Talking Writing

TW's Creative Director John Vogel interviews Philadelphia punk trio Northern Liberties. The band consists of brothers Justin and Marc Duerr on vocals and drums and Kevin Riley on bass and occasional vocals. The band’s most recent album, Self-Dissolving Abandoned Universe, was recorded in March 2022 with the legendary engineer and producer Steve Albini, who passed away in May of this year. The album provides the soundtrack to this episode. In this interview they dive into their background growing up in a small town and then squatting in Philadelphia, the role that art plays in their lives, and deep experiences wi...

TW Managing Editor Neva Talladen interviews Dr. Tamara Mitchell-Davis, award-winning author of #GoalGetter: Strategies for Overcoming Life’s Challenges (self-published, 2017) and chief executive officer of TM Davis Enterprises, LLC, a coaching practice that empowers aspiring authors to bring their books and business visions to life through storytelling. In this week’s episode, Tamara joins us from Jamaica to discuss the process of self-publishing her first book.

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews drummer and composer Jay Mumford from New York City. He is half of the funk duo the Du-Rites and author of the out-of-print autobiography Root for the Villain, which pokes fun at the classic musician’s story of rising to fame and fortune. The book offers a different and more realistic perspective of a creative career.

In this week’s episode, TW publisher and founder Martha Nichols interviews author Sean Michaels. Sean is an internationally bestselling novelist and critic from Montreal. He is the author of the new novel Do You Remember Being Born?, a book about family, poetry, work, and artificial intelligence (AI). During their conversation, Martha inquires about his thoughts on the intersection of AI and writing.

TW Managing Editor Neva Talladen interviews Minaa B, author of Owning Our Struggles, which is available for purchase now on our Bookshop page. Her work focuses on taking responsibility for one’s self in order to enjoy the benefits of healing, including taking a look at one’s own personal development, one’s community, and the social justice issues that one may have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. In this week’s episode, Neva and Minaa dive into what Mina means by healing trauma through community care and how her readers can implement her ideas in their everyday...

In this week’s episode, the TW staff get together to share their current technological obsessions. We discuss everything from software to hardware and everything in between. We share the tools that make our daily lives so much easier and complain about the planned obsolescence that seems to be ingrained in every new piece of tech we buy today.

TW Copyeditor Jess Barnett interviews Jonathan Kravetz, author of How We Were Before, which will be released Running Wild Press this month. His short stories and plays have appeared in various journals, including The Iris Literary Journal, The Rappahannock Review, The Furious Gazelle, The Opiate Magazine, Narrative Northeast, and others. He also teaches a creative writing class online. This week’s conversation focuses on his writing process, experience in publishing, and career as a full-time writer.

TW founder and publisher Martha Nichols talks AI with linguist and professor Naomi Baron. Mostly centering around Baron's recent book, Who Wrote This? How AI and the Lure of Efficiency Threaten Human Writing (Stanford University Press, 2023), their discussion ranges from the effects of AI on writing and teaching, what makes good writing, and the importance of thinking for oneself in an AI world.

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews Russell Baker, the creator of the sustainability platform A Modern Remedy (AMR), a company helping purpose-led organizations deliver value for people and the planet. On his website, Russell writes long-form essays about various topics and their role in sustainability, including artificial intelligence, social media, fashion, and weather, among other subjects.

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews Sarah Jaffe, author of Work Won’t Love You Back: How Devotion to Our Jobs Keeps Us Exploited, Exhausted, and Alone. In this episode, the two discuss the idea of the American dream, how it is used to control the working class, and how it affects working artists and their ability to live off their work.

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews Alan King, a poet and author of the book, Point Blank. In this interview, which John collected as part of his Perfect Recognition project on intense aesthetic experiences, the two discuss his connection to music and poetry, as well as his development as a poet.

TW’s Podcast Production Manager Sarah Tulloch interviews Angie Elita Newell, a trained historian, and author of the novel All I See Is Violence. The two discuss how Angie sought to make Native American history more accessible by writing a historical fiction novel as well as the lasting impact of the Battle of the Little Bighorn and how the results of the battle still affect us to this day.

TW Managing Editor Neva Talladen interviews Saundra Gilliard, a professional storyteller, a playwright, and a personal transformation leader. The two discuss the importance of prioritizing feminine storytelling from the perspective of feminine people. Much of mainstream media prioritizes the misogynistic idea of a feminine woman rather than the stories written by women for women. Saundra emphasizes the connection that is lost within this misrepresentation and how it can be found in women’s writing. 

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews Bekka Palmer, Matt Buccelli, and Toya Gavin. Each guest is a respected artist in their field and creates art while raising their kids. In this week’s episode, the group discusses how they juggle their creative careers and parenting.

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews musician and author Adam Gnade, who just released I Wish to Say Lovely Things. The two discuss the realities of life as an artist—including the idea of the starving artist, avoiding lifestyle creep, and making the world a better place.

TW Managing Editor Neva Talladen interviews Claudia Acevedo-Quiñones, author of The Hurricane Book: A Lyric History. In this episode, Neva and Claudia discuss the process of writing a memoir from the perspective of people who have experienced ecological and colonial trauma. 

TW Managing Editor Neva Talladen interviews Nifemi Aluko, author of Toffy’s Divide. In this episode, Neva and Nifemi discuss the rise of Web3 options in publishing and his use of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to maintain ownership over his work.

TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews Amy Belfi, PhD, an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological Science exploring the intersection of music, psychology, and neuroscience. In this week’s episode, they discuss intense aesthetic experiences, the role of art in people's personal lives and society as a whole, and Amy’s journey to the science of music.

In this week’s episode, the TW staff get together to share their current artistic obsessions. We discussed everything from community building, ink making, book reviewing, and a thorough analysis of Beverly Hills, 90210. This discussion allowed us to take a break from making art to pay the bills and discuss our processes of making art for art’s sake.

In this week’s episode, the TW staff get together to share their current artistic obsessions. We discussed everything from community building, ink making, book reviewing, and a thorough analysis of Beverly Hills, 90210. This discussion allowed us to take a break from making art to pay the bills and discuss our processes of making art for art’s sake.