Podcasts about tananarive

In this episode (which originally aired in June of 2024), Tananarive opens up about why it was so difficult for her to write her novel, THE REFORMATORY, and why it was such a thrill to win Best Novel at The Bram Stoker Awards -- the first Black author to win Best Novel!  How she motivated herself to write a difficult novel based on her family history while juggling parenthood and screenplay assignments. And how the Lifewriting principles helped her keep going even when she wanted to give up.  Join Tananarive's mailing list at tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at stevenbarneslist.com  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.comJoin Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this spoiler-crammed episode, Steve and Tananarive lead a community celebration of SINNERS and break down both the film and Ryan Coogler's Hollywood journey to shaking up Hollywood.  This is the FULL replay of the community Zoom: https://youtu.be/bGFavqpA4Rc And don't delay signing up for our hybrid Screenwriting webinar 5/17. Take the first steps to get your seat at the table - or build your own table. Limited spots available! www.writerwebinar.com - LINK IN BIO LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.comJoin Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive premiere their "vintage" radio play, THE WALKER, a narrative audio story modeled after classic radio of the 1930s and 1940s - but diverse!  But first, they talk to co-producer J. Michael Hayes (an author, filmmaker and Lifewriting Premium alum) about how they brought the story to life on audio - and how you can bring your own writing to life too!  Steve and Tananarive both love narrative podcasts and vintage radio, so THE WALKER has been a longtime dream: created with friends and family with no gatekeepers. This first episode, "Black Widow," is inspired by Steve's short story "Come Home to Atropos" (New Suns).  This episode stars Dexter creator Jeff Lindsay (a former podcast guest) and Steve's daughter, Nicki Barnes...and Steven Barnes as "The Walker." "Black Widow" is about newlyweds on the most macabre honeymoon ever. The episode is also on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Bbw7F1AFfEA?si=-TNfOgWim22zz_cz And don't miss their upcoming hybrid screenwriting course on May 17, which includes two free months of their new writing workshop! Participate via Zoom or in person in Southern California. Check out the course at www.writerewebinar.com.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk about adapting their horror graphic novel, THE KEEPER (illustrated by Marco Finnegan), as a short film for a major production company.  On how they made the journey from prose writers to screenwriters to having an opportunity to direct a short film with an eye toward directing their first feature. Also on the writing lessons from directing - and an invitation to join their LIVE hybrid screenwriting class on May 17, 2025 (either online or in Southern California) to learn the tools to write your own films and adaptations for a seat at the table.  LEARN MORE ABOUT THE COURSE HERE: http://www.writerwebinar.com LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Tananarive talks to visionary thinker, organizer and artist adrienne maree brown (author of EMERGENT STRATEGY, GRIEVERS and LOVING CORRECTIONS) about the role of the artist during times of chaos -- creating beauty from pain and uncertainty, the obligation of artists to express joy, and how art can be a bridge to better times.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

En ce 29 février, nous publions l'épisode de février ! Armand est à la présentation, entouré de Fabien et Elina. Ensemble ils vous parlent de : Quelque chose de noir, Jacques Roubaud, Tananarive, Mark Eacersall et Sylvain Vallée Dune, Frank Herbert Continuez à envoyer vos propositions de livres à podcastdmed@gmail.com Bonne écoute !

