Podcast appearances and mentions of Claire Vaye Watkins

La compañía Los Despiertos estrena A la fresca en Nave 10 de Matadero Madrid, con Pablo Rosal, Alberto Berzal, Israel Frías y Luis Rallo. La obra presenta a tres personajes en un hotel rural que acoge todo tipo de eventos, desde bodas hasta reuniones de empresa. Además, exploramos las nuevas caras de los Premios Goya con Laura Villalba y descubrimos la vuelta de Claire Vaye Watkins, autora publicada en España por Malas Tierras. Su primer libro, Nevada, y su nuevo memoir Te amo pero elegí la oscuridad, editado por El Gran Pez, la consolidan como una de las voces más prometedoras de la literatura actual. También celebramos la inauguración del Centro Danza Matadero, un espacio impulsado por el Ayuntamiento de Madrid y dirigido por María Pagés, que busca dignificar la danza en España al nivel de países como Francia o Alemania. El evento de apertura contará con el Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía, que presentará Pineda, comenzando con el Romance a Mariana. Con cerca de 500 butacas, este teatro se convierte en un hito para la danza en Madrid.Escuchar audio

Nerdette Book Club is back to discuss our November selection, ‘Land of Milk and Honey' by C Pam Zhang! It's a novel about survival, privilege, and seeking pleasure at the end of the world. Our readers this month are Aliza Abarbanel, co-founder and co-editor of ‘Cake Zine,' an independent print publication exploring society through sweets, and co-host of the podcast ‘This is TASTE,' and Miriam Kramer, news editor at WPLN in Nashville. We do get into spoilers in the conversation! If you're not ready to find out what happens yet, listen to our spoiler-free conversation with author C Pam Zhang in the feed first. P.S. We have an exciting announcement in the credits! Listen if you want to get started on your 2024 reading list!***Recommendations: ‘The Menu'‘Triangle of Sadness'‘The World Without Us' by Alan Weisman‘How Much of These Hills Is Gold' by C Pam Zhang‘Gold Fame Citrus' by Claire Vaye Watkins‘Breasts and Eggs' by Mieko Kawakami]]>

Battleborn by Claire Vaye Watkins (2012) VS Basin and Range by John McPhee (1981)

As a climate advocate, you want to stay well informed, up to date, and equipped in the work you do.  On today's show the Citizens Climate Radio Team willI help you do just that. In today's show they feature the newest and best books and podcasts related to climate advocacy. They also speak to the creators behind these excellent new resources.  Find a full transcript here: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/blog/podcast/episode-89-the-best-new-climate-change-books-and-podcasts/ New Nonfiction about Climate Change The Twenty-One, The True Story of the Youth Who Sued the U.S. Government over Climate Change by Elizabeth Rusch “I feel like we adults need kids to tell us the obvious, and the obvious is that all citizens do have a constitutional right to a stable climate. There is no life, no liberty and no property without a stable climate and their government, our government should not be allowed to continue to contribute to this problem.” Elizabeth Rusch, author of The 21. This book dives into the ongoing landmark federal climate change lawsuit Juliana versus the United States of America. She introduces us to the 21 young people who came from different states to sue the US government. They have accused the federal government of denying them their constitutional right to life and liberty by not acting to address the causes of climate change. Elizabeth sat down with us to tell stories from the book. You'll hear about young people courageously stepping up in a big way and the importance of this historic case. “Not only should more people pay attention to the case, we believe anyone reading Elizabeth's book will be inspired to do great things.” -Horace Mo Follow Elizabeth Rusch on X. She is also on Instagram.  2. California Against the Sea: Visions for our Vanishing Coastline by Rosanna Xia “When I first submitted my manuscript to my book editor and she read just the entirety of what I was trying to write, she said, wow, this feels like such an incredible blend of old school journalism, radical listening, and deep hanging out.” -Rosanna Xia, author of California Against the Sea The author tells us about the big themes that emerge in the book. She also shares expert tips for the work we do as climb advocates connecting with the public and public officials. Oh, and she talks about hope. How much hope should we include in our stories? Can sharing too much hope make people complacent? “This is not a dry book with nonstop facts and figures. Instead, Rosanna brings together a community of vibrant stories and memorable people. Through these human connections Rosanna explores issues like private ownership along the coast, public accessibility to nature and the need to build resilient communities and infrastructure, even if you're not a Californian.” -Karina Taylee Follow Rosanna Xia on X and read more of her writing at the LA Times 3. Am I Too Old to Save the Planet? A Boomer's Guide to Climate Action by Lawrence MacDonald “We've reached a point where an individual action is going to be too little too late. And so we really need collective action to have rapid policy change. And that's one of the reasons that I am actually a big admirer of Citizens Climate Lobby. The idea of carbon fee and dividend I think is a very powerful driver for action. I think that can be very powerful. And it's going to need a bipartisan consensus.” -Lawrence MacDonald, author, Am I Too Old to Save the Planet?” This book delves into how the generation with the potential to enact change allowed climate issues to escalate into a global crisis - and offers solutions.Lawrence MacDonald, a former international correspondent and former vice president of the World Resources Institute, shares his personal transformation into a dedicated climate advocate. Brimming with actionable insights, this book may be the gift that opens us a meaningful conversation with a grandparent or older relative.  “Lawrence hopes younger people like me, will use his book to help us connect with older Americans about climate change.” -Horace Mo Follow Lawrence MacDonald on X and read his writing on Medium.  4. The Quickening: Creation and Community at the End of the World by Elizabeth Rush In 2019 57, scientist and crew embarked on the ship the Nathaniel B. Palmer. They were there to explore Thwaites Glacier. This is a mysterious and potentially catastrophic site for global sea level rise. Elizabeth Rush's new book, The Quickening, chronicles their journey. She mixes sublime moments like seeing icebergs up close. With everyday activities like ping pong and lab work. It also delves into the personal question of bringing a child into a changing world. This Antarctica story also focuses on imagining a better future understanding the continent's history, and highlighting the roles of women and people of color and expeditions Hear Elizabeth Rush talking about her first book, Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore. She appeared in Episode 26 of Citizens Climate Radio, Deep Water.  “In Rising, Rush wove in narratives from coastal residents around the USA, along with her own research and personal reflections about sea level rise. It was beautifully written in a way that humanized global warming for me. In her newest book, Quickening, she is back to weaving stories while helping us nudge nearer to the biggest story of our time, Climate Change.” -Peterson Toscano The Ultimate Climate Fiction (Cli-Fi) List Dr. Krista Hiser has been a regular guest and contributor to Citizens Climate Radio. She helps educators find creative ways to incorporate climate change into the curriculum. She does this work in several ways. Currently she is the Senior Lead and Advisor for advancing Sustainability Education over at the Global Council for Science and the Environment. She is also a professor of Composition & Rhetoric. But perhaps one of her most exciting endeavors is a successful online group she started. It's called The Ultimate Cli-Fi Book Club. She shares four books that will help deepen your understanding of climate change and empathy for everyone impacted by extreme weather and global warming.  Night in the World by Sharon English A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr. The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi, Darryl Sterk (Translator) The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson The Memory of Water by Emmi Itžranta  Here are some books and authors that have been featured on Citizens Climate Radio Mr. Eternity by Aaron Thier, Episode 10. Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins, Episode 22. Code Blue and Code Red by Marissa Slaven, Episodes 33 and 65. Find even more books on this lists Compelling Climate Fiction to Read Before it Becomes Non-Fiction, New York Public Library. 20 Climate Fiction Books: From Apocalypse to Budding Hope, Libro Maniac 7 Climate Fiction Recommendations to Start your Cli-Fi Journey, Talk Dharti to Me Environmental Novels: Juvenile and Young Adult Fiction, Illinois University LIbrary Six Podcasts that creatively address climate change Green Tea Party Radio “It's really hard finding content out there for environmental conservatives, in particular, young environmental conservative, 18 to 25, within that age range, you know, high school, college, young professional. I had known Hannah and Zachfrom working at Citizens Climate Lobby and we would bump into each other at conferences, and while we were all there, we were all talking. We all kind of looked at each other, and we said, “Well, what if we made something to kind of fill that gap?” -Katie Zakrzewski, co-host of Green Tea Party Radio. This podcast is produced by three young Conservatives for other young Conservatives. Katie Zakrzewski, Zach Torpie, and Hannah Rogers offer fresh perspectives on climate change as they offer up conservative friendly solutions. No matter where you fall in the political spectrum, this podcast fosters productive discussions around this critical global issue               2. The Change: Women, Technology and the Anthropocene “The future is looking especially uncertain, and I really wanted the podcast for it to be sort of an opportunity for people like yourself, who are young people, or people who are looking to make a change in their life, to understand what they can do, to sort of get involved in the climate space, but be that professionally or on social level.” -Zara Amer, producer of The Change podcast   The Change podcast brings together women who bridge some of the boundaries that exist and persist between women and technology in the Anthropocene.  Learn more about the podcast and the other programs offered through The Climate Change Project.    3. EcoRight Speaks Podcast hosted by Chelsea Henderson This is another Conservative Climate Change podcast that's been around for a couple of years. EcoRight Speaks, is a project of RepublicEN, the group founded by Bob Inglis, former US representative from South Carolina and a member of the CCL advisory board. He appears in Episode 57 The Tide is Rising. 4. Climate Changed hosted by Nicole Diroff and Ben Yosua-David The Climate Changed podcast speaks directly to faith leaders and community leaders. It is sponsored by The BTS Center in Portland, Maine. Their goal is to develop spiritual leadership for a climate-changed world. 5. Sustainable Cents hosted by Veda Ganesan Veda, a high school student and an active volunteer with Citizens Climate Youth, dives into all things money, economy, investing, climate, and environment, one episode at a time. 6. America Adapts, hosted by Doug Parsons The America Adapts podcast explores the challenges presented by adapting to climate change, the global movement that has begun to drive change, and the approaches that are already working. Take a Meaningful Next Step Each month we will suggest meaningful, achievable, and measurable next steps for you to consider. We recognize that action is an antidote to despair. If you are struggling with what you can do, consider one of the following next steps.  Podcast Engagement Subscribe and listen to one of the recommended climate change podcasts. Share the knowledge and insights you gain with your friends. Whenever possible, rate and review the podcasts to boost their visibility. Increased listenership and discussions can accelerate climate change awareness and action. Carbon Fee and Dividend Movement (For College Students) Explore the Carbon Fee and Dividend movement, which advocates for effective climate policies.They creatively engage college students, faculty, and staff in their campaigns. This movement also facilitates direct connections with lawmakers Utilize the hashtag #carbonfeeanddividend on social media. Learn more at CFDmovement.com and follow them on Instagram @carbonfeeanddividend. Citizens Climate Lobby National Youth Action Team (For Middle and High School Students) Students can get involved with the CCL National Youth Action Team. Participate in initiatives such as the Great School Electrification Challenge. Visit Youth.CitizensClimatelobby.org to learn more and follow them on Instagram @CitizensClimateYouth. Additional Climate Action Resource (For anyone at any time     For those seeking more ways to take action, explore the action page at CCLusa.org/action. Meet Karina Taylee, a new CCR Team Member Karina Taylee, hails from the vibrant cultural mosaic of Miami, Florida, where she's witnessed the firsthand impacts of climate change. Miami's diverse heritage, with Latin bakeries and conversations in Spanish, is deeply cherished by Karina. Her resolve to protect her city led her to become a CCL volunteer in 2021, now serving as a liaison with her district, setting up lobbying appointments with congressional offices. Through this journey, she discovered a community of dedicated individuals, who foster her aspirations in science communication as she pursues a master's degree in Global Strategic Communications. Karina aims to creatively share the climate movement's story at Citizens Climate Radio, emphasizing that everyone plays a vital role in overcoming climate change. When not advocating, she enjoys beach time with her three adorable dogs and looks forward to connecting with the audience en español in upcoming episodes.  Karina is currently working on a new CCR limited podcast series,  Voces del Cambio: Explorando el Clima en Latinoamérica. Voices of Change, exploring climate in Latin America. Good News  Lila Powell tells us about Virginia's annual Clean the Bay Day, which she experienced this year. It has been an important tradition since 1989. Thousands of volunteers gather on the first Saturday of June for a three-hour cleanup of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. This year, over 4,000 volunteers removed 114 pounds of debris, including surprising finds like a plastic hippo and a packaged pork tenderloin. The cleanup significantly benefits the ecosystem and engages the community. While it's specific to Virginia, those in the Chesapeake Bay watershed can participate in their own cleanups. Visit cbf.org/clean to join the cause.. Listener Survey We want to hear your feedback about this episode. After you listen, feel free to fill in this short survey. Your feedback will help us as we make new decisions about the content, guests, and style of the show. You can fill it out anonymously and answer whichever questions you like.  You can hear Citizens' Climate Radio on: iTunes Spotify SoundCloud Podbean Stitcher Radio Northern Spirit Radio PlayerFM TuneIn Radio Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens' Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.  

As a climate advocate, you want to stay well informed, up to date, and equipped in the work you do. On today's show the Citizens' Climate Radio Team willI help you do just that. In today's show they feature the newest and best books and podcasts related to climate advocacy. They also speak to the creators behind these excellent new resources. Find full show notes and transcript here: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/blog/podcast/episode-89-the-best-new-climate-change-books-and-podcasts/ 1. "The Twenty-One, The True Story of the Youth Who Sued the U.S. Government over Climate Change" by Elizabeth Rusch: This book delves into the ongoing landmark federal climate change lawsuit Juliana versus the United States of America. It focuses on 21 young people who sued the US government for not addressing the causes of climate change and explores their courage and the significance of this case. 2. "California Against the Sea: Visions for our Vanishing Coastline" by Rosanna Xia: The author discusses the themes of her book, which explores issues related to California's coastline, including private ownership, public accessibility to nature, and the need for resilient communities and infrastructure. 3. "Am I Too Old to Save the Planet? A Boomer's Guide to Climate Action" by Lawrence MacDonald: This book reflects on how older generations can contribute to climate action and emphasizes the need for collective action and bipartisan consensus to address climate change. 4. "The Quickening: Creation and Community at the End of the World" by Elizabeth Rush: The book chronicles a scientific expedition to Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica, highlighting the potential consequences of sea level rise. It also explores personal questions about bringing a child into a changing world. Additionally, the text provides a list of climate fiction (Cli-Fi) books recommended by Dr. Krista Hiser, aimed at deepening understanding and empathy for the impact of climate change. It mentions other books and authors featured on the Citizens Climate Radio podcast. The Ultimate Climate Fiction (Cli-Fi) List Dr. Krista Hiser has been a regular guest and contributor to Citizens' Climate Radio. She helps educators find creative ways to incorporate climate change into the curriculum. She does this work in several ways. Currently she is the Senior Lead and Advisor for advancing Sustainability Education over at the Global Council for Science and the Environment. She is also a professor of Composition & Rhetoric. But perhaps one of her most exciting endeavors is a successful online group she started. It's called The Ultimate Cli-Fi Book Club. She shares four books that will help deepen your understanding of climate change and empathy for everyone impacted by extreme weather and global warming. Night in the World by Sharon English A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr. The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi, Darryl Sterk (Translator) The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson The Memory of Water by Emmi Itžranta Here are some books and authors that have been featured on Citizens Climate Radio Mr. Eternity by Aaron Thier, Episode 10. Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins, Episode 22. Code Blue and Code Red by Marissa Slaven, Episodes 33 and 65. These nonfiction books and Cli-Fi recommendations offer valuable insights into climate change and its effects on the environment and society.

Show notes: We cannot get enough of climate fiction. It's our new favorite, #sorrynotsorry. There's something about how real it feels and about how humanity tries to survive that really appeals to us. In this episode, we talk about what exactly climate fiction is, and we share some of our tried and true cli-fi favorites, along with some titles we haven't read yet but really want to.  Click here to join us on Patreon to get an exclusive bookish goodie every single Friday. With fun bonus episode series like: Monthly Overflow Books, Backlist Book Club, The New Books in Our Lives plus a private community for RTL Book Nerds only, you're going to love being a part of our Patreon. Not only that, but you're helping to support our show by saying I LOVE WHAT YOU DO.    Find the time stamped show notes below with links to all of the fun things we mentioned.   Support indie bookstores by shopping our picks on Bookshop.org!   Something Bookish: [4:04] M: We Were Once a Family by Roxanna Asgarian Broken Harts podcast [5:16] S: On Being 40(ish) by Lindsey Mead   Our Tried and True Climate Fiction Favorites: [9:03] M: Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton [9:23] S: The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton [9:44] M: The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker [10:03] S: The Displacements by Bruce Holsinger [10:18] M: The Road by Cormac McCarthy [10:41] S: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir [11:45] S: Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy [12:08] S: Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer   Climate Fiction Books We're Excited to Read: [12:39] M: The High House by Jessie Greengrass [13:13] S: Bewilderment by Richard Powers [14:06] M: Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins [14:50] S: The End of the Ocean by Maja Lunde [15:43] M: The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson [16:31] S: New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson [17:36] M: The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler [18:38] S: Dry by Neal + Jarrod Shusterman [19:15] M: Memory of Water by Emmi Itäranta [19:58] S: Termination Shock by Neal Stephenson   Follow RTL on Instagram: @readingthroughlifepod Follow Sarah on Instagram: @thekindredvoice  Follow Mia on Instagram: @miasutton5   * The books noted above contain affiliate links. This means that we may get a small kickback if you purchase through our links, at no additional cost to you.  

