The Mookse and the Gripes discussion

Many folks here come here from GoodReads and do not know the provenance of the name or much about The Mookse and the Gripes. That is all just fine, of course, and all are welcome! However, because of this many don't know that there was for a while a Mookse and Gripes Podcast. I pulled the plug on it earlier this year after a fallow period and after costs were building. However, last week I went to Patreon to seek support for the website and, in particular, for the podcast. Thanks to the support I've received, I'm moving into planning mode, and the podcast will be back!

So, I'd like to solicit your input. I wrote a post over at The Mookse and the Gripes (here), but I wanted to spread this a bit wide and get all the help I can. So what follows is a repost, essentially. But, if folks are interested, I'll keep giving updates here and, when they are posted, will link to the shows in this folder. Whether there will be enough interest to make a thread for each, I don't know. We'll see!

Now, to The Mookse and the Gripes Podcast 2.0. The first goal at Patreon is to raise $100 per month to maintain version 2.0 of the podcast. While we are only 1/10 of the way to that goal (which I still hope to reach), the Patreon support plus lump sum donations and encouragement that have come in over the last week have given enough to get the ball rolling, and I’m looking to relaunch the podcast in early 2018.

I find myself in that pleasant state of planning and dreaming before the real work begins! Just what will version 2.0 be. Version 1.0¹ was focused on NYRB Classics (and I’m sure their books will continue to come up in whatever comes next); however, I want to find something more flexible and open. In the quest to create a pleasing book-centric podcast, I’d love your feedback.

Please let me know if you have any ideas for format or content that you’d like considered. There are several great book podcasts out there already, so I’m curious what else you might want or what you’d like to get from The Mookse and the Gripes Podcast. I know people will have different opinions, but . . .

-Do you prefer short and frequent shows (20-30 minutes a few times a month) or long and less frequent (over an hour, once or twice per month), and why?

-Would you prefer a podcast focused solely on books, or one more generally focused on reading?

-Any particular authors or books you’d love to hear a podcast about?

-Is there any approach you would like me to avoid?

-All of the above? None of the above?

This is very much in the all-ideas-are-valid-and-welcome stage. I have some ideas of my own that I’ll share in future updates as this gets a bit more shape. For now, please feel free to comment below, message me on Twitter (@mookse), or send me an email at mookseandgripes@gmail.com. Your input will be welcome and most appreciated!

¹Currently the episodes from 1.0 are not available, but I will be re-uploading them when the hosting service is re-engaged.

Trevor, I’m very much looking forward to the podcasts. I suggest that the length of the podcasts be determined by the content of the conversations, rather than predetermining whether the podcasts should be short or long.

As for contents, here are a few ideas:
—Interviews with Republic of Consciousness shortlisted authors.
—Trevor and Betsy-like discussions of selected novels or short stories, with enough advanced notice so that listeners can read the short story or novel prior to listening to the podcast. I’m not advocating that you and Betsy or another colleague focus on Alice Munro: in fact, I would prefer more attention paid to either authors who are somewhat out of fashion, authors who are less well known, or authors who are just emerging. But I like the Trevor/Betsy approach of interpretation and appreciation, rather than critical dissection and destruction.
—Novelists’ favorite novelists and novels, and what those authors may or may not have in common. Ann Beattie: Peter Taylor and David Markson (!). Philip Roth: Louise Erdrich and Nicole Krauss. And so forth.
—Literary friendships, and what those authors’ novels may or may not have in common: Beryl Bainbridge and Bernice Rubens, and so forth.
—Discussion of varying missions and strategies for literary prize choices, to the extent that one can generalize for an individual prize from one year to the next. Here I’m especially struck by the apparent approach adopted by the National Book Award for this year’s longlist, as opposed to, say, this year’s Booker.

Thanks for the input, Dan! All of that is very helpful, and I will keep all of it in mind. You can see over at Patreon what I’m leaning to, but I like the idea of keeping it relatively open! And your specific ideas are exciting!

This all sounds very interesting, so good luck Trevor. I suspect that I won't be an active user, since my free time is rather limited and on the whole I would rather spend it reading.

that's very exciting and I wish you the best luck. There are some good book podcasts, but always room for one more. I second the idea of introducing new authors and would suggest trying to get an established writer to discuss new writers with you. The known writer would be the hook for readers who tend to stick with what they know. I listen to podcasts ar work when I can and tend to zone out when the hosts banter about their personal life and share inside jokes. Im sure your podcast will be a great success.

I've finished the preliminary work on episode one: "Anita Brookner's Start in Life"! I hope to record and edit over the next few days so I can post it next week. Here is the artwork that will be on iTunes:

Trevor, I’m eagerly looking forward to this. I’m now rereading Look At Me, after a gap of almost thirty-five years. It’s quite wonderful and powerful, perhaps Brookner’s best of her early novels. Thanks for reinteresting me in reading her novels.

I am very excited about this podcast!! I read A Start in Life within the last few months so it will be fresh in my mind.
I just got Look at Me last week, Dan.

I just got it submitted to iTunes for approval. My memory from doing this before is that it takes a few days, but I will let you all know when it’s officially up!

Dan, Patreon folks can hear it now—I think! Let me know if you try it there and it works.

We haven’t discussed the podcast for quite a while, but it’s back and new shows are posted regularly. The shows are interesting and now with the new newsletter and social media they’re somewhat interactive. Paul, @bibliopaul, and Trevor have delightful discussions about books and bookish things. It’s one of my favorite podcasts now.