Episode 265 with Carvell Wallace, Author of Another Word for Love, a Modern Classic, and Upturner of Tropes in Beautifully and Honestly Portraying Darkness and Beauty and Love’s Vagaries

Notes and Links to Carvell Wallace’s Work

 

 

   Carvell Wallace is a writer and podcaster who has contributed to The New Yorker, GQ, New York Times Magazine, Pitchfork, MTV News, and Al Jazeera. His debut memoir, Another Word For Love (MCD, 2024), explores his life, identity, and love through stories of family, friendship, and culture and is a 2024 Kirkus Finalist in Nonfiction. He was a 2019 Peabody Award nominee, a 2022 National Magazine Award Finalist, a 2023 winner of the Mosaic Prize in Journalism, and a 2025 UCross Fellow. He lives in Oakland. 

Buy Another Word for Love

 

Carvell Wallace’s Website

 

New York Times Review of Another Word for Love

 

“Carvell Wallace on What Writing Taught Him About His Life” for LitHub

At about 2:25, Carvell describes his “active” reading youth during his youth, including interest in Edgar Allan Poe and fables and fairy tales, and how creative pursuits in college paused and started his writing life 

At about 6:25, Carvell shouts out a teacher who exposed him to great literary works and “treated [him] like a real writer”

At about 7:45, Carvell talks about being an artist “getting off the academic train” and academic “tracking”

At about 9:20, Carvell and Pete discuss “math people” and implications around embracing the label or not

At about 10:40, Carvell lists Song of Solomon, Judy Blume, Grapes of Wrath as “formative” texts and writers, and he details how imitation works in his writing, 

At about 14:00-Ayn Rand and Jordan Peterson talk!

At about 15:50, Carvell discusses his take on expectations of literary and pop culture “representation” growing up, as well as how he “goes to reading to find [himself]” 

At about 19:15, Pete asks Carvell about his wide level of interest and knowledge and “muses,” and Carvell describes the “throughline” for his varied work as “people”

At about 22:50, Carvell and Pete discuss the definitive answer to the pronunciation of “gif” and highlight meaningful gifs of JR Smith and Andre Iguoadala

At about 25:15, Carvell responds to Pete’s question about writers and creators who inspire, including the film podcast You Must Remember This and Tricia Hersey’s We Will Rest

At about 28:20, Pete tiptoes into asking about Frankenstein’s monster

At about 29:05, Pete highlights stirring parts of Another Word for Love and shares gushing blurbs

At about 30:40, Pete asks about the structuring of the book and links that Catrvell envisioned and put into practice; Carvell explains his rationale for structuring around recovery

At about 33:05, Carvell connects Choose Your Own Adventure to the ways in which he tried to avoid “prescriptive” writing 

At about 34:05, Carvell replies to Pete’s question about “killing [his] darlings” 

At about 36:10, Carvell gives background on his June Jordan epigraph and talks about her revolutionary ways

At about 40:00, Carvell muses profoundly on the “contradiction(s)” of the United States

At about 42:05, Carvell responds to Pete’s asking about the “encroaching shadows” and loneliness that govern the book’s opening scene; Carvell also reflects on the “unreliability of memory”  

At about 46:00, The two reflect on a pivotal early chapter about a literal and figurative “fog” and unorthodox lessons learned from the experience 

At about 48:45, Carvell explains the importance of descriptions in the books about seeking intimacy with his mother and flipping tropes

At about 50:20, Carvell talks about writers and dishonesty and remembrance with regard to a possibly apocryphal story regarding kids forced to take care of themselves

At about 54:40, Carvell talks about nomenclature for sexual assault and reflections on ideas of culpability and masculinity 

At about 58:20, Carvell reflects on healing through writing the book and his ethic in writing it

At about 1:01:05, Pete recounts important parts of Carvell’s childhood daydreaming 

At about 1:02:20, Carvell points out a “theory of recovery” as seen in a metanarrative and ideas of “endless beautiful things in the world”

At about 1:03:30, Carvell muses on connections between hip hop and Shakespeare that especally

At about 1:05:20, The two discuss “The Finger” and racism shown by a white man and its larger implications 

At about 1:08:40, Pete asks Carvell about links between “overwrit[ing] reality” and racist violence towards him

At about 1:10:00, The two reflect on change and the birth scene of his child; Carvell reflects on humility as illustrated in the scene  

At about 1:12:45, Pete recounts important scenes that end Part I and govern Part II and asks Carvell about “re-union” and healing

At about 1:14:10, Pete gushes honestly over the book’s greatness, evocative nature, and resonant nature 

At about 1:15:30, Carvell talks about the book’s end and its lack of an end 

At about 1:16:20, Carvell shares contact info, social media info, and places to buy his book, including great Bay Area bookstores like Harold’s Books 

 

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    Please tune in for Episode 266 with Lydia Kiesling. She is a novelist and culture writer whose first novel, The Golden State, was a 2018 National Book Foundation “5 under 35” honoree and a finalist for the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award. Her second novel, Mobility, a national bestseller, was named a best book of 2023 by Time and NPR, among others.

The episode airs on December 17.

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