The Drunken Odyssey with John King: A Podcast About the Writing Life

Hosted ByJohn King

Join author John King for eclectic interviews with writers from a variety of genres, including fiction writing, poetry, memoirs, and journalism. From literature to genre writing to the movies, all writing is up for discussion. In particular, The Drunken Odyssey features discussion of all aspects of the writing process—not just the published manuscript, pristinely presented to the entire literate world, but also the scrawled notes and tortured drafts that lead writers there. In long-form interviews, writers discuss their process and the way that writing has influenced their lives. Besides this interview, each episode also features a short memoir essay from a writer about a beloved book, plus John King responds to listener’s questions and observations about the writing (and the drinking) life.


All Episodes

665: Jaydra Johnson!

In this week’s show, John speaks with Jaydra Johnson about her new book, Low: Notes on Art and Trash, and the tensions and connections between class perception, politics, and creation of art.

664: Rigoberto Gonzales & Richard Blanco!

On today’s show, I speak with the poet and editor Rigoberto Gonzales about the curation of the Library of America anthology of Latino Poetry. Then Richard Blanco reads “Como Tú,” his poem that is collected in that anthology, and he and I catch up a…

663: A Discussion of Bill Knott’s Corpse and Beans, with Rachael Tillman.

0On #633, Rachael Tillman and I discuss the surreal paradoxes and sullen joys of Bill Knott’s debut collection of poetry, , which was recently reprinted by Black Ocean Press.

662: Rufi Thorpe & Susan Minot (Interviewed by Samantha Nickerson)

On today’s episode, Samantha Nickerson speaks with fiction writer Rufi Thorpe about her striking novel Margo’s Got Money Problems. In this episode, you learn about more than just Margo’s money problems. Samantha and…

661: Kathy Fish!

In this episode, John interviews the notable flash fiction writer Kathy Fish about the anxious nuances of that medium and genre. Is flash fiction just a very short story, with all the rules of fiction at work? Or is flash fiction a less traditional,…

660: A Discussion About John D. MacDonald, with Andrew Gulli and Maynard MacDonald

In this episode, John discusses the career of crime novelist John D. MacDonald (1916-1986) in light of a new posthumous short story, “The Accomplice.” In this interview, John speaks with with Andrew Gulli, editor of The Strand Magazineabout the…

659: Duy Đoàn!

In 659, John talks to poet Duy Đoàn about his latest collection, Zombie Vomit Mad Libs, the poetic provocations of horror films, and experimenting with erasure and fragmentation.

Replay: Episode 99: Kseniya Melnik (2014)!

In this week’s replay episode, John talks with fellow classmate, the fiction writer Kseniya Melnik.

658: Denise Duhamel!

In this week’s show, John talks to the delightful poet about the nuts and bolts of poetry, the construction of themed collections, Barbie, and other matters of literary interest.

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