It’s 393 people! And this week, Patrick and John welcome Becky Chambers – part of the team of writers who wrote The Vela, a brand new season of fiction from Serial Box! The writing team includes Becky, Yoon Ha Lee, Rivers Solomon, and S.L. Huang.

About Becky Chambers: Becky Chambers is the author of the science fiction novels The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, A Closed and Common Orbit, and Record of a Spaceborn Few. Her books have been nominated for the Hugo Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and the Bailey’s Women’s Prize for Fiction, among others. She also writes essays and short stories, which can be found here and there around the internet.

In addition to writing, Becky has a background in performing arts, and grew up in a family heavily involved in space science. She spends her free time playing video and tabletop games, keeping bees, and stomping around the woods. Having lived in Scotland and Iceland, she is currently back in her home state of California.

About The Vela: Orphan, refugee, and soldier-for-hire Asala Sikou doesn’t think too much about the end of civilization. Her system’s star is dying, and the only person she can afford to look out for is herself. When a ship called The Vela vanishes during what was supposed to be a flashy rescue mission, a reluctant Asala is hired to team up with Niko, the child of a wealthy inner planet’s president, to find it and the outer system refugees on board. But this is no ordinary rescue mission; The Vela holds a secret that places the fate of the universe in the balance, and forces Asala to decide—in a dying world where good and evil are far from black and white, who deserves to survive?

This week’s picks:

* Becky: Return of the Obra Dinn (Video game)

* John: Lake Street Dive (band)

* Patrick: Closed Patreon Group on FB

Links:

* Becky Chamber’s website

* John Anealio on Twitter

* Patrick Hester on Twitter

* The Functional Nerds Patreon Page

* Patrick’s Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere)

© 2019 Patrick Hester and John Anealio

This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.