'Under the Oak Tree' is a T&Q podcast series where writers sit down with editors to unpack the ideas and inspirations behind their work. 

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TQ Contributing writer, Roshelle Patterson, joins Editor, Mary Garavaglia, to discuss her essay With the End in Mind, game project Library at the End of the World, her evolving relationship to grief, and the writing that’s come out of it. 

Roshelle reflects on the early influences that shaped her thinking around death, the role of personal record-keeping in making sense of difficult experiences, and how grief has quietly shaped her creative voice over time. She also speaks about her current work as a death doula, and the surprising joy and community she's found there. 

The conversation touches on two new pieces Roshelle is developing for TQ: an essay on medically assisted suicide, and an interactive fiction story on climate grief and action. Across it all, she brings warmth, thoughtfulness, and a deep commitment to helping others navigate the hardest parts of being human.