Podcast appearances and mentions of Dean Koontz

In this thirtieth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... we head to the tropical jungle of Vietnam's Annamese mountains. On a dark, rainy night in January of 1968, PsyWar Detachment Six - a six-man team and part of the US military's shadowy MACV-SOG Command - was conducting black operations meant to terrify and break the spirits of the Viet Cong. But in the end, no one will be scared more than the soldiers themselves... This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises! If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much!For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

In this twenty-ninth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... we meet Ryan Castillo, who, on a long late-night drive through the desert from Los Angeles, California to Tonopah, Nevada, hits one hitchhiker, and picks up another... This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises! If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much!For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

An ugly policeman doesn't have a lot of chances for love. Well then, what does he have to lose? P.G. Wodehouse, today on The Classic Tales Podcast.   Welcome to The Classic Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening.   If you'd like to ensure the future of The Classic Tales, please visit the website, classictalesaudiobooks.com, and either make a donation, buy an audiobook, or pick up one of our many support options.   And if you can't support us monetarily, leave us a review or share an episode with a friend. It all helps. Thank you so much.   I recently finished recording the latest audiobook from Dean Koontz. Now he's a pretty famous suspense writer, but with his latest book, Going Home in the Dark, it's actually a comedy. He's told me that in the past when he's tried something like this, the publisher's would push back. They just didn't get it – that it was supposed to be funny. But Dean heard my audition and thought I'd get where he was going. He thinks I've done a “bang-up job” with it. He describes me as someone “who knows funny – and how not to oversell it”.   So, to honor this good news, we have a P.G. Wodehouse story from the short story collection The Man with Two Left Feet.   And now, The Romance of an Ugly Policeman, by P.G. Wodehouse   Follow this link to become a monthly supporter:       Follow this link to subscribe to our YouTube Channel:       Follow this link to subscribe to the Arsène Lupin Podcast:     Follow this link to follow us on Instagram:     Follow this link to follow us on Facebook:

In this twenty-seventh installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... we return to 1988 once more, and to the town of Deacon's Point, to find out if local high school student Chance Watkins and homicide detective Rob Shoemaker are able to stop a satanic cult from killing more teen girls and bringing a powerful demon into the world that could possibly kill millions.This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises! If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much!For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

