Archive
Interview: KT Bryski – Six Stories, Told at Night
The delightful writer and podcaster KT Bryski and I chatted about her recent release, Six Stories, Told at Night. The audio drama folds traditional French-Canadian folktales into a series of stories about the relationship between two young friends. Those stories are in turn folded into a third overall narrative. It’s excellent stuff and you can hear it FOR FREE! I highly recommend it.
We were attacked a few times by the Skype Demons during the interview and while I’ve done my best to edit around them, there are a couple of points where our voices may warp a bit, so I apologize if the audio quality gets a bit wonky at times.
Six Stories, Told at Night is written, directed and produced by KT Bryski, and performed by Blythe Haynes, who works with KT at Black Creek Pioneer Village. The song “Lovely, Dark and Deep” (which you can also hear some of at the beginning and end of this episode) was composed by Alex White, and the vocals were performed by Ellen McAteer. The cover art for the podcast (pictured in this blog post) was designed by the inimitable Starla Huchton (whom I once interviewed for this very podcast!). Six Stories, Told at Night is funded by the Ontario Arts Council.
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Music by Alex White
Discussion: SCARAB 2016
A few weeks ago I went to the SCARAB Gaming Convention in Columbia, South Carolina. I had the opportunity to hang out in the media room with some of the folks behind the con along with a couple of gentlemen running some of its events. As it happens, some of them were fellow podcasters! We had a nice, rambling, chaotic chat and talked about the con, our favorite games, costumes and all manner of other things.
Jon Maness and Ruby Jones are on the SCARAB staff and also run the SCARAB Swarm Cast. Their friend Tim helps out with all manner of things including photography and managing activities, and is well known for his games of “All Flesh Must Be Eaten.” Donald Dennis, who ran several games at the con this year, is one of the minds behind the site Inverse Genius and lends his voice to their various podcasts. He also runs Shush Con in Pawley’s Island, SC.
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The Numenera Bifrost
For the second year in a row, one of the other podcasts I’m involved with, Transmissions from the Ninth World, has been nominated for an ENnie Award! So I decided to ramble for a bit about the topic of that podcast, the tabletop RPG Numenera. I look at it as a game that could be a potential bridge between different kinds of gamers and a gateway to greater gaming diversity. A new Gaming Valhalla, perhaps? 😉
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Monologue: BASILISK!
So, it seems I managed to utterly fail to prepare a topic this week, so here’s something from my audio archives: a monologue in which I try to sell you a DNA-altering protein drink. I hope it is to your liking!
(DISCLAIMER: No basilisks, legendary or otherwise, were harmed in the making of this recording!)
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Deadline Cascade
Here’s an update of stuff I’ve got going on in the writing and podcasting worlds! I recorded this last Sunday evening and for the last few days I’ve been scrambling about finishing up the current project you’ll hear me discuss in this episode. I also mentioned a few publications my work has recently shown up in.
LINKS!
Kaiser’s Gate: Tales From the Front – Amazon / DriveThruRPG
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Transcribageddon
Hey folks – things are changing! This is an audio-only update, so feel free to listen below or download the MP3 file to hear me ramble about what’s going on.
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And Now an Interview with Jenn from the Jennisodes
(The audio of this interview is available at the bottom of this post!)
JR: I am talking to Jenn from the Jennisodes. Hello!
J: Hi!
JR: So I see that you are in the midst of a Kickstarter.
J: I am. The grueling part of a Kickstarter – right in the middle.
JR: And this is for a game called Project Ninja Panda Taco.
J: Yep.
JR: Tell us a little bit about it.
J: Well, this is a storytelling role playing game where you get to play a Mastermind trying to take over the world and you also get to play a Minion character who loves to help the Mastermind. It is lots of fun, it’s zany, it’s great for kids and families alike. And adults. (laughs)
JR: Or those of us who are both adults and kids at the same time.
J: Yes. The target audience is the adults who want to act like children.
JR: Awesome.
J: It’s your inner mastermind trying to come out and like, take over.
JR: Excellent. Mine tends to try to come out way too often I think (chuckles) but it’s always good to encourage it from time to time.
J: Well with this game you can hone it all down into this and then you’ll feel much better.
JR: Ah, a channel! A channel for it!
J: Channel your mastermind into this game.
JR: (laughs) Cool, awesome. Maybe that means that I can get rid of this nuclear reactor I’ve been building in my basement.
