The Human Experience · Episode
Episode 4 – Tom Shroder – Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy, and the Power to Heal
A conversation with Tom Shroder
Tom Shroder has been an award-winning journalist, writer and editor for more than 30 years. His book editing projects include two New York Times bestsellers; Overwhelmed: Work, Love, and Play When No One Has…
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Episode field notes
Show notes
Tom Shroder has been an award-winning journalist, writer and editor for more than 30 years.
His book editing projects include two New York Times bestsellers; Overwhelmed: Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time (2014), by Brigid Sculte; and Top Secret America (2012), by Dana Priest and William Arkin. As editor of The Washington Post Magazine, he conceived and edited the story, Fatal Distraction, which was awarded the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. He also edited and contributed to Pearls Before Breakfast, which was awarded the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. In addition to being an author and editor of narrative journalism, Shroder is one of the foremost editors of humor in the country. He has edited humor columns by Dave Barry, Gene Weingarten and Tony Kornheiser, as well as conceived and launched the internationally syndicated comic strip, Cul de Sac, by Richard Thompson. His latest book, to be published in September, is Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy, and the Power to Heal, a fascinating, transformative look at the therapeutic powers of psychedelic drugs, particularly in the treatment of PTSD, and the past fifty years of scientific, political, and legal controversy they have ignited.
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I know how you feel.
I’m sure there are writers who don’t find writing to be a bone-crushing, nausea-inducing festival of self-loathing. I just don’t happen to be one of them. Faced with a blank screen, I am invariably seized with the overwhelming desire to clean out my garage, give myself a root canal — do anything other than write.
The problem seems to be standards. I have some. And I’m terrified I can’t live up to them. Does that sound familiar? I’ve found that to avoid paralysis, I have to begin by telling myself, “Don’t write, just type.”
Because once the story is out there, even in a horrifyingly inarticulate form, the real work can begin. I can see where the words are working, and where they’re not. The ideas that should be in the piece, but aren’t, speak loudly with their silence. The awkward phrases swell up and stink. The good ones hum.
This is the fun part, especially when someone else has done the miserably hard work of writing the first draft. It’s why I’m a good editor, and why I love editing.
And that’s why I can help you, as I’ve helped innumerable writers over 25 years as an author and editor of Pulitzer Prize winning journalism and best-selling books. I’ve worked with some of the biggest names in journalism and fiction, but I’ve also worked with hundreds of regular folks who have never published a word, but had a compelling story to tell. In the end, the most powerful thing I’ve learned is this: it is always about the story.
“Your story.”
Find his work at: www.tomshroder.com
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Transcript
A full transcript has been published for this conversation.
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Quotes
Five substantial excerpts from the published transcript, lightly edited for clarity without changing their meaning.
“Aldous Huxley proposed that ordinary consciousness functions as a reducing valve, filtering an overwhelming reality into what an organism can use. Mescaline, in his account, did not manufacture a false world but loosened the filter. That remains a philosophical interpretation of altered perception, not a settled account of how the brain works.”
From the conversation“It took Rick Doblin about fifteen years to help launch the first FDA-approved clinical study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. Psychiatrist Michael Mithoefer joined that story after becoming interested in altered states and healing. The long path from personal interest to regulated research required persistence, protocol, funding, and institutional review.”
From the conversation“Psychoactive plants and ecstatic practices have been used in healing and spiritual development across many cultures. Historical use does not prove that every practice is safe or effective, but it shows that the modern category of an illicit drug captures only one part of a much older human relationship with altered consciousness.”
From the conversation“In one study of psychologically healthy volunteers without prior psychedelic experience, many later ranked the session among the most significant experiences of their lives. Subjective significance is not the same as clinical benefit, but the result suggests these states can carry enduring personal meaning even outside treatment for a diagnosed problem.”
From the conversation“Critics often describe psychedelics as escape into an imaginary world. Early researchers treating alcoholism argued the opposite: the experience could intensify confrontation with reality. LSD is not generally considered physically addictive, but low toxicity does not mean risk-free; psychological distress, unsafe settings, and vulnerability still matter.”
From the conversation
About the guest
Tom Shroder
His book editing projects include two New York Times bestsellers; Overwhelmed: Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time (2014), by Brigid Sculte; and Top Secret America (2012), by Dana Priest and William Arkin. As editor of The Washington Post Magazine, he conceived and edited the story, Fatal Distraction, which was awarded the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. He also edited and contributed to Pearls Before Breakfast, which was awarded the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. In addition to being an author and editor of narrative journalism, Shroder is one of the foremost editors of humor in the country. He has edited humor columns by Dave Barry, Gene Weingarten and Tony Kornheiser, as well as conceived and launched the internationally syndicated comic strip, Cul de Sac, by Richard Thompson. His latest book, to be published in September, is Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy, and the Power to Heal, a fascinating, transformative look at the therapeutic powers of psychedelic drugs, particularly in the treatment of PTSD, and the past fifty years of scientific, political, and legal controversy they have ignited.
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