Author Marshall Karp and narrator January LaVoy join AudioFile's Michele Cobb for a conversation about Marshall's latest novel, DON'T TELL ME HOW TO DIE - a mystery-turned-thriller where January LaVoy's superb talent brings an array of dimension to Karp's carefully crafted characters. Marshall is the author of over a dozen crime fiction novels - including the popular NYPD Red series, co-written with James Patterson - and January is an award-winning narrator who has voiced books by Nora Roberts, Dean Koontz, and John Grisham to name just a few. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week's behavior, we discuss how seeking prestige can be dangerous for writers, specifically in the form of MFA degrees and literary agents. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Sword of the Squire, Book #1 in the Dragonskull series (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills), at my Payhip store: SQUIRE50 The coupon code is valid through March 14, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook for spring, we've got you covered! 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates   Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 240 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is February the 20th, 2025, and today we are discussing how to escape the trap of prestige that can sometimes catch writers, specifically in the form of MFA degrees and literary agents. Before we get into greater detail with that, we will start with Coupon of the Week and then an update on my current writing projects and then also a Question of the Week before we get to the main topic.   But first, let's start with Coupon of the Week. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Sword of the Squire, Book One of the Dragonskull series (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills), at my Payhip store. And that coupon code is SQUIRE50. The coupon code is valid through March 14th, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook as we head into spring, we have got you covered.   Now let's have an update on current writing projects. I am 94,000 words into Ghost in the Assembly. I had two 10,000 word days this week, which really moved the needle forward. We'll talk about those a little bit more later. I'm on Chapter 18 of 21, I believe, and if all goes well, I should hopefully finish the rough draft before the end of the month because I would like to get editing on that as soon as possible. For my next book, that will be Shield of Battle and I am 8,000 words into that and I'm hoping that'll come out in April. Ghost in the Assembly will be in March, if all goes well.   In audiobook news, recording for Cloak of Dragonfire (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy) is finished and also recording on Orc-Hoard, the fourth book of the Half-Elven Thief series (as excellently narrated by Leanne Woodward). Both of those should be coming out sometime in March, if all goes well. So that's where I'm at with my current writing projects.   00:01:45 Question of the Week   And now let's move on to Question of the Week. Question of the Week is intended to inspire interesting discussions of enjoyable topics. This week's question, if you have off work or school because of a snow day or extreme cold or other intense weather, what do you do with the day? No wrong answers. We had a number of responses to this.   Surabhi says: Ha, jokes on you! It never snows where I live. We do sometimes bunk school on rainy days, though. What I mostly do then is catching up on homework or listening to the rain.   Justin says: We're having a snow day here; schools and many businesses are closed. So Lord of the Rings Extended Edition movie marathon! Popcorn popped, hot cocoa and cold soda prepped. I have to admit, that seems like a very good idea.   Mary says: Read, write, watch the snow fall, try to exercise inside.   Michael says: That hasn't happened to me since about 1985, but I seem to recall it was on my birthday and boy was I happy to miss school on my birthday! I think I read fantasy books, drank tea, and played video games.   Juana says: curl up with a book and hot chocolate or tea.   John says: Haven't had a snow day since I was a child, but I did either play in the snow or read a book (at that age, Andre Norton, Lester del Rey, or Ben Bova). I'm relocating later this year back to colder climes, but since I now only work remotely and have for the past six years, sadly my days change very little.   Jenny says: Usually shovel snow, make a pot of warm food, more snow removal, watch movies or shows. Bob says: I'm retired now, so probably not much different than any other day, but when I was working, I'd probably be out shoveling snow so I can get to work whenever the roads were clear. Of course, that necessitated more shoveling when the snowplow dumped its load across the end of my driveway and that's why I moved south, where I rarely see snow.   Yes, if you live in a colder climes and you have a driveway, you know that you'll shovel the driveway and then immediately when you're done, these snowplow will come and block up the end of the driveway.   Finally, Dan says: For myself, I enjoy a free day. However, soon the home duties encroach on this free time.   For myself, the answer is clearly that I write 10,000 words on the first snow day and then again on the second day because I just had two days in a row where it was too cold to leave the house. So what I did was stay home and wrote 20,000 words of Ghost in the Assembly.   00:03:54 Main Topic: Escaping the Trap of Prestige, Part I   Now onto our main topic of the week, Escaping the Trap of Prestige, Part I-as it pertains to MFA (Master of Fine Arts) degrees and agents. I'd like to preface this by saying that I'm not looking to knock anyone who has a MFA or who has a literary agent, especially if it's working out for you and you're happy with it. What I'm trying to do here is warn younger writers who are just starting out about the potential consequences of these things, which can be very severe if you choose wrongly. So that is my goal with this episode, to help writers escape the potentially bad consequences of the prestige trap because newer writers in particular want validation. I mean, we all want validation, but writers especially want validation and new writers are very vulnerable to wanting validation to the point where it's been well known for years that there's a large scam industry of various things that take advantage of newer writers looking for validation such as vanity publishers, scammy agents, and a wide variety of other online publishing scams. This isn't to say that MFAs and literary agents are scams, though some literary agents have committed serious crimes (as we'll discuss later), but again, to warn against the danger of wanting prestige too badly and the bad decisions that can lead you to make. And some of this comes from the idea of success in life, especially in the United States and large parts of the Western world, is hitting certain milestones in a specific order. Like you graduate from college, you get a good job, you get married, you buy a house, you have your first kid, and if you don't do these things in the right order, there's something wrong with you and you have made mistakes in life, which isn't necessarily true, but is something that people can fall fall prey to and use to make destructive decisions. In the writing world, some of those measures of success have until fairly recently been getting a Master of Fine Arts degree, finding an agent, getting traditionally published, and hitting the New York Times list. As of this recording, I have sold well over 2 million books without following that normal route to writing success. In fact, I think it's closer to 2.25 million now, and I mention that not to toot my own horn, but to say that there are routes outside of the potentially dangerous prestige paths I'm talking about. And despite that, many aspiring writers feel they must follow that specific route to writer success, otherwise they aren't real writers. They've got to get the MFA, the agent, traditionally published, and then the New York Times list. The quest for prestige can keep writers from succeeding in two ways that are more significant, getting their work in front of readers who want to read it and deriving income from writing. So today in the first part of this two part episode series, we're going to talk about two of those writing markers of prestige, MFAs and literary agents. Why are they no longer as important? What should you devote your energy and focus to instead?   So number one, the Master of Fine Arts trap. The Master of Fine Arts in writing has often been seen as a marker of writing ability, especially in the world of literary fiction. And I think the big problem, one of the big problems with MFA, first of all is cost. Getting a Master of Fine Arts degree is expensive, especially if you are not fortunate enough to receive scholarships or assistantships and so have to rely on student loans. The average cost of an MFA program is in the mid five figures when all is said and done, not even counting living expenses and textbooks and so forth. If you have to take out student loans to pay for that, that is a considerable loan burden, especially if you already have loans from your undergraduate degree.   Even the people who get their MFA paid for (usually in exchange for teaching introductory writing classes to first year university students), the opportunity cost of taking two to three years to get this degree means you're sacrificing other things in your personal and professional life in order to get this MFA. It's a huge outlay of time and energy, especially if you're moving across the country for a residential program. And what are you getting in exchange for this massive outlay of time, money, and effort?   You probably aren't going to learn the practical non-writing skills that you need in the modern writing world like marketing, data collection and analysis, and publication strategies (all of which I do on a fairly regular basis in addition to writing). All of these skills are important for writers now, even if they are traditionally published. The problem with many MFA programs is that they rarely, if ever teach these skills. It seems that what MFAs train their students to do is to become adjunct faculty professors with semester to semester contracts, which can pay around $2,000 to $4,000 USD per writing or literature course at most small to mid-size colleges and universities in the United States. Being an adjunct professor does not confer any benefits like health insurance or retirement funds.   I was talking about this episode with my podcast transcriptionist and she mentioned once she was at a faculty meeting where an adjunct professor in English with an MFA did the math and realized based on her hourly wage (based on all the actual hours she put into a semester), if she worked at the local gas station chain, she would be making $7 per hour more at the local gas chain and she would be only working 40 hours a week. That can be a very dismaying realization, especially after all the work you have put into getting an MFA and teaching. Many defenders of the MFA degree will say that the real value of the degree is learning how to take criticism and learning to edit. But if you're writing in a genre outside of literary fiction, poetry, and memoirs, you are not likely to find a lot of useful advice. To return to my transcriptionist's tales from her time inside academia, she once told me of meeting a faculty member who confessed that he never read a fantasy book and had no idea how to critique or help these students, and he was a writing professor. He meant well, but he's not even remotely an outlier in terms of MFA instructors and their familiarity with mysteries, romance, and science fiction works and fantasy, which is what most genre fiction is nowadays. Also, the quality of advice and help you receive varies wildly based on the quality of your cohort and instructors and their willingness to help others. It's a steep investment with very, very uncertain returns.   