Pulitzer Prize Winning Poet Stephen Dunn

Stephen Dunn, Pulitzer Prize winning poet, talks with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett about his latest volume, Pagan Virtues. (There are a few audio challenges, but keep listening. It's worth it.)

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(Broadcast date: Dec. 4, 2019)

Beau L'Amour & Robin Cook join Marrie Stone on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Louis L'Amour, father of the western and frontier novel, passed in 1988 leaving behind 89 novels, 14 short story collections, and mounds of unfinished manuscripts. His son, Beau L'Amour, continues his legacy by finishing many of his novels and short stories and adding notes, history, and backstory. He shares his latest, Lost Treasures Volume II, as well as his father's writing process, his relationship with Ray Bradbury, and more.

Robin Cook, father of the medical thriller genre, joins in the second half to share his latest novel, Genesis. During his time in the navy, and after completing his medical training, Robin came on the writing scene in the 1970s with the novel Coma. Now, 35 novels later, he still thrills readers with his uncanny sense of where medical technology is heading, the radical advances and attendant consequences we're making, and how his longstanding and beloved characters deal with them.

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(Broadcast date: December 18, 2019)

Tim O'Brien on Writers on Writing, KUCI

Tim O'Brien, National Book Award winning novelist and iconic author of The Things They Carried, joins Marrie Stone to talk about his latest—and last—book.

Dad's Maybe Book is at once a memoir, a love letter to his young sons, a meditation on war, a writing guide for writers, a history lesson, a literature lesson, and swan song to his fans. (Don't let the title or cover fool you . . . this book packs a meaty punch that extends well beyond fatherhood).

Tim shares his enduring struggles with writing, with memory, and with his own father.

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(Broadcast date: December 11, 2019)

THIS LAND author Christopher Ketcham on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Christopher Ketcham, author of the new nonfiction book, This Land: How Cowboys, Corruption, and Corruption are ruining the American West, talks with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett for the entire hour about the book that Outside magazines says, "...brings the fighting spirit and conservation vision of great writers like Edward Abbey, Rachel Carson, and Bernard DeVoto into the 21st century.” 

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(KUCI-FM broadcast date: Nov. 27, 2019)

You can reach Barbara at penonfire at earthlink dot net. Subscribe to the Writers on Writing podcast at iTunes and Stitcher.

Jeanne Blasberg on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Novelist Jeanne Blasberg joins Marrie Stone for the full hour to discuss her latest, The Nine. She shares how her work in finance and spreadsheets aids her writing, about Grub Street's Novel Generator, NaNoWriMo, the unique opportunities afforded by She Writes Press, finding your unique niche as writer, and much more.

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(Broadcast date: November 20, 2019)

Cathleen Schine on "Writers on Writing," KUCI-FM

Cathleen Schine, author of The Grammarians and 10 other novels, joins Marrie Stone for the full hour to talk about creativity, how writing grows harder over time, her love of words and language and dictionaries, why she felt inspired by the relationship between Ann Landers and Abigail Van Buren, and so much more.

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(Broadcast date: November 13, 2019)

Walter Mosley, with his new book Elements of Fiction, on KUCI-FM

Walter Mosley, author of the new book on writing, Elements of Fiction, and 40 other books, mostly novels, talks with Barbara about plotting (or not), rewriting, writing for TV, MFA programs, and much more.

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(Broadcast date: Nov. 6, 2019)

Tom Perrotta Discusses Sex and Mrs. Fletcher on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM in Irvine, CA

Tom Perrotta, author of Mrs. Fletcher, joins Marrie for the entire hour to talk about sex in the new millennium, whether technology can affect desire, how male writers can effectively access the female point of view, writing through the various stages of life, humor, and much more.

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(Broadcast date: October 11, 2017)

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed on this program do not reflect those of KUCI, its management, or the UC Board of Regents. For more information on this talk show, or other talk shows, visit our website at www.kuci.org. 

Aris Janigian and Robert Kerbeck on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Novelist Aris Janigian joins Marrie Stone to talk about the latest novel in his "Waiting" trilogy, Waiting for Sophia at Shutters by the Beach. A challenging and thought-provoking novel about the #metoo movement and sexual harassment on college campuses, Aris discusses the many trials and difficulties he encountered while writing it (including a stolen manuscript). He also talks about being the author of six novels (and spending significant time on the LA Times bestseller list), all without an agent. Aris will be appearing at Book Soup in December to launch the book. More information about the event can be found online as the date approaches.

In the second half, Robert Kerbeck joins to discuss Malibu Burning: The Real Story Behind LA's Most Devastating Wildfire. Robert and his wife successfully saved their home from the Woolsey fire last year. Their neighbors were not so lucky. Robert conducted extensive interviews and organized the book as a series of compelling vignettes, highlighting the many tragic, shocking, and poignant stories that emerged from this devastating fire. He shares insights about what homeowners can do to be prepared, and the surprising aftermath of the fire's destruction. Check out Robert's website for information about his many appearances scheduled in and around Los Angeles.

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(Broadcast date: October 30, 2019)

Noir crime writer Steph Cha, Your House Will Pay

Steph Cha, author of Your House Will Pay, her fourth novel (first stand-alone), was my guest for the entire hour, talking about writing crime fiction, specifically noir, finding your voice through reviewing on Yelp, and much more.

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(Broadcast date: Oct. 23, 2019)

Kate Braverman, from the archives of Writers on Writing

I knew Kate a few ways: through my show where she was a guest three times. The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, where she sat on my panel. And a writing project for which she generously wrote an essay on spec (not yet unpublished). She wrote one of my favorite short stories: "Tall Tales from the Mekong Delta." It's in the fantastic collection, Squandering the Blue, as well as widely anthologized and googleable.