The WGA writers' strike is over, but A.I. is still a big conversation among writers. From the WGA strike and screenwriters' concerns about A.I. infiltrating writers' rooms to the recent class action lawsuit including former podcast guest Paul Tremblay against OpenAI and ChatGPT, A.I. and writers are on a collision course.  Steve and Tananarive talk about the good and bad uses of A.I. for writers and how to prepare for the future.  Also: an invitation to join our social media platform on Circle!  www.lifewrite.com  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to director Josh Ruben about his new horror comedy (romance) Heart Eyes, which is destined to be a cult Valentine's Day horror hit! They talk about directing, how to make a horror romance, and why Ruben cast Black leads in Heart Eyes (Mason Gooding, opposite Olivia Holt) and Werewolves Within (Sam Richardson, opposite Milana Vayntrub).  Also: how he coped after he and his wife lost their new house during the recent fires in Southern California - only weeks before the Heart Eyes premiere.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this new episode, Steve and Tananarive talk about the need for feedback to grow as writers and how difficult it is to determine which feedback is useful and which feedback isn't useful - and the tools it takes to tell the difference!  They also talk about their new video on why writing Science Fiction / Afrofuturism can be empowering in 2025 - check it out at https://www.steven-barnes.com/live-classes. LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode - their first one recorded in 2025! - Steve and Tananarive talk about how Octavia E. Butler and Ray Bradbury confronted their times with art to help inspire themselves and others. (Includes a clip from a 2000 interview with Octavia Butler).  They also talk about their upcoming hybrid class on Writing Science Fiction/Afrofuturism (1/25) and how artists can turn fear into power through storytelling! (Learn more about the class at www.writerwebinar.com)  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tananarive spent more than seven years working on her new novel, THE REFORMATORY, which was inspired by true-life family history about her great-uncle Robert Stephens and the Dozer School for Boys in Marianna, FL. In this podcast, she and Steve talk about why it took so long to write, the Lifewriting tools she used to complete it, and how she's fighting to stay centered in the whirlwind of her book's publication.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tananarive, le 14 décembre 2006. Raphaël Lomoro s'apprête à embarquer dans un vol à destination de Roissy Charles de Gaulle. Ce Français de 46 ans est parti faire fortune à Madagascar dans le commerce de la vanille. Et comme chaque année, il vient passer les fêtes de Noël auprès de sa femme et de ses enfants, restés en France. Mais dans les jours qui suivent, silence radio. Le père de famille se volatilise sans la moindre explication. C'est le mystère le plus total. Que lui est-il arrivé ? Et pourquoi ne donne-t-il aucune nouvelle à ses proches ? De l'Est de la France à l'Océan Indien, pour les hommes de la gendarmerie, c'est le début d'un jeu de piste criminel que personne n'aurait imaginé… L'affaire Raphaël Lomoro, un nouveau podcast de Chroniques Criminelles raconté par Jacques Pradel.

In this episode, Tananarive interviews horror author/screenwriter Clay McLeod Chapman about his upcoming novel, WAKE UP AND OPEN YOUR EYES -- which was blurbed by Jordan Peele and is about a deadly political spell cast over the nation. (Sounds familiar!) He and Tananarive also talk about his start as an author, how he first met Jordan Peele, and the search for hope in writing and reading horror.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tananarive and Steve were devastated by the death of Candyman star Tony Todd in November of 2024. (He also co-starred in their "Fugue State" story in the Shudder/AMC+ anthology film Horror Noire.) His death inspired them to unearth an interview they did with Todd as a part of their online digital download course The Sunken Place, a history of Black Horror. In this rare interview, Todd talks about his tough childhood, the aunt who raised him, his theater roots...and becoming Candyman. Don't miss it!  The full course (which also includes an interview with Jordan Peele) can be found at www.sunkenplaceclass.com.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Tananarive and Steve talk to New York Times horror columnist and author Gabino Iglesias! In 2023, Iglesias, who is Puerto Rican, became the first Latino writer to win a Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel for THE DEVIL TAKES YOU HOME. (His more recent book, HOUSE OF BONE AND RAIN, is also great!)  Steve and Tananarive talk to Gabino about how his struggles with unemployment and losing his health insurance during COVID inspired him to finish his award-winning novel, why he loves horror, and what he's doing next!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week Ken welcomes the fantastic author (The Keeper, The Reformatory, The Wishing Pool), Screenwriter (The Twilight Zone), educator and producer Tananarive Due to the show. Ken and Tananarive discuss how they are doing these days, how allegory serves marginalized people, genre pieces, growing up in Florida, reading your first Stephen King novel at 16 (The Shining), Nancy Drew, Encyclopedia Brown, the golden age of sitcoms, Columbo, Emergency!, recognizing an indigenous person on TV, when Emergency 1 was replaced by CHiPs, when a show that isn't a show for kids becomes a kid's show, Randolph Mantooth, writing fan fiction, out of control foley on Dragnet, hyper real fire fighting, loving it when the lead character gets injured, using your journalism credentials to interview Randolph Mantooth, no answering fan mail, Satanists, Starksy and Hutch, learning story structure, sad sitcoms, playing TV themes on keyboards, Good Times, being raised by civil rights activists, ripped from the headlines plots, representation on TV, how 1970s TV may have been more progressive than today's TV, Made for-TV Movies, Roots, Holocaust, V, pitching a fascist takeover of the united states, Donald Mantooth, The Seekers, Kliph Nesteroff's books, The Night Stalker, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, how human evil is the scariest, not understanding the motivation of hate, Jordan Peele, laughting through the end of the world, Get Out!, the comedy and horror connection, how hard it is to break into show running, the difficulty of getting ANYTHING on television, Horror Noir, how to pitch, Fugue State, Tony Todd (RIP), the greatness and intent behind Stephen King's work, Japanese Animated Horror, Pokerface, Elsbeth, needing to watch stand up to unwind and Ken's Candyman/Good Times mashup.

