19 episodes

Writer's Voice features author interviews and readings, as well as news, commentary and tips related to writing and publishing. We also talk with editors, agents, publicists and others about issues of interest to writers. Francesca Rheannon is producer and host of Writer's Voice. She is a writer, an independent radio producer and a broadcast journalist.

Writer's Voice with Francesca Rheannon Francesca Rheannon

    • Arts
    • 4.6 • 19 Ratings

Writer's Voice features author interviews and readings, as well as news, commentary and tips related to writing and publishing. We also talk with editors, agents, publicists and others about issues of interest to writers. Francesca Rheannon is producer and host of Writer's Voice. She is a writer, an independent radio producer and a broadcast journalist.

    St. Pat’s Day Special: Rue Matthiessen, CASTLES AND RUINS & Claire Coughlan, WHERE THEY LIE

    St. Pat’s Day Special: Rue Matthiessen, CASTLES AND RUINS & Claire Coughlan, WHERE THEY LIE

    We talk with Rue Matthiessen, daughter of the famed writer Peter Mathiessen about her family memoir, Castles And Ruins: Unraveling, Family Mysteries, And Literary Legacy In The Irish Countryside.







    Then, Claire Coughlan tells us about her twisty-turny whodunit, Where They Lie. It’s a murder mystery set in 1968 Dublin, where the detective isn’t a policeman, but a young female news reporter on the make.







    And finally we air a short clip from our conversation with Fintan O’Toole last St. Patrick’s Day about his personal history of modern Ireland, We Don’t Know Ourselves.















    Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.







    Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice.







    Key Words: Rue Matthiessen, memoir, author interview, Claire Coughlan, Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day, , memoir, podcast, book podcast, author interview, Writer’s Voice, Francesca Rheannon, mystery fiction, crime fiction, Peter Matthiessen















    A Journey To Ireland Reveals A Family’s Secrets













    In her memoir Castles and Ruins, Rue Matthiessen uses her memories of those two journeys to Ireland to dig deeper into her parents’ literary legacy, their stormy marriage, and their complicated relationships to their children.







    Decades after spending a summer in the Irish countryside with her parents—author Deborah Love and National Book Award winner Peter Matthiessen—Rue Matthiessen took her young family back to Ireland to revisit locales from that season in the sixties. As a guide, she had her mother’s book, Annaghkeen, named for the castle that overlooked their home in Galway.







    The book is also a vivid portrait of the artistic community on the East End of Long Island that flourished in the 1960s and 70s.















    A Thrilling Crime Fiction Debut Set in 1968 Dublin







    Former investigative journalist Claire Coughlan always wanted to write crime fiction. And we are so glad she’s finally been able to do so. Her debut novel is Where They Lie.













    It’s 1968 Dublin and Ireland is on the cusp: the strangle grip of the old order of the Catholic Church is just beginning to slacken. There are new opportunities for women — in investigative journalism, for example. But contraception won’t be available until 1985 — and abortion until 2018.







    That’s fifty years after Coughlan’s protagonist, the young female journalist Nicoletta Sarto, takes on the task of investigating a case long gone cold: the death of a young woman that could be linked to a clandestine abortion clinic.







    Sarto vividly brings 1968 Dublin to life, where the upper crust thinks its privilege will protect it against accountability for its crimes — until it doesn’t.

    • 57 min
    Amitav Ghosh, SMOKE AND ASHES & Manjula Martin, THE LAST FIRE SEASON

    Amitav Ghosh, SMOKE AND ASHES & Manjula Martin, THE LAST FIRE SEASON

    We talk with Amitav Ghosh about his masterful history of the opium trade, Smoke and Ashes: Opium’s Hidden Histories.







    Then, Manjula Martin tells us about her personal and “pyro-natural” history of California wildfires — the ones she lived through in 2020 and the ones Indigenous people lived with before white settlers moved in and took their land. Her book is The Last Fire Season.







    And finally, we read a poem from Mosab Abu Toha’s book Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear.















    Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.







    Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice.







