The Habit

Dr. Jessica Hooten Wilson, Associate Professor of English at John Brown University, is currently preparing the unfinished manuscript of Flannery O'Connor's last novel for publication. In this episode, Jonathan and Jessica geek out about Flannery O'Connor, exchange strategies for balancing academic writing and fiction, and discuss how reading poetry has made Jessica a better writer.  Writers who make Jessica Hooten Wilson want to write: Gina Ochsner (The Necessary Grace to Fall) Michael O'Brien (Father Elijah) Leif Enger (Virgil Wander) Flannery O'Connor (of course) Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mary Laura Philpott is the author of I Miss You When I Blink, a nationally bestselling memoir-in-essays. Her writing also appears in publications including The New York Times, The Paris Review Daily, The Washington Post, O The Oprah Magazine, and others. In this episode, Jonathan and Mary Laura talk about the unexpected correlations between perfectionism and humor, the fascinating question "Who were you before you wondered who you were?"  Mentioned in this episode:Jerry Seinfeld: How to Write a Joke Writers who make Mary Laura want to write: Maggie O'Farrell (I Am, I Am, I Am) Alexander Chee (How to Write an Autobiographical Novel) Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joseph Patton is a staff songwriter at Sony/ATV Music Publishing on Nashville's Music Row. In this episode, Jonathan and Joseph talk about what happens in Music Row writing rooms, the difference between songs that help people remember and songs that help people forget, and the tensions between commercialism and "loving thy listener." Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Karen Swallow Prior is the author of On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life Through Great Books. In this episode she talks with Jonathan about the instructive power of fictional worlds to shed light on our own, how fiction can teach us to love our enemies, and joy as a courageous act of imagination. Mentioned in this episode: Stylish Academic Writing, by Helen Sword Desiring the Kingdom, by James K.A. Smith Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shawn Smucker is the author of Light from Distant Stars (among other books). In this episode, Jonathan and Shawn discuss the nitty gritty of Shawn's writing habits, the unique challenges and rewards of ghostwriting, and how Shawn goes about encouraging and upholding creativity with his family at home. Mentioned in this episode: Ira Glass on the creative process (2 min. video) Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan and Kristy talk about her new book Papa Put a Man on the Moon (written in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landing), the process of writing and publishing picture books, the difference between "sweetie pies" and "smart alecks" in character arcs, and her own family's proximity to the moon landing itself. Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan and Helena (author of the Shiloh series) talk about balancing affirmation with criticism, the difference between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset, and the importance of maintaining sensitivity to the world. Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan and Doug discuss the search for "a word that rhymes with everything" and how this search characterizes Doug's writing process aesthetically, morally, and theologically. Doug McKelvey is the author of Every Moment Holy, a book of liturgies for everyday moments in life.  Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan and Russ go back and forth about the fine line between fact and fiction, the fallibility of human memory, and where truth comes from, specifically as these issues pertain to Russ's memoir Struck. Show Notes: This conversation starts with a quotation from Annie Dillard. It comes from the book Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir (edited by William Zinsser). Russ mentioned the "Free Brian Williams" episode of Malcolm Gladwell's podcast Revisionist History. Russ mentioned Jonathan's memoir, "Drunk Mailman." Here's the link. Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jonathan Rogers interviews Claire Gibson about her new book Beyond the Point, befriending our inner critics, writing as service, and the landscape of storytelling—and at the end, she even asks Jonathan a few questions. Subscribe to The Habit Weekly newsletter.Find out more about The Habit Membership.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.