Best Literary Friction Podcasts (2024)

1
Literary Friction - Year (and Decade) in Review 2023 1:21:07

7M ago1:21:07

1:21:07

It's time for our usual Year in Review show, but seeing as this is also our last EVER episode (sob!), we're shaking things up a little to bring you a bit of a decade in review as well, so we can look back over our highlights from ten wonderful years of Literary Friction. This show is stuffed full of recommendations, including our favourite reads fr…

1
Literary Friction - A Life of One's Own with Xialou Guo 59:17

8M ago59:17

59:17

What does it mean, to pursue a life of your own? And what is art and literature's role in figuring out what that might look like? This month we're delighted to be talking to writer and filmmaker Xiaolu Guo, whose latest book Radical: A Life of My Own is both a personal lexicon and a memoir, which thinks deeply about what it would mean to truly forg…

1
Minisode Forty-Five: Friendship 47:04

8M ago47:04

47:04

Our theme this month was suggested by our patron Maral, who asked us to do an episode about our friendship, because she’s interested in how our (very!) different personalities align. We thought it might be a little self-indulgent to spend a whole episode talking about us specifically, so we’re also going to return to the theme of friendship more br…

1
Literary Friction - Desire with K Patrick 59:38

9M ago59:38

59:38

How do the people and things we desire shape our identities? And how do you render the physical intensity of desire on the page? Author K Patrick joins us in thinking about desire this month - we spoke to K about their debut novel Mrs. S, which tells the story of a young Australian who arrives at an elite English all-girls boarding school for a job…

1
Minisode Forty-four: Parenthood 47:14

9M ago47:14

47:14

Last year we made a minisode about mothers, and one about fathers, both of which began an ongoing conversation about parenthood and literature that we wanted to pick up this month. Is fiction a good form for exploring the experience of parenthood? And beyond the ubiquitous parenting manuals, what does non-fiction about parenthood have to offer? Adu…

1
Literary Friction - Doppelgangers with Naomi Klein 59:23

9M ago59:23

59:23

What is it about doppelgangers that's so endlessly compelling? Who better to answer this question than the one and only Naomi Klein, who joined us to talk about her latest book, Doppelganger. This riveting and intellectually rigorous journey begins with a mix-up: people kept confusing Naomi Klein with another Naomi, author Naomi Wolf (known for The…

1
Minisode Forty-Three: Sad Girl Novels 46:13

10M ago46:13

46:13

Our theme this month was suggested by our patron Mary, who asked us to talk about so-called 'sad girl novels', and it turns out we have some strong opinions! So, listen in as we get to grips with what the term 'sad girl' really means - is it just reductive and misogynistic, or is it getting at something? Was Madame Bovary the original literary sad …

1
Literary Friction - Short Stories with Arinze Ifeakandu 1:02:08

10M ago1:02:08

1:02:08

What makes a brilliant short story? Are they better read as part of a collection or as a sharp shot on their own? How do you render fully formed characters in very few words? We're thrilled that this month, Arinze Ifeakandu joined us to talk about his short story collection Gods Children Are Little Broken Things, a beautiful, artful collection of n…

1
RE-RUN: Author Special with Ocean Vuong 56:52

11M ago56:52

56:52

We first aired this episode back in July 2019, and it was recorded in the studio when Ocean was on the international tour for his novel On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. It’s a really rich and beautiful conversation, full of the kind of thoughtful insights Ocean is known for, but also a lightness and optimism that feels right for summer. And we also…

1
Minisode Forty-Two: Artificial Intelligence 47:36

12M ago47:36

47:36

Are you a techno-optimist or a techno-pessimist? Or even a total Luddite? Does Chat GPT excite you or completely freak you out? Our theme this month was suggested by our patron Elisse, who asked us to talk about Chat GPT in particular. We thought this was a great jumping off point for a bigger conversation about the relationship between art and tec…

1
Literary Friction - Dark Comedy with Lorrie Moore 59:07

12M ago59:07

59:07

Dark humour - do you love it or hate it? Do you find it cathartic or macho? Can humour ever be too dark, and is it a useful political tool? This month our guest is the one and only Lorrie Moore, who joined us to talk about her latest novel, I Am Homeless if This is Not My Home, a story about grief and ghosts and history that is equally funny as it …

1
RE-RUN - Minisode Three: Red Flags 28:54

1y ago28:54

28:54

Octavia has been away on her book tour, so today we’re bringing you a re-run of one of our earliest minisodes from April 2019. It was a fun one, inspired by a viral tweet about literary red flags, in which we got into books as cultural capital, literary snobbery, and whether it’s ever ok to judge a person by there reading habits. Plus, the usual cu…

