Ursa Short Fiction

S.A. Cosby on the Art of the Thriller Oct 30, 2024

In the spirit of Halloween, Deesha and Dawnie dig into thrillers, mysteries, and suspense with acclaimed crime fiction writer S.A. Cosby, author of the New York Times bestseller Razorblade Tears and Blacktop Wasteland, and the forthcoming novel, King of Ashes.

Cosby talks about his early inspirations in the horror and suspense genres, and he explains how he began to use genre to craft stories that reflected his own experiences as a Black writer from the South.

Cosby also offers advice to emerging writers and helps demystify the publication process, as co-editor of The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2024 anthology.

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Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned

Razorblade Tears (S.A. Cosby)
Blacktop Wasteland (S.A. Cosby)
The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2024 (co-edited by S.A. Cosby and Steph Cha)
Heaven (First Book in Casteel Series) (V.C. Andrews)
Gabino Iglesias
Catriona Ward
Bunnicula (James and Deborah Howe)
The Celery Stalks At Midnight (James and Deborah Howe)
Goosebumps (series) (R.L. Stine)
“The Tell-Tale Heart” (Edgar Allan Poe)
The Hardy Boys (series) (Franklin W. Dixon)
The Three Investigators (series) (Robert Arthur Jr. and Mary Virginia Carey)
“The Black Cat” (Edgar Allan Poe, Poe Stories, originally published 1845)
“The Cask of Amontillado” (Edgar Allan Poe)
Encyclopedia Brown (series) (Donald J. Sobol)
Carrie (Stephen King)
“The Animal Fair” (Robert Bloch)
Clark Ashton Smith
Algernon Blackwood
‘Salem’s Lot (Stephen King)
A Thousand Acres (Jane Smiley)
“King Lear” (William Shakespeare)
Before The Mango Ripens (Afabwaje Kurian)
The Human Stain (Philip Roth)
Red Dragon (Thomas Harris)
Thuglit
Steph Cha
“The Funeral Suit” (Bobby Mathews, Frontier Tales, 2023)
“My Savage Year” (Jordan Harper, Southwest Review, Volume 108 Number 3)
“Like Babies Crying in the Dark” (S.A. Cosby, Southwest Review, Volume 108 Number 3)
“Welcome to the Hammer Party” (Jordan Harper Newsletter)
“Scorpions” (Nick Kolakowski)
“Just A Girl” (Alyssa Cole)
“Slant-Six” (S.A. Cosby)
Megan Abbott
It(Stephen King)
The Dead Zone (Stephen King)
All The Sinners Bleed (S.A. Cosby)
Kellye Garret t
Toni Morrison
Robert Jones Jr.
Jack London
Dennis Lehane
Ernest J. Gaines
Alice Walker
King of Ashes (S.A. Cosby)
The Godfather (Mario Puzo)
W. Somerset Maugham
Nikki Dolson
Watchmen (Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons)
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill)
James Baldwin
Chester Himes
Phillis Wheatley
Donald Goines
Richard Wright
Claude McKay
Langston Hughes

Listening List:

Born To Run (Bruce Springsteen)

Watch List:

3:10 to Yuma (2007)
American Masters: John Hammond: From Bessie Smith to Bruce Springsteen 1991
S.A. Cosby on The Daily Show (2023)
White Lightning (1973)
Rolling Thunder (1977)
True Detective

More from Deesha and Dawnie:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies (Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

Produced by Ursa Story Company

Hosted by Deesha Philyaw & Dawnie Walton

Executive Producers: Dawnie Walton, Deesha Philyaw, and Mark Armstrong

Associate Producer: Marina Leigh

Episode Editor: Kelly Araja

About the Author

S. A. Cosby is an Anthony Award-winning writer from Southeastern Virginia. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Razorblade Tears and Blacktop Wasteland, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, was a New York Times Notable Book, and was named a best book of the year by NPR, The Guardian, and Library Journal, among others. When not writing, he is an avid hiker and chess player.

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Season 3 Sneak Preview! Oct 24, 2024

We're back! Dawnie Walton and Deesha Philyaw give us a special sneak preview of what's in store for Season Three.

Show notes:

Support this season with a membership or one-time contribution, and get access to bonus episodes: ursastory.com/join
Follow our other show, Reckon True Stories with Deesha Philyaw and Kiese Laymon.
Read more about Dawnie Walton's next novel!
Contact us via email: hello@ursastory.com

Produced by: Dawnie Walton, Deesha Philyaw, and Mark Armstrong

Associate Producer: Marina Leigh

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Ursa Presents: Reckon True Stories, with Deesha Philyaw and Kiese Laymon Jul 09, 2024

Dawnie Walton and Deesha Philyaw introduce us to Reckon True Stories, a brand new podcast hosted by Deesha and acclaimed author Kiese Laymon, dedicated to all things nonfiction.

Listen, then follow the show in your favorite podcast so you don't miss an episode: https://link.chtbl.com/truestories

Guests for Season One include writers Roxane Gay, Imani Perry, Alexander Chee, Minda Honey, Hanif Abdurraqib, and Samantha Irby. Produced in partnership with Reckon.

We'll also have more episodes of Ursa Short Fiction coming this fall! Sign up for email updates: https://ursastory.com

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Shows We Love: Black & Published Jan 31, 2024

While we put the final touches on Season Three, we wanted to share an episode from another podcast that we think you’ll love: Black & Published, hosted by Nikesha Elise Williams.

On today’s episode, Nikesha’s guest is Dolen Perkins-Valdez, author of the historical fiction novel TAKE MY HAND. It's a story based on the real-life Relf sisters of Montgomery, Alabama, who were forcibly sterilized by the workers of a federal family planning clinic in 1973.

Subscribe to listen to more episodes from the latest season of Black & Published:

https://blackpublished.buzzsprout.com/

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That's a Wrap on Season Two! A Special Message from Deesha and Dawnie Oct 20, 2023

Thanks to our guests, contributors, and listeners for a wonderful second season!

Help us fund Season Three of Ursa Short Fiction by becoming an Ursa Member:

https://ursastory.com/join/

You can also make a one-time contribution to help fund future episodes.

