Ewan Morrison talks about what inspired his latest novel, For Emma, the resurgence of utopian ideas in the world, and why it’s important for every writer to have one burning question.Ewan Morrison is an award-winning Scottish novelist, screenwriter, and essayist, praised as “the most fluent and intelligent Scottish writer of his generation” by Booker judge Stuart Kelly. His booksinclude How to Survive Everything (2021/22), Nina X (Saltire Society Fiction Book of the Year 2019), and Close Your Eyes (Scottish Book of the Year 2013). He also won the Not the Booker Prize for Tales from the Mall, named one of the top 50 Scottish books of the last 50 years by the Scottish Book Trust.Morrison blogs regularly for Psychology Today, and writes regular articles and essays for AREO Magazine on Utopianism, Technology, and Free Speech. Ewan can be found on X at @mrewanmorrison.At time 25:50 he reads from For Emma.His website is: https://www.ewanmorrison.com/Artsy Raven links:For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://jfgarrard.com/arpodcastIf you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrardPatreon subscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard
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Ep 89 Reimagining Myths and Making Magic with Julie Berry
Award-winning author and independent bookstore owner Julie Berry reflects on how recognition has shaped her journey, the spark behind her daring new novel that pits Jack the Ripper against Medusa, and the transformative magic that reading brings into people’s lives.Julie Berry is the New York Times bestselling author ofthe 2020 NCTE Walden Award and SCBWI Golden Kite Award winner Lovely War, the 2017 Printz Honor and Los Angeles Times Book Prize–shortlisted The Passion of Dolssa, the Carnegie Medal– and Edgar Award–shortlisted All the Truth That’s in Me, the Odyssey Honor The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place, and the Wishes and Wellingtons trilogy. Her picture books include The NightFrolic, Happy Right Now, and Cranky Right Now.Julie holds a BS from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in communication and an MFA from Vermont College of the Fine Arts. Julie lives in western New York, where she owns Author’s Note, an independent bookstore.At time 24:30 she reads from If Looks Could Kill.Her website is: https://www.julieberrybooks.com/Artsy Raven links:For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://jfgarrard.com/arpodcastIf you reallylike this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrardPatreonsubscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard
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Ep 88 From TikTok to the Bookshelf with Jinwoo Park
Jinwoo Park shares about what it’s like growing up withintwo cultures (Korean & Canadian), how TikTok got him published, and what inspired his latest book. Jinwoo Park is a Korean Canadian writer based in Montreal.Born and raised in Seoul, he has lived in various parts of North America and the UK since the age of 11. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from McGill in 2013,followed by a master’s in political economics from the London School of Economics in 2014, and a master’s in creative writing at the University of Oxford in 2015. In 2021, he won the Jim Wong-Chu Emerging Writers’ Award for his first manuscript, Oxford Soju Club, which will be published by Dundurn Press in September 2025. He has also been actively working as a literary translator after winning the Emerging Translator Award from the Literature Translation Institute of Korea in late 2023. He is an editor for Ricepaper magazine. He is also an avid book reviewer and is active on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. At time 25:05 he reads from Oxford Soju Club. His website is: https://www.jinwoo-park.com/ Artsy Raven links:For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://jfgarrard.com/arpodcast If you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrardPatreon subscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard
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Ep87 A Coming of Age Story with Sonia Daccarett
On the Artsy Raven, Sonia Daccarett discusses what inspired her to write a memoir, her process of publishing the book, and the universal theme of being an outsider while coming of age.Sonia Daccarett is a writer and communications professional. Born in Colombia to a Christian Palestinian father and a Jewish mother, she moved to the United States and received an undergraduate degree in journalism from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a master’s degree in international and public affairs from Columbia University. For more than two decades, she worked on strategic communications initiatives with corporate and non-profit clients and currently writes and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family.At time 11:05 she reads from The Roots of the Guava Tree.Author links:https://www.amazon.com/Roots-Guava-Tree-Growing-Colombia/dp/1647429404/https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-roots-of-the-guava-tree-growing-up-jewish-and-palestinian-in-colombia-sonia-daccarett/ba0426d1848e8569Artsy Raven links:For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join our exclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://jfgarrard.com/arpodcastIf you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrardPatreon subscribers, remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard
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Ep86 Writing Realistic Crime Plots with Alice Fitzpatrick
Alice Fitzpatrick speaks about the importance of research tocreate realistic crime plots, participating in twitter pitches to find a publisher, and piecing together her family history. Alice Fitzpatrick has contributed short stories to literarymagazines and crime anthologies and has recently retired from teaching in order to devote herself to writing full-time. She is a fearless champion of singing, cats, all things Welsh, and the Oxford comma. Her summers spent with her Welshfamily in Pembrokeshire inspired the creation of the Meredith Island Mysteries. She was a third of the way through the first draft of Secrets when she realized that this story of lost family history and the mythologizing of people who are no longer with us was inspired by her own family. The second book in the series, A Dark Death, was released in June, 2025, with the Meredith Island Christmas mystery, A Killing Cold, scheduled for release in June of the following year. She is currently working on the fifth book in the series while looking for a publisher for a standalone suspense novel set in Massachusetts and inspired by a horrific accident that killed eight teenagers in her hometown of Oakville,Ontario, fifty years ago. The traditional mystery appeals to her keen interest in psychology as she is intrigued by what makes seemingly ordinary people commit murder. Alice lives in Toronto but dreams of a cottage on the Welsh coast. At time 16:00 she reads from A Dark Death.Social media links:https://www.alicefitzpatrick.comhttps://www.facebook.com/alicefitzphttps://twitter.com/alicefitzphttps://instagram.com/alicefitzpatrickauthor Artsy Raven links:For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://jfgarrard.com/arpodcast If you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrardPatreon subscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard
About The Artsy Raven Podcast about Writing and Art with host JF Garrard
JF Garrard (writer, editor and publisher) has frank conversations with writers, editors, publishers, artists, actors, directors and other art professionals about what inspires them to create and what led to their success. Writers on the podcast will showcase their work by reading from their book.
Free Artsy Raven club featuring a monthly newsletter: https://jfgarrard.com/artsyraven
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Listen to The Artsy Raven Podcast about Writing and Art with host JF Garrard, ill-advised by Bill Nighy and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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