The Cru take the week off to spend time with their families... and of course, wind up getting together to write anyway.  This is a non-standard episode; instead of providing a prompt, we just read from our other works-in-progress.  

Fair warning, much scotch was consumed.

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Keeping with their folk tale theme, The Cru dive into tales of the false bride. Stories feature the joys of child...birth?; the adventures of the "Blue Bullet" and her actress; a medieval wedding; and a story that melds the themes of the prompt with "Young Bride" by Midlake. (Definitely give this song a listen!)
From The Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, 1949 ed. 
false or substituted bride: A very widespread folktale motif in which a beautiful young bride-to-be is ousted by an ugly or treacherous impostor Who foists herself off on the unsuspecting husband. In some versions the servant girl who accompanies the bride gets rid of her en route to the wedding, throws her in a river or pushes her into a well (where she thrives in the care of an underworld queen until the right moment for vindication and retribution arrives). Sometimes a stepsister, often with the connivance of the stepmother, ousts the bride of a prince or king, gets rid of her in some fashion (such as transforming her into an animal, throwing her into a river, or reducing her to a menial station), and marries the king herself. 
Stories begin around the 13:30 mark.

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The Cru are joined this week by typewriter insurgent Richard Polt, author of The Typewriter Revolution and one of the editors of the Loose Dog Press series of anthologies.   Discussion revolves around typewriters (Editor's Note: the superior prose producers) and the influence of analogue technology on the creative process.  Stories feature a cornucopia of Grateful Dead references; an O'Connoresque rumination on what we owe to each other; a writer who achieves his dreams; a conversation with the Greater; and a dream within a reality within a dream. 
From The Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, 1949 ed.
grateful dead:the motif of a very widespread group of folktales, which typically begin with the hero, as he starts on a journey, coming upon a group of people ill-treating or refusing to bury the corpse of a dead man who had died before paying his debts.  The hero gives his last penny, either to pay the man's debts or to give him a decent burial, and goes on his way.  Within a few hours a traveling companion joins him (occasionally in the form of a horse or other animal, but usually in human form), who aids him in some impossible task (or a series of tasks and adventures), gets him a fortune, saves his life, marries him to a princess, etc.  Sometimes the companion helps the hero on the condition that they divide all winnings.  Sometimes this proves to be half the princess, or a first-born child.  But he relents and relinquishes his half when the other is about to fulfil the promise.  The story ends with the companion's disclosing himself as the man whose corpse the other had befriended. 
Stories begin around the 22:30 mark.

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The Cru take a poetical turn while imitating the style and substance of author Ellen Hopkins, most notable for her Crank trilogy about the trauma of addiction. Stories feature a disaffected youth; a mysterious eavesdropper in the park; a lonely soul looking for a home; and a misunderstood adolescent.
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
Eavesdropper.  One  who  listens  stealthily  to conversation.  The  eavesdrop  or  eavesdrip  was the  space  of  ground  liable  to  receive  the  water dripping  from  the  eaves  of  a  house.  An  eaves- dropper is  one  who  places  himself  in  the eaves-drip  to  overhear  what  is  said  in  the house.
Under  our  tents  I'll  play  the  eavesdropper, To  hear  if  any  mean,  to  shrink  from  me.
Richard  III,  v,  3. 
Stories begin around the 16 minute mark.

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Thoughts and memories abound as ravens follow a lad to high school; woodland critters come across a secret village; we take a peaceful pause from our stressful lives; a character has the best day of his life, again; and two brothers go on a quest for freedom.
From symbolsage.com- Huginn and Muninn are the two black ravens most commonly associated with the wise but also war-frenzied god Odin. Their names roughly translate from Old Norse as Thought and Memory (intellectual thought – hugr, and emotional thought, desire, and emotion – muninn). 
Stories begin around the 7:25 mark.