In this episode, Tananarive talks to author, poet and scholar Nadine Pinede about her difficult journey bringing her debut novel to life, WHEN THE MAPOU SINGS - a novel about a young girl's experiences in historical Haiti, including encounters with Zora Neale Hurston. And the novel is entirely in verse!  National Book Award winner Edwidge Danticat calls the book "a stunning revelation." They talk about managing a writing practice through pain and how the novel transformed over the years.  The author requests donations to the Claudette Pinede Memorial Scholarship Fund to support Haitian women in STEM:  https://helpdonors.donorsupport.co/page/FUNNJGKWUCZ LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to Bram Stoker Award winner Stephen Graham Jones. He shares his writing process, his love for slashers, his exploration of father-son relationships in his stories, and how his own personal promise to an elk he hunted gave birth to his bestselling novel The Only Good Indians. (Latest novels: My Heart is a Chainsaw and I Was a Teenage Slasher.) LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to Wicked City television series creator Kristin Iris Johnson about her journey to Hollywood as a queer Black woman with disabilities -- and how she claimed her personal power to thrive as a writer and producer in such a competitive industry.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wow - just WOW. Tananarive talks about mounting Scare Up the Vote, the horror community's campaign event to support Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. On this episode, excerpts from amazing talks about horror and why voting matters by your horror faves: Stephen Graham Jones, Gabino Iglesias, Stephen King in conversation with Joe Hill, Erin E. Adams, Mike Flanagan in conversation with Kate Siegel, Bryan Fuller, Akela Cooper and Rachel Harrison. And that's just a tiny slice of the full broadcast with a slew of other great horror creators, which you can watch at scareupthevote.com The event raised more than $21,000, but you can still show your horror head love for the Kamala Harris campaign by contributing at https://secure.kamalaharris.com/a/scare-up-the-vote?attr=116075965 - every contribution here will be credited to Scare Up the Vote!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I'm not going to give a beat by beat, but I want to start by sharing how I got involved with Scare Up The Vote. I am driving in highway traffic when I get a text from Becky Spratford. It just says: “Can you talk. It's big. Call when you can.”I never thought of myself as an awfulizer, but a vague text like that gets me nervous. So I immediately called back Becky and when she answered I asked the obvious question “Big good, or big bad?”I'd seen Tananarive tweeting about how there should be a horror community stream for Harris/Walz, and in my mind I agreed. Horror is a great community, and can really come together for a cause, because horror people care. A few days after Becky's text I was sitting in the parking lot of a book store, on a phone call with Tananarive Due talking about how to put on a live stream. There were some vague ideas and a lot of positive energy. I told her I would love to be involved in tech in whatever capacity, and when we hung up I got started researching. From there, I was the tech team for this stream. Tananarive had pulled together a committee to run the event, including Linda Addison, Christopher Golden, Maxwell Ian Gold, and Cynthia Pelayo. And we had two weeks to go live time.That two weeks is a blur of Zoom calls, emails, advice from respected peers, nerves, successes, and a very minor amount of failures. It was all momentum and enthusiasm, and practice practice practice.The guest list blossomed from a dozen or so awesome names to over twenty. The tech team responded in kind. I brought on someone who brought on several other someones. Tananarive brought in several amazing folks who had experience with cons and streams and who are brilliantly talented.Everyone contributed their skills, experience and knowledge to make this stream something I was terrified to say for fear of jinxing everything (until we finally ended the stream): a huge fucking success!Folks, if that stream looked nearly flawless, and felt like we really knew what we were doing, it's because it was and we did. This team that got pulled together in the small window of time that we had executed essentially perfectly.Some of them didn't get added to the team until the day of the stream! The guest speakers similarly crushed it. Spooky writers telling scary stories, entertaining, informing, inspiring. Folks of all variety of backgrounds and experiences, coming together because sometimes the scariest story is real life. But as Rachel Harrison said, we will be battered, bloody, crawling through the dirt wielding whatever weapon we can find - and the weapon we have now is our vote. I think another weapon we have is each other. And the more we talk about it, and come together, and make noise, the more power we will see that we