The Chills at Will Podcast chillsatwillpodcast

Notes and Links to Annie Liontas’ Work
 
 
   For Episode 244, Pete welcomes Annie Liontas, and the two discuss, among other topics, their childhood love of books after early years of learning English as a second language, their teaching life, formative and transformative books and writers, the hot literary scene in Philly, and salient themes and issues in her memoir like writing emotionally-charged material, “invisible disability,” traumatic brain injuries and their personal history, as well as larger narratives about TBI in the carceral system, NFL, and beyond.
 
   Annie Liontas is the genderqueer author of the memoir Sex with a Brain Injury: On Concussion and Recovery, which was featured on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross and selected as SELF Magazine’s Book of the Month. Their debut novel, Let Me Explain You, was selected as New York Times Editors Choice. They co-edited the anthology A Manner of Being: Writers on their Mentors, and their work has appeared in The New York Times Book Review, Gay Magazine, NPR, Electric Literature, BOMB, Lithub, The Believer, Guernica, McSweeney’s, The Rumpus, and elsewhere. A graduate of Syracuse University’s MFA program, they are a professor of writing at George Washington University. Annie has served as a mentor for Pen City’s incarcerated writers and helped secure a Mellon Foundation grant on Disability Justice to bring storytelling to communities in the criminal justice system. They co-host the literary podcast LitFriends and live in Philadelphia.
 
Buy Sex with a Brain Injury
 
Annie's George Washington University Bio
 
NPR's Fresh Air Interview with Annie
 
Emma Copley Eisenberg Writes about Sex with a Brain Injury for Electric Lit
 
LitFriends Podcast with Annie and Lito Velazquez
 
At about 1:40, Annie talks about their experience with the legendary Terri Gross
At about 3:45, Annie talks about their upbringing and Greek family lineage
At about 5:20, Annie homes in on their early days in frustration in transmitting ideas in English 
At about 6:20, Annie responds to Pete’s questions about how Greek affects their English writing and reading 
At about 8:30, Annie discusses their early love of reading
At about 11:30, Annie and Pete discuss pleasurable reading and the idea of “favorite books”
At about 12:15, Annie and Pete nerd out over Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Pete recommends “The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World”
At about 13:40, Annie speaks to ideas of representation in what they have read 
At about 15:20, Annie talks about “wonderful” professors in their time at Syracuse
At about 16:20, Annie highlights Justin Torres, Yiyun Li, and other writers whose work is favorited by their students
At about 17:50, Annie highlights Philadelphia’s huge amount of talent-writers like Marie Helene Bertino, Emma Eisenberg, and Liz Moore
At about 20:15, Pete and Annie talks about Annie’s memoir’s exposition and opening lines; Annie expounds upon seeds for the book
At about 23:00, Pete shouts out Ingrid Rojas Contreras’ The Man Who Could Move Clouds
At about 23:50, The two discuss the ways in which Annie uses second person and tropes about concussions in the memoir
At about 26:40, Pete wonders about Annie’s decisions in summarizing three main injuries and compliments the draw of the structure; Annie talks about suspense and withholding and shares a resonant quote from George Saunders
At about 29:30, Annie discusses “the longitudinal experience” that goes into “I will have my life” that ends the second chapter
At about 31:05, Annie responds to Pete’s questions about writing emotionally-charged material about beloved people
At about 33:05, Annie talks about people doubting the severity of their injuries and a “five-year plan”
At about 36:10, Annie shares interesting history about the rail industry and its “bonkers” track record-pun intended-in connection to injuries and “faking”
At about 38:30, Pete asks Annie about ef

Notes and Links to Kathleen Rooney’s Work
 
   
   For Episode 243, Pete welcomes Kathleen Rooney, and the two discuss, among other topics, her childhood love of story and her later connections to Chicago and Chicagoland, her devotion to words and sentences and poetry, her fascination with Colleen Moore and her Fairy Castle, seeds for From Dust to Stardust, and salient themes and issues in her book like stereotyping, early Hollywood, the burdens carried by young women and all women in Hollywood, and the power of cinema. 
 
