PODCAST · arts
The Write Question
by Lauren Korn
The Write Question is a weekly literary program hosted by Lauren Korn that features authors from the American West—and beyond—including James Lee Burke, Kate Lebo, Anne Helen Petersen, Robert Wrigley, Jess Walter, Stephen Graham Jones, Hoa Nguyen, Maggie Shipstead, Elissa Washuta, and others.
Episodes
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“I am Idaho”: Emily Ruskovich reflects on mountains and magic, joy and sorrow, and birds falling from the sky
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Emily Ruskovich about her short story collection, ‘Nightjar’ (Penguin Random House). Join the University of Montana’s Creative Writing Program, the Missoula Public Library, and Fact & Fiction Books for an event with Emily; she’ll be…
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Live from the Ravalli County Museum: Kevin Fedarko takes ‘A Walk in the Park’ (Part Two)
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ the second of a two-part conversation with journalist Kevin Fedarko, author of ‘A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon’ (Scribner). This conversation was recorded live at the Ravalli County Museum in Hamilton…
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Extended conversation: Daniel Blake Smith joins his subject, Wilmot Collins, to discuss new biography, ‘RUN’
For this extended ‘Write Question’ conversation, host Lauren Korn is joined remotely by author Daniel Blake Smith, author of ‘RUN: The Wilmot Collins Story—From Liberian Refugee to First Black Mayor in Montana,’ and the book’s subject, Wilmot Collins.
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Live from the Ravalli County Museum: Kevin Fedarko takes ‘A Walk in the Park’ (Part One)
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ the first of a two-part conversation with journalist Kevin Fedarko, author of ‘A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon’ (Scribner). This conversation was recorded live at the Ravalli County Museum in Hamilton…
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TWQ Mini: Allison Aubrey takes the tired out of retirement with ‘Your Turn’
Host Lauren Korn speaks with NPR Health & Science correspondent Allison Aubrey, author of ‘Your Turn: How to Create a Midlife You Love’ (Avid Reader Press, Simon & Schuster).
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Manoush, Scott, Alex, and Sarah: NPR hosts discuss their books on movement, animals, and economics
Earlier this spring, host Lauren Korn had the pleasure of chatting with some of NPR’s most notable podcast and news magazine hosts about recently published books. She spoke with Manoush Zamorodi about her book, ‘Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim...
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James Welch Native Lit Fest returns to Missoula July 15-18, 2026
For this episode of ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Sterling HolyWhiteMountain, Executive Director of the James Welch Native Lit Fest, taking place July 15-18, 2026.
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‘The Negroes Send Their Love’: Sean Hill’s far-ranging homes, Black futures
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with poet Sean Hill about ‘The Negroes Send Their Love: Poems, Perspectives, and Possible Futures’ (Milkweed Editions).
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The swivel and startle of language: Long-time “horse girl” Emily Haworth-Booth discusses her debut novel, ‘Mare’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Emily Haworth-Booth about motherhood and language in her debut novel, ‘Mare’ (Farrar, Straus and Giroux).
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‘Make Believe’: Mac Barnett writes first book for adults, widens the aperture of what children’s books can be
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Mac Barnett, National Ambassador for Children’s Literature and the author of ‘Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children’ (Little, Brown & Company), his first book written for adults.
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“Art witch and pragmatist” Courtney Maum publishes anti-capitalist romp, ‘Alan Opts Out’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Courtney Maum, author of ‘Alan Opts Out’ (Little, Brown & Company).
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‘A Truce That Is Not Peace’: Miriam Toews on language, silence, and pop-up wind museums
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Miriam Toews, author of the memoir ‘A Truce That Is Not Peace’ (Bloomsbury Publishing). Note: This conversation contains explicit references to suicide. If you or someone you love is struggling with a mental health crisis or in...
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A “Climate Solutions Week” encore: Mark Easter serves up ‘The Blue Plate’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ for NPR’s “Climate Solutions Week,” in 2026 leaning into local lessons, the TWQ team returns to Lauren Korn’s conversation with ecologist Mark Easter, author of ‘The Blue Plate: A Food Lover’s Guide to Climate Chaos’ (Patagonia Books).
