Go Help Yourself
A Novel
By Daniel Pope
Meet Corbin Moore, a twenty-something lapsed writer whose job at a struggling, off-brand spiritualist bookshop in Seattle meshes well with his regimen of smoking cannabis, binge eating, and doom-watching the news. That rut is interrupted by the return of his overbearing mother, Geraldine, a famous self-help guru who’s looking for a guinea pig. Add in the daily deluge of Corbin’s deep-seated insecurities and body dysmorphia, the prospect of reunion with still beloved ex-girlfriend Beth, and nonstop harassment by a murder of near-murderous crows, and you get a person most in need of help—but from whom, and how?
Sharply funny and surprisingly tender, Daniel Pope’s debut asks the question: What if we’re not broken in all the ways the prophets of American self-help say we are? This book is for all the people self-improvement leaves behind.
WINNER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS
PUBLISHING LAB PRIZE
AVAILABLE MAY 2026
Daniel Pope is a writer and musician from Seattle. He is the author of Go Help Yourself (forthcoming 2026), the winner of the University of New Orleans Press Publishing Lab Prize. His work has appeared in Narrative Magazine, Bellevue Literary Review, Gulf Coast Journal, and elsewhere. He currently lives in the UK, where he is a doctoral candidate at the University of Manchester's Centre for New Writing.
Daniel Pope
Books
Go Help Yourself
A Novel
By Daniel Pope
WINNER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS
PUBLISHING LAB PRIZE
AVAILABLE MAY 2026
Meet Corbin Moore, a twenty-something lapsed writer whose job at a struggling, off-brand spiritualist bookshop in Seattle meshes well with his regimen of smoking cannabis, binge eating, and doom-watching the news. That rut is interrupted by the return of his overbearing mother, Geraldine, a famous self-help guru who’s looking for a guinea pig. Add in the daily deluge of Corbin’s deep-seated insecurities and body dysmorphia, the prospect of reunion with still beloved ex-girlfriend Beth, and nonstop harassment by a murder of near-murderous crows, and you get a person most in need of help—but from whom, and how?
Sharply funny and surprisingly tender, Daniel Pope’s debut asks the question: What if we’re not broken in all the ways the prophets of American self-help say we are? This book is for all the people self-improvement leaves behind.
Published Work
Narrative Magazine
Narrative Winter 2019 Story Contest Finalist
We were lying on the grass, sharing a joint. The sun was radiant on her face and made her green irises stand out like rings of light projected straight into my brain.
Michigan Quarterly Review Mixtape
Suicide slumps in the passenger seat, checking his watch. “Are we there yet?” Suicide asks, and I say: “Not even close.” He just smirks at me with his spatulate jaw, an icy crackle in his eyes. Though he isn’t what he used to be, his white shirt, as always, is immaculate.
With their hands clasped and knuckles squeezed white, the newlyweds descended the church steps. Flashing cameras froze the tossed rice in midair. Later that day at the crime scene, when the detective was handed the photos he could hear the grains clatter to the pavement.
“Burning”
Narrative Magazine
Narrative Spring 2022 Story Contest Finalist
He touched down in LA, splashed water on his face in the airport bathroom, and stood in line at the Budget car rental place. He got the key and wandered out into the lot and thought about how, one day, when everyone had been killed or whatever, these cars would still be here, empty, accruing dust, their tires oozing into the concrete.
“Last Stop”
Bellevue Literary Review
All of us are bound for the same place: the shining city on the hill, or the grave, or just the next in an endless series of identical platforms full of identical people, stepping in and out of our collective stillborn dream.
“Good Neighbors”
Narrative Magazine
2021-2022 Top Five Narrative "Stories of the Week"
Narrative 30 Below 2021 Contest Finalist
I couldn’t make out what they were saying—it was the anger I heard, the volcanic flow of it from the man. His voice bubbled like lava. It crashed and struck.
“A Last Set”
Narrative Magazine
Narrative Winter 2021 Story Contest Finalist
Paul was moving to Sacramento after the tour. Which made this our farewell tour, even if we didn’t have that many fans to say farewell to.
“Making a Difference”
Narrative Magazine
I wasn’t a hoarder per se, but I did have trouble letting go of objects because it was like letting go of a dream you once had of yourself.
Awards
& Recognitions
2024
Winner, Publishing Lab Prize, University of New Orleans
2023
Sewanee Writers' Conference Contributing Participant
2022
Winner, Top Five "Stories of the Week," Narrative
Longlisted, First Pages Contest
Finalist, Spring Story Contest, Narrative
2021
Finalist, 30 Below Contest, Narrative
Featured, 20th Annual Emerging Voices Group Show, The New Short Fiction Series
Finalist, Winter Story Contest, Narrative
Community of Writers Conference Participant with a Carlisle Family Scholarship
2020
Honorable Mention, Annual Writing Competition, Writer's Digest
Finalist, Winter Story Contest, Narrative
2019
Finalist, Winter Story Contest, Narrative