Meghan Daum, author of The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion, talks with co-host Nicole Nelson about the advantages of going unseen in Los Angeles, her favorite essayists, and writing with humor–including, and perhaps especially–while talking about serious and upsetting things. 


Then novelist Siri Hustvedt, author of The Blazing World, discusses the crucial work of an author to find the emotional truth, the potential benefits of automatic writing, and starting a novel with only a glimmer or “smell” for the story.


Her PEN America workshop is titled “Why One Story and Not Another.”

Download audio. 


(Broadcast date: January 21, 2015)