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

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 Goldberg Dune by Frank Herbert Lee Goldberg The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams The Godfather (1972) Red Dawn (1984) The Outsiders (1983) C. Thomas Howell Big Trouble in Little China (1986) The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) Escape from New York (1981) Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980) Todd Marinovich Linda Woods Artworks Visual Chronicles: The No-Fear Guide to Creating Art Journals, Creative Manifestos and Altered Books by Linda Woods and Karen Dinino The Jesus and Mary Chain Tod Goldberg, author of ONLY WAY OUT Marty Supreme (2025) Home – Harris Ranch Beef Company Ben Folds Five – Brick – YouTube Joe Loya Dead Man Walking (1995) Premier Low-Residency MFA | UC Riverside Palm Desert Creative Writing | Palm Desert Low-Residency MFA John Cheever John Updike Martin Scorsese Jane Campion Taxi Driver (1976) Lee Strasberg Office Chairs | La-Z-Boy Alta Journal: Stories of California and the West At the Knee by Tod Goldberg Sacrament by Susan Straight Jason Isbell – Official Website Episode photo from Envato Elements: The sun sets on the horizon as cattle graze in the field