Del weeps, wails, gnashes his teeth over medical issues or at least the shortage of medical professionals...again. Claims he's had more unfortunate events than Lemony Snicket. He's old, ignore him.Dave goes down a two old goats rabbit hole and finds there are some goats grazing in podcast land and even on the farm.  Found an interesting website called Old Goats with Jonathan Alter. Here's one of his interviews, dealing with Ukraine.Dave rates Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins as a stinker. Two of five stars. Really wanted to like it as her Battleborn collection was excellent. You pay your money and you take your choice.  Do you have a book to recommend? Contact us, as always,  at BUCKSTWOOLD@GMAIL.COM.  We're all antlers and ears.Del chides his wife for screwing up some paperwork. Fortunately, she doesn't listen to TOB.Ranger Rick is disappointed that Dave had no bake shop stories last week Dave still hates autocorrect.  Our on-staff fact checker discovered that Eric Burdon did NOT sing War [what is is good for?]  Burdon had already left the group, WAR, before they sang War. It's confusing.  Further, the song was written by Barrett Strong. You have to be very old to remember his hit, Money, released in 1959. Barrett is still going strong at 81.Thanks  and credit to Moby for the closing song, Lie Down in Darkness [Ben Hoo's Dorian Vibe]

Ukraine story follow up: Thousands of $ have been donatedto the family in cash, gift cards, gofundme donations. Great to see that, Will see them again next week and see how things are going.  More serious Ukraine commentary here. Thanks, Rick.Del reads a poem by Robin Coste Lewis. Seems fitting.  Del fails to mke human contact with H&R Block. No surprise. He needs to read more Robin Coste Lewis.Del meanders about fixing a found cue stick when his real intention was finding out how many chunks of chicken there are in Campbell's Chicken Soup. Send us a note to Buckstwoold@gmail.com with your soup story. Or pool cue story.Dave gives the home safety tip of the day:Your stovetop gas igniters should not be on their own circuit. Or maybe the tip is watch the pot; it does boil, after all.Speaking of ignition, Elon bought twitter, nowTesla stock is down 15%. More to come.Del's favorite clothes go to Gnome, Alaska.Dave fixes tornado bikes while the Google crew repairs their firbeoptic cable for the 11th time.Dave is reading Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins. A 2015 book, her first novel after her ss collection [Battleborn]  mentioned many episodes ago. It's a dystopian novel about California after the water runs out. People have abandoned their mansions, outlaw bands roam , state borders are closed, people are trying to ‘emigrate' to eastern or northern areas. What a place to raise a kid.Another Florida man story. So embarrassing.

To celebrate Sadie and Liz, our two book friends who have recently become parents, the four of us decided to tackle a book about parenthood. We feel like we may have failed this assignment a little bit...Books mentioned in this episode: I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins, Nightwing Vol. 1: Better Than Batman by Tim Seeley and Javier Fernandez, With Teeth by Kristen Arnett, and The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/keepitfictional/message

Debra Gwartney joins Let's Talk Memoir for a conversation about the difference between character and narrator in memoir, navigating writing about loved ones, why memoirists need to hold their own feet to the fire, and what question every memoir asks.    Also in this episode:  -memoir and essay recommendations -craft book suggestions -tips for avoiding common pitfalls when writing memoir   Memoirs/Work mentioned in this episode: The Sisters Antipodes by Jane Alison The Invention of Solitude by Paul Auster Borrowed Finery by Paula Fox Fierce Attachments by Vivian Gornick The Situation and the Story by Vivian Gornick To Show and to Tell by Phillip Lopate "The Fourth State of Matter" by Jo Ann Beard "Thanksgiving in Mongolia" by Ariel Levy Authors mentioned: Melissa Febos, Eula Biss, Ann Carson, Claire Vaye Watkins, Ander Monson   Debra Gwartney is the author of two book-length memoirs, Live Through This, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, and I Am a Stranger Here Myself, winner of the RiverTeeth Nonfiction Prize and the Willa Award for Nonfiction. Debra has published in such journals as Granta, The Sun, Tin House, American Scholar, The Normal School, Creative Nonfiction, Prairie Schooner, and others. She's the 2018 winner of the Real Simple essay contest. She's also a contributing editor at Poets & Writers magazine and received a Pushcart Prize in 2021 for her essay “Suffer Me to Pass,” from VQR. Debra is co-editor, along with her husband Barry Lopez, of Home Ground: Language for an American Landscape. She lives in Western Oregon.    Connect with Debra: https://www.facebook.com/writerdebragwartney/ http://www.debragwartney.com   Ronit's essays and fiction have been featured in The Atlantic, The Rumpus, The New York Times, The Iowa Review, The Washington Post, Writer's Digest, American Literary Review, and elsewhere. Her memoir WHEN SHE COMES BACK about the loss of her mother to the guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and their eventual reconciliation was named Finalist in both the 2021 Best Book Awards and the 2021 Book of the Year Award and a 2021 Best True Crime Book by Book Riot. Her short story collection HOME IS A MADE-UP PLACE won Hidden River Arts' 2020 Eludia Award and will be published in 2022. She is host and producer of the podcasts And Then Everything Changed and The Body Myth. More about Ronit: https://ronitplank.com More about WHEN SHE COMES BACK, a memoir: https://ronitplank.com/book/ Sign up for monthly podcast and writing updates: https://bit.ly/33nyTKd   Follow Ronit: https://www.instagram.com/ronitplank/ https://twitter.com/RonitPlank https://www.facebook.com/RonitPlank   Background photo credit: Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash Headshot photo credit: Sarah Anne Photography Theme music: Isaac Joel, Dead Moll's Fingers

Crabb talks about her holiday reading and watching.   (4.00) Spider-Man: No Way Home | Trailer (6.20) I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins (8.00) The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz (10.50) Misery by Stephen King (13.00) The Latinist by Mark Prins (15.00) Love and Virtue by Diana Reid (16.00) Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid (17.30) The Husbands by Chandler Baker (20.00) The Push by Ashley Audrain (20.40) Leave The World Behind by Rumaan Alam (23.40) Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (23.00) Olive Kitteridge | Binge | Trailer (26.30) Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout (28.00) Short Cuts | Trailer (29.40) Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen (34.00) Death to Jar Sauce Rad Recipes for Champions by Nats What I Reckon (35.40) Morning Wars S2 | Trailer | Apple TV+ Produced by DM Podcasts See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's a new year, and we're so excited to be joined by HIllary Kelly, a book and TV critic at Vulture, The New Yorker, and LA Times. Angela and Hillary talk about the books they missed in 2021, and what to look forward to in 2022. They also talk about the hype machine, talking about books others pretend to like, how doing a profile of Claire Vaye Watkins helped her get over her own fears, and why she doesn't know what books about happy people want from her. Books discussed in this episode: Bewilderment by Richard Powers I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins Night Bitch by Rachel Yoder Everyone Knows Your Mother Is a Witch by Rivka Galchen Happy All The Time by Laurie Colwin So Long, See You Tomorrow by Richard Maxwell Middlemarch by George Eliot Hillary's favorites from last year: Night Bitch by Rachel Yoder Everyone Knows Your Mother Is a Witch by Rivka Galchen Hillary's picks for next year: The Invisible Kingdom by Meghan O'Rourke Foreverland: On the Divine Tedium of Marriage by Heather Havrilesky Ancestor Trouble: A Reckoning and a Reconciliation by Maud Newton The Candy House by Jennifer Egan To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara  Thanks so much for listening! In two weeks, we'll be speaking with Wajahat Ali, author of the forthcoming Go Back To Where You Came From. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a new year, and we're so excited to be joined by HIllary Kelly, a book and TV critic at Vulture, The New Yorker, and LA Times. Angela and Hillary talk about the books they missed in 2021, and what to look forward to in 2022. They also talk about the hype machine, talking about books others pretend to like, how doing a profile of Claire Vaye Watkins helped her get over her own fears, and why she doesn't know what books about happy people want from her. Books discussed in this episode Bewilderment by Richard Powers I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins Night Bitch by Rachel Yoder Everyone Knows Your Mother Is a Witch by Rivka Galchen Happy All The Time by Laurie Colwin So Long, See You Tomorrow by Richard Maxwell Middlemarch by George Eliot Hillary's favorites from last year Night Bitch by Rachel Yoder Everyone Knows Your Mother Is a Witch by Rivka Galchen Hillary's picks for next year The Invisible Kingdom by Meghan O'Rourke Foreverland: On the Divine Tedium of Marriage by Heather Havrilesky Ancestor Trouble: A Reckoning and a Reconciliation by Maud Newton The Candy House by Jennifer Egan To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara  Thanks so much for listening! In two weeks, we'll be speaking with Wajahat Ali, author of the forthcoming Go Back To Where You Came From.

This surreal and contemporary odyssey is one that we both loved! “I Love you but I've Chosen Darkness” tells the auto fictional story of author Claire Vaye Watkins, a woman suffering from spiraling postpartum depression, heading home and facing her traumatic past. Inspired by the book's setting, we paired the read with Carlos Moro Oinoz Verdejo 2020. The lively conversation centers around the book's issues of poverty, class struggle, drug addiction, femininity, and even cult life.

In Episode 10 of The Artist's Statement, we chat with Claire Vaye Watkins, author of three works of fiction, including her latest novel, I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness (Riverhead, 2021). Watkins discusses the blurred boundaries between fiction and fact in her new work, and the story threads she brought together to complete it. We explore the impact of her viral essay "On Pandering" and her evolving relationship with writing, and how the influence of classical works can both help and hinder creativity. Watkins shares how she came to work with her agent, Nicole Aragi. She also offers her insights for students as they complete their first major projects. In this interview, Watkins reads excerpts from I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness. Host: Davin Malasarn The Artist's Statement is brought to you by The Granum Foundation. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/the-artists-statement/message

Despite being emotionally annihilated by the release of Red (Taylor's Version), Contemporary Catwoman and Eclectic Earth Witch are back to chat about books—and this month, in honor of Thanksgiving, we talk about some of our favorite books with dysfunctional families. We also discuss what we've read lately and recommend some cozy reads as we head into the winter months. Next month's book club pick is I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins. Until then… we bid you adieu. That's Razzefrat. Keep up with us in between pods: Contemporary Catwoman (Ashtin): @grapes_of_ash Eclectic Earth Witch (Lila): @theresinkonmyhands And, as always, please rate, like, and share the pod. . . . Books Mentioned in This Week's Episode: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi Educated by Tara Westover We Went to the Woods by Caite Dolan Leach Running with Scissors by Augusten Borroughs Girl in the Mirror by Rose Carlysle Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck Little Fires Everywhere/Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid Salvage the Bones/Sing Unburied Sing by Jesmyn Ward If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio The Secret History by Donna Tartt My Days of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh The Shining, Stephen King I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/razzlefratpodcast/support

Rabih Alameddine was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the National Book Award for An Unnecessary Woman, a ''paean to the transformative power of reading'' (LA Review of Books). His many other works include the novels The Angel of History, The Hakawati, and the short story collection The Perv. The winner of the 2019 Dos Passos Prize, Alameddine was the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, and has had solo gallery exhibitions of his paintings on three continents. In The Wrong End of the Telescope, a steadfast Arab American trans woman aids Syrian refugees on the island of Lesbos, and forms a close bond with a Syrian matriarch who is determined to protect her children and husband. Claire Vaye Watkins' debut story collection Battleborn was named a best book of 2012 by numerous periodicals. Her other work includes Gold Fame Citrus, a novel in which two young lovers squatting in an abandoned mansion find hope in a drought-wracked future Los Angeles. Watkins is a writing professor at the University of California, Irvine, and her stories and essays have appeared in Granta, One Story, The Paris Review, Ploughshares, and Glimmer Train. I Love You but I've Chosen Darkness is the ''trippy and beautiful, slippery and seductive'' (Vogue) story of a new mother who leaves for a speaking engagement in Reno, Nevada and ends up on a transformative journey through the Mojave Desert of her youth. (recorded 11/23/2021)

Claire Vaye Watkins is the author of the short story collection Battleborn and the novel Gold Fame Citrus. She has received the Story Prize, the Dylan Thomas Prize, the New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award, and the Rosenthal Family Foundation Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. A National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 honoree, Watkins is a professor at the University of California, Irvine, and lives in Twentynine Palms, California. About I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness 9780593330xxx 304 pages | 6.27" x 9.29" Named a Most Anticipated Book of Fall 2021 by The New York Times, USA Today, Vulture, The Week, and more! “There's some kind of genius sorcery in this novel. It's startlingly original, hilarious and harrowing by turns, finally transcendent. Watkins writes like an avenging angel. It's thrilling and terrifying to stand in her wake.” —Jenny Offill, author of Dept. of Speculation and Weather A darkly funny, soul-rending novel of love in an epoch of collapse—one woman's furious revisiting of family, marriage, work, sex, and motherhood. Since my baby was born, I have been able to laugh and see the funny side of things. a) As much as I ever did. b) Not quite as much now. c) Not so much now. d) Not at all. Leaving behind her husband and their baby daughter, a writer gets on a flight for a speaking engagement in Reno, not carrying much besides a breast pump and a spiraling case of postpartum depression. Her temporary escape from domestic duties and an opportunity to reconnect with old friends mutates into an extended romp away from the confines of marriage and motherhood, and a seemingly bottomless descent into the past. Deep in the Mojave Desert where she grew up, she meets her ghosts at every turn: the first love whose self-destruction still haunts her; her father, a member of the most famous cult in American history; her mother, whose native spark gutters with every passing year. She can't go back in time to make any of it right, but what exactly is her way forward? Alone in the wilderness, at last she begins to make herself at home in the world. Bold, tender, and often hilarious, I Love You but I've Chosen Darkness reaffirms Watkins as one of the signal writers of our time.

Model, actor, activist, entrepreneur and author Emily Ratajkowski joins us to discuss My Body (Metropolitan Books, Nov. 9). Kirkus calls her standout debut essay collection “a refreshingly candid, fearless look into a model's body of work and its impact on her identity and politics.” Then our editors join with their reading recommendations for the week, with books by Donna Jo Napoli and Naoko Stoop, Harmony Becker, and Claire Vaye Watkins.

A darkly funny, soul-rending novel of love in an epoch of collapse—one woman's furious revisiting of family, marriage, work, sex, and motherhood.Since my baby was born, I have been able to laugh and see the funny side of things. a) As much as I ever did. b) Not quite as much now. c) Not so much now. d) Not at all. Leaving behind her husband and their baby daughter, a writer gets on a flight for a speaking engagement in Reno, not carrying much besides a breast pump and a spiraling case of postpartum depression. Her temporary escape from domestic duties and an opportunity to reconnect with old friends mutates into an extended romp away from the confines of marriage and motherhood, and a seemingly bottomless descent into the past. Deep in the Mojave Desert where she grew up, she meets her ghosts at every turn: the first love whose self-destruction still haunts her; her father, a member of the most famous cult in American history; her mother, whose native spark gutters with every passing year. She can't go back in time to make any of it right, but what exactly is her way forward? Alone in the wilderness, at last she begins to make herself at home in the world.Bold, tender, and often hilarious, I Love You but I've Chosen Darkness reaffirms Watkins as one of the signal writers of our time.

Following our discussion of the novel I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins, which discusses postpartum depression, we speak with an expert on recognizing the signs of postpartum depression, and suggestions actions to take to get better. Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, who specializes in women's mental health and perinatal psychiatry, joins us to discuss postpartum depression and speak about her piece in The New York Times, “Experts Fear Increase in Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorders.”

A new novel takes a darkly comedic look at postpartum depression, featuring a protagonist who goes on a business trip to Reno and decides to stay, leaving her husband and new baby behind. Novelist Claire Vaye Watkins joins us to discuss her debut novel, I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness. This segment is part of our new series "Fall Book Fridays," where we highlight a new book each Friday of October. 

Marcia Franklin talks with author Claire Vaye Watkins about the nexus between her life and her books, which include the novel Gold Fame Citrus and the short story collection Battleborn. The two also discuss the myths that surround the American West, and how Watkins has incorporated her anger about them into her works. Watkins, a professor at the University of California at Irvine, was the recipient of the Story Prize and a Guggenheim Fellowship before she was 30. Don't forget to subscribe, and visit the Dialogue website for more conversations that matter. Originally Aired: 12/9/2016 The interview is part of Dialogue's series “Conversations from the Sun Valley Writers' Conference” and was taped at the 2016 conference. Since 1995, the conference has been bringing together some of the world's most well-known and illuminating authors to discuss literature and life.

