Work + Craft
Traveling in Difficult Truths Toward Elusive Mercy: An Interview with Steve Almond
“Literature is one way to remember that everybody else is suffering and that your imagination has to take in their suffering and their motives. If you really grant everybody mercy, you will get to the bottom of the truth.”—Steve Almond, in our interview on storytelling.
Body / Mind / Emotion
All the Rage: An Interview with Josh Cohen
“Anger just feels like the dominant color and flavor and aroma of the world we’re in, it feels very hard to move mentally or physically without coming into contact with anger […] and because it’s all around us, it’s also inside us all the time.” —Josh Cohen, in our interview on the pervasiveness of rage.
Society
The Artist-Mother Paradigm: An Interview with Hettie Judah
“There is no artist mother paradigm. So, when I, as a middle-aged woman, make art, people assume it’s my nice hobby. They don’t take me seriously because it’s not a paradigm that we celebrate or that’s particularly visible, culturally. But being an artist mother is an identity that, once it’s articulated, people feel very strongly.”—Hettie Judah, on the artist mother identity.
Sci-Tech
Beyond Belief: A Review of Helen Pearson’s Book Heralding Evidence
In her new book Beyond Belief: How Evidence Shows What Really Works, science journalist Helen Pearson describes the emergence of evidence-based decision making across various fields.
Divinity
The Profane and the Divine: An Interview with Pierre Liebaert
“When you do something very important, you change deeply and it’s impossible to go back. Every cell in your body is changed. This is why you have to be prepared.”—Pierre Liebaert, in our interview on rituals.
Inspiration
- James Baldwin, from The Paris Review: James Baldwin, The Art of Fiction No. 78