We’ll be back very soon — get email updates by signing up for our newsletter: https://ursastory.com/newsletter/

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What Denne Michele Norris Learned as a Writer and Editor Oct 05, 2023

Deesha and Dawnie chat with Denne Michele Norris, editor-in-chief of Electric Literature and author of the forthcoming debut novel, When The Harvest Comes (Random House). She is also the first Black, openly trans woman to helm a major literary publication.

Norris discusses her approaches to both writing and editing, sharing insights for writers on working with editors. She also talks about the ways different genres — from fiction to essay to memoir — all require their own approaches. Norris asks questions of herself and of the work, aiming to edit “ethically and responsibly and [tell] a beautiful story.”

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Reading List: Stories and Writers Mentioned

Denne Michele Norris
McSweeney's 62: The Queer Fiction Issue
Food 4 Thot Podcast
"An Almanac of Bones" (Dantiel W. Moniz)
The Bluest Eye (Toni Morrison)
Everyday People: The Color of Life Anthology (edited by Jennifer Baker)
"Daddy's Boy" (Denne Michele Norris)
Jade Jones
Going To Meet The Man (James Baldwin)
Friday Black (Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah)
Milk Blood Heat (Dantiel W. Moniz)
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies (Deesha Philyaw)
What It Means When A Man Falls From The Sky (Lesley Nneka Arimah)
Difficult Women (Roxane Gay)

About the Author

Denne Michele Norris is the editor-in-chief of Electric Literature, winner of the 2022 Whiting Digital Literary Magazine Prize, where she is the first Black, openly trans woman to helm a major literary publication. A 2021 Out100 Honoree, her writing has been supported by MacDowell, Tin House, VCCA, and the Kimbilio Center for African American Fiction, and appears in McSweeney's, American Short Fiction, and ZORA. She co-hosts the critically acclaimed podcast Food 4 Thot, and mentors emerging writers of color with The Periplus Collective. Her debut novel, When The Harvest Comes, is forthcoming from Random House.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Executive producers: Dawnie Walton & Mark Armstrong

Author photo: Hilary Leichter

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[Free teaser] Member Exclusive: Deesha’s 7-Figure Book Deal, Listener Questions Sep 21, 2023

This week we’re excited to share a very special episode of Ursa Short Fiction — a Member Exclusive where Dawnie Walton chats with Deesha Philyaw about this week’s big news: Deesha has just signed a seven-figure book deal with Mariner Books for a new novel, THE TRUE CONFESSIONS OF FIRST LADY FREEMAN, and short story collection, GIRL, LOOK. The novel is due out in 2025.

Enjoy this free teaser from our Member Exclusive episode. To access the full episode, become an Ursa Member: ursastory.com/join.

Links

Author Deesha Philyaw has a 7-figure deal for her next two books (Associated Press)
“Back Then” (Mike Jones)
Peach Pit: Sixteen Stories of Unsavory Women (anthology edited by Molly Llewellyn and Kristel Buckley)
Mariner Books
Rakia Clark
Punch Me Up to the Gods (Brian Broome)

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

Produced & edited by Mark Armstrong

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Story: ‘What Got Into Us,’ by Jacob Guajardo Sep 07, 2023

Deesha and Dawnie introduce “What Got Into Us,” a short story by Jacob Guajardo, performed by Vicki Valdeon.

The story is a candid look into queer adolescence, first loves, recklessness, and unbridled vulnerability. It was originally published in Passages North, and featured in The Best American Short Stories 2018.

Listen to the story, then stay tuned at the end for Guajardo in his own words, sharing how the story came together, and how he approaches the writing process.

Support our show and help fund future episodes: https://ursastory.com/join/

Reading List: Stories and Writers Mentioned

The Best American Short Stories 2018 (edited by Roxane Gay)
“I Only Did What Anyone Would Have Done” (Jacob Guajardo)
“Moonmilk” (Jacob Guajardo)
“Widowers” (Jacob Guajardo)
“Good News Is Coming” (Jacob Guajardo)
“The Seminar” (Jacob Guajardo)
“Two Queens Walk Out Of A Bar” (Jacob Guajardo)
Amy Hempel
Ocean Vuong
Garth Greenwell

About the Author

Jacob Guajardo lives and writes in Grand Rapids, Michigan. His fiction appears in The Best American Short Stories 2018 and Small Odysseys: Selected Shorts Presents 35 New Stories, among other publications. He is the recipient of the 2020 Robert Maxwell Fellowship from MacDowell. He works from home as a Narrative Designer.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Performed by Vicki Valdeon

Associate producers: Marina Leigh, Ashawnta Jackson

Executive producers: Dawnie Walton & Mark Armstrong

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Rubén Degollado on Writing a Family Story, 25 Years in the Making Aug 23, 2023

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton go in-depth with Rubén Degollado, author of the novel The Family Izquierdo, which started out as a short story collection about a single family.

Degollado's story “The Seven Songs” was featured on last week’s episode, and he discusses his journey to writing and publishing the book, as well as how he navigated his writing journey alongside his career as an educator. He first started writing the Izquierdo family stories in the late '90s, eventually developing the family curse and tensions, and playing with point of view to inhabit the lives of the many family members.

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Degollado aims to represent his own family, experiences, and community through The Family Izquierdo, and he quotes Toni Morrison, who said “if there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.”

“A lot of the stories I read were about immigrants, and I think those are great stories. I love immigrant stories, but that’s not what I wanted to write. I wanted to write about what happens after. What happens post immigration.”

If you haven't already, be sure to listen to last week's episode featuring Degollado's story, “The Seven Songs.”

