Good Writing Podcast

John-Paul Hurley joins us to discuss an excerpt from Sabbath’s Theater by Philip Roth. How can writers make the readers feel lost in memories? We also discuss unlikeable protagonists.

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We always bring ourselves with us wherever we go, even into our writing. Even if we think that writing is about something completely other to ourselves, it is impossible for that wherever to escape w…

The co-editors in chief of Alien Literary Magazine join us to talk about two of their favorite pieces from a recent issue. We talk about the magazine’s reading process and two elements of craft that …

Emily has Ben read an Anton Chekhov short story about a sad lady’s sad day and discuss occasion for story. Why is this the day that you tune into your character’s life? How can we as writers make a s…

We discuss Richard Brautigan’s novel Trout Fishing in America and the way he seems to have no interest in following any sort of rule when he’s writing. The phrase “Trout Fishing in America” can be an…

How can we make sure our readers pick up on key information when our narrator is cagey or not willing to admit the full truth?

We look at how a master, Sofia Samatar, does it in her short story "Walk…

Sentence length can be used to pull the reader into the text, and a long sentence can force them to stay there. Fernanda Melchor’s Hurrican Season presents the reader with a seemingly impenetrable bl…

The Good Writing podcast gets its mind blown by the author of Pearl Death, Negative Space, and Amygdalatropolis; B.R. Yeager!

We discuss Blake Butler’s 2014 novel 300,000,000 and how it uses a single…

The Good Writing podcast welcomes its first guest, short story writer and fellow MFA friend Cherri Buijk, to discuss historical fiction.

What makes historical fiction feel authentic? We discuss freew…

We all love a witty protagonist with quips. But how can a writer stay true to an ironic voice while still getting the characters and readers to care about the story?

We discuss Gideon the Ninth, a fa…

While we often think of the plot of our stories as their bedrock, I (Ben) actually think it is the world in which they take place. Without the world, there is nothing to motivate the story from the o…

The world of literature is difficult one to navigate, especially for those just starting out. A strange cornerstone of becoming part of the literary world is the literary magazine, a place where new …

One of the many things that make The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (1963) an absolute banger is how deep inside the narrator’s head we are. But what can you do as a writer when how your point-of-view char…

Jarett Kobek lets you know from page one where he stands with his politics, and his work is only stronger for this. Ben and Emily discuss why it’s important to understand that your politics will show…

Sure, sure, everybody wants to know the plot summary. But why does the plot matter? How can you as a writer make your readers care about the plot?

After a detour about the job market for English majo…

How can the base-level choice of what perspective (first, second or third person) is used in a piece of writing be used as a way for a reader to gain perspective on a character?

Dorthe Nors’ novella …

This episode is as American as Olive Garden, and then we celebrate by going to Disney World.

How can writers use setting to draw out characters’ internal drama and make their characters confront thei…

Brian Evenson is a writer of literary horror, whatever that means, and he shows us how writers can smartly use information’s absence to allow for a more interactive reading experience.

Did Ben use th…

Grammar alert! A complicated sentence and a clever description make Emily do a double-take in our first episode. Plus, even Jane Austen put her first manuscript in a drawer and came back to it later.

Welcome to the Good Writing Podcast! We're a new podcast where two fiction writer friends nerd out on writing craft.

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