Writing Remix Podcast

121. Navigating AI & Surveillance in the Classroom w/ Ryan Leack

As higher education continues to navigate attacks from the Trump administration, it are also trying to figure out how to negotiate the increased use of AI in the classroom, by teachers and students. On this special episode of Writing Re:mix, Daniel Dissinger invites his USC Writing Program colleague Ryan Leack, host of the Live Theory podcast, to start unpacking the impact that AI and LLMs have had on the Humanities classroom, what they find to be the risks of an exponential increase in reliance on AI by students, why are students using AI, and how are teachers being impacted. They also comment on the USC administration’s decision to give ChatGPT Edu to all the students and faculty.

Something that Ryan & Daniel present is a pedagogy of slowing down as an act of resistance. This approach includes reducing workloads, designing assignments that are reflective, and leaning heavily into process-oriented writing work instead of product-oriented writing in order to open their students’ eyes to them being forced into branding and monetizing every part of their existences. They call on intellects like Foucault, Byung-Chul Han, Debord, Freire, bell hooks, and Baudrillard to deepen their conversation.

This episode was originally recorded an released for the 2025 Big Rhetorical Podcast Carnival: “Untethering Surveillance Power Dynamics, Emerging Technologies, Social Control.”

120. Finding the Light w/ Caroline Reddy

Daniel Dissinger dives deep into a conversation on finding the light with poetry in all of the darkness in the world, in ourselves, and from traumas in our pasts with Reiki Master, Librarian, and Poet Caroline Reddy. This is an episode that celebrates the power of poetry and language and how people can be brought together by celebrating their personal energy and the positive force of a loving community. Caroline talks about some of the adversities and traumas she faced like her childhood memories of war in Iran, immigrating to the US at just eight years old, and finding her voice after her divorce. She talks about her meditation practices, how she uses meditation as part of her writing process, and how poetry has become a grounding practice, so much so that she will be running several workshops at Poet’s House, The New Rochelle Public Library, and The Hudson Valley Writer’s Center (links below to register). Caroline also reads several poems, including “The Basement of Tehran” (which is a poetic account of her experience hiding from bombings as a child), “The Lost Tribe,” and a few haikus rooted in her meditation practice.

Sign up for Caroline’s workshops:
“The Creative Breath” at the New Rochelle Public Library (monthly starting in March)
“The Immigrant’s Voice” at Poets House (Thursdays 6–8 pm on Zoom in March)
“The Immigrant’s Voice” at Hudson Valley Writer’s Center (April and May)

119. The Poet’s Role w/ Anaheim Poet Laureate Camille Hernandez

Daniel Dissinger welcomes the Poet Laureate of Anaheim, Camille Hernandez, to talk about her new book Motherlands, what it means to be Poet Laureate in Anaheim, the impact of poetry and poets, her mission to make poetry accessible to as many people as possible, and how poetry informs, reports, and dismantles. Camille also reads the poem “Overwhelm: A Colonial Swarm” from her book Motherlands which leaves Daniel speechless. This is one of those episodes of Writing Remix that reminds us of the humanity, pain, grief, dreams, and joy that each person on this planet share. It’s a conversation about reconnection to ancestors through poetry. It’s an episode that teaches and invites, so please share this with your friends, family, and your students.

Make sure to watch the episode on the Writing Remix Substack, and subscribe for free for writing prompts, articles, and Substack specific content.

118. Crafting Cowboy Boots w/ Lisa Sorrell

Daniel Dissinger welcomes renowned cowboy boot maker and artisan Lisa Sorrell to talk all about the history of boot making in America, her personal journey from apprentice to having her own boot making business, and her goal to preserve the history of boot making. There’s also a really great conversation on gender, mental health, and Lisa’s favorite pair of boots that she’s ever made. Towards the end of the episode, Lisa shares a very personal story of loss and how boot making played a role in the grief process

This is a great way to start the 2026 season of Writing Remix, and it’s going to set the tone for the amazing lineup of guests, episodes, and Writing Remix articles on Substack coming this year.

117. Inspired Belonging w/ Dr. M. Shadee Malaklou

On this episode of “Inspired Belonging” on Writing Re:mix, hosts Dan Dissinger and Stephanie Renée Payne talk with Dr. M. Shadee Malaklou, the Founder and Director of the bell hooks Center at Berea College. Back in the summer of 2023, Dan & Stephanie had the honor of bringing their “Inspired Belonging” workshop to the first-ever bell hooks Symposium, and ever since then it was their mission to have Dr. Malaklou on the podcast. Dr. Malaklou opens up about her friendship with the late great bell hooks, the role of the bell hooks Center on the Berea campus, and rural living in Kentucky. The conversation also covers the impact of feminism, identity and belonging, the role of theory, and radical vulnerability, which Dr. Malaklou, Dan, and Stephanie courageously practice by sharing personal stories about mental, physical, and emotional health journeys. This is one of those episodes that teaches, invites, and lovingly cracks you open.

