Our Episodes
Political fantasy with Katherine Addison
We talk about unequal societies a lot on this show, about privilege and power and who is in a position to use it. We wanted to take a critical look at a subgenre that maybe best reflects the democratic, bureaucratic society that many of us experience every day. Some...
Technology and the fear of change with Sarah Pinsker
Technological advances are incredible. Just think, the phone in your pocket is infinitely more powerful than the computers that sent the first spaceships to the moon! Technology has given us basic things we take for granted like running water and electricity, to more...
The power of love with Tasha Suri
Love can raise us up. Love can tear us down. It can be our strength, our weakness, and everything in between. And inevitably, love makes fools of us all. While we all enjoy reading a good romance, a love story is rarely just a love story. It has so many other uses...
Tackling the classics – with Nghi Vo
95 years after it was first published, the copyright on The Great Gatsby has expired. This great American novel has sold over 25 million copies since it was first published, despite initially disappointing sales. It is hard to believe now, with its cultural...
Revenge with Marjorie Liu
We actually recorded this episode WAY back in January, just after Biden's inauguration in the US. So, naturally, there is a bit of politics in this one given how wrapped up we all were in what was going on... you've been warned! An eye for an eye. You hurt me, I’ll...
Moving the frontier – with Stark Holborn
The frontier. The edge of civilisation. So far from the central government that laws are more like 'guidelines'. Where the sheriffs are crooked and the criminals ruthless; trains rarely go un-sacked and the cattle drive never goes to plan. Oh, and don't forget the...
Chosen Identities – with Charlie Jane Anders
Our identity is who we are. But for such a seemingly simple concept, our identities are extremely complex. We aren't the only ones who decide our identities. Society places labels on us that we often don’t feel represents who we are, or worse, forces us into very...
Franchise writing with Una McCormack
The basic principles of writing a book are simple – come up with an idea, write it. Of course, it isn't really that simple, it is a lot of hard work, but that's about the size of it, right? Well, not always. What happens if you are asked to write for a hugely popular...
Making the ordinary monstrous with Catriona Ward
Why do we need monsters in our fiction? Why do we want to be frightened? When they pick up a book, do readers enter into a pact with a writer, as Catriona Ward describes: a pact that says I share your fear, let's face it together? We asked Catriona about the nature of...