From debut authors to Pulitzer Prize winners, Writers on Writing tackles a little of everything — novels, short stories, memoir, poetry, and more, as well as interviews with agents and publishers.

Unlike other shows dedicated to discussing books, we focus on the art, craft, and business of writing. Writers appreciate the opportunity to talk about the artistic elements of their job — the thousands of decisions that must be made to produce a manuscript. There’s no aspect of craft, creativity, and publishing we don’t explore.

We’ve hosted well over 1,500 authors on the show including Elizabeth Strout, S.A. Cosby, Ann Patchett, Amor Towles, and George Saunders. Expert advice from some of the industry’s top writers allows us to offer a show that’s been called “your own personal MFA program” (with no financial strain).

Host: Barbara DeMarco-Barrett
Host: Marrie Stone

Music and sound editing by Travis Barrett

Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, Stitcher, Google, or your favorite podcast app.

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EPISODES

(2001 - present)

Barbara DeMarco-Barrett 12/13/16 Barbara DeMarco-Barrett 12/13/16

Norman Ollestad with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett

Norman Ollestad, author of French Girl with Mother, is Barbara's featured guest for the entire hour. Norman talks about writing fiction from life, the best training for a writer, writing tight, and more.

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(Broadcast date: Dec. 7, 2016)

Barbara DeMarco-Barrett 10/15/16 Barbara DeMarco-Barrett 10/15/16

Martin J. Smith and Aris Janigian talk with Barbara DeMarco-Barrett about the art, craft, and business of writing

Martin J. Smith, author of Combustion, and Aris Janigian, author of Waiting for Lipchitz at Chateau Marmont talk with Barbara about plotting (or not), creating suspense, publishing with a small press, and more.

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(Broadcast date: October 12, 2016)

Nicole Nelson 12/19/15 Nicole Nelson 12/19/15

Bruce Bauman and Sanderia Faye with Nicole Nelson

Novelist Bruce Bauman, author of Broken Sleep joins Nicole Nelson to talk about writing dialogue, balancing tragedy with humor, and the good that can come of letting your characters take control.

In the second half, debut novelist Sanderia Faye, author of Mourner's Bench talks about finding the voice for her story in the form of eight-year-old Sarah, the surprises she found when researching the Civil Rights era history of her home town in Arkansas, and the importance of having confidence and especially to, as her teachers advised her along the way, "keep writing."

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(Broadcast date: December 16, 2015)

Nicole Nelson 11/7/15 Nicole Nelson 11/7/15

Lauren Groff and Garth Risk Hallberg on Writers on Writing

Lauren Groff, author of the National Book Award-nominated novel, Fates and Furies, talks to Nicole Nelson about how she came to realize she was writing one book, and not two, about the tale of a marriage. She also discusses her approach to tackling plot, and the importance of staying with your work. In the second half, debut novelist Garth Risk Hallberg, author of City on Fire, talks about being drawn to the Victorian novel, the art of bringing chapters to a close, and how when something isn't working it means that either you shouldn't do it, or you should do more of it.

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(Broadcast date: November 4, 2015)