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The podcast of the Anselm Society's Arts Guild. Join host Matt Mellema and a rotation of guests at the digital pub table for conversations about faith and storytelling. "Some things have to be believed to be seen." -Madeleine L'Engle
292 Episodes
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It is a truth universally acknowledged that Jane Austen is one of our greatest novelists. Her place in the literary canon is secure. Her influence on later generations is profound. But what about the novelists who influenced Jane Austen? Hardly anybody reads them nowadays, and they are not in the canon. Using Rebecca Romney's book Jane Austen's Bookshelf as a guide, Sarah, Matt, and Mandy discuss how strange this situation is. If Jane Austen thought a novel was great, shouldn't we want to read it? The co-hosts make the case for adding these forgotten authors into the literary canon.
Even people who don't follow sports know about the Dallas Cowboys. They're "America's Team." Giant stadiums and superstar players and Super Bowl victories. The team that's always in the news because of drama with their owner. But here's the thing: the Cowboys haven't been to a Super Bowl in 30 years. The images we have about the Cowboys' greatness come from a four-year run between 1992 and 1995. How could such a powerful story emerge from such a short span of winning? Matt invites Luke Moja—his friend and resident 90s sports expert—to the digital pub table to discuss the enduring myth-making and real-life Shakespearean drama that is the Dallas Cowboys.
For many people, audiobooks are the primary way they engage with novels. Other people view audiobooks as something lesser that doesn't really "count" as reading. What are the benefits (and drawbacks) of audiobooks? Of e-readers? Of old-fashioned paper books? The cohosts debate all this and more during this roundtable.
Ashlee Cowles returns to the digital pub table. She's both an Arts Guild member and one half of the AD Rhine writing duo. Their latest novel, Daughters of Bronze, concludes their retelling of the Trojan War from the viewpoint of four Trojan women. Cowles discusses the ways she grounded the novel in history, and how she was able to find hope—even in the doom of Troy.
To celebrate the holidays, Believe to See is re-airing episodes from past Christmases. Or should we say from Christmas Past? "Is It a Christmas Movie?" first aired on December 3, 2022.
To Celebrate the week of Christmas, Believe to See is re-airing episodes from past Christmases . . . Should we say from Christmas Past? "12 Days of Christmas Carol" first aired on December 29, 2020.
The clear majority of literary novels are read by women. The clear majority are written by women, too. Women also dominate the publishing industry around these books. As a result, more and more men are feeling alienated by this new literary landscape. What's led to this shift in the literary world? Is the development good, bad, or neutral? Matt, Mandy, and Christina delve into this multi-faceted issue.
Ali Gilkeson is a founding member of Rend Collective. She's also a best-selling children's author. Her latest book, "Keeping the Light," is newly-published from WaterBrook Multnomah. Gilkeson joins the digital pub table to discuss how her background with Rend Collective has influenced her writing. She also explores the enduring symbolic power of the lighthouse. https://www.aligilkeson.com/
How will people in the future, say 500 years from now, view today's art? What are the novels, movies, and songs that will still be relevant and important to people in the year 2525? Each of the co-hosts offers their best guess.
When most of us hear " dulcimer," we think of Irish peasants in the Middle Ages. Or maybe that "damsel with a dulcimer" in the poem "Kubla Khan." The actual hammered dulcimer, however, is something else entirely. It's a unique blend of percussion and stringed instruments with ancient roots across the world. And it's capable of creating gorgeous music. Musician and composer Joshua Messick joins the table to discuss all things hammered dulcimer. He's composed ten albums of hammered dulcimer music, and played for the soundtracks of major movies and video games. He explains the hammered dulcimer's unique ability to tell a story through its music.
Author Neve Foster joins the table to discuss her new novel, Of Ink and Spirit. Along the way, she makes a shocking revelation. Neve Foster is, in fact, the pen name for Anselm's own Evangeline Denmark! Evangeline—err, Neve—discusses her novel's long journey to print and its grounding in Japanese folklore. She also talks about co-founding a new publishing co-op: Unity Inkworks.
You know the saying, but is it accurate? Perhaps if we said shouldn't instead of can't, it would ring true. The fact is, we do judge books by their covers, all the time. Join our cohosts in a discussion of what makes a book cover good, bad, memorable, or even misleading.
Middle grade fantasy author Carolyn Leiloglou returns to the pub table to chat about the conclusion of her award-winning Restorationists trilogy, Beyond the Far Horizon (available 09/09/2025). Carolyn grew up surrounded by the paintings of her art collector grandparents and took that love into her stories. But her characters are not only surrounded by art--they climb into the paintings themselves and travel between them. Join us for a conversation about the God-given impulse to create, what stops young people (and old) from pursuing that impulse, famous paintings, infamous art heists, and more.
Did you know that your everyday experience with color has a deep effect on your brain? And why have you always hated yellow, anyway? Popular psychology argues that our favorite colors say a lot about us, often claiming that our favorite colors are linked to our personality profiles. Is there any truth to that? Can our favorite colors tell us something about ourselves? Join our roundtable as we discuss this question and more, turning to painter Mark Rothko's masterful approach, using the relationship between color and the human brain to engage his audience.
JL Gerhardt is an author and partner at Hazefire Studios, where she and her husband, Justin Gerhardt, collaborate on the podcast Holy Ghost Stories. Gerhardt joins the table to talk about one of Hazefire's recent podcast projects: "The Happiest Saddest People." JL Gerhardt writes and narrates these episodes, which are a memoir of her own life, with reflections of faith, memory, and loss. It's also really excellent. Just the first episode alone is emotionally gutting and profound. And this memoir—which is also a theological reflection—takes place in the context of a beautifully produced podcast.
Chapter books are important. Their target audience is kids between about ages 6 and 10, and they play a major role in developing young readers. Author Leilani Mueller knows all about writing for this age group. She's the author of a brand-new chapter book called All Aboard the Grandparents Express. The book explores grief, loss, and imagination from the perspective of its 8-year-old narrator. Leilani describes the process of writing a good and beautiful book for the youngest readers.
Summer may be over, but Beach Reads are always relevant. We all have a favorite Beach Read: a story that is fun and immersive, but not necessarily deep or literary. But how do we feel about Beach Reads as a concept? After all, Believe to See's goal is to help connect the Great Story, the great stories, and our own stories. How do Beach Reads fit into these great stories? Do they fit at all? Is it possible to be the sort of person who cares deeply about the great stories, and who also enjoys a fun beach read?
Kreg Yingst is a printmaker, painter, and writer whose work can be found in both private and corporate collections--or in one of his several books. His medium of choice is printmaking, using an antique Showcard proof press to print his hand-carved wood blocks or linoleum sheets onto paper or wood. Join Mandy and guest co-host Isaac Hans as they talk with Kreg about his art, his books, and how the very act of making art can be a prayer. (Find him on Instagram here where he posts his original art as psalmprayers.)
Meredith Davis is the author of the Amazing Adventures of Noah Minor series. These middle grade superhero stories draw inspiration from classic comic books and the science of imagination. Davis joins the pub table to discuss how her stories use superheroes to explore themes of friendship, integrity, and self-control.
Will Parker Anderson is a senior editor at Waterbrook and Multnomah (an imprint of Penguin Random House). He's also an important resource as a writing coach and book industry expert. Will discusses how to navigate the often fraught waters of the Christian nonfiction market, and how we can all help support work that is excellent and edifying.
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