Unbound Podcast

Our mission is to bring together readers and writers to create diverse communities and to expose participants to new ideas and authors in order to inspire a life-long love of books and reading.

Unbound 2023: Horror Horror 07/23/2024

Unbound 2023: Horror Horror Panelists: Gabino Iglesias and Ann Dávila Cardinal Moderator: Sheri-Marie Harrison Not all monsters are creatures that go bump in the night. Some horrors are everyday, and the most frightening tales often follow monstrous human behavior. This panel brings together writers of thrilling fiction to discuss the ways scary stories reflect truths about the horrors constructed by society and the monsters we make. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/32240997

Unbound 2023: On a Cyborg Society 07/17/2024

Unbound 2023: On a Cyborg Society Panelists: Alexander Weinstein, Akil Kumarasamy, Andrew Yoon Moderator: John Joseph Adams Ours is an era in which artificial intelligence is the hidden engine behind so much of society and culture, and is even making inroads into art. Depictions of AI in literature therefore have a relevance like never before. The authors on this panel are known for their thoughtful literary engagement with the increasing presence of AI in our world and its influence on, and implications for, human existence. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/32131882

Unbound 2023: Ready Player One 03/15/2024

Unbound 2023: Ready Player One Panelists: BJ Best, Andrew Ervin, Brittney Morris Moderators: Whitney Terrell, V.V. Ganeshananthan Life relies on play. Kittens learn to hunt by pouncing on siblings, springboks practice leaping away from predators, and great apes form bonds through bouts of tag. Video games are the latest installation of gameplay to humans. The writers on this panel have wrestled with the human desire to play games and attempt to answer: Is life one big multiplayer RPG? This conversation will be recorded as a Fiction/Non/Fiction podcast. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/30386763

Unbound 2023: (Re)Writing Kansas City 03/06/2024

Unbound 2023: (Re)Writing Kansas City Panelists: Desideria Mesa, José Faus, CJ Janovy Moderator: Whitney Terrell How is Kansas City portrayed in literature? Four KC-based writers discuss the city’s long literary legacy and its future. The city has experienced unprecedented growth in its writing and artistic communities over the past twenty years. Has the “traditional” literary take on the city changed? How welcome are authors from diverse communities? What issues will Kansas City authors be tackling in the next twenty years? /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/30210943

Unbound 2023: The Revolution Will Not Be Westernized 02/28/2024

Unbound 2023: The Revolution Will Not Be Westernized Panelists: , , Moderator: Trudy Lewis We often act as though the West invented the idea of the powerful woman. Yet women have succeeded as political and military leaders throughout the world, often in times of revolution and transition. These three writers of historical fiction have researched and written novels about three such historical moments in which powerful women leaders emerged and fought and reigned. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/30082593

Unbound 2023: After Dobbs Panel 02/23/2024

Unbound 2023: After Dobbs Panel Panelists: , , Moderator: Molly Housch Gordon In the aftermath of the Dobbs decision, Margaret Atwood wrote “I thought I was writing fiction in The Handmaid’s Tale.” A theocratic United States where women were treated as if they were “in 17th century New England” seemed to her, in 1985, to be “far-fetched” and “silly.” Yet Gilead is slowly becoming an American reality. How do writers fight back against the patriarchy that strives to silence them? These three writers take up the theme of reproductive rights and discuss literary challenges to America’s slide toward Gilead. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/28607358

Unbound 2023: Something Witchy This Way Comes 02/23/2024

Unbound 2023: Something Witchy This Way Comes Panelists: , , , Moderator: Tina Casagrand Foss Where do we find hope, community, and belonging in the face of a divided and distant society? If only there were some magic to see things differently. These writers’ latest books use witchcraft, divination, and the power of nature to turn our everyday world on its head and fight against oppressive power structures. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/28607478

Unbound 2023: Paper Jam Panel 02/23/2024

Unbound 2023: Paper Jam Panel Panelists: , , Moderator: Donald Quist Once upon a time, networks were made of connected people. Now, the most relevant networks are digital. As technology advances and invades our workplaces, we’re faced with a cloud of innovations that change the shape and nature of our work lives. These three writers trace the wires of influence in our workplace. /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/29128788

Christopher Castellani & Jocelyn Cullity (2019) 12/22/2020

Christopher Castellani & Jocelyn Cullity (2019) In their most recent novels, Christopher Castellani and Jocelyn Cullity base their stories on actual people (Tennesse Williams in Castellani's Leading Men) or events (the 1857 siege of Lucknow in Cullity's Amah and the Silk-Winges Pigeons.) How did they merge fact and fiction? What are the responsibilities of a storyteller to stick to the facts, if the truth that they're looking for lies elsewhere? /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/17250062

Writing the Rural 12/04/2020

Writing the Rural The writing and writers of rural America are as rich and varied as those of any American landscape. These three writers give voice to real and imagined lives that resonate from the holler to the rolling hills, from splendid isolation to cacophonous interference; from margin to center. Panelists: Kayleb Rae Candrilli, Garrard Conley, Crystal Wilkinson /episode/index/show/unboundpodcast/id/17011343

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