Episodes

Today on our show we’re talking about perseverance, a quality important if you want to be a writer, a runner, or someone successful at crafting the dreaded college essay. What makes your essay stand out to publishers and to college admissions directors is the situation and the story. They want to see the loss or the win, because that’s what allows others to connect with your story. They also want to know what you learned from the experience and how that experience informed your character. Allison Langer has been working with high school students all over the country on their college admissions essays. This is the second episode in a two-part series where we bring you common app essays.Ransom Everglades High School graduate Wesley Cusack wrote the following essay about the challenges he faced in track and cross country and what he learned from not quitting.If you or your high schooler needs help getting started or editing along the way, Allison Langer can help. Click her…

Here's how to brag on your college admissions common app essay or any personal essay.

This episode is about expanding a moment in your story. How and when to slow down and give specific details.

In class, sometimes we ask people to close their eyes and smell sunblock, or freshly baked bread. Sometimes we play a Beatles song or have students squeeze Play-Doh. Sometimes we throw out a word like pussy. Then, we ask students to write about the first thing that comes to mind. All of these prompts inspire stories.Today on our show we’re talking about how inspiration for stories can come in a word, a song, a scent, or an object like a dress.You will hear a story by Nancy Brier, a listener from Palm Desert, California. Nancy’s essay starts with a dress, goes to another dress, to cancer and then back to the dress. But it is really a story about seizing the day.Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No matter what’s going on in our lives, writing class is where we tel…

How to write the perfect pitch and get published.

Details matter. To help create specific details in your story, ask yourself: Like what?

On this episode, we talk about procrastination. We also talk about speaking directly to the reader from a place of experience. And giving advice, which is really hard in a story and in life. If you're willing to be vulnerable, you can do it. We’re starting with a story by Jenni Berrett called You Aren’t Lazy--You’re Just Terrified: On Paralysis and Perfectionism. Jenni is a columnist at Ravishly, an online magazine that celebrates the mess of being human. Her story is relevant to all of us messy humans, especially the messy writers among us. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No matter what’s going on in our lives, writing class is where we tell the truth. It’s where we work out our shit, and figure out who we are. There’s no place in…

In this episode we’re talking about writing about death. We have a story by Leslie Gray Streeter, a columnist for the Palm Beach Post who also contributes to Modern Loss,    the online magazine dedicated to normalizing the way we talk about loss. Leslie’s story is called, What I did with My Husband’s Life Insurance Money. Leslie uses humor and a conversational style when writing about the death of her husband, the same humor and voice she’d use to write about anything. We also speak with Gabrielle Birkner, the editor and co-founder of Modern Loss and editor of a book with the same name. Gabi reveals her process of editing and publishing stories about death. She also speaks about working with writers who are often, not only writing about very difficult and personal topics, but also submitting stories for publication for the first time. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your o…

In this episode we air the winner of our fall writing contest--Jen Antill. The prompt: A Time I Had an Unpopular Opinion reaped a story about a woman who is pregnant at 24, but doesn’t want to be. It turns out, she never wanted to be a mother. Starting with a prompt like a time you had an unpopular opinion can lead to a story with tension, conflict, and high stakes, all of which make for a great story. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No matter what’s going on in our lives, writing class is where we tell the truth. It’s where we work out our shit, and figure out who we are. There’s no place in the world like writing class and we want to bring you in.Writing Class Radio is co-hosted by Allison Langer (www.allisonlanger.com) and Andre…

This is the final episode of the Andrea Show. For the last seven weeks, we brought you a story written and read by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge on her 50th birthday in May 2018, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” This week Andrea’s story conflates editors and friends, because in her mind, they both keep you from embarrassing yourself. Andrea makes the case that an editor is a friend you can’t live without. Allison and Andrea discuss what they’ve learned through the process of writing and editing stories. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in …

For the next two weeks, we will bring you a story written and read by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” This week Andrea takes us on a 12-mile run through Miami, where she snaps something in her leg. She uses the experience to discover her real Achilles heel, which is her fear of getting fat. In this episode, Andrea and Allison disagree over edits. Hear how they duke it out. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No matter what’s going on in our lives, writing class i…

