Page Count Ohio Center for the Book

Laura and Don celebrate Page Count’s second anniversary by sharing some of their favorite episodes along with a few fun facts. For example, did you know that this is the sixtieth Page Count episode? Or that cotton is the traditional gift for second anniversaries? Or that Laura is only in this for the fame and glory? Finally, Don and Laura offer a quick preview of what's in the works for Page Count’s third season, which debuts May 21.
 
Laura Maylene Walter is Ohio Center for the Book Fellow at Cleveland Public Library, the host of Page Count, and the author of BODY OF STARS (Dutton). Don Boozer is the Literature Department Manager at Cleveland Public Library and the Ohio Center for the Book Coordinator.
 
In this episode:
Touring the Toni Morrison Reading Room
Escaping the Drawer with Sammy and Annisha
The Great Environmental Awakening with Douglas Brinkley
The Secret Life of Zane Grey
Revising Nancy Drew with Jennifer Fisher
First Pages with Kirsten Reach
Poetry Critiques with Mid-American Review
Nonfiction Critiques with Kristen Elias Rowley
Query Critiques with Devon Halliday
Query Critiques with Erin Hosier
 
 
To view all episodes, visit https://ohiocenterforthebook.org/podcast. And stay tuned for the Season 3 Trailer, set to air May 7, 2024!
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.

David Weaver, executive director of the Ohioana Library Association, makes his second appearance on the podcast to discuss the upcoming Ohioana Book Festival. In addition to sharing festival highlights, including a special live Page Count conversation featuring Hanif Abdurraqib and Jacqueline Woodson, Weaver discusses his work with Ohioana, his upcoming retirement, and Ohio’s contributions to the literary world.
 
The 18th annual Ohioana Book Festival will be held at Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Main Library on Saturday, April 20, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Additional programs and activities will take place in the community throughout April. Page Count’s special live episode with Hanif Abdurraqib and Jacqueline Woodson will be held at 12pm on Saturday, April 20 in the auditorium.
 
Ohioana Book Festival
2024 Festival Authors
2024 Festival Schedule
Ohioana Library Association
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library and hosted by Laura Maylene Walter. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.

In celebration of the paperback release of her latest novel, Alchemy of a Blackbird, Claire McMillan discusses the art and life of Remedios Varo, historical fiction, surrealism, and Pamela Colman Smith, the artist behind the world’s most famous tarot deck. She also dives into the alchemy of writing, from finding the perfect title to writing “drawer novels” and beyond. Finally, McMillan answers questions from Page Count listeners surrounding the challenges of the sophomore novel and talking (or not) about current works in progress.
 
Claire McMillan is the author of Alchemy of a Blackbird, The Necklace, and Gilded Age, which was inspired by Edith Wharton’s House of Mirth. She was the 2017–2018 Cuyahoga County Writer-in-Residence and currently serves as a member of the board of trustees of The Mount, Edith Wharton’s home in Lenox, Massachusetts. She practiced law until 2003 and then received her MFA in creative writing from Bennington College. She grew up in Pasadena, California, and now lives on her husband’s family farm outside of Cleveland, Ohio, with their two children.
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library and hosted by Laura Maylene Walter. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.
 

We’re pleased to share this Writers Unplugged event featuring Cleveland author Susan Petrone. Jen Jumba of Cleveland Public Library conducted this interview in person on February 7, 2024, to discuss Petrone’s latest novel, the power of music, the unreliability of memory, the thrill of finding yourself in a book, and, of course, the falafel and milkshakes at Tommy’s.
 
Writers Unplugged is a Cleveland Public Library series uniting authors, performers, journalists, activists, and educators to delve into the issues impacting our communities. Susan Petrone is the author of The Musical Mozinskis (2024), The Heebie-Jeebie Girl (2020), The Super Ladies (2018), Throw Like a Woman (2015), and A Body at Rest (2009). She was a recipient of an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award for FY 2020.
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library and hosted by Laura Maylene Walter. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.

Brian Broome, author of the debut memoir Punch Me Up to the Gods, discusses growing up in rural Ohio, how he was discovered by a literary agent at a storytelling event, how he navigates writing about family, how he approaches structure and revision, and the story in his memoir that made Laura cringe the hardest (that’s a compliment). Broome also answers questions from Page Count listeners surrounding challenges faced by working-class writers and the recent Goodreads review bombing controversy.
 
Brian Broome is the author of Punch Me Up to the Gods (Mariner Books, 2021), which won the 2021 Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction, Publisher Triangle’s Randy Shilts Award for Nonfiction, and the 2022 Lambda Literary Award in Gay Memoir/Biography. He is K. Leroy Irvis Fellow and instructor in the Writing Program at the University of Pittsburgh. Broome has been a finalist in The Moth storytelling competition and won the grand prize in Carnegie Mellon University’s Martin Luther King Writing Awards. He also won a VANN Award from the Pittsburgh Black Media Federation for journalism in 2019. Broome lives in Pittsburgh.
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library and hosted by Laura Maylene Walter. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.

In honor of Toni Morrison Day on February 18, Page Count took a field trip to Lorain Public Library to tour the Toni Morrison Reading Room. Cheri Campbell, Local History and Archives Librarian, guides listeners through the room while providing history, lore, and anecdotes about Morrison’s life and storied literary career. From Morrison’s time growing up in Lorain (including how she got hired, fired, and hired once more at Lorain Public Library), to winning the Nobel Prize in Literature and beyond, this episode is a must for Morrison fans.
 
To see some of the images mentioned in this episode—including Toni Morrison’s high school yearbook photo, pictures from her appearance at the reading room dedication, and more—read our accompanying blog post, “Inside the Toni Morrison Reading Room.”
 
Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.