“Crime, Absurdity & Chaos Corrected” with Tod Goldberg (GWTW884)

About this episode

Tod Goldberg discusses the intersection of crime writing and creativity, sharing insights from his career and experiences.

Have you ever wondered what a crime novelist can teach you about your own creativity? It turns out, a lot—and not just about weird crimes and sketchy people. Today’s guest is Tod Goldberg, the bestselling author of sixteen books, including the Gangsterland quartet and his latest, Only Way Out. Tod is also a professor of creative writing and the founder and director of the Low Residency MFA in Creative Writing & Writing for the Performing Arts at the University of California, Riverside. We start our conversation with Tod stating why intellectual curiosity is essential for writers to connect with people. We then talk about what it was like to grow up in a family of writers, the movies we watched as kids that we probably shouldn’t have seen, a snapshot into his writing and professional life, the importance of doing your job and letting your brain breathe, why true crime is popular in chaotic times, why he created a writing graduate program and how it’s different than other MFAs, and his love for the democratization of art. Show Links Tod Goldberg The Story Behind The Stories – Tod Goldberg The Gangsterland Series by Tod Goldberg Only Way Out by Tod…

People in this episode

Guest: Tod Goldberg

Topics covered

• creativity
• writing
• true crime
• intellectual curiosity
• democratization of art

Keywords

• crime novelist
• creativity
• writing program
• true crime
• intellectual curiosity

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: University of California, Riverside

Books & works: Only Way Out, Gangsterland, Dune, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Godfather, Red Dawn, The Outsiders, Big Trouble in Little China, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, Escape from New York

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