Tales from the Trunk

This time around, it’s my delight to welcome Juliet Kemp (twitter @julietk, mastodon @juliet@zirk.us) to the show! They read from their trunked sci-fi novel, Between Stars, Between Minds, which leads us into a discussion of messy first drafts, lived-in science fiction worlds, and finishing a four-book series.
 
Things we mentioned in this episode:
Chipped Cup Collective
Andor
Friends at the Table
Austin Walker
A More Civilized Age
“Blocking,” by Juliet Kemp in Strange Bedfellows
Angry Robot Books
The City Revealed, by Juliet Kemp
Ocean’s series
Alien Quadrilogy
Lois McMaster Bujold
Terry Pratchett
Macey’s Murderboard method
“Monday,” by Hilary B. Bisenieks
LiveJournal
Lockie Hunter
A Starbound Solstice, by Juliet Kemp
“At the Lighthouse Out by the Othersea,” by Juliet Kemp
Our Flag Means Death
Black Sails
A League of Their Own
The Hands of the Emperor and At the Feet of the Sun, by Victoria Goddard
Flotsam, by R.J. Theodore
Juliet’s website
 
Join us next month, when I’ll be talking to C.L. Polk and Aimee Ogden!

It's awards time again! A full transcript of the show is included below.
 
 
Hello, and welcome to Tales from the Trunk: nominating the works that did make it! I’m Hilary B. Bisenieks.
 
Friends, it’s been another amazing year for science fiction, fantasy, horror, and beyond, and I’m here once more to let you know about some of the amazing works by my fantastic guests, which you can nominate for this year’s awards!
 
Andi C. Buchanan, who joined us in April of 2022, has a number of eligible works including their novel, Sanctuary, and the essay “Human not machine: how autistic writers are writing new space for themselves.”
 
A link to their eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://andicbuchanan.org/2022/12/18/2022-publications/ 
 
C.L. Clark, who just joined us in December, is eligible in most novelette categories for "Your Eyes, My Beacon: Being an Account of Several Misadventures and How I Found My Way Home," published in Uncanny May/June 2022
 
Amanda Cook, who joined us in June of 2022, has six stories eligible for short story categories: “The Impossible Task of Bringing Water,” “Germinating Everyday Magic,” “Weaving Serenity,” “Lily and Ink,” “Print a Soul in Six Easy Steps, a Primer by Clover Silverbrook,” and “When Dreams Do Show Me Thee.” 
 
A link to her eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://acooksbooks.com/2022/11/28/babys-first-awards-eligibility-post/
 
Marion Deeds, who made her debut on this show in May of 2022, has an eligible novella, Comeuppance Served Cold, which you can hear an excerpt of on that episode, along with an eligible novel, Golden Rifts.
 
Ruthana Emrys, who appeared on the show in July of last year, has an eligible novel, A Half-Built Garden, and her column, Reading the Weird, is eligible for Best Related Work.
 
A link to her eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://twitter.com/R_Emrys/status/1592598551364005888
 
Sarah Gailey, this show’s patron saint, joined us again last year in support of their eligible novel, Just Like Home. Among their other eligible works are their newsletter, Stone Soup, and their original comic miniseries, Know Your Station.
 
A link to their eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://sarahgailey.com/awards-eligibility-2022 
Victor Manibo, who joined us in December of 2021, is eligible for his debut novel, The Sleepless.
 
Freya Marske, who joined us in October of 2021, is eligible in the various novel categories for A Restless Truth, the excellent sequel to her 2021 debut, A Marvellous Light.
 
Sam J. Miller, who joined us last January, has an eligible novella, Kid Wolf and Kraken Boy, as well as a collection, for such awards as have categories for collections, Boys, Beasts & Men.
 
Scientist, and definitely not a multi-colored beetle, Premee Mohamed, who last joined us in August of 2021, is eligible for Best Series for the first time for her Beneath the Rising series, which concluded with eligible novel The Void Ascendant. She also has several eligible short stories, including “All That Burns Unseen.”
 
Her eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://www.premeemohamed.com/post/2022-eligibility-post
 
Aidan Moher, who joined us back in October after far, far too long, is eligible with Fight, Magic, Items for Best Related work. He’s also eligible for Best Fanzine for Astrolabe, and for Best Fan Writer for his work all over the place.
 
Aidan’s eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://astrolabe.aidanmoher.com/p/2022-award-eligibility-hugos-nebulas
 
Hailey Piper, who joined us to open season four of the show back in March, has an eligible short story, “We Frolic Within the Leviathan’s Heart,” a novella, Your Mind Is a Terrible Thing, and a novel, No Gods for Drowning.
C.L. Polk, who will be returning to the show next month, has an excellent eligible novella, Even Though I Knew The End.
 
dave ring, patron saint of queer small-press publishing, is eligible for Best Editor, short form, for his work on Baffling Magazine as well as many other fine publications. His work with Marianne Kirby on Neon Hemlock Live is also eligible for Best Related Work.
 