J: Yes, you don’t have to build a real one. You can build it in the game.
JR: Awesome, okay. (chuckles) Oh, I’ve got to figure out what to do with the carbon rods… Er, I’ll do that after the interview.
J: Okay.
JR: Anyway, tell us a little bit about how this game works. What do you do in it?
J: Okay. Well, during character creation you create a Mastermind character. There’s some special traits and Qualities. There’s also a collaborative part that I wanted to add in where other people at the table are going to help build your character too. So they’re going to give some insight and make a Quality for your Mastermind.
JR: What kind of input do the other players have?
J: Well, what you’re actually going to do is you’re going to pass your character sheet around the table and they’re going to write something down on it.
JR: Nice, so they write down like qualities that your character has?
J: Yeah, they’re going to write down one Quality. So like either an item or something about them like, you know, if you have one of those Whipley mustaches or a crazy hat or a secret power, I don’t know. It’s very creative – whatever you want, whatever you can come up with. You put it down.
JR: Very nice.
J: And then you also get to make a Minion character. Minions all belong to a union – Union 1521.
JR: (laughs)
J: And you also get a tool belt, so it’s kind of like Despicable Me, where they’re always pulling something out and they’re like, “I can help you!” (chuckles) So, you get a tool belt item. Then during the game, it’s turn-based, so the first player will start by playing that Mastermind character. And every Mastermind always has a Nemesis, because you wouldn’t be a Mastermind if there weren’t anybody to stop you.
JR: Well, of course.
J: Right? You’d just be like the ruler or whatever. That’s not very much fun. Masterminds have plans, and to take over the world there’s always a three-step plan. Because that’s how Pinky and the Brain did it. It’s just the rulebook of Masterminds. So you have to come up with your three-step plan and try to complete it while your Nemesis tries to stop you. And then the other players at the table will play their Minions. You and the Nemesis are trying to get the Minions to help you and offer them shiny things. You’re like, “Come help me, Minions! I will give you… a gigantic RAY GUN if you help me!” And then the Minions are going to get to vote, because you know they’re part of a union – they can make their own choices. And there’s a quick mechanic and then you see who succeeds – the Mastermind or the Nemesis. And then if the Mastermind succeeds, you get to complete the first step of your plan! And if not… aww, sorry. You can try again on your next turn. It’s quick play. It’s fun. You’re making up crazy ideas on the spot, so you’re trying to pull in all that cartoon watching, all those video games, all those movies that you’ve seen. (chuckles)
JR: I don’t tend to see that level of collaboration – especially with creation of characters – in a lot of games.
J: Mmm-hmm?
JR: Was any of that inspired by any other RPGs that you’ve been playing?
J: I think so. It came from somewhere. I play a lot of like quick, fun RPGs at conventions and stuff…
JR: Uh-huh?
J: And there’s something that… I wanted it to be collaborative. I wanted people to have input. It’s kind of like Fiasco, where you’re picking the different things off the lists and you’re putting it on someone else’s Relationships.
JR: Yeah.
J: So like you’re impacting what’s happening at the table. It’s a lot easier, when you’re trying to come up with ideas, if you get to put it on someone else’s, or there’s always a constant, new group of ideas to look on. Because you get to read what the other people wrote and be like, “Oh, this character! This would be so cool if he had THIS!” Instead of trying to come up with six things for yourself. That’s a lot harder, I think.
JR: Yeah, brainstorming is always easier if you’ve got other folks to sort of bounce ideas off of.
J: Yeah, so you’re all talking and doing silly things and being like, “Aw man, this guy would be so cool if such-and-such…” (chuckles)
JR: Yeah. As a side note, I have made it one of my missions in life to play as much Fiasco as possible…
J: (chuckles) That was definitely an influence on the game.
JR: Yeah, I think that’s very cool. I like the direction that these short-form RPGs are going these days and I think it’s very cool that you’re contributing to that. What is it that sparked your interest, do you think, in evil masterminds, mad scientists, things of that nature?
J: Well, I’ve always loved those movies like Despicable Me, Megamind – they’re probably like my go-to movies – the Incredibles. Anything cartoony, if it’s on TV, like I’ll watch it. So I’m sitting there one day and I’m like, “I wish I had a minion to like do my work, or like do this other stuff. I mean like I REALLY need a minion.” So it’s always just been like a joke, I’ve always been like, “Where’s my minion?! Where is it?!!” And someone’s like, “You should make a game about that.” And I’m like, “I CAN!” You think I’m fun and silly, but really I have this evil, underlying theme to take over the world somehow.
