Marrie Stone interviews L.A. Times 2008 Book Award Winner Zoe Ferraris, author of Finding Nouf: A Novel, winner of the Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, and Dennis Palumbo, author of From Crime to Crime.
To see all L.A Times 2008 Book Award winners, click here. Congratulations Zoe!
(Broadcast date: Aug 13, 2008)
We’re moving into fund drive time, which, unlike many public radio stations, occurs only once a year. This coming Weds., April 29, from 9 – 10 a.m., we’re asking (and praying for) you to call and make a donation to the station. There’s more and more pressure from the university to raise money, to pay the bills, the electricity, the phone, to keep the station running. My co-host Marrie Stone and I will be there, with noir/suspense writer Tom Epperson, and lots of books to give away. Your donation is tax-deductible. Please call between 9 and 10 a.m. Pacific time on Weds. 949 UCI-KUCI. We’d love to hear from you.
Barbara DeMarco-Barrett interviews Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Elizabeth Strout, author of Olive Kitteridge. Congratulations Elizabeth!
Here’s a wonderful review of the podcast with Elizabeth.
To view a complete list of winners of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize, click here.
Download audio.
(Broadcast date: Unknown)
Barbara DeMarco-Barrett interviews Jay Asher, author of Thirteen Reasons Why.
(Broadcast date: April 15, 2009)
Barbara DeMarco-Barrett interviews T. Jefferson Parker, author of The Renegades, during the first event of the Pen On Fire Speaker Series at University of California, Irvine.
Download audio.
(Event date: February 10, 2009)
Or just a lovely letter from a reader that made my day? I think it’s the latter, but I’m sure someone here will tell me it’s the former. Did I say the book is in its 7th printing? It’s nice to know people are still reading it and loving it.
……….
“I just finished reading Pen on Fire and wanted to thank you. I borrowed your book from the library along with several other books about writing. This has been a guilty pleasure of mine for many years now. I read about writing. All this time I’ve been thinking, I’d love to write someday, but…
Your book spoke to me on a personal level and addressed all of my fears and excuses, which I used as roadblocks to writing. Your style of gentle encouragement made me feel as if you were speaking to me as a friend. I was also encouraged by the examples you gave of other successful authors who wrote at their kitchen table with chaos, otherwise known as “life,” happening around them. It made me realize, If they can do it, so can I! and the ‘someday’ I’ve been storing away could be now.
I’ve often had the urge to write but found myself at a loss for what to write and of course the ever ready excuse, ‘I don’t have time’ was a handy crutch as well. I started to put many of your tips and exercises into practice and I began to not only jot down ideas and write, but feel energized about doing so. I have an eagerness to write now, which I did not have before. It’s as if I absolutely must get all these ideas and thoughts down on paper. I wish I could find the perfect expression for how I feel. Oh! I’ve got it! It’s as if my pen is on fire. And for that, I would like to thank you.”
Olivia Percle
Panama City, FL
…..
Just so this post isn’t too sickeningly about me and my book, here are some of my favorite writing books:
Writing by Margaret Duras
Mystery and Manners by Flannery O’Connor
Starting from Scratch by Rita Mae Brown
Ron Carlson Writes a Story by Ron Carlson
Paris Review Interviews
Making a Literary Life, by Carolyn See
If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland
Thunder and Lightning by Natalie Goldberg
This Year You Write Your Novel by Walter Mosley
There are so many more and they provide a balm for rough days and a kick in the behind, too.
…….
Photo by Travis in Barnes & Noble, Fashion Island, Newport Beach, CA. They had a dozen copies. I love it when that happens.
Palm Springs Noir, an anthology published by Akashic Books, edited by Barbara, also features her short story “The Water Holds You Still.” Order anywhere you buy books.
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Get in the flow with typewriter music by Travis Barrett.
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