TK Podcast

09/03/2022

Our second episode recorded at the amazing Sewanee Writers' Conference in the summer of 2021 is now up, with M.O. Walsh, the author of THE BIG DOOR PRIZE, and Liz Van Hoose of 5E, a collective of independent editors. Available at all of your podcast emporiums. http://tkpod.com/2022/03/07/ep-94-swc-09-m-o-walsh-liz-van-hoose/

The third summer of conversations recorded at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference (2021) continues with M.O. Walsh (The Big Door Prize), who gives a writing tip James has used ever since, then chats about writing a novel...

10/03/2020

Our Sewanee Writers' Conference series continues with interviews featuring playwright Rachel Bonds and actor and Performing Prose co-founder Sean McIntyre. Rachel grew up in Sewanee, and we talk about including that in SUNDOWN, YELLOW MOON. We also discuss her play-in-progress and how she has built such a varied body of work. Then Sean and I get into what makes a good reading and the intersection of acting and writing. Platform links below. Thanks for listening!

The second summer of conversations recorded at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference continues with playwright Rachel Bonds, who tells James about finding her voice in a one-act, using jealousy as a job coach, being on the...

25/02/2020

I am still stunned I had the chance to interview two legends, author Tim O'Brien and Missouri Review editor Speer Morgan at this past summer's Sewanee Writers' Conference. Tim talks about his surprise National Book Award win, writing THE THINGS THEY CARRIED while on a break from a novel, and all things life, death, and writing. Speer and I talked about MR's insanely rich history and ability to stay current. This one is very important to me. Thanks for listening!

The second summer of conversations recorded at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference continues with Tim O’Brien, who tells James about winning the National Book Award, writing THE THINGS THEY CARRIED while on a break from another...

18/02/2020

Honored to have spent a second summer at Sewanee Writers' Conference recording conversations with their amazing faculty, guests, and fellows. This first episode features poet/genius Marilyn Nelson and Copper Canyon Press executive editor Michael Wiegers. We talk poetry, reading, writing, and life.
Conference applications are due March 15!

The second summer of conversations recorded at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference begins with James speaking with Marilyn Nelson, who has written poetry in many forms and for many audiences. Marilyn tells James about her fears...

13/12/2019

After a bit of a hiatus for sickness and teaching, we're back on schedule with Calvin Hennick on his memoir, ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO. Sometimes hilarious, sometimes heartbreaking, always thought-provoking, Hennick's memoir is a book you will fly through. I had a great chat with him, and then his publisher, the legendary Bill Henderson of The Pushcart Prize.

Calvin Hennick jokingly calls his memoir, ONCE MORE TO THE RODEO, “every thought I’ve ever had,” and the book touches on fatherhood, manhood, race, family, alcohol, baseball, and countless other topics, all considered on a...

09/10/2019

DAM! What a treat to have Mark Barr on the to talk about his debut novel, WATERSHED, which takes place in a town in 1930s Tennessee taken over by a new dam project. Then I spoke with the incredible audiobook narrator, (among many talents) Tavia Gilbert actor/writer. Thanks for listening/ downloading/ sharing!

Between his work as an ad writer and software developer, Mark Barr worked on a classic tale set in 1930s Tennessee that would become his debut novel, WATERSHED. He talks to James about being a...

24/09/2019

I've been a fan of Alix Ohlin's for a long time, and talking to her on the for her new novel, DUAL CITIZENS (Alfred A. Knopf) was even more fun than I'd hoped. Great book and an enlightening conversation. Plus Alix's hilarious friend and agent, Amy Williams.
Links to Spotify, etc. below.

The latest novel from Alix Ohlin, DUAL CITIZENS, depicts the lives of two sisters as they navigate family, art, love, and life. She tells James about the depicting the whoosh of time, rewatching Hitchcock’s VERTIGO,...

10/09/2019

One of the books I devoured this summer (Multiple times! It's a novella!) was THE WHITE DEATH: AN ILLUSION from old friends Nouvella, which is about a genius magician who dies at 14 (and other stuff). Thrilled to get a chance to talk with author Gabriel Urza about it, and even more thrilled to find we had a ton in common, and I left the conversation feeling energized about writing. WHICH IS KIND OF THE POINT. Then, I interviewed the brilliant Tyler Glauz-Todrank from Bear Pond Books about fall releases we're excited about.

It started as a short story in grad school, but Gabriel Urza kept coming back to what would eventually be his novella THE WHITE DEATH: AN ILLUSION. He talks to James about feeling like a...

