The American Writers Museum Podcasts
Episodes
Episode 32: Phillis Wheatley Peters
30 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of poet Phillis Wheatley Peters. Kidnapped in West Africa, Wheatley Peters was renamed after the sh...
Episode 157: Growing Up Chicago
28 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, authors and editors Lauren DeJulio Bell, Rebecca Makkai, and Daiva Markelis discuss their contributions to the collection Growing Up Chicag...
Episode 156: Small Odysseys
21 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, contributing authors Jac Jemc, Juan Martinez, Joe Meno, and Luis Alberto Urrea discuss their work in the collection Small Odysseys: Selecte...
Episode 155: Jabari Asim
14 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author Jabari Asim discusses his novel Yonder with journalist Evan F. Moore. This conversation originally took place May 15, 2022 and was r...
Episode 154: Todd Brewster
07 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, journalist Todd Brewster discusses his book Seen and Unseen: Technology, Social Media, and the Fight for Racial Justice, which he co-author...
Episode 153: Elizabeth Nunez
31 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, award-winning author Elizabeth Nunez discusses her novel Now Lila Knows, with Booklist editor Donna Seaman. This conversation originally to...
Episode 31: Cormac McCarthy
28 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of the late Cormac McCarthy, whose novels about wayward characters in the rural American South and ...
Episode 152: Jocelyn Nicole Johnson and Rebecca Makkai
24 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, authors Jocelyn Nicole Johnson and Rebecca Makkai discuss their work and Johnson’s acclaimed collection short story collection My M...
Episode 151: Logan Steiner and Elizabeth Blackwell
17 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, authors Logan Steiner and Elizabeth Blackwell discuss writing historical fiction and Steiner’s debut novel After Anne: A Novel of Lucy Ma...
Episode 150: Juneteenth Celebration
10 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Black writers and artists celebrate Juneteenth by discussing their crafts and their activism in the context of our special exhibit Dark Tes...
Episode 30: Ursula K. Le Guin
30 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Ursula K. Le Guin. As you can read on her website, UrsulaKLeGuin.com, she was, “a celebrat...
Episode 149: Juno Dawson
26 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Juno Dawson discusses her work and her debut picture book You Need to Chill!. Dawson is a leading LGBTQ+ activist and also the bestselling ...
Episode 148: Lisa See
19 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling author Lisa See discusses her new historical fiction novel Lady Tan’s Circle of Women, with Joanne Leedom-Ackerman The follow...
Episode 147: Zachary Zane
12 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, sex and relationship columnist Zachary Zane discusses his new essay collection Boyslut: A Memoir and Manifesto, named a Most Anticipated LG...
Episode 146: Writing Across Borders
05 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, a panel of authors and educators from StoryStudio Chicago discuss the process of writing from multiple identities, often marginalized ones,...
Episode 145: The People’s Tongue
29 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we have a special episode with live music and lively conversation in celebration of the new one-of-a-kind anthology The People’s Tongue: ...
Episode 29: Walt Whitman
25 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of iconic poet Walt Whitman, who grew up in working-class New York City and was largely self taught...
Episode 144: Nicole Chung
22 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling author Nicole Chung discusses her new memoir, A Living Remedy, with Nina Li Coomes. The following conversation originally took ...
Episode 143: The Future of Black
15 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, writers discuss their contributions to the anthology The Future of Black: Afrofuturism, Black Comics, and Superhero Poetry. The panel inclu...
Episode 142: John Scalzi & Michi Trota
08 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Acclaimed science fiction author John Scalzi discusses his recent book The Kaiju Preservation Society and the science fiction genre with fellow award-...
Episode 141: Michael Warr
01 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, poet Michael Warr reads and discusses his work, and brings his fellow poets and friends on stage to perform their work. Featured poets incl...
Episode 28: Gwendolyn Brooks
27 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of poet, author, educator and community builder Gwendolyn Brooks, who was born in Topeka, Kansas. S...
Episode 140: The Slippery Slope of Censorship
24 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we’re proud to present a conversation about the slippery slope of censorship and what you can do to preserve your community’s freedom t...
Episode 139: National Student Poets
17 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Students from the National Student Poets Program discuss their work and the importance of poetry in the lives of young people today. The National Stud...
Episode 138: Wherever I’m At: An Anthology of Chicago Poetry
10 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, poets Angela Jackson, Johanny Vázquez Paz, Faisal Mohyuddin, and Carlos Cumpián read from and discuss their contributions to the recent c...