So in short, an MFA takes a huge outlay of time and money with very few tangible benefits, especially with genre writers. In all frankness I would say an MFA is the kind of degree you should not go into debt to get and you should only get if you can have it paid for through scholarships or assistantships or so forth. So what should you do, in my opinion, other than an MFA degree? I think you should write as much as possible. You get better by practicing. You should read extensively. You will learn about writing by reading extensively, ideally in more than one genre. If you read enough and write enough, eventually you get to the moment where you read something and think, hey, I could do a better job than this. This is a major boost in confidence for any writer.   It might be a good idea to join a local or online writing group if you'd like critique from other writers. A warning that writing groups can vary wildly in quality and some of them have a bad case of crab bucket syndrome, so you may have to try more than one group to find one that works for you.   Another thing to do would be to listen to advice from successful writers. I saw a brief video from an author who recently pointed out that many people online giving writing advice aren't current or successful writers. One of the downsides of the Internet is that anyone can brand themselves an expert, whip together a course, and sell it online for a ridiculous fee. And people like this, their successes in creating methods or courses that turn writing into something more complicated to make aspiring writers reliant upon that process. Aspiring writers may end up spinning their wheels following all of these steps instead of getting to the actual work of churning out drafts. They may be spending money they can't afford in order to learn ineffective or even damaging strategies.   Many successful writers offer sensible advice for free, such as Brandon Sanderson posting his writing lectures for free on his YouTube channel. If you're looking for writing advice, you could do a lot worse than watching those lectures. And if you're going to take advice from anyone you read on the internet, it's probably better to take advice from successful writers who have demonstrated that they know what they are doing.   And finally, this may be more general advice, but it's a good idea to be open to learning and observing new experiences. It's probably a good idea to go to museums and cultural events, read about the latest developments in science and history, go on a hike in a new place, and observe the world around you. New writers often ask where writers get their ideas come from, and they very often come from just serendipitous things you can observe in the world around you. And that is also a good way to get out of your own head. If you're worried too much about writing, it's probably time to go for a long walk.   So why are agents potentially dangerous to writers? For a long time (for a couple decades, in fact), from I'd say from maybe the ‘80s and the ‘90s to the rise of the Kindle in the 2010s, the only realistic way to get published for most writers in terms of fiction was to get a literary agent. Publishers did not take unsolicited submissions (most of them did not), and you had to go through an agent to send your manuscript to a publisher. The agents were very selective for a variety of reasons. Because of that, a lot of newer writers still idealize the process of getting agents. You'll see this on Twitter and other social media platforms where new writers will talk constantly about getting agents and what they have to do. And the ones who do get a request from an agent to send in the full manuscript after sending a few query chapters are just besides themselves with joy. And those who do get agents can sometimes sound like they're showing off their new boyfriend or girlfriend, like my agent says they like my book, or my agent says this or that. And as you can probably imagine from my description, this is an arrangement that has a lot of potential danger for the writer.   The traditional first step in this time period I was mentioning after finishing a book has been to get as prestigious of an agent as possible to contact publishers and negotiate deals on their behalf. The agent takes 10 to 20% of what a publisher pays a writer, but in theory can get a writer a better deal and are acting in their best business interests. And as I mentioned before, most significantly, most publishers are not willing to read submissions that are not submitted by an agent. If getting traditionally published is the goal, an agent is the crucial first step. I mean, that's the ideal that we've been talking about. In reality, traditional publishing is as cautious and risk averse as it has ever been. Agents have followed suit. It takes industry connections and/or a significant social media presence to even get an agent to look at your book.   Writing query letters and trying to get an agent also takes away from writing and is a completely separate skillset, as is the networking and social media work that is part of this process. Some people have spent months or even years working on query letters and getting an agent when they could have finished another book or more in the same time. Alright, so that is the practical and logistical reasons it's a bad idea for a writer to seek out an agent, and I frankly think you'd be better off. And now we get to the potentially criminal ones.   The thing about literary agents is there's no licensing or requirement or anything of that nature. You can set up a website and call yourself a literary agent. If you consider something like a lawyer, by contrast, I'm sure those of you who are lawyers in the United States will have many complaints and stories about your state bar, which is in charge of licensing lawyers. But the point is that the state bar exists, and if a lawyer is behaving in an unethical or unscrupulous matter, that can be brought as complaint to the state bar. Nothing like that exists for literary agents at all. And because of that, scammy agents are everywhere. Some try to get writers to pay a fee upfront or other made up fees, or they get cuts from scammy book publishers or book packaging services. Or in general, they just try to squeeze every penny possible from aspiring writers. And this is often sadly very easy to do because as we've mentioned, many newer writers still think getting an agent is a major mark of prestige and humans crave prestige. And even if you get a prestigious and seemingly legitimate agent, that can potentially lead to life ruining problems because many of the legitimate agents are very sticky fingered.   Several years ago, the firm of Donadio and Olson, which represented Fight Club author Chuck Palahniuk, Godfather author Mario Puzo, and Catch 22 author Joseph Heller found out that one of their accountants had been stealing millions from their authors for many years. Although the accountant was sentenced to two years of prison, it's unlikely those authors will receive the money back fully. As Palahniuk put it in a blog post, “the legal process will be long and offers an iffy reward.” Mr. Palahniuk also lost out on money from touring to promote his books because of this crisis and said he was unable to support himself financially as a result of these stolen royalties.   By not filtering your royalties and earning statements through a literary agency that can falsify reports about these documents (as the accountant in question did), you have a full sense of what you are earning and what amounts you should be receiving. Amazon is open to many criticisms because of its decisions, but they pay monthly and they send a very detailed spreadsheet monthly to any Kindle authors of what books sold and what they expect to earn. It's sometimes almost too much data to process. The traditional publishing world would never even consider showing that to writers and agents often keep that from their writers. Palahniuk trusted his agency and accepted the explanations that rampant piracy and financial difficulties in the publishing world were keeping over a million dollars in royalties from him. He even later found out that this accountant was keeping non-financial correspondence from him. Returning to the topic of Brandon Sanderson, I recently saw an interview between him and a podcaster Tim Ferris. He made the interesting point that the power centers in publishing have shifted from traditional publishing agents to the platform holders and the writers, the platform holders being people like Amazon, Apple, and Google who have the platforms that sell the books and the writers who bring the books to those platforms. The power is shifted away from agents and publishers to the platforms and writers. And because of that, in my frank opinion, literary agents are obsolete for those wishing to publish independently.   And my frank opinion is also that you should be independently publishing and not trying to get an agent or go with a traditional publisher. There's no reason to give someone 15% when you can upload the files to a service like KDP yourself. An agent will not be able to get you a better royalty from KDP. Amazon does not negotiate royalty rates at the agent level, and you have to be a writer on the scale of J.K. Rowling or maybe Dean Koontz to get any kind of special deal from Amazon.   So what should you do instead of seeking out an agent? Publish independently or self-publish. Be wary of excuses and explanations that prey upon emotional responses or a sense of loyalty to individuals, such as the case of Chuck Palahniuk, where they preyed on his fears of piracy and the instability of the publishing industry, as well as sympathy for someone who claimed to be taking care of a family member with a terminal disease. That was one of the excuses they used for why the records weren't right. Ask for facts and verify everything regularly. Publishers and agents are not your friends and not your family, and do not accept that approach in your business relationship with them. Learn how to read and interpret any financial statements you receive. Don't trust a third party to do this for you, or if you must do that, make sure they're being audited regularly by a third party, not from just someone else at their firm.   So the conclusion is that in my opinion, the prestige of getting an MFA and an agent are currently not worth the trade-off and there are considerable risks that you take if your main goals are to build a following and sell books. Prestige is not going to put food on the table. And in fact, if you have five figures of student loan debt from an MFA, it may be keeping you from putting food on the table. So if you want to be a writer, I think both seeking out an MFA and seeking out an agent would be a waste of your time and possibly counterproductive.   Next week in Part Two, we'll discuss two more prestige traps in writing: getting traditionally published and hitting the New York Times Bestseller List.   That is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show useful. A reminder that you can listen to all the backup episodes on https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.

