Interview with Shawn Smucker

Regular readers of this blog will remember Shawn Smucker, author of My Amish Roots, from his guest posts in February and in August, not to mention his numerous appearances in my Stuff I've Been Reading round-ups. Shawn is a remarkably talented and thoughtful writer and he is a smart and funny friend. And while I find his taste in cereal questionable, I can overlook that because he wrote one of my all-time most favorite essays on the internet.

When Shawn said that he was releasing a book about his Amish heritage, I was excited to read it, even though I have an uneasy relationship with both non-fiction and history. Of course, Shawn did not disappoint. He is a beautiful story-teller and this book was no exception. Shawn weaves his own story into that of his ancestors and in so doing, shows the ways in which we are the same and which we are different. I loved reading the excerpts from various diaries and experiencing the sadness and joy that his extended family went through for more than 200 years.

I asked Shawn a few questions about writing and his family and cereal and I'd love to share them with you here. Enjoy

Alise: What was your research method for this book? How much was found in journals and how much was found through oral tradition?


Shawn: I spent a lot of time with my grandmother’s brothers and sisters. That’s where most of the stories came from. But I also got some great information from my great-great-grandfather’s journal from 1893 – 1896 (this is included in the back of the book).

Alise: You’re a regular blogger. How does writing a book like this compare to blogging? What are the similarities and what are the differences?

Shawn: I don’t feel like there’s very much of a comparison. Both have their challenges. It’s tough coming up with something to blog about every day, but it’s also a challenge to maintain the momentum required to complete a 75,000 word manuscript. I think that what I liked about writing the family history was that I got to experiment with some different forms of writing, different voices, things like that.

Alise: What did you discover about yourself as you wrote this book?

Shawn: There is a deeper connection between me and the physical landscape of my hometown than I ever imagined. Maybe it’s because we’ve lived here for over 200 years. Maybe it’s because having such a large extended family gave me a huge sense of belonging as a kid. I’m not sure, but the rolling fields, the farmland, the streams and forests, have started to feel like just another relative.

Alise: How do you think your storytelling compares to that of your ancestors?

Shawn: Ha! For some reason, that question made me laugh. They were very stoic, very basic. My great-great-grandfather’s journal is a series of one-sentence days. I wish I could talk storytelling with them.

Alise: What do you hope to pass on from your children, not just about your roots, but about your own story?

Shawn: My great (x10) grandfather left his home to come to a new world. My great-great-grandparents both lost spouses before meeting each other. If anything, I’d love my children to inherit this resilience and sense of adventure.

Alise: Do you feel like your ancestors would agree that Lucky Charms are a superior cereal, or would they be more reasonable and recognize the inherent greatness of Golden Grahams?

Shawn: To be honest, I don’t think my Amish ancestors would be down with anything having to do with charms or gold. Guess we’re still deadlocked on that one.

Thanks so much for stopping by Shawn!

Please be sure to stop by Shawn's site to order your autographed copy of My Amish Roots in time for Christmas. You can also hook up with Shawn on Twitter and on Facebook. If you want to win a copy of Shawn's book, he's giving away two copies every Friday in December! Just head over to his blog and sign up to be on his email list.

Interview with Knox McCoy

Back in April, I had the distinct pleasure of being asked to be a part of Awesometown over at Knox McCoy's blog. Now, I'm probably one of the oldest members of Awesometown and it's just a bit too noisy for me, so I summer over here in Prodigiousburgh (with the H because why stop at G?). Still a resident of Awesometown, but without riff-raff like Tamara Out Loud.

Anyway, Knox has taken a moment away from his brand new baby girl to stop by Prodigiousburgh today and talk about his delightfully funny and surprisingly insightful book, Jesus and The Bachelorette: Finding Christ Among Roses, Tanned Bodies and Hyperbole. Because the man has to pay the bills.

+++++++++++++++


Alise Wright: First, my maiden name is McCoy. What are the odds that you and I are related?

Knox McCoy: One thousand percent. I don’t know about you, but my surname has a collection of “colorful” personalities on the limbs of it’s tree, so absolutely nothing is off the table in terms of relations. If my family had less people in jail and we could actually pull off a reunion, you and I would TOTALLY see each other there.

AW: Most of us can understand the desire to write about The Bachelorette, but what made you think to tie it to Christianity?

KM: I’ll just say it: I’m kind of strange in terms of what I find similarities in. But I think on some level, for me, similarities are more impactful when they are strange. It makes me listen more. If I’m in church and the Pastor makes a limp comparison of David and Jonathan to some other bibilical pairing, I’m probably going to daydream 15 seconds in. But if he compares them to Mario and Liugi or Uncle Joey and Uncle Jesse, I’m ALL in and taking notes.

AW: Did you share this project with anyone in your church? What were their thoughts about it?

KM: Absolutely no one. I’m terrible at self-promotion. I’m savant-like in how truly awkward I can be with positive attention. And also because explaining the link between topics does take a bit of, um, finesse?

