The National Writers Series Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Sarah Chayes, Author of "Thieves of State: Why Corruption Threatens Global Security" (2015) Feb 15, 2022

Show notes

With Eastern Europe looking at another conflict region opening up between Russia and Ukraine, we're looking back to a conversation with a person who's been a journalist, an author, and a special adviser to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Sarah Chayes offers us some still-timely insight into the inner workings of international politics.

In this discussion, guest host Jack Segal of the TCIAF leads the conversation about Sarah's book Thieves of State: Why Corruption Threatens Global Security. Chayes' book connects the dots from Syria to Ukraine to Nigeria to Afghanistan, showing how kleptocratic regimes – tolerated or even facilitated by the United States – can drive fed-up citizens into the arms of extreme fundamentalist groups.

Dr. Lucy Kalanithi, Co-Author of "When Breath Becomes Air" (2016) Feb 01, 2022

Show notes

This Friday (Feb. 4), we're talking about morals, ethics, and philosophy with Michael Schur, so we thought for this week's podcast we'd look back to another conversation about living a meaningful life. Dr. Lucy Kalanithi joined us in June 2016 to talk about the book she completed for her husband, neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi. This conversation is hosted by bestselling author and NWS co-founder Doug Stanton.

When he was diagnosed with cancer, he decided to write a memoir. He didn’t live to see his book “When Breath Becomes Air” published, but it turned into a New York Times number one bestseller. In this profoundly moving book, Dr. Kalanithi wrote about mortality and how to live a meaningful life. He was a philosopher and seeker who became a neurosurgeon, in part, to discover life’s deeper mysteries.

Uncertain of how long he had to live, Paul decided to complete his medical training, write a memoir, and become a parent. His daughter, Elizabeth Acadia “Cady” Kalanithi, was born nine months after his diagnosis. Tragically, Paul died in March of 2015 and Lucy lovingly finished what her husband could not, drawing on letters, videos and emails.

Michael Paterniti, Author of "The Telling Room: A Tale of Love, Betrayal, Revenge, and the World’s Greatest Piece of Cheese" (2013) Jan 18, 2022

Show notes

In 2013, Michael Paterniti joined the NWS on the stage of the Traverse City Opera House for a conversation with NWS co-founder Doug Stanton. According to Paterniti, the greatest storyteller he ever met is a cheese maker in the small Spanish village of Guzman. When he joined us, Paterniti's latest was The Telling Room: A Tale of Love, Betrayal, Revenge, and World's Greatest Piece of Cheese.

For a previous book, Paterniti ended up on a cross-country road trip with Albert Einstein's brain in the trunk of the car. His literary non-fiction has appeared in magazines such as Outside, Rolling Stone, and Esquire.

Karin Slaughter, author of "Blindsighted," "Unseen" and "Cop Town" (2014) Jan 04, 2022

Show notes

This NWS Podcast episode celebrates the birthday week of critically-acclaimed master of suspense Karin Slaughter.

Slaughter’s first novel Blindsighted became an international success, was published in almost 30 languages, and made the Crime Writers’ Association’s Dagger Award shortlist for “Best Thriller Debut” of 2001. She is also the author of the Will Trent series that takes place in Atlanta and features GBI special agent Will Trent, his partner Faith Mitchell, and Angie Polaski.

In this episode from 2014, Slaughter sits down with author and creative writing instructor Elizabeth Kane Buzzelli to discuss Slaughter's newest book: Cop Town.

In this book, two women from different backgrounds who try to wear the badge and carry the gun for Atlanta’s macho police department as the city faces a seismic upheaval. It’s 1974, and a brutal killing and furious manhunt have rocked the divided police force.

Debbie Macomber (2015) Dec 23, 2021

Show notes

For our last episode of the year, we wanted to bring you our conversation with author Debbie Macomber from 2015. Her work includes fiction, nonfiction, children’s books, knitting and cookbooks, and inspirational books. She’s also released a yearly Christmas-themed book for decades, hence the timing of this episode.

At this point, she has more than 200 million copies of books in print; she’s published over a dozen book series; 70 other stand-alone books; plus several anthologies and collaborations. That’s a pretty amazing bibliography.

Starting with the revelation of Debbie’s “literary guardian angel,” our guest host Ron Hogan brought us through a discussion that ranged from her first break as a writer to her love of knitting to how reader feedback impacted her series of Christmas books.