    Key Words: Amitav Ghosh, history, opium trade, author interview, Manjula Martin, climate change, global warming, fire season, memoir, podcast, book podcast, author interview, Writer’s Voice, Francesca Rheannon















    Narco States of Colonial Capitalism













    When Amitav Ghosh finished the novels of his famed Ibis Trilogy, he became curious about the opium trade. The lives of his characters, 19th-century sailors and soldiers who navigated the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean, were intertwined with the currents that carried not just ships, but their precious cargo—opium.







    He was surprised to find how much that commodity had shaped the destinies of not only India, but of China, colonial empires — and the United States.







    What startled Ghosh even more wasn’t just the historical backdrop, but the realization that his own family history was entangled in that trade.







    Enter Smoke and Ashes: a book that combines travelogue, memoir, and historical research to weave together threads of horticultural history, the myths of capitalism, and the enduring impacts of colonialism.







    Read An Excerpt







    Read The Transcript















    Fire Season: Past, Present and Future













    Manjula Martin traded city life for the serene woods of Northern California in pursuit of a deeper connection to the wilderness of her childhood. Struggling with chronic pain, she sought solace in tending her garden beneath the majestic redwoods of Sonoma County.







    However, the very landscape she cherished was under threat from escalating wildfires exacerbated by climate change.







    As wildfires ravaged the West in 2020, Martin and countless other Californians were forced to evacuate amidst a global pandemic. The Last Fire Season delves into the intricate role of fire in the ecology of the Western landscape while at the same time shining a critical lens on the colonialist practices that have contributed to their current plight.







    Read or Listen to an Excerpt







    Read The Transcript





    a class="wp-block-read-more" href="https://www.writersvoice.net/2024/03/amitav-ghosh-smoke-and-ashes-manjula-martin-the-last-fire-season/"...

    • 57 min
    Charles Derber, DYING FOR CAPITALISM & Andy Lee Roth, STATE OF THE FREE PRESS 2024

    Charles Derber, DYING FOR CAPITALISM & Andy Lee Roth, STATE OF THE FREE PRESS 2024

    We talk with Charles Derber about the book he co-wrote with Suren Moodliar, Dying For Capitalism, How Big Money Fuels Extinction And What We Can Do About It.







    Then we talk with Andy Lee Roth about Project Censored’s yearbook, State of the Free Press 2024: The Top Censored Stories and Media Analysis of 2022–23.







    And finally, we read a poem from Mosab Abu Toha’s book Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear.















    Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.







    Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram and Threads @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice.







    Read The Transcript







    Key Words: Charles Derber, Andy Lee Roth, author interview, book podcast, democracy, press freedom, podcast, Project Censored, nonfiction















    Podcast Show Notes: Interview with Charles Derber













    Introduction









    * Charles Derber, a co-author of the book “Dying for Capitalism,” discusses critical issues surrounding capitalism, technology, and climate change with Francesca on Writer’s Voice.







    * Suren Moodliar is Co-author of the book, a South African with ties to the Mandela household and an ANC activist.









    Key Points from the Interview









    * Capitalism and Growth: The conversation emphasizes how capitalism’s inherent drive for infinite growth poses challenges for sustainability on a finite planet.







    * Fetishism of Commodities: Drawing from Marx’s concept, the interview touches on how consumerism and material production under capitalism contribute to resource depletion.







    * Triangle of Extinction: Gerber introduces the concept linking capitalism, environmental destruction, and militarism as interconnected forces driving global crises.









    Insights from the Interview









    * Challenging Green Capitalism: The interview delves into the limitations of green technology within capitalism in addressing climate change.







    * Technology and Capitalism: Gerber highlights the misconception that technology alone can solve deep-rooted social, environmental, and political issues.







    * Historical Context: The discussion explores how capitalism’s evolution from water to coal to oil was influenced by social and political factors rather than just technological efficiency.









    Podcast Show Notes: State of the Free Press 2024













    Introduction







    In this segment, Andy Lee Roth, the associate director of Project Censored, discusses key trends in the State of the Free Press in the United States.







    Roth highlights significant changes in the media landscape since Project Censored’s establishment in 1976, emphasizing the impact of media deregulation,

    • 1 hr 10 min
    Les Leopold, WALL STREET’S WAR ON WORKERS

    Les Leopold, WALL STREET’S WAR ON WORKERS

    We talk with Les Leopold of the Labor Institute about his groundbreaking study of the political cost of mass layoffs. His book is Wall Street’s War on Workers: How Mass Layoffs and Greed Are Destroying the Working Class and What to Do About It.







