Authors Talk

Podcasts that feature past SR contributors discussing their work or writing life.

Authors Talk: Jen Knox

Superstition Review

Jen KnoxToday we are pleased to feature Jen Knox as our Authors Talk series contributor. Jen talks about her contributions to Superstition Review and what she, as a reader, looks for in a strong short story. Jen also says that the why and how she writes ultimately boils down to character and her desire to understand the human condition from different purviews. She ends her talk by offering advice to burgeoning fiction writers.

“Disengaged” by Jen Knox can be read in Issue 4 of Superstition Review, as well as “West on N Road” in Issue 14.

Authors Talk: Jo Scott-Coe

Superstition Review

Jo Scott-CoeToday we are excited to feature author Jo Scott-Coe as our Authors Talk series contributor.

Jo discusses how her essay, “The Other Spencer Girl,” led her to write her recently published book, MASS: A Sniper, a Father, and a Priest. About “The Other Spencer Girl,” she notes on the visual contrasts between the lives of Cleveland Elementary School shooter, Brenda Spencer, and Princess of Wales, Diana Spencer. About MASS: A Sniper, a Father, and a Priest, she talks about UT shooter, Charles Whitman, and how his intense catholic upbringing has not been fully explored. Jo ends her talk by illuminating the question that arises from both of her mentioned works: “What if there is something we need to learn, something really awful that is hiding in plain sight, in ourselves, in the places we think we are safe, in the places we are comfortable and self-satisfied either collectively or alone?”

“The Other Spencer Girl” can be read in Issue 14 of Superstition Review. MASS: A Sniper, a Father, and a Priest can be purchased from Pelekinesis now.

Authors Talk: Jonathan Duckworth

Superstition Review

Jonathan DuckworthToday we are pleased to feature Jonathan Duckworth as our Authors Talk series contributor. In this interview by fellow writer Jaimie Eubanks, Jonathan discusses his story, “On Clear Days I Can See Your Aura.”

Jonathan tells us how he decides what a story is about and how his spontaneous writing process is guided mostly by what a story calls for. Though his approach to writing is without “method,” Jonathan finds that a short story assembles itself. He concludes the podcast by discussing the differences between writing a novel and a short story.

“On Clear Days I Can See Your Aura” can be read in Issue 20 of Superstition Review.

Authors Talk: Johannah Racz Knudson

Superstition Review

Johannah Racz KnudsonToday we are pleased to feature poet Johannah Racz Knudson as our Authors Talk series contributor.

Johannah speaks about her poem, “Cosmology: Four Score,” and her current main creative project titled Transylvania Blue. She discusses Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and how the voice of authority of the speech has benefited her poem. After discussing the background of the poem, Johannah moves on to her current project, a biography centered around the life of her great uncle who escaped from the Nazis and eventually immigrated to Canada. She concludes her podcast by emphasizing the importance of sharing his story, which is her own rich yet painful inheritance.

To know more about Transylvania Blue visit Johannah’s blog here.

“Cosmology: Four Score” can be read in Issue 20 of Superstition Review.

Authors Talk: C.A. Schaefer

Superstition Review

C.A. SchaeferToday we are pleased to feature C.A. Schaefer as our Authors Talk series contributor.

C.A. Schaefer discusses the origin of her short story “Raw Materials.” She parallels performed magic and fiction, and how she serves as both the magician and assistant of her own work. She then talks about research being at the heart of her writing and the importance of science, philosophy, history, and art in the fantastic. She ends her talk by discussing the next step for her writing; one of endless possibility.

C.A. Schaefer’s short story, “Raw Materials,” can be read in Issue 20 of Superstition Review.

Authors Talk: Mary Morris

Superstition Review

Mary MorrisToday we are pleased to feature poet Mary Morris as our Authors Talk series contributor. Mary discusses her writing process involving the current manuscript she is working on, which relates to her ninety-five year-old mother, and reads her poem, “Deduction.”

“Crone” and “Deduction” by Mary Morris can be read on Issue 19 of Superstition Review here

If you want to know more about poet Mary Morris you can visit her website or LinkedIn.

Authors Talk: Kate Lechler

Superstition Review

Kate LechlerToday we are pleased to feature Kate Lechler as our Authors Talk series contributor. Kate discusses her essay, “The Breathtaking Sting of the Pull,” and what non-fiction offers to her as a writer.

She reflects on her time as an ESL teacher in the suburbs of Seoul, South Korea, and finds that most of the stories she writes are the last stories she’d think of sharing. She identifies religion as a recurring theme in most of her work, including the novel she is currently writing, in which her protagonist, like herself, grew up conservative Christian. Finally, Kate ends her podcast by talking about the strength of fiction and how, “we can create a world where we can think about all the things we care about.”

Kate Lechler’s essay, “The Breathtaking Sting of the Pull,” can be read in Issue 19 of Superstition Review.

Authors Talk: David Moody

Superstition Review

David MoodyToday we are pleased to feature poet David Moody as our Authors Talk series contributor. David discusses his poem, “Afterbirth,” and the role his mother’s career as a nurse played in his work.

Of all of the themes surrounding the poem, he says that the “passing on of family knowledge” is at its core. He then talks about the shifts between the language of food preparation and surgery, and the shifts between the professional and the personal in his mother’s life. David concludes by discussing the dual power wielded by the solitary lines in “Afterbirth.”

David’s poem, “Afterbirth,” can be read and heard in Issue 19 of Superstition Review.

Authors Talk: Maria Martin

Superstition Review

Today we are pleased to feature poet Maria Martin as our Authors Talk series contributor. Maria discusses her poetry’s subject matter and how it has evolved over time.

When she started writing Maria wrote “almost exclusively” about herself. Eventually she felt that she had exhausted her subject matter, that she “didn’t know how to write.” Maria ends her talk by explaining how prose poetry opened up her writing and how “Slow” is a turning point for her and her work.

You can read “Slow” and three more of Maria’s poems in Superstition Review, Issue 19.

Authors Talk: Rose Knapp

Superstition Review

Today we are pleased to feature poet Rose Knapp as our Authors Talk series contributor. Rose talks about how her poems deal with language and translation.

She asks what actual differences exist between common speech and poetic language. Also, is translation possible even within the same language? Finally, how do answers to these questions affect relationships?

You can read and listen to Rose’s poetry in Superstition Review, Issue 19.