Episode 104: Friday Four from the Circ Desk - 7/9                 Episode 104: Friday Four from the Circ Desk - 7/9 Amie Newberry & Tami Ruf   This week on our Tuesday episode we re-released our wonderful interview with Nevada author, Willy Vlautin. What a terrific writer he is and we were so appreciative of his generosity of spirit and his time. For this weeks Friday four, we are celebrating three more Nevada authors: Ellen Hopkins, Robert Laxalt, and Terri Farley. Additionally, we are sharing Battleborn: Stories by Claire Vaye Watkins. Tami's Recommendations Crank (book 1 of Crank) by Ellen Hopkins Sweet Promised Land by Robert Laxalt Wild at Heart: Mustangs and the Young People Fighting to Save Them by Terri Farley   Amie's Recommendation Battleborn: Stories by Claire Vaye Watkins   Books Mentioned Glass (Book 2 of Crank) by Ellen Hopkins Fallout (Book 3 of Crank) by Ellen Hopkins Don't Skip Out On Me by Willy Vlautin Lean on Pete by Willy Vlautin

Today's guest is Deborah Kaufmann, VP of Literary Affairs at Legendary Entertainment. Translated into lay, non-Hollywood terms, this means that Deborah is some sort of in-house scout for Legendary, in charge of finding literary properties that can be adapted to the big or small screen. As you'll find out, such properties can include books, but also unpublished short stories, podcasts, and news and magazine articles. It was fascinating to get to know Deborah's work a bit more in depth, and to hear her thoughts on the current state of the movie business and the revolution brought about by streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon. Show Notes Deborah's book recommendations: - Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro - Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker - Weather by Jenny Offill About Deborah: Since 2014, Deborah Kaufmann has been overseeing acquisitions of literary properties for Legendary Entertainment's film and TV divisions, and working in New York. Previously, she was a senior editor based in Paris, publishing award-winning and international bestselling authors for 15 years – including Jenny Offill, Howard Jacobson, Claire Vaye Watkins, John Jeremiah Sullivan, Malala Yousafzai, Tana French, Anthony Horowitz, Walter Kirn, Elizabeth Gilbert, Audrey Niffenegger, Jeff Lindsay, and many others. She also ran the Orbit France science-fiction and fantasy imprint.

We live at a time in which scientists race to reanimate extinct beasts, our most essential ecosystems require monumental engineering projects to survive, chicken breasts grow in test tubes, and multinational corporations conspire to poison the blood of every living creature. No rock, leaf, or cubic foot of air on Earth has escaped humanity’s clumsy signature. The old distinctions—between natural and artificial, dystopia and utopia, science fiction and science fact—have blurred, losing all meaning. So author Nathaniel Rich argues in his book Second Nature: Scenes from a World Remade. With intimate stories from ordinary people making desperate efforts to preserve their humanity in a world that seems increasingly alien, Rich joined us to share from this deeply reported book. In conversation with fellow author Claire Vaye Watkins, he presented a beautifully told exploration of our post-natural world, one that helps us understand our place in a reality that resembles nothing human beings have known. Together, they wondered what it means to live in an era of terrible ecological responsibility. The question is no longer, How do we return to the world that we’ve lost?, they express, but rather What world do we want to create in its place? Nathaniel Rich is the author of Losing Earth: A Recent History and the novels King Zeno, Odds Against Tomorrow, and The Mayor’s Tongue. He is a writer at large for The New York Times Magazine and a regular contributor to The Atlantic, Harper’s, and The New York Review of Books. Claire Vaye Watkins is the author of the novel Gold Fame Citrusand the short story collection Battleborn. A National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 honoree, Watkins is a professor at the University of California Irvine. Buy the Book: https://www.elliottbaybook.com/book/9780374106034  Presented by Town Hall Seattle. To make a donation or become a member click here. 

In this episode of Of Prurient Interest, my dad and I explore themes of sexuality, female autonomy, race, and privilege in Kate Chopin's 1899 novel, The Awakening. You do not need to have read the book to enjoy the podcast, but there will be spoilers! I mean, it's been over a century since its publication sooooo.... Next episode will be on Anais Nin's A Spy in the House of Love. Bookstores Mentioned: Beach Town Books, San Clemente, California, USA Further Recommended Reading: Quicksand by Nella Larsen Nightwood by Djuna Barnes Sula by Toni Morrison Our Nig by Harriet Wilson Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass I mentioned my old blog in which I covered The Awakening and made a meal thematically attuned to it. Those posts are here and here. What We're Reading Now: Noli Me Tángere by José Rizal When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer Resources Used: "Women in Nineteenth-Century America" by Dr. Graham Warder "The Classic Novel that Saw Pleasure as a Path to Freedom" by Claire Vaye Watkins "15 Facts about Kate Chopin's The Awakening" by Kristy Puchko Living a Feminist Life by Sara Ahmed Secrets and Lies: Race and Sex in The Awakening by James O'Rourke Edna the Oblivious Oppressor: An Intersectional Analysis of Privilege and Its Lack Thereof in The Awakening by Jessica L. Rosenthal "Unspeakable Things Unspoken: The Afro-American Presence in American Literature" by Toni Morrison J. Davis: The Whole Book Experience Leaves of Cha Donation-based Meditation Instagram: @leavesofcha Of Prurient Interest social media: Insta: @ofprurientinterest Twitter: @highlyprurient FB: /ofprurientinterest Litsy: @prurientinterest Email: ofprurientinterest@gmail.com Patreon: /ofprurientinterest Website: ofprurientinterest.com Kaelyn's Instagram: @lalatiburona Score by Rose Droll: @myhandsarepaws Logo by @irizofen If you like this podcast, consider becoming a patron either here on Anchor or on Patreon. You can also make a one-time donation through the website. Lastly, subscribe, rate, and review! --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/ofprurientinterest/support

Show Notes and Links to Christian Kiefer's Work On Episode 28, Part I, Pete is thrilled to speak with Christian Kiefer, master author of among other masterpieces, Phantoms, a 2019 tour de force novel. Pete and Christian discuss Christian's childhood in Auburn, CA, his writing background, great writers who were also jerks and sometimes horrible men, the bustling and exciting literary scene of 2020, Christian's research into the disgusting racism and xenophobia that frames Phantoms, and much more.    Dr. Christian Kiefer grew up in the foothills of California (Auburn). Director of the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Joined Ashland University as the new director of the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing in January 2017 He is the author of The Infinite Tides (Bloomsbury), The Animals (W.W. Norton), One Day Soon Time Will Have No Place Left to Hide  (Nouvella Books), and 2019s Phantoms: A Novel (Liveright/W.W. Norton), in addition to other works in poetry, fiction, and drama Kiefer's scholarly publications focus on American literature As a professional musician, has released a number of albums primarily in the folk rock and avant garde traditions Came to Ashland from American River College in Sacramento, California, and has taught fiction in the Sierra Nevada College low-residency MFA Christian Kiefer's Author Page Interview with Four Way Review Dr. Christian Kiefer's Homepage for Ashland Twitter and IG: @xiankiefer-Twitter and IG Christian speaks about growing up in Auburn, CA, and how the area has influenced him as a person and as a writer-at about 3:00 Christian talks about small towns like Auburn and Newcastle and their transformation into “driveby towns”-at about 10:00 Christian talks about the formerly-thriving Chinatown/Japantown in Newcastle and about our society's collective ineptitude at commemorating and learning from historical failures-at about 11:15 Christian talks about his origins as a reader and a writer, and those writers and familial figures who inspired him as a kid and adolescent-at about 14:00 The importance of William Faulkner's writing in Christian's life-at about 15:10 Christian shouts out two formative teachers of his, Michael Madden and Michael Duda-at about 15:50 Christian discusses his view of “Clarity of expression” and its lower end priority for him-at about 16:45 Christian discusses his friend Ben Percy, who writes Wolverine for Marvel Comics, and how he wants the reader to “lean forward” into the reading, while Christian wants the reader to “lean back”-at about 17:25 Christian discusses Thomas Wolfe and how “he brings the entire world” into the text-at about 18:25 Pete talks about Old Man and the Sea and its importance in his life as a “lean back book” that stimulates great memories, and how Christian's Phantoms is a book that will now occupy that same space-at about 19:00 Christian and Pete discuss some strategies of Christian's writing-the use of “and,” for example, and Christian's desire to write compound sentences well, as Hemingway did-at about 20:20 Christian teaches a master class on the strategies of using coordinating and subordinating phrases in writing-at about 20:40 Pete cites an example of Christian's above explanation on pg. 186 of Phantoms-at around 23:45 Christian discusses the reckoning with racism and misogyny in the “classic” and modern literary worlds-at around 24:45 Christian discusses the modern literary “renaissance,” with its incredible diversity and talent-at around 26:50 Christian discusses his admiration for C. Pam Zhang and her incredible 2020 novel, How Much of These Hills is Gold-at around 27:20 Pete and Christian talk about the great Tobias Wolff, a huge inspiration, the inspiration for the podcast, leading to a discussion of writers as “celebrities,” as seen in Wolff's Old School-at about 28:50 Christian talks about the brilliant Rebecca Solnit-at around 31:55 Christian and Pete discuss some reprehensible characters, who happened to be great artists/innovators, like John Muir -how do we reckon with the art AND the artist?-at around 33:00 Christian summarizes Phantoms-at around 37:35 Christian discusses the impetus and inspiration for writing the book, including the research needed and the America and Placer County racist policies that led to a huge decrease in Japanese and Asian-Americans in the county-at around 40:00 Christian discusses his need to be precise on linguistic and cultural frameworks for novel and needing to have prospective blurb authors (Luis Alberto Urrea, Jesmyn Ward, Kirstin Chen, Claire Vaye Watkins) give him their green light-at around 43:00

Can the end of the world as we know it bring about new ways of living? In this broadcast of Severance Radio, host Heidi Kyser interviews expert speculative fiction writers and creative writing professors Christopher Coake and Claire Vaye Watkins on the imaginative work of starting over after disaster.

Science fiction has always been an outlet for our greatest anxieties. This week, we delve into how the genre is exploring the reality of climate change. Plus: new words to describe the indescribable. 1. Jeff VanderMeer @jeffvandermeer, author of the Southern Reach Trilogy and Borne, on writing about the relationships between people and nature. 2. Claire Vaye Watkins @clairevaye talks about Gold Fame Citrus, her work of speculative fiction in which an enormous sand dune threatens to engulf the southwest.  3. Kim Stanley Robinson discusses his latest work, New York 2140. The seas have risen 50 feet and lower Manhattan is submerged. And yet, there's hope. 4. British writer Robert Macfarlane @RobGMacfarlane on new language for our changing world. **The recording of huia imitation heard in this segment was performed in 1949 by Henare Hāmana and narrated by Robert A. L. Batley at Radio Station 2YA in Aotearoa New Zealand. Julianne Lutz Warren, a fellow at the Center for Humans and Nature, has written about it in "Hopes Echo" available here. Her work was also described by Macfarlane in his piece "Generation Anthropocene.”  Throughout the show: listeners offer their own new vocabulary for the Anthropocene era. Many thanks to everyone who left us voice memos! Support On the Media by becoming a member today at OntheMedia.org/donate.

Vuslat Çamkerten ve İsmail Sertaç Yılmaz “Kitaplararası” podcastinde bu hafta iyi bir kitabı bulmanın yollarını soruşturuyor ve Paulina Flores’ten “Ne Rezalet”i ve Claire Vaye Watkins’in "Nevada”sını konuşuyorlar.

26. bölümümüz yayında. ''Haftanın Çok Satması Gereken Kitabı'' köşemizde bu hafta Claire Vaye Watkins’in ''Nevada'' isimli kitabı var. Bölümlerimizi Spotify,Anchor.fm,Google Podcasts,Apple Podcasts,PocketCasts,Breaker ve RadioPublic üzerinden takip edebilir; görüş,yorum ve önerilerinizi https://twitter.com/banttanvefissiz hesabımızdan bize iletebilirsiniz. Keyifli dinlemeler. :)

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Emily Grubert, an assistant professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Raimi and Grubert discuss how water is used in the energy system, a subset of the topic known as the “Energy-Water Nexus.” They also talk about a 2018 paper that Grubert coauthored with Kelly Sanders—research that provides intricate detail on the life cycle of water consumption for every major fuel source in the United States. Raimi and Grubert compare and contrast the different water profiles of coal, oil, gas, biofuels, and other sources of energy. They also talk in detail about water use in hydraulic fracturing. References and recommendations: “Water use in the United States energy system: A national assessment and unit process inventory of water consumption and withdrawals” by Emily Grubert and Kelly T. Sanders; http://emilygrubert.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/PREPRINT-Grubert-Sanders-Water-for-US-Energy.pdf “Who speaks for Crazy Horse” by Brooke Jarvis; https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/09/23/who-speaks-for-crazy-horse “Gold Fame Citrus” by Claire Vaye Watkins; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/318277/gold-fame-citrus-by-claire-vaye-watkins/9781594634246/ “The Water Knife” by Paolo Bacigalupi; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/237233/the-water-knife-by-paolo-bacigalupi/

Part One: An interview with author Claire Vaye Watkins about her book, Gold Fame Citrus Part Two: A prank phone call to the past. Peterson calls his former self, the 22 year old Peterson living in NYC. It is a time when he was trying desperately to rid myself of homosexuality. Part Three: a Sound Slice of a public market in Guadalajara, Mexico Bubble&Squeak is a podcast with uncanny sounds, funny interludes, and stories—most weird, many true. Created by Peterson Toscano and for his friend, Christine, who him how to be kinder towards our former selves Our theme song is Worthless by The Jellyrox from the Bang & Whimper album. You also heard Fight Like Hell by Howl in the Valley and Inside out by EleventySeven from their RadScience album. You can find these songs on iTunes, Spotify, of wherever you listen to music. Peterson on Twitter @p2son Logo design by Christine Bakke Bubble&Squeak is part of the Rock Candy Network www.rockcandyrecordings.com Learn more about Peterson at www.petersontoscano.com

"I'm backing the Bellwether Kickstarter because I think it's revolutionary to dream together, and I need that kind of spirit in my life."   Claire Vaye Watkins, author of Gold Fame Citrus and Battleborn, on how she got involved with Bellwether.   Kickstarter: tinyurl.com/bellwetherKS Website: bellwether.show

Filmmaker Petra Costa joins co-hosts Eric Newman and Medaya Ocher to talk about Brazil's turbulent politics over the past few decades; and how she was able to capture their operatic intensity in her new documentary, Edge of Democracy. Petra grew up the child of political militants, who were jailed and then went into hiding during Brazil's military dictatorship, which ended in the '80s. However, she also had deep roots in the country's political right-wing. Her father's family ran a construction company; a major player in the industry at the heart of the country's legendary corruption. This unique family history grants Petra unparalleled access to the leaders of both the left and the right while shooting her film; but also informs her deep sense of personal conflict and remorse as events unfold. The film begins by heralding the dramatic rise of Lula, Brasil's first leftist President since the end of the dictatorship. Petra is equally thrilled at the election of his chosen heir, Dilma Rousseff, the country's first women President; but mostly she is delighted by what appears to be the successful establishment of democracy in her country. Then, the forces of reaction start to stir... Petra acknowledges that many viewers draw parallels with the political crisis in the only western hemisphere country more populous than Brazil. Though, there are conspicuous differences: in one country, it's a corrupt Judge that successfully topples a sincere, well-intentioned President; while in the other, an honorable prosecutor is unable to dislodge an utterly corrupt President. What's strikingly similar is that the right-wing triumphs in both countries while democracy loses. Also, author Claire Vaye Watkins returns to recommend Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore by Elizabeth Rush.

Filmmaker Petra Costa joins co-hosts Eric Newman and Medaya Ocher to talk about Brazil's turbulent politics over the past few decades; and how she was able to capture their operatic intensity in her new documentary, Edge of Democracy. Petra grew up the child of political militants, who were jailed and then went into hiding during Brazil's military dictatorship, which ended in the '80s. However, she also had deep roots in the country's political right-wing. Her father's family ran a construction company; a major player in the industry at the heart of the country's legendary corruption. This unique family history grants Petra unparalleled access to the leaders of both the left and the right while shooting her film; but also informs her deep sense of personal conflict and remorse as events unfold. The film begins by heralding the dramatic rise of Lula, Brasil's first leftist President since the end of the dictatorship. Petra is equally thrilled at the election of his chosen heir, Dilma Rousseff, the country's first women President; but mostly she is delighted by what appears to be the successful establishment of democracy in her country. Then, the forces of reaction start to stir... Petra acknowledges that many viewers draw parallels with the political crisis in the only western hemisphere country more populous than Brazil. Though, there are conspicuous differences: in one country, it's a corrupt Judge that successfully topples a sincere, well-intentioned President; while in the other, an honorable prosecutor is unable to dislodge an utterly corrupt President. What's strikingly similar is that the right-wing triumphs in both countries while democracy loses. Also, author Claire Vaye Watkins returns to recommend Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore by Elizabeth Rush.