29/08/2019

Amanda Goldblatt and I met at the New York State Summer Writers Institute waaaaay back in '08 and we've been friends ever since. Her debut novel, HARD MOUTH (Counterpoint Press), is a wholly original and beautiful book, and I was thrilled to talk to her about its origins and MCs and THE FACT THAT SHE'S NEVER SEEN ALL OF E.T??? And I also got to talk to her wonderful agent, Caroline Eisenmann from Frances Goldin Literary Agency.

It took Amanda Goldblatt eight years to write her debut novel, HARD MOUTH. The result is a brilliantly inventive work combining style with emotional impact and classic storytelling. She and James talk about their long...

13/08/2019

It's been an amazing summer for books by people who I adore. Miciah Bay Gault's GOODNIGHT STRANGER is a mesmerizing mystery of grief and desire and we talk about all of the hard work to make it so. Then I talked to Laura Gianino, who pulled back the curtain on the mysterious art of book publicity. Thanks for listening!

The debut novel by Miciah Bay Gault, GOODNIGHT STRANGER, is an intoxicating mix of mystery and grief set in a sandy, salty place. And s*xy triplets. She tells James about adjusting the level of magic,...

30/07/2019

I've recommended this book more than any other the past few weeks. Kevin Alexander's BURN THE ICE(Penguin Press) is a captivating look at a Golden Age of American cuisine and its subsequent death. We talked about genius and hard work and all sorts of things. Plus, Kevin's agent and former Esquire editor David Granger. This is a good one!

In reporting several food articles, Kevin Alexander found the same stories coming up again and again: genius chefs opened one-of-a-kind restaurants in places like Portland and San Francisco, and in the on-rush of attention struggled...

09/07/2019

Sometimes I have someone on the and I think, "I hope I get to hang out in person someday" but it's very rare to have TWO of them. In this case, the hilarious Mary Miller on her beautifully written novel, BILOXI, and Bennet Johnson from Literati Bookstore. Thanks for listening/ sharing/ subscribing!

A random sign for free dogs inspired Mary Miller to drop a manuscript she’d been researching and create the character of Louis McDonald, Jr. for her hilarious and heartbreaking novel, BILOXI. She tells James about...

26/06/2019

What a great joy to have Christian Kiefer on the podcast to discuss his newest novel, Phantoms. I've loved his writing for a long time, starting when someone recommended THE ANIMALS to me. We start out talking about how he told this story, and end up gushing about Nouvella and Christine Schutt, among other things. Plus, old friend Christopher Boucher on his new novel, BIG GIANT FLOATING HEAD.

Christian Kiefer had great reservations about writing his beautiful new book, PHANTOMS. He tells James how he found the story, and the steps he took to tell it. They also talk about capturing bear consciousness,...

28/05/2019

I had so much fun talking to Ryan Chapman about his Simon & Schuster novel RIOTS I HAVE KNOWN, which is hilarious and unlike anything I've read in a long time. Then was fortunate enough to chat with Ira Silverberg, Ryan's former editor and general literary advocate. Thanks for listening!

Satire can be the last, best way to critique difficult topics, and Ryan Chapman’s blistering novel, RIOTS I HAVE KNOWN, takes on, among other things, incarceration, literature’s standing in the culture, and intellectual pretension. He...

15/05/2019

I heard Julia Phillips read from her Alfred A. Knopf novel, DISAPPEARING EARTH, at Yaddo, and couldn't stop thinking about it. Then I read the novel myself, and can't stop thinking about it. I had the great pleasure of talking to Julia on this week's , along with old friend Jon Sealy, who told me about his new venture, Haywire Books.

With the long road of a novel ahead of her, Julia Phillips mined her obsessions, and based her debut, DISAPPEARING EARTH, on her love of Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula and her desire to portray the effects...

30/04/2019

New episode! My old friend Chip Cheek's debut, CAPE MAY, is out today from Celadon Books, and it's an elegant s*x- and booze-soaked tale of a young couple's honeymoon in 1957 NJ. We talked all about the writing process (we spoke in an earlier episode about the crazy sale of the book) and you get to hear me utter the phrase "khaki shorts and a bulge." Then I spoke with his agent, the wonderful Katherine Fausset.

The dazzling, drunken, dirty (in an elegant, literary way) debut by Chip Cheek, CAPE MAY, is the result of a feverish writing spree and a measured revision process. Old friends Chip and James discuss learning...

30/04/2019

16/04/2019

The incredible Grace Talusan joined me to talk about her shattering debut, THE BODY PAPERS, for the latest episode. This book had quite a journey, from spare time essays to full-fledged memoir. I also chatted with her editor and Marketing Director of Restless Books, Nathan Rostron. Thanks for listening!