A link to dave’s eligibility post is included in the show notes. https://www.dave-ring.com/news/2022/11/18/2022-eligibility-post
 
Valerie Valdes, who joined us again this past August, is eligible for Best Novel (Science Fiction, where applicable) for Fault Tolerance, for Best Series for Chilling Effect, for Best Short Story for both “Team Building Exercise” and “Working from Home,” and for Best Semiprozine for Escape Pod, which she edits with Mur Lafferty.
 
Val’s eligibility post is linked in the show notes. http://candleinsunshine.com/news/awards-eligibility-for-2022/ 
 
Fellow Warren Wilson alumnus Fran Wilde has various short stories eligible but is most excited to be eligible, for the first time this year, for Best Editor, Short Form, for her work at The Sunday Morning Transport!
 
John Wiswell, excellent human being, has many, many eligible short stories, including “D.I.Y.” and “Demonic Invasion or Placebo Effect?”
 
John’s full eligibility post is linked in the show notes. https://johnwiswell.substack.com/p/all-the-short-stories-i-published
 
Finally, I have 100% more eligible work this year than last! In addition to this very show, Tales from the Trunk, which is eligible for Best Fancast and other podcast and audio categories, I also published a game, All Our Yesterdays, which is eligible for the Nebula Award for Best Game Writing.
 
Thanks so much for tuning in, and thank you to everyone who nominates and votes in any of our genre’s awards! That’s very cool of you.
 
Join us again next week, when my guest will be Juliet Kemp!
 
Tales from the Trunk is mixed and produced in beautiful Oakland, California.
 
Our theme music is “Paper Wings,” by Lillian Boyd.
 
You can support the show on patreon at patreon dot com slash trunkcast. All patrons of the show now get a sticker and logo button, along with show outtakes and other content that can't be found anywhere else.
 
You can find the show on Twitter and Tumblr at trunkcast, and I tweet and tumbl at hbbisenieks.
 
If you like the show, consider taking a moment to rate and review us on your preferred podcast platform.
 
And remember: don't self-reject.
 

This time around, it’s my distinct pleasure to welcome a fellow podcaster, Annalee Newitz (@annaleen), to talk about their forthcoming novel, The Terraformers, out January 31st, 2023, from wherever fine books are sold! We get to hear an excerpt from the book that leads us into a great discussion about transit gays, flying moose romance, and robot trans culture, among other things.
 
Things we mention on this episode:
 
Tumblr
Mastodon
I-5 cattle ranches
Dune, by Frank Herbert
Friends at the Table
Jeffrey Tumlin
Plate tectonics
Chuck Tingle
Michael Hobbes
Maintenance Phase
If Books Could Kill
Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, by Yuval Noah Harari
Charlie Jane Anders
Our Opinions are Correct
The myth of progress episode
Brad DeLong 
Four Lost Cities, by Annalee Newitz
Annalee’s website and tiktok

It’s my distinct pleasure, for this, our post-NaNo episode, to welcome C.L. Clark (@C_L_Clark) to the show! Cherae reads a pair of excerpts from their trunked novel, The Bitch of Maradon, which leads us into a great conversation about formal and informal writing education, interrogating our biases, and how awkward it can be to revisit our old writing in the context of actually reading it out loud. Cherae also shares the story of her journey from NaNoWriMo to publication for their amazing novel, The Unbroken.
 
Things we mention this episode:
 
The Unbroken, by C.L. Clark
Héctor’s episode
My episode with Sharon Hsu
George Carlin
NaNoWriMo
Brandon Sanderson
Scrivener
Podcastle
Frodo it is done dot gif
#DVPit
Just Like Home episode
The Faithless, by C.L. Clark
Writers of the Future
Tor.com
“Sisyphus,” by C.L. Clark
Queers Destroy SF
Seanan McGuire
Lockie Hunter
Steering the Craft, by Ursula K. Le Guin
Wonderbook, by Jeff Vandermeer
The Expanse, by James S.A. Corey
The Godkiller, by Hannah Kaner
Small Gods and Hogfather, by Terry Pratchett
Cherae’s website and insta
Maslowe’s Hierarchy of Needs
The Skeleton War
“SFF’s Big Fat Problem,” by R.K. Duncan
 
Join us next month, when I’ll be talking to Annalee Newitz and Juliet Kemp, plus our annual awards roundup!