   Kathleen Rooney is a founding editor of Rose Metal Press, a nonprofit publisher of literary work in hybrid genres, and a founding member of Poems While You Wait, a team of poets and their typewriters who compose commissioned poetry on demand. She is the author of the novels Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk and Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey, and her latest poetry collection Where Are the Snows, winner of the XJ Kennedy Prize, was released in Fall of 2022 by Texas Review Press. Her latest novel, From Dust to Stardust, came out in September 2023. She lives in Chicago and teaches at DePaul.
 
Buy From Dust to Stardust
 
Kathleen's DePaul University Bio
 
“Checking out Historical Chicago: Kathleen Rooney’s From Dust to Stardust” From Chicago Review of Books

At about 2:00, Kathlen talks about her early years in various parts of the country and her love of cities 
At about 3:35, Kathleen talks about her great love of the written word, and always wanting to “tell stories”
At about 5:30, Kathleen gives background on Chicagoland 
At about 8:10, Various parts of IL and connections to David Foster Wallace are discussed 
At about 9:30, Kathleen discusses formative writers, including “classic” poetry and how she is “attracted to words”
At about 14:00, Kathleen cites music influences like Bob Dylan, a “fellow word pervert” and B96 in Chicago and 90s hip hop
At about 15:50, Kathleen talks about how her Irish heritage has influenced her writing, and how her protagonist was limited by Irish tropes
At about 18:00, Kathleen gives some background on “thin places” from Gaelic yore, its connections to the book’s epigraph, and some plot summary/exposition for the book
At about 22:15, Kathleen builds on earlier discussion of the early history of Hollywood and various locations for shooting movies, after Pete and she reflect on the beautiful Cinema Paradiso and ideas of the magic of cinema
At about 24:05, Kathleen details her interest in Colleen Moore, and also gives seeds for the book
At about 26:15, Kathleen describes Chicago’s incredible Fairy Castle of Colleen Moore 
At about 28:20, Pete and Kathleen talk about other vanity/aspirational projects of the 1920s and on, Hearst, etc.
At about 29:20, Pete gives background on the book’s main character’s, Eileen’s, early fascination with movies
At about 30:15, Kathleen outlines the Eileen’s family and various backstories and influences on Eileen
At about 32:50, Pete asks Kathleen about her book’s structure-flashbacks and flashforward, and how the memories are narrated/formatted 
At about 36:50, Kathleen remarks on how she used flashbacks a little differently than some other popular movies
At about 37:45, Pivotal early scenes that lead Eileen to Hollywood are recounted, and Kathleen expands on the insular environment of early Holywood
At about 41:00, The two discuss the infamous D.W. Griffith and his connections to the book
At about 42:00, Kathleen discusses the ways in which casting and life affect women, especially young women, and their choices
At about 44:40, Kathleen talks about the various iterations of A Star is Born and its significance in Hollywood history
At about 46:00, Marion Davies and her unfair/incomplete reputation are explained
At about 47:30, Pete notes the ways in which Doreen is her own biggest fan and supporter and her agency and hard work
At about 48:40, Kathleen shares her connections to Edna Ferber, the

Notes and Links to Santiago José Sanchez’s Work
 
 
   For Episode 242, Pete welcomes Santiago José Sanchez, and the two discuss, among other topics, their childhood in Colombia and Miami, their experiences with bilingualism, formative and transformative reading, especially in his college years, how teaching informs their writing and vice versa, the wonderful multiple points of view in Hombrecito, salient themes in his collection like masculinity, immigration, queerness, familial ties, reinvention and Americanization, and ideas of home.
 
 
   Santiago José Sánchez, a Grinnell College assistant professor of English and a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, is a queer Colombian American writer. Santiago’s writing has appeared in McSweeney’s, ZYZZYVA, Subtropics, and Joyland and been distinguished in Best American Short Stories. They are the recipient of a Truman Capote Fellowship from the University of Iowa and an Emerging LGBTQ Voices Fellowship from Lambda Literary. Their debut novel is Hombrecito, out as of June 25.
 
