The Other 51

Brian Moritz
  • 5.0 (15)
  • Personal Journals
  • Updated Semimonthly

Writing advice? We've got that. A podcast that gets your favorite writers to spill their secrets. Every episode is a new writer: comic artists to Broadway scribes, sports reporters to authors.

  1. America’s Founding Son with Bob Crawford

    Jun 11

    America’s Founding Son with Bob Crawford

    “I had this moment, this great joy and excitement, followed by an equal sense of panic and fear because, I got the deal to write the book, and then I realized I had to write the book!” Bob Crawford returns to The Other 51 for a deep dive into the research and writing of his excellent new book: “America’s Founding Son: John Quincy Adams, from President to Political Maverick.” Bob talks about how he built on his 2022 podcast about Adams, Founding Son, and was able to expand the story in book form. He and Brian talk about how the book is as much a snapshot of America in the 1830s and 1840s as it is the story of any one person. Bob talks about how he decided to make Adams’ evolution into an abolitionist the center of the book and how he learned about Theodore Weld and Benjamin Lindy and how important they were to this story Bob describes how life on tour with the Avett Brothers was actually very conducive to writing, how he had a tub of books on the tour bus and how digital media made his work much easier.  He also tells the story of his unboxing video gone wrong and describes what makes John Quincy Adams so fascinating to him.   “He’s America’s greatest public servant, hands down.”  Links America’s Founding Son on Amazon America’s Founding Son from an independent book store American History Hotline The Road to Now The Living Declaration (The Best Thing Bob’s read lately.) Support Subscribe to Sports Media Guy Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts Spotify

    29 min
  2. Big Fan with Joe Posnanski and Michael Schur

    May 18

    Big Fan with Joe Posnanski and Michael Schur

    “Here’s what I felt through this entire process in writing this book: I felt complete trust.” Joe Posnanski and Michael Schur join Brian to talk about their new book, Big Fan: Two Friends, 81,589 Miles, and the Wild, Wonderful Sports We Love. (*I’m told it’s actually 82,490 miles. Thank you to Joe Posnanski, now the official ombudsman of The Other 51.) Joe and Michael talk about how a clip of the World Darts Championship inspired this whole project and how they figured out what events they would attend. They talk about why avoided the big events, and how Joe’s career as a sports writer made that easier.  Joe discusses what it was like to write collaboratively, and Michael talked about how they worked to capture the vibe of their friendship on the page. They also say what they learned from writing about each other.  “If you have an ego about your writing, you will miss great ideas, you will not be receptive to criticism or rewriting or editing and you will stubbornly stick with whatever your first stupid idea was and your thing won’t be as good.”  Links Big Fan on Amazon Big Fan from an independent bookstore The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout (the best thing Joe’s read lately.) On the Calculation of Volume by Solvej Balle (the best thing Michael’s read lately)  Support Support the show at Buy Me a Coffee Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts Spotify

    40 min
  3. Bosses of the Bronx with Mike Vaccaro

    Mar 24

    Bosses of the Bronx with Mike Vaccaro

    “I find it to be a pleasure. To be able to write a book is a privilege, but to do it, to me, is a pleasurable event. I just really enjoy writing. I still do.” Mike Vaccaro, my good friend, career mentor, and fellow proud St. Bonaventure graduate, joins me for a deep dive into his delightfully fun new book, “Bosses of the Bronx: The Endless Drama of the Yankees under the house of Steinbrenner.” We talk about why and how he came back to book writing after a long break and why this project was the one that stuck. Mike talks about how thinking of each chapter as one of his columns helped him so much through this process, and how important it was for him to tell these stories in his own voice. That leads to a larger discussion about how to develop your voice as a writer, and Mike also talks about what it was really like to cover George Steinbrenner.  “Everything that’s in that book is me.” Links Bosses of the Bronx on Amazon Bosses of the Bronx from an independent bookstore All of Mike’s books.  Mike at the New York Post.  1929 by Andrew Ross Sorkin (The best thing Mike’s read lately.) The Uncool by Cameron Crowe (The best thing Brian’s read lately.) Support Support the show at Buy Me a Coffee Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts Spotify

    39 min
  4. Moses and the Doctor with Luke Epplin

    Feb 24

    Moses and the Doctor with Luke Epplin

    “I approach these things almost novelistically. I start with character.” Luke Epplin joins the show for the first time for a deep dive into the writing and reporting of his new book, “Moses and the Doctor: Two Men, One Championship and the Birth of Modern Basketball.” Luke talks about how his experience as a failed novelist — his exact words — trained him to write and research and report the way he does. He describes how learning about one moment from the 1982 NBA Finals propelled him into this story.  We talk about how he humanized the almost mythical figures of Julies Erving and Moses Malone, how he made Philadelphia a character in the book, and why pace is so important to him as a writer. “The sort of trick with the book is to convey that larger than lifeness as it was experienced at the time.” Links Moses and the Doctor on Amazon. Moses and the Doctor on Bookshop Our Team (Luke’s first book) on Bookshop What We Can Know by Ian McEwan (the best thing Luke’s read lately) Support Support the show at Buy Me a Coffee Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts Spotify

