American Masters: Creative Spark

American Masters: Creative Spark

American Masters | PBS

How do today’s masters create their art? American Masters: Creative Spark presents narrative interviews that go in-depth with an iconic artist about the creation of a single work. Each episode offers a unique window into the world of art and the creative process of artists and cultural icons across a wide range of disciplines, from music and comedy to poetry and film. Explore more at www.pbs.org/creativespark

Radio: PBS NewsHour

Categories: Arts

Listen to the last episode:

Novelist Ling Ma doesn’t shy away from taking risks with her writing. Her 2018 debut novel, “Severance,” is an apocalyptic satire that won the Kirkus Prize for Fiction and squarely put her on the map as an exciting, off-beat new writer.  With her newest collection, “Bliss Montage,” Ma has turned her attention to the short story format. The collection is described as “eight wildly different tales of people making their way through the madness and reality of our collective delusions: love and loneliness, connection and possession, friendship, motherhood, the idea of home.” In this episode, Ling Ma breaks down her creative process and inspiration behind “Peking Duck,” a short story from the collection. She details how she attempted to complicate and “implode” the immigrant narrative through her unique approach to this mother-daughter story. After listening to the episode, you can read “Peking Duck” here: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/07/11/peking-duck

Previous episodes

  • 75 - Ling Ma on Imploding the Immigrant Narrative 
    Thu, 15 Jun 2023
  • 74 - Rena Priest Explores the Beauty of Childhood on "Young and Indigenous" 
    Thu, 18 May 2023
  • 73 - Viet Thanh Nguyen on the Ghosts that Haunt our Cultural Past (Replay) 
    Thu, 04 May 2023
  • 72 - Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Searches for Truth Through Acting 
    Thu, 20 Apr 2023
  • 71 - Kelly Reichardt Breaks Down Her Filmmaking Process Behind "Showing Up" 
    Thu, 06 Apr 2023
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