Radio FreeWrite

Tonight we welcome the winner of Story Wars: After Dark! Sandwich shares her journey as a writer; how it feels to get back into the hobby after becoming a parent; and the kind of chutzpah it takes to walk into a stranger's basement and record a podcast. Stories begin around the 18:15 mark and include a gross dudebro; a woman who finds out her husband is not who she thought he was; a meditation on killing taboos; and a day in the life of a tortured academic. 
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:  
Selkie (From Scottish English sealgh, 'seal'). In the folklore of the Orkney and Shetland islands, a seal-like sea creature with the capacity to take human form on land. Super- stitions against killing seals often had the selkie as their rationale. 

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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.

We have something a little different for you with this one: our prompt this evening is this poem by Instagram's Raving Poet. Discuss the challenges of using a poem as inspiration as well as the uniquely evocative nature of collage poetry.  We battle some internet gremlins, and The Lotus loses her connection. Despite these misfortunes, stories this evening begin around the 18:45 mark and include a girl, applying to disappear; a check-in with some beloved characters; a detective delivering some news; and a slew of single-line poetry.
Dear one / you no longer look / and there are so many / ways to disappear. 

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
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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.

Tonight we welcome writer Woz Flint to the pod to chat about her forthcoming book, The Distraction-Free First Draft.  We chat about typewriters and Woz's unique ways of using them to get into her characters' heads. Then cometh the stories. It's been a long while since we had to pause recording multiple times just to laugh, but... here we are. Stories begin around the 16:50 mark and include a girl who becomes Ariadne; Ariadne in her new, unexpected job; a modern retelling of the legend; a poem about the heroine;  the thread of destiny; and a touch of time travel. 
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:  
Ariadne (Greek arī, intensive prefix, and adnos, 'holy'). In Greek mythology daughter of the Cretan king, MINOS. She helped THESEUS to escape from the LABYRINTH and later went with him to Naxos where he deserted her. Here, Dionysus found her and married her. 

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
Be sure to follow us on Instagram (if that's your sort of thing). Please do send us an email with your story if you write along, which we hope you will do.

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.

We've had so many guests-- and of such a high caliber, it must be said-- that it's taken us this long to get to our first author episode of season 3! We take a look at Cormac McCarthy's style before shamelessly pillaging it for our stories. If you've never read McCarthy, buckle up. His work is depressing and glorious (unless you ask Spud, who... did not enjoy the experience of reading him. More on that within!). Stories this evening begin around the 19:20 mark and feature a detective, puzzled by shrouds; a prophet seeking sanctuary; a story about violence; and a tale of an abbey. 
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:  
Turin Shroud, The. The shroud of twill linen kept in Turin Cathedral and claimed to be the one in which the body of Christ was wrapped after the crucifixion. The pope agreed to RADIOCARBON DATING in 1987, and in 1988 the archbishop of Turin appointed the Oxford Research Laboratory for Archaeology, the Department of Physics of Arizona University and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology at Zurich to date the shroud, pieces of which -101 were gi were given to these institutes in April 1988. The results were announced on 13 October and the cloth was dated between 1260 and 1390. There is no firm historical evidence that it was known before the 14th century. Although not accepted by all, the general conclusion is that the shroud is a medieval fake. 

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
Be sure to follow us on Instagram (if that's your sort of thing). Please do send us an email with your story if you write along, which we hope you will do.

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.

We welcome author Chelsea Burton Dunn aboard the pod this week to discuss the hold our characters have over us as writers. Check out her Instagram and TikTok for spooky romps through modern tales! Stories begin around the 16 minute mark and include a tale of a dragon; a group of people who have fallen for something; a Spud-style meet cute; and a lonely boy stumbling upon a shop that promises to take care of his needs.
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:  
Hook, line and sinker. To swallow a tale hook, line and sinker is to be extremely gullible, like the hungry fish that swallows not only the baited hook, but the sinker (lead weight) and some of the line as well. 

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
Be sure to follow us on Instagram (if that's your sort of thing). Please do send us an email with your story if you write along, which we hope you will do.

