Tag Archives: Memoir

01Mar/24

Curtis Chin

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March 1, 2024

It gives us great pleasure to present a Season 9, Episode 9 Interview – Curtis Chin

Curtis Chin joins us to share his memoir, Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant. We discuss that the book is not only a love-letter to Detroit, but a culmination of his many paths in life coming together.

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A co-founder of the Asian American Writers’ Workshop in New York City, Curtis Chin served as the non-profits’ first Executive Director. He went on to write for network and cable television before transitioning to social justice documentaries. Chin has screened his films at over 600 venues in twenty countries. He has written for CNN, Bon Appetit, the Detroit Free Press and the Emancipator/Boston Globe. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Chin has received awards from ABC/Disney Television, New York Foundation for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and more. His memoir, “Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant” will be published by Little, Brown in Fall 2023. His essay in Bon Appetit was just selected for Best Food Writing in America 2023.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWFMLkHdHQU[/embedyt]

23Feb/24

Larry Duplechan

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February 23, 2024

It gives us great pleasure to present a Season 9, Episode 8 Interview – Larry Duplechan

Larry Duplechan shares his memoir, Movies That Made Me Gay. We discuss the importance of film in queer lives, as well as why you should buy the book and host your own home film festival!

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Larry Duplechan is the author of five novels, including Blackbird (considered the first modern Black “coming-out” novel) and the Lambda Literary Award-winning Got ‘til it’s Gone; plus the movie memoir Movies That Made Me Gay. His hobbies include singing, playing the ukulele, reading show business biographies, and pursuing his ongoing quest to forestall the physical aging process and build truly outstanding pecs. He lives in Los Angeles with his husband of 47 years and a Chartreux cat named Mr. Blue.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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January 7, 2022

It gives us great pleasure to welcome Larry Duplechan as the guest on Season 7, Episode 1 – All Things Blackbird!

In this WROTE Reviews crossover episode we talk with Larry Duplechan about his novel Blackbird and its journey into becoming a film.

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Larry Duplechan is the author of five novels, including Blackbird (considered the first modern Black “coming-out” novel) and the Lambda Literary Award-winning Got ‘til it’s Gone. His hobbies include singing, playing the ukulele, reading show business biographies, and pursuing his ongoing quest to forestall the physical aging process and build truly outstanding pecs. He lives in Los Angeles with his husband of 38 years and a 17 pound Chartreux cat named Mr. Blue.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):

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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvgdvjSVgEw[/embedyt]

10Nov/23

Judy Kiehart

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November 10, 2023

It gives us great pleasure to present a Season 8, Episode 47 Interview – Judy Kiehart

Judy Kiehart introduces us to her memoir Calico Lane, and shares her journey through other people’s expectations on her life to where she arrived at the life that’s authentically her own.

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When Judy was little her mom told her, “Stop making things up.” She didn’t listen. In fact, she cannot remember a time when there wasn’t a story rambling around in her head leading her to scribble an idea into a notebook, a diary, or onto loose-leaf paper.

For a long time, the ideas remained scribbles. As the years passed, some of the ideas were crafted into short stories. Some of the short stories were adapted for the stage. Then, the scribbles became memory triggers for her latest journey: her memoir: Calico Lane.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRQx5ey1s1Y[/embedyt]

08Sep/23

MariNaomi

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September 8, 2023

It gives us great pleasure to present a Season 8, Episode 38 Interview – MariNaomi

MariNaomi joins us to share their collage-memoir, I Thought You Loved Me. We dive into their art style and the unlooked-for surprises in an artist’s life!

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MariNaomi is the award-winning author and illustrator of almost 10 books. Their work has appeared in nearly 100 print publications and has been featured on websites such as The New Yorker’s Daily Shouts, The Washington Post, LA Times, The Rumpus, LA Review of Books, Midnight Breakfast, SF Examiner, and BuzzFeed. Their comics have been translated into French, German, and Russian.
MariNaomi’s comics and paintings have been featured in the Smithsonian, the de Young Museum, the Cartoon Art Museum, the Asian Art Museum, and the Japanese American National Museum.
In 2011 and 2018, Mari toured with the literary roadshow Sister Spit. They are the founder and administrator of the Cartoonists of Color Database, the Queer Cartoonists Database, and the Disabled Cartoonists Database. They have taught classes for the California College of the Arts Comics MFA program, and was a guest editor for PEN Illustrated. They were cohost of the Ask Bi Grlz podcast with author Myriam Gurba.
MariNaomi lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with their partner and a menagerie of beloved rescue animals.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDDH6Mko2R4[/embedyt]

01Sep/23

Tate Barkley

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September 1, 2023

It gives us great pleasure to present a Season 8, Episode 37 Interview – Tate Barkley

Tate Barkley shares his memoir Sunday Dinners, Moonshine, and Men, plus why people wanted to hear the ending, and reveals the trials in his life that lead him to learning to forgive.

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Tate Barkley carried the burden of shame for years, stemming from poverty, addiction, and the struggle of being a closeted gay man. Through Alcoholics Anonymous, he found sobriety and now seeks to inspire others by sharing his transformative journey. His memoir, releasing this month, unveils his troubled relationship with his father and his path to overcoming shame and a scarcity mindset. Tate reflects on his challenging childhood from rural North Carolina to poverty in Central Florida, and their move to 1970s Houston. He details his battle with repressed sexuality and escalating drinking, leading to rock bottom. Tate’s story resonates as he pursues self-acceptance and inner peace. A Houston-based attorney, speaker, author, and educator, Tate lives with his husband, Anson, and their dog, Emerson.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djhDlK8QCaI[/embedyt]

23Jun/23

Felice Cohen

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June 23, 2023

It gives us great pleasure to present Season 8, Episode 27: Felice Cohen + our “Matteo Lane: Hair Plugs & Heartache” review!

