More To The Story

In this episode I talk with Stephen Gutierrez, one of Under the Gum Tree's previous contributors. Stephen has published three books of stories and essays. Live from Fresno y Los won an American Book Award, and The Mexican Man in His Backyard is his most recent. He has published widely in magazines and anthologies, including nonfiction in Fourth Genre, River Teeth, Under the Sun, Alaska Quarterly Review, Third Coast, ZYZZYVA and Cleaver Magazine. He is working on a collection of essays and hybrid nonfiction. He teaches at California State University East Bay. His essay "Spiritual Direction" appears in the October 2016 issue of Under the Gum Tree. In this episode we talk about: Writing both fiction and nonfiction, and discovering a new voice in nonfiction Taking a stand for writing a positive tribute of a family member What we learn about ourselves and others close to use when we write about family How writing can help us learn sympathy for others by being willing to challenge our own beliefs Stephen