For the next three weeks, we will bring you a story written and read by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” On this episode, Allison and Andrea talk about a subject that comes up in every writing class: What do you do about writing about other people? Andrea tells a funny story about how everyone in her life wants to be included in her stories, even if they’re not portrayed in a glowing light. She reveals she wants to be included too. After the story is read, Allison and Andrea discuss what it took to get to the why in the story and what edits were made along the way. We hope this process will help writers get inspired to write. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the st…

This week, Andrea uses the epistolary form--story written as a letter--to get her point across. The letter form is very intimate because the narrator is speaking directing to you. We hope this process will help writers get published or at least get inspire to write. For the next four weeks, we will bring you a story written and read by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No matter what’s going on in our lives, writing class is wher…

For the next five weeks, we'll bring you a story written and read by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” This week, something cool happened. Andrea didn’t know what to write about, so she called Allison and they both set timers for 15 minutes and wrote to the prompt: Christmas. On this episode, Allison and Andrea read the stories they wrote. And they talk about how to get from writing prompt to getting published. Andrea writes about what bringing a Christmas tree into her Jewish family meant for them. And why she thinks the Christmas tree is the gateway drug to Christianity. Allison reads her story, which was recently published in The Washington Post. The story is about her perspective as a photographer who ta…

This is week three of an eight-week experiment. We’re bringing you a story a week by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” On this episode, Andrea tells a story about what girls have to endure in our modern world. She was inspired by Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony and wrote about an incident that happened to her daughter at sleepaway camp when a 13-year-old boy threatened to rape her. Allison and Andrea discuss how Andrea used a current topic to tell a personal story. They discuss the submission process. And the advice given by writer, teacher, Susan Shapiro, in her book Byline Bible, on how to make your story relevant now. They discuss what it took to get to the why in the story and what edits were made along th…

For the next seven weeks, we will bring you a story written and read by Writing Class Radio co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. Andrea took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” This week, Andrea tells a funny story about a not funny at all topic--her brother’s cancer diagnosis. After the story is read, Allison and Andrea discuss how Andrea uses humor to deal with tough subjects. They discuss what it took to get to the why in the story and what edits were made along the way. We hope this process will help writers get published or at least get inspire to write. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we me…

Welcome to Season 6. For the next eight weeks, we will bring you a story a week written and read by co-host, Andrea Askowitz, with commentary by her editor, co-host, Allison Langer. This week, Andrea tells us why she took a weekly essay challenge, which was inspired by a quote by the author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury. He said, “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad stories in a row.” After the story is read, Allison and Andrea discuss the piece, what it took to get to the why in the story and what edits were made along the way. Why, pray tell, is Andrea writing an essay a week? We hope this process will help writers get published or at least get inspired to write. Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories from the students in our class and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No ma…

This is our 50th episode and our last episode of Season 5. Today we’re talking about omitting needless words because who has time for excessive blah, blah, blah. You will hear a great example of a story that got chopped in half. Allison Langer’s story called Why I decided to ignore the judgy snobs (like me) and have my babies on my own was published in the Washington Post, August 31, 2018. After Allison tells her story, we talk about how the story lost 1,500 words. This episode is also about working out your shit by writing every last detail then omitting all the details that don’t have a direct impact on what your story is about. Student Aaron Curtis (www.facebook.com/skinnyaaroncurtis/) is going through a second divorce. In class, the prompt was Justice. Hear Aaron’s response and see how it doesn’t really matter what the prompt is. If there’s something on your mind, it usually comes out in writing class.Thank you for listening to Writing Class Radio.Writing Class Radio is a po…

Writing about hard topics like money is awkward. No one wants to admit that they have money. And no one wants to admit that they don’t have money. Money is one of those topics that embarrasses people or divides people. This episode talks about MONEY. In this episode, we are also asking our listeners to join the movement of people who believe in the power of storytelling. We’re asking YOU to donate to our podcast. If you like this podcast and find us valuable, hit the support us button on our website (www.writingclassradio.com). We spend the first five minutes of this episode explaining why we want your money. Then, you’ll hear a story by Kathryn Sullivan, a listener in Boston, who responded to the prompt Something You Don’t Understand. Kathryn wrote about the financial complications of her cross-cultural relationship. Andrea and Allison discuss the way the culture and age affect this narrator’s experience with money. Misha Mehrel also shares a glimpse into his current relationship..…