1
Literary Friction - Romantic Comedy with Curtis Sittenfeld 59:18

1y ago59:18

59:18

From Pride and Prejudice to Detransition, Baby, the romcom can be an enduring source of great pleasure, fun and comfort. This month we’re thrilled to welcome the American writer Curtis Sittenfeld to talk about her latest novel Romantic Comedy, a smart and funny story about how love can upend all kinds of preconceptions and expectations. It also gav…

1
Minisode Forty: Author Special with Octavia Bright 45:36

1y ago45:36

45:36

Today’s show is an author special, and in the hot seat is our very own Octavia Bright. You probably know by now that Octavia’s first book This Ragged Grace is coming out - and is published today in fact! So Carrie couldn’t resist the chance to grill her about it. This Ragged Grace tells the story of Octavia's journey through recovery from alcohol a…

1
S3 06 | The art of re-imagining Seattle 25:17

1y ago25:17

25:17

In 1962 all eyes were on Seattle for the World Fair. It was the height of the space race between the U.S and the USSR — the city’s landmark Space Needle and monorail are relics of that time. Fast forward 60 odd years and Seattle will soon be the world’s focus once again, this time for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. But a very different Seattle will be on…

1
Chapter 24: The CandyHouse 13:08

1y ago13:08

13:08

What's it like for a Black man working in a brothel? More than you ever could have imagined! Tune in and find out!--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/heauxconfessionals/support

1
S3 05 | Dublin’s literary frictions 25:48

1y ago25:48

25:48

When you read the world Dublin, it’s hard to escape the romantic literary associations that James Joyce’s Ulysses kicked off a century ago. Central Dublin still bears the traces of Joyce, Beckett, and Wilde — Dubliners who left the city to write about it. But the contemporary Irish capital is a world away from Joyce's literary portrait. Today, Dubl…

1
Literary Friction - Writing about Writers with Tan Twan Eng 57:56

1y ago57:56

57:56

Do you like reading about writers? What does good writing about the act of writing do? And what happens when you write a real writer into a novel? Our guest this month is Tan Twan Eng, who joined us to talk about his third novel The House of Doors. Based around the writer W. Somerset Maugham’s stay on the Island of Penang, in what was then Malaya, …

1
S3 04 | Finding reality in Fiji 25:18

1y ago25:18

25:18

Fiji has certainly come a long way since television was first introduced in 1991. Back then, a rugby-mad nation had its first taste of screen for the World Cup. Today, Fiji is fast-becoming one of the world's top filming destinations for a range of screen productions, from reality tv to big Hollywood blockbusters. But has this interest from the scr…

1
S3 03 | The highs and lows of marvellous Rio 25:15

1y ago25:15

25:15

When you think about Rio de Janeiro, what comes to mind? Beautiful beaches, parties, Carnival and music? It's all of those things, but it's a little more complicated than that too. Inequality, inadequate public infrastructure and violence are also persistent issues that plague the city. So come fly with us as Jonathan Green meets some wonderful gui…

1
Minisode Thirty-nine: Cities 46:14

1y ago46:14

46:14

How do you feel about cities? Do you love the thrust and thrum of them, or are you more interested in escaping it? Do you like to read urban histories, or stories set in the heady metropolis? Our theme this month was suggested by our patron Alycia, who asked us to talk about cities in literature, so listen in for our favourite literary cities, capt…

1
S3 02 | Keeping faith in Jakarta 25:45

1y ago25:45

25:45

Indonesia's award-winning poet Goenawan Mohamad once said that Jakarta has a congenital disease. It's a capital that was never seriously planned for… simply an accumulation of growth that became a city. And we know the symptoms: Jakarta's polluted, congested, and thirsty. But despite all of this, some 30 million people have put their faith in this …

1
Literary Friction - Feminism with Sara Ahmed 59:50

1y ago59:50

59:50

What's the relationship between feminist writing and feminist activism? What does it mean to be a feminist killjoy, and what can we learn from her? This month, we're joined by scholar and writer Sara Ahmed to answer these questions and more, as we talk about her brilliant latest book, The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. In it, Sara shows how although th…

1
S3 01 | No limits in Monaco 25:47

1y ago25:47

25:47

It's one of the world's most notorious tax havens that houses the permanent addresses of oligarchs, tennis pros, and entire Formula 1 teams. There's also no such thing as income tax here. But to live in Monaco, you have to pay to play… you'll need at least 500,000 euros in the bank, and afford to buy or rent property in one of the most expensive pl…

1
INTRODUCING — Return Ticket season three 1:16

1y ago1:16

1:16

We're back! Where do you want to go? Here at Return Ticket — RN's seasonal travel show — no money or passports are required. We just need a curious mind and your time. In season three, we'll venture to Monaco, Jakarta, Rio de Janeiro, Fiji, Seattle and Dublin — searching for what the tourist doesn't see. Come fly with us, we've saved a seat just fo…