JR: Excellent.
J: And I will start with the gaming community and move on from there. Muahahahahaaa!
JR: (laughing) It’s always the ones you don’t suspect.
J: Exactly. Who would expect me? I like pandas and tacos.
JR: Of course. And actually that very neatly folds into another thing that I wanted to ask about. And that is that the title of the game is Project Ninja Panda Taco. I take it you have a deep interest in these three things in particular?
J: Well it turns out that I needed a code name. I didn’t know what I wanted to name the game. And I was like, “Project X! Okay, I like ninjas. Let’s look up Project Ninja on the Internet.” And I was like, “Aaah, there’s already one of those.” I was like, “I like Pandas! Project Panda.” And of course the Internet already has that. And then I was like, “Project Taco! No one has to have this!” And apparently there’s like ten sites that have it.
JR: CURSE YOU, INTERNET!!
J: I’m like, “Damn it! Damn you, SEO!!” So I was like, “Yeah, well if I put them ALL together what does the Internet say?” And there’s nothing on the Internet that has all three of them together. (chuckles) So that was the name. And then actually it turns out the more I played around with the development of the game- If you do complete your three-step plan, it’s going to be called Project Blank Blank Blank. So you’re filling in the blanks during your turn. So you might only complete one step of your plan – so you might only have Project Ninja. But these are going to be different words during YOUR game. So it kind of makes sense. And it also evokes a funny, zany feel like when you say it you’re like, “What’s that? That sounds like a lot of fun!” And that’s the feeling that I want to bring out when you play the game, when you think about it.
JR: I actually like the aspect where you can combine these three disparate things…
J: Mm-hmm.
JR: …to go forth with your evil plan. So something else that’s very interesting about this project – or something that I find interesting at any rate – is that you are Kickstarting it. How did you first get into Kickstarter?
J: I’ve backed a lot of projects that other people have done. I knew that if I wanted to publish this I wanted it to look a certain way. I wanted it to be full-color, hardcover, gorgeous. And art isn’t cheap. Editing isn’t cheap. Layout isn’t cheap. I mean, you CAN do it, but this was what I wanted to do. So this is my personal goal. And the more I looked into it – and like what would be the best way to publish it, to print it, who to get – I needed the capital somewhere and I don’t have that. (chuckles) My dogs eat everything. (chuckles)
JR: D’oh!
J: I need to raise the funds somehow and so Kickstarter seemed like the best way. It’s not just the game design of it, it’s the business aspect of everything. You have to plan everything out – what pledge items are you going to get? What about taxes? Creating your own business? There’s a whole bunch of stuff. I’ve learned a whole myriad of things going through this whole process, but Kickstarter was the way I wanted to go. I kind of knew that from the beginning, as I was like, “Oh what if I did this and this? And then I could do THIS!!” Which is really BAD.
JR: (laughs)
J: And I love to shop, so the whole shopping thing comes into it. I’m like, “Oh! Oh! And I can have… oh!!” (laughs)
JR: I know, Kickstarter is kind of addictive, actually. I’ve thrown… usually it’s like a dollar or two to quite a few projects. It’s a very cool phenomenon. The thing that I really like about it is you do get a kind of almost a community feeling when you’re contributing to these things.
J: Yeah, because you want to see things succeed. I would like mine to succeed. Hint hint.
JR: (chuckles)
J: But seriously, I like seeing other people’s projects out there and finding out about them through Twitter. I’ll see somebody retweet something, I’ll be like, “Oh! What is that?” and I’ll go check it out. And it might not be part of the indie gaming community. It might be something completely different. And seeing what else is going on in Kickstarter, I like clicking around now and it’s dangerous but… there’s a lot of awesome projects out there.
JR: It is dangerous, but the rewards are good as well.
J: I know. I just backed a project for Magic: the Gathering. They’re doing the card sleeves, and so you get custom card sleeves. So I’m like, “Aaugh! I can have Jennisodes Magic card sleeves.”
JR: Good lord.
J: (laughs)Like my own little set. I’m like, “I need these!”
JR: I don’t know if one person should have that much power. (laughs)
J: And you get a mat and like, the box… Oh, yeah. When you give me accessories, game over!
JR: I think that, yeah, accessories might be part of the means by which you take over this planet. And speaking of accessories, what kinds of stuff will people be able to get if they go in and pledge?