Happy NaNoWriMo, for all of you who observe! This time around, we’re joined once again by R.J. Theodore (@bittybittyzap) to talk about the crazy act of writing a novel in a single month and the freedom that comes with actually deciding to finish a thing. Rekka brings us a compare and contrast reading of two different beginnings of their novel, Flotsam, first from the NaNo when she first finished the book and the second from the version you can go and buy for yourself!
 
Things we mention in this episode:
 
NaNoWriMo ML
Rekka’s book tour
We Make Books
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Pumpkin Landing
xkcd 483
Neal Stephenson
The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins
Rekka’s first episode
The Peridot Shift series, by R.J.Theodore
Murderboard podcast episode
Writing book three of a duology with Premee podcast episode
Stephen King
Sarah Gailey
Coffee shop AU
Legends & Lattes, by Travis Baldree
Our Flag Means Death
John Wiswell
Just Like Home, by Sarah Gailey
Bridge to Elsewhere, edited by Alana Joli Abbott & Julia Rios
Neon Hemlock Press
Quick Sip Reviews
Robot Dinosaur Press
Chipped Cup Collective
Merc Fenn Wolfmoor
Sarah Loch
Andi C. Buchanan
Novae Caelum
Nia Quinn
Carlie St. George
Juliet Kemp
Rekka’s website, insta, and patreon
 
Join us next month, when I’ll be talking to C.L. Clark!

This time around, it’s my distinct pleasure to welcome back to the show Jordan Kurella (@kurellian) to talk about his new collection, When I Was Lost, available now wherever fine books are sold! He reads a previously-unpublished story, “The Hero and the Leviathan,” out of the collection, which leads us to ponder the question: what if a spaceship had PTSD?
 
Things we mention in this episode:
 
Trepidatio Press
Mikio Murakami
“Jewel of the Vashwa,” by Jordan Kurella in Apex Magazin
Keanu Reeves
Apex Magazine
Jason Sizemore
Friends at the Table - HOUNDS
Farscape
PTSD
Aaron Rosenberg
Gen Con
The Imperial Radch trilogy, by Ann Leckie
“How the Carrion Crew Stopped Courting Death and Other Methods of Lost Hope,” by Jordan Kurella in Fusion Fragment #6
“A Promise of Dying Embers,” by Jordan Kurella in Diabolical Plots
King’s Quest III 
“The Warsong of Berra and Irrit,” by Jordan Kurella in Lamplight Magazine
Lamplight Magazine
E Catherine Tobler
Shimmer Magazine
The Deadlands
“The Air Gap,” by Hilary B. Bisenieks in Lamplight Magazine
Jacob Haddon
Mary Shelley
I Never Liked You Anyway, by Jordan Kurella
Orpheus and Euridice
Am I the Asshole?
Dead Collections, by Isaac Fellman
Archive Of Our Own
Final Fantasy XIV
MMO
World of Warcraft
Clue
The Sandman (Netflix)
Mythic Quest
Siren Queen, by Nghi Vho
Jordan’s first episode
Jordan’s website
 
Join us again in two weeks, when my guest will be R.J. Theodore!

This time around, it’s my distinct pleasure to welcome Héctor González (@Mexicanity) to the show! Héctor reads a pair of spooky, voidy stories from the latest issue of v o i d j u n k , which leads us into a wide-ranging conversation about kindness, viscera, technology, chairs, and fandom.
 
This episode’s readings carry content warnings for descriptions of viscera, possession, and transformation, and for sexual themes. If you would like to skip them, the two readings are from 3:50 to 8:05 and 15:15 to 19:31.
 
Things we mention in this episode:
v o i d j u n k
dave’s episode
Sarah Loch
Héctor’s linktree
“Gracias, Orlando: A Genre Film and a Queer Body Awakening,” by Héctor González
Hector of Troy
Spider-Man
Batman
Superman
Bachan
Frank Miller
Xanga
John Picacio
Worldcon 76
Mexicanx Initiative
John Scalzi
Alejandro Jodorowski
George R.R. Martin
Isaac Asimov
Robert Heinlein
Arthur C. Clarke
Hugo Loser’s Party
Aidan Moher
Sarahs Gailey and Hollowell
The Dot-Com Bubble
Sarah Gailey’s Personal Canons
Héctor’s essay
Momo challenge
Momo and The Neverending Story, by Michael Ende
Terry Pratchett
The Dispossessed, by Ursula K Le Guin
River of Teeth and Taste of Marrow, by Sarah Gailey
Unmasking Autism and Laziness Does Not Exist, by Devon Price
We’re Here 2020, edited by C.L. Clark and Charles Peyseur
Charles Peyseur
C.L. Clark
“The Captain and the Quartermaster,” by C.L. Clarke
Babel, by R.F. Kuang
Superliminal (game)
Portal
Key & Peele
Nope
Dave Chapelle (fuck that guy)
Reboot
Buster Keaton
Paul Rudd
Héctor’s insta
 
Tune in next month, when my guests will be Jordan Kurella and R.J. Theodore!

