The Drunken Odyssey with John King: A Podcast About the Writing Life
Join author John King for eclectic interviews with writers from a variety of genres, including fiction writing, poetry, memoirs, and journalism. From literature to genre writing to the movies, all writing is up for discussion. In particular, The Drunken Odyssey features discussion of all aspects of the writing process—not just the published manuscript, pristinely presented to the entire literate world, but also the scrawled notes and tortured drafts that lead writers there. In long-form interviews, writers discuss their process and the way that writing has influenced their lives. Besides this interview, each episode also features a short memoir essay from a writer about a beloved book, plus John King responds to listener’s questions and observations about the writing (and the drinking) life.
For more information, see our website at www.thedrunkenodyssey.com.
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 71 minutes
- Episodes
- 694
- Years Active
- 2012 - 2025
573: David van den Berg!
On this episode, I speak with the poet David van den Berg on the glories of tromping through swamps as a child, the knifeblade dialectic of cynicism and wonder, and discovering a sense of authentic v…
572: Meng Jin, Eileen Myles, and Paul Tran interviewed by Chelsea Alice!
Back in November 2022, Chelsea Alice conducted three on-site interviews at Miami Book Fair. She discussed Self-Portrait with Ghost with Meng Jin, Pathetic Literature by Eileen Myles, and All the Flow…
571: Mark Scroggins!
On this episode, I speak with the scholar and poet Mark Scroggins about poetry that simultaneously compels and eludes the reader with its strange music, those depths of unknowing, the literary analog…
570: Kathleen Rooney!
I talk to Kathleen Rooney about finding the fun despite the end of The Great Enlightenment, the joys of mixing wit and earnestness in verse, the fun of exploring the landscapes of AWP locations despi…
569: Lydia Millet interviewed by David James Poissant!
Lydia Millet and David James Poissant discuss geography, birds, earnestness, the characterization of children, the structure of plot and novels, and other matters of interest.
568: A Conversation about Albert Camus's "The Guest" with Chelsea Alice
Chelsea Alice gave me homework, to read "The Guest" by Albert Camus, the result of which is this existentialist episode, or something like that.
567: Brook Ziporyn!
This week, Brook Ziporyn and I discuss the complexities of interpreting the Daodejing, the humor of the book, and its applications to life philosophies, politics, literature, and many other things al…
566: Ciera Horton McElroy
This week, I speak with Ciera Horton McElroy about following through with long form fiction and her extraordinary debut, Atomic Family.
565: A Discussion of William Gibson’s Pattern Recognition with Rachael Tillman!
This week, Rachael Tillman and I discuss William Gibson's not especially science fictiony, but post-modern systems thriller, Pattern Recognition
563: Stephanie McCarter, interviewed by Chelsea Alice!
This week, Chelsea Alice talks to Stephanie McCarter about Ovid’s self-reflection, making Ovid's humor visible to a contemporary audience, and feminism as it relates to translation.
562: Mike Nagel!
This week, I speak with fiction writer Mike Nagel about comic existentialism, alcoholic literature, and the class complexities of real estate.
560: A Discussion of Philip Schultz's Comforts of the Abyss with Rachael Tillman!
On #560, Rachael Tillman and I discuss the art of persona writing through the lens of Philip Schultz's recent book, Comforts of the Abyss.
559: Laurie Rachkus Uttich!
This week I have a long overdue convo with the extraordinary poet Laurie Rachkus Uttich.
558: Jennifer Worley!
This week I speak with the prose writer Jennifer Worley, the fall 2022 resident of The Kerouac Project of Orlando.
557: Jason Roeder!
John speaks with his friend Jason about the creative joys of grieving and the power of earnestness and other matters of interest.
556: Lynn Melnick!
The poet and memoirist Lynn Melnick talks with me about the cleverness and heart of Dolly Parton, who can serve as more than a cultural icon as we try to discover how to make our unique ways in the w…
555: Julia Koets (interviewed by Rochelle Hurt)
Rochelle Hurt interviews Julia Koets about romantic desire and loss, the villanelle form, the layouts of poetry volumes, growing up with the policing of restrictive gender norms, how research contrib…
554: Chrissy Kolaya!
On this week’s program, I talk to the poet and novelist Chrissy Kolaya about the creative process, psychology, and the multitudinous tensions of being an American.