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Don’t fence me in: Hillary Rosner explores global wildlife connectivity and movement in ‘Roam’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ in anticipation of her tour in Montana (Missoula, Bozeman, and Livingston), and in anticipation of NPR’s Climate Solutions Week, host Lauren Korn speaks with Hillary Rosner, author of ‘Roam: Wild Animals and the Race to Repair Our Fractured World’ (Patagonia...
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Preeti Vangani returns to the body in her sophomore collection, ‘Fifty Mothers’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ a celebration of mothers in all forms—a conversation with poet Preeti Vangani, author of ‘Fifty Mothers’ (River River Books).
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Uncanny valley: Kim Fu’s venue of post-COVID horror, ‘The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Kim Fu, author of ‘The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts’ (Tin House Books; Zando Projects).
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Sally Thompson’s ‘Black Robes Enter Coyote’s World,’ Part Two: Chief Charlo’s speech
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks to anthropologist Sally Thompson, author of ‘Black Robes Enter Coyote’s World: Chief Charlo and Father De Smet in the Rocky Mountains’ (Bison Books; University of Nebraska Press). In this, the second half of their conversation, Lauren and...
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Sally Thompson’s ‘Black Robes Enter Coyote’s World,’ Part One: Father Pierre-Jean De Smet
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks to anthropologist Sally Thompson, author of ‘Black Robes Enter Coyote’s World: Chief Charlo and Father De Smet in the Rocky Mountains’ (Bison Books; University of Nebraska Press). In this, the first part of a two part conversation, Lauren...
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On civics and memory: Jule Banville and Jad Abumrad reimagine the obituary with ‘The Obit Project’ (Extended)
During this episode of ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with University of Montana journalism professor Jule Banville and audio producer Jad Abumrad about ‘The Obit Project,’ a collaborative podcast created by the UM School of Journalism and the Montana Media Lab that combines the…
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Nina McConigley’s ‘How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder’: Exploring race and eighties girlhood in the American West
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Wyoming-based author Nina McConigley about her novel, ‘How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder’ (Pantheon; Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group). Nina is a spring lecturer for the Elk River Arts & Lecture series; she will appear in…
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Live! Pledge week episode: Allison De Jong is the voice behind many of your favorite ‘Field Notes’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ for a live, pledge week episode, host Lauren Korn speaks with Allison De Jong: the Montana Natural History Center’s Communications Coordinator and the editor of ‘Montana Naturalist’ and ‘Field Notes.’
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Fred Haefele returns to “vehicular memoir” with ‘The Essential Book of Pickup Trucks’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with memoirist Fred Haefele, author of ‘The Essential Book of Pickup Trucks’ (Bison Books).
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Growing up with Andrew Martin: In ‘Down Time,’ the author creates avatars of mourning, quest for happiness
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with University of Montana alum Andrew Martin (MFA ‘13), author of ‘Down Time,’ published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
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Maya Jewell Zeller publishes unfurling, rhizomatic memoir-in-essays, ‘Raised by Ferns’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with poet, author, and educator Maya Jewell Zeller about her memoir-in-essays, ‘Raised by Ferns’ (Porphyry Press).
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“We’re all susceptible to cult ways of thinking”: Leah Sottile’s ‘Blazing Eye Sees All’ (Part Two)
In this episode of ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks to journalist Leah Sottile about ‘Blazing Eye Sees All: Love Has Won, False Prophets, and the Fever Dream of the American New Age’ (Grand Central Publishing; Hachette Book Group). This is the second part of a two-part conversation.
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“Far left meets far right, finds common cause”: Leah Sottile’s ‘Blazing Eye Sees All’ (Part One)
In this episode of ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks to journalist Leah Sottile about ‘Blazing Eye Sees All: Love Has Won, False Prophets, and the Fever Dream of the American New Age’ (Grand Central Publishing; Hachette Book Group). This is the first part of a two-part conversation.
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On blood and belonging: Morgan Talty’s ‘Fire Exit,’ now available in paperback!