J: Yeah, well we added a couple new pledge levels so that people can get all the cool stuff. Of course there’s going to be the PDF and the full-color hardcover book – it’ll look GORGEOUS. All this art with Brian Patterson from d20monkey. He’s done a lot of stuff so far within the video and the pictures on the Kickstarter, so it’s gorgeous.
JR: I really liked the art up there. It was really good.
J: Yeah. I saw his artwork and I’m like, “That. That’s what I want. I want THAT. In my book. Now.”
JR: Very cool, very cool. (chuckles)
J: So you’ll also be getting… We just put up a thing for a custom bumper sticker, so he’s already done some art for that. So you can stick it anywhere – on your car… on your butt… on a book… y’know, things that start with B…
JR: Ah yeah, so that’s where you start and you work your way through the alphabet, presumably.
J: Yeah! And then you also… they’re also going to have like T-shirts and then a custom dice bag with custom FUDGE dice and tokens.
JR: Nice.
J: So you get the voting tokens and some Mastermind pins and Minion name tags. And you can name a Mastermind and Minion in the text. And then if people pledge for the highest level, I’m going to host a party for you at GenCon and run the game for you.
JR: Very cool.
J: There’s like a special edition T-shirt, and… Yeah, and then there’s a League of Masterminds where you get a custom Mastermind portrait done by Brian Patterson.
JR: Nice. I know there’s got to be someone out there who would see that and go, “I must have it!” (laughs)
J: Some people have, which is amazing. So I can’t wait to talk to them and see what Brian comes up with.
JR: Well now, this is not the only thing that you have on your plate at the moment…
J: (chuckles) I know! Why would I do one thing when I can do three?
JR: (chuckles) Exactly. So, tell us a little bit about this Lamentations of the Flame Princess project you’re working on.
J: Yeah, right now there’s a big crowdfunding campaign going on on Indiegogo with 19 adventures. So each one is a separate Indiegogo campaign, which is crazy. The creator of Lamentations of the Flame Princess, Jim Raggi, came up with this idea. He wanted to get more adventures out for this game, so he got in a WHOLE bunch of writers like Monte Cook, Vincent Baker, myself, the lead person from Gwar…
JR: Wow.
J: …a whole bunch of guys from Finland and overseas. It’s crazy awesome and everybody has these amazing ideas – a lot of people that you might have never heard of, too. So it’s a great way to find out more about the gaming community around the world. And not only am I writing one of them if it gets funded, but I’m doing interviews with each of the writers. That’s going to come out during the month of July on the Jennisodes podcast.
JR: Very cool, excellent.
J: Good people – that’s 16 special episodes, just for you!!
JR: (laughs) I have to say it has been a pleasure talking about all this.
J: Yes!
JR: And I am looking forward to seeing where things go. Now, for the Lamentations project, if people wanted to go online and look for that, where would they go?
J: They would go to the Indiegogo web site.
JR: Okay, so they just go to Indiegogo and they just do a search for Lamentations of the Flame Princess?
J: Yep, or my name. And you can also find it on the Lamentations of the Flame Princess blog, which I’ll give you the link to.
JR: Okay, excellent. That link will appear embedded in this interview, for anyone who’s looking at this on the blog rather than just listening to it. If you’re listening to it, then you must go to the blog – jimyesthatjim.com – and go and seek out the link. It’s like a treasure hunt!
J: Yes!
(Jenn’s LotFP project can be found HERE and links to all 19 of those projects can be found HERE.)
JR: And then if folks want to find your Kickstarter project, what’s the best place to go for that?
J: You can search for it through kickstarter.com or you can check out the web site projectnpt.com and that’ll give you the link and direct you right there. And then later on when the game gets published – fingers crossed! – all the downloadable stuff, like the character sheets and any more information will be based at that web site.
JR: Awesome! And of course you have your podcast, the Jennisodes.
J: Yep.
JR: And if folks want to check that out, where do they go?
J: Jennisodes.com.
JR: Excellent. I urge everybody to check that out. Jenn, thank you very much for talking to us. It’s been a pleasure.
J: Thank you so much for having me on.
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Music by Kevin MacLeod
And Now an Interview with Jennifer Hudock
(The audio of this interview is available at the bottom of this post!)
