Interview episodes
Onscreen representation of women with Kate Madison
Here on BtGS, we regularly discuss how female characters in SFF are depicted on-screen. From the infamous bikini armour to simply being absent from male-centric narratives – women have had their fair share of problematic portrayals. But is the tide turning? Joining us...
Rethinking the Badass with Alex Acks
https://twitter.com/katsudonburi/status/1218249179220172800?s=20 There needs to be a serious fucking cultural conversation about the storytelling desire to turn everyone into an edgy badass that thinks all problems are best solved with violence and what the...
Reinventing the Fairytale with Brigid Kemmerer
Beauty and the Beast is amongst our best-known fairytales, enduring and enchanting in equal measure. But beneath its romantic exterior lurks a darker story, one that various writers have explored over the years. For the first episode of 2020, we are joined by...
Re-imaginings with Christina Henry
If you love a story, you love reading it over and over again. But you can also get joy out of reading someone’s reinterpretation of it. When authors decide to take old stories that we know and love and turn them into something else, it can breathe new life into...
Writing and adapting Orphan Black with Madeline Ashby
When our favourite television series come to an end on our screens, it doesn't always mean goodbye. Firefly was revived with Serenity and Buffy the Vampire Slayer found a second life in a celebrated comic series (and yes, this happens for more than just Joss Whedon...
Horror short stories with Marie O’Regan
Before you listen to this episode, you should be warned: your to be read pile will become unmanageable. If you're anything like us, you already have a huge to-read list, but we discuss so many epic horror short stories and novels that you won't be able to help...
The moment of the novella with JY Yang
I have been thoroughly enjoying JY Yang’s Tensorate series of novellas so wanted to chat to them about blending science fiction and fantasy, non-binary representation in SFF, and using different structures and forms across a series! Fair warning – there is a lot...
Alternate histories with Mary Robinette Kowal
Alternate history narratives – regardless of whether they have overt fantasy or sci-fi elements – are ultimately ‘what if’ narratives. This is the same basic principle underlying all speculative fiction, so it is no wonder they made such good bedfellows. Have you ever...
Trinities with Jen Williams
From ancient mythology and religious texts to Star Trek and Harry Potter, trinities – or trios – have always been a common motif. Why is the power of three so potent and what tropes do we tend to see? To help us delve into this subject, we have enlisted the help of...