AW: While writing this book, were there any comparisons between The Bachelorette and Christianity that caught you by surprise?

KM: I think the chapter using the fantasy suite jumps out in my mind. For the uninitiated, the fantasy suite episode is basically when the contestants have the sex audition for the Bachelor/ette. I compared the awkwardness of that episode with the awkwardness of Christians who are supposed to be all about love and then judge everyone in their field of vision. I wasn’t sure that comparison was going to hold water and it’s probably pretty debatable that it did, but I liked that I got to talk about the sex audition because I mean when you can work an idea like a sex audition into a book about Christianity, I think you pretty much have to do it. Everytime.

AW: What is the line that you’re most proud of in the book?

KM: The bail out answer would be: “anything that bridged a gap between perception and reality for a reader in terms of their faith.” But you know what, Alise? I don’t DO bail out answers.

This line is probably my favorite because of the idea behind it, which is close to my heart:

“Though the big picture focus is good, we Christians tend to get caught up in thelittle picture things. The fine print of our faith, as it were, and this serves toinflame the larger cultural opinion about us. Whether it’s only paying lip service toloving our neighbors, allowing ignorant ideas to speak for us or rigidly holdingnon-believers to our biblical standards, the point is that these little details fog outour overarching hope and instead emphasize our worst qualities.”

AW: If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring author, what would it be?

KM: 

• Write. Don’t ever stop producing. Your early stuff will be awful, but it will get so much better.
• Make friends that if you never ask them to help you, you’d still be friends with them.
• Three drafts of everything. If beauty, wit and realization are going to arrive, they will always arrive in that last draft.
• Find your voice and fly your freak flag. People will resonate with authentic voices, never with imitations though.

AW: If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring Bachelor/ette contestant, what would it be?

KM: If you have a child, just don’t. Instead of pouring all that energy into hopefully seducing a stranger, maybe be a parent instead?

AW: If you could give one piece of advice to an aspiring Christian, what would it be?

KM:

• Challenge yourself. Know what you believe and WHY you believe it.
• Love people, first and foremost, and this will allow others to define you with you supplying the definition.
• Concern yourself with others, particularly the less fortunate, and your happiness will be easy to maintain.

++++++++++++++++++++

Thanks so much Knox! Now, go forth from this place and purchase Knox's book. Because you guys, it has a chapter about sex auditions. And for reals, I have watched half an episode of a Bachelorette-style show and never the ACTUAL Bachelor/ette, and the book is still fantastic. Also, please be sure to subscribe to his blog so you can read his new serial and follow him on Twitter.

Podcast with Something Beautiful

Last week I got to spend a bit of time chatting with Travis Mamone for the Something Beautiful podcast. We talked about my religious upbringing, my experiences with depression, the Not Alone book, and a bit about being in an interfaith marriage.

You can head over here to check out the podcast and you can go subscribe over at iTunes (I promise, they interview people far more interesting than me!).





 Subscribe in a reader or by email so you never miss a post!

Segment on Agnostic Radio

In their most recent podcast, the guys over at Agnostic Radio announced that Jason and I will be doing a recurring spot on their show. So yeah, Jason and I will be doing a recurring spot over at Agnostic Radio! Thanks to you all for being super supportive and making the episode that Jason and I were on all popular and stuff. You guys are the best.

Anyway, the guys over at Agnostic Radio (and us!) are looking for ideas of topics we can discuss on their show. You can leave a comment here or over at their site or you can call their voice mail at 206-337-1186.

We're very excited about this opportunity and look forward to hearing what you have to say!

Podcast with AgnosticRadio

I'm still a little bit amazed by the interesting people that I meet and the fascinating things I get to do around this big old internets. I love that I'm able to connect with so many folks from such divergent walks of life. Honestly, I don't think I'll ever get tired of it.

This weekend, Jason and I had the opportunity to interview with J.G. over at Agnostic Radio for their weekly podcast. A few months ago they announced that they were looking for couples where one person was religious and the other was not to interview and my friend  The Agnostic Wife mentioned to them that Jason and I fit that description. We got in touch and after our schedules FINALLY synced up, we were able to sit down and do an interview.

This is our first time talking about our marriage out in public together, so please keep that in mind as you listen to me fumble around. Also, keep in mind that we're really just a boring old married couple. I'm thinking next time we'll need to drum up a little more hostility for one another to make it more exciting. Mostly, we just like each other an awful lot and see our religious differences as a relatively minor part of our relationship. But I'd still love it if you'd swing by and check out our interview! Don't forget to leave a comment and let them know that you stopped by.

You can follow Agnostic Radio on Twitter, on Facebook and subscribe to their podcast.

Thanks again to J.G. for the opportunity! If anyone else would like to speak with one or both of us or schedule any kind of interview, you can contact me through Twitter, Facebook or email.