    Then we re-air a clip from our 2013 interview with Les Leopold about his book, How To Make A Million Dollars An Hour: Why Hedge Funds Get Away with Siphoning Off America’s Wealth.







    And finally, we read some poems from Mosab Abu Toha’s book Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear.















    Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.







    Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram and Threads @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice. Read transcripts at the Writer’s Voice Substack.







    Key words: Les Leopold, Wall Street, layoffs, author interview, book podcast, nonfiction, podcast, Writer’s Voice















    Economy Not Working For Many Americans













    The economy is going great, right? Wages are up, unemployment is at record lows, so why do so many Americans feel that the economy isn’t working for them?







    And what does that mean for the upcoming presidential election?







    Wall Street’s War On Workers







    These are the questions Les Leopold answers in his latest book Wall Street’s War on Workers: How Mass Layoffs and Greed Are Destroying the Working Class and What to Do About It. As the title makes clear, the crisis of mass layoffs and the failure of either political party to address it has left Americans feeling like the economy is rigged against them – and no one in politics is taking their side.







    Leopold says that the failure of the so-called “party of the working class,” the Democrats, to stand against mass layoffs is the real reason many working class people have abandoned it. And he says workers are far more progressive, even white workers, than the pundits would have you think.







    About the Author







    Les Leopold is the co-founder of the Labor Institute and the author of numerous books, including Runaway Inequality, The Looting of America and How to Make a Million Dollars an Hour. Listen to more of our interviews with Leopold here. Check out Leopold’s Wall Street’s War On Workers Substack here.

    • 58 min
    A Jazz-Age Murder That Toppled Gotham’s Mayor

    A Jazz-Age Murder That Toppled Gotham’s Mayor

    The Rundown







    We talk with Michael Wolraich about his book, The Bishop And The Butterfly: Murder, Politics, And The End Of The Jazz Age. Then, we re-air part of our conversation with Paul Kix about You Have To Be Prepared To Die Before You Can Begin To Live: Ten Weeks In Birmingham That Changed America.  And we read a poem by Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha, who was abducted by the IDF and brutally beaten before a global outcry resulted in his release.















    Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.







    Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram and Threads @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice. Read transcripts at the Writer’s Voice Substack.







    Key Words: Michael Wolraich, Jazz Age, history, writers voice, podcast, book recommendations, author interview, book podcast, book show, book excerpt, creative nonfiction, poetry, Black History Month















    Gotham’s Golden Age of Corruption













    New York City has a long history of corruption. Some are calling the current era of financial capitalism the Golden Age of Corruption, and, with New York being the pre-eminent global capital of financial capital, there’s plenty of fraud, grift and graft going around in the present day. 







    But the Golden Age of Corruption in New York was the century that Tammany Hall sat at the center of the city’s governance, spreading its tentacles into every nook and cranny, from the beat cop on the street all the way up the mayor and beyond to the New York State legislature. And the Jazz Age of the 1920’s was, if not the height of corruption, certainly one of its major peaks.







    The Bishop and The Butterfly







    In his book, The Bishop and The Butterfly, Michael Wolraich tells the riveting story of how the 1931 murder of con artist and high class prostitute Vivian Gordon brought about the downfall of New York City Mayor Jimmy Walker, and led to the end of Tammany Hall’s dominance.







    Michael Wolraich’s writing has appeared at Rolling Stone, The Atlantic, The Daily Beast, New York Magazine, CNN.com, Reuters, and Talking Points Memo. In addition to The Bishop and the Butterfly, he’s the author of Unreasonable Men, and Blowing Smoke.















    Black History Month: The Battle of Birmingham













    In August of last year, we spoke with Paul Kix about his riveting chronicle of the fight to end Jim Crow, led by the greatest figures of the Civil Rights Movement—and won by children. The book is  You Have To Be Prepared To Die Before You Can Begin To Live: Ten Weeks In Birmingham That Changed America.







    We air an extended excerpt from that interview, but you can hear the entire conversation here.















