Ledger: A Writing Podcast

Debut novelist David Connor joins me to chat about his book Oh God, the Sun Goes which is out TODAY, August 1st, 2023 from Melville House. Although this is his first novel he has in fact always been writing, which we talk about for sure. He has an undergrad degree in neuroscience and during that time in school he took a writing workshop with Maggie Nelson. Things changed after that. Also, what's becoming a touchstone for the show, he mentions the genesis of his novel came out in a few sentences on his phone. We talk about the perspective of the story, specifically how “close” or “distant” the third person narrative hews, how he utilizes the passage of time and our perception of that phenomenon, and whether this is metafiction or not? Is it? IS IT? Well…yeah, is it? We do tiptoe up to some topics David says he doesn't want to dive too deeply into, for fear of giving away the magic trick, including psychedelics. His book is a strange, fantastical journey into perception and time featuring noir sensibilities...that was maybe was influenced by psychedelics? Grab David's book wherever books are sold, or over at my affiliate link on Bookshop.org. That's a great way to support the show and get some fantastic new reading material. If I've interviewed someone and their work is available via that site, it's on my list. -- -- -- -- Please rate and review the show wherever you can - Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, all of them - and tell people you think would like it. Swing by AustinRWilson.com to see my publishing credits, to contact me, or to read free fiction. You can also check out my work on Medium, including my weird sci-fi publication Shibboleth, which features aliens, government conspiracies, and maybe even sentient fire.

Brock Swinson is the author of Ink By the Barrel: Secrets from Prolific Writers which is available now at BrockSwinson.com. He's also a regular contributor to CreativeScreenwriting.com, a marketing copywriter, the host of the Creative Principles podcast, and currently is creating a docuseries titled Daredevil Society. He stopped by to chat about what prolific means for him as well as for writing in general, what it's like to ghost write, whether he writes every day or if you need to (the BIG topic on Ledger, it seems), and how Daniel Kraus is on another freaking level. Thank you to Brock for stopping by, make sure you check out all his work here: https://linktr.ee/brockswinson Be sure you download your free copy of Ink By the Barrel. -- Links to all of my work are available here: https://linktr.ee/austinRwilson. If you'd like to support the show, you can buy books from my Bookshop affiliate link https://bookshop.org/lists/ledger-guests, leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, or share the show with someone you think will love it. Thank you so much!

Albert Wendland is the author of three sci-fi novels and a poetry collection, all featuring his character Mykol (pronounced "Michael") Ranglen as a universe-exploring poet adventurer. His newest novel is "Haunted Stars" and is available now from Dog Star Books. Apart from the poetry collection - which features poems written by Ranglen - the books are adventures colored by Golden Age sci-fi yearnings but with a noir sensibility added in. You wonder who to trust. You wonder what the next discovery will mean for the humans bouncing between stars. You turn each page with wonder. Wendland is also co-founder of the Seton Hill University Writing Popular Fiction MFA, alongside Lee McClain. He still teaches there in an adjunct capacity while also writing and doing things other than writing to stay sane, just like his character Ranglen. We chat about the MFA program, how he came to create his sci-fi alter ego, what it's like writing multiple stories with a recurring character, plus how teaching plays into his reading and writing. Find his work at https://albertwendland.blogspot.com/ and to learn more about the Writing Popular Fiction program visit https://www.setonhill.edu/academics/graduate-programs/writing-popular-fiction-mfa/faculty/. Thank you to Albert for the discussion and thank you for listening! -- -- -- -- Links to all of my work are available here: https://linktr.ee/austinRwilson. If you'd like to support the show, you can buy books from my Bookshop affiliate link https://bookshop.org/lists/ledger-guests, leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, or share the show with someone you think will love it. Thank you so much!