In the first of a series of shows from the Los Angles Festival of Books, Eric, Medaya, and Kate, catch up with two friends of the show: Hanif Abdurraqib and Claire Vaye Watkins. First up, Hanif talks about his new book, Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest, an epistolary appreciation of one of the most influential groups in Hip Hop history. As always, Hanif astounds with instant recall of, and insights about, all things pop cultural and their social resonance. Then, Claire joins the team to discuss her heralded first novel, Gold Fame Citrus: a terrifying, and all-too-possible, representation of Southern California's near future, in which love blooms in a landscape ravaged by drought.

In the first of a series of shows from the Los Angles Festival of Books, Eric, Medaya, and Kate, catch up with two friends of the show: Hanif Abdurraqib and Claire Vaye Watkins. First up, Hanif talks about his new book, Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest, an epistolary appreciation of one of the most influential groups in Hip Hop history. As always, Hanif astounds with instant recall of, and insights about, all things pop cultural and their social resonance. Then, Claire joins the team to discuss her heralded first novel, Gold Fame Citrus: a terrifying, and all-too-possible, representation of Southern California's near future, in which love blooms in a landscape ravaged by drought.

In this episode of the Fiction/Non/Fiction podcast, novelists Emily Raboteau and Omar El Akkad discuss telling the stories of climate change with hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell. Raboteau talks about her recent NYRB article, "Climate Signs," and El Akkad shares how his history as a journalist connects to his novel, American War,   Readings for the Episode: ●      “Climate Signs” by Emily Raboteau, New York Review Daily ●      The Professor's Daughter  by Emily Raboteau ●      Searching for Zion  by Emily Raboteau ●      American War  by Omar El Akkad ●      Gold Fame Citrus  by Claire Vaye Watkins ●      “Flying Cars Could Save us from Climate Change,” by Jen Christensen, CNN ●      “Climate Change: European Team to drill for ‘oldest' ice in Antarctica” by Jonathan Amos, BBC ●      “Atchafalaya”  by John McPhee, The New Yorker ●      The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming  by David Wallace-Wells ●      “There's so much CO2 in the atmosphere that planting trees can no longer save us,” by Rob Ludacer and Jessica Orwig, Business Insider ●      "Young Readers Ask: The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace-Wells," by Geronimo LaValle, Orion Magazine ●      “As We Approach the City,” by Mik Awake, The Common ●      “The Climate Museum Launches Pun-Filled Art Installations Across the City,” by Katie Brown, Medium/NYU Local ●      “‘Hand that's feeding the world is getting bit.' Farmers cope with floods, trade war” by Crystal Thomas and Bryan Lowery, The Kansas City Star ●      “Senator uses Star Wars posters, image of Reagan riding a dinosaur to blast Green New Deal,” by Christal Hayes, USA Today ●      Learning to Die in the Anthropocene by Roy Scranton ●      Horizon, by Barry Lopez ●      The End of Nature, by Bill McKibben Guests: ·       Emily Raboteau ·       Omar El Akkad Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode asks how is contemporary fiction incorporating (or not) the present realities of climate change and can it provide avenues for building a response to climate crisis? To do this we look at two recent books about post-climate change dystopia - American War by Omar El Akkad and Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins. We also bring in essays by Amitav Ghosh from his book The Great Derangement and reflect on his claim that "the climate crisis is also a crisis of culture, and thus of the imagination". liberatinglibraries.org

  (https://www.theh2duo.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/EP028_Tia_Lebherz.png) Tia Lebherz is the Director of Outreach and Special Projects for California Water Efficiency Partnership. She has spent her career working with environmental and water non-profit and municipal organizations both in her home state of California and across the county including WaterNow Alliance, Imagine H2O and Food & Water Watch. Her experience and skills include organizing, advocacy, facilitation, coalition development, and strategic engagement. She also has extensive media and communications expertise. Tia graduated with honors from University of California, Santa Cruz with a B.A. in Environmental Studies and completed Green Corps, a competitive fellowship program for environmental organizing. In her spare time, Tia enjoys coaching youth soccer, finding any excuse to travel up and down the West Coast and working on her side-project to launch a “water-neutral” winery in California called R. Debauche. Top Takeaways Make sure you’re bringing all the stakeholders to the table. All categories of water users, utilities, private sector companies, etc should have the opportunity to lend their perspective. Tia shared with us some of the tools (http://calwep.org/SB606-AB1668) CALWEP is using to dispel the myths and rumors circulating about the new California water conservation regulations. Hear some of the outcomes from the listening tour CALWEP conducted for their partnership members to ensure the organization’s focus was on the areas that add the most value to their members. Tia gives some great tips for young professionals just starting out, especially related to networking and getting the most from those experiences. Resources: Gold Fame Citrus (https://amzn.to/2yKNEUL) by Claire Vaye Watkins. Sponsor: Utilities can now automate leak alerts with (http://theh2duo.com/dropcountr) Please consider rating the podcast with 5 stars and leaving a one- or two-sentence review in iTunes or on Stitcher.  This helps tremendously in bringing the podcast to the attention of others. We give a shoutout to everyone who rates the podcast with 5 stars in future episodes. Give us some love on Twitter by tagging us (https://twitter.com/the_h2duo) or by using the #WaterInRealLifePodcast If you know someone you think would benefit, please spread the word by using the share buttons on this page. Thank you for sharing some of your time with us. We know how precious those minutes are. Share your story, you never know who needs to hear it and remember, “Those who tell the stories, rule the world.” Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s (http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html) : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

When telling climate change stories, truth is more important than facts. Host, Peterson Toscano shares his own bizarre climate change coming out story. Like many people, he was aware of climate change, but it never hit him in the heart or the gut, until one day. Moving, funny, and unexpected, his awakening came when climate change hit him and his Italian-American/South African family close to home. In addition to telling how he woke up to the reality of climate change, he shares listeners responses to the Puzzler Question—What Does Climate Change Mean to You? Art House We learn about climate fiction or “cli-fi” with Elizabeth Rush. ( http://elizabethrush.net ) Although she is the author of the bestselling and critically acclaimed non-fiction book, Rising—Dispatches from the New American Shore, she also teaches cli-fi at Brown University. She reveals the differences and important contributions both humanities and science students bring to the course. She also provides us with a reading list and discusses: --Gold, Fame, Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins. --10:04 by Ben Lerner --New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson Puzzler The puzzler question is such an important part of this show. These questions are designed to help you improve in your climate communication skills. Ready for the new puzzler? New Puzzler Question (especially designed for people of faith) You are at a place of worship and you have fliers about an upcoming climate change event. You hope to get some folks involved. Louis, someone you know from your faith community asks why are you involved in climate change work. You say, Lots of reasons, but a big part is because of my faith. Louis looks puzzled. He asks, Climate Change? What’s faith got to do with it? So what do you say to Louis? How is climate change connected to your faith or religion or spiritual practice? Send Peterson your answers. Leave your name, contact info, and where you are from. Get back to him by November, 15, 2018. You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org or better yet leave a voicemail of 3 minutes or less at 518.595.9414. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.)

