The Common Magazine
Episodes
Lauren Groff, "Brawler: Stories" (Riverhead, 2026)
27 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Acclaimed TC contributor Lauren Groff speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her new story collection, Brawler, out this month from Riverhead,...
Cush Rodríguez Moz “Future Remains” The Common Magazine (Fall, 2025)
30 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Cush Rodríguez Moz speaks to Emily Everett about his essay “Future Remains: The Mysterious Allure of a Town in Ruins,” which appears in The Comm...
Jennifer Acker “On 15 Years of The Common” (The Common, Fall 2025)
19 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jennifer Acker, founder and editor in chief of The Common, speaks to Emily Everett about her essay “On 15 Years of The Common,” which appears i...
Sarah Smarsh, "Bone of the Bone: Essays on America from a Daughter of the Working Class" (Scribner, 2024)
25 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
National Book Award finalist Sarah Smarsh speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her career writing memoir, essays, and journalism centered on ...
Lily Lloyd Burkhalter, "Raffia Memory," The Common Magazine (Spring, 2025)
29 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Lily Lloyd Burkhalter speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Raffia Memory,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. Lily...
Mariah Rigg, "Target Island," The Common (Spring, 2025)
24 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mariah Rigg speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “Target Island,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. “Target Isl...
Pria Anand "The Elephant's Child" The Common Magazine (Spring, 2025)
27 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Pria Anand speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “The Elephant’s Child,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. The p...
Lucas Schaefer, "Tuesday" The Common Magazine (Spring, 2025)
25 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Lucas Schaefer speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Tuesday,” which appears in The Common’s brand new spring issue. “Tue...
Michael David Lukas, "More to the Story," The Common Magazine (Fall, 2025)
28 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Michael David Lukas speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his essay “More to the Story,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. Mic...
Gray Davidson Carroll, "Silent Spring," The Common magazine
28 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Poet Gray Davidson Carroll speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about their poem “Silent Spring,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue....
Julia Sanches, "The Advice," The Common magazine
31 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Translator Julia Sanches speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about translating “The Advice,” a story by Irene Pujadas, which appears in The C...
Megan Tennant, "Little Women," The Common magazine
29 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Megan Tennant speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “Little Women,” which appears in The Common’s brand new fall issue. Mega...
Kevin Dean, "Patron Saints" The Common Magazine
27 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin Dean speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Patron Saints,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue. Kevin talks...
Maria de Caldas Antão, "My Freedom," The Common Magazine
30 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Maria de Caldas Antão speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her poem “ My Freedom,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue...
A. J. Rodriguez, "Papel Picado," The Common Magazine (2024)
26 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A. J. Rodriguez speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Papel Picado,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue. A.J....
Mayada Ibrahim (trans.), “Symphony of the South," The Common magazine (2024)
31 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Mayada Ibrahim speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her translation of “Symphony of the South,” a short story by Tahir Annour that appear...
Amanda Mei Kim, "California Obscura," The Common magazine (2023)
19 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Amanda Mei Kim speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “California Obscura,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue, ...
Nayereh Doosti, “The Little One” The Common magazine (Nov, 2023)
01 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Nayereh Doosti speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “The Little One,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue. Naye...
Leo Ríos, "Lencho," The Common magazine (2023)
26 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Leo Ríos speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Lencho,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue, in a portfolio fr...
Vix Gutierrez, "Don’t Step Off the Path" (The Common magazine, 2023)
29 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Vix Gutierrez speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Don’t Step Off the Path,” which appears in The Common’s most recent i...
Christopher Spaide, "Closure?" The Common Magazine (May 2023)
27 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Christopher Spaide speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem “Closure?,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue. Chris t...
Jake Lancaster, “Grace’s Folly," The Common Magazine (2023)
29 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jake Lancaster speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Grace’s Folly,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue. Jak...
Ala Fox, "Ramadan in Saint-Denis" (The Common Magazine, Issue 25)
25 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ala Fox speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Ramadan in Saint-Denis,” which appears in The Common’s most recent issue. Ala...
Matt Donovan, "Guy with a Gun" The Common Magazine (Fall, 2023)
21 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Matt Donovan speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his prose poem “Guy with a Gun,” which appeared in The Common’s fall issue. Matt ta...
Gerardo Sámano Córdova, "Iceberg, Mine" The Common magazine (Fall, 2022)
16 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Gerardo Sámano Córdova speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Iceberg, Mine,” which appears in The Common’s fall 2022 issu...