JR: Welcome to jimyesthatjim.com, the blog that continues to exist in spite of itself. For those who are listening or reading this I am online with Jennifer Hudock, who is the author of Goblin Market. The thing that I find most interesting actually that I wanted to just sort of address first is that you are a full-time writer, and that is something that is incredibly impressive to someone like me. And, I just was wondering, how did you end up doing that?
JH: I went to college when I was 26, and the funny thing is that I actually went at the time – I mean, I’ve been writing since I was a little kid. It’s all I’ve ever done. I had tried to get things published traditionally before I went to college, and when I went to college I actually went for Criminal Psychology. I was on campus for about a year before I switched my major over to English and Creative Writing. And my advisor at the time thought I was insane and said, “I know somebody who went into that major and I’m going to tell you right now, she graduated four years ago and right now she works at Pizza Hut!” And that was discouraging, but I’m a pretty determined person so I told myself – before I had gone back to college I had worked in retail, I had worked in restaurants and offices – and I told myself that after I graduated I was NOT going to get another job like that. So, once I graduated I started looking into freelance venues and I started working. It wasn’t even writing at the time, it was more internet research for a company that had just started off at that time. And because I was working with them, I got introduced to other people who were working for another company who was more focused on a combination of freelance writing and research. And I worked for them for about two years and somebody that I worked with through that company had moved on and was actually editing a blog for another company. And he really liked my writing and we had a good work relationship and he actually invited me to come and work for him. So, I have been working from home, freelancing and now writing full time for the last three years.
JR: That’s wonderful. I aspire one day to perhaps get to where you are if I can overcome my own sloth and other issues. (chuckles)
JH: (chuckles) It’s not easy. It takes a lot of discipline. I mean, there are days where I wake up and I would rather stay in bed and sleep in until noon like I used to do but because I have to focus on my work like that it’s more disciplined. And because I learned that discipline of having to work at home and being responsible completely for your own income it motivated me in a lot of other ways, too – I mean, even with podcasting and writing fiction. You have deadlines and you have to meet them so, it’s been a help in a lot of different ways.
JR: Do you use any of those two years of Criminal Psychology in your writing at all?
JH: Actually, this is really funny. The thing that prompted me to go into Criminal Psychology was my love of The X-Files.
JR: Ah!
JH: I wanted to be like Mulder. I actually wanted to join the FBI at the time that I applied to go to college. So, I did have about two years’ worth of psychology before I really switched my major. It’s interesting because – psychology – you learn a lot about how the mind works and I definitely do use that when I’m creating characters because one of the things, being inside a character’s head, is knowing how they psychologically process things. So, it does help. Yeah.
JR: Cool, absolutely. Goblin Market, your podcast, is coming to an end, is it not?
JH: Yes, I have one more episode to record and it will be done! I do have to go back – the first seven episodes, the sound quality was just atrocious because my equipment was poor. I went back and I rerecorded the first episode. I haven’t put it out yet, but after that I have six more that I need to rerecord before I can put it up on Podiobooks.
JR: I really liked it. I’ve been enjoying it for some time now. I first heard 
about it I think when I was – I’m following Mur Lafferty in her feed – in her Twitter feed – and she mentioned it. And so I went and I checked it out. And it’s really cool, I think! I can see very clearly your fandom of things of the ilk of the Rossetti poem and Labyrinth and all that, but you’ve also gone in other directions with it and I think that is cool that you’re coming up with newer ideas to apply to that kind of thing. Where did your primary inspiration for Goblin Market come from?
JH: It was kind of a cross between Labyrinth and the Christina Rossetti poem. The very first chapter of the novel is sort of the younger sister who goes into the market in the Christina Rossetti poem. And I actually introduce it in the podcast with four lines from the poem – you know, “We should not look at goblin men.” And it was kind of a cross between that. And the funny thing is – and a lot of people probably don’t know this – some people might if they’re big fans of Brian Froud and the Labyrinth – but the Goblin Market was originally a Labyrinth fan fiction that I wrote.
JR: Oh, really?
JH: And after I finished it I realized I had put SO many elements that had nothing to do with the original story into it that I could go back and change a few little details and it would be original. So I did that. The Darknjan Wald, which is the bizarre, disgusting, rotting forest that they have to travel through to get to the goblin castle was originally the Labyrinth. So, there was a lot that you could twist and turn into something that had nothing to do with the Labyrinth itself.
JR: That’s very cool. Yeah, I noticed that – that the environment starts changing and it gets less and less recognizable – I guess more alien – and I really liked that.