    Mosab Abu Toha’s poem, “My Grandfather Was A Terrorist”







    As of February 14, 2024, a href="https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/palestinians-rafah-1.

    • 1 hr 9 min
    Women, Vengeance, and Justice: Elizabeth Flock, THE FURIES. Plus, Stephen Robert Miller, OVER THE SEAWALL

    Women, Vengeance, and Justice: Elizabeth Flock, THE FURIES. Plus, Stephen Robert Miller, OVER THE SEAWALL

    We talk with Elizabeth Flock about her book, The Furies. It follows three remarkable women — in the US, in India and in Syria — who took justice into their own hands to defend themselves, other women and their communities against abuse.







    Then, environmental journalist Stephen Robert Miller tells us about his book, Over The Seawall: Tsunamis, Cyclones, Drought, And The Delusion Of Controlling Nature. He dives into the deep end of disaster mitigation gone wrong. From Arizona’s drought dilemmas to Japan’s daunting seawalls, we hear how “solutions” can turn into bigger problems.







    Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.







    Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram and Threads @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice. Read transcripts at the Writer’s Voice Substack.







    Key words: Stephen R. Miller, Elizabeth Flock, Nonfiction, domestic violence, women’s rights, global warming, climate change, book podcast, author interview





    Read more: Women, Vengeance, and Justice: Elizabeth Flock, THE FURIES. Plus, Stephen Robert Miller, OVER THE SEAWALL





    The Furies: Women, Vengeance & Justice







    In Ancient Greek mythology, the Furies were Goddesses who came out of the ground to exact vengeance on men. In the plays of Sophocles, they were the daughters of Darkness and of Gaea (The Earth). According to Euripides. They were three in number.













    And that’s the number of the modern day Furies in Elizabeth Flock’s book, The Furies. They include a young mother from Alabama who shot and killed her rapist after an assault where he threatened to kill her; a Dalit (what used to be called “Untouchable”) woman in India who organized a band of women to fight back against gender-based violence; and finally, a Kurdish Syrian warrior in a thousands-strong all-female militia that battled ISIS in Syria.







    The Furies explores these women’s lives with nuance and compassion, not shrinking from the moral issue of responding to violence with violence, but also showing that these ultimately ordinary women did what they felt they had to do to fight back against oppression.







    About the Author







    Elizabeth Flock is an Emmy Award–winning journalist whose work has been featured in the New Yorker, the New York Times, and the Atlantic, among other outlets. She is the host of the podcast Blind Plea, about criminalized survival. Her first book, The Heart Is a Shifting Sea, won a Nautilus Book Award.















    Unintended Consequences of Climate & Disaster Mitigation













    Stephen Robert Miller’s compelling narrative Over the Sea Wall takes us on a journey through the misguided attempts at mitigating natural and climate disasters, emphasizing how our best-intended efforts can backfire and lead to greater problems. In this conversation with the author, we explore the themes of maladaptation, technological interventions, and the pressing need for sustainable solutions in the face of climate change.

    • 1 hr 17 min

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5
19 Ratings

19 Ratings

jolliechapz ,

The best interview podcast ten plus (?) years running

This podcast is loyal support, still here to help us all connect with our current shared reality.
Treat yourself to the wise and gentle interviewer presence of Francesca, who, without splashy fanfare, creates space for the important thinkers of our time.

abt41253 ,

10 best titles

This episode is so interesting! I now have 10 new (to me) books to read. The host gets right to the point and elicits such fascinating responses from the authors. I'm a fan.

bullcbull ,

SPECTACULAR

Francesca Rheannon has an amazing show and often has me wondering why she hasn't become the next Katie Couric or Barbara Walters with her impressive array of questions, continuing the conversation while keeping us the audience entranced and enticed and always wanting more My favorite author interview by far is John Elder Robinsons I have both of his books and am currently awaiting a third because I am personal touched by ASD and Francesca Rheanon's interview allows me a chance to let others listen into a bit of our world and understand because they are the ones who refuse the books and there's no way I'd ever get them to read it her interview has had a few willing that have either borrowed my book or bought them for themselves However even when the author or book has no personal interest to me this show has me entertained and delighted!!!!!

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