Poet, author, and playwright Ben Okri reads his story “A Wrinkle in the Realm,” and talks about music and dream... more

At a live performance in London, journalist, filmmaker, and author Sarfraz Manzoor reads a piece he wrote for SongWriter about... more

Turkish journalist and author Asli Perker shares a story she wrote for SongWriter about a terrible car accident, and how... more

Palestinian poet and clinical psychologist Hala Alyan shares her poem “Dear Gaza,” about guilt, memory, and hope. Scientist Dr. Salma... more

Poet and author Maggie Smith shares two poems about caregiving for young children, and the complicated calculus around exposing them... more

Filmmaker and author Naz Riahi tells a heartbreaking story she wrote for SongWriter about the loss of a beloved pet,... more

Filipinx American poet Ina Cariño shares a brand new “sonnet crown” poem that they wrote for SongWriter on the subject... more

Author Kate Cohen reads a piece she wrote for SongWriter about how – despite her firm atheism – the Jewish... more

Freddy Mutanguha, who is the CEO of the Aegis Trust – the organization that built the Kigali Genocide Memorial –... more

During a performance at KQED Live, comedian and filmmaker W. Kamau Bell tells a story about his father’s 80th birthday... more

Bestselling Cameroonian-American author Imbolo Mbue shares an excerpt she chose from How Beautiful We Were, about a village’s collective fight... more

At a live performance at Queens College, legendary author Joyce Carol Oates reads a piece about her beloved late husband... more

At a live performance at KQED in San Francisco, bestselling author and New Yorker staff writer Susan Orlean tells a... more

Season 6 is here, with the return of friends like Joyce Carol Oates and Susan Orlean, and new ones like... more

Bonus episode! News of the mildly delayed season six, as well as some upcoming live shows, including: 5/11 Joyce Carol Oates... more

Bestselling author David Sedaris reads an excerpt from Theft By Finding, a collection of his diaries from when he was... more

Bestselling author Raven Leilani reads an excerpt of her short story “Breathing Exercise,” and talks about art, racism, and carnality... more

This is part one of a two-part episode featuring "Sea Oak" by George Saunders. Part one contains a song written... more

This is part one of a two-part episode featuring "Sea Oak" by George Saunders. Part one contains a song written... more

Bestselling author, screenwriter, and founder of McSweeney’s, Dave Eggers reads an excerpt from his short story, “The Museum of Rain,”... more

Andrew Sean Greer won the Pulitzer Prize for his comic novel, Less. For this episode he reads an excerpt from... more

Sally Rooney’s bestselling novel, Beautiful World, Where Are You? is a follow-up to her wildly successful novel Normal People, which... more

Kevin Allison is a storyteller, the host of the wildly popular RISK! podcast, and a former member of MTV’s The... more

Author and illustrator Dolan Morgan reads an excerpt from his story, “The Quartering Act,” which combines fantasy and emotional realism... more

Charlie Gilmour reads an excerpt from his bestselling memoir, Featherhood, which connects the story of raising an abandoned magpie with... more

Bestselling author Jean Hanff Korelitz reads an excerpt from her recent novel, The Latecomer, and talks about the connections and... more

New Yorker staff writer, Russian dissident journalist, and author Masha Gessen  (@MashaGessen) tells the story of being called in for... more

New York Times writer Dan Bergner reads an excerpt from The Mind and the Moon, which explores the lives of... more

Bestselling author and storyteller Neil Gaiman (@NeilHimself) talks about his long collaborations with the FourPlay String Quartet (@FourPlaySQ), and their... more

Cheryl Strayed (@CherylStrayed) returns to SongWriter to read another letter from "Tiny, Beautiful Things" (which is now a series on... more