By Alexander Thurnher ’21 M.A. English
Last fall, I ran around to unfamiliar campus locations to knock on Loyola Marymount University faculty members’ doors to pitch an idea I wasn’t sure would work. A year later I’m proud to say this idea has come to fruition: The Lion Lounge, a wholly student-run podcast, has released its first season.
The podcast is a joint effort between the Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts English Department and the School of Film and Television’s Recording Arts Department. Each episode was produced by a student in the English MA program. Together, we make up a body of creative writers, critical readers, and scholars. We used the podcast to explore unique topics and tropes that interest us like bodily trauma, the American grotesque, and toxic maternity. Some of us published papers on similar topics and presented them at conferences last spring.
We set out to record these episodes just as corona virus swept across the world. The conditions of the pandemic didn’t make things easy, but we pressed forward and completed the project. Yes, we were without professional studios. No, we couldn’t meet our guests in person. Instead, we paired up with recording arts students to conduct remote interviews via Zoom. The episodes aren’t perfect—you may hear a dog bark or a baby cry in the background. But each episode is a wormhole into great ideas about culture and books. Despite our time away from the bluff and each other, we hope these episodes serve as a vehicle for community. Listen along and join in the conversation on Instagram by following us @lmuenglishgraduateprogram.