Here are the shows:

  Martin J. Smith, co-author of Oops : 20 Life Lessons from the Fiascoes That Shaped America, and Kate Braverman, author of Frantic Transmissions to and from Los Angeles.

Download audio. The show begins at 24:30.
(Broadcast date: Mar. 16 2006)


Kate Braverman, author of The Incantation of Frida K.
(This one you have to click on her name to access audio.)
(Broadcast date: May 22, 2003)


Kate Braverman, author of Lithium for Medea.
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(Broadcast date: Sep 18, 2002)

Elizabeth Strout and Lise Funderburg on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Elizabeth Strout returns with Olive, Again, a newly released collection that picks up where Olive Kitteridge left off. Elizabeth joins Marrie Stone to talk about how Olive reasserted herself, how the world has changed around her, and how Elizabeth managed to leave a porous space around Olive (and her other characters) so readers might insert their own experiences into the narrative.

In the second half, Lise Funderburg shares her anthology, Apple, Tree: Writers on their Parents. She talks bout the relationship middle-aged adults have with their parent's legacies, how she chose this special crop of authors, and gives a mini-class on the essay form and what makes an essay work.

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(Broadcast date: October 16, 2019)

Poet Grant Hier on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM at UC-Irvine

Poet Grant Hier, professor at Laguna College of Art and Design, and author of Similitude, The Difference Between, and co-author with John Brantingham of California Continuum, joins Barbara DeMarco-Barrett for what turned out to be a masters' class in writing poetry. You don't have to be a poet or have any interest in writing poetry, to get something out of this show. And no matter what you write, reading poetry will only make you a better writer.

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(Broadcast date: Oct. 9, 2019)

Ann Patchett on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Bestselling novelist Ann Patchett joins Marrie Stone for the full hour to discuss her latest book, The Dutch House. She talks about how the writing of this novel differed from her others, and how many times she had to rewrite and revise the manuscript. She shares the one writer who can teach you everything you need to know about writing fiction, and the essay she penned that will answer all your writing related questions.

Discover how being a bookstore owner has changed her approach to writing, her feelings about cultural appropriation, separating good art from bad artists, the colorful story behind the book's cover, and much more.

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(Broadcast date: October 2, 2019)

Mariana Lin on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Meet the woman who lives inside your iPhone.

Writer and poet Mariana Lin was recruited by Apple to write the personality for Siri, and went on to write for other artificially intelligent personalities, like Sophia. This week's show explores the thinking behind creating a personality and "voice" for machines—from their humor to their backstories. Mariana was tasked with considering machines living in other cultures, and how they should respond to racist, sexually charged, or other offensive speech. And she was challenged to imbue them with whimsy, nuance, and complexity.

Hear about how Mariana’s love of language, fiction, and poetry is influencing a new cast of characters living in our world.

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(Broadcast date: September 18, 2019)

Jorjeana Marie and Helen Phillips on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Actor, audiobook narrator, and writer Jorjeana Marie joins Barbara DeMarco-Barrett to talk about Improv for Writers. In the second half, novelist Helen Phillips comes on to talk about The Need, published by Simon and Schuster. Phillips discusses "emotional" revision while Marie talks about how improv is a tool writers can employ for everything from getting past the blank page to figuring out plot and structure.

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(Broadcast date: Sept. 11, 2019)

Christy Lefteri & Susan Straight on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Novelist Christy Lefteri joins Marrie Stone to talk about her latest book, The Beekeeper of Aleppo. She talks about her time as a UNICEF volunteer and growing up as a child of two refugees and how these events informed the novel. She discusses how words and phrases trigger her memories, and how she used that experience as an effective flashback device in the book, and much more.

In the second half, Susan Straight shares her memoir, In the Country of Women. She talks about her family's secret language, the effective thread of The Odyssey throughout the book, and her enduring relationship with a very special possum.

Download audio.  (Broadcast date: September 4, 2019)

Short Story Writers Peter Orner & Ben Marcus on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

Peter Orner joins Marrie Stone to talk about his latest collection, Maggie Brown & Others. He discusses the power of the short story form, and how he attempted to create the sensation of walking down a city sidewalk and staring up into all the lit apartment windows to get a sense of story. He talks about the importance of place, and leaving it. And much more.

In the second half, Ben Marcus shares his collection, Notes From the Fog. Ben talks about the story around which the rest of the collection formed, how Elon Musk's hatred of food inspired him, and more.

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(Broadcast date: August 21, 2019)

Novelists T. Jefferson Parker & Sigrid Nunez

T. Jefferson Parker, author of The Last Good Guy, and Sigrid Nunez, author of Mitz: The Marmoset of Bloomsbury, join Barbara DeMarco-Barrett to discuss the art, craft, and business of writing on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM, 88.9 fm.

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(Broadcast date: August 28, 2019)

Archive: writersonwriting.blogspot.com

Rick Moody and Elissa Altman on Writers on Writing, KUCI-FM

In a show dedicated to memoir, Rick Moody joins Marrie Stone to talk about his latest book, The Long Accomplishment: A Memoir of Hope and Struggle in Matrimony. He shares how he wrote through a difficult life experience, feeding his creative energy, and more.

In the second half, Elissa Altman joins to talk about Motherland: A Memoir of Love, Loathing and Longing. She discusses the intricate connection between food and mothering, writing critically about a loved one who is still alive, and what the writing—and reading aloud—of the book taught her about her own story.


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(Broadcast date: August 14, 2019)