Robin Lee Carlson, "Reading the Ashes," The Common Magazine (Fall, 2022)
26 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Robin Lee Carlson speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Reading the Ashes,” which appears in The Common’s fall 2022 issue. ...
Sindya Bhanoo, “Tsunami Bride” The Common magazine (Fall, 2022)
18 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sindya Bhanoo speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “Tsunami Bride,” which appears in The Common’s new fall issue. Sindya ta...
Meera Nair, "The Desire Tree," The Common magazine (Fall, 2022)
04 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Meera Nair speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “The Desire Tree,” which appears in The Common’s new fall issue. Meera talk...
Ellen Doré Watson, “In Which Raging Weather is a Gift," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
14 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ellen Doré Watson speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her poem “In Which Raging Weather is a Gift,” which appears in The Common’s s...
Jane Satterfield, "Letter to Emily Brontë," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
30 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jane Satterfield speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her poem “Letter to Emily Brontë,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue....
Liesl Schwabe, "The Marching Bands of Mahatma Gandhi Road," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
19 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Liesl Schwabe speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “The Marching Bands of Mahatma Gandhi Road,” which appears in The Common’...
Ben Stroud, “Three Omens of Federico da Montefeltro," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
05 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ben Stroud speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Three Omens of Federico da Montefeltro,” which appears in The Common’s spr...
Anu Kumar, “The Woman in the Well," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
22 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Anu Kumar speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “The Woman in the Well,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. Anu tal...
Suhail Matar, "Granada," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
08 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Palestinian writer Suhail Matar speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Granada,” translated by Amika Fendi. The story appears in...
Mark Kyungsoo Bias, "Adoption Day," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
24 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Mark Kyungsoo Bias speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem “Adoption Day,” which appears in The Common’s new spring issue. Mark...
Adrienne G. Perry, "Flashé Sur Moi," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
10 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Adrienne G. Perry speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Flashé Sur Moi,” which appears in The Common’s new spring issue. A...
Cheryl Collins Isaac, "Spin," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
27 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Cheryl Collins Isaac speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “Spin,” which appears in The Common’s new spring issue. “Spin”...
Nathan Jordan Poole, "Idlewild," The Common magazine (Spring, 2022)
13 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nathan Jordan Poole speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Idlewild,” which appears in The Common’s new spring issue. In thi...
Romeo Oriogun, "The Sea Dreams of Us," Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
22 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Romeo Oriogun speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem “The Sea Dreams of Us,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. In this...
Shubha Sunder, “A Very Full Day” The Common magazine (Fall 2021)
25 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Shubha Sunder speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “A Very Full Day,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. In this conve...
Tom Sleigh, “Last Cigarette” and “Apology to My Daughter,” The Common magazine (Fall 2021)
11 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Tom Sleigh speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poems “Last Cigarette” and “Apology to My Daughter,” which appear in The Common...
Julia Cooke, “Past and Future on Rapa Nui," The Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
25 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Julia Cooke speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Past and Future on Rapa Nui,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. In...
Mona Kareem, "Mapping Exile," The Common magazine (Fall 2021)
11 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Mona Kareem speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Mapping Exile: A Writer’s Story of Growing Up Stateless in Post-Gulf War Kuw...
Steven Tagle, “Notes on Looking Back” The Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
28 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Steven Tagle speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his essay “Notes on Looking Back,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. Steven t...
Noor Naga, “Who Writes the Arabian Gulf?” The Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
14 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Noor Naga speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about co-editing The Common’s first-of-its-kind portfolio of writing from the Arabian Gulf, which ...
Mary O’Donoghue, "Safety Advice for Staying Indoors” Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
17 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Mary O’Donoghue speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “Safety Advice for Staying Indoors,” which appears in The Common’s fal...
Priyanka Sacheti, “Oman is Mars: An Alien All Along” The Common magazine (Fall 2021)
03 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Priyanka Sacheti speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Oman is Mars: An Alien All Along,” which appears in a portfolio of writi...
Carin Clevidence, “Ghosts of the Southern Ocean” The Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
19 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Carin Clevidence speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Ghosts of the Southern Ocean,” which appears in The Common’s fall i...
Julian Zabalbeascoa, "Igerilaria" The Common magazine (Fall, 2021)
30 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Julian Zabalbeascoa speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Igerilara,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. In this c...