In this week's episode, we take a look at five tips for outlining your novel. I also take a look at audiobook sales for 2024. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Wizard-Thief, Book #2 in the Half-Elven Thief series, (as excellently narrated by Leanne Woodward) at my Payhip store: WIZARD50 The coupon code is valid through February 21, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook for spring, we've got you covered! 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates   Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 237 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is January 31st, 2025, and today we're discussing five tips for outlining your novel. Before we get to that, we will have Coupon of the Week, an update on my current writing projects, Question of the Week, and then a look at how my audiobooks performed in 2024.   First up, Coupon of the Week. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Wizard Thief, Book Number Two in the Half-Eleven Thief series (as excellently narrated by Leanne Woodward) at my Payhip store. That coupon code is WIZARD50. Both the coupon code and the link to the store will be in the show notes for this episode. This coupon code will be valid through February the 21st, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook to get you through the February doldrums, we have got you covered. And now an update on my current writing and audiobook projects. I am very, very, very pleased to report that Shield of Deception, the fourth book in The Shield War series, is done. As soon as I am finished recording this episode, I'm going to start publishing it at all the stores. So by the time this episode goes live, you should be able to get it at your favorite ebook store. I'm very pleased this is done because I think this is the longest book I have written in the last four years, which of course I picked to do over the Christmas holiday and was in the process of switching over to a new desktop computer. Great planning on my part, but the book is done and hopefully you should be able to enjoy it soon at your favorite ebook store.   Now that Shield of Deception is done, my next project will be Ghost in the Assembly and I'm pleased to report I'm 20,000 words into that. So I'm hopefully on track to have that come out sometime in March. My secondary project is also going to be Shield of Battle, the fifth book in the Shield War series, and hopefully that will be in April, if all goes well.   In audiobook news, Cloak of Masks is now finally available at all audiobook stores: Audible, Amazon, Apple, Google Play, Chirp, and all the others. A reminder that you can also get Ghost Armor Omnibus One, the combination of the first three Ghost Armor books (as excellently narrated by Hollis McCarthy), at Audible, Apple, and Amazon.   00:02:15 Question of the Week   Now it's time for Question of the Week, which is intended to inspire enjoyable discussions of interesting topics. This week's topic: do you watch the special features on the DVD when you watch a movie? I'm talking about the making of and the director and cast and crew interviews and so forth. Not all DVDs have them of course, but some do. We have a few responses to this question.   Justin says: It depends on the movie. The special features in Monty Python and the Holy Grail Special Edition are a must-see in my opinion.   John says: I watched all the Lord of the Rings Extended Edition extras. Really great material. I know I've watched others, but I can't recall offhand. Definitely the gold standard.   Tom says: My general pattern is to watch the trailer, then the movie, then the deleted scenes. Sometimes I'll watch parts of the special features if their name caches my eye, not often though.   James says: With On-Demand through my cable provider, I just watch the movies. Being part of the PC Master Race, I've never had a gaming console to play DVDs on. I haven't bought a DVD in ages. I used to belong to Redbox, but they're not even in business anymore. Elizabeth says: Sometimes, or play in another language with English subtitles.   Brandy says: Sometimes. I watched The Lord of the Rings special features and enjoyed it. I also watch historical extras or look them up.   Bonnie says: I think I may have once? I usually just watch the movie, haven't watched anything in ages, though.   Juana says: Yes. After the feature things are interesting!   Tracy says: I do.   For myself, the inspiration for this question was that I couldn't think of anything to watch, so I was watching the special features on The Lord of the Rings Extended Editions box set, which a few people have already mentioned. I really think those are the gold standard for DVD special features. Not too many special features have middle aged literature professors discussing the origins of the book that inspired the movie. There's like six discs worth of special features in the Extended Edition Lord of the Rings DVDs, and if you watch all of them, it's really a very interesting and comprehensive documentary on how those three movies were made. If you get the Oppenheimer Blu-ray, the special features that come with that are also quite interesting and worth watching in my opinion.   00:04:18 Audiobook Sales in 2024   Now let's talk a little bit about how my audiobooks did in 2024. Ebook sales were down a bit from 2023 to 2024, but my audiobook sales were up from 2023 to 2024. So here are my Top 10 bestselling audiobooks of 2024. It's nice to note that audio (at least for me) was up, in 2024 in a time of general economic contraction. So that's nice. Now my Top 10 audiobooks:   The Ghosts: Omnibus One 2. Frostborn: The Gorgon Spirit 3. Frostborn: The Dark Warden 4. Frostborn: The Broken Mage 5. Frostborn: The World Gate 6. Frostborn: The False King 7. Frostborn: Excalibur 8. Frostborn: The Dwarven Prince 9. Dragonskull: Omnibus One 10. Frostborn: The High Lords   So I have to admit, it's nice to see the Frostborn books still in the Top 10 there because they've long ago made back their production costs. So now it's just a pure profit at this point, which is nice. And it's also amusing that The Ghosts Omnibus One remains my bestselling audiobook of all time just because it's so long. Now let's see how those sales broke down by vendor because as you know, I sell my audiobooks through several different platforms. And so let's see how they did:   ACX (Audible, Amazon, Apple): 76.54% 2. Google Play: 9.84% 3. Storytel: 5.08% 4. Hoopla: 2.73% 5. Spotify: 2.27% 6. Chirp: 1.05% 7. Under 1%: Kobo, Scribd, Audiobooks.com, Overdrive, TuneIn, Bibliotheca, Nook, and Anyplay     So as we can see, Audible in the form of ACX is still pretty dominant, but there is growth on the other platforms, especially Google Play. I was not expecting Google Play to come in second. I would've thought it would've been Chirp or Spotify, but it seems Google Play did very well for me for audiobooks for 2024. So thanks for listening everyone, or at least listening to the audiobooks. We're not done with the podcast yet, so let's now move on to our main topic.   00:06:34 Main Topic: 5 Tips for Creating an Outline for Your Novel   Now let's move on to our main topic, five tips for creating an outline for your novel. In the fiction writing community, there's generally two schools of thoughts, outliners (of which I am definitely one), and discovery writers, who feel that starting with outlines sort of drains the process of its fun and magic. Though I heard an interesting point from one of Brandon Sanderson's videos recently where he said that all outliners do have a little bit of discovery writer in them because if you look at your outline, it'll say something like “there is a chase scene.” Then when you get to that part of the book, you write out eight to ten pages of the chase scene or whatever that you come up with on the spot and then later refine and improve through editing. So that's a good point, but I do think outlining is more useful in general for writing than not outlining is.   So why outline? As I mentioned, many writers do not outline, but I do think outlining does help, especially with beginning writers. For one, it saves time because if you follow the outline, you're less likely to go down a blind alley and realize you have to drop the last 10 or 20,000 words you wrote. It helps prevent getting stuck and not knowing what to write next. And it also really helps because it'll save you time in editing because you're less likely to have to rewrite large portions of the book. And it's also helpful for maintaining continuity as well.   I found also that outlining in advance is good because it forces you to think about things before you start because we all know writers who get really excited about writing, get a third of the way through, and then don't know where to go next. It's because they haven't thought it through. Outlining forces you to really think through the middle, which is where a lot of writers get stuck, and it also forces you to think through the ending and make sure it properly resolves the conflicts and stakes raised in the story.   As an example, I know a beginning writer who did not create an outline when setting out to write for the first time, although she had a strong setting and liked her characters, she realized about halfway through that the conflict wasn't enough to carry her whole story and that changing the conflict or raising the stakes would change the tone of the story too much. And unfortunately, she decided to abandon the draft. You could look at that one way, that it was months of wasted effort for her that could have been prevented with a couple hours of outlining, though I think it's better to look at it as a valuable learning experience where she learned that yes, outlining really will help me with my writing and just sort of had to learn that the hard way through attempting to write without an outline first.   #1: So our first tip for outlining novels is to learn story structure. It's hard to write an outline without understanding good story structure, but the flip side is if you do understand story structure and put good story structure into your outline, it will be all the easier to write your novel. The basic story structure that everyone learns in English class when they're talking about short stories (or should learn an English class when they're talking about short stories), is introduction, conflict, rising action, climax, and resolution. That is essentially basic short story structure that's in short stories and in novels, however long. A longer novel of course we'll have subplots and sort of sub conflicts and maybe false ends and red herrings, but that basic story structure is there throughout. So our first tip for good outlining is to understand story structure. And if you try to hold to that basic five step story structure when you're first starting out, especially when you're first starting out, you'll probably find it a lot easier to go.     #2: Start with the problem. What do we mean by that? First, think of the main conflicts and then start outlining to move the characters/locations around them accordingly. Work the hardest on understanding your central conflict. Your protagonist must have a problem that results in a serious conflict. Now, serious conflict doesn't necessarily imply violence, though in genres such as a thriller and mystery, it can. The conflict must be emotionally significant and serious for the protagonist where there are real stakes involved.   The example I usually go to for this is the movie The King Speech, which is a highly fictionalized version of Britain's King George VI learning to overcome his stutter to speak in public. At no point in the movie is George VI in any physical danger. His wife and children love and respect him, and he's generally well regarded by everyone who knows him. However, the problem is he can't speak in public effectively, and this is a huge emotional problem for him. And frankly, one with serious stakes after his brother abdicates and he becomes king. He needs to be able to speak effectively in public or he won't be able to carry out his duties well. So this conflict of dealing with his stutter and his speech impediment is central to the movie. And even though he's not in any physical danger, it nonetheless has very high stakes for him, which is why I say that the problem has to be emotionally significant and have high stakes for the protagonist.   And there are ways to do that without violence, though of course, if you're writing fantasy or a thriller, you can use all the violence you want. You can help create a significant conflict and problem for your character by asking yourself a few questions. What conflicts and actions lead up to it? What is causing this conflict to happen? What are the stakes? What will happen if it doesn't resolve favorably? And why is the character involved? What must they do to resolve the conflict?   For an example from my own books, I'm going to talk about Half-Elven Thief, which is available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited if you want to go read that. In Half-Elven Thief, the main character is Rivah, who is a member of a fantasy Thieves Guild in her city. She's massively in debt to her immediate superior in the Thieves Guild who hates her and has been using that debt to exploit work from her and considering selling her into slavery to recover the debt. However, a massive and very dangerous job comes to the Thieves Guild, and Rivah is the one assigned to take the job, and if she pulls off the job, her debt will be repaid and she doesn't have this debt hanging over her head anymore. But the job is to steal a spell book from a very dangerous and powerful wizard, so there's every chance she'll be killed in the process. So the central conflict of Half-Elven Thief, that Rivah needs to steal this spell book from this very dangerous wizard, and the stakes for that is so she can get out from under this debt her superior has been holding over her head for the last three years. So hopefully that is a helpful example of a conflict with serious stakes for the protagonist.   #3: Our third tip is to start with simple. What is the book's blurb or elevator pitch for this story? Write that first. There's a couple different ways you can do that. I've sometimes described my Cloak Games/Cloak Mage series as Shadow Run meets The Dresden Files, which can be a starting point. I've heard people describe the Caina series as Black Widow meets Conan the Barbarian, which is another way to do it. To return to our previous two examples, in The King's Speech, the precise pitch is “faced with becoming King George VI must overcome his speech/stutter and face his emotional problems in order to effectively exercise his office.” And with my book Half-Elven Thief, the elevator pitch was, “in order to escape a dangerous debt, a thief is forced to steal a spell book from a dangerous wizard.” So that is the one sentence starting point, and you can use that to build the conflict.   Another potential way to do this is to write the blurb for your book and then build the conflict off that. For example, here is the blurb for another one of my books, Ghost in the Serpent, which is available at all ebook stores.   Anyway, the blurb: “A deadly poison. A hidden cult of sorcerers. Only Caina can find the truth. Caina is a countess of the Empire, an advisor and friend of three powerful monarchs, but she was once a nightfighter with the Ghosts, the spies and assassins of the Emperor and faced lethal sorcerers and corrupt lords. And when a hidden cult of malevolent sorcerers emerges from the shadows, Caina will show them that she has forgotten none of her old skills.”   So what is this blurb doing? It is introducing the setting and the characters, Caina and the Empire, focusing on the conflict and stakes and focusing on how they relate to Caina. And that allows us to sort of expand out into the conflict. If you read the book, you know that the plot is someone tries to poison Caina and fails. As she investigates what happened, she discovers that her husband had two children that he didn't know about, and for some reason this mysterious cult is trying to kill both Caina and these children, which pulls her deeper into the mystery. So that is the stakes and the conflict, and that is how I was able to build the book around them. #4: Our fourth tip is to just start. Just pick a time, grab your laptop or your notebook or whatever, and just start writing down an outline for your short story or a synopsis. Don't research things about your story while you're outlining. You can just write “TO BE RESEARCHED LATER” in capital letters, which is what I do sometimes. Don't research the perfect way to make an outline, just sit down and make an outline. How I outline personally is what I usually do is I have the central conflict in mind, like the example with Rivah, and then I sit down and write a synopsis of what I want to happen and then I chop up the synopsis into chapters and I go from there. My outlines tend to be about 1,000 to 2,000 words long, depending on the length of the book.   For example, Shield of Deception, which I just published, was on the longer side. It came to about 120,000 words and the outline was about 2,000 words. And it basically started out as a long synopsis I wrote, and then I chopped up the synopsis into chapters and went from there. I included major story beats, where the characters were going to go, and what they did. It doesn't get too detailed. Each chapter…the book had 30 chapters. So each chapter generally was described with about 80 words in the outline, maybe a hundred words, depending on what goes on. The detail varies. Basically, like in a chapter outline, I'll say “Character X comes and confronts Character Y and then they fight.” Then I will extemporize and make up the conversation when I actually get to the writing.   What I try to include in all the outlines is story beats that have to be in the story. The character has to be here or the plot doesn't make sense, or they have to go this location or it's a massive plot hole, or they have to think of this or it causes a plot hole, that kind of thing, which is part of the value of the outlining process is that it forces you to think of these things in advance. What I don't include is that I don't get too super detailed because to return to the Brandon Sanderson example from earlier in the show, when you get to the actual scene, there is a bit of discovery writing, like where I'll write where Character X confronts Character Y about whatever they're arguing about. Then the actual conversation I will just write when I arrive there.   #5: And our fifth and final tip, try a different style of outlining if you're struggling. There are different outlining techniques and styles out there. Here are two examples.   There's the Snowflake Method by Randy Ingermanson, which is where you start with a one sentence summary, build up to a paragraph, and continue to add detail in depth. There's also Dean Koontz's story structure from his book, How to Write Bestselling Fiction. His story structure is:   Get your character into trouble as quickly as possible Their plans backfire Things escalate until defeat seems inevitable Victory against all odds   If you're having trouble starting an outline, that might be a good way to do it. That said, there is no magic bullet. There is not a magic outlining style or perfect outlining style that will guarantee success. So don't get lost in endless reading or studying different kinds of outlines. A finished outline is better than waiting for a perfect one. And in that vein, a book that you have actually written, even if it's not as cool as you want it to be, is still infinitely better than a book that exists only in your head. And all that said, those five tips for outlining, I'm about to do all that myself. There is in the tech industry a phrase called “eating the dog food” or “eating your own dog food,” which means if you make a product and sell a product, you should probably be using the product a great deal. And Microsoft in particular was known for leaning on this. And for myself, I'm going to be doing everything I just talked about here because over the next few days, I'll be writing the outline for Shield of Battle, which at the moment consists of only four sentences I jotted down when I had ideas. I'll be applying all those techniques myself to write the outline for Shield of Battle, and hopefully it will work well for me. I think it will. I think these tips, if you want to start outlining your novels before you write them, would hopefully be helpful for you as well.   So that is it for this week. Thank you for listening to The Pulp Writer Show. I hope you found the show useful. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes at https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.