Reading List

"The Seven Songs" by Rubén Degollado (Ursa Short Fiction, Season Two, Episode 15)
The Family Izquierdo (W. W. Norton)
The Family Izquierdo audiobook (Blackstone Publishing / Downpour.com)
The Bluest Eye (Toni Morrison)
Throw (Rubén Degollado)
"A Temporary Matter" (Jhumpa Lahiri)
Drinking Coffee Elsewhere (ZZ Packer)
Interpreter of Maladies (Jhumpa Lahiri)
Sabrina & Corina: Stories (Kali Fajardo-Anstine)
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies (Deesha Philyaw)
The World Doesn't Require You (Rion Amilcar Scott)
Brownsville (Oscar Casares)
Maurice Carlos Ruffin

About the Author

Rubén Degollado’s work has recently appeared in Literary Hub, CRAFT, The Common, and elsewhere. His novel Throw won the Texas Institute of Letters Best Young Adult book for 2020. His debut literary novel The Family Izquierdo is a long list title for the PEN/Faulkner Award and the Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award. Rubén lives and writes along the southern border, in the Río Grande Valley of Texas.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Producer: Mark Armstrong

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Story: ‘The Seven Songs,’ by Rubén Degollado Aug 16, 2023

This week we're thrilled to feature “The Seven Songs,” by Rubén Degollado, from his novel, The Family Izquierdo.

The story is performed by Carolina Hoyos and is excerpted from The Family Izquierdo audiobook, produced by Blackstone Publishing. Our thanks to them for sharing this story with Ursa listeners.

In “The Seven Songs,” Dina, the daughter of Izquierdo family patriarch Octavio, tells her daughters about her encounter with a neighbor, Contreras, who put a curse on the Izquierdo family.

Dina notes the strength, not just of God, but of all the women in the family, in myths, and in music that guide and encourage her to face the enemy. The Family Izquierdo follows what binds the generations together in the family — the love as well as the curse — and in “The Seven Songs” Dina seeks out Contreras to free her family and herself from the family curse.

“No, I did not go to church, mis hijas. I had to go into the enemy’s camp. The place of evil and idolatry. Of greed and charlatans. That den of vipers where I knew I would find the brujo contreras. We went to the flea market.”

Listen to the story, then come back next week for Deesha and Dawnie's conversation with Rubén Degollado.

Support our work by becoming an Ursa Member: https://ursastory.com/join/

Reading List

The Family Izquierdo (Rubén Degollado)
The Family Izquierdo audiobook (Downpour.com)
Throw (Rubén Degollado)
More Rubén Degollado short stories

About the Author

Rubén Degollado’s work has recently appeared in Literary Hub, CRAFT, The Common, and elsewhere. His novel Throw won the Texas Institute of Letters Best Young Adult book for 2020. His debut literary novel The Family Izquierdo is a long list title for the PEN/Faulkner Award and the Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award. Rubén lives and writes along the southern border, in the Río Grande Valley of Texas.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Audio excerpted courtesy Blackstone Publishing from THE FAMILY IZQUIERDO by Rubén Degollado, excerpt read by Carolina Hoyos.

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Nafissa Thompson-Spires on the Making of ‘Heads of the Colored People’ Aug 02, 2023

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton go deep with Nafissa Thompson-Spires, author of the beloved 2018 collection Heads of the Colored People, to discuss Heads’ origin, the texts and other media that influenced Thompson-Spires, inspirations for her stories and characters in the collection, and their shared love for the Notes app.

Thompson-Spires is candid about her upbringing in California and her own family, and how those experiences have shaped her work in terms of characters, autobiographical-leaning-but-fictionalized events, and even her ideas of place and the ways that racism persists in different ways in different parts of the country.

Support this show by becoming an Ursa Member: https://ursastory.com/join/

Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned

Heads of the Colored People (Nafissa Thompson-Spires)
Mat Johnson
The Guardian Interview with Nafissa Thompson-Spires
Mark Anthony Neal
Victor LaValle
Paul Beatty
Shirley Jackson
Flannery O'Connor
George Schuyler
Ishmael Reed
James McCune Smith
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
Solmaz Sharif
Sandeep Parmar
Charles Dickens
Hacks
Reservation Dogs
Lot(Bryan Washington)
Milk Blood Heat (Dantiel W. Moniz)
The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
Seeking Fortune Elsewhere (Sindya Bhanoo)
Mary Tyler Moore Theme Song
'Alright' (Kendrick Lamar)
Denne Michele Norris

About the Author

Nafissa Thompson-Spires wrote Heads of the Colored People, which won the PEN Open Book Award, the Hurston/Wright Award for Fiction, and the Los Angeles Times’s Art Siedenbaum Award for First Fiction. Her collection was longlisted for the National Book Award, the PEN/ Robert W. Bingham Award, and several other prizes. She also won a 2019 Whiting Award.

She earned a PhD in English from Vanderbilt University and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Illinois. Her work has appeared in The Paris Review Daily, The Cut, The Root, Ploughshares, 400 Souls, and The 1619 Project, among other publications. New writing is forthcoming in Fourteen Days, edited by Margaret Atwood.

She’s currently the Richards Family Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Cornell University.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Producer: Mark Armstrong

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Jonathan Escoffery on ‘Under the Ackee Tree’ and Walking Your Own Path Jul 20, 2023

Deesha and Dawnie chat with Jonathan Escoffery, author of last week's audio story, "Under the Ackee Tree," from his acclaimed collection and audiobook, If I Survive You. The linked stories follow Trelawny, a second generation Jamaican American, as he struggles through family tensions, cultural and historical loss and reclamation, and exploration of identity.

Escoffery talks about his collection and how it came to be—the process of developing characters, tensions, and narrative threads, as well as constructing a complicated family with conflicting generational perspectives on agency, culture, and legacy.

Support Ursa Short Fiction by becoming a member: https://ursastory.com/join/

Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned

"Under the Ackee Tree" (Ursa Short Fiction, Season Two, Episode 12)
If I Survive You (Jonathan Escoffery)
If I Survive You audiobook (Audible)
Jesus' Son (Denis Johnson)
We the Animals (Justin Torres)

About the Author

Jonathan Escoffery is the author of the linked story collection, If I Survive You, a New York Times and Booklist Editor’s Choice, an IndieNext Pick, and a National Bestseller. If I Survive You was longlisted for the National Book Award, the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award, the PEN/ Robert W. Bingham Prize For Debut Short Story Collection, the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence, the Aspen Words Literary Prize, and the Story Prize, and was shortlisted for the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize. It was named a ‘best’ book by The New Yorker, The New York Times, NPR, Entertainment Weekly, People, TIME, Oprah Daily, GQ, and elsewhere. In 2020, Jonathan received the Paris Review’s Plimpton Prize for Fiction and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. He was a 2021-2023 Stegner Fellow at Stanford University.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Producer: Mark Armstrong

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Story: ‘Under the Ackee Tree,’ by Jonathan Escoffery Jul 12, 2023

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton introduce “Under the Ackee Tree,” a story by Jonathan Escoffery from his acclaimed 2022 collection, If I Survive You.

