Shane Hinton on Writing, Teaching, and Giving Books Away for Free

Описание: Today’s episode features writer and teacher Shane Hinton, author of Pinkies, Radio Dark, Other Shane Hintons, and editor of We Can’t Help It If We’re From Florida. His work blends the absurd, the uncanny, and the deeply human—often with Florida as both setting and state of mind.

We dove into two big threads: his fantastic Lit Hub essay “Why I Give My Books Away for Free” and the larger questions that essay raises about art, money, and the changing literary landscape.

Shane’s Lit Hub piece struck a chord because it articulates something many writers feel but rarely say out loud. He talked about:

Wanting to connect rather than transact
Realizing most readers struggle to keep up with the sheer amount of new work
Generosity as a meaningful (and honest) form of outreach
Measuring impact through engagement, not sales

We moved into the broader implications of Shane’s philosophy and what it says about the industry right now. A few themes:

There’s more content than ever, but not more readers
Making a living from literary fiction is harder than ever
Creatives now need comfort with marketing, social media, and guerrilla outreach
Writers often feel torn between authenticity and self-promotion
The traditional routes to a writing career are shrinking

Shane teaches, which adds another layer to this discussion. He reflected on:
How writing classrooms have changed
Students’ realistic (and sometimes sobering) expectations
Why MFA programs must begin addressing economic realities
How to balance craft, hope, and honesty
Teaching students to build community—not just manuscripts

His perspective: these conversations aren’t optional anymore; they’re ethical.

Shane, in sum, epitomizes how to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing (and, often, super challenging) literary industry, and I hope you find his example inspiring!