truly have. The “me” of this election cycle is starting to feel a lot like “us”, which gives me hope.But back to the stream. Stream day was me sitting at a desk for 13 hours, consistently communicating with the team, guest speakers, etc. Skipping lunch, drinking way too much coffee, and generally feeling anxious. Fearing the worst. But the worst never came, and fifteen minutes before the scheduled launch, I started pre-roll. Nearly three hours later, twenty six (I think) passionate folks had spoken their mind, and aside from a muted mic in the beginning and shifting two guest spots, more than 1,300 people had watched, and our little operation raised over $21,000.Thanks are due to all of the committee and volunteers. Everyone worked hard, and it wouldn't be the production it was without everyone's effort. I'm especially grateful for my friend Greg Greene, who I asked to hop on a call for some advice running a stream. Not only did he join the team, his organizational and planning skills were crucial to the flow of the event. He also brought on Jason Ragosta to do a lot of the art, and Amber Reu to run the green room. There are countless beautiful moments in the stream. One of my personal favorites, as a massive fan of the TV show Hannibal, was Bryan Fuller's rebuke of Trump on the topic of Hannibal Lecter. Chef's kiss, Bryan. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thearcparty.com/subscribe

Tananarive talks to author, playwright, actor and screenwriter Nat Cassidy about how his different artistic endeavors have fed into a single creative drive. On fluidity in creativity and the persistence to follow your dream -- and then the NEXT dream.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to comics creator and screenwriter Pornsak Pichetshote. On how his feeling of displacement after moving from the U.S. to Thailand as a child helped him become a storyteller, mastering comics and TV writing - and The Horizon Experiment (The Manchurian), his new community-building comics project to showcase creators on the margins. (Including Tananarive, whose comic is Moon Dogs.)  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tananarive talks to debut novelist Michelle McGill-Vargas about how she nurtured her writing practice while teaching full-time and how she found her voice to write her debut vampire novel, AMERICAN GHOUL. On the persistence and confidence writers need to win!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to New York Times bestseller S.A. Cosby, author of the bestselling novels ALL THE SINNERS BLEED, RAZORBLADE TEARS (praised by Barack Obama!) and BLACKTOP WASTELAND. They talk about how he almost gave up writing, blending crime fiction and horror, and what inspires him to write.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to author Justin C. Key, who just published his debut sci fi/horror short story collection, The World Wasn't Ready For You. He's also a contributor to Jordan Peele's Out There Screaming horror anthology. They talk about the social impact he wants to make with his work and his journey to portraying his own identity in his writing. Also how his job as a full-time psychiatrist has an impact on his work. LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve and Tananarive talk to NY Times bestselling author Justina Ireland, author of Dread Nation (YA horror) and one of the story architects of Star Wars: The High Republic. She talks about taking up writing later in life, YA horror, writing for established IP, working in her first television writers' room for the Netflix series House of Usher under Mike Flanagan, and how race has had an impact on her writing.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to New York Times bestselling horror writer Grady Hendrix (My Best Friend's Exorcism, How to Sell a Haunted House) about how he started his career, why and how he writes so many women characters, and the role of grief in his storytelling. Also, hints about his upcoming new novel, Witchcraft for Wayward Girls.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to bestselling author Jeff Lindsay, creator of the iconic character of Dexter Morgan in his eight-book series that began with DARKLY DREAMING DEXTER. He also recently published books in his Riley Wolfe series (THE FOURTH RULE).  On how he created his serial killer character, the unexpected success of Dexter, how he began his career, working in Hollywood, and the dark side of creating an iconic character when some readers think he's a little too real.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive celebrate their 26th wedding anniversary and give tips on how to create characters that spring to life! Learn more about characterization from Steve and Tananarive at their hybrid writing workshop in Southern California on Aug. 24th. More info at www.writerwebinar.com.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk about the surprise rise of Vice President Kamala Harris as the presumptive Democratic nominee for president as a "plot twist" -- and how plot twists in narratives can create excitement both in real life and in storytelling. Tananarive also talks about how she came up with her biggest plot twist in her novel THE REFORMATORY (spoiler free) and how you can too!