Today on our show we’re talking about compassion, families, and the legacy they leave. We’re also talking about how to write about those people in our lives who have fucked us up. And who hasn’t been fucked up by a parent? However, nobody wants to hear a rant. We must get to know the characters from all sides, which means, all the good things and all the ugly things. Nobody is all good or all bad. Liz Marquardt is a student in our class who has told stories on the podcast before. She does a great job of characterizing her dad in the story we bring you today. You will hear a brief interview with Liz, so you can get to know her better. After her story, Andrea and Allison offer feedback and their reasons why this story was well-characterized and well-written.Thank you for listening to Writing Class Radio.Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By …

In this episode, we examine the popular writing tenet, show DON’T tell. We believe just showing is not only impossible, but detrimental to your story. Telling gives insight into what the narrator is thinking and feeling. To test this theory, we asked our students to just SHOW. We gave the prompt: A Fight and instructed them to go directly to scene without explaining. After ten minutes, the students were asked to continue where they left off but to move from the scene into exposition, to just TELL. They were instructed to explain what was going on in the story, give background, and tell what the narrator was thinking and feeling. What we found: It’s impossible to show without telling. We are show AND tell advocates.You will hear short prompt responses from student Misha Mehrel, who has read many stories on this podcast, and student and co-host, Allison Langer. Finally, teacher and co-host, Andrea Askowitz, will read a longer piece called Spoiled Mom, which was developed out of this e…

Today on our show, we're talking about objects. Things like a pen, trash cans, reading glasses, and a scale. We can build stories around these things because these objects affect our lives. They can stand in for an emotion. The phrase for this is object correlative. T.S. Eliot used this phrase to describe “a set of objects, a situation, a chain of events which shall be the formula of that particular emotion.” We asked students in our class to write about an object. You will hear prompt responses from three students. Allison Langer writes about dependence on reading glasses. The glasses represent age and loss. Liz Marquardt writes about garbage bins, which become symbolic of the frustrations of a long-term marriage. Maya Kieffer gave the same prompt to her poetry students in a class she facilitates through Exchange for Change at the Dade Correctional Institution, and we learn how an object can reveal so much about perspective. In a longer, edited story, Margery Berger, takes us into …

Today we are talking about identity; how sometimes what we show on the outside is not what we feel on the inside. As a storyteller, you have to know who you are. Or try to figure out who you are through the writing. Three of our students address identity. First Aaron Curtis, who is a blogger and bookseller writes about being mistaken for a Republican. Second, Tobi Ash, who is a philanthropist and grant writer writes about hiding beneath a veneer. And last, Yaddyra Peralta, who is a poet, teacher, and the organizer of the Palm Beach Poetry Festival, questions her racial identity despite her father’s denial.Thank you for listening to Writing Class Radio.Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories and learn a little about how to write your own stories. Writing Class Radio is equal parts heart and art. By heart we mean the truth in a story. By art we mean the craft of writing. No matter what’s going on in our lives, writing class is where we tell the tru…

The way a story is told out loud adds another layer to a story. On this episode, we’re talking about how our physical voices can carry a story with inflection, pace, volume, tone, and pitch. Voice can even make us love a story we might otherwise not like, or understand. Meet Asia Sampson renown poet and founder of The Asia Project (spoken word, poetry and storytelling)as he performs his new poem Desks Are Not Bulletproof and takes you through his creative process. If you love the way Asia describes how to use your voice and how to train as a performer, and you get as inspired by Asia as we do, South Florida people can join us June 23, 2018 for a full-day class with Asia. Details on our website (www.writingclassradio.com). All levels welcome. Limited space. We also have a two-part memoir writing workshop opened to the public, May 19 and 26, 2018. Thank you for listening to Writing Class Radio.Writing Class Radio is a podcast where you’ll hear true personal stories and learn a l…