 
Buy Hombrecito
 
Santiago's Website
 
New York Times Review of Hombrecito

At about 2:35, Santiago talks about their early relationship with the written word, and their early fascination with and exposure to storytelling
At about 4:55, Santiago expounds upon how Hombrecito is a “love letter” to their mom, and their special relationship with her 
At about 6:00, Santiago speaks to the interplay between English and Spanish in their life and in their writing
At about 9:15, Santiago talks about Colombian Spanish and its uniqueness 
At about 11:20, Santiago highlights books and writers (like Greenwell’s Mitko) and a class with Professor Michael Cunningham that grew their huge love of writing and literature
At about 13:25, Santiago discusses ideas of representation, including works by Justin Torres, that made them feel seen, but also gaps in representation
At about 14:40, Santiago cites Small Rain by Greenwell, Ocean Vuong’s new book, Ruben Reyes, Jr.’s There is a Rio Grande in Heaven, and Melissa Mogollon’s Oye as exciting and inspiring
At about 16:05, Santiago responds to Pete’s question about how writing informs their teaching
At about 18:30, Pete and Santiago rave about Jamil Jan Kochai’s “Playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain” and Santiago talks about their students loving the story
At about 22:45, Santiago gives background on using different points-of-view and terminology for the narrator(s) in Hombrecito
At about 26:40, Santiago describes the book as “autofiction”
At about 28:10, “He lives between the world and his own mind,” a key quote from the beginning of the book, and the narrator’s mother, are explored through a discussion of an early pivotal scene, which also bring talk of a certain type of sexism/misogyny directed at single mothers
At about 32:15, Santiago explains the ways in which they use and views the term “queer”
At about 34:10, Pete gives a little exposition of the book, featuring a scene where the book’s title is first introduced-Santiago expands on the book’s title and its myriad significance
At about 38:10, An understated scene that ends Part I is discussed; Santiago describes their mindset in writing the scene in that way 
At about 40:55, The two explore the narrator’s insistence on calling his mother “Doctora” upon their move to Miami
At about 43:10, Santiago gives an explanation of the book’s oft-referenced “portal”
At about 46:00, The last scene where the narrator is “Santiago” and an important transition, is looked at
At about 46:50, The two reflect upon ideas of Americanization, and a supposedly-perfect/”normative” family dynamic that Santiago and their mother seek out
At about 53:25, Santiago’s mother and brother and their circumstances early in their time in Miami is discussed-Santiago details the “reshaping” of the family’s situation 
At about 56:05, Pete asks Santiago about t

Notes and Links to Antonio Lopez’s Work
 
   For Episode 241, Pete welcomes Antonio Lopez, and the two discuss, among other topics, his bilingual and multicultural childhood in East Palo Alto, E-40 Fonzarelli, his experiences with bilingualism, formative and transformative reading, the greatness and timelessness of James Baldwin, seeds for Gentefication in the rhythms and cultures and camaraderie of home, his life as a politician and working together with the community towards a stellar achievement, and salient themes in his collection like faith, gentrification and attendant outcomes, grief, trauma, joy, the power of art, and youthful rage and passion.
 
   Antonio López is a poetician working at the intersection of poetry, politics and social change. He has received literary scholarships to attend the Community of Writers, Tin House, the Vermont Studio Center, and Bread Loaf. He is a proud member of the Macondo Writers Workshop and a CantoMundo Fellow. He holds degrees from Duke University, Rutgers-Newark, and the University of Oxford. He is pursuing a PhD in Modern Thought and Literature at Stanford University. His debut poetry collection, Gentefication, was selected by Gregory Pardlo as the winner of the 2019 Levis Prize in Poetry. He recently won a Pushcart Prize for his poem “Our Lady of the Westside.” As district representative for California State Senator Josh Becker, he served as the liaison for the Latinx, veteran, and Muslim communities of State District 13. Antonio has fought gentrification in his hometown as the newest and youngest council member for the City of East Palo Alto, and he is now the city’s mayor. 

