Passion and Practicality: A Liberal Arts Podcast
Passion and Practicality is a podcast series produced by Southern New Hampshire University‘s online Liberal Arts department, which includes academic programs and courses in Communication, Composition, Creative Writing, English, Fine Arts, Graphic Design, History, Literature, and Philosophy. In this podcast series, faculty, staff, and guests discuss the career paths open to graduates of those programs, the research and creative work of practitioners in the field, and other interesting stuff.
Episodes
In this History Speaker Series event, Ryan Walker, an alumnus of Southern New Hampshire University undergraduate history program and a doctoral student at the University of Portsmouth, discusses the concept of microhistory and his recent book on Henry Breault, The Silent Service’s First Hero: The First Submariner to Receive the Medal of Honor.
SNHU Communication alum Olivia Hatley is an executive assistant at an international insurance organization whose role has grown to sit at the center of organizational communication and philanthropy efforts. She reflects on the importance of choosing a path that's true to who you are, and why aligning your gifts and values with the right program is the foundation for a career that can weather any challenge.
Wireside Chat is proud to welcome Online MFA alum Kendra Vaughan, whose thesis novel, The Plymbury Witch, has become a local bestseller around New England thanks to Kendra's powerful prose and promotional skills! Tune in to hear her read from the novel and share her secrets for self-publishing success!
SNHU double alum Zac LaPoint shares how creative writing became the unexpected foundation for a career fighting poverty in his community. He makes the case that liberal arts is the underpinning connecting a range of fields, including human services, making it a legitimate 'related field' when applying for roles that might not immediately seem like a fit. He also weighs in on AI's growing presence in human services, and why it can n...
Join Word for Word as we honor the winners of the 11th Annual Penmen Review Fall Fiction Contest with readings of their winning stories and a Q&A with the writers!
SNHU alum Gabbi Hall shares her journey from coordinating the university's iconic bus tour campaign to reporting on Olympic skiing and ultimately leading creative teams as an advertising director. She illuminates how curiosity and openness shaped her path, and how her liberal arts background deepened her understanding of human experience, making her a better marketer.
Word for Word proudly welcomes horror master Paul Tremblay! Paul has won the Bram Stoker, British Fantasy, Sheridan Le Fanu, and Massachusetts Book awards and is the New York Times bestselling author of "Horror Movie: A Novel," "The Beast You Are," "The Pallbearers Club," "Survivor Song," "Growing Things and Other Stories," "Disappearance at Devil's Rock," "A Head Full of Ghosts," and the crime novels "The Little Sleep" and "No Sle...
In part two of our conversation, MFA alum and entrepreneur Brittany McMunn shares the steps she took to channel her passion for writing into a thriving career as an editor and publishing partner, and how that decision helped her transcend a difficult period of her life. She describes how the value of tenacity, and creative writing skills of storytelling and landing a message set her and her clients apart in roles across industries.
...In this History Speaker Series event, Monique Taylor discusses her book, Suicide Jockeys: The Making of the World War II Combat Glider Pilot, which describes the training and missions of glider pilots in the US Army Air Corps, who were charged with delivering soldiers and equipment behind enemy lines. Here, Monique will discuss with Rob and Jimmy her career and training as a historian and the research and writing process for Suicid...
SNHU alum Brittany McMunn shares her winding path from pre-med student to healthcare industry manager to publishing entrepreneur, revealing how a personal crisis led her to rediscover her passion for writing and editing. She explains how her communications degree and MFA gave her the skills to command a room, understand diverse perspectives, and ultimately build three literary ventures that help authors find their place in the indu...
Wireside Chat welcomes Online MFA instructor Alex DiFrancesco! A multi-genre writer and transmasc person (they/them), Alex is the author of the novels Transmutation, All City, Psychopomps, and Breaking the Curse. Their work has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, the Guardian, Electric Literature, Lit Hub, Tin House, and more. Join us as we talk with Alex about genre-bending and blending, climate fiction, and the reali...
Our guest Aimee Terravechia shares her “zigzag” career journey from a bachelor’s in English literature to roles in sales, marketing, journalism, nonprofit leadership, and advocacy. She illuminates how academic skills like critical analysis and storytelling became professional strengths that help her navigate complex legislation to make real community impact.
Word for Word opens a new season with our annual Instructor Spotlight event! We are thrilled to welcome MA instructor Dan Gleason and Online MFA instructor Tracy Crow as our special guests! Dan is a graduate of the famed Iowa Writers' Workshop who has worked as a journalist for an array of top national magazines. His new true-crime book, "Life Without: The Wrongful Conviction of Sandy Shaw," was just published from Bloomsbury. Trac...
In this History Speaker Series event, Roger Newman discusses his recent book, Boys. Dr. Newman is a professor of obstetrics and gynecology, specializing in the care of women with multiple gestations. He has authored hundreds of papers, chapters, and books. At this event, Dr. Newman discusses his approach to historical fiction, how the book reflects real events in his family’s past, and the book publication process.
Join us as Wireside Chat welcomes Online MFA Instructor Cindy Skaggs! Cindy is the author of seven novels, two novellas, and, most recently, a guidebook for new novelists, "Dear Someday Writer." She holds an MA and an MFA in creative writing and has ten years of experience teaching writing and creative writing in higher education. She is an advocate for military and veteran issues, and in 2019-2020 spearheaded the Veteran Expressiv...
Join us as Wireside Chat welcomes Online MFA Instructor Jerico Lenk! Jerico's fiction and poetry combine formal experimentation, queer identities and mythological reimaginings. His current work in progress is a novel adaptation of the Apollo and Hyacinth myth. He is the author of The Missing, a YA novel set in the Victorian-era and featuring queer ghost-hunters, and his novel In the Pines was shortlisted for the First Pages Prize i...
In this History Speaker Series event, historian Aly Riley discusses her recent book, She Spies: Women of the American Revolution, Their Heroic Missions, and Agent 355 Revealed, her experience with self-publication, and her future projects.
Wireside Chat welcomes Online MFA instructor Cynthea Liu! Cynthea has published with Penguin Random House, Disney/Marvel, S&S, Sterling, and Scholastic in formats including picture books, transitional readers, chapter books, middle grade, and young adult novels. She has also written film adaptations and audiobook scripts for full-cast narration. As a consultant and editor, she takes on publishing projects requiring a story arch...
Wireside Chat welcomes Online MFA instructor Holley Cornetto! Holley is a writer, librarian, professor, book reviewer for Publisher's Weekly, and transplanted Southerner who now calls New Jersey home. She is the author of the novels They Are Cursed Like You (with S. O. Green, 2023) and We Haunt These Woods (2022). Join us as we talk about the horror genre, book reviewing for fun and profit, the joys and challenges of literary colla...
In this History Speaker Series event, public historian Beth Van Duzer, a recent graduate of SNHU’s graduate program in History, discusses her career as a historian and her work with local government in preparation for the America250 celebration.
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!
Buck Sexton breaks down the latest headlines with a fresh and honest perspective! He speaks truth to power, and cuts through the liberal nonsense coming from the mainstream media. Interact with Buck by emailing him at teambuck@iheartmedia.com
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.