It’s time for the 99th Sonitotum with Matthew Wayne Selznick, the podcast about making stuff (mostly writing), finding success as we each define it for ourselves, and staying healthy and sane in the process. Settle in for an in-depth and evergreen conversation with historical and literary fiction author Maureen Morrissey!

Maureen Morrissey is a writer for online publications and a published novelist; retired educator; and wife/mother/grandmother/dog mommy. She is an amateur photographer; traveler who loves to wander and wonder; and most recently, half-marathon runner. In her spare time, she attends live theater events and rock concerts, and investigates the integrity of roof top bars in her hometown NYC.

Maureen has been a writer for as long as she remembers. She began writing her first novel, Woven: Six Stories, One Epic Journey in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, the day after retiring from teaching fourth grade. It was published in November of 2020. She published a second novel, Sonder: Janie’s Story in March 2022, and her third, Seeing is Believing in June 2023. She published a short story, “Win, Lose or Draw,” at the beginning of January 2024, and her most recent release is the children’s picture book Country Dog, City Dog.

Find Maureen Morrissey at maureenmorrissey.com.

The interview portion of this episode was recorded on January 18, 2024. The other bits were recorded on April 10, 2024. This episode took about eight hours fifteen minutes to record, produce, and delivery to you.

Links and Topics Mentioned in This Episode

• My day job? I’m a creative services provider helping authors, podcasters and other creators. How can I help you?
• The book that drove Maureen to pursue independent publishing was Walter the Farting Dog by the multi-genre, multiple-award-winning author William Kotzwinkle. You know you want to click those links…
• I mentioned Norman MacLean, author of A River Runs Through It, as an author who wrote a masterwork late in life.
• Novels told through a linked collection of short stories or novellas are sometimes called composite novels. Examples include The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury, The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, and The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. There are many, many others!
• Maureen tags the Goosebumps books as an example of a “beach book” for kids.
• More on Louise Rosenblatt’s transactional theory of reading, which I contrast / supplement with my own position that the reader / author relationship is collaborative.
• The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig is a collection of various concepts for which there are only words in languages other than English.
• The flat earther who believes every person has their own personal sun came up in the conversation as an example of a wonderful and compelling unintentional metaphor.
• Maureen’s “Judge Not” article.
• The Cult of Done Manifesto from Bre Pettis and Kio Stark.
• By the time you’re listening to this episode or reading these show notes, my new novelette “Reggie versus Kaiju Storm Dragon Squidbat” will be available wherever you buy e-books and, of course, directly from my site!
• Big thanks to my Multiversalists patron community, including J. C. Hutchins, Zoë Kohen Ley, Jim Lewinson, Amelia Bowen, and Ted Leonhardt! I’m incredibly grateful for the support of my patrons. If Sonitotum with Matthew Wayne Selznick brings you joy, become a patron!
  • Every month net earnings from my Multiversalist patron memberships is at least $100, I will donate 10% to 826 National in support of literacy and creative writing advocacy for children. Let’s go!