author

James Lipton (BSS #150)

James Lipton is most recently the author of Inside Inside. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Stepping away to preserve his dubious legacy. Author: James Lipton Subjects Discussed: Lipton’s balance between writing about Inside the Actors Studio and writing about himself, throwing actors out of the Actors Studio, whether or not Lipton is still perfecting aspects about […]

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Steven Pinker (BSS #147)

Steven Pinker is most recently the author of The Stuff of Thought. Condition of Mr. Segundo: He knows his first name is not Steven. Author: Steven Pinker Subjects Discussed: The Starbucks coffee cup size hierarchy, L.A. Story, “divorce project” and unusual noun phrase connotations, perceptive illusions in language, connotation and denotation, polysemy, campus slang and […]

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Danica McKellar (BSS #146)

Danica McKellar is the author of Math Doesn’t Suck. [PROGRAM NOTE: For background on this podcast, see this post.] Condition of Mr. Segundo: Contemplating mathematical positions. Author: Danica McKellar Subjects Discussed: Whether the relationship between prime numbers and monkeys is equitable, metaphorical criteria, factor trees, teenage girls and shopping, “fun and friendly” math, relying upon […]

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Jeff Parker (BSS #145)

Jeff Parker is most recently the author of Ovenman. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Contemplating memories in a pizzeria. Author: Jeff Parker Subjects Discussed: Growing up in Florida, working in a pizzeria, John Sheppard’s Small Town Punk, the working class in fiction, setting the book in the early ’90’s, unexpected parallels to current events, music references, […]

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David Peace (BSS #144)

David Peace is most recently of Tokyo Year Zero. [podpress] Condition of Mr. Segundo: Empathizing with surnames. Author: David Peace Subjects Discussed: Why it took so long to set a book in Japan, stereotypes, research, the occupation period, the effects of serial killers, language and repetition, dissociation, Japan vs. the UK, Zodiac, police investigation, the […]

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Katha Pollitt (BSS #143)

Katha Pollitt is most recently the author of Learning to Drive. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Dwelling on legal inconsistencies. Author: Katha Pollitt Subjects Discussed: The pragmatism in learning to drive, being lazy, observation as a strength and weakness, “webstalking” vs. Googling, responding to Toni Bentley’s review, what a feminist is supposed to be, whether or […]

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Brian Francis Slattery (BSS #142)

Brian Francis Slattery is most recently the author of Spaceman Blues. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Objecting to snobbish Manhattan types who use three names. Author: Brian Francis Slattery Subjects Discussed: Matt Cheney’s “leap of faith,” paranoia, the advantages of writing in Guatemala, secret economies, food as cultural shorthand, the underground world of Darktown, H.P. Lovecraft […]

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Chimamanda Adichie (BSS #141)

Chimamanda Adichie is most recently the author of Half of a Yellow Sun. [powerppress] Condition of Mr. Segundo: Finding uses for his Kleenex supply. Author: Chimamanda Adichie Subjects Discussed: Young novelists and ambitious war novels, horrible Nigerian critics, the novel as the ideal prism for the Biafra conflict, A Woman in Berlin, the advantages of […]

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George Saunders (BSS #139)

George Saunders is most recently the author of The Braindead Megaphone. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Feeling a little dead down there. Author: George Saunders Subjects Discussed: Writing fragmentary travelogue pieces, trying not to pre-process experiences, observational criteria, Dubai, responding to Ben Ehrenreich’s claim of “pulled punches,” journalistic integrity, on taking people to task, writing comprehensive […]

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Rupert Thomson II, Part Two (BSS #138)

Rupert Thomson is most recently the author of Death of a Murderer. [This is the second of an in-depth, two-part conversation with Rupert Thomson, conducted over the course of two days. The first part, which can be heard in Show #137, details primarily with Death of a Murderer. The second part extends into his career. […]

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Rupert Thomson II, Part One (BSS #137)

Rupert Thomson is most recently the author of Death of a Murderer. [This is the first of an in-depth, two-part conversation with Rupert Thomson, conducted over the course of two days. The first part details primarily with Death of a Murderer. The second part, which can be heard in Show #138, extends into his career. […]

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Antoine Wilson (BSS #136)

Antoine Wilson is most recently the author of The Interloper. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Finding creative ways of using Photoshop. Author: Antoine Wilson Subjects Discussed: Tonal beacons within The Interloper, Martin Amis, stifling the Nabokovian influence, frisbees and sex, conformist thinking, allusions to Sisyphus, technical writing, emotional candor, psychological experiments, generic establishments, reflection vs. invention, […]

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