Susan Orlean shares all in her new memoir. Turns out her 'Joyride' revved up in Portland Katie Campbell November 10, 2025 / 4:58 pm

When Susan Orlean started her now storied writing career in Portland, she had to clarify: Portland, Oregon, not Maine.

"At the time I moved to Portland, the city was small. It was relatively undiscovered," Orlean told me while she was in Seattle on book tour. "There was an opportunity to truly take whatever you wanted and become that thing."

What she wanted to be was a writer, a storyteller.

(Listen to our conversation by hitting the play button above.)

Fans of her work today may find it hard to imagine a time when her status as a "real writer" was in question. Orlean is the author of eight books now, including her new memoir, " Joyride ." And sh

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