Talking Scared podcast

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Lagt til four år siden

Innhold levert av Neil McRobert. Alt podcastinnhold, inkludert episoder, grafikk og podcastbeskrivelser, lastes opp og leveres direkte av Neil McRobert eller deres podcastplattformpartner. Hvis du tror at noen bruker det opphavsrettsbeskyttede verket ditt uten din tillatelse, kan du følge prosessen skissert her https://no.player.fm/legal.

<div class="span index">1</div> <span><a class="" data-remote="true" data-type="html" href="/series/ask-grumpy">Ask Grumpy</a></span>

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Ask Grumpy

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Ask Grumpy, a podcast featuring Steve Bender, AKA Southern Living’s Grumpy Gardener is back for Season 3. For more than 30 years, Grumpy has been sharing advice on what to grow, when to plant, and how to manage just about anything in your garden. Tune in for short episodes every Wednesday and Saturday as Grumpy answers reader questions, solves seasonal conundrums, and provides need-to-know advice for gardeners with his very Grumpy sense of humor. Be sure to follow Ask Grumpy wherever you listen so you don't miss an episode.

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Conversations with the biggest names in horror fiction. A podcast for horror readers who want to know where their favourite stories came from . . . and what frightens the people who wrote them.

259 episoder

#Society #Books #Arts #Neil McRobert

Talking Scared

47 subscribers

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Conversations with the biggest names in horror fiction. A podcast for horror readers who want to know where their favourite stories came from . . . and what frightens the people who wrote them.

259 episoder

#Society #Books #Arts #Neil McRobert

Alle episoder

Talking Scared

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240 – John Connolly & Detective Gothic: The Charlie Parker Deep Dive 1:33:28

for 1 day siden1:33:28

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John Connolly is, in my opinion, the greatest living writer working in the overlap of crime and horror. His long-running series of novels—focused on the Strange cases of his haunted detective, Charlie Parker—is now over twenty books strong. The latest, The Children of Eve is a pivotal instalment, so this seemed a good time to get John on the show, to grill him about this saga’s many mysteries, and hideous horrors. We talk about creating iconic villains, writing violence against the vulnerable, the monstrous feminine and the strange truth of Parker’s nature. There’s also some very exciting info on a possible TV adaptation! Enjoy! Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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239 – Sarah Pinborough & What Are Ghosts But Lies Persevering? 1:14:51

for 8 dager siden1:14:51

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It’s a week of sadness and hilarity on Talking Scared. The happy stuff comes courtesy of Sarah Pinborough, author of Weird domestic gothics, like Behind Her Eyes and the brand new ghost story (or is it?) We Live Here Now. We talk about confounding expectations, about the rules of the psychological thriller, about the British horror scene then and now, and about the dark truth that we all lie to each other. The sadness... well you’ll hear that in the outro if you want to stick around for it. If not, no worries at all. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: The Reckoning (2005), by Sarah Pinborough Breeding Ground (2006), by Sarah Pinborough Behind Her Eyes (2016), by Sarah Pinborough Every Dead Thing (1999), by John Connolly The Sleepwalkers (2024), by Scarlett Thomas The Woman in Black (1983), by Susan Hill The Shining (1977), by Stephen King The Haunting of Hill House (1959), by Shirley Jackson No One Gets Out Alive (2014), by Adam Nevill The Hamlet (2025), by Joanna Corrance Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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238 – The Frozen Frontier: Ally Wilkes and Michelle Paver, Live at the Oxford Literary Festival 1:05:13

for 15 dager siden1:05:13

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Talking Scared goes live! In April I was invited to chair a conversation between Michelle Paver and Ally Wilkes at the Oxford Literary Festival. I duly leapt on a train and bundled my way there – to ask the two survival horror queens about their stories of haunting and isolation in the coldest parts of the world. We talk about handling the Victorian attitudes of exploration horror, the unique properties of fear in the vast open, and how their law careers led them to write such wild stories. Also, we hear quite a lot of juicy info about their forthcoming jungle horror novels. Thanks to the Oxford Literary Festival for the invitation. Other books mentioned: The Worst Journey in the World (1922), by Apsley Cherry-Garrard Female Husbands: A Trans History (2020), by Jen Manion “The Man Whom The Trees Loved,” (1912), by Algernon Blackwood. Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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Off Book #9 – Eli Craig & Clown in a Cornfield 50:08

