Episode Details

What makes a story stay with us long after we’ve finished reading or listening?

In this episode of Thought Atlas, I sit down with Peter Moore, a writer, editor, cartoonist, and storyteller whose career has taken him through publishing, radio, television, and now Substack. His work has included Playboy, Men’s Health, and Backpacker magazine, and he has interviewed presidents, celebrities, athletes, and everyday people.

Peter believes great stories work because they take universal human experiences and filter them through an individual perspective. Whether we’re talking about growing up, feeling outcast, finding our place in the world, or simply trying to make sense of life, stories give us a way to understand ourselves and each other.

In our conversation, we explore:

• What makes a story stay with someone• Why universal human experiences can make stories timeless• How humor can help us step back from painful or difficult experiences• Why Peter describes his cartooning as being a “heckler” of his own writing• How he began keeping a daily journal on October 12, 1978• His six-month trip through Europe after college• Why he believes collecting stories can become a life mission• The surreal experience of traveling to India with Matt Damon for a Men’s Health story• What Peter learned from seeing Matt Damon interact with people in Indian villages• How the internet transformed the magazine industry and changed Peter’s career• Why he moved into freelance writing and ghostwriting• How discovering Substack eventually led to a major breakthrough• The Vincent van Gogh story that brought 60,000 readers to his Substack post• How reporting, humor, cartoons, and artwork came together in his work• Why he calls his Substack The Road to Elsewhere• Why he believes long-form storytelling still has a place in a short-form world• How television and binge-watching demonstrate people’s continued appetite for long-form narratives• Why stories remain one of the deepest ways humans communicate• How Peter thinks about money, work, and the experiences that make life meaningful• Why he encourages people to lean into the uncomfortable• How unfamiliar people, places, foods, books, and experiences can challenge the way we see the world• Why he believes a homogenized existence can become a kind of “living death”• And why collecting stories, meeting people, and experiencing new things remain central to how he wants to live

Peter leaves listeners with a simple philosophy inherited from his father:

“Live, love, love, love.”

Connect with Peter

🌐 The Road to Elsewhere: https://petermoore.substack.com/

Peter explicitly says this is the best place to find his work. He says he has made approximately 450 posts there and that his writing and the memoir he is working on are available through the Substack.

🌍 Thought AtlasMapping ideas, exploring everything.

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