Lor Gislason is the author of Inside Out, a goopy gross horror adventure out now from DarkLit Press. They are also the editor of the anthology Bound In Flesh from Ghoulish Books, an author of non-fiction horror reviews and appreciation, and are currently writing more entertaining body horror filled with memorably gross scenes and stories. Lor stopped by to talk about their writing journey, the dreams that led to Inside Out gooping onto the page, as well as what their writing routine looks like and whether there's such a thing as too gross. Also, yes, there is a mention or two of cannibalism. Check out links to all of their work and social media right here: https://linktr.ee/lorgislason Thank you so much to Lor for coming by and to you for listening! — — — You can read my most recently published story at Defenestrationmag.net. It's called “Men's Rights Activists Resurrect Charles Bronson” and is a humorous tale of some reliably ignorant people, plus necromancy. Join the Ledger Discord server or support the show by buying books via my Bookshop affiliate link both found here: https://linktr.ee/austinRwilson As always, check out my work at austinRwilson.com. Ledger is officially now part of the Writer's Bone Podcast Network. It's featured alongside many great writing shows, including the official Writer's Bone show itself. Check it all out at WritersBone.com. Thank you for listening and supporting the show however you do!

Emily Marie Passos Duffy is the author of the poetry collection Hemorrhaging Want & Water, out now from Perennial Press and available on Perennial Press.com. It's hard to beat the publisher's description of the book, which describes it as "Pastoral city smut for bad girls with big hearts.” If you're looking for poetry that travels the globe but also hops across the borders of genre and form then you might really dig this. Emily and I chatted about connective thematic tissue between poems, a recurring character named Alias, and when/where humor flows into her work. Follow Emily on Instagram @duffylala and find links to her work there. Check out my latest story on Defenestrationmag.net, where my story “Men's Rights Activists Resurrect Charles Bronson” was included in the April 2023 collection of stories. Also, brand-new, join the Ledger Discord server and find my Bookshop affiliate link here: https://linktr.ee/austinRwilson and as always check out my work at austinRwilson.com. The biggest news is Ledger has officially joined the Writer's Bone Podcast Network and will be featured alongside many great writing shows, including the official Writer's Bone show itself. Check it all out at WritersBone.com. Thank you!

James Spooner is the author of The High Desert out now from Harper Collins, available here - https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-high-desert-james-spooner?variant=40828374777890 Set in the late eighties and starring James as a teenager discovering punk rock and as the book's synopsis says, "Mixed race, acutely aware of his Blackness, James doesn't know where he fits until he meets Ty, a young Black punk who introduces him to the school outsiders—skaters, unhappy young rebels, caught up in the punk groundswell sweeping the country." It's a memorable coming-of-age tale with the rebellious nature of punk rock driving the pining teens seem to universally feel, that yearning to discover themselves and to go somewhere else. James also made the documentary Afro-Punk, a look at the reality of being a black punk told through the lives of people who live it. We talk about how the tagline of his book came about - Black. Punk. Nowhere. - how he focused on writing characters with unique voices, the challenge of moving past pain when writing memoir, and even when exactly the narration boxes were added to his story. Also, we talk about two of the best punk shows he's ever been to and the magnificent joy of being at a punk show and experiencing it with a crowd. I loved The High Desert and talking to James was a blast. Go to spoonersnofun.com to check out all his work. Pre-order the anthology he co-edited with Chris L Terry called Black Punk Now. https://softskull.com/dd-product/black-punk-now/ -- -- -- Check out my work on austinRwilson.com, at https://austinrwilson.medium.com/ and https://medium.com/shibboieth. Thank you for listening and sharing!

Justice Warriors Vol. 1 is out NOW from Ahoy Comics and available wherever books are sold. Buy it from your local bookstore or comic shop! It's a wild satire, disgusting but delightfully so – it's one of the most unique comics on the shelves. How did these two storytellers get together? How did Matt Bors decide to step away from political cartooning to cowrite this story about a cop made out of poop with Ben Clarkson, an experienced artist and storyteller in painting, illustration, and animation? You WON'T BELIEVE IT! But seriously, it's a fun story. How does a massive world filled with bonkers characters, driven by economic and political satire come together in a cohesive comic book? Take a listen! Visit TheBenClarkson.com to see Ben's art, including some from Justice Warriors. Head to MattBors.Substack.com to subscribe to Matt's newsletter and get some great insights into how he tells stories. Tell anyone who likes to laugh and maybe feel bad about laughing to read Justice Warriors. Check out my work at austinRwilson.com, including comics and short stories, and please share, rate, and subscribe to the show. Thank you so much!

Author of 27 Essential Principles of Story Daniel Joshua Rubin joined me for Ledger to chat about his book, writing in general and so much more. He's written for the stage, for TV, screenplays and new media, and now this "here's why" book about writing. We discuss why book blurbs work, how important knowing yourself is to writing, battling our inner critics, and even sort of dead low-level mobsters and how their existence can help you. Visit Daniel online at www.danieljoshuarubin.com and www.storyprinciples.com. If you want to study the craft of writing and start thinking about your stories in purposeful and creative ways, read his book. It's one of the three books about writing I HIGHLY recommend. Visit me online at austinrwilson.com or www.medium.com/Shibboieth, follow me on Twitter at austinRwilson or Ledger_Books. Share the show, rate and review it, and watch out for new episodes!

Bella Poynton is a playwright, director, actor, and theatre scholar. She's the director of the Playwrights' Wing at First Look Buffalo Theatre Company in Buffalo, NY; literary manager for Post-Industrial Productions and is also the director of Queen City Playwrights, Buffalo's new play development workshop for career playwrights in Western New York. Her plays have been featured in The Best Ten-Minute Plays of 2019, The Best American Short Plays 2018-2019, and The Weirdest Plays of 2020.  We discuss conceptualizing speculative (but specifically sci-fi/fantasy) plays for the stage; impossible stage directions; Star Wars; and some straight up theatre theory. See more of her work at http://www.bellapoynton.com/. Find my work at www.austinRwilson.com and also on Medium.com/shibboieth and https://austinrwilson.medium.com/. I have two stories in Love Me, Love Me Not a collection of dark love stories out from Black Hare Press, available here. You can also listen to this and recent Ledger episodes on YouTube here. Thank you for listening and thank you to Bella for coming on! Please rate, review, and share the show!

Max Booth III is the publisher of Ghoulish Books and the author of novels such as Maggots Screaming and Touch the Night, along with his forthcoming collection Abnormal Statistics. We discuss the importance of the word "punk" in the sub-genre splatterpunk, the personal nature of his story "Indiana Death Song," and why exactly we feel the need to not only write, but to release the stories out into the world, plus a whole lot more. You can find Ghoulish Books and Max at https://linktr.ee/ghoulishbooks, including the Ghoulish Discord, as well as links to everything we discuss. Visit my site at austinRwilson.com and watch out for my stories in the Valentine's Day anthology coming from Black Hare Press in 2023. I have free stories you can read at my website, both comics and prose! Follow me on Twitter (or basically every social media platform) over @austinRwilson or @Ledger_Podcast. Rate and review the show when you get a chance and share it with friends!

Stephanie M. Wytovich is the editor of Writing Poetry In the Dark, a collection of essays about poetry, creativity, and writing in general. She is the poetry editor for Raw Dog Screaming Press, a college professor, and an author of poetry and prose fiction. You can find her work at StephanieMWytovich.com or stephaniewytovich.blogspot.com. Is literally everything poetry? Why do we associate "bad poetry" with the entire artform of poetry? How does editing guide all she does and how did she arrive at editing a book of essays about one of her favorite art forms? All this and more on today's Ledger! Visit austinRwilson.com where you can donate to the show and find links to all of my work. Follow me on Twitter @austinRwilson and @Ledger_Podcast, but look out for me on YouTube as well @austinRwilson. I'll be posting the episodes there as audio files but do have plans for video at some point. Thank you for listening!