for 19 dager siden50:08

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Send in the clowns! In this Off Book episode I talk to Eli Craig, director of cult-classic Tucker and Dale vs Evil , and the man who put Clown in a Cornfield up on the big screen. After crowbarring my way into his press day, I asked him what drew him to the project, what else there is to ‘do’ with scary clowns and slashers in cinema, and what this movie has to say about Middle America right now. We go deeper than you’d expect for a movie about clowns chasing kids with chainsaws. Enjoy Clown in a Cornfield is in cinemas from May 9th. Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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237 – Joe Abercrombie & The International Brotherhood of the Blade 1:13:51

for 22 dager siden1:13:51

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Let’s get grim and dark with Lord Grimdark! Perhaps the greatest benefit of having a book podcast like mine is the opportunity to speak to my very favourite authors. I’ve been reading Joe Abercrombie’s violent, world-weary dark fantasy for TWENTY years! And now he’s on the show. Consider me excited. His new book may be called The Devils , and it may contain werewolves, vampires, necromancers and oceans of blood – but it’s quite a cheery affair for Joe. I have never laughed so much in preparation for an interview. We talk writing the most anti of antiheroes, gender-flipping the catholic church, and why you shouldn’t sleep with people who own swords. It’s a lot of fun. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: A Game of Thrones (1996), by George R. R. Martin Wizard of Earthsea (1968), by Usula K. Le Guin LA Confidential (1990) by James Ellroy Blood Meridian (1995), by Cormac McCarthy Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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236 – Brian Keene & Living in the Splatter 1:19:17

for 29 dager siden1:19:17

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Brian Keene has written so many damn books! …and I had never read any of them. This absolute horror faux-pas (and my embarrassment) is the reason that it’s taken so long to get Brian on the show. But I set a week aside and read as many Keene books as I could and here we are… on a leisurely stroll through Brian’s life and career,both of which he has devoted to stories of really nasty s*** happening to undeserving people. We talk abouthis bleak coming-of-age novel, Ghoul , his story of a homicidal nightfrom hell, The Complex , and his sombre study of mortality and writing inthe 21st century, The End of the Road. And between all that we cover hope and nihilism, we ask if horror could help shore up the failing centre, and Brian talks me through all the great writers I missed when I wasn’t paying enough attention to horror. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: The Rising (2003), by Brian Keene Entombed (2011), by Brian Keene Ghoul (2007), by Brian Keene End of the Road (2020), by Brian Keene The Cellar (1980), by Richard Laymon The Beast House (1986), by Richard Laymon The Island (1995), by Richard Laymon A Writer’s Tale (1998), by Richard Laymon The Girl Next Door (1989), by Jack Ketchum Survivor (2002), by J.F. Gonzalez A Choir of Ill Children (2007) by Tom Piccirilli “Sticks” (1974), by Karl Edward Wagner “West Of Matamoros, South of Hell” (2017), by Brian Hodge (in Best Horror of the Year, Volume 10 , edited by Ellen Datlow) The Day of the Door (2024), by Laurel Hightower The Better To Eat You With (2024), by Wesley Southard Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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235 – Nat Cassidy & Emotional Doomsday Prepping 1:34:12

for 5 weeks siden1:34:12

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I’ve been looking forward to releasing this one… Nat Cassidy comes to Talk Scared about When the Wolf Comes Home , his new novel that I –and people like me – are already calling out as one of the Best Books of the Year™. It’s a shaggy, undisciplined, sprinting beast of a book that obeys no rules. You may think it’s a werewolf novel, and you may be right... but also very wrong. It’s a book about transformations of many kinds, about fatherhood and the very nature of fear itself. But it’s also funny, scary and sad as hell. You’ll love the damn thing, and this conversation. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Mary: An Awakening of Terror (2022), by Nat Cassidy Nestlings (2023), by Nat Cassidy Play Nice (forthcoming, 2025), by Rachel Harrison Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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Off Book #8 – Kyle McConaghy & Dead Mail 56:28