n this twenty-fourth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... we explore the tale of a man who has recently gotten into a car accident with his wife and two daughters. And now he  can't accept that they seem to have all survived. Is he merely losing his mind as he starts to question whether or not his wife and daughters are truly still alive?  Or is something else, something supernatural, at play here?  This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises! If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much!For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

In this episode, the Spiders discuss the novels Watchers and Abduction, by Dean Koontz and Robin Cook respectively, to see what bad writing is all about.

Darkness Syndicate members get the ad-free version. https://weirddarkness.com/syndicateInfo on the next LIVE SCREAM event. https://weirddarkness.com/LiveScreamInfo on the next WEIRDO WATCH PARTY event. https://weirddarkness.com/TVIN THIS EPISODE: True unexplained stories about prank phone calls and mysterious harassers have always been the bread and butter of horror movies. But what happens when an unnamed creep starts making scary prank calls in real life? What about a loved one calling you from the site of a train crash – where they died moments before calling you? A dead girlfriend sending you a private message on Facebook? Or an email from a deceased friend? CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Disclaimer and Cold Open00:00:57.263 = Show Intro00:02:05.367 = Dead Train Passenger00:13:36.871 = Creepy Phone Calls00:18:41.208 = Stalked By a Restricted Caller00:29:36.043 = Dean Koontz's Warning From The Other Side00:36:43.851 = Email From The Underworld00:38:46.744 = Facebook Message From Dead Girlfriend00:42:00.914 = Show OutroSOURCES AND REFERENCES FROM THE EPISODE…“Dead Train Passenger Calling” by Erin McCann for Ranker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/35ja28pf“Stalked By a Restricted Caller” by Jacob Shelton for Graveyard Shift: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4kazrpuh“Email From The Underworld” by David Moye for the Huffington Post: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/y5vxtyke“Facebook Message from Dead Girlfriend” by Adam Dodd for Bloody-Disgusting.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4z8msxmj“Creepy Phone Calls” by Aaron Edwards for Ranker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/5c8etac5“Dean Koontz' Warning From The Other Side” by Jessika M. Thomas for Graveyard Shift:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/kj3fazsdWeird Darkness theme by Alibi Music Library. = = = = =(Over time links seen above may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2024, Weird Darkness.= = = = =Originally aired: June 15, 2021SOURCES PAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/ContactedFromBeyond

Throughout radio personality Ed Kalegi's career he's chatted with greats such as Carol Burnett, Norman Lear, Dean Koontz, and so many more. Tonight, Morgan welcomed Kalegi as he shares excerpts from his book, It Was Great To Say Hello To...:A Curious Radio Host's Conversations with Actors, Authors, and Newsmakers.Ask Alexa to play WBZ NewsRadio on #iHeartRadio and listen to NightSide with Dan Rea Weeknights From 8PM-12AM!

Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast Jane Johnson is from Cornwall and has worked in the book industry for 30 years as a bookseller, publisher and writer. For many years she was responsible for publishing the works of JRR Tolkien, and later worked on Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings movie trilogy, spending months in New Zealand with cast and crew (she wrote the official visual companions to the films). The authors she publishes include George R.R. Martin, Dean Koontz, Robin Hobb, Mark Lawrence and Raymond E Feist. While she was in Morocco in 2005 to research The Tenth Gift she met her soon-to-be husband, a Berber tribesman from a village in the Anti-Atlas Mountains. Returning home, she gave up her office job in London, sold her flat and shipped the contents to Morocco and they were married later that year. They now split their time between Cornwall and Morocco, and Jane still works remotely as a Fiction Publishing Director for HarperCollins. We met Jane in Dartington Hall at the HNS Conference back in September and you can listen to that short episode (and watch the video on our Youtube channel), but when we read her CV, we knew we had to get her back for a full episode. Welcome back to RPS, Jane Johnson! Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RockPaperSwordsPodcast and X https://twitter.com/rock_swords 

In this podcast, Dean Koontz talks about The Forest of Lost Souls and much more. About Dean Koontz Acknowledged as “America's most popular suspense novelist” (Rolling Stone) and as one of today's most celebrated and successful writers, Dean Ray Koontz has earned the devotion of millions of readers around the world and the praise of … Continue reading

Hey Goons! Join us for our final Monday of October where Mikey, Ade and Lance talk about 1981's Funhouse, directed by Tobe Hooper. We also discuss new horror we've seen, and Mikey even explains the difference between the film and the novelization (written by Dean Koontz). Happy Halloween!!! Don't forget to rate, review, and subscribe to Slashers Podcast for more deep dives into cult horror films! You can also find us on Facebook at the Group page Mutant Goons From Beyond. You can find our merch, and links to all our online presence here: linktr.ee/slasherspod Theme song is I wanna Die by Mini Meltdowns. https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZAk6lUDsaJj8EAhrhzZnh ; https://minimeltdowns.bandcamp.com/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/slasherspod/support