Nariman Youssef, "Arabic Translations from Morocco" (The Common magazine, Spring, 2021)
22 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Nariman Youssef speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her work translating three short stories from Arabic for The Common’s portfolio of f...
Ricardo Wilson, "nigrescence" (The Common magazine, Spring, 2021)
08 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ricardo Wilson speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem, “nigrescence,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this conve...
Celeste Mohammed, “Home” The Common magazine (Spring, 2021)
24 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Celeste Mohammed speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “Home,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this convers...
Jose Hernandez Diaz, “Ode to a California Neck Tattoo” The Common magazine (Spring 2021)
27 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jose Hernandez Diaz speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem “Ode to a California Neck Tattoo,” which appears in The Common’s s...
Emma Sloley, “The Cassandras” The Common magazine (Spring 2021)
13 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Emma Sloley speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “The Cassandras,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this co...
Talia Lakshmi Kolluri, "The Good Donkey" The Common magazine (Spring, 2021)
30 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Talia Lakshmi Kolluri speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “The Good Donkey,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. ...
Ravi Shankar, “The Five-Room Box” The Common magazine (Spring, 2021)
16 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ravi Shankar speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his essay “The Five-Room Box,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In thi...
Wyatt Townley, “Instructions for the Endgame" The Common magazine (Spring, 2021)
02 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Wyatt Townley speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her poem “Instructions for the Endgame,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue....
Silvia Spring, “The Home Front” The Common magazine (Fall, 2020)
18 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Silvia Spring speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her debut short story “The Home Front,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue....
KC Trommer, “The Couple,” The Common magazine (Fall, 2020)
04 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
KC Trommer speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her poem “The Couple,” which appears in The Common’s fall issue. In this conversation, ...
Jennifer Jean, “California” The Common magazine (Fall 2020)
21 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jennifer Jean speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her poem “California,” which appears on The Common online, in a special portfolio of w...
Deborah Lindsay Williams, “‘You Like to Have Some Cup of Tea?’ and Other Questions About Complicity and Place” (The Common, Fall 2020)
07 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Deborah Lindsay Williams speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her “‘You Like to Have Some Cup of Tea?’ and Other Questions About Compl...
Fátima Policarpo, "Her Borders Become Her" (The Common 20, 2020)
23 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Fátima Policarpo speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her essay “Her Borders Become Her,” which appears in Issue 20 of The Common maga...
Edgar Garbelotto, "A Fourteen-Hour Lesson in Theosophy,” The Common magazine (Fall 2020)
09 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Writer and translator Edgar Garbelotto speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his short story “A Fourteen-Hour Lesson in Theosophy,” which ...
Casey Walker, “Vigilância,” The Common magazine (Fall, 2020)
26 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Casey Walker speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his short story “Vigilância,” which appears in Issue 20 of The Common magazine. In...
Katherine Vaz “The Treasure Hunt of August Dias,” The Common magazine (Fall, 2020)
12 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine Vaz speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her short story “The Treasure Hunt of August Dias,” which appears in Issue 20 of The...
Bina Shah, "Weeds and Flowers" (Spring, 2020)
26 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Bina Shah speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her short story “Weeds and Flowers,” which appears in Issue 19 of The Common magazine. ...
Jethro Soutar, "Translations from Portuguese" (Fall 2020)
12 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Translator Jethro Soutar speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about three pieces he translated from Portuguese for Issue 20 of The Common magazine....
Tanya Coke, "Brother Love," The Common Magazine (Spring 2020)
01 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Tanya Coke is a lawyer, writer, and philanthropy executive at the Ford Foundation. She speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about “Brother Love,”...
Elisabeth Jaquette, "Stories from Sudan in Translation," The Common magazine (Spring, 2020)
15 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Translator Elisabeth Jaquette speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about four stories she translated from Arabic for Issue 19 of The Common magazin...
Omer Friedlander, “Operation Tamar," The Common magazine (Spring, 2020)
31 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Writer Omer Friedlander speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Operation Tamar,” which appears in Issue 19 of The Common magaz...
Tara Skurtu, "Offering," The Common magazine (Spring, 2020)
18 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Tara Skurtu is an American poet and writer, writing coach, and public speaker. She speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about “Offering,” her p...
David Moloney, “Counsel,” The Common magazine (Spring, 2020)
04 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Writer David Moloney speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Counsel,” which appears in Issue 19 of The Common magazine. “Couns...