The story is performed by Torian Brackett, and it comes from the collection's audiobook, produced by Macmillan Audio. Our thanks to Macmillan for sharing the story with Ursa's listeners.

This story follows Topper, a Jamaican immigrant who has fled the political violence in Kingston and moved his family to Miami to raise his two sons. “Under the Ackee Tree” is a narrative of leaving and of loss, of destruction and rebuilding, and of the ways we disappoint as partners, as parents, and as children.

Support our show by becoming an Ursa Member: https://ursastory.com/join/

Reading List

If I Survive You, by Jonathan Escoffery (MCD)
If I Survive You audiobook (Audible)
Jonathan Escoffery Publications
Jonathan Escoffery Interviews

About the Author

Jonathan Escoffery is the author of the linked story collection, If I Survive You, a New York Times and Booklist Editor’s Choice, an IndieNext Pick, and a National Bestseller. If I Survive You was longlisted for the National Book Award, the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award, the PEN/ Robert W. Bingham Prize For Debut Short Story Collection, the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence, the Aspen Words Literary Prize, and the Story Prize, and was shortlisted for the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize. It was named a ‘best’ book by The New Yorker, The New York Times, NPR, Entertainment Weekly, People, TIME, Oprah Daily, GQ, and elsewhere. In 2020, Jonathan received the Paris Review’s Plimpton Prize for Fiction and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. He was a 2021-2023 Stegner Fellow at Stanford University.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Performed by Torian Brackett

Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Music: “Biosphere” by Yotam Agam

Audio excerpt courtesy Macmillan Audio, from IF I SURVIVE YOU by Jonathan Escoffery, read by Torian Brackett.

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Jamil Jan Kochai on Separating Writing from ‘the Noise’ Jun 28, 2023

Deesha and Dawnie sit down with Jamil Jan Kochai, whose short story “Enough!” from his collection The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories (Viking / Penguin Random House Audio), was featured in our previous episode.

Kochai discusses how he fell in love with storytelling and short stories as a form—reflecting on his family, his childhood, and how his stories, characters, and themes come naturally because they’re rooted in his upbringing.

Kochai also talks about the challenge of writing as a public experience as he becomes more well-known in the literary world, and how he approaches writing personally, where he consistently returns to the idea of writing as writing — separating writing from “the noise.”

“In storytelling, sometimes you have to build walls in order to dance within them.”

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Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned

The Haunting of Hajji Hotak (Jamil Jan Kochai)
The Haunting of Hajji Hotak audiobook
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel García Márquez)
“Sonny’s Blues” (James Baldwin)
Sandra Cisneros
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders (Daniyal Mueenuddin)
“Train to Harbin” (Asako Serizawa)
Inheritors (Asako Serizawa)
Toni Morrison

About the Author

Jamil Jan Kochai is the author of The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories, winner of the 2023 Aspen Words Literary Prize and a finalist for 2022 National Book Award. His debut novel 99 Nights in Logar was a finalist for the Pen/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel. His short stories have appeared in The New Yorker, Ploughshares, Zoetrope, The O. Henry Prize Stories, and The Best American Short Stories. His essays have been published at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. Kochai was a Stegner Fellow at Stanford University and a Truman Capote Fellow at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Currently, he is a Hodder Fellow at Princeton University.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Producer: Mark Armstrong

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Story: 'Enough!' by Jamil Jan Kochai Jun 21, 2023

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton introduce “Enough!”, a short story by Jamil Jan Kochai, from his collection The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories.

Kochai's story discusses intergenerational trauma, violences of both war and refuge, and rage as we follow Rangeena, a mother reflecting on her family and own past.

The story is performed by Suehyla El-Attar Young, and it's excerpted from the audiobook of The Haunting of Hajji Hotak, produced by Penguin Random House Audio. Our thanks to them for sharing this story with Ursa's listeners.

Jamil Jan Kochai’s writing is lyrical, his images surreal, and because of the cyclical narrative, the repetition, and obsession with themes of rambling, the story leaves us breathless.

“Enough!” interrogates the ways in which we suffocate, the ways we’re haunted, and the ways we survive.

“Enough rambling, enough advice, enough pills, enough nightmares, enough lung damage, enough ghosts, enough beautiful dying boys, enough bomb smoke, enough burning apple trees, enough staring white neighbors, enough heavy breathing…”

Come back next week for our conversation with Jamil Jan Kochai.

Help Us Fund Future Seasons and Shows

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Reading List

The Haunting of Hajji Hotak, by Jamil Jan Kochai (Penguin Books)
The Haunting of Hajji Hotak audiobook (Penguin Random House Audio)
More stories and essays by Jamil Jan Kochai

About the Author

Jamil Jan Kochai is the author of The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories, winner of the 2023 Aspen Words Literary Prize and a finalist for 2022 National Book Award. His debut novel 99 Nights in Logar was a finalist for the Pen/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel. His short stories have appeared in The New Yorker, Ploughshares, Zoetrope, The O. Henry Prize Stories, and The Best American Short Stories. His essays have been published at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. Kochai was a Stegner Fellow at Stanford University and a Truman Capote Fellow at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Currently, he is a Hodder Fellow at Princeton University.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

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Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Audio excerpted courtesy Penguin Random House Audio from THE HAUNTING OF HAJJI HOTAK by Jamil Jan Kochai, excerpt read by Suehyla El-Attar Young.

