INSIGHTS: Margaret Dunlap and Brian Francis Slattery

Cerece Rennie Murphy – creator fo the Narazu Media Portal, author of The Order of the Seers trilogy, “To Find You”, and more – explores worldbuilding, her discoveries in fandom, how she develops her stories, and more.

Cerece Rennie Murphy returns to the Big Chair in the APN studios to add her storytelling mojo to brainstorming a tale of a magician who doesn’t believe in magic, a priest who doesn’t believe in god, and a warrior who doesn’t believe in war.

Andrew Weston has been busy since the last time he appeared on the Roundtable. His creations in the world have expanded to…

J. Robert King has told hundreds of stories, including “The Incubus Tweets”, “Guild Wars: Edge of Destiny”, “Angel of Death”, and more… and with each story, he seeks a truth. What he finds is rarely what he set out looking for, but he persists in following his stories faithfully and honestly. That makes him a badass in our book.

Joined by veteran podcaster, storyteller, and former Guest Host, John Mierau, we engage in a most intriguing 20(ish) minutes of writerly discourse with Rob, exploring the nature of evil in fiction (and ourselves), the end of the “age of the author”, and more. There’s writerly goodness (and maybe one or two epiphanies) awaiting you, friends… it’s all just a “PLAY” button away

Kelly Robson – author of the Nebula-nominated “Waters of Versailles” (published by Tor.com) and many other marvelous tales – joins for a marvelous conversation exploring the qualities of fine non-fiction and its value to a writer, struggling with self-doubt and giving yourself permission, golden nuggets of writerly wisdom acquired from others, the secrets of scene-craft, and more.

Michael R. Underwood – a veteran of the APN and Literary Alchemist behind the Geekomancy and Genrenauts series, as well as the immanent “Born to the Blade” serialization from Serial Box Publishing – returns to the Big Chair at the APN to brainstorm a tale of grief, art, and magic.

The tale is offered up by creageous Guest Writer Val Griswold-Ford, the story of a grieving woman who discovers her art is able to create true magic in the world. With Marie Bilodeau as co-host, together we through some jet fuel into the Literary Alchemy Machine and crank it up to 11!

Literary alchemist Marie Brennan – author of “A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent”, The Onyx Court Series, and “Lies and Prophecy”, and so much more – returns to the Guest Host chair to lend her astonishing brainstorming savvy to a tale of two strangers who’s lives become entangled by a drug that imparts magical powers as a side effect.

The tale is offered up by a pair of creagous Guest Writers, Saskia den Ouden and Thomas de Man… a street level slice of life where the protagonists walk the very fine line between hero and villain. Joined once again by the fabulous Marie Bilodeau as co-host, we indulge in a bit of worldbuilding (what a shock), as well as delving into what makes for a truly effective antagonist. The Literary Gold flows like Spice (NOT of the pumpkin variety) and your share is just a click of the “PLAY” button away!

Robyn Bennis Robyn Bennis – author of “The Guns Above” and the soon to be released “By Fire Above” – joins the APN crew to wax rhapsodic on organizing book research, creating a “writing space”, crafting an effective conflict character, and more!

Jeanne Cavelos – scientist, author, and founder of the exceptional Odyssey Writers Workshops – returns to the Big Chair at the RTP (for the third time!) to lend her considerable and extensive workshopping mojo to a tale of betrayal and revenge in the classic noir tradition.

Kelly Robson – author of the Nebula-nominated “Waters of Versailles” (published by Tor.com) and many other marvelous tales – returns to the Big Chair at the Roundtable to lend her brainstorming-fu to a tale of egyptian intrigue, magic, and tangled destinies across time.

Seth Skorkowsky is a multi-disciplined storyteller. He crafts rich, nuanced tales of urban fantasy (The Valducan Series: Damoren, Hounacier, and Ibenus), pulp fantasy adventure (The Tales of the Black Raven), and more. He’s the host of a fabulous YouTube channel featuring his insights and analysis of the RPG experience. Those diverse passions make him a unique and inspired voice in the spec fic community.

Joined by APN colleague and co-host, Marie Bilodeaux, we delve into 20(ish) minutes of writerly discourse with Seth, exploring his perspectives on pulp fiction hero narrative, telling stories through non-fiction video, charting the course of writerly pursuits, and more. Writerly goodness awaits you… just click that PLAY button!

Jeanne Cavelos – scientist, author, and founder of the astonishing Odyssey Writers Workshops – returns to the ARCHIVOS virtual studios discussing techniques of crafting effective dialogue, working in collaboration with shared world fiction, emotional arcs within a scene, and more. 

Brand Gamblin is a storyteller who aggressively pursues the evolution of his craft, striving always to push the limits of his ability and expand his comfort zone. His works to date include Science Fiction, Steampunk, Alternate Future (see? He’s making this stuff up, people!) and Science Fantasy (see?). He’s also possessed of a dark humor as evidenced by his wildly successful “Calls for Cthulu” video series. We spent a fabulous 20(ish) minutes with this marvelous weaver of tales discussing his transition from programmer to writer, and from outliner to pantser… we even dig into what Spec Fic really means. There’s writerly goodness behind that PLAY button, friends… click it!

Alyc Helms – author of “The Dragons of Heaven”, “The Conclave of Shadows”, a veritable bevy of short fiction, and gaming titles from Green Ronin Press – returns to the Big Chair at the ARCHIVOS Podcast Network to lend her Brainstorming Fu to a tale of the fate of the followers of a murdered god.

Tobias Buckell has lived an adventurous life, not in the sense of plundering ancient tombs or fighting ninjas, but a life of extraordinary circumstances, opportunities and challenges. He says, “Fear of something is always an indicator of something I should do”… with that philosophy, he has blazed his own trail, exploring his craft – creating compelling tales like “Crystal Rain”, his exploration of his own craft in “Nascence”, and the recently crowd funded “Apocalypse Ocean” – and infusing his tales with a profoundly unique voice that has earned him a space on the New Yourk Times Best-Selling List and nominations for Hugo, Nebula, Prometheus, and Campbell awards.

This 20(ish) minutes of conversation is rich with Tobias’s refreshing perspective on so many aspects of the wrting process, including loving what you do, dealing with fear and the challenges of life as a writer, the secret of endings, and much more! The writerly goodness here here for the taking, so hit that “PLAY” button and dig in!