It’s not every day we chat with someone the New York Times has listed as part of “the new vanguard” in fiction. But today’s our day: Carmen Maria Machado is live on NYG! We sit down with the badass author, National Book Award finalist, and fellow Philly resident for a conversation about writing, working retail, believing in your own work, craving the company of other women, and so much more. > The art of non-dominant groups can be trendy, but we think of men and whiteness and straightness as, like, eternal… And of course that’s fake, right? Like, that’s not real: men, and white, and straight, and cis, and all those things… are not neutral, but we think of them as neutral. > —Carmen Maria Machado, author, Her Body and Other Parties Here’s what we cover: The “fat women with fat minds” of Carmen’s “The Trash Heap Has Spoken” essay in Guernica How a retreat at the Millay Colony for the Arts kickstarted her writing career The wild popularity of “The Husband Stitch,” Carmen’s story in Granta (which, like, just read it already) What it’s like to go from working at the mall to full-fledged famous author in a few short years The exploitative mess of the adjunct teaching market Carmen’s review of Danielle Lazarin’s new book, Backtalk, and how women internalize the “slow, invisible grind” of misogyny Why Claire Vaye Watkins’ essay “On Pandering” and Kristen Roupenian’s short story “Cat Person” struck such a nerve Craving the company of women in a culture full of far too much bullshit Finding the confidence to divest from sexist culture, take up space, and acknowledge your talents out loud Plus: why city snobbery is bullshit, the incredible joys and health benefits of naps (seriously, just thinking about a nap can even lower your blood pressure)—and why y’all should just visit Philly already. Sponsors This episode of NYG is brought to you by: Shopify, a leading global commerce platform that’s building a world-class team to define the future of entrepreneurship. Visit shopify.com/careers to see what they’re talking about. WordPress—the place to build your personal blog, business site, or anything else you want on the web. WordPress helps others find you, remember you, and connect with you. _ _ Transcript Katel LeDû [Ad spot] Shopify is leveling the playing field for entrepreneurs with software that helps anyone with a great idea build a successful business. More than 50 percent of the business owners they power are women—across 175 countries. And they’re growing their world-class team to define the future of entrepreneurship. Visit shopify.com/careers to find out how they work [music fades in, ramps up, plays alone for ten seconds.] Jenn Lukas Hi! And welcome to No, You Go, the show about being ambitious—and sticking together. I’m Jenn Lukas. KL I’m Katel LeDû. Sara Wachter-Boettcher And I’m Sara Wachter-Boettcher. Today on No, You Go we’re talking with one of my favorite authors, Carmen Maria Machado. This first book of stories, Her Body and Other Parties, was just listed as one of 15 remarkable books by women that are shaping the way we read and write fiction in the 21st century by the New York Times. Like, seriously. Carmen’s also a Writer in Residence at the University of Pennsylvania, which means she lives right here in Philly. And that got me thinking a lot about place. You know, like in a lot of industries we sort of expect people who are ambitious to live in a specific location. Like, you’re a writer, gotta move to New York! Oh you’re in tech? Well why aren’t you in San Francisco? But, like, Philly is great. There’s so much amazing stuff happening here, and I wish more people knew that. JL Ugh! I love Philadelphia. You should see the Philadelphia tattoo I have across my abs. Just kidding [all laughing]. KL I was like, “What?!? Show me!!!” SWB My god. JL But I do in spirit. In spirit it’s there. Just, uh, just Ben Franklin hanging out [KL chuckles] eating a—Ben Franklin eating a pretzel right on my bicep. KL Love it. Very on brand [laughs]. SWB Can we all get like matching Ben Franklin eating a pretzel tattoos? KL Or just like a Liberty Bell? Something small, tasteful. SWB What do you love so much about Philly, Jenn? JL Ugh. I’ve been in Philadelphia for… woah. 18 years? SWB Wow! KL Woah! JL How’d that happen? [2:04] SWB Like your whole adult life! JL Yeah, pretty much, pretty much. And at first I didn’t love Philadelphia. I came here from Boston and I was just like, “Why—what am I doing still in the cold?” I guess is what I was thinking. And, I don’t know, I felt like there’s just something that wasn’t great and then within like two years it just grew on me. I loved that it’s flat, it’s cheap, and it’s got a lot of great people, and so much good food. But it’s got that—Philadelphia has this interesting thing in that uh it has like, people will say like this inferiority complex of a city of where, you know, we’re between DC, New York, Boston, and always something to prove. I feel like there’s a lot of that which I think has led to a lot of great innovation. A lot of people just like building lots of stuff to be like, “No, look! Look at all this amazing things that like that we have here.” I had the chance once to work for visitphilly.com website, which was probably one of the best projects I ever worked on because there was just having a chance every day to come in and work on something that showcased our fine city. And I think it’s so important to have pride in where you live, because it’s where you [chuckles] spend your time. KL I feel like—I lived in New York for five years of my life, like my late twenties, and I loved it, it was great. And coming from DC it was sort of like I got the sense that people were kind of like, “Oh, you finally moved to like a real city,” which totally felt like not at all. And then when I got back to DC after living in New York, people were kind of like, “Why would you ever leave New York?” And there are, you know, personally a lot—a million reasons why I left New York. I feel like it’s odd to get that reaction depending on where you live. And when I was in DC for that second time, I was working at National Geographic. So when I told people where I worked they were like, “Oh! Well that’s amazing.” And I’m like, “Yeah. That’s where HQ is. It’s in DC.” Like— SWB I think one of the things that’s so frustrating to me about talking places is that—is that kind of reaction that you’re talking about, that like, “Oh! You live there!?” I remember this one time I was having brunch with a friend of a friend in New York, we were in Brooklyn, and she—this woman, I didn’t know her very well, she asked me where I lived, and I said I lived in Philly, and she goes, “Oh Philly? Well, it’s a good starter city for New York.” And I looked at her and I was just like, I just like dead-eyed her, and I was like, “Or it’s a place that people live by choice?” It was so—it was just like one of those throwaway comments for her, because in her head, her assumption was like basically everybody was just trying to move to New York, and, like, you would only live somewhere else if you like couldn’t make it in New York or whatever. And I’m like, “I don’t want to live in New York.” I like New York. It’s fine. But I—what I think is—is important to remember and I think about this a lot for the podcast is like there are people doing awesome shit literally everywhere, and one of the things that we can do is do a better job of seeking that out. You know? Finding folks in all kinds of places. Like, way back I think in our second episode we talked to Eileen Webb who lives in northern New Hampshire and is doing all of this awesome work on accessibility, and strategy, and the web, and like… she lives on a farm. And like why not? Why the hell not? Why can’t we look at people doing great stuff everywhere. [5:25] SWB [Continued] So that brings me back to something that I loved about talking with Carmen, who is doing this amazing work as an author and becoming like straight up a famous writer. And she’s right here in Philly! And I suspect in like all kinds of cities out there you would find people who are just like top of their game in their fields, working from all kinds of unexpected places. JL And not just cities. I mean more rural areas, towns, I think one of the things that we always have to keep in mind that we do here is that there’s things about Philly that I love, obviously, and then there’s things about Philly that I don’t like, and that’s true of any place. And so I think the trick is finding that balance of someplace that you really like to be that helps you be the best you. KL Thinking about the idea of a “starter city” assumes that, you know, everyone has the same resources or lifestyle that would allow you to just like move wherever you want to go and move to, you know, a really potentially expensive city or place that, you know, you might just not have the resources that kind of work in that area that you can—that you can really have access to. So, I don’t know, I think it’s—I want to pay more attention to, like Sara said, you know, the work that people are doing that aren’t on the coasts or aren’t, in the places that we know are networks and all of our friends are. I think it’s kinda cool that we start looking at that. SWB Well, with that, can we go ahead and get to the interview because I am super hyped to have everybody listen to this interview with Carmen. KL Agh! I can’t wait [music fades in, ramps up, plays alone for four seconds, ramps down]. KL [Ad spot] We want to be able to share our voices our way through our website, and we use WordPress to help us do that because it gives us freedom and flexibility. Make your site your own when you build it with WordPress. They offer powerful ecommerce options from a simple yet effective buy button to a complete online store, and WordPress customer support is there for you 24/7 to help you get your site working smoothly. Plans start at just four dollars per month, so start building your website today. Go to wordpress.com/noyougo for 15 percent off any new plan purchase. That’s wordpress.com/noyougo for 15 percent off your brand new website [music fades in, ramps up, plays alone for four seconds, fades out]. SWB Over a year ago I read this amazing essay in Guernica called “The Trash Heap Has Spoken” about women refuse to apologize for taking up space. “Fat woman with fat minds”, as the author, Carmen Maria Machado, put it. It was a gorgeous essay and it’s one that I actually still think about all the time. So when her book came out last year I devoured it immediately. Fast forward just a few months and Her Body and Other Parties, a book of stories that defy genre, that are fantastical, and erotic, and queer, and just were really captivating to me, has been awarded about a zillion prizes. It’s been a bestseller, it was a finalist for the National Book Award, and somehow, despite all of that huge success, we still managed to get Carmen Maria Machado here to be interviewed on No, You Go. And literally she is here today. She is in our studio, also known as my office in south Philadelphia, and I am extremely excited to chat with her and also a little bit nervous [laughter]. Carmen, welcome to No, You Go. [8:33] Carmen Maria Machado Thank you for having me. SWB So, first up, ok, after I read that essay in Guernica I found out that you went to college with a friend of the show, Lara Hogan. And she said that you did photography together. So, first up, like when did you start pursuing writing as a career, and sort of what was that path for you? CMM Yeah! Well, I’ve always sort of—I’ve been a writer or a person who writes, or sort of organizes her mind around writing, for my entire life. I’ve been that way since I was a kid. Um and when I got to college I thought to my—like I wanted to be a journalist, that was sort of my way out. Like, “Oh, I’ll have health insurance and also, you know, have a job, and like be a writer.” And of course this was like 2004, I got to school, I started journalism classes and I did not like them. I was like, “This is not me, I don’t like—I do not have a nose for news. I don’t like hunting news stories. I don’t like talking to people on the phone.” Like all of these things that would be required of me as a journalist are things that just bore me or make me too anxious, and I don’t want to do it, even though I like writing. So I sort of moved around, I switched majors a few times. I was like lit for a hot second, and then I switched to something else, and then finally I took a photography class and I absolutely loved, and so I ended up getting like an independent study major where I sort of combined a lot of things including writing and photography and fine arts, where I met Lara. And so, yeah, so then like I had this idea of like being a photographer [smacks lips] that did not last for long [laughs] but I’ve never supported myself doing it. I worked all kinds of jobs [chuckles] um it’s just never been a thing that really like worked out for me. So I have a really nice Instagram account. That’s like the way that my student loans that I’m still paying off [laughing] that’s what they’re still going towards is a really well curated Instagram account and that’s about it. And then after school I was living in California, just sort of working some random jobs, and it wasn’t until I went to grad school which would’ve been in 2010 that I really started thinking about writing as a career, and as a thing that I could pursue sort of more professionally. SWB And you were in grad school in Iowa, right? [10:30] CMM Yes. Mm hmm. SWB What was that experience because it’s a pretty intense program, right? CMM Yeah I mean it’s the—so it’s the oldest program in the country which is sort of where it gets its reputation from. Um, you know, there’s a lot of really wonderful who’ve gone there. Uh I had a really good time. It was really nice to be able to go to a program that was funded, that I was able to just like write, and like not have to worry about work, and not have to worry about anything else. Like I was just—I had to do a little bit of teaching which also was nice because then I discovered that I really liked teaching um which before I did not realize. SWB Speaking of teaching [mm hmm], I saw that after grad school you had ended up kind of back in the Philly area, adjuncting uh while also working at the mall, and—and I’m curious like when do you feel like it all started to come together for you, career wise? CMM That’s a really good question. I mean it sort of happened in stages. So while I was in grad school, I— through a friend I met my now wife and we were dating long distance and decided after I was finished that we wanted to move in together wherever we would live. So she was living in Boston at the time, I was living in Iowa City, and we decided to do—to come to Philadelphia because it was like an affordable city we could live in and we had both—she had lived here before, I had never had but I grew up in Allentown. So not too far away. So yeah so we got here and in the beginning I mean, yeah, I was really struggling. Like she was working full-time and was more or less supporting us. I was, you know, adjuncting and working a retail job, and making like barely anything. I was really struggling. Yeah, I was going to King of Prussia mall… I was driving back and forth every week. And it was horrible. And I was very stressed out and sad and was, you know, sort of plugging away at some work, and was just writing some stories and, I don’t know, feeling like maybe I had made a mistake, or maybe like writing wasn’t in the cards for me professionally. And… it was really hard to write because I was physically exhausted all the time, just from the—from standing like teaching, you know, it is exhausting in its own way but like with working at the mall, I was just like on my feet all day, I was driving really really far back and forth and I was exhausted. So um at some point I applied for a writing residency at the Millay Colony for the Arts which is up in upstate New York and I got in for a session. So I quit my job, went there for a month, and like wrote a bunch of stuff. And that actually got me [smacks lips] back in this really nice headspace where I suddenly found myself able to be like, “I have a whole book here, and I can just kind of get it all pulled together.” And so I had written this story called “The Husband Stitch,” which is probably my most famous short story. I have a friend—someone has called it my hit single [laughter and laughing:] Like it is kind of like my hit single. It’s like the story people usually know of mine and so, yeah, and I had an agent at this point, and I sent it to him, and he submitted it to magazines and Granta ended up picking it up. And putting it on their website. And so that became—that was sort of like the trying point for me because that story did really well, people really responded to it, because it was online people were able to share it, and there was like a lot of sort of movement around that story. And, in fact, I believe last year they told me it was still their most read story at their website. But even though it’s three years old. Like it’s been out for three years but like, they were like, “Oh yeah, no, like there’s just a ton of traffic to that story. It’s like—it’s like a really highly trafficked page on the site.” So um so yeah so that was sort of the moment, like once I had that, and then I started putting together this collection and then, yeah, in about a year. So that would’ve been in 2014, so then I sold the book in 2015. Like in the fall. [14:03] CMM [Continued] So yeah and then once that happened and then I started—and then got like this offer at Penn where I’m now the Writer in Residence. So I suddenly had a teaching job where I had like health insurance. And like [laughs] a living salary [laughs], and like all these other things. Um and that was pretty awesome. So… so yeah. So that’s—it just ended up sort of working out nicely where that became like the place where my career sort of turned, and people started to pay attention, and sort of knew who I was, and everything has sort of followed from there. SWB And I think for listeners who don’t know about the adjunct teaching market, it’s a, I don’t know, exploitative nightmare. I would say [chuckles]. So like if you’re curious what the difference is between adjuncting and having a fellowship at Penn where you have benefits, it’s like night and day. A lot of adjuncts are contingent faculty and it’s like a couple thousand dollars a semester to teach a course, and you end up making, I don’t know, probably less than minimum wage at a lot of places? CMM Oh—oh absolutely! Absolutely you’re making less than that, because like you usually have office hours, and all the grading, everything you do outside of class, and prepping for class. Yeah, no, it’s actually really bad. And it’s funny because I think sometimes students—I’ll ask occasionally like see if students have a sense of what adjuncts—like who they are or what their situation is, and even now they really don’t. And, you know, when I was in college I also did not understand what adjuncts were. Like I had adjuncts and I didn’t realize it because like to a student it’s like, “Oh you’re my teacher! Like what’s the difference?” Well it’s like, oh the difference is huge. Like adjuncts are, you know, often like broke as hell, like they’re getting food stamps and they can like barely make ends meet. So, yeah, it’s like really—it’s one of those—you know it’s a labor issue that’s like getting a lot of traction and like in Philadelphia they’re actually like the—there’s an adjunct union that’s been um unionizing various schools and they’ve been actually pretty successful which is pretty awesome but, yeah, it’s a bad situation for sure. SWB And I’m curious like you mentioned that you really loved teaching and was it difficult to balance out this feeling of like loving teaching but knowing that you’re doing it in this like kind of exploitative environment where you—you can’t actually make a living off of it? [15:58] CMM Yeah, I mean I think the hardest thing for me was that I couldn’t be there for my students in the way I wanted to be because I was just—it was just unpaid labor. So like… you know like I would grade, and I would do workshops, and I would prep lectures, and I would all this stuff, but then like if a student wanted like more feedback on something, like I wasn’t getting paid for that, you know? And so I had to say no to things. And the students didn’t understand, and some of them would be like, “Well, why can’t you do that thing for me? Like you’re my teacher.” And I was like, “Well, in normal circumstances, yes, certainly, like you know?” Yes, as a teacher, like for example if a student come to you for like a letter of recommendation or something like that—that’s part of the process, right? Of being a teacher. Is being like, “Yes, like I am at least open to the idea of writing a letter of recommendation,” for example. Um or like, “Talking to you, you know, within the semester about certain things.” Um but when you’re an adjunct like all bets are off because you’re not making any—You’re making, yeah, 3,000 dollars a class. Right? So it’s like what are you supposed to do? Like how are you supposed to like value and manage your time? That part is really, really hard and—and when students don’t understand that—and you can’t just say like, “Oh, by the way, like I’m an adjunct. Like your school does not care enough to like pay me a living wage and you need to take that up with them. It has nothing to do with me.” You know? Um so I think it’s a combination of like just because students don’t know um and then yeah, and then just like trying to decide like where do you value your time, you know, if you’re a good teacher like you want to be there for your students. Like you want to be able to help them during the semester in the way that you can but yeah like when you’re not making money or—I’m just giving them free time. Like I’m not… you know I’m not doing—So yeah it’s a bad, it’s a really bad situation. SWB Well, so your situation has changed pretty [chuckles][yeah] dramatically since then and I would like to talk about that. So, in addition to be being a National Book Award Finalist which I like to say over and over again because I think it’s fucking awesome [laughter]. Um you were just called part of “the New Vanguard” by the New York Times… uh what’s—what’s that like? CMM [Chuckles] That—well that was shock—that I was—I mean nothing that’s happened to me have I—have I expected any of it. Like if you told me like, “Oh, your weird, genre-bending short story collection that’s going to be out from an independent press is going to like do just crazily well in every respect.” I would’ve never ever ever, in a million years, I would’ve been like, “You’re crazy. That’s ridiculous. There’s no way.” Um but yeah everything that’s been happening and then, yeah, that New York Times piece where they were sort of talking about like women writers of the 21st century who have like—who are sort of showing us how we read and write—like and that my book being one of those 15 books is just completely unbelievable [chuckles]. Um— SWB So, I mean when that happens, I assume you also have a lot of sudden like demands on your time and attention. How do you negotiate that? Like how do you figure out what you’re gonna say yes to? [18:41] CMM Oh, that’s a really good question. I mean you have to, like I’m learning to be more protective of my time. The thing is that what’s weird in the beginning was that, you know, I wasn’t sure how the book was gonna do and so I said yes to everything. And then at some point you have to—right, decided like I’m not going to do this, or I’m not going to do this. And I was lucky that my wife is actually very—she’s brilliant. And very, very good at knowing all my weak spots. So, for example, this spring, she made me build in three weekends where like I was not allowed to schedule anything and it was just weekends that I have off. And at the time, I was like very grouchy about that. I was like, “Oh I don’t want to do that.” But I’m so grateful that she did that because now there are weekends where I’m like, “I don’t have do anything. I can just— I can just relax. I can do laundry!” Right. I can just like do what I have to do. SWB You can have a weekend. CMM I can have a weekend! SWB That’s called a weekend. CMM Right, yeah, it’s called a weekend. Right [laughter], where I’m not traveling. But I’ve been traveling. Except for those weekends, I’ve traveled every single weekend for the last like six months. Like I’ve just been—you know, so it’s—it’s—it’s hard. And I think it’s also like remembering, right? Like it’s ok that right now I’m doing that, but then like knowing that this summer I’m going to a residency and I’m gonna go back to working because like I haven’t been writing and that’s been making me really sad. So like knowing that I have that on the horizon, you know, saying no to things. Like saying, you know, and like I sort of have a set of criteria so if I get asked to do something. It’s like, you know, do I know the person whose asking me? Is it something that I really want to do? Like I’m like, “Oh I want to be with that publication, or I want to—” You know there’s like a reason. Sometimes I think it’s just—it fun. Where it’s like, “Ooh that sounds really cool. Yeah I do want to try that.” Um so right now I’m judging this cookbook contest for Food52 and they like asked me to do it and I was like, “That’s so weird! Yes! I do want to do that!” [Laughter] Because like [laughs] I love cooking, and like they’re like, “We’ll send you these cookbooks and you can cook from them.” And there’s like a tournament—it’s like a tournament of cookbooks or whatever. And I was like, “Yeah! Yeah I do want to do that. That’s so weird.” So like I’ll say yes to that sort of thing. So it just becomes a matter of like figuring out what my priorities are, like, you know, so I sort of run every opportunity through like a little set of filters where I’m like, “Does it have this? Does it have this? Does it have this?” And I’ll say yes or no. SWB Yes I’ve had those periods. I mean I travel a lot for work things and conferences and book things and it’s like… I’m mostly pretty good at it, and then I realize, I’m like, “Oh no. I have limits.” And like I need to remember them. I used to do things like book those like multi-stop trips. Like [yeah] three stops [yeah yeah yeah] and then I realized like, I’m fucking miserable every time I do it and it was like, “What if you just didn’t do that anymore?” [Right, right] “What if you just said no to things that would require that?” And I found that—that was like when you talk about finding criteria and stuff it’s like, oh, notice those patterns. Like, “what are the patterns that are making you unhappy?” and getting rid of them. [21:19] CMM Yeah, or like I had someone once tell me like, “You should never do anything where the amount of money you’re being paid to do it, you’re not excited to go.” So like if you are like—if you’re like, “I don’t want to get on a plane, go to this place, do all this work, get uh go on a plane back, lose a weekend, and it’s for like 500 bucks or whatever.” Like you know like learning what is it that you actually want. Um what is worth it to you to like get out of the house or like and like leave your loved ones, and like get a on a fucking airplane which is like it’s fucking hell, [laughter and laughing] you know? SWB Yeah, I mean I also feel like um I definitely will say yes to things sometimes. I—I don’t do this anymore, but I used to have this problem where I would say yes to something and like, as I was writing the email saying yes, I had that like tight knot in my stomach— CMM Yeah, you’re like, “I don’t want to do this.” SWB Where yeah, like deep down [yeah] I didn’t actually want to say yes. And so now I try to be way more aware and like also let those emails sit a little longer. CMM Yes! Yeah this is also a thing I’ve noticed is, right, if I like—if I like don’t answer it right away, and also like it—I sort of went through this phase where I felt a little guilty about this but I said yes to some things and then I actually thought about it and then I wrote them back and I’d write them back and I’d be like, “You know I’m so sorry. Like I know I agreed to do this yesterday but I’ve been thinking about it more and I think I actually don’t have the time.” And I did that—I did that earlier this year and I was so—I almost like cried from relief and she was—and the person was super nice about it. They were like, “Don’t even worry about it. Like you’re obviously so busy. It’s totally fine.” And then I was like so happy, I was like [cries out], “Oh I’m free! Free!” Like I could’ve been stressing about this for two weeks and instead I just like said, “Nope, actually I can’t do it. Sorry.” Uh— KL And that feeling of relief is such a huge [chuckles][right! Right!] And it’s not like—it’s not like you’re waiting until the day before this thing [right, right, exactly, exactly] is going on, it’s like you are, you know, you’re—you’re paying attention to it and you’re like, “Ok, I need to just take this—remove this from my plate and my future for, you know, whatever reasons. And that’s ok.” [23:10] SWB There’s also like just the incredible unmatched joy of canceling plans [laughter]. So good. But yeah so I read a book review the other day of yours for Danielle Lazarin’s Backtalk [mm hmm] and I would love to talk about it a little bit because in there you know you talk about how it explores the “exhausting, slow poison of masculine power, the grind of the patriarchy on even the most privileged of women,” and you pose kind of a question in there, like, “How do writers divest themselves from the pressures of the dominant culture while also addressing the burdensome weight of that dominant culture?” And I think that piece and your—your Guernica essay last year, all of those things are sort of like attempting to wrangle with internalized misogyny, on some level, um and that’s something I feel like is sort of cropping up a—a good bit among feminist writers. So I’m wondering if you could talk more about that. Like, I feel like in that article you started to… you started to answer that question a little bit of like, “How do we divest ourselves of” that internalized misogyny is like… “Don’t be pleasant or easy to teach. Look mean for the camera. Just get up and go.” What does that look like? Like how do you get up and go? CMM Ugh! That’s a really huge question. I mean I think [sighs] this is the—it’s so funny I feel like there’s this, right? This idea about like you become more conservative as you get older. And I think that’s a really weird idea because I feel like every woman I know gets more and more radical the older they get because it’s like the world—the bullshit of being a woman in today’s culture, or in any culture, or any time, or whatever, is so awful that like just the longer you’re alive, the more radical you become. So I feel like I’m way more radical in terms of like my thoughts about gender than I was like ten years ago which is amazing to me, and I think is sort of the opposite of what most people would expect. Yeah so I mean I think—yeah I think right now this topic of internalized misogyny and like I—I talk about in that essay like Claire Vaye Watkins essay “On Pandering,” and I also talk about “Cat Person” the—that story in The New Yorker. All of which also deal with concept of like internalized misogyny. So like I think what’s really interesting is that right now I have a lot of thoughts about like Hillary Clinton—like I feel—I feel like there’s like a lot of… what’s in the air right now is—is like post this election and like regardless of how you feel about… Bernie Sanders or Hillary specifically, I think we can all agree like the way that misogyny played out on this really massive scale during the election was like really traumatic for women. And I think we actually have not fully addressed that trauma and I think we just went to pure panic mode because, like Trump is president and suddenly like, you know, we just gotta get past it. But like I think there’s something about… like people talk about like women—like white women voting for Trump and I think it—that is interesting not just because obviously like it’s this way in which like race—like race alliances, racism sort of trump, no pun intended, this like gender element. And the way in which women loathe themselves so deeply, on this like deep sort of cultural level, right, that like even though Hillary Clinton is like the most privileged woman probably to ever walk the fucking planet [laughter]. That she couldn’t win that election against this like incompetent, blowhard, like caricature of a sexist guy from like an ’80s cartoon. Like that to me is just an illustration of like how broken it is. Again, regardless of how you think about her specifically. And I think that like “Cat Person” is another really good example of that, in terms of that story, like where it’s all about like… it’s like, again, not about rape exactly but it’s about like what does it mean that like women—it’s like easier to have sex with a man that you’re not really that into than to like say no and walk away… because it is! And like I have been there. I have personally been there. Where it’s like [absolutely!], “I don’t want to do this.” And most women I know have been there where there like, “I really don’t want to do this but I’d rather like just not have to deal with not saying no.” And literally like that Stormy Daniels interview, I don’t know if you guys have watched it but like— [27:06] SWB I specifically did not watch it but I read about it later. But yeah that’s kinda the story too, right, it’s like, [crosstalk] “Well, I might as well do this ’cause…” CMM He’s like, “Were you attracted to him?” And she was like, “Oh no!” It’s just like [laughs] and then she was like—and then he was like, “Well, why’d you do it?” And she’s like, “Well I found myself like, ‘Here I am, like I’m stupid enough to get into his room like I might as well just like do this.’” And it’s the same like absolute like res—where it’s like ugh the resolve. It’s like, “I can’t fight this anymore. Like it just is what it is. It’s easier to have sex with this totally odious man than it to like just get out of here because he could do god knows what.” And so I feel like there’s something about that that’s really interesting and I feel like the Claire Vaye Watkins essay, again, dealing with with this idea of like women trying to align themselves with men which I think is also like a massive problem that we don’t really talk about a lot. And I feel like this narrative of sort of like, you know, women being like, “I’m just one of the guys!” I’m like I knew a woman like that in college, it was this woman who like that was literally like she was just like, “I’m just one of the dudes! Like I don’t know nuh nuh nuh,” and it always struck me as like deeply, profoundly sad and I feel like it—the more I sort of live like the more I’m like, “God! That’s the [yells] saddest, worst thing!” Um so, you know, like feminis—femininity and femaleness is so odious to somebody that they would just be like, “I reject that. Women are—” She was like, “Women are just drama queens. I rather like align myself with men.” And even queer women align themselves with like male power, so that women who aren’t even attracted to men necessarily being like, “Oh I need to like align myself in that way.” And so that to me is really interesting and I think that there’s something in there that we’re—we’re coming to this like… I don’t know if it’ll actually be a catharsis but I feel like [mm hmm]—we’re sort of—this is like sort of what’s in the air right now and I feel like we’re arriving in this place where we’re having to reckon with like… again, like not just like this cartoonish like male villainy that’s so—The problem is that like Trump is like… cartoonish male villainy, but what’s actually way worse is like, again, this slow, almost invisible grind, and the ways in which women then within themselves reinforce that, even when the, sort of, the power’s not directly not on them in that moment [mm hmm]. And I feel like that is something that we like need to figure out. And I don’t know if we will, I don’t know if that’s possible, but it’s something that is—is very interesting to me as a writer and so it’s like what I write about and so of course that book—that essay—you know, writing that review gave me a little space to like talk about that because it was—I was like, “Oh this is exactly what this book is about so like [mm hmm]. Here, I’m also gonna like talk about this idea that I have.” [29:20] SWB Yeah I mean I feel like this comes up in all kinds of fields. I mean I definitely know early in my career I… spent a lot of time hanging out with the dudes in my office because the dudes in my office were like in positions of more power, oftentimes. And they were fun! They were nice. I mean they were—they were in lots of ways great people but I definitely had a couple of years in there where it was almost like I set aside a lot of the more… like overt feminist work that I had done prior to that and was like, “I’m kinda—I’m here to, you know, get shit done and move up and make space for myself and, you know, I’ll do that by fitting in at—for a round of beers with these dudes.” And I couldn’t really see it that way at the time. Like I could not have explained that was what I was doing but looking back it’s like that was definitely what I was doing. And there came this moment where I was just like, “I don’t fucking want to.” And then I realized is that over the past several years, I mean definitely since the election but even before that, I was going through a process of sort of like… reevaluating the men in my life [mm hmm]. Um like I have a husband. I love him. His great [laughter]. Still in my life. He stayed. Um but like I definitely cut out a lot of people who I thought I was like “supposed to” like [mm hmm], or people who were “important” in my field, or whatever. Right? Like I was just like, “Oh. Is this actually bringing me anything in my life?” CMM And I do think that’s also—I think that’s part of getting older. I do feel like as you get older you’re like, “Well life is short, I will die one day [chuckling in background], I need—I can’t like waste time on people who are like making me miserable or like don’t—or don’t—you know they don’t, not that you like, not in like a self-serving way where you’ll like, ‘Only people who can help me,’ but like just being like, ‘No, like that person doesn’t give me any joy. That person like makes me feel bad about myself.’” You know, whoever. Like I want to—but then yeah, there’s this element also of like my tolerance for like, male masculine bullshit is like this big. People who are listening, you can’t see. I’m making a very tiny little notch [chuckling in background] with my fingers. It’s like almost nothing because I’m just like, “I can’t. I don’t have time for your weird shit.” [Laughter] Like, I don’t want to deal with that. I gotta live my life. I gotta make art. I got a life. But I—but I crave the company of other women. And I mean I’m queer but also like I just crave like… I think women are more interesting [laughs]. I think women are just more interesting and I feel like the—yeah, it’s like I don’t have to explain myself to women [yes]. I don’t have to explain… we just know. KL Yeah, you don’t have to explain about being or existing in—in [right]—in small facets of [right]—of ways that like seem like they should be obvious but [yeah]. SWB Right. Like when you’re like, “Well, you know, sometimes you just had sex with somebody because it was easier than leaving.” And everybody’s just like [crosstalk and laughter], “Oh yeah—I get it.” [32:00] CMM [Inaudible][Laughter]—no man. Almost no—well, I’m sure some men. But almost [sure]. Probably a very tiny percentage but every woman knows what that’s like, every single woman. It’s like, “Oh yeah,” where you’re like, “I’d rather—I don’t know what this—I don’t know this guy, I don’t know what he’ll do if I say no.” Or having to deal with like the whining and the inevitable like bullshit that’s gonna come with me saying no is just like easier for me to just like have sex and then like go away. So like that, right, well woman know that and—and I think it’s really nice to have that um and I think what’s really nice about what’s happening sort of in terms of art and writing right now is like you are getting a lot of these narratives are sort of being presented um like well before like “Cat Person” and like all these other stuff that’s been in the last couple of years. There was this really amazing piece I want to say in Buzzfeed maybe like two or three years ago that was also about this idea where it’s like not rape… but it’s like what about this exact phenomenon where it’s like it’s not rape, it’s not sexual assault, like you consent, technically, but you’re consenting because of this like larger power structure that like is totally out of your control and like, all things being equal, you would say no but like you just don’t want to deal with—You know so it’s like I’ve—this is like a thing that’s just in the air and I think we’re just like thinking about it a lot. SWB Well I think that there’s kind of a lot of stuff in the air right, you know, you touched on some of it and one of the things that—that seems to be like definitely in the air is just I mean women’s stories are—are selling now. Like in a way that, I don’t know, maybe they probably never had the opportunity to before, they probably [chuckles] would’ve sold if they had been out there in the world [mm hmm] but I feel like there’s—there’s suddenly a lot more space? I’m not sure if that’s the way right way to look at it though but I feel like there’s um so many more women authors from all kinds of backgrounds who are like getting a lot of attention and who are kind of becoming, well like “the new vanguard” or whatever, right? Like there’s like—there’s—there’s sort of an appetite for that and a—and a—more of a, I don’t know, there’s an appetite for it which maybe was always there but there’s maybe more of a willingness to publish it and more of a willingness to promote it? CMM Yeah I mean it—I feel like it’s sort of actually a bunch of different things, like I mean on one hand, not to be um, not to be cynical, but like feminism is a brand that sells. Like there is a sort of level of like… it is accept—it is a thing that is acceptable… for like companies to make money on, you know? And like so the reason, for example, that we’re seeing like so many like gay st—we’re seeing more like gay stories and more feminist stories is because right now, we’re in a place where that sort of thing is permissible and is even, like, profitable. But I don’t think that necessarily means that like, it—I don’t know if that’s as much as changing, it’s just like technology’s permitting this, certain sort of independent groups but there’s like just sort of weird little pockets that like are permitting it, and so it is like happening, but I don’t necessarily know if that means that like it’s different now, “everything’s better,” like I don’t—I don’t actually know if that’s the case. I’m also very cynical about all this. [35:03] SWB And I wonder, right, like I wonder if there’s a moment where people are like, “Oooh! We can—if we buy this book, right, like if we buy this author’s work, we think that’s gonna sell because it’s going to fit into this like group of like [totally] women of color writers who’ve sold well in previous years.” That’s a moment. That may not be a change that lasts. CMM Right. The problem is that we think, and by we I just mean like culture. We think of like, minority—the art of non-dominant groups can be trendy, but we think of men and whiteness and straightness as, like, eternal and not trendy, and just like that is—that is the natural baseline, and anything else is like a trend. So like publishing—and publishing and other sorts of art forms—might follow those trends, but ultimately we will always return to this baseline. And of course that’s fake, right? Like, that’s not real: men, and white, and straight, and cis, and all those things are not like—are not neutral, but we think of them as neutral. So I feel like, yeah, I feel like we’re in this place where like, you know, there are these like spikes, but it’s because of this trendiness that—but it doesn’t mean that’s gonna be that way forever, right? So until we re-conceive of what is neutral, like, what is the center? And if we keep thinking of maleness and whiteness, et cetera, et cetera as the center, then we’re gonna keep like cycling back to that, you know? And so I think there’s like a different way to conceive of it that is like—but again, that’s about divesting. That’s about, like, rejecting the structure altogether, of everything, which is like really different than just being like, “Rah rah!” Like, “yay!” Like it’s actually more about like pulling everything out from the roots and like starting again, and how do we that? And I don’t know. Look, I don’t know how we do that. I think that’s like a big question and I think um… you know, we’ll see. SWB Yeah. If—if the question is basically like, ok, well if we redefine what neutral is or like sort of what—what normal is and we cannot do that unless we can deal with our internalized misogyny. [Right] Right? And so it’s like, ok, well then how do we deal with that? And that’s such a huge question. Then—then, you know, it’s like—it’s a long haul to get back around to like, ok then what—what—what does the world look like after that [right] and like who the hell knows. But I’m—I’m curious: what has that meant in your personal work in your life? So, like, how did you get to a place where you felt like you had the confidence to show up with, you know, your, I’ll use your quote from earlier, with your “fat mind,” [chuckling in background and chuckles] and like and to say like, “I’m here and I’m going to take up space and I’m going to tell the stories that I want to tell, and I’m going to do them in these genres that don’t—that haven’t really been recognized, or I’m going to take genre and I’m gonna do whatever the fuck I want with it.” Like how did you get to a place where you felt like that was something that you could do? [37:51] CMM I wish I could say that it was all internal because certainly part of the process is like, being like, “I am going to do this thing.” Part of it was actually—but part—a lot of it was other people, you know? I was lucky in that like I had like my girlfriend slash wife who’s like brilliant and I trust and love, like being like, “This is really awesome. This is really different.” There were other people in my life like really encouraging me and like, you know, readers who read my work and wrote to me and, you know, so there were like these other sort of forces working. And then at some point I—I feel like I was looking at what I was doing and I was like, “I have something to say.” And, you know, the interesting thing about being like a writer or being any kind of artist is like you have to have an ego. Because, you know, you have to say like, “What I’m creating is important enough that I think other people should pay for it, should read it. It should be published, or it should be presented,” or whatever, and like that requires an amount of ego where you’re like, “I think that what I have to say is that important.” Um and I think sometimes people forget that element of it or they—or they—they’re like, “Oh like this person is so arrogant,” or whatever but it’s like no, no, you have to believe that, or else why the fuck are you writing? What’s the point? Or why are you making whatever art? So at some point I had to be like, “Yes, like I’m really good at this. I’m gonna—I’m gonna do it and I’m just gonna make this happen.” And that felt really amazing, and it felt really—and it felt right. And now—so it’s like I had to get over this hump, and then at some point, like obviously like the books are doing really well and I was like, “Ok so I wasn’t—” But even the book hadn’t done well I think I still would’ve felt that way like, “I’m good at what I do.” Like I know that I’m good at—I’m not good at a lot of things. Like, you know, I can’t draw to save my life. Like, you know, I’m really bad at dancing, like I’m not a fast runner, when I paint walls it’s always really crooked, like there I do not have a lot of skills but I know that I’m a good writer. And that—I can say that and like I know that’s true. And I would never—you know, I don’t ever say things like I, yeah, I would never claim to be anything that I’m not and like—but I know I’m a good writer. And I have that. I have that. And so… I can sort of move forward that and that’s like in my arsenal of like getting through my life and like getting through everything um and knowing that and believing that. So… yeah. I don’t know. So I think it is like—it’s, yeah, it’s partially like sort of taking from other people what they are handing to you because I think oftentimes people will say to you like, “You’re really good at this thing.” And you want to be like—especially women want to be like, [uptalking:] “No, no, no. Like I’m not—I’m not—oh, oh, you know, like I—thank you. I’m just doing what I do.” You know? And it’s like you want to—because you’re trained to like minimize yourself in that way and it’s like—it’s like saying, “Oh thank you, I worked really hard on that. So thanks so much. I really appreciate it.” And it can be scary and also for me like I get really scared when I have to admit like—Like, for example, like right now I’m working on this new book and I’m really scared that I’m not smart enough to write it and that’s really hard to admit. Because it’s like, oh my god, like, what if I’ve bitten off more than I can chew? Like what if, you know? And so now I’ve gotta like rapidly make myself the kind of writer who can get through this project, and that’s like a very terrifying challenge. But also, that’s how I know I’m getting better, because I’m like pushing myself through like these new stages of—of art and of—you know, and I read my book—my book came out in October. When I read it I’m like, “I’m already a better writer than I was when I wrote this book.” And that’s really exciting too, being like, “Oh no, like I, you know, I’m already better.” … Like I’m already sick of reading from it because I’m like, “Oh I can do better than this,” you know? [Laughs] So yeah so I feel like it’s like taking what people give you… sort of, you know, challenging yourself and pushing yourself and, you know, knowing what you’re good at, and I think also like a lot of that in—involves like being bad at things. Like, I don’t know, my dad is a chemical engineer and the poor man was trying to get me to be a scientist for like my entire life and of course I like at every turn just resisted him in [chuckles] in every way [chuckling in background]. [41:29] CMM [Continued] And I’m ba—I’m not good at math, I’m not good at, you know? [Laughs] You know like I’m not good at any of that stuff. Um but I do remember like getting I think a C in chemistry in high school and I had like a—I had like a conniption, like I was having like a nervous breakdown, and my dad was like, “Look,” he said, “Ye—did you do your best?” And I said, “I did!” Like I was going to school, I was like. He’s like, “That’s all you can do. It’s ok. You don’t—you’re not good—no one’s—no one’s good at everything.” He’s like, “I never trust people who have like straight As in absolutely everything because it’s like… it’s like you’ve gotta fail, you’ve gotta,” well he didn’t say—he didn’t say “fuck up” but I would say you gotta fuck up sometimes. You gotta be like, “I’m gonna try this thing, maybe I’ll get a little better, maybe not. Like, I’m—but also I can do this.” Or, “This thing gives me pleasure, I’m gonna do it anyway.” And I feel like there’s this way of just like figuring out like, yeah, like how you occupy your space and like being ok with bad at things and also being comfortable with being good at something and men are good at both those things. Men are really good at being like super confident in everything that they’re doing and also like fucking up royally at the same time. SWB And they just move on! CMM They’re just going on! Right! And like women are just like, “Aaaaaah!” [Laughter in background] And I feel like it’s like because we’re just taught to do that, we’re taught to like [inaudible crosstalk] freak out and agonize at every turn. And it’s like you don’t have to live your life that way. That’s like a prison. That’s fake. So, yeah, so I don’t know, and this is all stuff that I’ve only realized in the last like few years of my life, you know? And so there’s something really freeing about that. SWB I love it so much. CMM I’m so glad [laughs]. SWB I love it so much because, you know, we talk about this a lot on the show. This sort of like… having other—like when other people come to you and tell you you’re doing great, and like how important it is to actually listen to them and take that seriously because it’s so easy to brush it off and, again, like to come back to what—what I mentioned at the beginning, like, to reduce your own successes to luck, right? [Yeah] And to like, “Oh yeah I wasn’t—” No, like, sure, I mean, it’s not to say like there are some ways in which we all get lucky, there are ways in which we happen to have this moment, and the right thing at the right time but like, things have happened for me in ways that were good because I worked my ass off, right? [Right, yes] Like I’m good at things and that is why I’ve gotten a lot of it. [43:28] CMM And I think also recognizing because for me like people will ask me like, “What is—you’re having this moment, what does that mean?” And I’m like, “Well, like it’s a lot of things.” Like it is some amount of luck. Like there’s timing. Timing is a thing you often can’t but like good timing. Yes, I’ve worked my ass off. I’m also really privileged in a lot of ways. Like I grew up, you know, I was educated, like I grew up in a certain kind of household. Like I’ve never like been hungry, I’ve never like been homeless. Like there’s like all these things sort of working for me um so it’s like, you know, and also, yeah, I’m working really hard, and also I have some talent. And I think there’s like, like saying like, “I have a talent,” which is a thing that like is sort of nebulous and is hard to pin down and like where does it come from? And can you teach it and like I mean that’s kind of beyond purview and I could talk about that for like ten hours but there’s like that element, there’s privilege which you can’t control, there’s luck which you also can’t control, all you can control is like the hard work element. SWB Yeah, I mean I don’t know if you can teach this necessarily but it seems like something you can give to someone. CMM Or like—yeah or like let someone know about it. Yeah, no, for sure. KL Talk about it more like you’re saying, I mean I think talking to each other and talking to other women who may not just may not ha—have experience talking about this stuff or listening to people who have experienced it [yeah]. It’s, you know. SWB Or also it’s like we’ve sort of been taught to be ashamed of it. Like something [exactly] we talk about a lot is how common it is for women to feel like they shouldn’t talk about their ambitions, or talk [yes] about things they want, or like to like—yeah, like to—to—to be able to say out loud like the intentionality that they have [yeah] and put into things [yeah]. CMM Right it’s—it’s very gauche to be like, “This is what I want.” Or, “This is my goal.” SWB And I’m kind of fucking tired of that [yeah] like I don’t—I’m not interested in that. I want to hear what—what women want and [yeah] like what they’re—what they’re doing— CMM But not like in a Mel Gibson kind of way [boisterous laughter]. KL No. Never. [45:00] SWB Never. Literally never in a Mel Gibson kind of way. Carmen, thank you so much for being on the show today. CMM Oh of course! No problem, thank you [music fades in, ramps up, plays for five seconds alone, fades out]. SWB Is everybody ready for the Fuck Yeah of the Week? JL I’m so ready. SWB I’m always ready for the Fuck Yeah this week, because the Fuck Yeah this week is: naps. KL Aaaah! SWB Ugh uh do you—ok… JL How do you feel right now just saying the word “naps”? SWB I feel like I want a nap. JL You know what thinking about napping does? It can reduce your blood pressure. KL Just thinking about it? JL Just thinking about a nap! KL Oh my god. JL There was a recent study that found that just people anticipating naps was enough to lower your blood pressure. KL So we should be thinking more about snoozing. SWB Maybe this is why my blood pressure is so great because I think about naps a lot [KL laughs]. JL Everyone just stop for a second… think about a nap [sigh of relief from KL]… SWB So I don’t nap like all people nap. Like some people are like, “Oh my gosh, if I sit down for a nap it’s like two hours.” And I’m like I don’t have that kinda time. But when I take a nap, I—I take a micro nap. And— [46:13] JL What is a micro nap? And tell me more! SWB Ok. So, you know, I work at home, and, you know, sometimes you get like that afternoon lull where your brain doesn’t work that well, it’s like after lunch and you just need a minute. If I have a little bit of time something that I’ll often do is I will set my alarm for 12 or 15 minutes, and… I’ll just kind of doze off. And when I wake back up 12 to 15 minutes later, I feel so much better. And I know it sounds wild. Right? Like I know it sounds wild to be like, “Wait, you nap for 12 minutes?” JL Stop. Does this work? Is this real? SWB So it works for me and—and I’ll tell you when it works: it works when I’m having an afternoon where I’m just—I get that sluggish, tired feeling and where I’m feeling so sleepy already that I’m like, “I just can’t.” So I’m already like already pretty sleepy feeling and I figure like, instead of trying to fight it, I just lean into it, and then come back bounced back. And so for me, when I’m in that zone, I found that that kind of little break is much more productive than like trying to fight through it. So—so here’s my 12-minute story, ok: two minutes to fall asleep. Ten minutes of napping. JL And it wor—and you fall asleep within those two minutes? SWB Oftentimes I can fall into like a light sleep. JL Mmm… I’m—I feel like my blood pressure’s dropped just listening to you tell that story. KL I know! I—yeah, I have not usually been able to do that and I think now I’m listening to you say this and I’m wondering if it’s something that I could maybe just like try to practice a little bit more because when I have napped and just like been able to do it for like half an hour or something, even that is, you know, really nice and—and I feel refreshed. But I feel like I was always one of those people who I would go to sl—like go to sleep to nap and I would two hours later I would [chuckles] wake up and I’d be like, “Ah! Everything’s shot!” And then you feel terrible. SWB Yeah, I mean I can do that if I lie down for that long it’s like you’re just you’re brain foggy because you go into those deep sleep cycles. I don’t do that—it’s just like a real quick thing. Here’s the thing: you know my number one tip for getting good at the micro nap? I mean I don’t know if micro naps are gonna work for you or not, maybe they will, maybe they won’t. But my tip is like, first up… learn to feel really good about the idea. Like don’t feel bad or guilty about taking a little nap [KL absolutely].  Don’t feel like you should be doing something else, don’t feel like it’s sort of like indulgent. Feel like sometimes that is the most productive way that you could spending your time. [48:49] JL There’s so many studies about how good naps are for you. I mean like things like just being more alert, increasing your patience, reducing heart disease. SWB Oh my god, I need way more patience. So should I take a lot more naps [laughs]? JL Maybe you need to up it to [inaudible over crosstalk]— KL Yeah, definitely. SWB You know the other thing I think, though, like you were saying, Katel, like you need to practice a little bit. I do think it’s the kind of thing, like, even if you’ve mentally given yourself permission, you may not have kind of physically let go of this idea that—that taking nap is a—is, like, a weird thing to be doing. So like normalize it, and then it might get easier to fall asleep. KL Completely. I think that is absolutely true. And I think also just doing some sort of physical hygiene around that, where, you know, I’m putting myself in like a very comfortable place, and making it conducive to doing that instead of being like, “I’m gonna—I’m sitting on couch already, I’m just gonna like lay my head down,” that doesn’t always work. JL One of the things that always frustrated me as a new mom is everyone was like, “Sleep when baby sleeps.” And I’m like, “Buuut I can’t just sleep on demand,” and that would be so annoying because you can’t predict the sleep schedule of your newborn or toddler, it turns out um [laughs] and so he would go to sleep and I’d be like, “Well, I want to sleep,” but I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep and so like and I would give myself two minutes, ten minutes, 15 and I wouldn’t fall asleep and then I would just get frustrated and think about that and then I would just give up and—and do something else like eat or shower which was fine. Other necessities. But I—then I eventually realized that for me it wasn’t just about falling asleep, the idea of just lying down and giving my body and sometimes my mind a chance to just relax also was really refreshing. So I’ve gotten way better at that. So maybe not falling asleep but this idea of just breaks and resting and giving myself a chance to do that. And like you were saying, Sara, being ok with that. And also being ok if I don’t fall asleep. And I think that was one of the thing that was one of my biggest battles is I’d be like, “Napping’s not working. I’m not falling asleep.” But being like, “You know what? I’m just gonna lie here for ten minutes, 30 minutes, an hour, whenever he decided to wake back up and I’m just gonna—I’m just gonna be.” [51:04] SWB Did you ever think that you would be just like looking forward to when he’s like a surly tween or teen [laughter] and like won’t get up until 11:30 or [laughs]? So yeah, naps. I recommend it. They are Sara approved. I think you should take ‘em. I think you should feel good about them. I recognize if you work l