1
Minisode Thirty-Eight: Book covers 46:50

1+ y ago46:50

46:50

Today our theme is… kinda judgy! Everyone says you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but we all know everyone does. So, this month we thought we'd get into it - we partly covered (lol) this topic in our Rediscovery episode for Picador with Jamaica Kincaid and cover designer Stu Wilson, but we wanted to come back to it because there was so much m…

1
Literary Friction - Dancing Time with Jacqueline Crooks 57:41

1+ y ago57:41

57:41

Dancing can be about escape, about pleasure, but it can also be about protest. It can be a powerful means of expression, but how does writing capture all that movement and rhythm? And what does good writing about dancing do? With us this month is Jaqueline Crooks to talk about her dynamic first novel, Fire Rush, an intoxicating story about the dub …

1
Minisode Thirty-Seven: Etiquette 45:03

1+ y ago45:03

45:03

Our theme this month was inspired by a recent story in New York magazine about, as they described it, “How to text, tip, ghost, host, and generally exist in polite society today.” The idea behind this list of 140 rules is that the last three years have completely changed the way that we live and work, and also that everyone seems to have forgotten …

1
Literary Friction - Journalism with Tania Branigan 59:41

1+ y ago59:41

59:41

When journalists write books, how do they balance the potentially tricky relationship between weaving a compelling narrative and sticking to the facts? What's the role of storytelling in reportage? And what are the ethics of reporting on other peoples' lived experiences? This month our guest is Tania Branigan, foreign leader writer at The Guardian …

1
Minisode Thirty-six: Money 46:30

1+ y ago46:30

46:30

Money makes the world go round: it's an inescapable presence in our lives, and yet in a lot of cultures it's still a pretty big conversational taboo. Here in the UK right now there’s a serious cost of living crisis after years of terrible Conservative rule, the newspapers are full of often extremely patronising articles about how to ‘tighten your b…

1
Literary Friction - The Lives of Others with Kathryn Scanlan 58:29

1+ y ago58:29

58:29

Portraits of real people abound in books. There are novels that use transcribed conversations, like Sheila Heti’s How Should A Person Be, or fiction based on historical or even living people, like Curtis Sittenfield’s Rodham. Our guest this month is the writer Kathryn Scanlan who joined us from the States to talk about her riveting new novel, Kick …

1
Minisode Thirty-Five: Food and Feasting 46:47

1+ y ago46:47

46:47

Our January theme is heavily influenced by this time of year. Because the winter months are full of different feast days and celebrations, and because generally in the northern hemisphere it's a time where you just want to cocoon inside and feel warm, cosy and nurtured, we thought we’d talk about food and feasting in all kinds of literature. Whethe…

1
Literary Friction - RE-RUN: Abstract Romanticism with Chris Kraus 58:38

1+ y ago58:38

58:38

We're on our end of year break, but didn't want to leave you without some LF to keep you company while you cook up your leftovers and potter around in your new socks. So, inspired by one of our new listeners, Charlotte, who tweeted to tell us how much she enjoyed an old episode, we’re re-running one of our favourite conversations from way back: in …

1
Literary Friction - Year in Review 2022 1:05:09

1+ y ago1:05:09

1:05:09

Somehow it's already our last Literary Friction of 2022, which means as usual it's time for our year in review show, packed full of recommendations just in time for your holiday shopping. We've got you - and your Uncle Joe - covered, so listen in for some of our favourite reads from the last year, the usual gentle check in on how our reading revolu…

1
S2 08 | Reykjavik's lightness of being 30:00

1+ y ago30:00

30:00

Iceland's capital Reykjavik is a place where people navigate geographic isolation, long periods of light and dark, unforgiving weather… and the intermittent threat of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Put together, this perhaps has led to a portrait of Iceland being an intrepid, exotic place — a place where visitors want to live out their Game of…

1
S2 07 | Timbuktu — a true story 30:00

1+ y ago30:00

30:00

Its name is a byword for remote obscurity and intrepid adventure, a medieval trade centre and cradle of African scholarship perched on the edge of the Sahara. But those historical perceptions are so far removed from the reality of the Malian city's current predicament. A place worn down by a decade of conflict, desertification, and sheer isolation.…

1
S2 06 | Hollywood — boulevard of broken onions 30:00

1+ y ago30:00

30:00

It was Columbia Pictures President Harry Cohn who once said, "If you must get in trouble, do it at the Chateau Marmont" — and trouble they had. In uncovering the razzle-dazzle of Hollywood, we track the 95-year history of the Chateau, from its beginnings as onion fields, to its rise as a place of decadence, scandal, fame and murder. Plus, how did t…

