Interview: Author David Mack
Today on Skiffy and Fanty, I interview the author of Midnight Front and The Iron Codex (among very many other things), David Mack. PW: You’ve penned sequels and follow-on novels in the various fictional universes you’ve written in before. What was different about your process in tackling The Iron Codex? DM: Adding stories to the ongoing literary continuity of Star Trek, as I’ve been doing since 2001, is very different from writing a sequel to my own original novel. When I write a Star Trek novel, I’m able to take advantage of the fact that many ideas and concepts don’t need to be explained in great detail, because readers of Star Trek novels are already familiar with the series’ setting and characters.
358. Alasdair Stuart and Marguerite Kenner (a.k.a. The Dynamic Duo) – Escape Artists
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode358AlasdairStuartandMargueriteKennerEscapeArtists/SandF–Episode358–AlasdairStuartandMargueriteKennerEscapeArtists.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSIncreasingly terrified horror academics, high school musical, and Trish’s new job, oh my! Trish and Jen sit down with the CEO and COO of Escape Artists, Alasdair Stuart and Marguerite Kenner! The duo discusses the history of Escape Artists and the changes in both audio fiction and short fiction, their decision to withdraw from the Parsec Awards this year, their goal to hire diverse narrators for diverse stories, the difficulty of getting things right and learning from mistakes when you don’t, the larger podcasting market, and so much more. If you have any interest in audio fiction or podcasting, this is the… well… the podcast interview for you! (Hinthint: These folks are eligible for Hugos!) We hope you enjoy the episode!
Signal Boost #51 – Erin Roberts (Various) and Sarah Chorn (Seraphina’s Lament)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFSignalBoost51RobertsAndChorn/SandF–Signal_Boost_51–Roberts_and_Chorn.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSS In today’s episode of Signal Boost, Jen talks to short story and interactive game designer, Erin Roberts, about her work. They talk about what Erin really enjoys exploring thematically, one of the key features that connects her story, Sour Milk Girls, with her game, Thanks for the Memories, the differences and connections between writing short stories and designing interactive games, and more! Then Paul interviews Sarah Chorn about her debut novel, Seraphina’s Lament. They discuss how she used a large cast to better tell the story, the historical events that inspired the novel and how she found that inspiration, where she plans to take the next book in her planned trilogy, and a few more things besides. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Torture Cinema #87: Xanadu (1980)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFTortureCinema87Xanadu/SandF–Torture_Cinema_87–Xanadu.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSPink bodysuits, the bisexual 80s, and legs that go on forever, oh my! Today on Torture Cinema, Paul, Alex, and Daniel review the (not so) particularly beloved 1980s fantasy musical, Xanadu! The film also has the distinction of being Gene Kelly’s last picture, so nobody can be too mad at it. If you love camp and ELO (Paul and Alex will fight you on this), then you too might truly love this movie. If you don’t, then you just might have a few things in common with at least some of our hosts. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Episode 4. Into the Wardrobe with The Neverending Story (1984; dir. Wolfgang Peterson): Childhood Trauma and the Power of Story
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEp4IntoTheWardrobeTheNeverendingStory1984/SandF–Ep4–Into_the_Wardrobe–The_Neverending_Story_1984.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSIn this episode of Into the Wardrobe, Shaun and Jen are joined by the lovely Becca to talk about the movie that defined Jen’s childhood, terrified Shaun, and has now inspired Becca to find a luck dragon. That move is 1984’s The Neverending Story directed by Wolfgang Peterson. Our intrepid crew discuss their own childhood traumas that made them connect so strongly with Bastian, the problems with Atreyu’s coding as Native, the movie’s approach to the tyranny of adulthood under capitalism, the good and the bad of the film’s ending, and so much more that we lost track about half-way through and can’t continue telling you. Basically, listen to the podcast. Enjoy!
Book Review: The Sea Dreams It Is the Sky by John Hornor Jacobs
The Sea Dreams It Is the Sky is a dark and intently written horror novella that shows the breadth of the author’s skill. A fictional South American Country. Two expatriates, an old poet with a long history of tangling with the autocratic regime that runs his homeland, and his young protege, a young college professor who is drawn to him, and his connection to their homeland of Magera. An unlikely friendship, a manuscript telling awful secrets, and a compulsion to return to her homeland. These and much more are the elements of The Sea Dreams It Is the Sky, a literary cosmic horror novella from John Hornor Jacobs.