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‘No Saints, No Demons’: Sidik Fofana on Creating Characters and Protecting Dreams Jun 07, 2023

Deesha and Dawnie sit down with Sidik Fofana, author of the acclaimed collection Stories from the Tenants Downstairs, published in 2022. Fofana discusses his journey getting into NYU, being a public school teacher, taking the long road to publishing his debut collection, and finding inspiration in the daily world around him. Fofana talks about creating voice and authentic characters, and he asks the hard question: in the chaos of life, how do we hold onto dreams?

Ursa Short Fiction is 100% independent and supported by our listeners. Become a Member today to help us keep going: ursastory.com/join

Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned

Stories from the Tenants Downstairs audiobook (Scribner / Simon & Schuster Audio)
“Tumble,” audio short story by Sidik Fofana (Ursa Short Fiction)
Lorrie Moore
The Rabbit Hutch (Tess Gunty)
Toni Cade Bambara
Push (Sapphire)
The Madonnas of Echo Park (Brando Skyhorse)
Stuart Dybek
The Women of Brewster Place (Gloria Naylor)

About the Author

Sidik Fofana is a New York City public school teacher, was a 2018 fellow at the Center for Fiction, and was named a “Writer to Watch” by Publishers Weekly. He is the author of the 2022 collection STORIES FROM THE TENANTS DOWNSTAIRS, in which he introduces readers to the residents of Banneker Homes, a low-income residential building in Harlem, where a looming rent increase affects everyone in different ways. Tenants young and old who weave in and out of each other’s lives.

Sidik earned his MFA from New York University. And he lives with his wife and son in New York City.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

***

Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Producer: Mark Armstrong

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Story: 'Tumble,' by Sidik Fofana Jun 01, 2023

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton introduce “Tumble,” an audio short story by Sidik Fofana about two women, Neisha and Kya, and a childhood fight with long-term consequences.

The story is performed by Jade Wheeler, and it’s one of eight linked stories from Fofana’s 2022 debut collection, STORIES FROM THE TENANTS DOWNSTAIRS. This audiobook excerpt comes to us from Scribner / Simon & Schuster Audio—our thanks to them for sharing it with Ursa Short Fiction listeners.

As Philyaw noted in her recommendation of “Tumble” in Electric Lit:

“What happens to a dream deferred thanks to the cruel betrayal of a former childhood friend? What do justice, empathy, and forgiveness look like within a community when traumatized, violated people turn around to traumatize and violate those closest to them?”

Listen to the story, then come back next week for our conversation with Sidik Fofana.

Support our show by becoming an Ursa Member: https://ursastory.com/join/

Reading List

“Tumble” (Electric Lit, recommended by Deesha Philyaw)
STORIES FROM THE TENANTS DOWNSTAIRS audiobook (Simon & Schuster Audio)

About the Author

Sidik Fofana is a New York City public school teacher, was a 2018 fellow at the Center for Fiction, and was named a “Writer to Watch” by Publishers Weekly. He is the author of the 2022 collection STORIES FROM THE TENANTS DOWNSTAIRS, in which he introduces readers to the residents of Banneker Homes, a low-income residential building in Harlem, where a looming rent increase affects everyone in different ways. Tenants young and old who weave in and out of each other’s lives.

Sidik earned his MFA from New York University. And he lives with his wife and son in New York City.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies(Deesha Philyaw)
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev (Dawnie Walton)

***

Episode editor: Kelly Araja

Associate producer: Marina Leigh

Music: “Fifth Avenue,” by Phury

Audio excerpt courtesy of Simon & Schuster Audio from “Tumble” found in STORIES FROM THE TENANTS DOWNSTAIRS by Sidik Fofana, read by Jade Wheeler. Audiobook also read by Joniece Abbott-Pratt, Nile Bullock, Sidik Fofana, Dominic Hoffman, DePre Owens, André Santana and Bahni Turpin. Copyright © 2022 by Sidik Fofana. Used with permission of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

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Dantiel W. Moniz on Hometowns, Girlhood, and the Life Experiences that Fuel Fiction Writing May 17, 2023

It’s a very special “Three Ds from Duval” episode of Ursa Short Fiction! Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton welcome fellow Jacksonville native Dantiel W. Moniz, author of the acclaimed 2021 short story collection MILK BLOOD HEAT.

Moniz talks about how growing up in Jacksonville informed the stories in MILK BLOOD HEAT, and how real-life experiences serve as a jumping-off point for the stories we tell.

“It’s always as a seed or a starting off point because the story is a thing that allows me to get past what actually happened or what I think actually happened, and then explore what could have happened.”

Reading List: Books, Stories, and Authors Mentioned

MILK BLOOD HEAT, by Dantiel W. Moniz (Grove Press)
“An Almanac of Bones,” by Dantiel W. Moniz (Apogee Journal)
“Eula,” by Deesha Philyaw (Apogee Journal)
The Office of Historical Corrections, by Danielle Evans
The Dangers of Smoking in Bed, by Mariana Enríquez
Manywhere, by Morgan Thomas
The Getaway Car, by Ann Patchett
Dantiel W. Moniz’s website

About the Author

Dantiel W. Moniz is the recipient of a National Book Foundation “5 Under 35” Award, a Pushcart Prize, a MacDowell Fellowship, and the Alice Hoffman Prize for Fiction. Her debut collection, Milk Blood Heat, is the winner of a Florida Book Award, and was a finalist for the PEN/ Jean Stein Award, the PEN/ Robert W. Bingham Prize, and the New York Public Library Young Lions Fiction Award, as well as longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. Her writing has appeared in the Paris Review, Harper's Bazaar, American Short Fiction, Tin House, and elsewhere. Moniz is an Assistant Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she teaches fiction.

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

About the Author

Nana Nkwetiis a Cameroonian-American writer, Whiting Award winner, and AKO Caine Prize finalist whose work has garnered fellowships from MacDowell, Vermont Studio Center, Ucross, Byrdcliffe, Kimbilio, Hub City Writers, the Stadler Center for Poetry, the Wurlitzer Foundation, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and Clarion West Writers Workshop. Her first book, Walking on Cowrie Shells, was hailed by The New York Times review as a “raucous and thoroughly impressive debut” with "stories to get lost in again and again." The collection is also a New York Times Editor's Choice, Indie Next pick, recipient of starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and BookPage; and has been featured in The New Yorker, Harper's Bazaar, Oprah Daily, The Root, NPR, Buzzfeed, and Thrillist; amongst others. The workfeatures elements of mystery, horror, myth, and graphic novels to showcase the complexity and vibrance of African diaspora cultures and identities. She is a professor of English at the University of Alabama where she teaches creative writing courses that explore her eclectic literary interests: ranging from graphic novels to medical humanities onto exploring works by female authors in genres such as horror, Afrofuturism, and mystery.

