opinions Are Correct. Charlie Jane will be a keynote speaker at the 2022 San Francisco Writers Conference. * Charlie Jane talked about two books that she has published recently: the nonfiction "Never Say You Can’t Survive" and the young adult fiction, "Victories Greater than Death."  * "Never Say You Can’t Survive" is "a mixture of encouragement, ideas for how to use writing to feel OK in a world that’s not OK, and actual technical advice on stuff like characts, plot, and worldbuilding." * Podcast host Matthew Felix and Charlie Jane discussed many of the topics in the book, including how to strike the right balance between outlining and allowing for spontaneous creativity; the challenge writers sometimes have in giving themselves permission to write; imagination as a form of resistance; and navigating the challenge of representing without appropriating. * Matthew and Charlie Jane talked about impostor syndrome and how to get beyond it. * Charlie Jane talked about the art of worldbuilding (i.e., creating fictional worlds), and how daydreaming, researching the past, and more can help with the process. * She also elaborated on an observation she made in her Tedx talk that “the world ends all the time, and we keep going.” * "Victories Greater than Death" is about a young woman - a clone - who is the keeper of an interplanetary rescue beacon that is about to activate, making her dreams of saving all the worlds and adventuring among the stars possible. * Charlie Jane explained the challenges of writing a young adult novel, including finding the right pace and voice. She also discussed how she knew this book was just the first in a trilogy, as well as the book's exploration of gender identity.  * Charlie Jane talked about the worldbuilding that went into "Victories Greater than Death," the challenges of writing the forthcoming second book in the series, and the possibility of returning to this world for other books. * Charlie Jane shared the future of her popular San Francisco reading series, Writers with Drinks.   Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube   Links www.charliejaneanders.com www.facebook.com/charliejane www.instagram.com/charliejaneanders/
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Litquake! with co-founder Jack Boulware and Home Baked's Alia Volz

    Litquake! with co-founder Jack Boulware and Home Baked's Alia Volz
    Oct 1 2021
    * Litquake is an annual literary festival started in 1999 in San Francisco that has since spread to cities throughout the country and abroad. The festival consists of readings, discussions, and themed events. Since its inception more than 10,000 authors and 250,000 attendees have participated in the festival. * Event co-founder Jack Boulware shared the origins of the festival and how it has grown over time. * Jack was joined by Home Baked author Alia Volz. Podcast host Matthew Felix, Jack, and Alia talked about the challenges for writers and other creatives, as well as literary organizations in an ever-changing San Francisco. * Jack explained how Litquake had pivoted in light of the pandemic, including going all online last year, and holding both virtual and in-person events for this year's festival. * Jack shared some of the authors participating in the festival, whether virtually or in-person, including Dave Eggers, Isabel Allende, Ingrid Rojas Contreras, Tommy Orange, Danny Trejo, and many others. * Alia talked about the two days of panels that she has organized, one day focused on craft, one on business. * Matthew asked Jack about some of Litquake's programs, including Kidquake, their Elder Project, and their most recent addition, Litquake Out Loud, which is focused on amplifying underrepresented voices. * Alia explained Litquake's closing night event, LitCrawl, akin to a "literary pub crawl" around San Francisco's Mission District, and Matthew shared a few of the events that caught his attention. * Litquake takes place October 7 - 23. * More info at litquake.org.   Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube   Links https://litquake.org/
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 9 mins
  • Fact, Fiction, & Finding Napoleon with Historical Fiction Author Margaret Rodenberg

    Fact, Fiction, & Finding Napoleon with Historical Fiction Author Margaret Rodenberg
    Sep 17 2021
    * Margaret Rosenberg has journeyed more than 30,000 miles to conduct Napoleonic research, including to St. Helena Island in the remote South Atlantic. She is director of the Napoleonic Historical Society, a non-profit that promotes knowledge of the Napoleonic era, and on her website, margaretrodenberg.com, she reports on Napoleon’s ongoing presence in world culture. * Margaret's new novel, Finding Napoleon, was inspired by Napoleon's real-life unfinished novel, which Margaret first learned about twenty years ago. * Margaret shared the origins of her interest in Napoleon, and she explained to podcast host Matthew Félix why Napoleon continues to be revered by some, reviled by others. * Margaret explained that rather than in the soldier and politician, she was more interested in Napoleon the man, and what sort of research she did to find out who he was. * Matthew and Margaret discussed key themes in the book, including Napoleon's relationship with slavery, his love of children, and his ability to forgive those who betrayed him. * Asked about craft, Margaret explained her choice to write part of the book from the first-person perspective of one of the characters and the other part—Napoleon's story—in the third person. She also discussed the challenges of writing a novel within a novel. * Margaret shared how travel revealed to her the driving force for the novel. * Matthew asked Margaret about a well-known myth about Napoleon, which she debunks in the book—and the dubious origins of that myth.   Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube
    Show More Show Less
    58 mins
  • Magic of Memoir with Memoirist and NAMW President Linda Joy Meyers

    Magic of Memoir with Memoirist and NAMW President Linda Joy Meyers
    Sep 3 2021
    * Linda Joy Myers is president and founder of the National Association of Memoir Writers. Her memoir Don’t Call Me Mother—A Daughter’s Journey from Abandonment to Forgiveness was a Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award finalist and winner of the BAIPA Gold Medal award. She’s also the author of five books about memoir writing, including two she co-authored with Brooke Warner. * Linda Joy shared how an early interest in memory and her family history eventually led to her interest in memoir. * Linda discussed the history of memoir as a genre and talked about current trends. * Linda Joy talked about the healing that can come from writing memoir, as well as how to ensure that a memoir also resonates with the reader. * Linda Joy offered specific advice for authors undertaking their own memoirs, including how to get started; she also touched on pitfalls to avoid. * In their teaching and writing, Linda Joy and Brooke don't focus only a memoir but, more specifically, memoir for women. Host Matthew Félix asked Linda Joy how writing memoir differed for women versus men. * In response to a recent "kerfuffle" in the New York Times, Linda Joy discussed the conference she and Brooke have organized, designed to address some of the key issues facing women memoirists, including what topics women can write about and expressing anger. * The Women Writing Memoir conference begins 10/4 and takes place weekly for six weeks.   Listen here or on: iTunes | Stitcher | Spotify | Google | TuneIn | Amazon | Player FM | Deezer Watch on YouTube   Links https://lindajoymyersauthor.com/ https://www.namw.org/ https://magicofmemoir.com/
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr