Guest Post: KV Johansen on The Last Road
Off the Map: How Small Things Create Depth in Space and Time by K.V Johansen I’ve always been fascinated by maps of places both real and imaginary. Blame The Hobbit and Shepard’s endpapers for The World of Pooh. But it’s not the map that gives a world its breadth and depth; that sense of space, and of time, too, in a story is created in other ways. Middle-earth, a place and a collection of myths and legends and epics never quite finding a final form, had been evolving for years before The Hobbit was sucked into it and what had started off as a children’s fairy-tale adventure struck roots down into something deeper, to grow into the unexpected, The Lord of the Rings. That sense that there is so much more off the map, casting long shadows into the story, is what gives The Lord of the Rings a part of its power. In 1955 readers had no way of finding out anything more of Beren and Luthien, of Gondolin, of Morgoth, of Ungoliant or Thingol, Elbereth or Erendil, beyond a few references: a song, a poem, the narrator’s mention of “some say …” as though of course you, like the characters, will have some faint familiarity with these ancient tales. Readers, before the publication of The Silmarillion, didn’t know that those stories existed as more than a whisper in the author’s mind, and for the story at hand that didn’t matter. What mattered was that their shadows were cast into the present action, the shape of them touching and affecting the unfolding story, and that those fragments and references gave the world a history, an internal frame of reference known, in various forms appropriate to their experience, to the characters.
362. Cadwell Turnbull (a.k.a. The One and Only) — The Lesson (An Interview)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/sandfepisode362cadwellturnbullthelesson/SandF–Episode362–Cadwell_Turnbull_TheLesson.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSIrma, Imperialism, and Islands, oh my! In today’s episode, Shaun Duke and Brandon O’Brien interview Cadwell Turnbull about his debut novel about aliens in the U.S. Virgin Islands, The Lesson! Cadwell discloses the myriad of themes he either explored or was thinking about while writing the novel including Colonialism, systems of violence, disaster capitalism and Hurricane Irma, power dynamics in relationships, and so much more. There was so much for our interviewers to chew on in The Lesson and this is just the top of the Island, so to speak. You do not want to miss it! We hope you enjoy the episode! Don’t forget, if you sign up for our Patreon, you’ll be able to listen to our Patreon exclusive interview, 5 Questions with Cadwell Turnbull – coming soon!
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!
Signal Boost #50 – T. Frohock (Where Oblivion Lives) and Alex Harrow (Empire of Light)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFSignalBoost50FrohockAndHarrow/SandF–Signal_Boost_50–Frohock_and_Harrow.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, Paul talks to T. Frohock about her new Los Nefilim series novella, Where Oblivion Lives. T. treats us to a glimpse of what life was like just prior to the Spanish Civil War, how she deals with the trauma of World War I, the queer relationship between Diego and Miguel, the villainy of humanity, and more! T. is a long time friend of the show, and we’re so glad she finally got to join us! Then Jen interviews Alex Harrow about their new science fiction novel, Empire of Light! Alex tells us about the complicated relationships between the characters, the importance of queer representation and how they specifically try to combat many of the negative queer tropes, why the super powers that they created for Empire of Light (the Voyance) comes with consequences, the importance of finding community, and more! We hope you enjoy the episode!
357. S.A. Chakraborty (a.k.a. The Iron Chef Daevabad) — The Kingdom of Copper (An Interview)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode357SAChakrabortyKingdomOfCopper/SandF–Episode_357–SA_Chakraborty_Kingdom_of_Copper.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSMurderous status, dragons, and culinary competitions, oh my! For our first interview of 2019, we’re excited to bring to you the fantastic S.A. Chakraborty. Paul and Elizabeth chat with S.A. (Shannon) about book two of the Daevabad Trilogy, Kingdom of Copper. They explore why the second book is set a good five years after the first one, how the characters deal with the political turmoil of a land divided, why being a good person is completely subjective, how language and cooking help set the tone for the worldbuilding, and a heck of a lot more! Minor spoilers lie ahead, but this interview is absolutely brilliant! We hope you enjoy the episode!
Signal Boost #49 – Steph Matuku (Flight of the Fantail) and Bethany C. Morrow (MEM)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFSignalBoost49MatukuMorrow/Sandf–SignalBoost49–MatukuMorrow.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, Elizabeth talks to Steph Matuku, author of the debut novel, Flight of the Fantail, and the children’s book, Whetū Toa and the Magician. Both are out from HUIA Publishers in New Zealand. The two talk about how Steph treated the environment as a character, the influence her Maori culture has on her books, how she was sponsored (and published!) through the Te Papa Tupu writing program, the tough reality of writing, and more! Then Jen reminisces about UCSC (GO SLUGS!) with author Bethany C. Morrow for hours and hours. Kidding! The two explore Bethany’s historical fantasy science fiction novel, MEM, her YA debut novel, A Song Below Water, and her upcoming YA anthology, Take the Mic: Fictional Stories of Everyday Resistance. They discuss the effect that omitting whiteness has upon a story, the importance of resistance to her writing, the sinister reality of west coast liberal racism, and much more. We hope you enjoy the episode!