for 6 weeks siden56:28

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Back to the 80s this week for one of the most singular horror movies of the year – now streaming on Shudder. Dead Mail is an ode to the era, but there are no neon fonts or leg warmers (or Olivia Newton Johns) here. Instead we’re in the drear of the decade, for a story about a synth-obsessed man who keeps his business partner captive in his flock-wallpapered bathroom. The poor victim’s only hope is the investigative ‘Dead Mail’ department of his local post office. If that sounds mad… well, it is. And I’m joined by Kyle McConaghy, one half of the writing/directing duo behind the movie. We talk about scripting the crazy, about the hands-on reality of low-budget filmmaking, replicating 80s aesthetics, and a big bucket full of rubber rats. Enjoy! Dead Mail is streaming on Shudder from Friday 18th April Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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234 – Katherine Arden & The Devil’s Train Timetable 1:19:54

for 6 weeks siden1:19:54

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In the week that the world changed, we’re talking about the last time things got this crazy. Katherine Arden is the author of The Warm Hands of Ghosts — a novel set in the trenches of the First World War and on the borderline between horror and fantasy. It’s a Faustian pact made in No-Man’s Land, where our memories are the price we pay for keeping ourselves alive. In this episode we talk a lot about history, about inflection points and moments of no-return. We talk about how systems of power can seem so complex that they lead only to ruin – but we also talk devils and fairies and angels and brave, brave nurses with scarred hands. It’s a joy of a conversation, about the most hideous time to be alive. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: The Bear and the Nightingale (2017), by Katherine Arden The Buffalo Hunter Hunter (2025), by Stephen Graham Jones Wasteland: The Great War and the Origin of Modern Horror (2018), by W. Scott Pool Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (2004), by Susanna Clarke The Master and the Margarita (1940), by Mikhail Bulgakov Lud in the Mist (1926), by Hope Mirrlees Ghosts Have Warm Hands: A Memoir of the Great War (1968), by Will R. Bird Between Two Fires (2012), by Christopher Buehlman Ghost Eaters (2022), by Clay McLeod Chapman Wake Up and Open Your Eyes (2025), by Clay McLeod Chapman Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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233 – Tariq Ashkanani & Bloodstained Hands Across the Ocean 1:15:20

for 7 weeks siden1:15:20

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This week we go from Edinburgh, Scotland to Nashville, Tennessee, in the company of crime author Tariq Ashkanani. Tariq’s The Midnight King is a tricky, quasi-metafictional murder mystery about cursed manuscripts, familial secrets and the most heinous murders. It’s also a love letter to the kind of occult-tinged American crime epics that both he and I grew up loving. We talk about the challenge of writing about serial killing without exploitation, about the unstable boundary between crime and horror fiction, about the allure of Hannibal Lecter and the pressure of a good twist. But mostly we just pay homage to the messy, bloodsoaked myth of America that inspired us so much over the years. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Welcome to Cooper (2021), by Tariq Ashkanani Red Dragon (1981), by Thomas Harris Galveston (2010), by Nic Pizzolatto The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper (2019), by Hallie Rubenhold The Devil All the Time (2011), by Donald Ray Pollock Uzumaki (2000), by Junji Ito Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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232 – Punk Goes Horror, with William Sterling, Wendy Dalrymple & Brian McAauley 1:05:26

for 8 weeks siden1:05:26

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Time to throw ourselves around. We’re covering Punk Goes Horror. The anthology of stories inspired by punk and alternative rock songs came out just a few weeks back. It brings together a mosh-pit full of authors, both new and established, to transmute their favourite songs into nasty little stories. I invited the anthology editor, William Sterling, and two of his contributors, Wendy Dalrymple and Brian McCauley, to talk about punk, and horror and the affinity between the two. We get into our favourite ever gig experiences, the creepy assumptions behind certain emo-songs, and why punk (and music generally) is such an important light in dark times. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk (2024), by Kathleen Hanna Victorian Psycho (2025), by Virginia Feito Blood on her Tongue (2025), by Johanna van Veen Credenza (2025), by Wendy Dalrymple Breathe in, Bleed Out (2025), by Brian McCauley Poisoned Soup for the Macabre, Depraved and Insane: An Anthology of Nostalgic Terrors (2025), edited by Wendy Dalrymple and Grace R. Reynolds Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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Let Us Palaver #2 — The Drawing of the Three Debrief 31:41