This time around, it’s my delight to welcome (finally) Hugo-winning fan writer, Aidan (@adribbleofink) Moher to the show! We’re talking about his new book, Fight, Magic, Items, which just released October 4th! Aidan reads from the introduction to the book, which leads us into a deep discussion of the games that shaped our childhoods.
 
Things we mention in this episode:
 
A Dribble of Ink
Final Fantasy
Dragon Quest
The Offspring
NOFX
Warcraft II
LAN Party
Doom II
Final Fantasy VI
Xenogears
Hironobu Sakaguchi
Yuji Horii
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall of the Foot Clan
Game Boy
Final Fantasy Legend II
The Legend of Zelda
Akitoshi Kawazu
Doom
Final Fantasy III
Game Players
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Nintendo Power
Chrono Trigger
The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Sword of Shannara, by Terry Brooks
Magic: the Gathering
Dragon Ball Z
Shōnen
Super NES
Playstation 1
Final Fantasy XV
Final Fantasy XIII
Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy IX
Final Fantasy X
Grandia
Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete
Tales of Destiny
Visual Novels
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Final Fantasy Adventure
Mana series
Kirby’s Dream Land 2
Pokemon Red
Final Fantasy VII
The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan
Tetris
Star Trek: 25th Anniversary (Game Boy game)
Carl Jung
Gnosticism
K’Nex
Metal Gear Solid
Suikoden III
Hideo Kojima
Sega Saturn
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Grandia (Sega Saturn)
Vagrant Story
Aidan’s localization piece (not published yet, link TK)
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection
Power-Up, by Chris Kohler
Final Fantasy V, by Chris Kohler
Press Reset and Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, by Jason Schreier
Pure Invention, by Matt Alt
Sailor Moon
Aidan’s website
fighmagicitems.rocks
Astrolabe
Patrick Klepek
Less Than Jake
 
Join us again in two weeks, when my guest will be Héctor González! 

In case you missed the announcement at the start of our last episode, with Neon Yang, my new game, All Our Yesterdays, is available now for pay-what-you-want on my itch! 
This time around, it’s my absolute pleasure to welcome to the show Aimee Kuzenski (@aimeekuzenski)! Aimee reads to us from her novel, Tilted, which leads us into a great discussion on the interiority of writing, thoughts about reading aloud, and how important a good fight scene is.
 
Things we mention in this episode:
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
Viable Paradise
John Appel
Karen Osborne
Valerie Valdes
Scrivener
Third person omniscient
The Earthsea Cycle, by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Jane Austen
Karen’s twitch
“Fractured,” by Aimee Kuzenski
The Murderbot Diaries, by Martha Wells
The Locked Tomb series, by Tamsyn Muir
The Broken Earth series, by N.K. Jemisin
The Raven Tower, by Ann Leckie
Ancillary Justice, by Ann Leckie
Blade Runner
Wow, cool robot
Hayao Miyazaki
The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien
“The Shadow out of Time”, by racist uncle Howard
Beneath the Rising series, by Premee Mohamed
The Innsmouth Legacy series, by Ruthanna Emrys
Ruthanna’s episode
Dune, by Frank Herbert
“How I Became Coruscating Queen of All the Realms, Pierced the Obsidian Night, Destroyed a Legendary Sword, and Saved My Heart’s True Love,” by Baker and Dovey
No Shit, There I Was, edited by Alex Acks
Story Hour
Skies of Wonder, Skies of Danger, edited by Agner, Appel, and Miles
“The Raven,” by Edgar Allan Poe
Castle
Fix My Fight Scene on Twitch and Youtube
K.B. Wagers
Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045
Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility
Emma Thompson
Kate Winslet
Persuasion 
Clueless
What Moves the Dead, by T. Kingfisher
The Fall of the House of Usher, by Edgar Allan Poe
Just Like Home, by Sarah Gailey

As mentioned at the top of the show, I have a game out, All Our Yesterdays, which you can find on my Itch.io!
 
It’s my absolute pleasure, this time around, to welcome Neon Yang to the show to talk about their brand new book, The Genesis of Misery, out September 27th, 2022, from Tor books! Neon reads to us from the start of the book, which leads us into some great discussion about why doing multiple rewrites can be good, actually.
 
Things we mention in this episode:
 
Neon’s Tensorate series
Joan of Arc
Gundam
Sarah Gailey’s latest book tour
Just Like Home, by Sarah Gailey
Dongwon Song
Friends at the Table PARTIZAN
Monster Hunter Rise
Devil May Cry
Elden Ring
Neon’s insta
 
Join us next time, when my guest will be Aimee Kuzenski!