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Murph stumps WebEater's collection of arcane reference books with this prompt, a half-man half-scorpion centaur-like monstrosity.  Stories include piano-keys of death; messengers on a mission; the adventures of Blue and Blue Jr.; and a journey to the stars.
From Warriors Of Myth Wiki : 
The Aqrabuamelu is a creature with origins in Mesopotamian mythology, legend and folklore. In particular, accounts of their existence first originate in the Babylonian Creation Myth known as the Enûma Eliš (Enuma Elish), as well as the Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh. 

In these, they are said to have been created by the primordial ocean goddess Tiamat, to wage war against the younger gods and her traitorous mate Apsu.  
Stories begin around the 10:15 mark.

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The Cru welcome back PC Nottingham and introduce Beanbag, the prodigal son of the pod. Our thrilling, chilling autumn continues with spooky tales of mushrooms, Felacius Suckarus, the hubris of the fae, a last motorcycle ride, the hopefulness of good works, and Grief, who comes for us all. 
From The Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend: 
banshee Literally and originally, a woman of the side or fairy folk, in Irish folklore usually appearing as a beautiful woman weeping (and thus foretelling) the death of someone, often a member of a specific family. She is usually associated with the primitive earth goddess of the district which she haunts. (See AINE.) The banshee appears either as a beautiful maiden weeping the coming death or as a gruesome hag foretelling it. She is often identified with the Washer Of The Ford, who is seen at a ford washing bloody garments by one about to die. She is also often associated with the White Ladies of other folklores, partly because of her function as a foreteller of death, and partly because of the etymological confusion between bdn, meaning fair, white-haired, and ban-, a prefix meaning woman, or the actual bean side, woman of the side. 
Stories begin around the 9:20 mark.

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Puppies, Spiderman villains, chicken wings, broken hearts, and goblin blood: this week's episode has it all! The Cru launch Spooky Season- their month of monster stories- with some extra panache for y'all to enjoy as the leaves change, the air crisps, and the cider floweth freely.
From The Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend:
Goblin A household spirit who plays the same role in French folklore as the Scotch and English brownies, bogles, and boggarts, the German kobolds, etc. He is very helpful around the house but also of capricious and erratic temper, mischievous and prankish, given to rapping on walls and doors, moving furniture in the night, breaking dishes, banging pots and pans around, snatching bedclothes off sleepers, etc. Food is left out for the goblin, and often doors are left open for him, just as for all household spirits of this kind in other parts of Europe. Goblins frequent homes where the wine is plentiful and the children pretty. They bring the children dainty tidbits but also punish them when they disobey their mothers. They are fond of horses and often ride them in the night, but also often tangle their manes. The recommended way to get rid goblin (if he becomes more of a nuisance than a help) is to sprinkle flaxseed on the floor. He is such a good housekeeper that he will be obliged to pick it up after a while he will get tired and go away.
Stories begin around the 11:30 mark.

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The Cru pay homage to Salman Rushdie in this week's episode, discussing his oeuvre and his literary hallmarks.  Stories feature the fury of womanhood; the first day of college; a Little America located far, far away; and God observing His creation. 
From  Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable: 
Uroboros (Greek (drakin) ouroboros, (snake) eating its tail’). A circular symbol of eternity or wholeness consisting of a snake curled round to swallow its own tail. The earliest recorded example of it is from Egypt around 1600 BC, and it resurfaces subsequently in many other civilizations in Asia and Europe. 
Stories begin around the 18:20 mark.

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The Cru welcome The G from @storywarsCLE for an episode of girl talk, superheroes, college shenanigans, and pirate abductions. 
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
Thaumaturgus (Greek, ‘wonder-working’). A miracle worker, a name applied to saints and others who are reputed to have performed miracles, and especially Gregory, bishop of Neocaesarea, called Thaumaturgus (c.213-.270), whose miracles included the moving of a mountain. St BERNARD Of Clairvaux (1090-1153) was called the Thaumaturgus of the West.
Stories start around the 19:50 mark.

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Episodes of Radio FreeWrite are protected by a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0) license. All Stories remain the property of their respective authors.