Episode Links and Reading List:

“Dance the Fiya Dance” (Ursa)
Walking on Cowrie Shells (Graywolf Press)
Nana Nkweti’s website
“Nana Nkweti’s Tales of Cameroonians at Home and in America” (Deesha Philyaw, The New York Times Book Review)
Citizen: An American Lyric, by Claudia Rankine
Bloodchild, Octavia Butler
“The Secret Sci-Fi Life of Alice B. Sheldon” (NPR)

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

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Story: 'Dance the Fiya Dance,' by Nana Nkweti Oct 12, 2022

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton introduce their latest short story pick, Nana Nkweti’s “Dance the Fiya Dance,” from her acclaimed 2021 debut collection, Walking On Cowrie Shells, published by Graywolf Press.

Through a series of journal entries, we meet Chambu, a DC-based linguistic anthropologist and “Halfrican” (daughter of a Cameroonian mom and African American dad) who processes a devastating loss while sparking a sexy new romance.

For content advisories, scroll to the end of the show notes.

The story is performed by Enih Agwe, with music and mixing by Alexis Adimora, and illustrations by Halimah Smith at Artpce. Ursa Executive producers are Dawnie Walton and Mark Armstrong.

You can read along at ursastory.com/dance.

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

About the Author

Nana Nkwetiis a Cameroonian-American writer, Whiting Award winner, and AKO Caine Prize finalist whose work has garnered fellowships from MacDowell, Vermont Studio Center, Ucross, Byrdcliffe, Kimbilio, Hub City Writers, the Stadler Center for Poetry, the Wurlitzer Foundation, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and Clarion West Writers Workshop. Her first book, Walking on Cowrie Shells, was hailed by The New York Times review as a “raucous and thoroughly impressive debut” with "stories to get lost in again and again." The collection is also a New York Times Editor's Choice, Indie Next pick, recipient of starred reviews from Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and BookPage; and has been featured in The New Yorker, Harper's Bazaar, Oprah Daily, The Root, NPR, Buzzfeed, and Thrillist; amongst others. The workfeatures elements of mystery, horror, myth, and graphic novels to showcase the complexity and vibrance of African diaspora cultures and identities. She is a professor of English at the University of Alabama where she teaches creative writing courses that explore her eclectic literary interests: ranging from graphic novels to medical humanities onto exploring works by female authors in genres such as horror, Afrofuturism, and mystery.

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Content advisory: Partner abuse, pregnancy loss.

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Book Club: 'The Secret Lives of Church Ladies' Sep 27, 2022

This month marked the two-year anniversary of the publication of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, author Deesha Philyaw’s groundbreaking and award-winning debut short story collection that examined the inner lives of Black women as they navigate relationships, sex, and the church.

On Episode 14 of Ursa Short Fiction, Dawnie Walton digs into the stories with her co-host Philyaw, and gets some hints on what might be in store for the characters as Philyaw and Tessa Thompson are adapting The Secret Lives of Church Ladies for HBO Max.

Philyaw’s collection won the 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, the 2020/2021 Story Prize, and the 2020 LA Times Book Prize: The Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction and was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction. Philyaw is a Kimbilio Fiction Fellow and the 2022-2023 John and Renée Grisham Writer-in-Residence at the University of Mississippi.

Get the full transcript here.

Episode edited by Kelly Araja.

From Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

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Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s Creative Journey from Lawyer to Award-Winning Writer Aug 31, 2022

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton are joined by Maurice Carlos Ruffin, author of the short story collection The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You. That acclaimed 2021 bookincludes “Ghetto University,” the story we featured previously on the show.

Ruffin talks about the inspiration he takes from his native New Orleans, and his journey from a “three-piece suit-wearing, BMW-driving lawyer” to putting all of his energy into becoming a writer and telling the stories he was meant to tell.

Read the full transcript.

About the Author

Maurice Carlos Ruffin is the author of The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You, a New York Times Editor’s Choice that was also longlisted for the Story Prize. His first book, We Cast a Shadow, was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the PEN America Open Book Prize. Ruffin is the winner of several literary prizes, including the Iowa Review Award in fiction. A New Orleans native, Ruffin is a professor of Creative Writing at Louisiana State University, and the 2020-2021 John and Renee Grisham Writer-in-Residence at the University of Mississippi.

Episode Links and Reading List:

“Ghetto University” (Ursa)
The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You (One World, 2021)
We Cast a Shadow (One World, 2020)
“Leaving the Law Behind for My Dream Job” (Oldster, 2021)
About Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s newsletter
New Stories from the South (edited by ZZ Packer, 2008)

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

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Story: 'Ghetto University,' by Maurice Carlos Ruffin Aug 24, 2022

A professor in New Orleans loses his job and resorts to a new line of work – mugging tourists in the French Quarter.

“Ghetto University” is a short story by Maurice Carlos Ruffin, featured in his 2021 collection, The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You.

Listen to the story here, and read along at ursastory.com/ghetto-university

Then come back next week for Ruffin’s in-depth conversation with Ursa Short Fiction co-hosts Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton.

About the Author

Maurice Carlos Ruffin is the author of The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You, a New York Times Editor’s Choice that was also longlisted for the Story Prize. His first book, We Cast a Shadow, was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the PEN America Open Book Prize. Ruffin is the winner of several literary prizes, including the Iowa Review Award in fiction. A New Orleans native, Ruffin is a professor of Creative Writing at Louisiana State University, and the 2020-2021 John and Renee Grisham Writer-in-Residence at the University of Mississippi.

