Jessica Teich on The Future Tense of Joy, Healing From Trauma, and Finding the Courage to Belong

On this episode of the Big Time Talker Podcast, Burke Allen sits down with author Jessica Teich to discuss the revised anniversary edition of The Future Tense of Joy, a deeply personal memoir that intertwines her own life with the story of a young woman she never met.Jessica shares how an obituary for 27-year-old Lacey Cooper Reynolds captured her attention and ultimately transformed what began as an autobiography into what she describes as a "shared memoir." Her search to understand Lacey's life led her to family members, teachers, and a private investigator—and unexpectedly opened doors into Jessica's own past.Their conversation explores the pressure women can experience to appear successful and perfect, the difficulty of showing vulnerability, and Jessica's own experiences with trauma and sexual abuse. She reflects on her time at Yale and Oxford as one of the first female Rhodes Scholars, her decades working in Los Angeles theater, and the importance of recognizing when environments and relationships no longer allow us to thrive.Jessica also discusses why she returned to the book a decade after its original publication, how the #MeToo era changed the context surrounding its themes, and what she has learned from survivors who have approached her after readings to share their own experiences.At its heart, this conversation is about healing, safety, freedom, and what Jessica calls "the consolations of belonging"—the knowledge that even after trauma, there are people willing to listen, care, and help.This episode of Burke Allen’s Big Time Talker was recorded live in the great city of Chicago at the American Library Association Podcast Pavilion, thanks to the Next Generation Indy Book Awards, Headline Books and Speakermatch.com!