Bay Area Literary agent Andy Ross

I love that Andy Ross is the former owner of Cody's Books in Berkeley, and that I went there when I first moved to San Francisco after college. When The Satanic Verses came out, someone threw a pipe bomb through the window (it didn't explode), and the staff voted unanimously to continue to sell the controversial novel (was there ever a more controversial novel??).

"That was my proudest moment in bookselling," Andy says on his website, andyrossagency.com.

He's was on the show, for the entire hour, Andy talks about what his agency takes on, publishing, Amazon, and more. He was great fun to talk to, and I hope to do it again.

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 (Broadcast date: August 6, 2014)

Joanna Rakoff & Kseniya Melnik

Joanna Rakoff shares her memoir, My Salinger Year, with Marrie.  She talks about the similarities between memoir and fiction, the right time to write a memoir, and what she learned about publishing and writing from her year of working with a literary agent.  Kseniya Melnik joins in the second half to discuss her debut short story collection, Snow in May.  She discusses the importance of place, dialogue, and writing in a language that's not her own.

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(Broadcast date: July 16, 2014)

Jennifer duBois and Kate Zambreno

Nicole Nelson talks with Jennifer duBois, author of Cartwheel about the challenges of writing (and discussing) a novel that drew its initial inspiration from a real event, in this case, the Amanda Knox trial and the strong and diverse opinions that people held about the verdict. DuBois also talks about learning to relax into a scene, and writing plays to sharpen her dialogue skills. Kate Zambreno, author of Green Girl and Heroines, talks about her experience re-releasing Green Girl -- how the re-release came to pass and what it was like to have the option to revise a work that was published years earlier. She talks about developing the shopgirl protagonist Ruth, who tries to sell the scent "Desire" to people, and achieving urgency in her prose by writing toward confrontation.

[The show begins abruptly due to the loss of the very beginning (but the interviews are complete).]

Download audio. (Broadcast date: July 30, 2014)

Lisa See & Jojo Moyes

New York Times bestselling author Lisa See talks with Marrie about her latest novel, China Dolls, finding inspiration, research, and the complicated world of female friendships.  In the second half, Jojo Moyes discusses her novel, One Plus One, compelling characters, difficult points of view, and the drawbacks and advanges of social media for authors.

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(Broadcast date: July 2, 2014)

David James Poissant & Emma Straub

Marrie Stone talks with short story writer David James Poissant (Jamie), author of the debut collection The Heaven of Animals about collections based around a theme, finding the point of entry into a story, experimental fiction, and much more.  In the second half, novelist Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers, talks about coming from a legacy of writing, the importance of place, and how her novel came together in four short months.

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(Broadcast date: June 25, 2014)

Sandra Tsing Loh and Courtney Maum on Writers on Writing

Nicole talks to writer and performer Sandra Tsing Loh about her latest memoir The Madwoman in the Volvo: My Year of Raging Hormones, discovering that her voice was better suited to personal stories rather than fiction, and the differences between writing for radio compared to print. Then debut fiction author Courtney Maum discusses her novel I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You and its circuitous journey to publication, how work experience as a corporate namer drove her to change the book's title from its original, The Blue Bear, and how writers are sometimes better off stepping away from the computer and social media.  

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(Broadcast date: July 9, 2014)

David Fuller & Boris Fishman

Marrie Stone talks with David Fuller, author of Sundance, about enduring characters, generating ideas, and knowing when to pull the plug on ideas that don't work.  In the second half, Boris Fishman, author of A Replacement Life, talks about characters, craft, and revision.

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(Broadcast date: June 11, 2014)

John Brandon and Daniel James Brown on Writers on Writing

Nicole talks to novelist and short story writer John Brandon about his new collection Further Joy, experimenting with form and re-thinking what makes a short story work. Non-fiction author Daniel James Brown discusses how he found his way into the story of The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, the value of thorough research and the importance of conflict throughout a narrative. His book is out now in paperback.

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(Broadcast date: June 18, 2014)

Jane Porter and Andrea Portes on Writers on Writing

Romance novelist Jane Porter (with too many novels to mention) and Andrea Portes, author of Bury This, talk about the art and craft--and business--of writing fiction.