Buy Gentefication
 
Antonio's East Palo Alto Mayoral Page
 
KQED Interview 

At about 3:00, The two discuss the diversity of the Bay Area
At about 4:20, Antonio speaks about “education as a pillar of [his] life” and his relationship with languages and the written word and nurturing schools in East Palo Alto
At about 7:15, The two sing the praises of PBS as an educational force, and Antonio recounts an amazing 3rd grade story involving the great Levar Burton
At about 11:50, Antonio details some of his favorite texts from childhood, including The Hatchet!
At about 13:20, Antonio responds to Pete’s questions about ideas of representation in what he read and how he was educated, and Antonio expounded upon the interesting ways in which he grew up in an under resourced school and in the Silicon Valley
At about 17:30, The two discuss the huge gap in wealth between Peninsula cities
At about 20:00, Pete quotes from the book’s Acknowledgements in asking Antonio about his “origin story”; Antonio talks about the personal gaze and gaze from outside East Palo Alto
At about 22:25, Antonio reminiscences on the visual and aural feasts, including the music, of his community and the ways in which English was “malleable” and formational for him
At about 26:20, The two discuss the ways in which East Palo Alto achieved a huge change, culminating in zero homicides in 2023
At about 30:30, Antonio reflects on the idea that “all art is political”
At about 32:25, Pete highlights impressive and creative verbs and language Antonio uses
At about 34:50, Pete asks about the pronunciation of the poetry collection and Antonio details the significance of the title
At about 37:10, Pete quotes from the book’s Prologue from Pardlo and asks Antonio about an early reference in the collection to James Baldwin; Antonio expounds upon the “mill”
At about 41:25, The two discuss a memorable line about school reading that didn’t feel familiar for Antonio and other resonant lines about education 
At about 44:15, Antonio responds to Pete’s question about “the borderlands” referred to in the collection 
At about 47:45, Antonio gives background on a powerful poem, “Las Chacharas” and its sequel, as well as ideas of relativism as seen in the writing 
At about 50:40, Antonio talks about a “narr

Notes and Links to Marcela Fuentes’ Work
 
   For Episode 240, Pete welcomes Marcela Fuentes, and the two discuss, among other topics, her childhood in borderland Texas, her experiences with bilingualism, formative and transformative reading, the greatness and timelessness of Selena, seeds for Malas in fairy tales and the title’s multilayered meanings, working in flashback and flashforward to illuminate racism and Texas/borderland histories, and salient themes in her collection like toxic masculinity, the burdens and triumphs of motherhood, grief, trauma, addiction, and ideas of fractured and reworked families.
 
   Marcela Fuentes is a Pushcart Prize-winning fiction writer and essayist. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and was the 2016-2017 James C. McCreight Fiction Fellow at the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in the Indiana Review, The Rumpus, Texas Highways Magazine, Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, and other journals. Her work has been anthologized in New Stories from the Southwest, Best of the Web, and Flash Fiction International. Her story, “The Observable World” appeared in the Pushcart Prizes XLVII : Best of the Small Presses 2023 Edition. She was born and raised in Del Rio, Texas.
   Her debut novel MALAS is the Good Morning America Book Club pick for June 2024. Coming soon, the story collection MY HEART HAS MORE ROOMS THAN A WHOREHOUSE, from Viking Books.

Buy Malas 
 
Marcela's Website
 
Marcela’s Appearance on Good Morning America
 
At about 2:00, Marcela describes her “surreal” experience being on Good Morning America
At about 4:10, Marcela discusses her early relationship with the written word and Spanish and English-speaking 
At about 10:10, Sandra Cisneros, Yo Soy Joaquin, and Helena Maria Viramontes, are cited as formative and transformative writing and writers
At about 12:00, Pete recounts a surreal interaction with the wonderful Helena Maria Viramontes
At about 13:00, Marcla shouts out Vanessa Chan and Rufi Thorpe as contemporaries who thrill and inspire
At about 14:05, Marcela responds to Pete’s questions about seeds for the book-shout out Edward Carey!
At about 18:05, The two reflect on the book’s opening and a resonant first line
At about 20:55, Marcela gives background on Caimanes and the barrio where Pilar and José Alfredo, the first main characters, live, and why they like and hate it
At about 23:00, Uh, oh-the curse is discussed, as well as Pilar’s feelings at eight months pregnant  
At about 24:35, Marcela talks about what she envisioned for Pilar, especially her backstory
At about 28:20, Ideas of suspicions and insecurities involving José Alfredo on Pilar’s part are discussed
At about 30:10, Pete and Marcela discuss Anglo/Mexican-American relations and the ways in which racism affected the hospital visit where Pilar is to give birth
At about 31:25, Marcela describes what it was like to write such a wrenching scene as the one in the hospital
At about 33:45, Pilar’s “dull anger” and the ways in which José Alfredo doesn’t show up for her 
At about 34:40, Lulu Munoz is characterized, as she is introduced in a flashforward scene, and Marcela expands upon her character and her relationship with her “boss man” father 
At about 38:10, Pete points out page 60’s use of “mala,” and Marcela expands on the word’s attendant meanings, especially with regard to the book
At about 40:00, Julio (Lulu’s father) and his bad behavior is discussed
At about 40:40, The two discuss some friends in Lulu’s friend group and the “messiness” of the night where Lulu’s beloved grandma dies and the chaos of the funeral
At about 41:55, Pete wonders about Pilar’s mindset and the ways in which Marcela envisioned her emotional state, as the book returned to 1951
At about 46:45, While discussing Lulu’s band and music likes, Marcela fangirls about Selena and talks about her personal connections to