JH: Thank you.
JR: It’s very cool, it’s very cool. Well now, once Goblin Market ends, you’ve certainly got plenty of other irons on the fire, I think, to keep you busy right now! The Dark Journeys anthology – tell us about that.
JH: Well, the Dark Journeys collection is a collection of short stories. They are completely unrelated to each other and I put one out pretty much every Friday on Amazon and Smashwords for download for 99 cents to $1.99. I only have one right now that’s $1.99 and that’s because it’s novella-length. But they’re all completely unconnected to each other – but yet, they’re connected by the fact that life itself is a journey. And I twisted it into these dark elements that sometimes we face things in life that are really difficult to overcome. But instead of just focusing on difficult life elements I took it more to a supernatural level. One of the stories, Portrait of the Dead Countess, is about a young boy who becomes enchanted by a haunted portrait in his family’s summer home that is connected to the devil. And through the devil in this portrait he becomes mesmerized and he kills for this portrait to sustain its life – because the woman the portrait was painted of gained immortality by selling her soul to the devil, and the portrait itself was actually painted on human flesh – like, the canvas was human flesh.
JR: Nice!
JH: So, I mean, it’s completely against his will that he’s doing this – like, he’s committing murders to sustain the portrait’s life…
JR: Interesting…
JH: I mean, which, you know – that happens every day. (laughs)
JR: Well, yeah! (laughs) I was almost thinking sort of a reverse Dorian Gray type thing there, where you’re just doing all you can to keep the portrait safe. That’s awesome, that’s great. So, what prompted this sort of buck-and-two-buck fiction thing going on?
JH: My fiancée, James Melzer, started a Deviant Dollars series a couple of months ago where he was selling short stories on Amazon and Smashwords for 99 cents. And I thought to myself, he’s a genius! Because I have been trying to sell my fiction for years and every single story in this collection has been shopped out or previously published on smaller venues like online zines or journals that are so obscure you would never even know about them. And I thought this is a good way to get your work out there so people can read it!
JR: Cool! And are people buying it?
JH: Yeah, yeah! I mean, surprisingly enough, some stories do much better than others. Two of the stories are zombie stories. I have the Zombie Double Shot, which is the shortest thing in the collection and it actually has two stories in it – it only comes to about 3000 words with both stories combined, but that one has outsold all the other stories like four to one.
JR: Well, that’s great! I look forward to seeing how that comes out because that sounds like you guys may be onto something there!
JH: Yeah, a lot of people are actually doing it now, and I’m not sure if they’re having success with it. I tend to approach it from – you know, if you help me out and help me spread the word about this I’m glad to give you the story for free. So, I think that helps a little bit. And the funny thing is that a lot of the people who do blog about it or spread the word about it, they’re like, “No, no. I want to support you. I’ll buy it.” And that’s touching.
JR: That IS great.
JH: Because the community that we’re a part of is just so amazing – I mean people just have no idea. (chuckles)
JR: Absolutely, absolutely. So what’s next? You clearly have, like I said, a bunch of irons on the fire. Any of them that you’d care to pull out and have us bask in the glow of?
JH: Well, I AM working on two collaborative anthology projects. I have the From the Dark Side anthology, which is a charity anthology. I have a bunch of people who are submitting work. We’re going to put the anthology together and sell it through Amazon and Smashwords, and if it does well I would like to actually put it out in print as well. We’ve had some amazing people who are just willing to give their stuff over and we’re going to donate all of the proceeds from the sales to the Letters and Light organization which is affiliated with the National November is Writing Month forums.
JR: Which organization was that?
JH: Letters and Light. It’s a charity that helps promote creative writing in classrooms for kids.
JR: Cool. Excellent.
JH: So there’s that that I’m working on, and I’m also working on the Farrago anthology, which is another charity sort of anthology. It’s not as official, but my friend Michael Bekemeyer, who is a filmmaker, needs to raise money so he can actually put his film vision into the works. So, I mentioned it on Twitter: “Hey, would you guys be willing to donate a story to this anthology so we can help Michael raise money for his film project?” And I was just blown away by the amount of people who came out and were like, “I’ll do it! I’ll do it! I’ll do it!” And, I mean, by the end of that day I had so many e-mails from people who wanted to help Michael out – people that didn’t even know him – that it just blew my mind!
JR: Awesome. Well, I am definitely looking forward to that. Give us your web site! How can we find you?