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(Broadcast date: March 26, 2014)

Jill Amadio and Sheila Lowe on Writers on Writing

Jill Amadio, author of Digging Too Deep, and Sheila Lowe, handwriting analyst and author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Handwriting Analysis and What She Saw, talk about their novels and nonfiction, writing suspense, and the mystery and suspense genre.

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(Broadcast date: Weds., March 16, 2014)

Stacey D'Erasmo and Jenny Offill on Writers on Writing

Nicole Nelson talks to Stacey D'Erasmo, author of Wonderland, about doing research touring with an indie rock band, writing sex scenes, and the importance of working past perfectionism.

In the second half of the show, Jenny Offill, author of Dept. of Speculation, talks about experimenting with structure, finding authenticity in your storytelling, and why she resists Twitter.

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(Broadcast date: May 28, 2014)

Alice LaPlante & Zachary Lazar

Marrie Stone chats with Alice LaPlante, author of Circle of Wives, about the power of the unreliable narrator, knowing when to abandon projects that don't work, where story inspirations come from, and much more. 

In the second half, novelist Zachary Lazar talks about his latest novel, I Pity the Poor Immigrant, writing about foreign places and times, and the power of juxtaposing unlikely people and things to create compelling stories, and more. 

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(Broadcast date: May 21, 2014)

Lit agent Colleen Mohyde and novelist Ivy Pachoda on Writers on Writing

Literary agent Colleen Mohyde, with the Doe Coover Agency in Boston, and novelist Ivy Pachoda, author of Visitation Street join Barbara DeMarco-Barrett for a conversation about books, publishing, and more.

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(Broadcast date: May 14, 2014)

Jim Gavin & Jennifer Gilmore

Marrie Stone chats with short story writer, Jim Gavin, about his debut collection Middlemen.  In the second half hour, Nicole Nelson talks with Jennifer Gilmore, author of The Mothers.

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(Broadcast date: April 2, 2014)

Francine Prose & A.L. Kennedy on the show

Marrie Stone chats with award-winner author Francine Prose about her latest novel, Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932 and stand-up comic and writer A. L. Kennedy, author of the short story collection All the Rage.

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(Broadcast date: April 30, 2014)

Lydia Denworth and Deena Goldstone

Lydia Denworth, journalist and author of I Can Hear You Whisper: An Intimate Journey through the Science of Sound and Language, and screenwriter Deena Goldstone, author of the short story collection, Tell Me One Thing, talk with guest host Nicole Nelson.

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We are in our semi-anual fund drive until May 2, 2014, and possibly through May 4, depending on how it goes. Every donation helps; please consider contributing: (949) 824-5824, (949) UCI-KUCI or www.kuci.org/donations (please indicate Writers on Writing is what you listen to on KUCI).  Thank you so much for your support.

(Broadcast date: April 23, 2014)

Wally Lamb & T.C. Boyle

Marrie Stone interviews NYT best-selling author Wally Lamb about his latest novel, We Are Water and short story writer and novelist T.C. Boyle, author of San Miguel and his most recent compilation of short stories, Stories II.

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(Broadcast date: December 4, 2014)

Akhil Sharma, author of Family Life, on Writers on Writing

Akhil Sharma, author of Family Life, talks with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett about the 12-plus years and 7,000 pages he took to write the novel. He also talks about why, when the book is highly autobiographical, he chose to write the story as a novel and not a memoir.

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(Broadcast date: April 9, 2014)

Note: This podcast starts a few minutes into the interview. Akhil is with us for the entire hour with no musical break at half.

Laura Kasischke & Michael Miller

Marrie Stone interviews poet and novelist Laura Kasischke, discussing her latest novel Mind of Winter and poet Michael Miller about his latest collection, The First Thing Mastered.

April is poetry month, and Michael discusses some of the more accessible poets for those intimidated by poetry.  Tune in to hear his recommendations, and check out these selections from The Huffington Post.



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(Broadcast date: March 19, 2014)

Nicole Mones and Sue William Silverman

Nicole Nelson speaks with Nicole Mones, about her new novel Night in Shanghai, and about research,  incorporating history in fiction, and the importance of living a full life as a writer. During the second half, memoirist Sue William Silverman, discusses her third memoir The Pat Boone Fan Club: My Life as a White Anglo-Saxon Jew, sharing how she, through digging deep, found the metaphor for her identity search.

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(Broadcast date: March 12, 2014)