for 9 weeks siden31:41

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The second Let Us Palaver minisode – in which Nat Cassidy dig into the things we couldn't say about The Drawing of the Three, and give MAJOR SPOILERS about whole Dark Tower series. We're really start to wonder if Chris is punking us. Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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The Dark Tower Deep Dive #2 – The Drawing of the Three 2:15:10

for 9 weeks siden2:15:10

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The Ka-tet picks up exactly where we left off: on the beaches of Midworld, with Roland Deschain. (If none of that makes any sense to you, go listen to episode one of the Dark Tower Deep Dive immediately) Nat Cassidy, Chris Panatier and I gather for a long, philosophical, expletive-littered conversation about Book 2: The Drawing of the Three. We get further into the character of Roland and his quest, and spend some time with the gaggle of oddballs he meets along his scenic tour of the coast. The seafood is particularly tasty! It’s good to be talking Tower again. Enjoy. Nnedi Okorafor's article on Odetta/Detta Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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231 – Stephen Graham Jones & Rewilding the Vampire 1:16:11

for 10 weeks siden1:16:11

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It’s always great when Stephen Graham Jones comes to Talk Scared with us – but for once we aren’t talking about slashers! No, this time, we’re talking vampires! Or are we? Stephen’s new novel, The Buffalo Hunter Hunter , is his best yet. Or at least the one that I love the most. It’s an epic and brutal saga of American history and shame, told through three very distinctive voices, speaking across the centuries. There are monsters with fangs AND with flags. We talk about Stephen’s relationship with so-called Indian stories…about his use and misuse of animals in fiction, and the white-knuckle, red-hot writing style that leads to some truly crazy things. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Ledfeather (2008), by Stephen Graham Jones The Only Good Indians (2020), by Stephen Graham Jones The Babysitter Lives / Killer on the Road (2025), by Stephen Graham Jones Ceremony (1977), by Leslie Marmon Silko Riddley Walker (1980), by Russell Hoban A Game of Thrones (1996), by George R. R. Martin The Devils (2025), by Joe Abercrombie I Am Legend (1954), by Richard Matheson Dark Places (2009), by Gillian Flynn Dubliners (1914), by James Joyce Angel Down (2025), by Daniel Kraus The Warm Hands of Ghosts (2024), by Katherine Arden Victorian Psycho (2025), by Virginia Feito Curse of the Reaper (2022), by Brian McCauley Breathe in, Bleed Out (2025), by Brian McCauley Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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230 – Alex Grecian & Weirdos in the West 1:09:40

for 11 weeks siden1:09:40

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Saddle up for a weird west week on Talking Scared. The start of a loose trilogy of sorts. This first instalment features Alex Grecian, talking about his fantastical vision of the Old West (and East) in 2023’s Red Rabbit and the brand-new follow-up, Rose of Jericho . We cover western inspirations, the melancholia of ghosts, Kansas legends and surprising witches. There’s also a nerdy little cryptid section thrown in there too cos you know I can’t resist. It’s a charmer this week. With a glint in its eye. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: The Yard (2012), by Alex Grecian Lonesome Dove (1985), by Larry McMurtry The Staircase in the Woods (forthcoming 2025), by Chuck Wendig The Summer People (2015), by Kelly Link “Skinders Veil,” in White Cat, Black Dog (2023), by Kelly Link Knock Knock, Open Wide (2023), by Neil Sharpson Pet Semetary (1983), by Stephen King Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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229 – Agustina Bazterrica & The Wicked Nuns of Oz 1:11:56