Claire Vaye Watkins, author of the cli-fi novel, Gold Fame Citrus, is Peterson Toscano's special guest. Claire talks about her book and the importance of storytelling in this time of climate change. With her writing and imagination, she allows herself to go to places many climate advocates avoid. In doing so, she raises important questions about our work and this critical time in history. Wise, insightful, and witty, hearing this interview will help you hone your own skills as a storyteller. Art House This month Claire Vaye Watkins is both our main guest and our Art House guest. Stay tuned for upcoming Art House episodes featuring artist, Fritz Horseman, and climate change-themed band, Hayride Casualties. Puzzler We share multiple responses to January's puzzler--which was really an accusation: What are you actually doing to address climate change? What does an climate advocate say when someone dismisses you as a hypocrite? New Puzzler Question On FB you you encouraged people engage in climate action and join your group. A friend of yours, let's call her Samantha, comments, "That's very noble of you, but really the only solution is going to be a technical one. It's gone too far and they are going to have to geo-engineer a solution. Don't stress about it. They are working on a fix somewhere." So what do you say to Samantha who believes geoengineering will solve all of our climate woes and we should just live our lives until the patch is available? Get back to Peterson by April, 15, 2018. You can email your answers to radio @ citizensclimate.org or leave a voicemail of 3 minutes or less at 570.483.8194. (+1 if calling from outside the USA.)