Episode 137: Amanda Flower
03 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling mystery novelist Amanda Flower discusses her latest multi award nominated novel Because I Could Not Stop for Death: An Emily Di...
Episode 136: Caits Meissner & Nicole Shawan Junior
27 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Caits Meissner and Nicole Shawan Junior discuss their contributions to The Sentences That Create Us: Crafting A Writer’s Life in Prison. ...
Episode 135: Rev. Wheeler Parker, Jr. and Christopher Benson
20 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Reverend Wheeler Parker, Jr.—Emmett Till’s cousin, best friend, and the last surviving witness of the night Till was lynched—disc...
Episode 134: Deborah Cohen
13 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, historian and author Deborah Cohen discusses her book Last Call at the Hotel Imperial: The Reporters Who Took on a World at War. Cohen is j...
Episode 27: Edith Wharton
09 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Edith Wharton, who was born in 1862 into a tightly controlled society at a time when women were ...
Episode 133: Natalie Y. Moore
06 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Natalie Y. Moore discusses her play The Billboard with J. Nicole Brooks. As a play and a book, The Billboard is a cultural force that treat...
Episode 132: Clarence Lusane
27 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, political scientist Dr. Clarence Lusane discusses his book Twenty Dollars and Change: Harriet Tubman and the Ongoing Fight for Racial Justi...
Episode 131: Will Jawando
20 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, activist and author Will Jawando discusses his book My Seven Black Fathers: A Young Activist’s Memoir of Race, Family and the Mentors Who...
Episode 130: Ashley C. Ford and Eve L. Ewing
13 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, acclaimed writers Ashley C. Ford and Eve L. Ewing discuss Ford’s memoir Somebody’s Daughter. One of the most prominent voices of her ge...
Episode 26: Zora Neale Hurston
09 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Zora Neale Hurston, who was, simply, extraordinary. She grew up in Eatonville, Florida, an all-b...
Episode 129: Elie Mystal
06 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, legal analyst and author Elie Mystal discusses his book Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution, with professor I...
Episode 128: Richard Bradford
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, professor and author Richard Bradford discusses his book Tough Guy: The Life of Norman Mailer, the first biography to examine Mailer’...
Episode 127: Brooks E. Hefner
23 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, professor and historian Brooks E. Hefner discusses his book Black Pulp: Genre Fiction in the Shadow of Jim Crow, a deep dive into mid-centu...
Episode 126: Leonard Moore
16 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author and professor Leonard Moore discusses his book Teaching Black History to White People. Moore is joined in conversation by Laura McEn...
Episode 25: Nelson Algren
11 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss the life and work of Chicago legend Nelson Algren, one of the most well known literary writers in America in the 40s and 5...
Episode 125: Comedy Writing Panel
09 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We thought we’d kick off 2023 with an episode full of laughs! In this episode, comedy writers Cristela Alonzo, Karen Chee, Peter Gwinn, Alexandra Pe...
Episode 124: The Best of 2022
29 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we take a look back at some of our favorite moments from the top episodes we released in 2022. From Poet Laureates and Pulitzer Prize winner...
Episode 123: Jed Rasula
19 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, celebrate the 100th anniversary of T. S. Eliot’s iconic poem The Waste Land with scholar and professor Jed Rasula, author of What the Thu...
Episode 10: Nathaniel Hawthorne
15 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, co-host Jennifer and guest co-host Allison discuss the life and work of American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne, one of the nation’...
Episode 122: The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2022
12 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we discuss The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2022 anthology with guest editor Rebecca Roanhorse, series editor John Joseph Adam...
Episode 24: Willa Cather
08 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss the life and work of Willa Cather. As one of the greatest American novelists of the 20th century, Cather was gifted in con...
Episode 121: Ukrainian & Dissident Writers Tour
05 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, writers from Central and Eastern Europe stop by the AWM on the Ukrainian and Dissident Writers Tour, presented by The Continental Literary ...
Episode 120: Stuart N. Brotman
29 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Stuart N. Brotman and John Palfrey discuss Brotman’s new book The First Amendment Lives On, a collection of conversations with free speec...
Episode 119: Imani Perry
21 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Imani Perry, recent recipient of the 2022 National Book Award for nonfiction, discusses her book South to America: A Journey Below the Maso...
