Episode 354
with Night Vale's Joseph Fink & Jeffrey Cranor, Danez Smith, Edan Lepucki, and Chad VanGaalen
Luke Burbank kicks off the “Cautionary Tales” episode with a harrowing anecdote about his dog’s actual tail; Welcome to Night Vale creators Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor provide some techniques for concentrating on art during trying political times; poet Danez Smith deconstructs wokeness; author Edan Lepucki shares her methods for conjuring a "female snarl" writing state; and musician and animator Chad VanGaalen performs the track “Static Shape.”
Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor
TV Show Creators
Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor are the creators of the Welcome to Night Vale and Alice Isn't Dead podcasts, and the New York Times bestselling authors of Welcome to Night Vale, It Devours!, and The Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives in Your Home and Alice Isn’t Dead. Twitter • Twitter
Danez Smith
Poet
Danez Smith is a Black, Queer, Poz writer & performer from St. Paul, MN. Danez is the author of Don’t Call Us Dead (Graywolf Press, 2017), winner of the Forward Prize for Best Collection, the Midwest Booksellers Choice Award, and a finalist for the National Book Award, and "[insert] boy" (YesYes Books, 2014), winner of the Kate Tufts Discovery Award and the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry. They are the recipient of fellowships from the Poetry Foundation, the McKnight Foundation, the Montalvo Arts Center, Cave Canem, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Danez's work has been featured widely including on Buzzfeed, The New York Times, PBS NewsHour, Best American Poetry, Poetry Magazine, and on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Danez has been featured as part of Forbes’ annual 30 Under 30 list and is the winner of a Pushcart Prize. Website • Twitter
Edan Lepucki
Author
Edan Lepucki is the author of the novella If You’re Not Yet Like Me and the novels California and Woman No. 17. California debuted at #3 on the New York Times Bestseller List and was a #1 bestseller on the Los Angeles Times and San Francisco Chronicle bestsellers lists. California was a fall 2014 selection of Barnes & Noble’s Discover Great New Writers program. Edan and Stephen Colbert are now besties. Website • Insta
Chad VanGaalen
Musician and Animator
Chad VanGaalen is a Canadian musician and artist. Following a few scattered independent releases, done mostly on homemade CDs with hand-drawn art, VanGaalen released Infiniheart (2004) on Canadian independent label Flemish Eye. Infiniheart, a collection of songs selected from recordings made in his bedroom/makeshift studio, was picked up in 2005 by indie label Sub Pop.[3] In late 2005, the album was re-released with a bonus six-song EP entitled Green Beans. Listen • Twitter