Episode Links and Reading List:

“Ghetto University” (Ursa)
The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You (One World, 2021)
About Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s newsletter

Story Credits

“Ghetto University”

Written by Maurice Carlos Ruffin

Performed by Allan Thomas

Directed by Adetola Abdulkadir

Sound Design and Mixing by Alicia Qian

Illustrations by Anthony Santagati

Music: “Zizu de Calp,” Blue Dot Studios

Executive Producers: Dawnie Walton & Mark Armstrong

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

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The Life and Stories of Diane Oliver, Part Two (with Michael A. Gonzales) Aug 17, 2022

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton welcome writer Michael A. Gonzales for part two of our deep dive into the life and work of Diane Oliver, who published six short stories before her death at age 22. (Part one of our series is here.)

Gonzales published an essay about Diane Oliver in The Bitter Southerner earlier this year, and he talks about his work digging into the archives to put a spotlight on Black authors who never got the recognition they deserved. His column for Catapult, The Blacklist, has shared stories about authors including Charlotte Carter, Julian Mayfield, Henry Dumas, and Darius James.

Get the full transcript.

About the Author

Harlem native Michael A. Gonzales is a cultural critic/short story scribe who has written for The Hopkins Review, The Paris Review, Longreads, Wax Poetics and Soulhead.com. Gonzales writes true crime articles for Crimereads.com and wrote the series The Blacklist about out-of-print Black authors for Catapult. His fiction has appeared in Under the Thumb: Stories of Police Oppression edited by S.A. Cosby, Killens Review of Arts & Letters, Dead-End Jobs: A Hit Man Anthology edited by Andrew J. Rausch, Black Pulp edited by Gary Phillips and The Root. His latest short story "Really Gone" was published in the Summer 2022 issue of the Oxford American.

Episode Links and Reading List:

“The Short Stories and Too-Short Life of Diane Oliver” (Michael A. Gonzales, The Bitter Southerner, 2022)
Ursa Short Fiction, Episode Nine: The Life and Stories of Diane Oliver, Part One
“Mint Juleps Not Served Here” (Diane Oliver, Negro Digest, March 1967)
The Blacklist essay series on out-of-print books from Black authors (Michael A. Gonzales, Catapult)
Sticking It to the Man: Revolution and Counterculture in Pulp and Popular Fiction, 1950 to 1980 (2019)
“Beautiful Women, Ugly Scenes: On Novelist Nettie Jones and the Madness of ‘Fish Tales’” (Michael A. Gonzales, Longreads, 2019)

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

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The Life and Short Stories of Diane Oliver (Part One) Aug 09, 2022

Content advisory: This episode contains a mention of a racist slur.

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton's two-part book club discussion on the life and work of Diane Oliver, who published six short stories before her life was tragically cut short in May 1966 at the age of 22.

Oliver was just a month away from graduating from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop when she was killed in a motorcycle accident in Iowa City, Iowa.

Philyaw and Walton first discovered Oliver’s stories from writer Michael A. Gonzales, who wrote an essay about Oliver for The Bitter Southerner. In part one of Ursa’s book club episode, they go in-depth on four of Oliver’s short stories: “Key to the City,” “Health Service,” “Traffic Jam,” and “Neighbors.”

Full episode transcript.

Episode Links and Reading List:

The Short Stories and Too-Short Life of Diane Oliver (Michael A. Gonzales, The Bitter Southerner, 2022)
“Key to the City” (Red Clay Reader II, 1965)
“Health Service” (Negro Digest, November 1965)
“Traffic Jam” (Negro Digest, July 1966)
“Neighbors” (The Sewanee Review, 1966)
Diane Oliver obituary (Jet, 1966)

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

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Cleyvis Natera on ‘Fog,’ Staying True to Your Voice, and Embracing Short Stories as Play Jul 25, 2022

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton chat with author Cleyvis Natera, author of the new Ursa Original short story, “Fog,” and the recently published debut novel Neruda on the Park.

Read the full transcript.

About the Author

Cleyvis Natera is the author of the debut novel Neruda on the Park. She was born in the Dominican Republic and raised in New York City. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Skidmore College and a Master of Fine Arts in Fiction from New York University. She’s received honors from PEN America, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts and Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation (VONA). Her fiction, essays and criticism have appeared in The New York Times Review of Books, The Brooklyn Rail, The Rumpus, Alien Nation: 36 True Tales of Immigration, TIME, Gagosian Quarterly, The Washington Post, The Kenyon Review, Aster(ix) and Kweli Journal, among other publications. Cleyvis teaches creative writing to undergraduate and graduate students in New York City. She lives with her husband and two young children in Montclair, New Jersey.

Episode Links and Reading List:

“Fog” (Ursa)
Neruda on the Park (2022)
“Played or How I Failed at Becoming a Chapiadora” (Kweli Journal, 2019)
In Cuba I Was a German Shepherd by Ana Menéndez (2002)

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Support Future Episodes of Ursa Short Fiction

Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Story: 'Fog,' by Cleyvis Natera Jul 18, 2022

Content warning: explicit language, sex, depiction of violence.

Author Cleyvis Natera debuts her original short story “Fog.” It’s the story of a worker at a Dominican resort who caters to high-end clients and must confront the choices he’s made to elevate his status and seek a different life for himself.

Read Along

Listen to the story in your favorite podcast app, and read along at ursastory.com/fog.

Support Ursa

Help us fund future episodes. Become a Member at ursastory.com/join.

Story Credits

“Fog” is edited by Dawnie Walton and performed by Alberto “Mojo” Peña, with music and sound design by Alexis Adimora, illustrations by Bex Glendining, and audio engineering by Deon Vozov (LA Voiceover). Ursa executive producers are Dawnie Walton and Mark Armstrong.

About the Author

Cleyvis Natera is the author of the debut novel Neruda on the Park. She was born in the Dominican Republic and raised in New York City. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Skidmore College and a Master of Fine Arts in Fiction from New York University. She’s received honors from PEN America, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts and Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation (VONA). Her fiction, essays and criticism have appeared in The New York Times Review of Books, The Brooklyn Rail, The Rumpus, Alien Nation: 36 True Tales of Immigration, TIME, Gagosian Quarterly, The Washington Post, The Kenyon Review, Aster(ix) and Kweli Journal, among other publications. Cleyvis teaches creative writing to undergraduate and graduate students in New York City. She lives with her husband and two young children in Montclair, New Jersey.