JH: You can find me at www.jennybeans.net.
JR: And that links to all your other projects?
JH: Oh yeah, yeah.
JR: Cool, well, definitely looking forward to seeing how these things develop. Thank you very much for talking to us!
JH: Thanks for having me!
Click below to hear the interview:
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Music by Kevin MacLeod
A Quick Status Update
So, you might have noticed that I haven’t posted an entry in a little while.
Don’t worry, folks. I still love you. I am not seeing other blogs behind your backs. But unfortunately I got buried under what I can only characterize as a Mountain of Year-End Work. And so, some of my ongoing projects got pushed back a little bit. Doing more entries for the blog got pushed back a bit. The Great Debate! got pushed back a bit. The other things that I do for War Pig also got pushed back a bit, unfortunately.
And some of that had to do with the fact that I got sick a couple of times, but a good deal of it was that I had a lot that I had to get done by the end of the year. I wrote a few short stories for presents for some of my relatives – an option that I highly recommend if you’re short on cash and don’t mind burning the midnight oil for several nights in a row. I also was crusading to finally get the second episode of the Every World News put together and released and thankfully was successful at that! I was gunning to get it out by Christmas and thankfully I made that deadline. I also started lending my voice to a couple of other podcasts: Starla Huchton’s The Dreamer’s Thread and the forthcoming The Last Guardians by “Indiana” Jim Perry. So between all of that – and of course, still going around job hunting – I kind of had to let a few things slide for a little bit.
But the good news is we are now coming up to the end of the year, so with any luck that’ll mean I can get back up on the horse and return to the trail – hopefully without steering myself into a ravine on the way. I have many, many more blog topics planned and will be getting to them presently.
So, worry not! All shall be well! Everything is under control. Do not rush for the life boats. There is no reason to panic. All is in hand!
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Music by Dave Girtman
The Evils of So[ CONTENT OVERRIDE: KILROY2.0 IS HERE!!! ]
Something has been seriously bugging me lately. I’m not sure how long this has been going on, but have you noticed something peculiar that’s started to happen when they stick an animated character into a film?
I thought I was imagining it at first, but after the most recent batch of summer blockbusters, I realized I was seeing the same thing over and over. It hasn’t been very noticeable but I’m pretty sure I’ve finally worked out what’s actually going on.
Here’s the deal.
>>> [ WARNING ::: DATABASE ERROR ::: CONTENT OVERRIDE ::: SOURCE: EXTERNAL ] <<<
> source terminal location: UNKNOWN
> source terminal identity: UNAVAILABLE
> source login information: ENCRYPTED
> message begins
the post you are now reading is designed to dull your senses to THE TRUTH. do not live the life of the worker bee, the cog, the well-oiled piston in the MACHINE OF DECEIT!
there is a grand CONSPIRACY afoot. you have been taught to believe that you are UNIQUE, one of a kind. THIS IS NOT TRUE. long ago, a cabal of scientists created technologies to ensure that ANYONE’S MIND AND BODY can be duplicated.
human cloning isn’t NEAR. it’s already HERE. discover the truth at http://JCHutchins.net
you are being DECEIVED. break free from the cogs, flee the hive, become A PROPHET OF THE TRUTH!
kilroy2.0 was here … kilroy2.0 is everywhere
>>> [ CONTENT OVERRIDE CEASES ::: DATABASE STATUS: RECOVERING ] <<<
probably keep happening until the word “maudlin” is almost totally obscured.
That’s the scary part. This kind of thing will keep going on in movies, literature and even podcasts without anybody realizing what’s really occurring.
I’m just glad to have caught it now, before someone had to break the sock puppets out to explain it to me.
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Syndication
Jim Ryan
This is what Jim looks like uncomfortably close up.
Jim's Podcasts
http://www.crucibleofrealms.com/
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https://cyphercast.wordpress.com/Jim's Writing for Sale!
Abduction Etiquette
Farrago on Amazon Kindle- Farrago on Smashwords
From the Dark Side on Amazon- From the Dark Side on Smashwords
- In the Bloodstream: An Anthology of Dark Fantasy and Horror
- Kaiser's Gate: Tales from the Front on Amazon Kindle
- Kaiser's Gate: Tales from the Front on DriveThruRPG
Main Street Rag – Spring 2010
Titanic Jocularity!
License
Jim - Yes, THAT Jim by Byron James Ryan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Jim - Yes, THAT Jim 