Circulating Ideas

Steve chats with Gene Ambaum, creator and writer of the webcomic Library Comic, about his new Library Game on Kickstarter, the origins and mechanics of the game, collaborating with his Library Comic artist Willow Payne to create the cards, and how real-life library experiences (including a memorably nude patron!) find their way into his work. … Continue reading 323: Library Game Kickstarter with Gene Ambaum

Steve chats with Bobbi L. Newman and Sam Helmick about their recent Inside Higher Ed article, “The Case for a Professional Foundation in Librarianship,” about their spirited defense of the MLS degree, the shared ethical foundation that library school instills in its students, the importance of growing diversity through widening access rather than lowering standards, … Continue reading 322: The Case for a Professional Foundation in Librarianship, with Bobbi L. Newman and Sam Helmick

Steve chats with Erin Jones, editor of the new 11th edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual from the American Library Association’s Office of Intellectual Freedom, about her winding path from theater studies into librarianship, how she reshaped this edition to be more accessible by writing in plain language, adding personal stories, and diversifying contributor voices, … Continue reading 321: Intellectual Freedom Manual, with Erin Jones

Steve chats with Alma Katsu, author of the new book Incarnate, about her CIA background into early social media research, AI’s threat to creativity and authenticity, the story’s parallels with Picture of Dorian Gray, and the diversity of voices in the current golden age of the horror genre. Then over on the Circ Desk, NoveList … Continue reading 320: Incarnate by Alma Katsu – Summer Reading Spectacular 2026

Steve chats with Araminta Hall, author of Unreliable Narrator, about the literary concept of an “unreliable narrator,” what it means for writers to be “burglars of life,” how teaching writing changes her own writing, what it was like to have a previous novel adapted by Apple TV, and who gets to tell your story. Then … Continue reading 319: Unreliable Narrator by Araminta Hall – Summer Reading Spectacular 2026