Karen and Miriam discusss what Karen's life might have been like if she’d returned to her native US after what was supposed to be a short trip to London, instead of staying put and building her life there. Along the way they talk about the weight of cultural norms & expectation, what it means to live far from family, and how painting and writing can help locate us, wherever we are.Karen Raney is an academic, painter, former editor and a writer of fiction. Her novel All the Water in the World was the recipient of the 2017 Pat Kavanaugh Prize, shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award in 2020, and for two Society of Authors prizes in 2021. She is currently at work on her next novel.Make sure to subscribe to hear the rest of Season 5 – in each episode, Miriam Robinson interviews a guest about another path their life might have taken. Together, step by step, they write the stories of their unlived lives.Produced by Neil Mason Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.