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.

Never-ending tasks? Sounds right up the writer's alley! We're joined again by J.W. Surface to discuss his latest book (available now!) and all things spooky. We even extended spooky season another week to do it. Heck, it's still getting darker, the leaves are whispering secrets, and something lurks in the shadows. Spooky is baked into the autumnal cake.
Stories begin around the 17:30 mark and include the start of the next great American zombie novel; what happens when the prompt becomes too much of itself; a girl with recurring nightmares and dreams; a good ol' fashioned werewolf story; and a tale about being a woman.
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable: 
Paint the Forth Bridge, To. To carry out an apparently endless task that has to be started again as soon as it is finished. The reference is to the railway bridge over the Firth of Forth in southeast Scotland, built in 1890 and legendary for its continuous painting process, each session of which traditionally takes four years to complete. See also SISYPHUS

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
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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.

This week we welcome author Willow Vincenty to the pod. She brings her character-crafting A-game to Fetch, the final episode in this year's spooky season. We have several excellent and spooky ghost stories (beginning at the 16:45 mark) for you this week, featuring a fetch; another fetch; 4 micro stories; a mortician who gets murdered (and doesn't mind all that much); and... another one about a fetch. Happy Halloween, y'all.
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable: 
fetch In Irish and north of England folklore, the apparition of a living person; one's spirit-double, iden- tical in appearance, even to details of dress. A fetch can be seen usually only by persons with second sight. It is most commonly seen, however, by a special friend or near relative just before or at the moment of death of the original. If it is seen in the morning it is thought to presage longevity for the original; its appearance at night means he is about to die or has just died. The fetch usually comes walking along easily and casually and disappears across the fields or through a gap in a hedge. If it seems to be agitated or distressed, a violent death is known to be in store for the original. One's fetch is even occasionally seen by oneself. 

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
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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.

The Cru gathers for our annual breakfast episode and play a little game with our prompting. This week's prompts come from the Story Engine, a card deck story prompt generator. We each used cards to create a story we'd like to write, then had fun rearranging each other's stories. This led to a discussion on how much structure we like to have in a prompt, as well as how having a plot for a prompt changes the way we approach creating fiction. Stories begin at the 17:30 mark and include a tourist to our world; a librarian with a cursed book; an idol, revealing the details of an arcane weapon; and a doctor who has to get rid of a letter.

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
Be sure to follow us on Instagram (if that's your sort of thing). Please do send us an email with your story if you write along, which we hope you will do.

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.

It's all too easy to get caught up in perfectionism, particularly when first bringing an idea to paper. Tonight the Cru chats about what first drafts really are, and how to use them. Stories begin at the 17:10 mark and include a teen wolf chasing a teen girl; an interview in a hospital room; and a detective searching for a human girl. I'll warn you, Krispy's tale gets a little gruesome.
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
Go off at half-cock, To. To fail as a result of doing something prematurely or without proper preparation. The allusion is to a gun that goes off when the hammer is set at half-cock and supposedly secure.

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
Be sure to follow us on Instagram (if that's your sort of thing). Please do send us an email with your story if you write along, which we hope you will do.

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.

It's spooky season, friends! Every October we aim to provide spooky, monstery stories for your frightful delight. This time, your humble host forgot it was the launch of the spooks (you'd think the gentle aroma of leaves and pumpkin spice on the air would tip him off, but c'est la vie) and chose a decidedly unspooky prompt. The Cru then did their best to create suspenseful tales for you, and discussed various techniques that can help create that atmosphere and tone in writing. Stories begin at the 19:30 mark and include a tale from the dark of space; making amends, with repercussions; and a new sort of AI.
From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable:
Dipper, The. An old name for the seven principal stars of the constellation URSA MAJOR, the Great Bear, also known as the Plough or CHARLES'S WAIN. The name is derived from the supposed resemblance to the kitchen utensil of this name, a pan with a long handle.  

Like this weeks episode and wish you could read as well as listen? Subscribe to our Substack for a summary of our opening discussion, a story from the episode, and a writing prompt!

 
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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.