Notes and Links to Ben Purkert’s Work
 
   For Episode 239, Pete welcomes Ben Purkert, and the two discuss, among other topics, his awakening to wonderful literature and his early poetry and formation as a writer, Robin Williams’ indelible mark on Ben’s writerly development, Ben’s short but eventful time working at an ad agency, Mad Men, and profane poetry, as well salient themes in his book like masculinity, religious and personal identities, one’s possibly-unreliable perspective, reinvention, and ideas of art versus commerce.
 
   Ben Purkert’s debut novel, The Men Can’t Be Saved, was named one of Vanity Fair’s Top 20 Books of 2023. His writing has appeared in The New Yorker, The Nation, Slate, The Wall Street Journal, Poetry, Kenyon Review, and he’s been featured by NPR, Esquire, and The Boston Globe. He is also the author of the poetry collection, For the Love of Endings. He holds degrees from Harvard and NYU, where he was a New York Times Fellow. He teaches in the Sarah Lawrence College MFA program.
 
Buy The Men Can't Be Saved
 
Washington Post Review of The Men Can't Be Saved
 
Review of The Men Can't Be Saved Review in Esquire
 
Ben's Webpage
 
At about 1:30, Ben recounts his story of meeting Martin Scorcese recently
At about 2:40, Congrats to n+1 mag!
At about 3:30, Ben talks about his early relationship with the written word
At about 5:30, Ben expresses his admiration for Robin Williams and how Williams was a “word guy” who led Ben to fiction
At about 8:00-Set Shot! Ben drops a poignant Louise Gluck quote and talks about writing and teaching inspiration from Dead Poets Society
At about 10:25, Ben talks about the writers/writing that “flipped the switch” for him, including Ben Lerner
At about 12:30, Ben cites Alexandra Kleeman and Andrés Barba (A Luminous Republic) as some of his favorite contemporary writers
At about 14:30, Pete and Ben discuss the book’s seeds in Ben’s work in advertising and the cultural phenomenon that was Mad Men, as well as the book as “grounded”/allegorical 
At about 18:55, Pete asks Ben about the significance of his epigraphs
At about 21:15, The two discuss who might play the famous older man from the successful ad at the opening of The Men Can’t Be Saved 
At about 22:10, Ben reads from the beginning of the book
At about 24:30, Ben talks about spending so much time on the book’s first page as he and Pete discuss a possible unreliable narrator in Seth
At about 26:40, The book’s exposition is recounted, including background of the ad agency
At about 28:10, Ben speaks to Pete’s supposition that Seth has some Patrick Bateman in him
At about 30:00, More plot is outlined, and characters like “Moon,” a pivotal character, is discussed 
At about 31:30, Ben reflects on men’s health accounts and other accounts within advertising and how “branding” 
At about 33:15, Seth’s Birthright trip and his work/life balance (or lack thereof) are examined 
At about 36:45, Seth’s hearing about the city of Acre and ideas of fresh starts are discussed, especially with regard to a new job
At about 37:40, Ben talks about ideas of Seth reflecting on, or not, his sense of himself and his Jewish identity
At about 39:00, Ramzy and Seth and their routine and relationship is discussed 
At about 42:20, The two discuss the character of Moon and ideas of masculinity and homophobia and homoeroticism within and without the book
At about 45:20, Ben talks about why he enjoyed writing a pivotal fight scene and the mechanics of same
At about 47:00, Ben tells an interesting story that gives background on the hilarious, X-rated poem written by Moon in the book-shout out Jessie Stephens and Uncle Fred! 
At about 48:30, The two discuss sexual harassment and toxic masculinity in the book and within the ad agency
At about 49:30, The two discuss Seth’s faith journey and Jewish identity as epitomized through two quotes and Jewishness as seen through a connection at