Felice Cohen joins us to share her memoir, Half-In: A Coming of Age Memoir of Forbidden Love, which leads us into a discussion of forbidden love and moving forward. We also dive into how she rewrites classic fairy tails with an LGBTQ+ twist with her The Fancy Tales. Then we review Matteo Lane: Hair Plugs and Heartache, and share what’s won our weeks!

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Known nationally and internationally as the woman who lived in one of the world’s smallest apartments, Felice Cohen is the award-winning author of the bestselling books Half In: A Coming-of-Age Memoir of Forbidden Love, 90 Lessons for Living Large in 90 Square Feet (…or More) (inspired by the YouTube video of her tiny NYC studio with over 25 million views) and What Papa Told Me, about her grandfather’s life before, during and after the Holocaust.

Felice also writes The Fancy Tales, a modern day take on the versions of the classic fairy tales we grew up with. These tales take place in New York City with the magic happening in Central Park, and contain a wholesomely presented and slightly sophisticated LGBTQ+ twist. Felice splits her time between NYC and Cape Cod.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilrsUV-k2N8[/embedyt]

 

10Jun/22

Veronica Carrera

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June 10, 2022

It gives us great pleasure to welcome Veronica Carrera as the guest on Season 7, Episode 23 – Veronica Carrera + Our Review of Tangerine!

Veronica Carrera joins us to discuss her memoir 140 Miles of Life: A Remarkable Journey to Self Acceptance & Love! We discuss how she framed her themes of immigration, loss, faith, identity, love, and self acceptance within the legs of her Ironman experience. Then Baz and Vance review Tangerine and share who won the week for them!

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Veronica’s story of triumphing over adversity, not only offers hope and inspiration for readers to discover true inner wisdom and acceptance but may save lives!

Hers is a story of love, loss, courage and healing.

Today, she is an avid triathlete and passionate advocate for human rights, a highly sought-after speaker and a successful sales leader at one of the top tech companies in the world. She is also the creator/producer of the LinkedIn Live show 30 Minutes of Wisdom-Rising in Consciousness & Mindfulness.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):

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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXcCdS_4lTI[/embedyt]

25Mar/22

Shawn Hitchins

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March 25, 2022

It gives us great pleasure to welcome Shawn Hitchins as the guest on Season 7, Episode 12 – The Gurgle!

Shawn Hitchins joins shares his memoir The Light Streamed Beneath It. We discuss love, loss, and the journey back to comedy.

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Best known for sparking the global wave of Ginger Pride by marching hundreds of redheads through the streets of Edinburgh, Shawn Hitchins is an award-winning entertainer and author who has toured throughout Canada, the U.S., and the U.K. From stage to page, Hitchins moves his audiences with laugh-out-loud humor and devastating truth as he strives for a greater understanding of love, work, and family.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):

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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJbiyxQxwaY[/embedyt]

24Dec/21

Emory Easton

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December 24, 2021

It gives us great pleasure to welcome Emory Easton as the guest on Season 6, Episode 51 – I’m Not That Person Someone Told Me I Was

Emory Easton joins us to share her debut memoir Mother, Can You Hear Me Now? We talk about her early years of abuse, her recovery, and her happy ending as a grandmother alongside her true love of 36 years.

Reach out to Emory:

  • If you are being abused and need someone to talk to, Emory has asked that you email her at emoryeaston86 @ gmail.com (remove spaces) and she will listen, and try to help you find the help you need to rewrite your life’s story.

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Emory Easton is a writer and mother based in Illinois where she lives with her partner of thirty-six years. Her debut memoir, Mother, Can You Hear Me Now? tackles the abuse she endured as a child and the love she rediscovered as an adult.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):

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[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVDIlbqVBMQ[/embedyt]

03Dec/21

Mike Keren

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December 3, 2021

It gives us great pleasure to welcome Mike Keren as the guest on Season 6, Episode 48 – A Funny Book About Death & Dying!

Mike Keren brings us his memoir Four Funerals, No Marriage. We discuss his unique perspective as a health professional, caregiver, and patient as he unfolds his sense of humor relating to facing the end of life.

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Mike Keren is a clinical psychologist with advanced training in psychoanalysis and family therapy. He currently maintains a private practice for adults and couples in central New Jersey, though in the past he worked in a variety of community and correctional facilities. Although he has a general practice, he has a particular interest in working with caregivers as well as helping families talk about end-of-life issues.

Mike enjoys a challenge in his free time and has explored the world of competitive gay tournament bowling (several trophies and a bit of prize money), golf (bored to tears), and stand-up comedy. His foray into stand-up even became the subject of a friend’s senior thesis at film school. He eventually decided to leave the stage to the younger folks and channeled his humor into writing.

Mike is supported in his endeavors by his loving husband, Tom, and their two canine children, Carley and Clyde. They divide their time between central New Jersey and the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania.

This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):

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Or Listen Right Here:

OR Watch on YouTube:

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiofQZi1JFs[/embedyt]