for 12 weeks siden1:11:56

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No one is doing dystopia right now like Agustina Bazterrica. After Tender is the Flesh made us all consider vegetarianism, now she’s back for a long hard look at patriarchy, religion and populism in The Unworthy. It’s a quiet end of the world, set almost entirely in the confines of a strange convent, and the cult who will do anything to maintain their power. We talk about how Agustina finds the necessary voice of her characters, why love is just another form of madness, how science-fiction just can’t look away from misogyny, and how she once read five books to find a new word for penis. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Tender is the Flesh (2017), by Agustina Bazterrica The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), by Margaret Atwood Caliban and the Witch (2004), by Silvia Federici Dune (1965), by Frank Herbert A Canticle For Liebowitz (1959), by Walter M. Miller Jr. Silent Spring (1962), by Rachel Carson Fever Dream (2014), by Samanta Schweblin Los Demenios En El Convento (1985), by Fernando Benitez Brat (2024), by Gabriel Smith The Perfect Nanny (2016), by Leila Slimani Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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Off Book #7 – Scott Derrickson 1:27:40

for 13 weeks siden1:27:40

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The latest Off Book episode has me facing my demons. My guest is Scott Derrickson, one of the best horror movie makers to ever do it. He scared us with Sinister , moved us with The Black Phone , marvelled us with Doctor Strange, and ruined my life with The Exorcism of Emily Rose . He’s back with The Gorge , a mad genre mashup, starring Anya-Taylor Joy and Miles Teller, currently streaming on Apple+. Scott joins me for a leisurely conversation about making that artistically-inclined ‘drive-in’ movie, as well as a tour through the highs (and lows) of his filmography. We get into the beauty and terror of super 8 film, his relationship with Joe Hill, and the challenge of the substantial, character led horror film. All complemented with blasts of lilting birdsong from Scott’s LA garden. Plus, a little hint of what to expect from The Black Phone 2 ! Enjoy! Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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228 – Sophie White & An Island of Formless Dread 1:29:43

for 13 weeks siden1:29:43

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Ready to hear a conversation about some devastatingly dark things? Sophie White and I have got you covered! In this expansive chat, we talk about her calculatingly distressing novel, Where I End – in which an isolated island community plays host to the worst, cruellest kind of loneliness. And that books is a springboard for others things, psychosis, weaponised empathy, real-life atrocity and the way that all that darkness can seep into a place forever. But then we also have a good old chat about books we love, and we swear a lot… so there’s a bright side. This is a key conversation for me. A pivotal episode. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Recipes For a Nervous Breakdown (2016), by Sophie White Corpsing : My Body and Other Horror Shows (2020), by Sophie White Apt Pupil (1982), by Stephen King The Yellow Wallpaper (1892), by Charlotte Perkins Gilman The Girl Next Door (1989), by Jack Ketchum Sharkheart: A Love Story (2023), by Emily Habeck The Lamb (2025), by Lucy Rose Tender is the Flesh (2017), by Augustina Bazterrica Lunar Park (2005), by Bret Easton Ellis Our Wives Under the Seas (2022), by Julia Armfield Follow Me To Ground (2018), by Sue Rainsford Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram /Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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227 – Kirsty Logan & Queer as in F**K You 1:17:32

for 14 weeks siden1:17:32

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The title speaks volumes this week. It’s a mission statement. Kirsty Logan is the master of certain kind of edgy, on-the-margins fiction, Queer in every meaning of the word. She can be witchy and folkloric, or contemporary and cutting edge – and all of that range is showcased in her new collection, No & Other Love Stories. We talk about female desire and monstrous fantasy, formal experimentation and the personal logic of stories…and some reassuringly unsettling focus on the erotics of human flesh and menstruation. Don’t say we shy away here at Talking Scared. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Things We Say in the Dark (2019), by Kirsty Logan The Unfamiliar: A Queer Motherhood Memoir (2023), by Kirsty Logan “Skeleton,” by Ray Bradbury (1945), by Ray Bradbury Carrion Crow (2025), by Heather Parry “Tiptoe,” in Not a Speck of Light (2024), by Laird Barron Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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226 – Virginia Feito & A Good Old-Fashioned Bad Girl 1:19:14