Peter and Elmore Leonard (2009) Nov 30, 2021

Show notes

It's been quite a while since this audio featuring Peter and Elmore Leonard has been publicly available and easily accessible, so let's look all the way back to 2009 with this week's podcast episode.

This conversation features stories including Elmore's interactions with actors like Charles Bronson and John Travolta; where his famous character names like Raylan Givens and Chili Palmer came from; how his Ten Rules for Writing came to be, and much more!

Beth Macy, Author of "Dopesick" (2018) Oct 26, 2021

Show notes

If you are a Hulu subscriber, you've undoubtedly seen promos for their new series Dopesick starring Michael Keaton. That show premiered a couple of weeks ago, and it's been getting some pretty good reviews. All of which made us think, hey - author Beth Macy joined us to talk about Dopesick back in 2018. Since then it's been adapted into the show you're watching now, and that's why we're bringing you that conversation here today.

From the introduction of OxyContin in 1996 to the pharmaceutical industry that pushed these highly addictive drugs, Dopesick takes readers through the harrowing trajectory of the most critical drug epidemic in recent history. This conversation is guest hosted by Peter Payette, executive director of Interlochen Public Radio.

Ben Sidran, author of "There Was a Fire: Jews, Music and the American Dream" (2015) Oct 12, 2021

Show notes

What do Steve Miller, Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, and Diana Ross have in common? They all worked with legendary musician Ben Sidran.

Sidran sat down with Traverse City musician Jeff Haas on October 11th, 2015 for a discussion about Sidran's newest book: There Was a Fire: Jews, Music and the American Dream. The book charts the myriad and unexpected ways that Jews influenced American music, including the Great American Songbook.

Sidran; a Peabody award winner for his NPR series, “Jazz Alive,” and VH-1’s “New Vision” series, took to the stage with Haas and a grand piano for a few musical interludes in this unique event full of engaging words, eclectic music, and behind-the-scenes American music history.

Vince Gilligan, "Breaking Bad" (2012) Sep 29, 2021

Show notes

On September 29th, 2013, the final episode of TV's legendary series "Breaking Bad" aired on AMC. We thought we'd take this opportunity to look back on series creator Vince Gilligan's appearance on the NWS stage the year prior. He joined us just a few months prior to the start of the show's amazing final season in February 2012.

Gilligan - no stranger to northern Michigan, having attended the Interlochen Center for the Arts as a teen - sat down with NWS co-founder Doug Stanton to talk about the art of TV and film screenwriting, life in a writers room, and even a live script reading to show how the words on the page are transformed by the actors who embody them.

If you know a high school student who might want to try their hand at scriptwriting, the NWS is hosting a special class soon through our Front Street Writers Program. Head to our site to learn more.

AJ Baime and Bryce Hoffman (2014) Sep 14, 2021

Show notes

Fall is a great time for a road trip (Tunnel of Trees, anyone?) and since A.J. Baime and Bryce Hoffman joined the NWS around this time in September 2014, we thought we'd revisit their discussion as a great soundtrack to your next long drive.

At the end of 2008, Ford Motor Company was in the fight of its life but when Congress threw it a taxpayer lifeline, Ford ignored it. Instead, the iconic company under the leadership of Alan Mulally pulled off one of the biggest comebacks in business history. It would become one of the great management narratives of our time. While the rest of Detroit collapsed, Ford went from the brink of bankruptcy to being the most profitable automaker in the world.

From his front-row seat as the Ford beat reporter for the Detroit News, Hoffman conducted hundreds of interviews and gleaned top-secret documents, memos, and archives to craft compelling narrative nonfiction that reads like a high-stakes drama. American Icon: Alan Mulally and the Fight to Save Ford Motor Company has become a manual for CEOs and a guide for organizations that want to transform their cultures and build winning teams.

A.J. Baime is a regular contributor to the Wall Street Journal and an editor-at-large at Playboy. In his latest book Arsenal of Democracy: FDR, Detroit, and an Epic Quest to Arm an America at War, the Ford Motor Company and its production of the B-24 Liberator heavy bomber take center stage. He focuses on Ford’s B-24 bomber plant outside Detroit in Willow Run, where for the first time engineers attempted to mass-produce airplanes the way they did cars. It’s an engrossing story that Baime described as an opportunity to “tell a rich story about the most important collective achievement of any city in the nation’s history, and that’s Detroit during World War II.”

Baime’s first book Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans, was the basis for the motion picture "Ford V Ferrari" starring Christian Bale and Matt Damon.

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