Book an Inspired Belonging workshop, speaker events, or podcast guests.

Approximate Show Notes

00:00 Introduction and Excitement for the Episode

00:54 Introducing Dr. M Shadee Malaklou

01:51 bell hooks’ Influence and Legacy

03:50 Personal Stories and Connections with bell hooks

04:37 The bell hooks Symposium and Community Impact

06:58 Reflections on Belonging and Land

08:58 bell hooks’ Radical Vulnerability and Critique

16:26 Navigating Institutional Challenges

18:16 Personal Anecdotes and bell hooks’ Wisdom

19:39 The Intersection of Theory and Personal Experience

24:59 Feminism, Love, and Cancel Culture

26:28 Whiteness, Belonging, and Ancestry

29:24 Experiences of Respect and Judgment

30:34 The Impact of bell hooks’ Work

32:55 Struggles with Mental Health

34:45 Radical Vulnerability and Empathy

40:25 The Role of Educators and Institutions

51:37 Healthcare Challenges and Personal Reflections

57:00 Conclusion and Call to Action

116. Walking with Dan: Podcasting, Creativity, & AI

In this solo episode of Writing Remix, Dan brings the audience along for a reflective stream-of-consciousness evening walk. This is a raw and unedited episode to capture the essence of the environment, his thoughts, and humanity of conversation. Dan reflects on the changing landscape of podcasting and how it’s gone from being an accessible Punk rock modality to its current polished commercialized commodity. He then meanders into his favorite topics: nostalgia, creativity, and artistic freedom, and his growing concerns about AI’s impact on human expression. Then the episode takes swerves into the emotional depth of 90s grunge singers like Layne Staley & Chris Cornell, maintaining that human element in art and writing, and Jack Kerouac.

If you have thoughts & questions about this episode, or an idea for a future “Walking with Dan” episode, email at writingremixpodcast@gmail.com

Approximate Show Notes

00:00 Introduction to the Walking Podcast

00:42 The Evolution of Podcasting

02:20 The Impact of Technology on Creativity

03:46 Nostalgia and the Human Element in Art

05:28 AI and the Future of Creativity

12:20 Reflections on Walking and Community

13:33 Kerouac and the Search for Truth

16:37 Engaging with the Podcast Community

115. Inspired Belonging: Diving into the Work of bell hooks

The second episode of “Inspired Belonging” on Writing Remix, hosts Dan Dissinger and Stephanie Renée Payne reflect on their personal and pedagogical relationships with the work of the late scholar, poet, speaker, & teacher bell hooks. This is a deeply vulnerable conversation on hooks’ impactful work on engaged pedagogy, love, community, and self-actualization, specifically from her books Teaching to Transgress, All About Love, and The Will To Change. Dan and Stephanie unpack specific passages from hooks’ books and reflect on the transformations that have happened and continue to happen which have transformed their classrooms into spaces of vulnerability, healing, and deep engagement. They also reflect on their personal journeys, the intersections of their identities, and the lessons they draw from hooks’ integration of theory and practice. Stephanie tells the audience how bell hooks’ work helped validate, face, and heal the pain that was impacting her everyday existence. Then Dan opens up about how The Will To Change has “cracked him open” and helped him face the hold patriarchy has had on his inability to love himself, his challenges with BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder), and how this might be the most important book for everyone to read.

This is such a deeply touching episode of “Inspired Belonging” and reflects the type of work Stephanie and Dan do as workshop facilitators. Email to book an Inspired Belonging workshop/event and/or book Inspired Belonging as podcast guests/speakers: writingremixpodcast@gmail.com