for 15 weeks siden1:19:14

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Time to misbehave. Virginia Feito’s new novel, Victorian Psycho, is all about good behaviour, positive standards and polite conduct…and what happens when you flout all that, by – I dunno – slaughtering a houseload of people. It’s a much buzzed about book that takes the psychopathy of American Psycho back to the straightlaced, be-corseted world of the 19th Century, then let’s rip. We talk about glorious violence, the humour of extremity, Charles Dickens and Bret Easton Ellis…and have a deeply amusing conversation about infanticide. Queen Victorian would be appalled. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Mrs March (2021), by Virginia Feito American Psycho (1991), by Bret Easton Ellis A Christmas Carol (1843), by Charles Dickens Nightmare Abbey (1818), by Thomas Peacock The Secret Garden (1911), by Frances Hodgson Burnett The Lamb (2025), by Lucy Rose Come Closer (2003), by Sara Gran The Fate of Mary Rose (1981), by Caroline Blackwood David Copperfield (1850), by Charles Dickens Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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225 – Lucy Rose & The Cumbrian Chainsaw Massacre 1:18:28

for 16 weeks siden1:18:28

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Are you hungry? Depending on your…erm… tastes , the next hour of conversation will do strange things to your appetite. Our guest is Lucy Rose, whose debut novel, The Lamb renders muscle and fat and sorrow down into a rich stew of cannibalism and rural Gothic. We talk about how rooted this book is in the landscape, history and folklore of Northern England – and we also talk a lot about eating people. How to make it sound gross… how to make it sound weirdly poetic. This is a book that’s gonna get people talking. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Tender is the Flesh (2017), by Augustina Bazterrica No & Other Love Stories (2025), by Kirsty Logan The Tryst (2017), by Monique Rossey Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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Let Us Palaver #1 – The Gunslinger Debrief 25:41

for 16 weeks siden25:41

25:41

Here is the first Let Us Palaver minisode – in which Nat Cassidy and I kick Chris off the call, and get to grips with the inner workings of The Dark Tower , without spoiling anything for him, or any of you on your first trip through these books. If you still listen after this spoiler warning and the two I give in the first few minutes of the episode… well, you only have yourself to blame. But for seasoned ‘slingers. I hope this is fun. Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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The Dark Tower Deep Dive #1 – The Gunslinger 2:13:08

for 17 weeks siden2:13:08

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“The man in black fled across the desert, and the podcaster followed…” Welcome to the start of what is sure to be an epic journey. Step by step, over more than a dozen episodes, Talking Scared will be following the beam all the way to the Dark Tower – that mad edifice at the heart of Stephen King’s opus. Maybe it’s the heart of every story ever told… time will tell. Unlike Roland Deschain, I don’t go alone. I’m joined by author and fellow King-nut, Nat Cassidy (Mary, Nestlings, When the Wolf Comes Home ) and absolute newbie, Chris Panatier ( The Phlebotomist, The Redemption of Morgan Bright ) and in this first ever episode we tussle with the tricky, dusty, thorny opening that is Book One: The Gunslinger. What follows dives deep into the book, but is 100% spoiler free about anything beyond it. So if you’ve only read The Gunslinger, you’re good to go. I hope you enjoy our wanderings. I hope you tinct. I hope you darkle. Other books mentioned: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (2000), by Stephen King It (1986), by Stephen King The Jerusalem Man (1988), by David Gemmell The Book of the New Sun (series, 1980-1987), by Gene Wolfe Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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Off Book #6 – Dutch Marich & Horror in the High Desert 1:10:20

for 18 weeks siden1:10:20

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The latest Off Book episode takes you out to the American desert and leaves you there, cold, alone and confused. We’re speaking with Dutch Marich, the surprisingly lovely mind behind the most terrifying found footage I’ve seen in years – The Horror in the High Desert series. These films are full of a particular kind of fear. Never obscure, but always hidden – leaving you as fascinated as you are scared. It’s the kind of weird, collective storytelling that used to set internet forums alight! In this 100% spoiler-free conversation, Dutch and I talk about withholding answers, we discuss the scary side of Nevada and his fascination with unexplained disappearances. And he even tell us the tenuous connection between his movies and Stephen King’s Desperation. Plus, if you’re a fan of these movies, you’ll find out a little info on what’s coming in the next instalment. Enjoy! Sign Dutch's petition Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