Episode 118: Fierce Reads Nonfiction Panel
14 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we present the Fierce Reads Nonfiction Panel, a discussion of the various forms of nonfiction writing with five authors who work in the gen...
Episode 117: Ross Gay
07 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling author Ross Gay discusses his new essay collection Inciting Joy. In these gorgeously written and timely pieces, Gay considers t...
Episode 116: Dhonielle Clayton & Jacqueline Woodson
31 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
To celebrate Halloween, this week’s episode is magical! Acclaimed authors Dhonielle Clayton and Jacqueline Woodson discuss Clayton’s recent middle...
Episode 9: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
25 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, co-hosts Jennifer and Zakiya discuss the life and work of American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, who won the 1939 Pulitzer Prize i...
Episode 115: Reyna Grande
24 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, acclaimed authors Reyna Grande and Juan Martinez discuss Grande’s life and writing, in particular her two most recent books: A Ballad of ...
Episode 114: Carell Augustus
17 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, photographer Carell Augustus discusses his new photography book Black Hollywood: Reimagining Iconic Movie Moments with journalist Arionne N...
Episode 23: Rudolfo Anaya
12 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Rudolfo Anaya. A writer powerfully attuned to the land, history, and people of his native New Me...
Episode 113: Joy Harjo and Marie Arana
10 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo and Literary Director of the Library of Congress Marie Arana explore the themes of their roots, their creativi...
Episode 112: Kelly Lytle Hernández
03 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, historian and author Kelly Lytle Hernández sits down with writer Michael Zapata to discuss her book Bad Mexicans: Race, Empire, and Revolu...
Episode 111: David W. Blight
26 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, historian and author David W. Blight talks with scholar Keidrick Roy about the work and legacy of Frederick Douglass. Blight edited the rec...
Episode 110: David Maraniss
19 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author David Maraniss discusses his new book Path Lit By Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe, the definitive biography of a great American at...
Episode 22: Oscar Hijuelos
14 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Oscar Hijuelos, who became the first Latino to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1990 for his nov...
Episode 109: Sara Paretsky
12 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling mystery novelist Sara Paretsky chats with Booklist editor Donna Seaman about Overboard, the latest book in Paretsky’s “V.I....
Episode 108: Andrea Beaty
29 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, beloved children’s book authors Andrea Beaty and Betsy Bird chat about Beaty’s career, her writing process, the publishing industry, an...
Episode 8: Nellie Bly
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, co-hosts Jennifer and Zakiya discuss the life and work of pioneering investigative journalist Nellie Bly with novelist Louisa Treger,...
Episode 107: Ingrid Michaelson & Bekah Brunstetter
22 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson and writer Bekah Brunstetter discuss the process of adapting The Notebook, the romance novel by Nichola...
Episode 106: Schele Williams
17 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author and Broadway director Schele Williams discusses her children’s picture book Your Legacy: A Bold Reclaiming of Our Enslaved History...
Episode 105: Kim Michele Richardson
08 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author Kim Michele Richardson discusses her new book The Book Woman’s Daughter with American Writers Museum Program Director Allison Sans...
Episode 21: Octavia E. Butler
02 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Octavia E. Butler. Butler was an acclaimed American writer who defied genre, though she is most ...
Episode 104: Kosoko Jackson
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, journalist and author Kosoko Jackson discusses his young adult novel Survive the Dome with writer and educator Jacoby Cochran. The Hate U G...
Episode 103: Maxine Hong Kingston
26 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, acclaimed writers Maxine Hong Kingston and Viet Thanh Nguyen discuss Kingston’s writing and legacy in light of the new collection of King...
Episode 102: Sudhir Venkatesh
18 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling author Sudhir Venkatesh discusses his new book, The Tomorrow Game: Rival Teenagers, Their Race for a Gun, and a Community Unite...
Episode 101: Aaron Sorkin
11 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On July 11th, 1960, Harper Lee’s iconic novel To Kill A Mockingbird was originally published. To celebrate the 62nd anniversary of this literary eve...
Episode 100: A Celebration Count Down!
04 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is a special week…it is our 100th episode! To celebrate, we’re counting down our top ten most listened-to podcasts from the past three years ...
Episode 20: Prince
01 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of the one and only Prince. The Purple One was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist...
Episode 99: Archie Bongiovanni
27 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we honor the 53rd anniversary of the Stonewall Riots with comic artist Archie Bongiovanni, who discusses their graphic novel The Stonewall ...