It's movies like this that make me love the 90s. The ability to make multi genre horror thrillers with a domestic medical drama and demon afterlife subplot is unmatched. I was searching for something to review in October and this has been on my list forever, mostly for the stacked cast. I went in knowing nothing and this was nothing short of a wild ride. I mean Jeff Goldblum as the dad and Alicia Silverstone as the bratty daughter should be reason alone for you to see this. Within the first half of the movie we have demon possession, chunky sweaters, a car accident, and a Pearl Jam reference. Again we have the Pacific Northwest as a backdrop cause (duh, its the 90s)  and a very weird and unexplainable Jeremy Sisto.Off-topic rants include: Buffy parallels and Alicia Silverstone being THAT girl in the 90s---Get BONUS episodes on 90s TV and culture (Freaks & Geeks, My So Called Life, Buffy, 90s culture documentaries, and more...) and to support the show join the  Patreon! Host: Lauren @lauren_melanieFind more Fashion Grunge on LinktreeJoin me on Substack:  The Lo Down: a Fashion Grunge Blog/newsletter☕️ Support Fashion Grunge on Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/fashiongrunge

Week of 10/14/24 at the Library - Educate Station | Hosts Dylan Posa and Barb Leitschuh go over upcoming events, talk about the Educate Station resource, and for "Barb The Bookie" recommend 'Ashley Bell' by Dean Koontz.

In this episode of The Larry Arnn Show, Hillsdale College President Larry P. Arnn interviews best-selling author Dean Koontz. The two discuss Koontz's greatest influences, the future of government surveillance, and the difficulty of creating villains who resonate. This interview was conducted on August 20, 2024. Discover more at podcast.hillsdale.edu.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Larry Arnn Show, Hillsdale College President Larry P. Arnn interviews best-selling author Dean Koontz. The two discuss Koontz's greatest influences, the future of government surveillance, and the difficulty of creating villains who resonate. This interview was conducted on August 20, 2024. Discover more at podcast.hillsdale.edu.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this seventeenth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... we head to the 1970s, where a woman finds a diary in an old homestead cabin that has been in her family's possession since the late 1860s. The author of the diary has obviously long been dead. But is she still somehow writing new entries from the other side? This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises!  If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much! For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

Dean Koontz is one of the most successful bestselling authors, with over 120 novels published, which have sold an incredible 500m+ copies. This ranks Dean among the top 10 bestselling authors of all time, and one of the top three living authors, an accolade he shares with J.K. Rowling. In his latest novel, The Forest of Lost Souls, Dean weaves suspense and nature with our innate connection with animals to create a suspenseful page-turner.  

In this sixteenth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... Doug Byrne stumbles into a strange little antique shop in downtown Santa Monica called Relics & Curiosities, where he purchases The Wishing Box as a birthday gift for his wife, Olivia. And he quickly learns that the box truly does grant wishes. But those wishes come at a terrible price...This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises!  If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much! For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

Art Bell - Dean Koontz - One Door Away From Heaven

Legendary best-selling author Dean Koontz joined us for a chat about dogs and his new book, "Devoted."  (From April 2, 2020)

In this fifteenth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... Claudia Nelson's life is changed forever by a shooting star that lands on her property outside of the fictional town of Dillon. What cosmic horror does the cursed meteorite bring? And what Hell will it unleash on Claudia and the other residents of her small, remote town? This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises!  If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much! For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

This week we're covering the new Amazon Prime flick, Jackpot, Netflix's Emily in Paris, the modern Mad Max movies, The Watchers, and I Used To Be Funny. Kevin opens the show with the new John Cena/Awkwafina joint, Jackpot. It's a fun action fest that doesn't really do anything new. But the real question is... does it need to? It's about 80% action and a bunch of quippy jokes and that's just great, dangit!! Next up, Lauren takes us across the pond to talk about Emily in Paris. It's now in it's 4th season and going strong. She is absolutely loving it for what it is, a fun show about fun young people just... having fun! She honestly can't recommend it enough, so give it a watch if that's your jam at all (and maybe even if it isn't)!! We then go from the light joy of Paris to the futuristic wastelands of the most recent two Mad Max films. Kevin has FINALLY watched these films and, much to his own surprise, he really enjoyed them. It took about 30+ minutes to really get into Fury Road, but after that it was smooth sailing, all the way to the end of Furiosa. Definitely must watch films. Lauren then takes us back across the pond once more with the Dakota Fanning film, The Watchers (not to be confused with Dean Koontz's Watchers). It's a trippy semi-horror flick directed by the youngest Shyamalan daughter. It's an imperfect film and might be better if you have an understanding of the old Irish folktales about changelings.  Kevin then asks Lauren to take us out on a happy note with a Rachel Sennott  film, but the joke was on him, as I Used To Be Funny is more of a drama than a comedy. There are some heavy themes there, but the general consensus is that Rachel is phenomenal in it. As always, thank you for watching. If you haven't already, don't forget to Like & Subscribe. We love new viewers! Also, leave us comments and let is know how we are doing and what we can be doing better. Enjoy the episode and have a great week! Facebook: @apncpodcast Twitter: @APNCPodcast Instagram: AllPopNoCulture

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I conclude Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I conclude Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

In this fourteenth installment of fictional horror written and narrated by Dan Cummins.... we hear meet Clifford Herman aka The Devil's Butcher. What happened to the teenager at a Christian summer camp in upstate New York in 1987? And how will the massacre he was responsible for affect the lives of five college students who decide to visit the allegedly haunted grounds of the old summer camp today? This episode was scored by Logan Keith. We recommend listening with headphones to experience the full effect of all the creepy background noises!  If you like this episode, please let us know wherever you rate and review podcasts. Thanks so much! For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Josie Long and the gang discuss Dean Koontz and health and safety in the Mad Max universe. This is a clip from the Patron-exclusive second part of our episode 'Summer Camp' with Josie Long - which you can get on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/season-3-episode-108676591  

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

We've heard stories of loved ones communicating through phone calls from the other side. This episode is a look into some more notable cases of mysterious post-death communication. It's light-hearted, but heart-breaking and will make you want to hold your loved ones a little bit closer. Charles E. Peck was tragically taken from this world in a railway accident and called his loved ones 35 times after his death. Dean Koontz, received a warning from an all too familiar female voice telling him to “be careful.” Only a few days later, was he caught up in a life-threatening situation. Despite dying in 2011, Jack Froese mysteriously began to email his family months later! Plus story or two from reddit and our very own fantoms, from this most haunted community.  Have ghost stories of your own? E-mail them to us at twogirlsoneghostpodcast@gmail.com This episode is sponsored by Bilt, Smalls and Apostrophe. Bilt is breaking ground as the FIRST rewards program that hooks you up with points on your rent. Earn points by paying rent right now when you go to joinbilt.com/TGOG. Smalls cat food is protein packed recipes made with preservative free ingredients you'd find in your fridge… and it's delivered right to your door. Head to Smalls.com/TGOG and use promo code TGOG at checkout for 50% off your first order PLUS free shipping! Apostrophe is an online platform that connects you with an expert dermatology team to get customized acne treatment for your unique skin. To get started, just go to Apostrophe.com/TGOG click Get Started, then use our code TGOG at sign up and you'll get your first visit for only five dollars!  If you enjoy our show, please consider joining our Patreon, rating and reviewing on iTunes & Spotify and following us on social media! Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Discord. Edited and produced by Jaimi Ryan, original music by Arms Akimbo! Disclaimer: the use of white sage and smudging is a closed practice. If you're looking to cleanse your space, here are some great alternatives!

