John Gaspard is author of the Eli Marks mystery series as well as two other stand-alone novels, "The Greyhound of the Baskervilles" and "The Ripperologists." He also writes the Como Lake Players mystery series, under the pen name Bobbie Raymond. In real life, John's not a magician, but he has directed six low-budget features that cost very little and made even less - that's no small trick. He's also written multiple books on the subject of low-budget filmmaking. Ironically, they've made more tha...
Jun 05, 2020•59 min•Ep. 14
Fiction Author, Judith Granahan of Minnesota writes books about strong, intelligent, inventive women who get in trouble. The question is who will survive, who won't? Women have always been described as super human to sniveling child, intelligent to incompetent, collaborator to cut throat; it goes on and on. With such varied attributes in mind, Granahan creates novels full of compelling characters dealing with mystery, danger, thrills, romance, horror, and difficult choices. Someday she may even ...
May 01, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 13
Tony Plocido is the author of three collections of poetry. The first, Sucker Punch Wisdom, was published with two other K.C. poets (Jeremy O'Neal & William Peck). His other books are Aging and Other Side Projects (2016) and Felt This So Many Times (2018). Is writing can also be found in 2019 Martin Lake Journal, Starled by Joy (2019), and 2019 Talking Stick by Jackpine Press. March 2019, he became the host/curator of the long running showcases, Poets & Pints and Writers Read. He also is ...
Apr 01, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 12
Timothy Young has published four books and three chapbooks of poetry. He has recorded four CDs of poetry with various musicians; produced poetry and cultural videos; organized readings, cultural events, festivals and concerts; and for five years he co-hosted The Northland Literary Review on KFAI radio. His work has been chosen for The Writers Almanac, The Best American Poetry of 1999, college textbooks, many magazines and has been the inspiration for award-winning musical compositions performed ...
Mar 02, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 11
Douglas was born Nov 28th, 1971. He got the chance to live in many different places while growing up, courtesy of the assignments the US Army offered his father. Quiet and shy, he dreamed of other worlds and places…and desired to write about them. He got into fantasy role-playing games in his mid-teens. To this day he regularly meets friends in tabletop role-playing games and online adventures. Many of his characters evolved in games, and developed their own personality. Having to rely on self-p...
Feb 03, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 10
Martin Case, freelance researcher and writer, researches political and economic networks that shaped US relationships with indigenous nations, and drove the expansion of the US across the continent. He was on the design team for Why Treaties Matter , a collaboration of the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council, the Minnesota Humanities Center, and the Smithsonian Institute. His book -- The Relentless Business of Treaties: How Indigenous Land Became US Property – was published in 2018 by the Minnesota...
Jan 17, 2020•1 hr•Ep. 9
Sarah’s first novel, These Granite Islands was awarded a Loft McKnight Award; a Friends of American Writers Award, and was a Barnes & Noble Great New Writers pick, among other awards. That novel was translated into eleven languages. Her second, The Ice Chorus , was also widely translated. Her memoir Shelter: Off The Grid in the Mostly Magnetic North won a Northeast Minnesota Book Award. Her feminist trilogy Fishing With RayAnne (originally written under the pen name Ava Finch) will be re-iss...
Dec 04, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 8
Poet Donna Isaac is a teaching artist who organizes community readings in the Twin Cities. Published work includes a poetry book, Footfalls (Pocahontas Press), a paean to American folk music and her formative years in the Appalachians; two chapbooks, Tommy (Red Dragonfly Press); Holy Comforter (Red Bird Chapbooks); and work in journals such as the Saint Paul Almanac, the Penn Review, and AvantAppal(achia). Persistence of Vision, a chapbook focused on Donna's love for movies, is forthcoming from ...
Nov 05, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 7
Anya Johanna DeNiro lives in St. Paul. Her fiction has appeared in Catapult, One Story, Minnesota Monthly, and elsewhere. She’s currently at work on a Young Adult novel entitled My Heart Is an Unslain Dragon. Her novella City of a Thousand Feelings is forthcoming from Aqueduct Press in the winter of 2019. LINKS @adeniro on Twitter AqueductPress.com Upcoming Events: Laura will be reading at the Startled By JOY 2019 poetry reading and open mic on October 6th, 2019. The event takes place from 5:30 ...
Oct 02, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 6
Tekkan is the Dharma name for Barry MacDonald. He has lived in England, Japan, and Minnesota, all of which have influenced him. The themes of his life revolve around his Buddhist practice and his recovery from addiction. His books, “Everyday Mind,” look for the extraordinary hidden within everyday events. He uses the sonnet form without the rhyme scheme followed by a Japanese tanka. LINKS https://www.facebook.com/barry.macdonald.1293 Upcoming Events: Barry and Laura will be reading at the Startl...
Sep 03, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 5
Kathryn Kysar is the author of two books of poetry, Dark Lake and Pretend the World , and she edited Riding Shotgun: Women Write About Their Mothers . She has received fellowships from Banfill-Locke Center for the Arts, the Minnesota State Arts Board, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Anderson Center for Interdisciplinary Studies. Kysar recently served on the board of directors for the Association of Writers and Writing Programs and teaches at Anoka-Ramsey Community College and the ...
Aug 01, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 4
Bob Miller has been a professional magician for twenty years, performing on stage and table-side magic. He has also created several of his own tricks which he sells on his website. In addition to magic, Bob works as a programmer. He has created software for magicians to track customers and shows, and software for writers based on K.M. Weiland’s workbook, Outlining Your Novel. As if that’s not enough, Bob is now writing a five book thriller series, Chrysalis Chronology. The series is about gen...
Jul 09, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 3
This month Michael and Laura welcome Toussaint Morrison – writer, poet, musician, lyricist, actor...and more – about his multiple artistic endeavors. Toussaint writes and produces scripts for YouTube, has toured with multiple bands, has written lyrics and music for nearly 200 songs, and participates in slam poetry—among other things. Stop by and hear Toussaint reading and performing some of his work! Toussaint Morrison is an avid mentor for youth, working as a paraprofessional in special ed. cla...
May 20, 2019•59 min•Ep. 2
This month Michael and Laura spoke with Loren Niemi. Loren is a storyteller with 40 years of creating, performing and teaching stories that matter. His work has been called “post-modern,” pushing the boundaries of narrative form “with a dark beauty of language that is not ashamed of poetry.” Loren is also an author. His books include the award winning The New Book of Plots , an examination of oral and written narratives, and the critically acclaimed Inviting the Wolf In: Thinking About Difficult...
Apr 26, 2019•59 min•Ep. 1
