fiction/non/fiction

American writers ZZ Packer and Nafkote Tamirat join co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell from Paris to talk about recent mass demonstrations across France. They explain how the movement originated at the start of the academic year, with high school students protesting the state of education, and subsequently snowballed to include broad agitation with trade unions and others over poor socioeconomic conditions. Packer and Tamirat discuss the history and structure of the French education system and trace how students came to contend with crumbling buildings and old textbooks. The writers reflect on narratives around property damage versus harm to people and share stories of navigating teargas and confusion amidst the protests. Packer, who was on a brief stint at the American University of Paris, and Tamirat, who is also affiliated with the university and lives in France full-time, also talk about the role of the police in escalating violence. They respond to questions about the protests’ potential impact on spring elections and assess the possibility of real change.To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/This podcast is produced by V.V. Ganeshananthan, Whitney Terrell, Eric Thong, Archer Walsh, and Elizabeth Willis.ZZ PackerDrinking Coffee ElsewhereNafkote TamiratThe Parking Lot AttendantTeret Teret  (forthcoming)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Co-hosts Whitney Terrell, V.V. Ganeshananthan, and Jennifer Maritza McCauley are joined by poet and essayist Kathryn Nuernberger, a frequent guest and longtime friend of the show, for a look back at the past decade of episodes. The quartet discuss the show’s origins, its focus on the Midwest and the globe, how the hosts prep for interviews, and how they think about the show’s tagline: “We believe that every issue in your social media feed or on the evening news has already been tackled somewhere in literature.”To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/This podcast is produced by V.V. Ganeshananthan, Whitney Terrell, Rylee Adamson, Valen Williams, and Lucien Hockaday. Co-HostsWhitney Terrell Jennifer Maritza McCauleyV. V. GaneshananthanChristian BarterGuestKathryn NuernbergerHeld: Essays in BelongingThe Witch of EyeEpisodes Mentioned:Fiction/Non/Fiction Season 1, Episode 1: The Art of Taking a Knee: Colin Kaepernick EditionFiction/Non/Fiction Season 1, Episode 4: We’re All Russian, NowFiction/Non/Fiction Season 1, Episode 12: C. Riley Snorton and T Fleischmann Talk Gender, Freedom, and TransitivityFiction/Non/Fiction Season 2, Episode 1: MFA vs. Everything: Four Writers Weigh InFiction/Non/Fiction Season 3, Episode 19: Black Stories Matter: Terrion Williamson and Jabari Asim on Narrative During the George Floyd ProtestsFiction/Non/Fiction Season 4, Episode 3: Monsters for President: Maria Dahvana Headley on Modern MythmakingFiction/Non/Fiction Season 4, Episode 16: Michael Kleber-Diggs and Kao Kalia Yang on How Minnesota’s Literary Community Is Reacting to Racial InjusticeFiction/Non/Fiction Season 7, Episode 18: Glenn North on Kansas City’s Jazz, Poetry, and BarbequeFiction/Non/Fiction Season 9, Episode 30: Rebecca Lehmann on Anne Boleyn, Trump, and TreasonFiction/Non/Fiction Season 9, Episode 41: Lupe Mendez on Texas Politics and the Killing of Lorenzo Salgado AraujoFiction/Non/Fiction Season 9, Episode 45: Aruni Kashyap on India’s Cockroach Youth MovementSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sociologist Nicole Bedera joins co-hosts V.V Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to talk about the Cornell 7 and her book, On the Wrong Side: How Universites Protect Perpetrators and Betray Survivors of Sexual Violence. She explains how the Cornell case, in which a student said she was gang-raped at a fraternity party at the Ivy League institution, falls into a long tradition of universities mishandling reports of sexual violence. Bedera describes the history of Title IX, which forbids discrimination on the basis of sex, and pinpoints how sexual violence came to fall under its framework. She considers how Title IX’s effectiveness has fluctuated since its establishment in 1972, and especially under the Trump administration, which during its first stint shifted regulations in a way that made it easier for universities to avoid accountability. Bedera discusses what universities stand to gain from improper handling of sexual violence cases and why administrators insist on referring to such cases as isolated, rather than representing systemic problems. She also addresses common misconceptions about sexual violence and Title IX investigations. Bedera reflects on her time as a victim advocate, using her experience to conduct fieldwork at an anonymized Title IX office, and how Title IX could be reimagined as a state agency to be more effective. She reads from On the Wrong Side. To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/This podcast is produced by V.V. Ganeshananthan, Whitney Terrell, AJ Abernathy, Sienna Hoopingarner, and Grace Workman. Nicole BederaOn the Wrong Side: How Universities Protect Perpatrators and Betray Survivors of Sexual Violence“A New Title IX Rule Essentially Allows Accused Sexual Assailants to Hide Evidence Against Them”OthersJane Doe says she did not feel supported by Cornell’s president. | The New York TimesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Acclaimed writer Yiyun Li returns to the show to talk about her new novel, Music Against the Night, with co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell. Li explains how she first became interested in fictionalizing the lives of married musicians John Field and Adelaide Percheron and reflects on the limits, challenges, and opportunities of conducting historical research for fiction. She discusses the role grandparents play in her characters’ lives and how older mentors can shape an artist’s personal and professional growth. She also shares how she chose to structure two wide-ranging life stories within one novel, and how her characters illustrate disparities in opportunity among equally talented peers. Li considers how her characters define failure and success, and how these definitions affect John and Adelaide, neither of whom achieve fame. She reads from Music Against the Night.Yiyun LiMusic Against the NightEncountering the Past in “Music Against the Night” | The New YorkerThings in Nature Merely GrowThe Book of GooseWednesday's ChildMust I GoWhere Reasons EndKinder Than SolitudeGold Boy, Emerald GirlThe VagrantsA Thousand Years of Good PrayersDear Friend, from My Life I Write to You in Your LifeOthersA Life and Times: Fryderyk Chopin | Dr Alan WalkerA Confession and Other Religious Writings | Leo TolstoyFiction/Non/Fiction Season 5, Episode 42: Yiyun Li on Complicated Friendships Real and ImaginedSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Award-winning fiction writer T. Geronimo Johnson joins co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to talk about his new novel, The Occidental Book of the Dead. He discusses how the book addresses white supremacy and the United States’ deep-seated and racist mythology through the perspective of George Washington Jonson, a black police officer working in a fictional version of Atlanta. Johnson talks about researching police work but almost entirely avoiding depicting scenes of it on the page, and also explains why the book transitions from third to first person. He reflects on how structures of The Egyptian Book of the Dead and other classics are incorporated into the story. He reads from The Occidental Book of the Dead.To hear the full episode, subscribe through iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app (include the forward slashes when searching). You can also listen by streaming from the player below. Check out video versions of our interviews on the Fiction/Non/Fiction Instagram account, the Fiction/Non/Fiction YouTube Channel, and our show website: https://www.fnfpodcast.net/This podcast is produced by V.V. Ganeshananthan, Whitney Terrell, Archer Walsh, Elizabeth Willis, and Eric Thong. T. Geronimo JohnsonThe Occidental Book of the DeadHold It 'Til It HurtsWelcome to BraggsvilleOthersA Man in Full by Tom WolfeThe Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret AtwoodAutobiography of an Ex-Colored Man by James Weldon JohnsonThe Egyptian Book of the Dead,  translated by E.A. Wallis BudgeThe Consolation of Philosophy by BoethiusConfessions by St. AugustineSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.