GrottoPod The Writers Grotto

Lori Ostlund (https://loriostlund.com/), Doug Henderson (https://www.doughendersonauthor.com/), and T. K. Rex (https://www.tkrex.wtf/) discuss hopeful fiction, metaphor, the Midwest, balancing humor and darkness, crafting characters who feel like real people, the Flannery O’Connor award, and a third addition to the pantser/plotter dichotomy: poet.Stuff we mentioned in the episode:* Lori’s novella Just Another Family (https://www.nereview.com/vol-44-no-3-2023/just-another-family-excerpt/)* flannery o’connor award (https://ugapress.org/series/flannery-oconnor-award-for-short-fiction/)* Flannery winner Iheoma Nwachukwu (https://iheomanwachukwu.com/)* Rainbow Railroad (https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/)

Sam J. Miller (https://samjmiller.com/), Doug Henderson (https://www.doughendersonauthor.com/) and T. K. Rex (https://www.tkrex.wtf/) discuss tapping into who you really are, going too far first, the Clarion writers workshop, writing stories with a structural conceit, filing off the serial numbers, writing from a marginalized point of view, loneliness, climate anxiety, hope, inhale and exhale phases, video games, writing as programming, AI, writing to a specific audience, and writing the gayest sh*t imaginable.Stuff we mentioned in the episode:* Boys, Beasts and Men (https://tachyonpublications.com/product/boys-beasts-men/) (novel by Sam J. Miller)* The Cleveland Heights LGBTQ Sci-Fi and Fantasy Role Playing Club (https://uipress.uiowa.edu/books/cleveland-heights-lgbtq-sci-fi-and-fantasy-role-playing-club) (novel by Doug Henderson)* Smokefall (https://mailchi.mp/4a76766dbcd7/smokefall) (game by Sam J. Miller, playable demo on itch.io)* The Art of Starving (https://samjmiller.com/books/the-art-of-starving/) (novel by Sam J. Miller)* Samuel R. Delaney (https://www.samueldelany.com/) (author)* Clarion writers workshop (http://clarion.ucsd.edu/)* Clarkesworld magazine (https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/)* Cassandra Clare (https://cassandraclare.com/) (author)* "Liking What You See: A Documentary" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liking_What_You_See:_A_Documentary) (novelet by Ted Chiang)* "There’s a Hole in the City" (https://www.nightmare-magazine.com/fiction/theres-a-hole-in-the-city/) (short story by Richard Bowes)* "Inventory" (https://lithub.com/inventory/) (short story by Carmen Maria Machado)* Graham Greene (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Greene) (author)* Pale Fire (novel by Vladimir Nabokov)* The Pogues (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pogues) (band)* What Did You Eat Yesterday (https://kodansha.us/series/what-did-you-eat-yesterday/) (manga)* Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction (https://global.oup.com/academic/product/anarchism-a-very-short-introduction-9780198815617?cc=us&lang=en&) (nonfiction book)* The Perfect Nine: The Epic of Gĩkũyũ and Mũmbi (https://thenewpress.com/books/perfect-nine) (novel by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o)* Shingai Njeri Kagunda (https://www.shingainjerikagunda.com/) (author)* L. P. Kindred (https://linktr.ee/LPKindred) (author)* Baldur’s Gate III (https://baldursgate3.game/)

The GrottoPod is back! In this kickoff episode for the new season, writers T. K. Rex and Doug Henderson discuss upcoming guests, their favorite writing craft tips, the importance of finding local writing community, and writing weird.Stuff we mentioned in the episode:* Classes and Events at the Writers Grotto (https://www.writersgrotto.org/classes-events)* Craft in the Real World by Matthew Salesses (https://bookshop.org/p/books/craft-in-the-real-world-rethinking-fiction-writing-and-workshopping-matthew-salesses/15013424?ean=9781948226806)* Clarion Writers Workshop at UCSD (http://clarion.ucsd.edu/)* Club Chicxulub (https://clubchicxulub.com/)* Litquake (https://www.litquake.org/)T. K. Rex* Website (https://www.tkrex.wtf/)* Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/tharkibo/)* Mastodon (https://wandering.shop/@tkrex)Doug Henderson* Website (https://www.doughendersonauthor.com/)* Twitter/X (https://twitter.com/dugpower)

(https://www.sfgrotto.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Dallas_Woodburn_Horizontal_Headshot-1024x683.jpeg)Novelist Dallas Woodburn (https://dallaswoodburnpr.com/) joins us on the GrottoPod this week to read from her recent book, The Best Week that Never Happened, described as a “captivating, poignant story is perfect for teens on the brink of discovering who they are and what really matters.” Woodburn is a former Steinbeck fellow in creative writing and the author of two earlier books of short fiction, Woman, Running Late, in a Dress and 3 a.m. She is also the host of the popular book-lovers podcast “Overflowing Bookshelves,” (https://anchor.fm/dallas-woodburn) and founder of the organization Write On! Books (http://writeonbooks.org/).

(https://www.sfgrotto.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Grottopod-logo-1.jpg)We hope that this message finds you as well as can be. 2020 has contained a great deal of change for the GrottoPod, and for our production team. To fill you in: the Writers Grotto recently moved out of its physical offices in San Francisco, and we at GrottoPod consequently moved out of the podcast studio where we recorded so many of the interviews that we’ve broadcast on this show. Given these changes, we’ve decided to take an indefinite break from our regular release schedule; however, we will likely be bringing you the occasional reading from a Grotto member, so please stay subscribed. We’ll be looking forward to reconvening with all of you down the line. Be well.

Preeti Vangani joins the GrottoPod this week to talk with producer Brad Balukjian about her evocative essay, "A Meditation on Bitterness," published in Bending Genres. Vangani is a brand manager turned poet and personal essayist who authored Mother Tongue Apologize (RLFPA Editions), and won the RL India Poetry Prize. Her work has appeared in  BOAAT, Juked, Gulf Coast and Threepenny Review, among other journals. She is the Poetry Editor for Glass Journal.