At first, she wrote essays as a distraction from her fiction, but over time, Grace Talusan felt the pull of the experiences that would form the foundation of her memoir, THE BODY PAPERS. From immigration...

10/04/2019

I am a HUGE book jacket nerd, and Whitney Scharer's UK cover designer, Stuart Wilson, was the best I've talked to in terms of explaining how it works. And just LOOK at this cover. It clearly works for him.

02/04/2019

We're back! Thrilled to feature old friend and incredible writer Whitney Scharer talking about her Little, Brown and Company debut, THE AGE OF LIGHT. Then I chatted with her Pan Macmillan UK jacket designer Stuart Wilson. Subscribe, listen, review on all the platforms! http://tkpod.com/2019/04/02/ep-73-whitney-scharer-stuart-wilson/

Back in episode 47, Whitney Scharer discussed the incredible sale of her debut, THE AGE OF LIGHT, and now, she and James discuss the actual novel, which depicts the relationship between Lee Miller and May...

22/01/2019

I had the great honor to record some conversations at the Sewanee Writers' Conference this past summer, and the first of those episodes is up now, featuring poets Maurice Manning and George David Clark of 32 Poems Magazine. LOVED these interviews, and hope you do, too!

In the first in a series of Sewanee Writers’ Conversations, recorded at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference in July 2018, James sat down with poet Maurice Manning to talk about his latest collection, ONE MAN’S DARK,...

05/06/2018

The wonderful Aja Gabel is on the this week, talking about her debut, THE ENSEMBLE. Somehow she describes the indescribable, makes music come alive on the page, and brings you in close to each member of a string quartet. Plus, the genius who designed this incredible cover for Riverhead Books, Grace Han.

In her debut novel, THE ENSEMBLE, Aja Gabel beautifully captures the shifting dynamics of a string quartet. She and James talk about boxing, prodigies, losing yourself in art, and capturing joy versus describing pain. Plus, Aja’s...

10/04/2018

Episode 55 of the podcast is up now, with my old friend Kirstin Chen talking about her wonderful new book, BURY WHAT WE CANNOT TAKE. She gives some great advice for multiple character POVs and research. Then, Michael Nye on productivity, longhand, and the AWP conference.

In her second novel, BURY WHAT WE CANNOT TAKE, Kirstin Chen depicts a family in China under the tightening rule of Mao. She tells James about her choice to tell the story when and how...

06/03/2018

Two of my favorite people and two inspiring conversations on episode 53. First up, Steve Yarbrough talks with me about the best workshop (co-taught by Jill McCorkle) I've ever been lucky enough to be a part of at Sewanee Writers' Conference as well as his incredible career including his latest novel, THE UNMADE WORLD (Unbridled Books). Then, Annie Hartnett and I talk about our new methods of becoming more productive writers. Thanks for listening/ downloading/ sharing!

Over the course of eleven books, including his latest novel, THE UNMADE WORLD, Steve Yarbrough has established himself as a master of language and place. But James knows him as the leader of the greatest...

20/02/2018

I FINALLY got to talk to Michael Nye about his engrossing debut novel, ALL THE CASTLES BURNED, and we talk about writing sports scenes, knowing a book is good on page 1, and lots of other good stuff. Then, I talk to Yaddo bud and debut poet Lauren Moseley about BIG WINDOWS. Thanks for downloading/listening/sharing!

Ever since reading an early copy of Michael Nye’s first novel, ALL THE CASTLES BURNED, James has wanted to talk to the author of such an engaging and thought-provoking book. They discuss knowing good books...

06/02/2018

UP UP DOWN DOWN, the essay collection by all around good guy and Tin House managing editor, Cheston Knapp, is out today, and so is this new podcast, where he and I talk about the art of the essay, the benefits of invisibility, and the bright side of not being able to live in the moment. Plus, Scribner Books art director and book cover badass Jaya Miceli.

In his first essay collection, UP UP DOWN DOWN, Cheston Knapp attends skateboarding camp for adults, recalls his fraternity days, looks for UFOs, and checks out the local wrestling circuit, all in the name of...

23/01/2018

The 50th episode is one of my very favorites. First, Xhenet Aliu talks about her badass first novel, BRASS, and we cover everything from proofreaders to Bread Loaf to trying to get a win. Then, Chip Cheek tells me about the writing of and deal for his novel, CAPE MAY. Thank you for all your support over these 50 episodes! Random House

BRASS, the excellent first novel by Xhenet Aliu, mixes voice, humor, and simmering rage into the tale of a family that keeps ending up in the same rut. She and James talk about what they’re...