EV Knight is the author of The Fourth Whore, which won the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel, and Three Days In the Pink Tower out now from Creature Publishing. Why do writers bury themselves under guilt? Are writers in fact the weirdest people currently living? How many drafts of a story does she normally create? What was it like to go from writing The Fourth Whore to accepting a Bram Stoker Award for it? We cover all this and more! Make sure you visit EVKnightAuthor.com to check out her work as well as all the ways you can follow her online. Thank you for listening and for sharing the episode and thank you to EV Knight for stopping by to chat! Visit austinRwilson.com where you can donate to the show and find links to all of my work. I have a short story coming on October 1st in the NOM NOM anthology out from Black Hare Press. Pre-order it right here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2M1VF6N?tag=gingercatpubl-20 I also currently have a Shibboleth story available through Mini Komix, check it out right here: https://www.lulu.com/shop/mini-komix/a-late-night-encounter/paperback/product-gmk76j.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Bucket O' Blood is located in Chicago, IL at 3182 N Elston Ave and is filled with horror, sci-fi/fantasy, and welcoming vibes. They sell records, movies, and used/new books and are an essential destination for anyone wanting to buy a story or two that will take them on an adventure. You can find them online here: https://www.bucketoblood.com/ Please visit austinRwilson.com/Ledger to see photos of Bucket O' Blood as well as my recent bookhaul! If you visit the shop let me know, and especially let me know what you buy! Reach out to me on Twitter through @austinRwilson or @Ledger_Podcast or send me an email at LedgerBooks@outlook.com. If you have a shop you'd like to tell me about please let me know! I can never visit too many bookstores and want to spread the word about as many as possible. Bookstores are landmarks of hope and possibility!     This is NOT an ad or sponsored episode, the content is mine alone.

Blood Mountain, by this episode's guest Brenda Tolian is "A mosaic of mountain songs that penetrate all the way to the beating, blood heart." That's what Josh Malerman says. Brenda Tolian talks about her relationship to Colorado, the importance of telling its stories from indigenous perspectives, why the Bible is actually like really scary, and so much more! Make sure you visit Raw Dog Screaming Press to pick up a copy of Blood Mountain, right here: https://rawdogscreaming.com/books/blood-mountain/ Also visit her website at https://brendatolian.com/. You can find me at www.austinRwilson.com and on Twitter @austinRwilson and @Ledger_Podcast. Thank you for listening!

"A cosmic horror exploration of sisterhood and feminine rage." That's how Jessica McHugh describes her next book of blackout poetry based on the classic Little Women. It will be published from Apokrupha, which is also the publisher of her book A Complex Accident of Life. We discuss two novels she has coming out in 2022 from Ghoulish Books. The first book, Rabbits In the Garden is a reprint coming out in August 2022. Its sequel, Hares In the Hedgerow is a "crazy, cult horror [and] a big love letter to Joni Mitchell." It will be out in November 2022. She also talks about writing two novels that tie-in to the WNUF Halloween Special sequel! Please check out her website www.mchughniverse.com.   My Twitters: @austinRwilson and @Ledger_Podcast My website: www.austinRwilson.com

Terror and delight circle one another in the darkness and Bram Stoker Award-winning author Tim Waggoner is there to guide them directly into your heart. Over the course of more than 50 novels, seven collections, and 20 media tie-in novels Tim has scared, shocked, and entertained readers with his tales of horror. Another thing he's done is teach, both in a classroom and on the page. His non-fiction book Writing In the Dark won the 2020 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement In Non-Fiction and the forthcoming Writing In the Dark: The Workbook expands on the exercises and tools supplied in the first volume. Both are available from Raw Dog Screaming Press and both are magnificent resources for writers. Tim came by Ledger to discuss his teaching, how he stays aware of his stories' potential influence on the real world, and why you'll drop your phone when trying to call 911 as Jason Voorhees sprints toward you.   Thank you for listening! Keep writing and keep telling stories.   Writing In the Dark - https://rawdogscreaming.com/books/writing-in-the-dark/ Writing In the Dark: The Workbook - https://rawdogscreaming.com/books/writing-in-the-dark-workbook/ Tim Waggoner - https://timwaggoner.com/ My work - https://www.austinRwilson.com  

What is the journey like from idea to a published book for a first-time author? Keely Shinners chatted with Ledger about their book How To Build a Home for the End of the World, out now from Perennial Press. Keely discusses the five-year process for writing their first novel, who did those eye-catching sketches in the inside covers of the book, and the "deferred gratification" of writing a novel. Aside from longform fiction, Keely writes short fiction, essays, and is also an art critic. Their work can be seen at www.keelyshinners.com and you can find their book at Perennial Press. Follow Ledger on Twitter through @Ledger_Podcast or @austinRwilson, and find my writing at austinRwilson.com. My most recent story, "Hate to Meet You" can now be read online at Ahoy Comics. It features an illustration from veteran cartoonist Peter Bagge!