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Chelsea T. Hicks on the Stories and Wazhazhe Language in 'A Calm & Normal Heart' Jul 05, 2022

Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton dive into the short stories of the acclaimed new collection A Calm & Normal Heart, with its author, Chelsea T. Hicks.

Hicks is a member of the Osage Nation, and the collection, published in June 2022 by Unnamed Press, also incorporates her ancestral language of Wazhazhe ie (which translates to “Osage talk”). The collection opens with a poem in the orthography, along with the Latinized spelling and English translation.

Read the full episode transcript.

Support Future Episodes:

Become a Member in Apple Podcasts or at ursastory.com/join.

About Chelsea T. Hicks

Chelsea T. Hicks is a model, author and current Tulsa Artist Fellow. She is a Native Arts & Cultures Foundation 2021 LIFT Awardee and her writing has been published in McSweeney’s, Yellow Medicine Review, the LA Review of Books, Indian Country Today, The Believer, The Audacity, The Paris Review, and elsewhere. She is a past Writing By Writers Fellow, a 2016 Wah-Zha-Zhi Woman Artist featured by the Osage Nation Museum, and a 2020 finalist for the Eliza So Fellowship for Native American women writers.

Her advocacy work has included recruiting with the Virginia Indian Pre-College Outreach Initiative (VIP-COI), Northern and Southern California Osage diaspora groups, and heritage language creative writing and revitalization workshops. She authored poetry for the sound art collection Onomatopoeias For Wrangell-St. Elias, funded by the Double Hoo Grant at the University of Virginia, where she was awarded the Peter & Phyllis Pruden scholarship for excellence in the English major as well as the University Achievement Award (2008-2012). The Ford Foundation awarded her a 2021 honorable mention for promotion of Indigenous-language creative writing. She is planning an Indigenous language creative writing Conference for November 2022 in Tulsa, funded by an Interchange art grant.

Episode Links and Reading List:

A Calm & Normal Heart(2022)
Of Wazhazhe Land and Language: The Ongoing Project of Ancestral Work (Lit Hub)
Osage writing system and orthography
There There, by Tommy Orange (2019)
Invisible Cities, Italo Calvino (1978)
Night of the Living Rez, by Morgan Talty (2022)
America Is Not the Heart, by Elaine Castillo (2019)
Men We Reaped: A Memoir, by Jesmyn Ward (2014)
Heads of the Colored People, by Nafissa Thompson-Spires (2019)
Milk Blood Heat, by Dantiel W. Moniz (2021)
Nobody's Magic, by Destiny O. Birdsong (2022)
You Don't Know Us Negroes, by Zora Neale Hurston

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

William Pei Shih on ‘Happy Family,’ Flawed Characters, and the Messiness of Life Jun 22, 2022

Co-hosts Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton speak with writer William Pei Shih, author of the Ursa Original “Happy Family,” a story about a lost childhood, a struggling restaurant, and a bygone era of Chinatown. (Warning: This episode contains “Happy Family” spoilers.)

Read the transcript.

“Your character has to fail in telling their story,” Shih says. “I think that's one of the beautiful things about fiction. It truly is the messiness of life.”

Shih’s stories have been published or are forthcoming in The Best American Short Stories 2020, VQR, McSweeney’s, and The Southern Review, among many other publications. He spoke with Philyaw and Walton about his approach to writing and developing characters, how “Happy Family” first came to life, and how hearing the audio version changed his storytelling approach.

This episode is sponsored by Catapult: Award-winning classes by writers, for writers. Ursa listeners get 20% off upcoming online classes with the coupon code URSA20. Go to catapult.co/classes.

Additional production support for this episode by Veronica Smith.

Episode Links and Reading List:

“Happy Family” (Ursa)
“Enlightenment” (VQR)
“Necessary Evils” (Southern Review)
What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky, by Lesley Nneka Arimah
Cleanness, by Garth Greenwell
Look How Happy I’m Making You, by Polly Rosenwaike

More from William Pei Shih:

"The Golden Arowana"(The Masters Review),about a precious and rare fish, a young man and his grandmother from China, and the road trip of a lifetime—to Pittsburgh, and what happens when one finds more than they bargained for.
"My Son,"(F(r)iction, Spring 2021),a story focusing on father/son cross-generational and cross-cultural struggles and miscommunications.
More stories:https://williampeishih.com/home/publications/

More from Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton:

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, by Deesha Philyaw
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev, by Dawnie Walton

Support Ursa by becoming a Member in Apple Podcasts, or by going to ursastory.com/join

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join

Story: 'Happy Family,' by William Pei Shih Jun 22, 2022

Content warning: This story contains an intense depiction of abuse / physical violence.

An Ursa original audio story: “Happy Family,” by William Pei Shih. It’s the story of a lost childhood, a struggling restaurant, and a bygone era of Chinatown.

Read along at ursastory.com/happy

Interview with William Pei Shih.

“Happy Family”

Written by William Pei Shih

Story edited by Dawnie Walton

Audio story produced, directed, and sound designed by Alicia Qian

Illustrated by Christina Chung

Music by Jiro Yoshioka

Performed by Aria Song

Audio Engineering: David Verdugo (Demun Studios) and Deon Vozov (LA Voiceover)

Executive Producers: Dawnie Walton and Mark Armstrong

Distributed by Lit Hub Radio

Support Ursa by becoming a Member in Apple Podcasts, or by going to ursastory.com/join

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Introducing Ursa: Why We Love Short Fiction Jun 06, 2022

Acclaimed authors Deesha Philyaw (The Secret Lives of Church Ladies) and Dawnie Walton (The Final Revival of Opal & Nev) introduce Ursa Short Fiction, a new anthology podcast dedicated to celebrating short stories, with a spotlight on underrepresented voices. Join us for author interviews, book club chats, and audio stories from some of your favorite writers and emerging talent.

Transcript: https://ursastory.com/introducing-ursa-short-fiction-podcast/

Support Ursa: https://ursastory.com/join