Episode 98: Vincent Tirado
20 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we are excited to release the first of many episodes recorded live during our American Writers Festival on May 15th, 2022, which featured m...
Episode 97: Aaron Sachs
13 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, AWM Program Director Allison Sansone chats with author and historian Aaron Sachs about his new book Up from the Depths: Herman Melville, Le...
Episode 96: Karl Marlantes
06 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author Karl Marlantes discusses his novel Deep River, which the Washington Post called, “an engrossing and commanding historical epic abo...
Episode 19: Nora Ephron
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Nora Ephron, one of the most popular, accomplished, and beloved writers in American journalism a...
Episode 95: Gene Scheer
30 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, opera librettist Gene Scheer discusses the process of transforming Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick into a critically acclaimed opera. He is j...
Episode 94: Douglas Conant and Amy Federman
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Fortune 500 CEO Douglas Conant and writer Amy Federman discuss their co-authored book The Blueprint: Six Practical Steps to Lift Your Leade...
Episode 7: Lorraine Hansberry
19 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode of Dead Writer Drama was recorded live at the American Writers Festival on May 15, 2022 with special guest Soyica Diggs Colbert, author o...
Episode 93: Who’s Black and Why?
09 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, editor Andrew S. Curran and biological anthropologist Nina G. Jablonski discuss Curran’s new book Who’s Black and Why?: A Hidden Chapte...
Episode 92: Jennifer Finney Boylan with Kathy Griffin
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, bestselling author Jennifer Finney Boylan discusses her memoir Good Boy: My Life in Seven Dogs with special guest Kathy Griffin. This conve...
Episode 18: Sylvia Plath
27 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Sylvia Plath, the poet, novelist, and short-story writer. Plath is perhaps best known for her pu...
Episode 91: Joan Osborne
25 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, 93XRT radio host Terri Hemmert chats with critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Joan Osborne about the music industry, songwriting, and he...
Episode 90: Katherine Schweit
18 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we chat with Katherine Schweit, the former head of the FBI’s active shooter program and author of the recent book Stop the Killing: How t...
Episode 89: Lolita in the Afterlife
11 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, AWM Program Director Allison Sansone chats with editor Jennifer Minton Quigley about her recent anthology Lolita in the Afterlife: On Beaut...
Episode 88: Elizabeth Berg
28 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, AWM Program Director Allison Sansone chats with bestselling author Elizabeth Berg about her recent memoir I’ll Be Seeing You, a beautiful...
Episode 17: Margaret Wise Brown
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Margaret Wise Brown, the children’s book author of classics such as Goodnight Moon and The Run...
Episode 87: Daniel Ellsberg
21 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Daniel Ellsberg, the man who released the Pentagon Papers, discusses his book The Doomsday Machine: Confessions of a Nuclear War Planner wi...
Episode 86: Deborah Blum
14 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Deborah Blum discusses her recent book The Poison Squad, which tells the dramatic true story of how food was ...
Episode 85: Sarah Parcak
07 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we talk about science writing! Anthropologist and author Sarah Parcak discusses her book Archaeology From Space: How the Future Shapes Our ...
Episode 84: Deborah Nelson Linck
28 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, AWM President Carey Cranston chats with writer and educator Deborah Nelson Linck, author of the forthcoming illustrated biography Pauli Mur...
Episode 83: Rebecca Hall
21 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, writer-director Rebecca Hall discusses her recent Netflix film Passing with Northwestern University professor Dr. Ivy Wilson. This conversa...
Episode 16: Toni Morrison
18 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Toni Morrison. A writer who needs no introduction, Toni Morrison is one of the most cherished Am...
Episode 82: Nancy Johnson
14 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, writers Nancy Johnson and Catherine Adel West discuss Johnson’s hit debut novel The Kindest Lie. This conversation originally took place ...
Episode 81: Hanif Abdurraqib & Ashley Evans
07 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, AWM Program Director Allison Sansone chats with author Hanif Abdurraqib and illustrator Ashley Evans about their new children’s book Sing...
Episode 80: Angela Terry
31 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week, author Angela Terry talks about her novel Charming Falls Apart with Olivia Bedi and Katy Mickelson, members of the Chicago Council of the A...
Episode 15: Hannah Arendt
26 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we’ll discuss the life and work of Hannah Arendt. Arendt is one of the most renowned political thinkers of the twentieth century, a...