Our boy JDO has resurrected to share the sauce on how he’s found the ultimate cure for writer’s block. We also give a syllabic breakdown on what’s coming up for Agitator: more craft talk, getting into the nuts and bolts of publishing and printing and marketing books. We also talk about the value of a niche audience and the dangers of networking with writers. And then we talk Trump and corrosive ideology. Subscribe for free or pay for access to more episodes, essays, Agitator Films, and more at patreon.com/agitator More on our books and the Broken River crew at brokenriverbooks.com Follow Kelby on X @KelbyLosackBRB and IG @kelby.losack Follow JDO on IG @brbjdo

Jared Klickstein was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1989 to heroin-addicted parents. He spent his teenage years outside of Oakland, California after being adopted by his aunt and uncle. He attended UC Santa Cruz where he got addicted to heroin himself, dropped out, and spent nearly ten years chronically homeless and addicted around the country. After a notorious run on Skid Row in Los Angeles and a subsequent jail sentence, he sobered up in 2018, wrote Crooked Smile, and currently resides in Oakland, California. He works as an independent journalist. ABOUT THE BOOK: “Darkly humorous” is an understatement when it comes to this poignant tale of addiction, homelessness, incarceration, and eventually, redemption. Jared Klickstein, the child of two heroin addicts who eventually became addicted himself, takes readers on a raw and personal journey from his unsettling and secretive childhood in the suburbs to the slums of Skid Row. Through tales of violence, relapse, and deep inner struggle, Klickstein provides a harrowing account of his personal encounter with near-death—including what he calls dying in “slow motion.” But this story is not just about one man’s life—it’s about the hundred’s of thousands of homeless and drug-addicted Americans who are on the streets right now. It’s about those who need help the most, and what can be done to address the growing addiction and homelessness problems we face. In this moving memoir, Klickstein offers a fresh take and solutions to both epidemics, providing firsthand experience and insight into what policies should be put in place to mitigate the suffering. Crooked Smile recounts one man’s escape from a hellish life—and carves a valuable path for others. BUY CROOKED SMILE: https://www.amazon.com/Crooked-Smile-Escape-Homelessness-Addiction/dp/B0CWZ1GHLW FOLLOW JARED KLICKSTEIN: X @JaredKlickstein / IG @jklickst JARED ON RARE CANDY: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSWnvG9WDWA&list=PL_l2JbkrREkTf-zpvFcIJYVedpg7FQcV3 CROOKED SMILE DISCUSSED ON MATT & SHANE: https://www.reddit.com/r/JoeRogan/comments/1d58qsz/mssp_shane_gillis_and_matt_mccusker_discussed_my/ SUBSCRIBE TO AGITATOR: patreon.com/agitator

Charlene Elsby is a philosophy doctor and former professor whose books include Hexis, Affect, Psychros, Agyny, Musos, Letters to Jenny Just After She Died, Bedlam, The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty, and Violent Faculties. Her essays have appeared in Bustle Books and the LA Review of Books. https://charleneelsby.com/ Using her torture porn/mad scientist philosophical horror novel Violent Faculties as a springboard, we explore a wide range of questions, such as "What separates humans from other species?," "Why is philosophy an undervalued study in academia?," "What is the soul?," "Do we desire to hurt each other?," "Who came first: us or God?," and so much more. Really dug this conversation. Enjoy and keep it going in the comments. patreon.com/agitator

Ryan Simón is the one-man factory behind the avant-garde Americana sleaze/arts and culture mag American Vulgaria. We talk about his inspiration for starting the magazine, what direction it's heading in now, and we get into the nuts and bolts of printing and designing magazines and books that stand on their own as gorgeous works of art. More on AMERICAN VULGARIA: https://americanvulgaria.com/ Subscribe to AGITATOR: patreon.com/agitator Follow Ryan on X @ryandsimon and IG @americanvulgaria

Writer, podcaster, and strategist (and musician, and inventor of solarpunk) Jay Springett joins Kelby for this AGITATOR Z FINALE. Everything changes beyond this point, and what a way to end an era. We're talking Izumi Suzuki's incredible bizarro short story collection Hit Parade of Tears. Keep up with Jay: https://www.thejaymo.net/ Buy Hit Parade of Tears: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/721251/hit-parade-of-tears-by-izumi-suzuki/ Pure Invention: How Japan's Pop Culture Conquered the World by Matt Alt: https://www.amazon.com/Pure-Invention-Japan-Modern-World/dp/1984826719/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= Hardware (1990): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dCEp_ktPXY Hit Parade Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2f2sUqmqJdDHvpK1bgoEtD Soundtrack: "Tunnel to Heaven" by The Dynamites "Somebody to Love" by The Mops

I'ma just do long titles now to save time coming up with descriptions. Listen to Mutual Aberration Society: Mutual Aberration Society | Podcast on Spotify

This was an early release episode for paid subscribers of Agitator: patreon.com/agitator

Jacob Everett, founder and editor-in-chief of the low life/high strangeness lit mag and indie press Apocalypse Confidential, joins Kelby to discuss the no-budget 1983 murder drone film Blood Beat. This episode's a deep dive into the inner workings of successfully running an independent press with some glimpses into the future of both APCON and Broken River. READ APOCALYPSE CONFIDENTIAL: apocalypse-confidential.com FOLLOW ON X @APCON_MAG and IG @apocalypse_confidential

Broken River boas E Rathke and David Simmons join Kelby in the Agitator booth to figure out how we're going to piece together our fallen brother JDO's unfinished magnum opus about a fence salesman who can control tornadoes. But first! You know we're getting wild, talmbout Call of Duty lobbies back in the day, how quickly things get racist and how come that's funny, inflation on boardwalk caricature art, the extreme horror community and how all writers (including us) should stop posting so much, what happens when you're teaching English in South Korea and your appendix explodes, and oh so much more. Find E Rathke's eclectic musings at radicaledward.substack.com and keep up with David Simmons on X @WholeTimeDavid or IG @toppdogghill. More on the Broken River crew at brokenriverbooks.com and, of course, you can support this show at patreon.com/agitator for only $5/month in the Agitator Z tier, where you gain access to bonus and extended episodes, behind the scenes looks at film and writing projects, and exclusive Agitator Discord access.