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Penobscot writer Morgan Talty, author of ‘Fire Exit’ (Tin House Books; Zando Projects), now available in paperback!
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“One trip was about fleeing; the other about pilgrimage ‘toward the self’”: Joanna Pocock’s ‘Greyhound’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Joanna Pocock, author of ‘Greyhound’ (Soft Skull Press).
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TWQ Mini: Crystal Koosman becomes an “amateur archivist,” opens Last Best Books
This mini episode of ‘The Write Question’ features used bookseller Crystal Koosman, owner of Last Best Books in Missoula, Montana. What does her used book ethic look like? What’s trending right now?
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Acclaimed novelist David Guterson on the “lineages of lamas” (and more) in ‘Evelyn in Transit’
In advance of his appearance in Helena at MT Book Co. on Monday, February 2, 2026, novelist David Guterson, author of ‘Snow Falling on Cedars’ (Vintage Books), discusses his latest book, ‘Evelyn in Transit’ (W. W. Norton & Company).
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Cable guy Colum McCann on connectivity, brokenness, and things left unsaid in ‘Twist’
In advance of his appearance in Livingston, Montana—as a guest of Elk River Arts & Lectures on January 23, 2026, at the Livingston Elks Lodge—novelist Colum McCann discusses the many themes and narratives found in his latest book, ‘Twist’ (Penguin Random House).
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Tami Haaland investigates ancestry and inheritance in ‘If I Had Said Beauty’
In this episode of ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with former Montana Poet Laureate Tami Haaland about her collection, ‘If I Had Said Beauty’ (Lost Horse Press).
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Beyond words: Brian Buckbee writes, dictates ‘We Should All Be Birds’ (with Carol Ann Fitzgerald)
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Missoula, Montana-based writer Brian Buckbee, author of ‘We Should All Be Birds’ (Tin House Books; Zando Projects), written with Carol Ann Fitzgerald, who joins them for the first half of their conversation.
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Interrogating systems of power with raft guide Bridget Crocker, author of ‘The River’s Daughter’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with memoirist and renowned whitewater rafting guide Bridget Crocker, author of ‘The River’s Daughter’ (Spiegel & Grau), about her life lived along the Snake River in Wyoming.
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Alice Bolin’s ‘Culture Creep,’ a “gut-churning ride” into Millennial girl- and boyhood (Part Two)
This is the second part of a two-part conversation with University of Montana alumna Alice Bolin (MFA , ‘11), author of ‘Culture Creep: Notes on the Pop Apocalypse’ (Mariner Books; HarperCollins).
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Seductive narratives and Alice Bolin’s ‘Culture Creep: Notes on the Pop Apocalypse’ (Part One)
This is the first part of a two-part conversation with University of Montana alumna Alice Bolin (MFA , ‘11), author of ‘Culture Creep: Notes on the Pop Apocalypse’ (Mariner Books; HarperCollins).
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TWQ Mini: Juicy stories, beautiful sentences, and NPR’s 2025 ‘Books We Love’
Host Lauren Korn speaks with Andrew Limbong about NPR’s 2025 interactive book list of staff favorites, “Books We Love.”
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Where science meets storytelling: Traveling to ‘To the Moon and Back’ with novelist Eliana Ramage
On this episode of ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with debut novelist Eliana Ramage, author of ‘To the Moon and Back’ (Avid Reader Press, Simon & Schuster).
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Encore: Christine Wu on a shared language of food and her debut collection, ‘Familial Hungers’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn returns to her conversation with poet Christine Wu, author of ‘Familial Hungers’ (Brick Books). This episode first aired June 19, 2025.
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“The only way you can know a person’s gender is [to] ask them”: Abi Maxwell, author of ‘One Day I’ll Grow Up and Be a Beautiful Woman’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with novelist and memoirist Abi Maxwell, author of ‘One Day I’ll Grow Up and Be a Beautiful Woman’ (Alfred A. Knopf), now available in paperback.