What happens when a city of four million people suddenly runs out of water? Our host, Peterson Toscano, chats with two Cape Town residents, Helen Moffett and Judy Abrahams. Together they explore "Day Zero," the day when this South African city will turn off the water to the taps. Discover the causes to this crisis and the responses, both ugly and beautiful. Funny, insightful, and well informed, Helen and Judy talk about many aspects of the crisis that are being overlooked in the media. Puzzler Question The story of the water crisis is so big we will share the many answers to the popular puzzler question next month when writer Claire Vaye Watkins talks about her cli-fi novel--Gold Fame Citrus. Listen, Rate, and Share! You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on iTunes, Soundcloud, Stitcher Radio, Podbean, Northern Spirit Radio, Google Play, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio. Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio. If you listen on iTunes, please consider rating and reviewing us! All music is royalty free and purchased thorough PremiumBeat.com and AudioBlocks

In episode two of Fiction/Non/Fiction, Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan talk to Jia Tolentino and Claire Vaye Watkins about Hollywood's serial abusers, harassment, and the now infamous Harvey Weinstein. For more, head to LitHub.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Claire Vaye Watkins was born in Bishop, California in 1984. She was raised in the Mojave Desert, in Tecopa, California and across the state line in Pahrump, Nevada. A graduate of the University of Nevada Reno, Claire earned her MFA from the Ohio State University, where she was a Presidential Fellow. Her stories and essays have appeared in Granta, Tin House, Freeman's, The Paris Review, Story Quaterly, New American Stories, Best of the West, The New Republic, The New York Times, and many others. A recipient of fellowships from the Sewanee and Bread Loaf Writers' Conferences, Claire was also one of the National Book Foundation's “5 Under 35.” She is the author of Gold Fame Citrus and Battleborn, which won the Story Prize, the Dylan Thomas Prize, New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award, the Rosenthal Family Foundation Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and a Silver Pen Award from the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame. A Guggenheim Fellow, Claire is on the faculty of the low-residency MFA at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She is also the co-director, with Derek Palacio, of the Mojave School, a free creative writing workshop for teenagers in rural Nevada. Derek Palacio received his MFA in Creative Writing from the Ohio State University. His short story “Sugarcane” appeared in The O. Henry Prize Stories 2013, and his novella, How to Shake the Other Man, was published by Nouvella Books. His debut novel, The Mortifications, is forthcoming in 2016 from Tim Duggan Books, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group. He is the co-director, with Claire Vaye Watkins, of the Mojave School, a free creative writing workshop for teenagers in rural Nevada. He lives and teaches in Ann Arbor, MI, and is a faculty member of the Institute of American Indian Arts MFA program.

Recorded Live at Literati: Cody Walker reads from his timely chapbook The Trumpiad, Helen Zell Writers' Program graduate Katie Willingham reads from her forthcoming debut collection Unlikely Designs; author Jospeh Scapellato reads from his short story collection Big Lonesome, and discusses it with Claire Vaye Watkins; Raymond McDaniel reads some of his favorite poems; Yale Younger winner Dee Matthews reads from her collection Simulacra. Also, Sam talks with bookseller and Literati Poetry Book Club host and curator Bennet S. Johnson. Shelf Talking Produced by: Mike & Hilary Gustafson, and John Ganiard Theme Music: “Orange and Red” by Pity Sex (2016, Run for Cover Records)

Claire Vaye Watkins is the author of Gold Fame Citrus and the multiple-prize-winning Battleborn. She is a Guggenheim Fellow and on the faculty at the Helen Zell Writers' Program at the University of Michigan, at the Institute of American Indian Arts, and at the Mojave School. Derek Palacio is the author of The Mortifications and How to Shake the Other Man, and teaches in Ann Arbor Michican, as well as at the Institute for Indian American Arts, and at the Mojave School.

42 Minutes 240: 240: Claire Vaye Watkins - Gold Fame Citrus - 08.29.2016 The program considers the allure and propaganda of the West as well as its harsh realities with Guggenheim fellow, Claire Vaye Watkins, author of the recent Gold Fame Citrus published in 2015 by Riverhead Books. Topics Include: Mojave Desert, Dune, Frank & Brian Herbert, Victorians, Cli-Fy, Corrections, Erotica, Geological Time, White Whale, Kidnapper, Dowser, Cults, Kunzru, Gods Without Men, Benevolent Sexism, Chivalry, Liars, Conmen, Belief, Story Powell, Muir, Melville, Wasteland, Yuca Mountain, Lawns, Water, Cadillac Desert, Stegner, Angel of Repose, Domination. http://clairevayewatkins.com

Topics: Mojave Desert, Dune, Frank & Brian Herbert, Victorians, Cli-Fy, Corrections, Erotica, Geological Time, White Whale, Kidnapper, Dowser, Cults, Kunzru, Gods Without Men, Benevolent Sexism, Chivalry, Liars, Conmen, Belief, Story Powell, Muir, Melvil...

Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty (Riverhead Books) Ramona Ausubel burst onto the literary scene in 2012 with her debut novelNo One is Here Except All of Us, earning the love of critics with her inimitable voice and imaginative style, and winning the PEN Center USA Fiction Award and the VCU Cabell First Novel Award, as well as being named a finalist for the New York Public Library’s Young Lions Fiction Award. Next came A Guide To Being Born, an enthralling story collection that Aimee Bender declared “fresh, delicate, beautiful, expressive, otherworldly.”  Now, already named a most-anticipated book of the year by The Millions,Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty opens on Labor Day 1976 on Martha's Vineyard. Summering at the family beach house, Fern and Edgar—married with three children—learn that the unimaginable has occurred: There is no more money. More specifically, there's no more money in the estate that had allowed them to live this charmed and comfortable life despite their professed anti-money ideals. Quickly unraveling, they are tempted away on separate adventures—unknowingly abandoning their three young children, who set about devising a kind of Netherland for themselves.  Fresh and vital, Ausubel’s magnetic work is chock-full of humanity and wisdom, imbued with humor and bite and a vivid sense of where we find meaning and sustenance. A story of American wealth, class and mobility,Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty explores with Ausubel’s characteristic whimsy and profundity the complicated legacies and strength of family love. Ausubel’s uncanny ability to simultaneously transport, entertain, mesmerize and inspire, makes Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty a deeply satisfying read that will linger with you in powerful ways. Praise for Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty “Fortunes and hearts are lost and found in a modern fairy tale set in the 1960s and '70s. . .Ausubel's magical, engrossing prose style perfectly fits this magical, engrossing story."—KIRKUS, starred review  "This is the book about class and love that I’ve been waiting for. A riches-to-rags story with all the twists and unraveling you could want, embroidered divine in the wizardy mind of Ramona Ausubel, whose imagination and music are simply peerless. A gorgeous and moving must-read!"—Claire Vaye Watkins, author of Gold, Fame, Citrus and Battleborn "Ramona Ausubel has given us a brilliantly imagined novel about family and fortune and the hidden knots between. You're holding a book brimming with life by an author bursting with talent." —Maggie Shipstead, author ofSeating Arrangements and Astonish Me Ramona Ausubel is the author of the novel No One Is Here Except All of Us, winner of the PEN Center USA Fiction Award and the VCU Cabell First Novel Award, and finalist for the New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award. She is also the author of the story collection A Guide to Being Born, and has been published in The New Yorker, One Story, The Paris Review Daily, and Best American Fantasy.

