Memoir Nation
Brooke Warner and Grant Faulkner
Memoir Nation: Weekly Inspiration for Writers is an extension of the Memoir Nation community hosted by Brooke Warner and Grant Faulkner, two friends and colleagues who bring a community-minded sensibility to the writing journey. Originally launched as Write-minded in 2018, this is a weekly writing podcast that focuses on memoir and personal writing, as well as industry trends and tips and resources for writers and authors. Memoir Nation features a segment called Substackin’ at the end of each episode to talk about topics, ideas, trends, and writerly inspirations that Brooke and Grant are tracking in their weekly Substacks (Writerly Things and Intimations). Brooke and Grant bring to this weekly podcast their deeply held belief that everyone is a writer, and everyone’s story matters. Discover more about Memoir Nation at memoirnation.com.
Episodes
Mentioned books
16 snips
May 15, 2023 • 45min
The Mystery Is the Clarity, featuring Charif Shanahan
If you’re a longtime listener, you know Write-minded loves a good show on the mystery, on the magic, on the questions. And that’s because so much of the inspiration that propels us forward in our writing journeys is centered here, in the unexplainable that writers wrangle with, using language to make sense (and sometimes just mirror) the human experience. This conversation goes straight into the heart of the magic, stemming from guest Charif Shanahan’s assertion that the mystery is the clarity. Tune in to hear more about what that means to him—and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 8, 2023 • 38min
Pushing Boundaries in Book Publishing, featuring Joe Biel
Resist, push back, go your own way! These are themes of today’s show as we talk about book publishing with a publisher, Joe Biel, who’s doing things a lot differently from your average indie publisher. Biel shares why Microcosm Publishing stopped selling on Amazon and why that’s not as scary as it may sound. Microcosm was a few years ahead of its time, and now the world is catching up in time for Biel to revel in its well-earned success. For this episode, we invite listeners to check out Microcosm’s software to support other publishers to accomplish what they have at WorkingLit.com, and also to purchase How to Resist Amazon and Why here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 1, 2023 • 37min
Writing with Raw Honesty about Family, featuring Rebecca Carroll
When it comes to writing about family, in memoir or fiction, writers must consider the ramifications. To write honestly, writers must know what’s at stake, and be ready. This week’s guest, Rebecca Carroll, shares with Write-minded her own experience with family fallout, and subjects ranging from her readership, to her literary heroine Toni Morrison, to her thoughts on trans-racial adoption. There’s a lot to unpack this week, from a guest who sets the gold standard for radical honesty on the page. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
9 snips
Apr 24, 2023 • 46min
Dollars and Cents—the Money Episode, featuring Rachael Herron
If you’ve been taught never to talk about money, or if the idea of sharing your earnings publicly makes you uncomfortable, this is a must-listen episode because we’re pulling back the curtain on author earnings and disclosing dollar amounts. Guest Rachael Herron walks us through why she started talking about how much she makes as an author—and tells how much she earned last year and from what streams of income. Grant and Brooke jump on the bandwagon, too, and share expenses (Brooke) and earnings (Grant). This week’s show shines a light on money—and encourages authors everywhere to be more transparent, and especially never to apologize about talking about money. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 17, 2023 • 42min
On Pioneering and Why It Matters, featuring Donna Hill
This episode honors a pioneer of a genre with guest Donna Hill, who pioneered a genre and hasn’t looked back. With more than 100 published books to her credit, Hill is a force. This episode covers the stamina it takes to publish so prolifically, a bit of history about what the publishing industry was like way back when in the early 90s, especially for a Black romance novelist who wasn’t seeing the books she was writing represented—anywhere, and much more. Hill is a generous guest who’s truly been around the block, so her tips and story are not to be missed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 10, 2023 • 36min
Executing an Ambitious Book Project, featuring Jinwoo Chong
This week’s episode features a bright new star in the literary universe, Jinwoo Chong, whose debut novel, Flux, was also his masters’ thesis. Brooke and Grant loved the book—and the subject of conversation in this week’s show is wide-ranging: what does it mean to execute an ambitious project? How does future dystopia meet ’80s nostalgia make for a great book? And what are our favorite time travel books? Tune in for an ambitious interview that covers lots of ground, necessarily so given the author who set its baseline. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Apr 3, 2023 • 38min
The Themed Poetry Collection, featuring Heather Bourbeau
This week Write-minded rings in National Poetry Month with guest Heather Bourbeau in a conversation about poetry, working with themes, and collaborations. Grant shares what he’s planning to do this month to celebrate National Poetry Month, and this episode invites you to think about how poetry informs your writing, and ways to invite it in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
4 snips
Mar 27, 2023 • 35min
The Literature of Longing, featuring Madelaine Lucas
Longing is a subject, topic, theme, and obsession of countless stories that have shaped our literary landscape. Grant and Brooke take a good hard look at longing this week and hold it up against its companion emotion, desire, and consider some of the most enduring narratives of longing we know. Guest Madelaine Lucas shares her take on the prism of longing that shines through her debut novel, Thirst for Salt, and opens up this conversation for all of us to consider how the ache of longing may inform our stories and our characters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 20, 2023 • 41min
The Self-improvement Memoir, featuring Peggy Orenstein
Peggy Orenstein joins Brooke and Grant this week to talk about a number of ideas at the center of her newest memoir, Unraveling. We cover sheep shearing, the fast fashion industry, the crafts(wo)manship that came out of Covid, and taking the time to learn new things. This episode covers how books are often an adventure, and how writing leads to exploration and discovery. And we just happen to have a guest who’s a master at this style of storytelling, so listeners are in for a treat! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mar 13, 2023 • 44min
Mining Tension in Fiction, featuring Gish Jen
Building tension in stories is part of writing good fiction writing, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to do—and it also requires writers to be conscious of the tensions they’re trying to mine. In this week’s show, tension is at the forefront, as Brooke and Grant explore with storytelling master Gish Jen how she thinks about tension, what life experiences she brings to her fiction as a member of the Chinese diaspora and daughter of immigrants, and so much more. We’re talking about short stories and celebrating Jen’s latest collection, Thank You, Mr. Nixon, and thinking more broadly about the way tension raises the stakes when it comes to good story. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
