
The Creative Nonfiction Podcast with Brendan O'Meara
The Creative Nonfiction Podcast with Brendan O'Meara is a weekly podcast that showcases leaders in narrative journalism, essay, memoir, documentary film, radio and podcasts about the art and craft of telling true stories. Follow the show @creativenonfictionpodcast on Instagram and Threads and visit patreon.com/cnfpod to support!
Latest episodes

Nov 22, 2024 • 1h
Episode 439: Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Paul Peart-Smith Bring a Graphic Interpretation of "An Indigenous People's History of the United States" to Life
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Paul Peart-Smith talk about how and why graphic interpretations are such a powerful vector for storytelling. Roxanne's An Indigenous People's History of the United States is a must-read and Paul's rendering is the perfect gateway in.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Nov 15, 2024 • 1h 7min
Episode 438: How It's All Connected with Taiyon J. Coleman
Taiyon J. Coleman a professor and the author of Traveling without Moving: Essays from a Black Woman Trying to Survive in America (Univ. of Minnesota Press).Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Nov 8, 2024 • 40min
Episode 437: Much Ado About Fact-Checking with Wudan Yan
Wudan Yan (@wudanyan) is a freelancer writer and founder of Factual, a one-of-a-kind agency committed to fact-checking.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Nov 1, 2024 • 1h 9min
Episode 436: Mira Ptacin and the Story of How One Town Drove Out a Nazi
Mira Ptacin (@miramptacin) is a writer and journalist who story, The Crash of the Hammer, ran in The Atavist Magazine. She's also the author of Poor Your Soul and The In-Betweens. Visit magazine.atavist.com to read her story about how a small town in Maine drove out a Neo-Nazi.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Oct 25, 2024 • 45min
Episode 435: Seth Godin Travels at the Speed of Trust in 'This is Strategy'
Seth Godin is the best-selling author of more than twenty books and his latest is This is Strategy: Make Better Plans.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Oct 18, 2024 • 45min
Episode 434: Mirin Fader on Notebooks, Finding the Breakthrough, Biography, and "Dream"
Mirin Fader is a staff writer for The Ringer and the author of Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon.The book chronicles the personal and professional transformation of a transformational figure in wonderful, lucid detail.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Oct 11, 2024 • 1h
Episode 433: The Perils of Playing it Safe with Chase Jarvis
Chase Jarvis is the author of Never Play it Safe: A Practical Guide to Freedom, Creativity, and a Life You Love (Harper Business).Chase was writing a completely different book, was almost done with it, then scrapped it altogether to write what became Never Play it Safe in, oh, about two months. We talk about intuition, why volume/quantity matters, how success leaves clues, and the secret hero of the book.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Oct 4, 2024 • 57min
Episode 432: Betsy Golden Kellem, Scholar of the Unusual, Closet Historian, Atavist Writer
Betsy Golden Kellem (@bgkellem on IG) is a lawyer and historian whose "City on Fire" appears in The Atavist Magazine and chronicles a conspiracy in 1864 by northern Confederate sympathizers to burn Manhattan to the ground.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Sep 27, 2024 • 60min
Episode 431: Sean Enfield, Author of 'Holy American Burnout' Hates the Word Burnout
Sean Enfield (@seanseanclan on IG) is an essayist, education, gardener, bassist, and author of the collection Holy American Burnout (Split/Lip Press).Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod

Sep 20, 2024 • 27min
Episode 430: Louisa Thomas Knows How to End a Story
Louisa Thomas is a staff writer for The New Yorker and the author Louisa: The Extraordinary Life of Mrs. Adams and Mind and Matter.We talk about a profile she wrote on Nikola Jokic as well as her incredible knack for a great kicker.Newsletter: Rage Against the AlgorithmShow notes: brendanomeara.comSupport: Patreon.com/cnfpod