Episode 108: In the Line of Fire: Andrew Serra's Path from Firefighter to Author

Fires terrify me. So I can’t imagine the life of a firefighter—never mind a NYC firefighter.

But today, we get to go behind the scenes with a career NYC firefighter-turned-author, and the conversation is fascinating.

My guest is Andrew Serra, a retired NYC fire captain. After 25 years in the department, today he’s a full-time author who wound up writing about fires, even though he says he never started out with that intent.

His latest historical novel is Hell's Hundred Acres, which centers around the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, exploring its historical significance and the evolution of fire safety.

Andrew talks to me about the research process, the emotional impact of the writing and how it’s helped him process the things he’s seen on the job and the importance of storytelling in preserving history. He also draws parallels between the immigrant experiences of the past and present.

We discuss:

• How researching historical events revealed surprising insights about key figures

• How his writing served as a therapeutic process for dealing with past experiences

• His investigation into a 9/11 story to correct misconceptions about firefighters' actions during the tragedy that turned into his memoir

• And what his writing life looks like today.

This conversation was so insightful and poignant. Don’t miss it—and definitely pick up Andrew’s books.

You can find more about Andrew and his books here.

Chapters

03:48 Introduction to Andrew Serra

04:36 Hell's Hundred Acres: A Historical Novel

09:40 Research Insights and Surprises

13:40 Writing as a Processing Tool

15:30 The 9/11 Memoir: Setting the Record Straight

26:22 The Role of Storytelling in History

29:52 Parallels Between Past and Present

31:06 Writing Process and Daily Habits

34:15 Future Projects and Conclusion