The Regional Office is Under Attack! (Riverhead Books) In a world beset by amassing forces of darkness, one organization the Regional Office and its coterie of super-powered female assassins protects the globe from annihilation. At its helm, the mysterious Oyemi and her oracles seek out new recruits and root out evil plots. Then a prophecy suggests that someone from inside might bring about its downfall. And now, the Regional Office is under attack.  Recruited by a defector from within, Rose is a young assassin leading the attack, eager to stretch into her powers and prove herself on her first mission. Defending the Regional Office is Sarah who may or may not have a mechanical arm fiercely devoted to the organization that took her in as a young woman in the wake of her mother's sudden disappearance. On the day that the Regional Office is attacked, Rose's and Sarah's stories will overlap, their lives will collide, and the world as they know it just might end.  Weaving in a brilliantly conceived mythology, fantastical magical powers, teenage crushes, and kinetic fight scenes, The Regional Office Is Under Attack!"is a seismically entertaining debut novel about revenge and allegiance and love. Praise for The Regional Office is Under Attack! “[A] wry and propulsive work of inventive fiction by a terrific young writer! Read it!”—Jess Walter, New York Times bestselling author of Beautiful Ruins “Delightfully weird, weirdly delightful! Manuel Gonzales clearly has a labyrinth of a brain—all stuffed with monsters, trapdoors, and complicated heroes. Sign me up as a member of the fan club, please.”—Kelly Link, author of Get in Troubleand Magic for Beginners “With exuberant prose and a corkscrew plot, Manuel Gonzales vanquishes artistic orthodoxies, tiresome genre boundaries and every humdrum narrative convention in sight, leaving in his wake a riveting story of secrets, betrayals, and vengeance!” —Claire Vaye Watkins, author of Battleborn and Gold Fame Citrus “[A]n exciting new voice."—Aimee Bender, The New York Times Book Review “It’s easy to compare Manuel Gonzales to George Saunders, but it would be just as easy to compare him to Borges or Márquez or Aimee Bender . . . He makes the extraordinary ordinary, and his playfulness is infectious.”—Benjamin Percy,Esquire “Manuel Gonzales has an imagination that's as expansive and open as a Texas prairie.”—Hector Tobar, Los Angeles Times “A brand-new American literary voice.”—Ben Marcus, author of The Flame Alphabet “The Regional Office is Under Attack! is wickedly subversive, suspenseful, and thoughtful, all at once—but most of all, it's just fun to read, from the first  sentence to the last. Put down your expectations and pick up this book.  It'll hit you like a lightning bolt.”—Jess Row, author of Your Face in Mine “Wild, visionary, ablaze with heart and riot, The Regional Office is Under Attack! is unforgettable—an epic love story that confronts our future with a howl and fireworks.”—Paul Yoon, author of Snow Hunters Manuel Gonzales is the author of the acclaimed story collection The Miniature Wife, winner of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction and the John Gardner Fiction Book Award. A graduate of the Columbia University Creative Writing Program, he teaches writing at the University of Kentucky and the Institute for American Indian Arts. He has published fiction and nonfiction in Open City, Fence, One Story, Esquire, McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern, andThe Believer. Gonzales lives in Kentucky with his wife and two children. Jim Gavin’s fiction has appeared in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, Zoetrope, Esquire, Slice, The Mississippi Review, andZYZZYVA. He lives in Los Angeles.

We look ahead to a dystopian California and a world where the wealth brought by oil no longer fuels autocrats and extremists

This episode, join J. and Collision and special guest Lauren Parker as we roll the dice -- and lose -- with Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel, Casino Royale.  We return to the thrilling days of the Cold War, when Great Britain stood alone against the Soviet menace, and the only way to way to stem the tide of communism was to send middle-aged men on gambling junkets.  Cars will be chased.  The patriarchy will be defended.  And oh how preferences will be explained!  From pre-mission massages to rock-ribbed misogyny to sexual sadism and gay panic, this episode's got it all, because this book's got it all, and none of it is good.     Recommendations Cocaine Blues, Kerry Greenwood "From Sleep", Max Richter Battleborn, Claire Vaye Watkins     Music Oh Bondage, Up Yours! -- X-Ray Spex Word is Bond -- Brand Nubian Azz Everywhere -- Big Freedia Thunderball -- Johnny Cash

Epigraph It’s episode number 4! Featuring bookseller-extraordinaire Hannah Oliver Depp from Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C.       Introduction   [0:30] In Which We Drink To Detective Fiction By Dead White Guys, Become Jealous of Literary Paper Dolls & Ecstatic Raccoons, And Dive Into Frontlist Season With ALL the September Releases Drink of the Day: The Gimlet a la Raymond Chandler (recipe and quote from Hemingway & Bailey's Bartending Guide to Great American Writers by Mark Bailey and Edward Hemingway)     Emma’s reading Spinster: Making a Life of One's Own by Kate Bolick     Kim’s reading Boss Life: Surviving My Own Small Business by Paul Downs and Out on the Wire: The Storytelling Secrets of the New Masters of Radio by Jessica Abel     Hannah’s reading Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty by Dan Jones (pubs 20 Oct 2015) and Bright Lines by Tanwi Nandini Islam     HOLY SHIT THERE ARE SO MANY SEPTEMBER RELEASES! Here are some: Furiously Happy: A Funny Book about Horrible Things by Jenny Lawson (22 Sept 2015) Also mentioned: The Monsters of Templeton and Arcadia and anything written by Zadie Smith) Trans: A Memoir by Juliet Jacques (22 Sept 2015) Fates & Furies by Lauren Groff (pubs 15 Sept 2015)  Also mentioned: The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins (pubs 29 Sept 2015) Step Aside, Pops: A Hark! a Vagrant Collection by Kate Beaton (pubs 15 Sept 2015) Also mentioned: Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton The Story of my Teeth by Valeria Luiselli, translated by Christina Macsweeney (pubs 15 Sept 2015) The Culinary Cyclist: A Cookbook and Companion for the Good Life by Anna Brones, illustrated by Johanna Kindvall (8 Sept 2015)  Also mentioned: Fika: The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break, with Recipes for Pastries, Breads, and Other Treats Girl Waits with Gun by Amy Stewart (1 Sept 2015) Also mentioned: The Drunken Botanist: The Plants That Create the World's Great Drinks The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Chris Riddell (22 Sept 2015) Jonathan Franzen wrote another “Great American Novel” called Purity (1 Sept 2015). But you probably already knew that, so do yourself a solid and check out #FranzenAirQuotes instead.            Chapter I   [16:25] In Which Business Books are Chauvinistic (Shocking!), Hannah Brings Wildlife Into the Store, Galleys Meet their Death, and the Drunk Booksellers Nerd Out About Writing Bookselling Manuals Hannah is the Merchandise Display Manager at Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C. aka. President Obama’s local independent bookstore.     [image credit Reuters] Due to their recent partnership with Busboys and Poets, Hannah also rides the Metro around D.C. merchandising their displays.     [totally official Washington DC Metro map courtesy of Dave’s Geeky Ideas] Interested in the business of retail? Kim won’t stop monologuing about Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping: Updated and Revised for the Internet, the Global Consumer, and Beyond by Paco Underhill If you want to shell out a lot of money to travel abroad, you should do it with a book bent, obviously: Politics & Prose Trips Remember what you liked about your major before you had to actually do all that fucking work? Join the rogue students taking Classes at Politics & Prose. It’s like in Center Stage where she goes to the wrong side of the tracks and moves her hips, but for books.   Originally posted by artecommovimento   Y’all remember Harry Potter release parties, right? Of course you do.   Originally posted by walkingdead3000         Chapter II   [33:57] In Which Hannah Schools the Drunk Booksellers on Lady Detective Fiction & a Couple Books Written By Dudes Want to get into Mysteries? Step One: Read The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle   Originally posted by internetgirlwithnolife   Step Two: Read these books The Beekeeper's Apprentice: Or, on the Segregation of the Queen by Laurie R King (also: A Grave Talent, Book 1 of the Kate Martinelli Series, which features a lesbian detective!) The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler (Chandler does it better than The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett) Jo Walton’s Small Change trilogy: Farthing, Ha’penny, and Half a Crown Also check out Whose Body? (Book 1 of the Lord Peter Wimsey series) by Dorothy L Sayers (also check out her essay Are Women Human?, a great companion to Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own)      Chapter III   [42:00] In Which We Discuss Books About Black Lives in America (and Beyond)   Required reading: Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander  Books by James McBride: The Good Lord Bird (fiction) and The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother (memoir) Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (also: We Should All Be Feminists) Dear White People: A Guide to Inter-Racial Harmony in "Post-Racial" America by Justin Simien How To Be Black by Baratunde Thurston (also check out the podcast he co-hosts, About Race) This is your bi-racial lady plug for everyone’s favorite Brown Science Fiction writer, Samuel R Delaney. Get started with Dhalgren. For more recs, check out Hannah’s Book Riot post: Black Coolness (Or Not)     Epilogue   [54:37] In Which Hannah Picks Her Station Eleven & Wild Books, Then Tells Us All the Places You Can Find Her On the World Wide Web Hannah’s Wild book: The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis, specifically The Silver Chair   Originally posted by shadow-wolfgirl   Hannah’s Station Eleven book: The Miracle at St. Anna by James McBride or The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (also mentioned: The Color Purple by Alice Walker)   Originally posted by putahorseonit   Find Hannah on the Internet: Twitter: @OliverDepp Instagram: instagram.com/oliverdepp Tumblr: oliverdeppink.tumblr.com posts on Book Riot & LitHub Find Emma on Twitter @thebibliot and writing nerdy bookish things for Book Riot. Kim occasionally tweets at @finaleofseem. And you can follow both of us [as a podcast] on Twitter @drunkbookseller! Originally posted by surplaceouaemporter   Don’t forget to subscribe to Drunk Booksellers from your podcatcher of choice. (Kim’s fave app is Stitcher, but you do you.) Do you love our show? Tell the world! Rate/review us on iTunes so that we can become rich and famous from this podcast. Or, you know, so that other nerdy book-folk can find us. We’re cool with either.

Fourth of July Creek (Ecco) Smith Henderson, author of one of the most anticipated debut novels of the season, discusses his work with novelist Brian McGreevy (Hemlock Grove). In this shattering and iconic American novel, PEN prize-winning writer, Smith Henderson explores the complexities of freedom, community, grace, suspicion and anarchy, brilliantly depicting our nation's disquieting and violent contradictions. After trying to help Benjamin Pearl, an undernourished, nearly feral eleven-year-old boy living in the Montana wilderness, social worker Pete Snow comes face to face with the boy's profoundly disturbed father, Jeremiah. With courage and caution, Pete slowly earns a measure of trust from this paranoid survivalist itching for a final conflict that will signal the coming End Times. But as Pete's own family spins out of control, Pearl's activities spark the full-blown interest of the F.B.I., putting Pete at the center of a massive manhunt from which no one will emerge unscathed. Praise for Fourth of July Creek: “This book left me awestruck; a stunning debut which reads like the work of a writer at the height of his power…Fourth of July Creek is a masterful achievement and Smith Henderson is certain to end up a household name.”—Philipp Meyer, New York Times bestselling author of The Son “Fourth of July Creek knocked me flat. This gorgeous, full-bodied novel seems to contain all of America at what was, in retrospect, a pivotal moment in its history...Smith Henderson has delivered nothing less than a masterpiece of a novel."—Ben Fountain, author of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk “Fourth of July Creek cannot possibly be Smith Henderson's first book. Its scope is audacious, its range virtuosic, its gaze steady and true. A riveting story written in a seductive and relentlessly authentic rural American vernacular, this is the kind of novel I wish I'd written.”—Claire Vaye Watkins, author of Battleborn “Fourth of July Creek is an astonishing read. The writing is energetic and precise. Henderson has a mastery of scale that allows this particular place and these particular people to illuminate who we are as Americans...I could not recommend this book more highly.”—Kevin Powers, bestselling author of The Yellow Birds “Tremendously satisfying—think Daniel Woodrell's Winter's Bone...or Jimmy McNulty...set...in...another kind of violent American wilderness...[a] mesmerizing accomplishment. I cannot think of a finer first novel; it's hard, in fact, to think of a finer second, third, or fourth one, either.”—Antonya NelsonSmith Henderson was born and raised in western Montana. His family were in the timber industry, ranching, and other trades, but he was the first to go to college, earning a Classics degree. He worked with traumatized children for a few years, and briefly as prison guard. He took writing jobs where he could find them, until he was admitted to the MFA program at the University of Texas. His short fiction has appeared in a variety of journals and been anthologized in the Pushcart Prize Anthology. In 2011 he was the Philip Roth Resident and Bucknell University and won the Emerging Writer Award in Fiction from the PEN Foundation.  Brian McGreevy is the author of Hemlock Grove, which was adapted into a Netflix series of the same name. He is also a founding partner of the production company El Jefe, with multiple film and television projects in development. A former James Michener Fellow in fiction at the University of Texas, he currently lives in Los Angeles. 

Claire Vaye Watkins is the guest. Her debut story collection, Battleborn, is now available in paperback from Riverhead. Antonya Nelson, writing for The New York Times Book Review, says “Although individual stories stand alone, together they tell the tale of a place, and of the population that thrives and perishes therein… The historical sits comfortably alongside the contemporary and the factual nicely supplements the fictional… Readers will share in the environs of the author and her characters, be taken into the hardship of a pitiless place and emerge on the other side—wiser, warier and weathered like the landscape.” And The Millions says “As if Watkins’ prose embodies the desert landscape of Nevada itself, the stories are stony, unkind, and harsh, though never unattractive… Beneath these confessions runs a spiritual undertow—that salvific beauty can arise when brutality is brought to light… All of her stories left me feeling purged and oddly cleansed, easily making Battleborn one of the strongest collections I’ve read in years.” Monologue topics: titles, titling, Dying Young, nakedly depressing titles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In each of these ten unforgettable stories, Claire Vaye Watkins writes her way fearlessly into the mythology of the American West, utterly reimagining it.

Wim Brands bespreekt Battleborn, de bundel van de Amerikaanse schrijfster Claire Vaye Watkins met tien verhalen waarin ze zich de mythologie van het Amerikaanse Westen eigen maakt. Jeroen van Kan interviewt de Italiaanse schrijver Paolo Giordano over zijn nieuwe boek Het menselijk lichaam. Een kort verhaal van A.L. Snijders. Kijk voor meer informatie op vpro.nl/avonden

Claire Vaye Watkins on her debut story collection Battleborn, finding ritual in relationships and drawing inspiration from cartoons, mythology and Paul Simon.

I Biblioteket möter vi två svenska debutanter som båda skriver om miljöer man inte så ofta träffar på i svenska romaner idag. Dels Tomas Bannerhed som skrivit sin roman Korparna om en småländsk lantbrukarfamilj på 70-talet, dels Sara Beischer som skrivit en arbetsplatsroman som utspelar sig inom äldrevården, Jag ska egentligen inte jobba här. Bibliotekets debutantspår tar oss även till New York där Marie Lundström träffat Hannah Tinti och Claire Vaye Watkins. -Jag känner det som om jag genomgått en förvandling och blivit den jag innerst inne alltid har varit, säger Tomas Bannerhed som debuterade som författare för ett år sedan med romanen Korparna. Den boken har under det gångna året fått både Augustpriset och det prestigefyllda Borås Tidnings Debutantpris . Själv trodde han inte att en berättelse om lantbrukare i Småland på 70-talet skulle bli någon hit, men kritiker och läsare har tyckt annorlunda. I Biblioteket för vi höra Tomas Bannerheds väg till skrivandet och hur han faktiskt höll på i tio år för att få sin roman färdig. Han är själv uppfödd på en bondgård i Småland men längtade alltid bort och ut. Det strävsamma jordbrukarlivet såg han som en belastning och varken han själv eller någon i hans omgivning förväntade sig att han skulle leva samma sorts liv som sina föräldrar. Nu har han under många år genom sitt skrivande återskapat minnen och stämningar från en epok som redan känns avlägsen samtidigt som den är så nära. Uppläsare: Anna Persson Dessutom träffar vi Sara Beischer som romandebuterat med en bok om livet på ett äldreboende. ”Jag ska egentligen inte jobba här” handlar om nittonåriga Moa som i väntan på att skådespelarkarriären ska ta fart ställs inför död, kroppsvätskor och omänskliga arbetsvillkor. Boken var vältajmad – den kom i januari i år, samtidigt som Sverige skakades av vårdskandaler. ”Jag ska egentligen inte jobba här” handlar om nittonåriga Moa som i väntan på att skådespelarkarriären ska ta fart arbetar på ett äldreboende. Där ställs hon inför död, kroppsvätskor och omänskliga arbetsvillkor. Sara Beischer har själv jobbat av och till som timvikarie i äldrevården. Boken bygger delvis på hennes egna erfarenheter, och har blivit en succé. Tredje upplagan är redan tryckt. Boken används som undervisningsmateriel för blivande vårdpersonal, och själv är Sara Beischer flitigt anlitad som föreläsare. –Lustigt, säger hon. Jag får inte ens jobba i min egen kommun eftersom jag inte är utbildad undersköterska, och ändå har jag blivit ett slags äldreambassadör. Nästa bok ska inte handla om vården. –Men det kommer att handla om människor från arbetarklassen, säger hon. Jag är en arbetarklassunge! Ulla Strängberg träffade Sara Beischer i hennes hem i Halmstad. Uppläsare: Sarah Maya Jackson. I Biblioteket träffar vi också två amerikanska författare, Hannah Tinti och Claire Vaye Watkins, som pratar om hur det är att debutera. Hannah Tinti debuterade 2004 och båda hennes böcker är översatta till svenska: Djurverkerier och Den gode tjuven. Claire Vaye Watkins första bok Battleborn ges ut i USA i augusti. Marie Lundström träffade dem ihop en torsdag kväll i New York och undrade vilka tips har den erfarna Hannah att ge nykomlingen Claire? Programledare är Mia Gerdin