John's big break: Amy Krouse Rosenthal gets him recording essays for WBEZ (2002)
story · status: told 2× · last event: retold (2020-12-31)
In 2002 Amy Krouse Rosenthal emailed John at Booklist and had him record one of his essays for her show on WBEZ, his first large audience, which helped him sell Looking for Alaska. John retold the story in 2020, 2022 and 2023.
Origin known from later mentions
2002 in the title is when this began; it first appears in the videos read here in 2016, so the earlier part is known only from what is said later.
Told alongside: Amy Krouse Rosenthal gives John 'Mugging Money' money clips (told 2020) · A complimenter at Amy Krouse Rosenthal's Writer's Block Party praises John's Adidas sneakers (2002)
About: Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Booklist, WBEZ, Looking for Alaska (novel)
| date | event | what | video |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-08-02 (happened 2002) | told | John tells how Amy Krouse Rosenthal, after emailing him at Booklist in 2002, got him recording essays for WBEZ, which helped him sell Looking for Alaska. | Beckoning Lovely 00:00:17 |
| 2020-12-31 | retold | John sent Amy three short essays; she liked one and had him record it for her show on Chicago public radio station WBEZ, his first time reaching such a large audience. · also in: We're here because were here., John's Review of Auld Lang Syne | Auld Lang Syne: The Anthropocene Reviewed 00:04:57 |
What is said about it
6 statements, by date (the events above are the turns of the thread; these are the details).
- 2016-08-02 · Beckoning Lovely — John: In 2002, while John worked at Booklist, Amy emailed him; they corresponded, she asked for a two-minute piece for WBEZ, and he wrote an essay that night and recorded it. — 00:00:17
- 2016-08-02 · Beckoning Lovely — John recorded dozens of essays for WBEZ and a few for NPR's All Things Considered over the next years, which helped him get into publishing and sell Looking for Alaska. — 00:00:40
- 2020-12-31 · Auld Lang Syne: The Anthropocene Reviewed — John: Amy invited John on her show more often, and within a year he was recording frequent commentaries for WBEZ and then NPR's All Things Considered. — 00:05:22 · also in: We're here because were here., John's Review of Auld Lang Syne
- 2020-12-31 · Auld Lang Syne: The Anthropocene Reviewed — John: Amy, who sometimes took him to lunch, was everything John wanted to be: happily married, a loving parent and a successful writer, and incredibly good at gift-giving. — 00:05:36 · also in: We're here because were here., John's Review of Auld Lang Syne
- 2020-12-31 · Auld Lang Syne: The Anthropocene Reviewed — John told Amy his mom had him carry $40 'mugging money' in his left pocket in Chicago; next time Amy gave him two money clips, engraved JMG and MM, Mugging Money. — 00:05:45 · also in: We're here because were here., John's Review of Auld Lang Syne
- 2020-12-31 · Auld Lang Syne: The Anthropocene Reviewed — John: In April 2002 John read at Amy's Writer's Block Party at the Chopin Theater; a hired complimenter praised his new Adidas sneakers, so he has worn Adidas almost daily for 17 years. — 00:06:29