Deesha Philyaw and Dawnie Walton sit down with Jocelyn Nicole Johnson—author of Ursa's Season Two, Episode 3 story, "Virginia Is Not Your Home"—to discuss her acclaimed debut collection, My Monticello, and the journey of its making. Johnson talks about her writing as a direct response to historical events as they occur, much of her work centering Virginia as home, and grappling with complicated histories, experiences, and ideas around identity.
Johnson addresses the themes that occur throughout her collection, such as that of loneliness, belonging, resistance, violence, and salvation. Deesha and Dawnie dive into questions about perspective, voice, character- and world-building, the writing and revision process, and perseverance as a writer:
“Control what you can control, which is the writing. Enjoy the writing. Do your best with the writing. What matters is the writing. I just think you want to be thoughtful, but put that thought and care into that part of it, because that's the part that you have the most control.”Reading List:
Jocelyn Nicole Johnson is the author of My Monticello, a fiction debut that was called "a masterly feat" by the New York Times, and winner of the Library of Virginia Fiction Award, the Weatherford Award, the Balcones Fiction Prize, and the Lillian Smith Award, as well as a finalist for the Kirkus Fiction Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Leonard Award, the LA Times Debut Seidenbaum Prize, and long-listed for a Pen/Faulkner Fiction Award and the Story Prize. Johnson has been a fellow at TinHouse, Hedgebrook, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. Her writing has appeared in Guernica, The Guardian, Kweli Journal, Joyland, Lit Hub, and elsewhere. Her short story “Control Negro” was anthologized in The Best American Short Stories, guest edited by Roxane Gay and read live by LeVar Burton. A veteran public school art teacher, Johnson lives and writes in Charlottesville, Virginia.
***
Episode editor: Kelly Araja
Associate producer: Marina Leigh
Producer: Mark Armstrong
Ursa Short Fiction is supported by our listeners. Share this podcast with a friend—or become a Member to help fund production: https://ursastory.com/join
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://ursastory.com/join
Shows We Love: Black & Published
That's a Wrap on Season Two! A Special Message from Deesha and Dawnie
What Denne Michele Norris Learned as a Writer and Editor
[Free teaser] Member Exclusive: Deesha’s 7-Figure Book Deal, Listener Questions
Story: ‘What Got Into Us,’ by Jacob Guajardo
Rubén Degollado on Writing a Family Story, 25 Years in the Making
Story: ‘The Seven Songs,’ by Rubén Degollado
Nafissa Thompson-Spires on the Making of ‘Heads of the Colored People’
Jonathan Escoffery on ‘Under the Ackee Tree’ and Walking Your Own Path
Story: ‘Under the Ackee Tree,’ by Jonathan Escoffery
Jamil Jan Kochai on Separating Writing from ‘the Noise’
Story: 'Enough!' by Jamil Jan Kochai
‘No Saints, No Demons’: Sidik Fofana on Creating Characters and Protecting Dreams
Story: 'Tumble,' by Sidik Fofana
Dantiel W. Moniz on Hometowns, Girlhood, and the Life Experiences that Fuel Fiction Writing
Story: ‘Rioja,’ by Shannon Sanders
Story: ‘Virginia Is Not Your Home,’ by Jocelyn Nicole Johnson
ZZ Packer on the 20th Anniversary of ‘Drinking Coffee Elsewhere’
Nana Nkweti: ‘I Always Knew I Was Going to Write Stories’
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Lit Society: Books and Drama
Ex Libris
Write The Book: Conversations on Craft
The Federalist Papers
Pride and Prejudice
Fresh Air
Myths and Legends