    31 min
  5. The Archives of Theara with Alysa Auriemma

    Jan 23

    The Archives of Theara with Alysa Auriemma

    Friend of the show Alysa Auriemma is back to talk about writing, motherhood, her new collection of short stories, her future books, and so much more.  That “so much more” is Heated Rivalry. Yes, the full bonus episode, and more Heated Rivalry content, is here.  But before that, Alysa talks about the two short stories in her new collection, “The Archives of Theara: Stories of the Kinborn.” She discusses how they fit into the All Daughter’s Rise extended literary universe, how it served as a way back into this world, and what it was like revisiting these characters years later. We talk about points-of-view as writers and readers, and Alysa also mentions her upcoming rom-com book coming out over the summer. She also talks about being a writer as a new mom, and how writing can be one of the things that helped her find her way back to being herself. Links The Archives of Theara: Stories of the Kinborn All Daughters Rise Heated Rivalry Ally Marcie Writes on Instagram Support Support the show at Buy Me a Coffee Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts

    56 min
  6. BONUS EPISODE: Heated Rivalry with Alysa Auriemma

    Jan 13 ·  Bonus

    BONUS EPISODE: Heated Rivalry with Alysa Auriemma

    Our regularly planned episode with Alysa Auriemma , where we talk about writing and her new collection of stories and motherhood and all of the things, will be out next week. But we also talked a lot about Heated Rivalry. Well, Alysa had a lot to say about the show and the book series. As a bonus, and a preview of the full episode, enjoy some Heated Rivalry talk. Follow Alysa here.

    23 min
  7. Only God Can Judge Me with Jeff Pearlman

    12/19/2025

    Only God Can Judge Me with Jeff Pearlman

    Bestselling author Jeff Pearlman returns to talk all about the writing and reporting of his new book, “Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives of Tupac Shakur.” Jeff talks about how and when he decided to write a biography of Tupac, what made the late rapper a compelling topic, and how he’s similar to Bo Jackson (the subject of Pearlman’s previous book).  Jeff talks about how he interviewed 652 people for this book, how he found them and how he structured the interviews. This leads to a discussion about the importance of sincerity and empathy in reporting, and Jeff describes how he got a Ph.D. in what it’s like to grow up black and poor in education.  Jeff also describes why Ebay is his secret reporting weapon, and how he wrote Brian’s favorite sentence of the year.  Links Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives of Tupac Shakur Buy on Amazon Buy on Bookshop.org All of Jeff’s books on Amazon Jeff on YouTube Jeff on TikTok Who Knows You By Heart by CJ Farley (the best thing Jeff’s read lately) Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye by David Ritz (the best thing Jeff’s read lately) Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover (the dorkiest/best thing Brian’s read lately) Support Support the show at Buy Me a Coffee Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts Spotify

    32 min
  8. American Kings with Seth Wickersham

    08/14/2025

    American Kings with Seth Wickersham

    “I kept thinking, is there a single quarterback I can write about that I can tell this story through? And no matter who it was … everything felt too small. And so what I wanted to do was write about all of them, in a way, at every level.” It’s our 200th episode, and we’re celebrating by talking to one of our favorite writers. Seth Wickersham joins Brian to talk about the writing and reporting of his new book, “American Kings: A Biography of The Quarterback.” Seth discusses what that word “biography” means to him in this context, and talks about how came to write a book about the quarterback position. He talks about how the writing, reporting, and promotion of this book is different than his first book and the lessons he learned from writing about the New England Patriots that applied here.  Seth describes the different reporting methods he used in writing the book, how he landed on this particular structure and how he chose his anchor characters. He tells us how something being interesting to him was his north star, and the moment his repertorial antenna went up. He also talks about how conversations with his friend Wright Thompson and an ESPN editor helped him crack book’s structure.  “Having my friends be brilliant writers has just been like, what a blessing. Because it’s like, everyone’s supportive and a teeny bit competitive … You want to have a story that’s worthy of the text thread.” Links American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback (Bookshop.org link) American Kings (Amazon link) The Book of a Coach Feds probing NFLPA actions that ‘may be criminal,’ doc says by Don Van Natta and Kalyn Kahler (the best thing Seth’s read lately) Untold  by Tom Junod and Paula Lavigne Support Support the show at Buy Me a Coffee Follow us on Instagram. Subscribe at:  Apple Podcasts Spotify

    34 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
15 Ratings

About

Writing advice? We've got that. A podcast that gets your favorite writers to spill their secrets. Every episode is a new writer: comic artists to Broadway scribes, sports reporters to authors.

Information

  • Creator
    Brian Moritz
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    194
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Brian Moritz
  • Show Website
    The Other 51