Daniel Kraus, author of The Ghost That Ate Us (out in July 2022 from Raw Dog Screaming Press), The Living Dead, Bent Heavens, Trollhunters, and The Shape of Water stopped by Ledger! His newest book is the tale of a poltergeist in a fast-food restaurant, written as a true-crime tale. We discussed how he had to reverse engineer characters/story for that novel, his general writing schedule, whether he's afraid of anything at all, and how George A. Romero is one of his favorite artists of all time. Thank you to Daniel for stopping by! Check out his work at www.danielkraus.com. My work is available at www.austinRwilson.com with supplemental material for the show at austinRwilson.com/Ledger.

Tommy Dean writes and edits flash fiction and also teaches creative writing courses that focus on flash fiction as well as writing in general. He stopped by Ledger to talk about flash - which are usually stories of 1,000 words or less - including Hollow, a collection of his work out through Alternating Current Press. What does success look like for a writer? Is writing flash easier than writing long-form fiction? How does Tommy write and edit his own work (including how those processes are affected by others helping him)? We cover all of this and a lot more! If you enjoyed the episode please share it with a fellow writer and rate/review the show wherever you listened, it really does help new listeners find it. You can find Tommy Dean on Twitter under @TommyDeanWriter and at his website tommydeanwriter.com. Order (or preorder, depending when you see this) his book Hollows here. Keep your eyes peeled for my fiction in Ahoy Comics and in the Tales From the Quarantine anthology. You can also read fiction on my website austinRwilson.com and follow my twitter accounts, @Ledger_Podcast and @austinRwilson. I appreciate you listening!

Robin Sloan's first novel, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, was a New York Times Best Seller, translated into more than twenty languages. His latest novel, Sourdough, was published in 2017. With his partner Kathryn Tomajan, Robin produces California extra virgin olive oil under the label Fat Gold. He lives in Oakland and works out of the Murray Street Media Lab, down by the railroad tracks. Mr. Sloan stopped by Ledger to talk about computer coding, the ways it intersects with fiction/novel writing, videogames, decapitation (and his lack of expertise in the field), and taking time to appreciate a good flower. Visit RobinSloan.com to subscribe to newsletters and look around at all the cool stuff. Thank you to Robin Sloan for the chat and thank YOU for listening! -- Visit austinRwilson.com for comics and short stories.

Alec Nevala-Lee is the author of "Astounding," a group biography of John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, and L. Ron Hubbard. He's written three novels, a lot of short stories, and has published non-fiction in the New York Times and the L.A. Times. Alec stopped by to chat about sci-fi as a genre, that famous quote about the "Golden Age" of sci-fi being 12, how long it took him to write this book (plus his forthcoming bio on Buckminster Fuller), and the relationship between a writer and their agent. To check out more of Alec's stuff head over to nevalalee.com. Thanks so much for listening!

Author Erika Swyler has written two novels, The Book of Speculation and Light From Other Stars, and has received starred reviews from both Booklist and Kirkus. She chats with Ledger about her writing process, the reasons she bristles at certain points of view in stories, her super-secret softcore erotica novel (shhhh), and which videogames she loves. Thank you so much to Erika for being the first interview on Ledger. Visit her website at erikaswyler.com to subscribe to her newsletter and stay up-to-date on all things Swyler! My website is austinRwilson.com and you can find this episode there, along with a transcript of the interview, plus my own fiction and non-fiction. Thank you!  

The first episode of Ledger is here! It's a writing podcast that will be 95% interviews with a sprinkling of news from the publishing world as well as about my own projects. Go to @Ledger_Podcast or @AustinRwilson on Twitter to comment on the show or click on Contact over on austinRwilson.com. Let's talk about writing!