Workshop Episode 12 (Guest Host: Lee Harris)

With Bryan Lincoln as Guest Host, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to put his diverse skill set to use and workshop a good sci-fi story. Enter Tracy Bodine, offering up a truly epic space opera for discussion around the Roundtable. We had a great time (and you will, too) exploring some of the possibilities of his tale that includes aliens, time-travel, bio-augmentation, galactic intrigue and the multiverse. So sit back, fire up your Quantum Spectrometer, and enjoy!

Paul Elard Cooley – acknowledged Fiendmaster and purveyor of dark psychological and paranormal horror tales (not to mention the despicable things he does to Muppets) – settles in at the dark end of the Roundtable to workshop a tale by writer and webcomic creator Christoper Wright. Chris brings us a civilized murder mystery set in a rich and complex world fraught with political struggle, mad gods, and strange magics. There’s a lot to talk about, including handling info dumps, the nature of “serious” characters, and dealing with HUGE frickin’ worlds in a story.

Cherie Priest, whose innovations breath vibrant life into every genre she turns her pen to, reclaims the Big Chair at the Roundtable to lend her unique insights to this episode’s fabulous workshop. For this expedition in search of literary gold, we are joined by the charming and talented Riley J. Keith who shares a rich and intricate steampunk tale set in prohibition New Orleans. Her vision of intrigue, corruption, and betrayal in The Big Easy inspires some dynamic dialogue and everybody walks away some gold in their pockets. You can get some, too… just hit that play button!

[image credit: Fan Ming] Brian Kirk – author of the newly released “We Are Monsters” returns to the Big Chair at…

Alicia E. Goranson – playwright, author, and creator of the Parsec Award winning “The Mask of Inanna” – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to help us workshop a tale offered up by Anthony Sunderland. Assisted by the ever-dapper Doc Coleman, we dive in to Tony’s story of alien conspiracy, genetic hybrids, and clandestine government operations. It’s like a cross between Buffy and X-Files and everyone is soon in search of the elusive Literary Gold!

Beth Cato returns to the Big Chair in the APN Virtual Studio to brainstorm a near future scifi thriller of social media gone horribly wrong by Guest Writer Owen Sessions.

Christof Laputka – creator, writer, and producer of the epic audio event that IS “The Leviathan Chronicles” – returns to the Big chair to help workshop an inspired story idea offered up by podcaster, writter, and nefarious super-villain, Christopher Morse. Chris brings an amazing tale of alternate history with Rome under the influence of a vile and cunning criminal from the future. Julius Caesar, time travel, ironpunk automatons, roman soldiers, brothels… I mean DANG! There’s SO much gold in this episode, you’re going to want to bring a wheelbarrow!

Seanan McGuire – award-winning author, graphic novelist, podcaster, and storytelling badass – returns to the Big Chair in the APN virtual studios (along with co-host Michael R. Underwood) to workshop a tale of superheroes, romance, and the dark side of adulation offered up by creageous Guest Writer Arthur De Leon.

Tim Pratt, whose fiction has transported readers to astonishing worlds (or revealed those worlds in our own closets), returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to brings his amazing perceptions to bear workshopping an intricate tale offered up by Guest Writer Rusty Webb. It’s apparently post-apocalypse month here at the RTP, but Rusty’s tale offers a very unique perspective and setting. Mad Gods, ascended beings, the last vestiges of humanity in a world gone wrong… marvelous food for storytelling awesomeness and we uncover several veins of Literary Gold.

Michael Sullivan – erudite and eloquent author of the “Riyria Revelations” and the forthcoming “Riyria Chronicles” – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to help us workshop a fantasy noire tale offered by Ben Love (co-host of the “First Million Words” podcast).

The synergy around the table is amazing as everyone weighs in, exploring, expanding, and rhapsodizing on Ben’s excellent idea, building on each others inspirations. It’s classic Roundtable goodness, friends, with the inevitable outcome… Literary Gold for everybody!

Having Rish Outfield and Big Anklevich – the mad geniuses behind the epic Dunesteef Audio Magazine – for our thirteenth episode turns out to be very lucky indeed. Joining us at the Roundtable is the remarkable Renee Chambliss, she of the wonderful voice, the gifted pen, and the keen ear, who brings a wonderfully innovative idea for a comicbook hero to the Table for the discussion. Origin stories, multimedia storytelling, and the nature of rats… all this and more awaits you… just hit that PLAY button

Alasdair Stuart leaps across the Atlantic Ocean to take a seat at the Roundtable and help workshop a story by the founder of New Fiction Writers, Tony Whitford. Tony offers up the tale of a down-on-his-luck government agent who stumbles upon an alien serial killer which proves to be fertile ground for a fabulous discussion.

Anne Lyle has crafted a lush and intricate historical fantasy thriller – “The Alchemist of Souls” – which is (thankfully) only the first in a trilogy published by Angry Robot Books. As much as we hated to take her away from her writing, she graciously agreed to join myself and the inestimable Doc Coleman (filling in for Brion) in a marvelous discussion of crafting other races, the practical use of deleted scenes, theatrical influences, and the nature of Speculative Fiction. Join us… there’s plenty of chairs.

P. G. Holyfield – author of “Murder at Avedon Hill” (and the podiobook!), evil genius behind SpecFic Media, and curmudgeon of the “Beyond the Wall” podcast – finds a chair at The Roundtable and helps us workshop an epic story by Dan Eagles. We’ve got extinction viruses, “infectants”, alien technology, and the Hadron Collider… does it GET any better than that? I think not!

Gail Carson Levine, recognized by the New York Times, LA Times, Library Journal and numerous other Best-Seller lists, joins us at the table to discuss Jacci Turne’rs intriguing YA tale of time-travel. Everyone weighs in and, by the end of the episode, Jacci departs with a large bag of Roundtable Podcast gold.