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224 – Susan Barker & The Denial of Death 1:08:38

for 18 weeks siden1:08:38

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Tyranny is the key this week on Talking Scared this week. How fitting. Susan Barker’s Old Soul is a globe-trotting, decade-spanning supernatural tour of autocracies, from behind the Iron Curtain to contemporary China. If that isn’t frightening enough, it also features an ageless woman who curses anyone she meets, a grand cosmic entity, and the exhilaration and terror of deep time. Heady stuff, and Susan and I talk about all of it – and just why she likes to write about as many times and places in each book as she can. Enjoy. Incarnations (2014) by Susan Barker Sayonara Bar (2005), by Susan Barker Ghostwritten (1999), by David Mitchell Number9Dream (2001), by David Mitchell Slade House (2015), by David Mitchell House of Leaves (2000), by Mark Z. Danielewski Under the Skin (2000), by Michelle Faber Audition (1997), by Ryū Murakami The Denial of Death (1973), by Ernest Becker The Three Body Problem (2006), by Cixin Liu You Like it Darker (2024), by Stephen King Starve Acre (2019), by Andrew Michael Hurley Barrowbeck (2024), by Andrew Michael Hurley The Ritual (2011), by Adam Neville Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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223 – Kate van der Borgh & A Different Class of Magic 1:20:32

for 19 weeks siden1:20:32

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It’s a collegial week on Talking Scared. ‘Cos I’m talking dark, occult academia with someone very local to me. Kate van der Borgh’s debut, And He Shall Appear is basically a sinister version of my own life. It’s about a young working class lad, like me, who goes to a prestigious university, like me… but there ours paths diverge, as he meets a fellow student who perhaps has diabolical powers. It’s a twisted, obscure, psychological study of unreliable memory, inescapable guilt, and the haunting of not-knowing oneself. Kate and I talk about all of that, as well as the class divide, northern accents, the terror of infinity, favourite ghosts stories, and memories of underrage drinking in the same bars. The book is great. I’m delighted to help celebrate it. Enjoy. The Sense of an Ending (2011), by Julian Barnes The Little Stranger (2009), by Sarah Waters The Pallbearer’s Club (2022), by Paul Tremblay We Were Villains (2017), by M. L. Rio The Secret History (1992), by Donna Tartt “All Souls,” in The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton (1973), by Edith Wharton Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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222 – Clay McLeod Chapman & Oh My God, What Have I Done? 1:21:30

for 20 weeks siden1:21:30

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Welcome back and Happy New Year. 2025 looms ahead. Frightening. Uncertain. Crazy!! Our first guest of the year has written the book that best captures this mad future we’re living in. Clay McLeod Chapman returns to Talking Scared, to talk about Wake Up And Open Your Eyes – his new novel of mass demonic possession, transmitted through poisonous media, and the destruction of families and communities. It’s… disturbing. It’s also gross as hell. Deliciously so. And we talk about that urge for the the ick! As well as his motivations in writing this book, his anxiety over releasing it, and the sadness that underlies our political echo chambers. It’s a hell of a way to kick off a wild, weird year. What Kind of Mother (2023), by Clay McLeod Chapman Ghost Eaters (2022), by Clay McLeod Chapman The Deluge (2022), by Stephen Markley Come Closer (2003), by Sara Gran The Stand (1990), by Stephen King Found: An Anthology of Found Footage Horror Stories (2022), ed by, Andrew Cull and Gabino Iglesias American Rapture (2024), by CJ Leede Feast While You Can (2024), by by Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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221 – The Best Scary Books of 2024 1:09:24

for 21 weeks siden1:09:24

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Send us a text How else to end 2024 than with an entirely subjective list of the best things I’ve read over the year? How many of you will guess the number one spot? I bet none of you will guess the number two? Let me know your thoughts – what you loved, and what you think I missed Enjoy! Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

