Episodes

Aug. 1, 2017

Great Writing Starts With a Question. What Don’t You Understand?

In this episode, you will meet the winner of Writing Class Radio’s spring writing contest. The prompt: Write about something you don’t understand. Andrea suggests that great writing starts with a question. Writing is about f…
July 11, 2017

Will This Ever End?

In this episode, Allison and Andrea are talking about endings. How to end an essay when often the issues we write about are ongoing. Should we know the ending when we begin? Does the end of the essay have to show a change in…
June 19, 2017

Take Me Into Your World

In this episode, Allison and Andrea are talking about worlds again because Andrea got so excited by Nilsa’s story in the episode Can You Hear Me if I Can't Hear You? where she brought us into the world of the hearing impaire…
May 19, 2017

How to Write Your True Story with Joyce Maynard

The format for this episode is a little different. Today we’re bringing you a guest teacher, because we think it’s smart to get different perspectives. Joyce Maynard is one of Andrea’s favorite teachers in the world. Joyce h…
April 21, 2017

Can You Hear Me if I Can't Hear You?

This episode is about connecting through writing. It’s also about the job of storytellers to bring us into their world. New student, Nilsa Rivera, tells a story about her fear of isolation, which stems from a very unique set…
March 23, 2017

Who Has Time?

Get ready folks, Allison and Andrea are hosting this episode together: an episode about time. Student Allison Langer is obsessed with the lack of time she has lately. So, in class teacher, Andrea Askowitz, gave this prompt: …
March 3, 2017

When Is It Okay to Bullshit?

Lies seem to be the new norm in our world. There’s probably a bumper sticker that says Lies Are the New Truth. Great bumper sticker, but it has Andrea Askowitz totally freaked out. Andrea is the teacher of the class and the …
Feb. 15, 2017

Writing is Therapy

This episode looks at writing as therapy. We look at writing as a way to understand these things we carry: secrets, pain, and shame. Allison Langer, a student in the class, is the host of this episode. Three new students s…
Feb. 1, 2017

A Time I Fucked Up Part 2

We picked two winners of our first annual writing contest. Listeners responded to the prompt: A Time I Fucked Up. We got tons of submissions revealing your major fuck ups and tons revealing your little mess ups. One woman’s …
Jan. 11, 2017

A Time I FUCKED Up

This is the prompt we threw out to listeners for our first annual writing contest. Listeners wrote in with lots of crazy and sad and funny stories. One of our winners was Melissa Vincel, who wrote an essay that stood out for…
Dec. 14, 2016

I Fart, You Fart, We All Fart and Most of Us Deny It.

Allison Langer is a student in the class and the host on this episode of Writing Class Radio. She shares all the reasons why writing class is so much fun. FUN-- a theme chosen because life has gotten too busy, too scheduled …
Nov. 23, 2016

Walking in Someone Else’s Shoes Feels Impossible Right Now

Andrea Askowitz is the host of this episode. She talks about how writing a good story and understanding the results of this presidential election require a mammoth effort in understanding someone else’s point of view, an eff…
Oct. 28, 2016

How To Tell Your Inappropriate Story: Live Show with Ann Randolph

Writing Class Radio goes live to the stage. This episode is part live show, part interview with star of our show, the award-winning, solo-performer, Ann Randolph. Allison Langer is our host. This episode is about the impor…
Sept. 9, 2016

Where Do I Go From Here?

This episode is about those moments in life when you have no idea how you got here, whether to stay or go, or where to go next. Allison Langer, student in the class and host for this episode, asks the questions most of us …
Aug. 24, 2016

I'm Obsessed with Tony Robbins, Tim Ferriss, Steve Almond, and my Spin Instructor

This episode is about obsessions. Andrea Askowitz, the teacher of the class speaks to Allison Langer, co-producer and student in the class. They discuss what she learned from the Tim Ferriss podcast when he interviewed Ton…
Aug. 3, 2016

Who is Jahn Dope? From H.S. Football Star to Homeless Man to the Great Philip Sylverin

This episode is about self destruction. Jahn Dope, one of the students in our class, reads his story, Dark Matter. Jahn’s story begins after he overdoses on LSD after a crazy night of drinking and drugs, then backtracks to…
July 19, 2016

Circuit Boys, Gym Rats, Papi Chulos, Fashion Queens, Bears...Which One Are You?

This episode explores perspective, how sometimes it takes years to figure out that something you did or thought was totally fucked up. Bo tells his story about getting blocked from a 1-900 gay hotline. But the story is rea…
June 30, 2016

Step Out of Your Comfort Zone...Where the Magic Happens.

This episode explores the different zones we live in: comfort zone, stretch zone and panic zone. Allison talks about her experience at dinner with new friends and how she complained the entire night. She realizes she venture…
June 14, 2016

Dear Listener

This episode explores the epistolary form, which is just a snobby way to say stories written in the form of a letter. Andrea Askowitz starts with a letter written to her from her best friend in high school. Robin and Andrea …
May 29, 2016

Taboo: Fat, Fuck, Masturbation

In this episode, we discuss what is taboo. Is it a word, a topic? Is it the same for everyone? We learn why we need to talk about things considered taboo, and when to actually write taboo words instead of referring to them. …
May 17, 2016

Rejection Sucks. Why Do We Put Ourselves Out There?

In this episode, student and co-producer Allison Langer puts herself out there in writing and in love. The first story she tells was submitted to Modern Love, a column in the New York Times. Allison’s story got rejected, whi…
May 1, 2016

Emotional Hangover. Those Times When You Feel You Told too Much.

Have you ever told a story or shared a secret and regretted it? Like you wake up the next morning and you’re like ew, why’d I say that? And then you want to vomit? Today we’re talking about telling stories that give us emoti…
April 25, 2016

Words Matter: Student Missy Shares Words with her Hero Elizabeth Gilbert

The words we say to each other and ourselves shape our lives. One of Andrea’s favorite writing tenets is: Make every word count. In today’s episode we learn that every word counts in life also. This is the first episode of o…
Feb. 25, 2016

How to Write a Story Meant to be Told Out Loud

Today, we’re talking about writing stories meant to be told out loud. Jahn Dope tells his story, Tackled, about the time he was raped. Andrea Askowitz tells her story Thank You For Listening, about the time she went 24 hours…