In this spooktacular Eerie Extra, Such a Nightmare co-host Katherine Troyer speaks with horror authors and creators Steve DeWinter and Renee Miller.  We explore the horrific power and potential of immersive storytelling (which is a really awesome way of presenting and engaging with the horror genre). Steve and Renee discuss how their work The Babysitter plays with different sources of horror through its multiple possible pathways and how the horror of their story shapes, and is shaped by, the ways that audiences interact with the narrative. Renee and Steve also share how they got into interactive horror and offer advice for folks interested in knowing more about creating branching narratives and producing multimodal stories.  This interview occurred on June 26, 2024; the episode first aired on July 12, 2024.   An optioned screenwriter with a Bachelor's degree from Metro State College, Renee Miller has been enthralled by the dark twists and chilling narratives of horror since discovering Dean Koontz in eighth grade. With a penchant for crafting stories that delve into the deepest fears and darkest corners of the human psyche, Renee now brings her expertise to the thrilling world of choose-your-own-adventure audio storytelling. Tune in as she explores the eerie possibilities where each decision can lead to spine-tingling suspense or terrifying consequences.   Steve DeWinter is a #1 bestselling Amazon author of action-adventure sci-fi novels, with over 100,000 books sold worldwide. He's topped the Amazon Children's Action & Adventure Sci-Fi Bestseller list, Steampunk Bestseller list, and achieved multiple Top 20 rankings simultaneously. Notably, he co-authored two fantasy novels with the legendary Charles Dickens. Yes! That Charles Dickens. Now, Steve is pioneering a new frontier: Illustrated Interactive Audiobooks. These immersive, audio-first experiences combine interactive storytelling with augmented reality (AR) technology. You're not just the reader – you're the main character, making choices that shape the narrative while exploring real-world locations. Explore Steve's traditional books on Amazon and experience his innovative Illustrated Interactive Audiobooks (including The Babysitter, a thrilling interactive horror story written by Renee) at https://hiddenworld.icu/   ALL LINKS  Twitter/Instagram: @NightmarePod1; YouTube: Such a Nightmare;  Email: suchanightmare.pod@gmail.com; Website: suchanightmare.com

He's Stephan, a time travelling good Nazi! She's Laura, a woman he will not leave alone! It's Dean Koontz's Lightning, the first of our summer road trip books! To explain the amazing graphic my husband ran up for this - I am almost certain this is Koontz's own Terminator fanfic, predicting Badass T2 Sarah Connor years before that movie came out. If you didn't see this amazing profile of Dean Koontz in the Washington Post last year please enjoy this gift link! Why yes, it is weird! He really does wear his hair like that! Is it his hair? I dunno, I mean, I'm sure he owns it, yes. Every day! All the time! His wife just walks into a room and there it is! People's lives, man! So if you're new to the Koontz, prepare for some damn content warnings - this one's got wack-ass ableism, Fated Child Sex Abuse, the strangest fat shaming I've ever seen, kids burning alive, oh yeah Nazis (at least they're the bad guys, never thought I'd live to have to say that!), I probably forgot some. I will say that when we call this guy a "good Nazi" what we mean is a traitor to the Nazi cause, not the other thing. We wouldn't be reading one with the other thing.

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Welcome to Ratchet Book Club, where we read Good Classics and Hood Classics alike. In this episode, I continue Life Expectancy by Dean Koontz. You can purchase Life Expectancy on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SYOaba Voicemail number: 916-633-1537 Thoughts or Questions? Email us at WretchedAndRatchet@Gmail.com. Twitter: @RatchetBookClub, @Rashanii Leave a review here: https://bit.ly/3gebWNp Become a Patron: http://www.patreon.com/singlesimulcast

Ahren and Sara are live chatting about their favorite Time Travel novels!Welcome to "Reeding Between the Lines," your go-to podcast for all things books! Featuring Ahren, Sara, and Nicole Reed. A brother, sister, and mother with different tastes but the same passion for reading. Join us as we explore, review, and debate books from every genre. Ready to dive into your next great read? @reedingbetweenthelinespodBooks mentioned:1. The Miracles of the Namiya General Store, Keigo Higashino, September 24, 2019 published by Yen On2. Sea of Tranquility, Emily St. John Mandel, May 5, 2022, by KnopfGoodreads Choice Award for Science Fiction (2022)3. Before the Coffee Gets Cold, Toshikazu Kawaguchi, September 19, 2019 by Picador publishing4. The Unexpected Gift of Joseph Bridgeman, by Nick Jones (self-published) 2015.5. The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas, 2018, Head of Zeus publisher6. Lightning by Dean Koontz, 1988, Penguin Random HouseSupport the Show.

Dean Koontz is Back Award-winning, best-selling author Dean Koontz returns to Animal Radio airwaves to tell us the story about his dog, Anna. According to Dean, Anna purchased a computer and started answering advice emails. Tune in to hear the rest of the story. Listen Now Dog Food Advisor Dr. Mike Sagman was a dentist until he gave that up to create an unbiased website that reviews every pet food on the market. Nobody is in his pockets...although they try. He's here to tell us how pet food manufacturers deceptively use loopholes to make their labels read better. Find out how your food stacks up. Listen Now Cat Sense John Bradshaw is arguably the top expert on cats. He's back to dispel myths and tell us what happens inside our kitties' heads. For instance, did you know cats can hear very low and very high frequencies? While cats can't see in the dark, they can see only a few colors well in dimly lit areas. Listen Now AVMA-CDC on Ebola and Our Pets Dr. Doug Aspros from the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC) have teamed up to bring you the latest information on the Ebola virus and your pet. Is your pet vulnerable? Probably not. There are real risks you should worry about. Many thousands of people died last year from Rabies alone. Listen Now Pet Crowd-funding This week's Hero Person created a crowd-funding website similar to Kickstarter to help pay for much-needed pet projects. Whether funding surgery or feeding homeless animals, Sarah Timms wants to use modern fundraising techniques to help pets live happy and healthy lives. Listen Now Read more about this week's show.