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive welcome Vanity Fair contributing editor Maureen Ryan, author of the book everyone in Hollywood is reading -- BURN IT DOWN: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood. They talk about why she wrote her book exposing Hollywood's ugly underbelly, the WGA strike, the sad demise of "Sleepy Hollow" and the racial overtones that helped doom the first horror series with a Black woman co-lead, and what can be done to create a better future. She also talks about how she stays centered in the storm her book is creating.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Imagining Success” is an interview series where I talk to authors who have achieved career milestones that others only dream about and ask them how they got there and where they go from here. Today, I speak with someone who is one of my personal influences, speculative fiction author Tananarive Due. Over her two decades in publishing, she has won an American Book Award, an NAACP Image Award, as well as British and World Fantasy Awards. Find her online at https://www.tananarivedue.com/. Her Life Writing Premium course is available at here. Tananarive's latest novel is The Reformatory. One of my favorite novels of hers is My Soul to Keep. Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/HGsPrw37u7Q   Subscribe to the podcast: https://lpenelope.com/podcast Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive unpack the new film starring Lupita Nyong'o, A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE. It's breaking box office records for the Quiet Place franchise, and for good reason. With shades of 28 DAYS LATER, CHILDREN OF MEN and THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS, this new horror film is both an action-packed story of a horror apocalypse and an intimate portrait of human mortality.  Whether or not you've seen the film, don't miss this episode pointing out the craft lessons that make this an instant horror classic.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!) Join Tananarive's mailing list at https://tananarivelist.com Join Steve's mailing list at https://stevenbarneslist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk to horror writer Paul G. Tremblay about what it's like to have your novel (The Cabin at the End of the World) adapted into a major film by a major director, M. Night Shyamalan (Knock at the Cabin). Tremblay talks about why he loves horror, his choice to make his protagonists a queer married couple and their adopted Asian daughter, and what happens when Stephen King tweets about your book.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk about the joys and challenges of stretching our self image as creators: Steve has a job opportunity in a new field, and they're both working toward co-directing their first short films! How even good news can be stressful, and how to maintain the tools to thrive no matter what we're facing.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Join our mailing lists: www.tananarivelist.com or stevenbarneslist.com   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive break down why writers of all levels should embrace short stories and short scripts, whether it's to learn craft faster or to get published or produced sooner. They also discuss their first collaboration, a short story named "Danger Word" that also became their first short film: www.dangerwordfilm.com.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Sign up for Lifewriting Premium at https://lifewritingpremium.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Tananarive opens up about why it was so difficult for her to write her novel, THE REFORMATORY, and why it was such a thrill to win Best Novel at The Bram Stoker Awards -- the first Black author to win Best Novel!  How she motivated herself to write a difficult novel based on her family history while juggling parenthood and screenplay assignments. And how the Lifewriting principles helped her keep going even when she wanted to give up.  Join Tananarive's mailing list at tananarivelist.com  Join Steve's mailing list at stevenbarneslist.com  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk about the necessity of working on multiple creative projects and share their tips on how they juggle writing scripts and books.  Join Tananarive's list at tananarivelist.com - or Steve's list at stevenbarneslist.com LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode from March of 2023, Steve and Tananarive talk to award-winning author Nisi Shawl (KINNING, EVERFAIR) about the anthology they published, NEW SUNS 2, featuring speculative fiction from marginalized writers - including a story, "Supptertime," from Tananarive! Nisi also talks about the journey from a fangirl to friend of the late Octavia E. Butler. Plus, that time Nisi rejected one of Tananarive's short stories.