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On rivers, mouths, and memory: Shobha Rao discusses ‘Indian Country’ in advance of Montana tour
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with novelist Shobha Rao, author of ‘Indian Country’ (Crown Publishing Group). Shobha will be in Bozeman at Country Bookshelf on November 17th (with Shane Doyle); in Hamilton at Chapter One Bookstore on November 19; and in Missoula at…
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Live from the Ravalli County Museum: Chris Whitaker, “‘Sliding Doors’ moments,” and ‘All the Colors of the Dark’ (Part Two)
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ the second of a two-part conversation with novelist Chris Whitaker, author of ‘All the Colors of the Dark’ (Crown Publishing Group). This conversation was recorded live at the Ravalli County Museum in Hamilton, Montana, in partnership with Chapter One Bookstore.
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TWQ Mini with Lorissa Rinehart: Jeannette Rankin, “a North star,” and ‘Winning the Earthquake’
This mini episode of ‘The Write Question’ is actually an excerpt of a much longer conversation with Lorissa Rinehart, author of ‘Winning the Earthquake: How Jeannette Rankin Defied All Odds to Become the First Woman in Congress,’ which publishes this Tuesday, November 4, 2025 (St. Martin’s…
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Live from the Ravalli County Museum: Chris Whitaker has learned to paint with ‘All the Colors of the Dark’ (Part One)
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ the first of a two-part conversation with novelist Chris Whitaker, author of ‘All the Colors of the Dark’ (Crown Publishing Group). This conversation was recorded live at the Ravalli County Museum in Hamilton, Montana, in partnership with Chapter One Bookstore.
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Live! Pledge week episode: Chapter One Bookstore’s Marisa Neyenhuis
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with co-owner of Hamilton’s Chapter One Bookstore, Marisa Neyenhuis—about her parents’ pledge parties and about the books she’s loving and recommending this year—for a live pledge week episode.
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River River poets Corrie Williamson and Joe Wilkins discuss landscape, safety, form, and history
This week on ‘The Write Question, host Lauren Korn speaks with poets Corrie Williamson, author of ‘My Mother’s Bear Gun,’ and Joe Wilkins, author of ‘Pastoral, 1994,’ both published by River River Books.
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“I’ve always loved a love story”: Sally Blakely on her debut romance, ‘Friends to Lovers’
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Helena, Montana-based novelist Sally Blakely, author of ‘Friends to Lovers’ (Canary Street Press).
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Kevin Barry on his novel, ‘The Heart in Winter,’ “a western with County Cork accents”
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn speaks with Irish author Kevin Barry, author of ‘The Heart in Winter’ (Doubleday Books; Penguin Random House) and the featured speaker at the inaugural Festival of Irish Writing in Butte, Montana: October 3-4, 2025.
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Encore: Laura Marris on absence and archive
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn returns to her conversation with writer and translator Laura Marris, author of ‘The Age of Loneliness’ (Graywolf Press). This episode originally aired February 27, 2025.
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Encore: Keetje Kuipers on her poetics of humility, the danger in love poems about marriage, and bumping around in the dark
This week on ‘The Write Question,’ host Lauren Korn returns to her conversation with poet Keetje Kuipers, author of ‘Lonely Women Make Good Lovers’ (BOA Editions). This conversation originally aired on May 1, 2025.
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The Write Question is a weekly literary program hosted by Lauren Korn that features authors from the American West—and beyond—including James Lee Burke, Kate Lebo, Anne Helen Petersen, Robert Wrigley, Jess Walter, Stephen Graham Jones, Hoa Nguyen, Maggie Shipstead, Elissa Washuta, and others.
HOSTED BY
Lauren Korn
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Write Question have?
The Write Question currently has 52 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Write Question about?
The Write Question is a weekly literary program hosted by Lauren Korn that features authors from the American West—and beyond—including James Lee Burke, Kate Lebo, Anne Helen Petersen, Robert Wrigley, Jess Walter, Stephen Graham Jones, Hoa Nguyen, Maggie Shipstead, Elissa Washuta, and others.
How often does The Write Question release new episodes?
The Write Question has 52 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to The Write Question?
You can listen to The Write Question on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Write Question?
The Write Question is created and hosted by Lauren Korn.
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