This week, Erin is joined by Carla, co-host of Bed, Wed, or Behead Pod, Danelle, and Susi, co-host of It's a Dean Thing Pod, to discuss everything in pop culture and fandom that has them talking. Topics include the Dean Koontz novel "Odd Thomas," the new Eminem song "Right Here, Right Now," the movie "I Saw the TV Glow," casting for "Beef: Season 2," the deceptive nature of AI trailers, the presence of homophobic fans in the Bridgerton fandom, the documentary "Brats," and the announcement regarding the Netflix House. Link to more info on the Netflix House announcement: https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/netflix-house For excellent bonus content and ad-free versions, please support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/itsafandomthingpod. You can follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/itsafandomthingpod Twitter: @fandomthingpod Instagram: @itsafandomthingpod Discord: https://discord.com/channels/1042986989349257216/1042987584151879762 You can follow Fergie on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@schroederandfergs Cover art by Carla Temis. Podcast logo by Erin Amos. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scotty talks to author, editor, and publisher Aric Sundquist about growing up a "Yooper" in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and how his mother's love of Stephen King and Dean Koontz, sparked his early interest in dark fiction. Aric discusses the influence of Koontz, King (especially his 1978 collection "Night Shift" and the subsequent 1985 anthology film adaptation "Cat's Eye"), Lovecraft, and fantasy writers like Tolkien, Jordan, and Tad Williams on his work, and how Aric's rediscovery of Ray Bradbury's more macabre tales as an MFA candidate in Creative Writing informed his decision to move specifically into writing horror. Aric also talks about the lessons he learned in his creative writing program, and how he applies them to his work as an editor and publisher at Dark Peninsula Press, the independent publishing company he founded in 2019. He and Scotty talk about the anthologies Dark Peninsula Press has produced (spoiler alert: Scotty's stories have appeared in just about all of them), and Aric outlines his vision for the company's future. And, of course, they talk about Aric's own writing, from his absurdist comic take on cosmic horror with his novella "Serious Applicants Only" (2021, Dark Peninsula Press) to his terrifying, Joyce Carol Oates-inspired short story "The Run" (2014, "Night Terrors III"). You can find Aric online at https://aricsundquist.weebly.com You can find Dark Peninsula Press online at https://www.darkpeninsulapress.com You can read Aric's story "The Way We Are Lifted" in the anthology "Fearful Fathoms, Vol. 1: Tales of Aquatic Terror" (2017, Scarlet Galleon Publications): https://www.amazon.com/Fearful-Fathoms-Collected-Aquatic-Terror/dp/1974213021/ You can read Aric's story "Rise of the Corpse Eaters" in the anthology "More Bizarro Than Bizarro" (2017, Bizarro Pulp Press): https://www.amazon.com/More-Bizarro-than-Leza-Cantoral/dp/1947654039/ You can read Aric's story "Conditioned Apocalypse" in the anthology "Year's Best Body Horror 2017" (2017, Gehenna & Hinnom): https://www.amazon.com/Years-Best-Body-Horror-Anthology/dp/0997280344/ You can read Aric's story "The Run" in the anthology "Night Terrors III" (2014, Blood Bound Books): https://www.amazon.com/Night-Terrors-III-Horror-Anthology/dp/1940250145/ You can read Aric's story "The End of Autumn" in "Evil Jester Digest, Vol. 1" (2012): https://www.amazon.com/Evil-Jester-Digest-Volume-One/dp/0615613241/ You can read Aric's story "Butcher's Block" in "If I Die Before I Wake #7: Tales of Savagery & Slaughter" (2022, Sinister Smile Press, also featuring Scotty's story "Monkey Cage"): https://www.amazon.com/If-Die-Before-Wake-Slaughter/dp/1953112323/ All Dark Peninsula Press anthologies can be found on Amazon, or at: https://www.darkpeninsulapress.com/store.html These include: • "Negative Space: An Anthology of Survival Horror" (2020, featuring Scotty's story "Luminescence") • "Violent Vixens: An Homage to Grindhouse Horror" (2021, featuring Scotty's story "The Whole Price of Blood") • "Negative Space 2: A Return to Survival Horror" (2023, featuring Scotty's story "Brown Bear, Brown Bear") • "The Cellar Door, Issue 1: Woodland Terrors" (2022, featuring Scotty's story "Blisters") • "The Cellar Door, Issue 2: Forbidden Magic" (2023, featuring Scotty's story "My Church is Black") • "The Cellar Door, Issue 3: Dark Highways" (2023, featuring Scotty's story "Twelve Miles. Two Hours.") Be sure to put the next episode of Daniel Braum's "Night Time Logic" into your calendar! Daniel is the author of "The Night Marchers and Other Strange Tales" and "The Serpent's Shadow" (Cemetary Dance). His YouTube series "Night Time Logic" focuses on the strange, weird, and wonderful side of dark fiction through readings and discussions with diverse authors from around the world. You can tune in on Daniel's YouTube Channel, https://www.youtube.com/@danielbraum7838 Daniel's next episode will be LIVE on August 29 at 7 p.m. EST, and will feature author Paul Tremblay. Follow the event on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/797113355174358 This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

Drew and Travis cook eggs on the floor with Demon Seed, the 1977 adaptation of Dean Koontz's sci-fi novel! TIMESTAMPS 00:00:00 - Demon Seed 00:41:41 - The Shelf 00:51:57 - Calls to Action 00:53:29 - Currently Consuming 01:09:47 - End SHOW LINKS Cabinet of Curiosities: The Viewing Phase IV Creed III Under Paris

You may have wondered, rightfully so, why The Action Catalyst doesn't have it's own upbeat 80s ballad yet. Well, wonder no more...T.A.C. is the place to be, Ignite inspiration, spark creativity, Top leaders bulldoze through complacency. Produced by Southwestern Family of Companies.With Adam Outland, and host supreme in Stephanie Maas, yeah she's a boss. With the biggest guests, yeah we've got 'em all, let's hear a role call!Chip Gaines, Adam Grant, Kris Allen, Stephen Covey, Cal Newport, Dean Koontz, Dave Ramsey, Stedman Graham, governors, senators, Olympians, and more,Creating impact is what they're here for.In and out in 30 minutes or less, it's no wonder we've been named as the best. Subscribe and listen anywhere that you like, Always growing, there's no end in sight.T.A.C. is the place to be!

Seriah is joined by Walter Bosley to discuss his latest book “NYMZA: How America Sold Its Soul”. Topics include Charles Dellschau, the Sonora Areo Club legend, a German-heritage breakaway civilization, Peter Navarro, pre-Wright brothers flying machines, allegations of pre-U.S. Civil War flight experimentation, outsider art, the Nazi Bell stories, WWII technological experiments, counter-gravity, Igor Witkowski, a mercury-based motor idea, Nazi wonder-weapon fictional stories and frauds, Ernst Zundel, “Lightning” by Dean Koontz, a Polish intelligence officer's story, Kecksburg crashed UFO/space craft, ancient Vedic scriptures, “The Thousand Year Conspiracy” by Paul Winkler, Teutonic knights, Junker-class Prussians, Joseph Farrell, Operation Paperclip, post-WWII military-industrial complex, medieval origins of Prussia and a unified Germany, David Icke and the Society of Lizards, influence espionage, modern-day lobbying, Otto von Bismarck, “Web of Debt” by Ellen Hodgson Brown, causes of the U.S. Civil War, the assassination of Lincoln, greenback dollars, the Federal Reserve, the JFK assassination and silver certificates, the Anunnaki, the Chaldeans, Zachariah Sitchin, lost advanced civilizations, reptilian beings, the late 1800's airship mystery, a possible Civil War-era secret military project, Solomon Andrews, Colonel Samuel Tillman, UFO phenomena, a hidden civilization, humans from other planets, pre-Apollo voyages to the moon and Mars, Nikola Telsa, Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Oliver Heaviside and gravito-electro-magnetics (GEM), “Celeritas” podcast, the absence of airships in WWI, a theory on Roswell, Air Force history, the Mercury Program, UAP disclosure movement, Tartarian historical denialism, moon program secrecy and disinformation, Apollo astronauts' strange behavior, U.S. moon-landing dry runs, the Cydonia region of Mars, continuing NASA secrecy, MK Ultra, a trojan horse invasion of the U.S., the Golden Bull of Rimini (a decree issued by Emperor Frederick II), and much more! This is some fascinating conversation! - Recap by Vincent Treewell of The Weird Part Podcast Outro Music is Dark Desire from Vrangvendt Download

True unexplained stories about prank phone calls and mysterious harassers have always been the bread and butter of horror movies. But what happens when an unnamed creep starts making scary prank calls in real life? What about a loved one calling you from the site of a train crash – where they died moments before calling you? A dead girlfriend sending you a private message on Facebook? Or an email from a deceased friend? SOURCES AND REFERENCES FROM THE EPISODE…“Dead Train Passenger Calling” by Erin McCann for Ranker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/35ja28pf“Stalked By a Restricted Caller” by Jacob Shelton for Graveyard Shift: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4kazrpuh“Email From The Underworld” by David Moye for the Huffington Post: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/y5vxtyke“Facebook Message from Dead Girlfriend” by Adam Dodd for Bloody-Disgusting.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4z8msxmj“Creepy Phone Calls” by Aaron Edwards for Ranker: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/5c8etac5“Dean Koontz' Warning From The Other Side” by Jessika M. Thomas for Graveyard Shift: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/kj3fazsd= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Weird Darkness theme by Alibi Music Library. Background music provided by Alibi Music Library, EpidemicSound and/or StoryBlocks with paid license. Music from Shadows Symphony (https://tinyurl.com/yyrv987t), Midnight Syndicate (http://amzn.to/2BYCoXZ) Kevin MacLeod (https://tinyurl.com/y2v7fgbu), Tony Longworth (https://tinyurl.com/y2nhnbt7), and Nicolas Gasparini (https://tinyurl.com/lnqpfs8) is used with permission of the artists.= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =(Over time links seen above may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2024, Weird Darkness.= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =Originally aired: June 15, 2021CUSTOM WEBPAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/phone-calls-from-beyond/