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive talk about the practices that have helped them succeed as writers. They discusses Steve's late friend Octavia E. Butler's use of Napoleon Hill's THINK AND GROW RICH and the practices and affirmations that helped her become such an influential author despite the odds. And how you can use the same hacks to find success. Watch the YouTube condensation of the book's principles: https://youtu.be/n3g2DlmZsLg?si=mtVWACsq6Pvku0qz LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tananarive talks to debut author Brent Lambert about his critically acclaimed new novella, A NECESSARY CHAOS and the power of queer speculative fiction, how growing up as a queer Army brat fed his love for writing, and keys to worldbuilding and characterization in speculative fiction.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve and Tananarive welcome powerhouse actor David Dastmalchian, star of Shudder's Late Night with the Devil -- also from Oppenheimer, Suicide Squad (Polka- Dot Man!), Dark Night, Last Voyage of the Demeter and other films. A candid conversation spanning his earlier struggles with addiction, why the idea of playing Jack Delroy on Late Night with the Devil scared him, how his family has inspired him -- and how he feels about the film's AI controversy (based on 15 seconds of interstitial art).  And, of course, how he manages the work/art/life balance!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fresh from Tananarive winning an LA Times Book Prize in Speculative Fiction for her latest novel, The Reformatory, a replay episode: Steve and Tananarive talk to New York Times bestselling author Leigh Bardugo (Ninth House, Hell Bent, Shadow and Bone) on her incredible career: from jobs she didn't like to publishing her first book at 37 to getting her work adapted for Netflix...and beyond! Also how she keeps herself balanced as her popularity grows.  And don't forget to check out Leigh's newest book, The Familiar!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Tananarive talks to two of her favorite podcasters, Kat and Jazz (Kathleen White and Jazzmin Crawley), co-hosts of Dread Central's "Girl, That's Scary!" podcast -- which, as they say, is all about friendship and horror.  How these two horror lovers found their voice as horror podcasters after GET OUT, the reaction to their show, their horror likes and dislikes, and why they both love horror.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, it's a mini reunion of the documentary Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror as Steve and Tananarive welcome horror scholars Dr. Robin R. Means Coleman (who wrote Horror Noire) and Mark H. Harris, who have teamed up to write THE BLACK GUY DIES FIRST: Black Horror Cinema from Fodder to Oscar.  A Black Horror roundtable on some of the worst tropes (including the Black character dying first), how times are changing, and why we love horror!  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve and Tananarive welcome actress-turned-author Erin E. Adams, who made a splash with her terrifying debut horror novel, JACKAL -- and also has short stories in Jordan Peele's OUT THERE SCREAMING anthology as well as the brand new THE BLACK GIRL SURVIVES IN THIS ONE (out 4/2).  On how her background as the daughter of Haitian immigrants affects her storytelling, why she transitioned from acting to writing, and how she used her experience with rejection as a superpower to learn how to be a writer.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve is back! This week Steve and Tananarive talk to horror writer Jonathan Janz -- high school teacher by day, horror writer by night -- who recently revealed his true identity after writing under a pseudonym. His novel CHILDREN OF THE DARK was recently reissued. On making his mark, why he loves horror, and balancing his work, family and writing life.  LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tananarive talks to award-winning author Alma Katsu (The Hunger, The Fervor, Red London) about her unique career both as a horror writer and her spy novels powered by her former career in national intelligence. On the challenges of straddling both genres and her rise to success...and how The Fervor drew upon her Japanese background in a horror novel set during the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.   LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve and Tananarive talk to actor LeVar Burton about his career spanning from 1977's adaptation of Alex Haley's ROOTS, where he played Kunta Kinte in an iconic role at the age of only 19, to the recent Star Trek: The Next Generation cast reunion where he reprised his role as Giordi La Forge for Star Trek: Picard. He also discusses Jeopardy and taking his fate in his own hands by creating his hit podcast "LeVar Burton Reads." LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL at https://www.speakpipe.com/LifewritingPodcast (We might play your message!)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices