S4 Ep. 6: Hope on the Horizon: Charles Baxter and Mike Alberti on Despair and Renewal in Fiction

In this special live episode of Fiction/Non/Fiction, presented by Moon Palace Books in Minneapolis, acclaimed novelist and teacher Charles Baxter and his former student, short story writer Mike Alberti, join co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss their new books. Upon the release of his seventeenth book, the much-anticipated The Sun Collective, Baxter reflects on how time and place factor into his work and talks about writing about politics in his hometown. Then Alberti discusses his searing debut short story collection Some People Let You Down, and how he finds inspiration and hope in teaching incarcerated writers through the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop. The two also provide a rare window into their ongoing conversations about teaching and the craft of fiction, and answer questions from audience members and readers, including incarcerated writers. To hear the full episode, subscribe to the Fiction/Non/Fiction podcast 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. And check out video excerpts from our interviews at LitHub’s Virtual Book Channel and Fiction/Non/Fiction’s YouTube Channel.This podcast is produced by Andrea Tudhope.Selected readings:Charles Baxter:The Sun CollectiveThe Feast of LoveFirst LightSaul and PatsyShadow PlayThe Soul ThiefBelieversGryphonHarmony of the WorldA Relative StrangerThere’s Something I Want You to DoThrough the Safety NetMike Alberti: “Summer People,” Colorado Review “Woods, Kansas,” Crazyhorse “Destiny,” Gulf Coast “Pestilence,” Indiana Review “Prairie Fire, 1899,” One StorySome People Let You Down Others:Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop Dubliners, James Joyce Winesburg, Ohio, Sherwood Anderson Lost in the City, Edward P. Jones Wright Morris George Ault, American painter Annie, Broadway musical The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand Cornel WestAlice MunroZZ PackerDenis Johnson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.