149: Lena Valencia (Managing Editor of One Story) and Megan Cummins' IF THE BODY ALLOWS IT

In This Episode:

SMDB celebrates the short story! Because who’s had the attention span, recently, to read anything longer?!

No but seriously, we’ve wanted to do this for a long time and so Lena Valencia, writer of short stories and managing editor of One Story, joins us to talk about the writing and editing of short fiction — as well as the reading of short fiction with the debut collection by Megan Cummins, If the Body Allows It. It’s a fun one with an old friend, delayed because we were all too busy celebrating this weekend.

The Ep. 149 Bookshelf

THIS EPISODE'S BOOKS:

One Story Literary Magazine (latest issue: “The Rat” by Yohanca Delgado)
”Dogs” by Lena Valencia (from Epiphany Literary Magazine, Spring/Summer 2020 issue)
"The Blue Room” by Lena Valencia (from Tiny Nightmares, ed. by Lincoln Michel and Nadxieli Nieto
If the Body Allows It by Megan Cummins

WHAT'D YOU BUY?:

Drew: “The Basement Food Court of Forking Paths” by Eugene Lim (from Breaking and Entering Literary Magazine) // Projections, edited by Rebecca Romney and produced by Hingston & Olsen
Christopher: White Magic by Elissa Washuta // Personal Pleasures by Rose Macaulay
Lena: The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans // Dinner Bell Literary Magazine issue 2 (and a Dinner Bell t-shirt!)

ALSO MENTIONED:

There Will Be Blood (2007, written & directed by Paul Thomas Anderson)
Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self by Danielle Evans
Dear Cyborgs by Eugene Lim
Search History by Eugene Lim
Tiny Crimes, edited by Lincoln Michel and Nadxieli Nieto
Gigantic Worlds, edited by Lincoln Michel and Nadxieli Nieto
Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
Prelude to Bruise by Saeed Jones
The Empathy Exams by Leslie Jamison

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Drew: The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans // That Old Country Music by Kevin Barry
Christopher: “Rabbit Hole” (a podcast from the NYT) // Earn $20K EVERY MONTH by being your own boss
Lena: The Book of Delights by Ross Gay

The Damn Bar