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The Thoughtful Bro

Mark Cecil

The Thoughtful Bro, hosted by Mark Cecil, is a podcast for writers, readers, and anyone interested in a tale well told. Each episode features an author who's recently published a book, and we unpack how and why they wrote it. It's "Inside the Actors Studio"...but for storytellers.

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  • 23 episodes
  • Avg 1 hr 3 min
  • English
Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.
  • Oct 17, 2025 · 1 hr 9 min

    Episode 74: Stephen Greenblatt

    My *utterly electric* convo with one of the great non-fiction writers and scholars of our time, Stephen Greenblatt. Stephen is the Pulitzer Prize winning/bestselling author of some of my favorite books EVER about literary history (including The Swerve), and he's out now with Dark Renaissance, about the troubled, complex genius of Shakespeare's top rival, Chris Marlowe. We discussed (1) how Marlowe, the same age as the Bard, was a far more important writer than Shakespeare when he was stabbed to death at 29; (2) how Elizabethan London was a North Korea-like tinderbox of political repression and censorship; and (3) how Greenblatt's entire career has been guided by a profound desire to communicate with the great spirits long deceased. Order Mark's novel Bunyan and Henry. All episodes of The Thoughtful Bro aired live originally on A Mighty Blaze. The Thoughtful Bro is proudly sponsored by Libro.fm and Writer's Bone.

  • Oct 3, 2025 · 1 hr 2 min

    Episode 73: Jon Raymond

    My chat with God And Sex author Jon Raymond, a book that The New York Times assures "lives up to its epic title." We covered: (1) writing a story that unites the worldviews of his Buddhist father and Jewish mother; (2) drawing inspiration from Graham Greene's classic The End Of The Affair, and (3) how curing writer despair is often a matter of just re-investing yourself in the writer community. The karma is real. Order Mark's novel Bunyan and Henry. All episodes of The Thoughtful Bro aired live originally on A Mighty Blaze. The Thoughtful Bro is proudly sponsored by Libro.fm and Writer's Bone.

  • Sep 26, 2025 · 1 hr 4 min

    Episode 72: Daniel Kraus

    My interview with bestselling Whalefall author Daniel Kraus, chatting about his new World War I novel (written entirely in one sentence!), Angel Down. We covered: (1) the Whalefall film adaptation, starring fellow actor (and writer), Josh Brolin; (2) His previous collabs with horror/fantasy legend Guillermo del Toro; and (3) why he never, ever, ever imitates himself, and how tackling new genres and styles is what gives spark to his work. Order Mark's novel Bunyan and Henry. All episodes of The Thoughtful Bro aired live originally on A Mighty Blaze. The Thoughtful Bro is proudly sponsored by Libro.fm and Writer's Bone.

Showing 21–23 of 23 episodes