Approximate Show Notes

00:00 Welcome and Introductions

00:26 Diving into Bell Hooks’ Influence

01:23 Personal Connections with Bell Hooks

03:52 Teaching to Transgress: A Transformative Experience

09:06 The Classroom as a Space for Healing and Growth

14:09 Engaged Pedagogy and Self-Actualization

18:44 The Impact of Bell Hooks on Writing and Teaching

30:14 Empowering Students Through Choice and Agency

33:54 The Impact of Agency on Learning

34:11 Bell Hooks on Love and Abuse

36:27 Healing in the Classroom

37:04 Embracing Vulnerability and Humanity

42:11 Patriarchy and Social Structures

57:41 The Importance of Ancestry and Identity

01:03:12 The Legacy of bell hooks

114. Spring 2025 Semester Reflection: Meaningful Teaching, Student Engagement, & Well-being

In this solo episode of Writing Remix, Dan Dissinger reflects on the end of the 2025 Spring semester at USC. He shares what he changed and what worked in his classroom, the impact of creating meaningful and accessible assignments, student reactions to and experiences reading Exile & Pride by Eli Clare and All About Love by bell hooks, and he talks about the impact of these two texts on students and standout moments. After, he shares & reflects on his personal experiences and challenges as an educator, the personal emotional toll of the semester’s end, balancing personal well-being with professional responsibilities, and how fostering a supportive classroom environment is an act of resistance for students and instructors. This is vulnerable deep dive. Please share this episode with the teachers in your life, your fellow faculty members, and prospective teachers.

If you resonate with this episode, please email and share your experiences at writingremixpodcast@gmail.com.

Approximate Show Notes

00:00 Introduction and Podcast Promotion

02:46 Reflecting on the End of the Semester

04:21 Implementing More Reading in the Syllabus

04:56 Book Review: Exile and Pride by Eli Claire

08:42 Book Review: All About Love by bell hooks

13:00 Meaningful Assignments and Student Engagement

19:20 In-Class Reflections and AI Concerns

21:16 End-of-Semester Challenges and Personal Reflections

27:30 Looking Forward to Future Semesters

34:44 Conclusion and Call to Action

113. Creating Joy and Community Through Poetry w/ West Hollywood Poet Laureate Jen Cheng

Dan Dissinger celebrates National Poetry Month with the West Hollywood Poet Laureate, Jen Cheng. They talk about Jen’s multi-hyphenate creative journey, her dedication to blending East-West influences in her writing and workshops, her role as the creator of the Palabras Literary Salon, and the importance of “artist dates.” Dan asks Jen to explain why she believes community is so significant in the creative process and or writers, and how writing a novel is different from writing poetry. Jen reads a tribute poem to West Hollywood for National Poetry Month and performs a persona poem inspired by the Bridgerton narrator. Jen leaves the listeners some practical advice for aspiring poets and writers.

Approximate Show Notes

00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
00:15 Jen Cheng’s Background and Achievements
01:35 The Importance of Libraries and Artist Dates
06:23 Community Building and Poetry Scrabble
14:30 Personal Journey and Storytelling
21:53 Writing Process and Inspirations
25:23 Poem Recital and Musical Accompaniment
34:58 Reflecting on the Power of Music and Poetry
35:29 Ukulele Stories and Inspirations
37:33 Life in New York and San Francisco
41:18 Writing a Novel vs. Writing Poetry
44:42 The Creative Process and Inspirations
57:06 The Role of Poetry in Today’s World
01:03:36 Concluding Thoughts and Inspirations

112. Sailing Without Ahab w/ Dr. Steve Mentz

Dan Dissinger welcomes back his former professor Dr. Steve Mentz, chair of the Saint John’s University English Department, to discuss his latest book of poems Sailing Without Ahab and the Blue Humanities. They dive into (no pun intended) Dr. Mentz’s writing journey in and out of the poems in Sailing Without Ahab, the interconnected writing process and relationship between the creative space of poetry and academic scholarship when it came to creating Sailing Without Ahab, his personal and scholastic history with water, teaching Moby-Dick, and the challenges of writing in the voice of Ishmael. Steve also reads several poems from Sailing Without Ahab and discusses some of the more intricate details about these pieces.

This is such a rich episode both for writers and scholars alike, and being on the precipice of National Poetry Month, this is a great way to start it off.

Approximate Show Notes

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
01:58 Guest Background and Academic Interests
03:38 Exploring the Blue Humanities
06:31 Personal Connections to Water
07:38 Creative and Scholarly Writing
24:23 Teaching and Engaging with Moby Dick
32:20 Exploring Kerouac’s Sense of Home
33:22 Connections Between Moby Dick and The Sea is My Brother
35:18 Writing in Ishmael’s Voice
37:10 The Physicality of Labor in Literature
38:51 Poetic Forms and Inspirations
41:40 Emily Dickinson’s Sea Poetry
42:45 Writing During the Pandemic
44:44 Reading and Discussing Poems
47:23 The Relationship Between Humans and Whales
53:58 Collaborative Projects and Future Works
56:50 Conclusion and Final Thoughts