E87: Crack the World Open

E87: Crack the World Open

Author: Kris Baker Dersch August 4, 2017 Duration: 20:10

The world is always on the verge of exploding and reinventing itself.

"A Town Built on Salt" is on a shaky foundation indeed. By Windy Lynn Harris, copyright 2014, used with permission. This piece was originally published in Crack the Spine in April 2015, issue 147. Visit Windy's website.

Hanako's world is very small and carefully observed, but observers miss things in "Hanako Learns to Count." By Sean Patrick Whiteley, copyright 2016, used with permission. Read Sean's bio.

Today's Writing Spaces features longtime friend of the show and repeat contributor Dr. Jeffrey Toney. He was originally featured on Episode 49 and was part of Episode 82's drabble spectacular. Click here to see his writing space.

There are the things you see about a person, and things you don't, especially when that person is "Watermelon." By Lisa Ko, copyright 2015, used with permission. Read Lisa's bio.


Kris Baker Dersch hosts No Extra Words one person's search for story, a quiet corner of the audio world dedicated to the power of brevity. Each episode is a complete, self-contained piece of flash fiction, with every story crafted to be under two thousand words. This constraint isn't a limitation but a focus, distilling narrative down to its essential elements-every sentence carries weight. You'll hear tales that span the spectrum of human experience, from subtle character moments to sudden, striking turns of events, all delivered with a thoughtful and intimate narration. The podcast lives up to its name, offering narratives that are precise and potent, leaving room for your own imagination to linger in the spaces between the words. It’s for anyone who appreciates the art of a well-told story and the unique intimacy that audio can bring to fiction. Tune in for a regular dose of concise creativity, a moment of literary escape that fits into the busiest of days.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

No Extra Words one person's search for story
Podcast Episodes
E112: Two Girls Named Betsy [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:06
Today's books are: "B" is for Betsy by Carolyn Haywood. Harcourt, Brace, & Co., 1939. Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace. HarperCollins, 1940. Blog posts about Carolyn Haywood from the Free Library of Philadelphia: Part 1…
E111: On Being a Little Boy [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 13:22
Today's books are: The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. Viking, 1962. A Poem for Peter by Andrea Davis Pinkney. Viking, 2016. Other things discussed in this episode: Ezra Jack Keats's former collaborator talks about him. An…
E110: Poets in Picture Books [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:39
Today's books are: Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude by Jonah Winter. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2009. (not pictured) A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant. Eerdmans Books…
E109: Real Poetry, No Pretension [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:51
Today's books are: Hip Hop Speaks to Children: a celebration of poetry with a beat, edited by Nikki Giovanni. Sourcebooks, Inc., 2008 Out of Wonder: poems celebrating poets by Kwame Alexander. Candlewick Press, 2017. Lin…
E108: Women Writers on Baseball [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:05
Today's books are: Squeeze Play: a novel by Jane Leavy. Doubleday, 1990. (Not pictured. In his younger days, my little baseball fan tore the cover off my copy.) Wait Till Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Simon & Schust…
E107: Where Do Books Come From? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:34
Today's books are: A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2005 Little Leaders: bold women in black history by Vashti Harrison. Little, Brown, and Company 2017. Other books I spoke of quite…
E106: Old Friends [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:12
Today we're talking about a book we once knew well. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1962. Thank you to today's special guest who stopped by to talk Wrinkle with me. Check out his other…
E105: How I Came to Love Historical Fiction [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:39
Today's books: Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder. HarperCollins, 1932. Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. HarperCollins, 1935. Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder. HarperCollins, 1933…