Maureen O’Leary and Naomi J. Williams are California authors who join us to discuss their inclusion in Sacramento Noir, an anthology showcasing the gilded splendor and, as editor John Freeman puts it, the “not-at-all-buried contradictions” of that historic state capital. In today’s episode, Naomi, Maureen, and Annmarie talk about the erasure of a Japanese-American neighborhood, the powerful sway of mean girls, and what we can learn from the dark stories our cities hide in plain sight. 

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Titles Mentioned in This Episode:

Sacramento Noir, edited by John Freeman

Landfalls, by Naomi J. Williams

Physics of Weight: Collected Poems, by Maureen O’Leary

Time’s Mouth, by Edan Lepucki

Detransition, Baby, by Torrey Peters

The Heart of It All, by Christian Kiefer (You can listen to our WPL conversation with Christian here.)

Here’s the opening for The Brady Bunch. What do you think – terrifying or not?

Here’s the trailer for the noir film Notorious with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman.

Follow Maureen O'Leary:

Instagram: @maureenow

Twitter/X: @maureenow

Bluesky: @maureenow.bsky.social‬

maureen-oleary.com

Follow Naomi J. Williams:

Instagram: @naomijwilliams

Twitter/X: @NaomiWilliams

Bluesky: @naomijwilliams.bsky.social‬

naomijwilliams.com

**Writing Workshops: 

If you liked this conversation and are interested in writing together, please consider the opportunities below. 

Or if you’re looking for an online class to jumpstart your memoir, you can find that here. 

Or for women interested in an online Saturday morning writing circle, you can sign up here or message Annmarie to learn more. 

Photo Credits: Jesse Egner for Naomi Williams

Aaron Cameron for Maureen O’Leary

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