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220 – Grief and Monsters: The From a Buick 8 Deep Dive 2:03:21

for 22 weeks siden2:03:21

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Send us a text It’s that time of year again. When I celebrate the winter solstice by getting some horror authors to come and talk in deep, emotional detail about a scary book that we like. This time the Christmas Special Deep Dive kicks the tires and looks under the hood of Stephen King’s most underrated novel: From a Buick 8. My friends on this weird-ass-road trip are Ally Malinenko and Nat Cassidy. I asked them to do it for a coupla reasons. 1) They are lovely 2) hey really get King, and 3) they can speak to this book’s focus on grief and loss. And oh boy do we talk grief, loss, afterlives and everything else. Turns out it’s not just a book about a car after all. Don’t worry though, Ally is charming, Nat is snarky and together we’ll make you laugh. And Christmas is supposed to be tinged with melancholy isn’t it… Enjoy! Other Books Mentioned Matterhorn (2009), by Karl Marlantes Hearts in Atlantis (1999), by Stephen King The Colorado Kid (2005), by Stephen King “ The Night Flyer ” and “Popsy,” in Nightmares and Dreamscapes (1993), by Stephen King Nestlings (2023), by Nat Cassidy This Appearing House (2022), by Ally Malinenko Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

Talking Scared

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219 – State of the Horror Nation 2024, with Emily Hughes, Stephanie Gagnon & Anna Dupre 2:22:21

for 23 weeks siden2:22:21

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Send us a text … and we’re back! Just in time for this seasonal tradition. The State of the Horror Nation 2024 – our expert-led review of the best that the year had to offer in terms of horror writing and pen-and-ink nightmares. I’m joined, as ever by my stalwart co-host for this gig, Emily Hughes, author of Horror For Weenies (go check her mammoth 2025 anticipated horror book list at ReadJumpScares.com ) Our special correspondents are Anna Dupre, reviewer and interviewer at Anna Rose Reads , and Stephani Gagnon of the landmark, can’t-be-beaten horror podcast, Books In the Freezer They pick their books of 2024, and we talk about the things that have defined the year, whilst also looking forward to what’s next. Enjoy! Anna's Essay on IT https://filmfreakcentral.net/2024/10/terrifier-3-2024/ Books Picked The Eyes Are the Best Part (2024), by Monika Kim Cuckoo (2024), by Gretchen Felker-Martin American Rapture (2024), by C.J. Leede Woodworm (2024), by Layla Martinez Horror Movie (2024) by Paul Tremblay Night’s Edge (2024), by Liz Kerin So Thirsty (2024), by Rachel Harrison Model Home (2024), by Rivers Solomon I Was a Teenage Slasher (2024), by Stephen Graham Jones Books Anticipated Victorian Psycho (2025), by Virginia Feito The Poorly Made (2025), by Sam Rebelein The Unworthy (2025), by Augustina Bazterrica The Buffalo Hunter Hunter (2025), by Stephen Graham Jones Bat Eater (2025), by Kylie Lee Baker Sick Houses: Haunted Homes and the Architecture of Dread (2025), by Leila Taylor The Haunting of Room 904 (2025), by Erika T. Wurth 8114 (2025),by Joshua Hull When the Wolf Comes Home (2025), by Nat Cassidy Senseless (2025), by Ronald Malfi King Sorrow (2025), by Joe Hill And He Shall Appear (2025), by Kate van der Borgh Nowhere Burning (2025), by Catriona Ward Girl in the Creek (2025), by Wendy Wagner The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre (2025), by Philip Fracassi The End of the World As We Know It: Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand (2025), edited by Brian Keene and Christopher Golden Old Soul (2025), by Susan Barker rekt (2025), by Alex Gonzalez Wake Up and Open Your Eyes (2025), by Clay McLeod Chapman Support Talking Scared on Patreon Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod , on Instagram , or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Support the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices…

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