Lexi Kent-Monning [Host: Michael Wheaton]

On today's episode of The Lives of Writers, Michael Wheaton interviews Lexi Kent-Monning. Lexi Kent-Monning is the author of the novel, The Burden of Joy, which is out now from Rejection Letters Press. Her writing has been published or is forthcoming in XRAY, Joyland, Tilted House Review, Neutral Spaces, Little Engines, and elsewhere. An excerpt from The Burden of Joy, titled "The Nurse's Lament", was published previously in Autofocus. Michael Wheaton is the publisher of Autofocus Books and producer of The Lives of Writers. His essay Home Movies will be out from Bunny Presse in Feb 2024. ____________ PART ONE, topics include: -- working customer service for a tech company -- previous work doing indie music publicity -- previous work as an assistant to actresses & celebs -- growing up near Big Sur and the CA/NY push-pull ____________ PART TWO, topics include: -- Lexi's first novel The Burden of Joy -- fragments turning into a memoir turning into a novel -- doppelganger characters and therapy as a writing tool -- specific and vital writing about sex and intoxication -- admitting hard things to yourself for the writing -- heartbreak and childhood repercussions ____________ PART THREE, topics include: -- hindsight and the epilogue -- the pull toward personal writing -- the person you are when you write vs publish the book -- promoting a first book ____________ Podcast theme music provided by Mike Nagel, author of Duplex. Here's more of his project: Yeah Yeah Cool Cool. The Lives of Writers is edited and produced by Michael Wheaton.