1
Literary Friction - Deception with Yiyun Li 1:01:04

1+ y ago1:01:04

1:01:04

When it comes to fiction, why are people so obsessed with authenticity and so appalled by literary deception? Does it matter who tells a story? And what do novels that confront these ideas have to tell us? Our guest this month is the writer Yiyun Li, whose latest novel The Book of Goose is about an intense friendship between two girls in rural post…

1
S2 05 | Tasmania — it's a terrible place

1+ y ago

—

Tasmanian residents and cartoonists First Dog on the Moon and Jon Kudelka tell everyone they know that Tasmania is awful. The snakes. The weather. The people. But in truth, why does half of Australia want to live there?By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

1
S2 04 | Slow death in Venice   25:00

1+ y ago25:00

25:00

Venice is the anti-tabula rasa. Here, residents and visitors alike must rise up to meet its demands. But you can't help but feel this old and adored city is being crushed under the weight of history, the literal weight of tourists, and the twin pressures of having too much water and then, not enough. So, is the Venice we know slowly dying by a thou…

1
S2 03 | Kuala Lumpur — would you like rubber with that? 30:00

1+ y ago30:00

30:00

The story of the Malaysian capital is a story of resources, from tin, petrol, and palm oil. But if there's one resource to understand the metropolis that is Kuala Lumpur today it's rubber. It's responsible for the city's art deco architecture, modern multiculturalism, and a roaring global trade. It's no wonder Malaysia still supplies half of the wo…

1
S2 02 | Las Vegas by numbers 25:06

1+ y ago25:06

25:06

In a city where every flip of the card and roll of the dice could cost you, are the odds ever really in your favour? Exploring the maths of chance, we ponder: what are the odds of running out of water in Las Vegas? What are the odds of getting married by an Elvis impersonator? And what are the odds of coming home with more than you started with? Ca…

1
Literary Friction - Graphic Novels with Lizzy Stewart 59:24

1+ y ago59:24

59:24

In this show we're getting to grips with graphic novels. What's the history of this kind of storytelling? What narrative possibilities does the form open up? We first explored this theme with the artist Nick Hayes all the way back in 2014 before this show was even a podcast, and we're returning to it now because our guest this month is the writer a…

1
S2 01 | Paris by baguette 30:00

2y ago30:00

30:00

Can it be true that 94 per cent of Parisians live less than five minutes from a bakery? In a country where eating lunch at your desk is illegal, and people-watching at the local boulangerie is a philosophy, what can the rise and fall of bread tell us about Paris and its inhabitants?By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

1
INTRODUCING — Return Ticket season two

2y ago

—

Return Ticket is back with a new season… and we've got questions about travel. Like what the odds of getting married by an Elvis impersonator in Las Vegas? Does bread make Paris or does Paris make bread? Why is Kuala Lumpur so rubbery? What's making Venice drown? And is Tasmania really that terrible? To find the answers to these questions and more,…

1
Literary Friction - Playing Games with Gabrielle Zevin 59:53

2y ago59:53

59:53

This month we’re delighted to welcome Gabrielle Zevin to Literary Friction. Gabrielle’s latest novel Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is an engrossing and moving story of a multi-decade creative partnership between two video game designers, so we thought it only appropriate to make our theme today ‘playing games’. Listen in as we explore how ga…

1
Chapter 23: Lunch Is A Glory Hole 6:09

2y ago6:09

6:09

written off the cusp and by the seat of the pants on a wild night and a catchphrase that said it all: "lunch is a glory hole" --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/heauxconfessionals/support

1
Rediscovery with Jamaica Kincaid and Stu Wilson (Picador Sponsored Episode) 55:33

2y ago55:33

55:33

For this minisode we’re doing something a little different - this episode is sponsored by publisher Picador, who this year have launched a new list of contemporary classics, called The Picador Collection, to coincide with their 50th anniversary year. With the aim of bringing seminal titles to a new generation of readers, the Picador Collection comb…

1
Minisode Thirty-Three: Correspondence 45:47

2y ago45:47

45:47

It's autumn in the UK and we're full of that back to school feeling - fresh pencils, new pens and notebooks - so what better time for a minisode about correspondence. This theme was suggested by our patron Liza and we got really into it, not just because it's such a rich topic in literature (epistolary novels! fictional instant messenger chats! mea…

1
Literary Friction - RE-RUN: a Spoonful of Sugar with Leïla Slimani 58:13

2y ago58:13

58:13

We're on our summer break, which means we can re-run this excellent conversation we had with the French-Moroccan author Leïla Slimani in 2018. Leïla came in to talk to us about her second novel Lullaby (or Chanson Douce in French) which is about a middle-class couple in Paris and the nanny they hire to care for their children, who at first seems li…

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