Something Rather Than Nothing

Episode 50 is distinguished by the world-adored Australian painter and happiness-peddlar (as well as our first ever return guest . . . ) 

Vanessa Stockard! 

Vanessa was featured in Episode 20 wherein she self-effacingly clarified her stance on particular theoretical issues. 

For this episode, we chat about painting metallic balloons, the use of color, her feature in Hi-Fructose magazine, and Kevin the Cat’s prancing animation.  

We also had a strange conversation about licorice before veering towards Vanessa's important support for 'The Torch Project' which, in part, supports art-healing to reduce recidivism rates for the Indigenous prison population in Australia.

Welcome back Vanessa!

Episode 50 is distinguished by the world-adored Australian painter and happiness-peddlar (as well as our first ever return guest . . . )

Vanessa Stockard!

Vanessa was featured in Episode 20 wherein she self-effacingly clarified her stance on particular theoretical issues.

For this episode, we chat about painting metallic balloons, the use of color, her feature in Hi-Fructose magazine, and Kevin the Cat’s prancing animation. 

We also had a strange conversation about licorice before veering towards Vanessa's important support for 'The Torch Project' which, in part, supports art-healing to reduce recidivism rates for the Indigenous prison population in Australia.

Welcome back Vanessa!

LOREN RHOADS My life changed when I read Dracula at age 10 and then again when I saw Star Wars at 13. Telling true stories came much later, but to me, it’s all interconnected. 

My latest book, Tales for the Camp Fire: A Charity Anthology Benefiting Wildfire Relief, came out in May 2019. Northern California’s horror writers came together to raise money for survivors of last year’s devastating wildfire. Contributors include Nancy Etchemendy, Dana Fredsti, Ross Lockwood, Erika Mailman, Gene O’Neill, and more. It was my honor to serve as editor for the project. 

199 Cemeteries to See Before You Die guidebook to cemeteries around the world, came out in a gloriously illustrated full-color hardcover from Black Dog & Leventhal Books in October 2017. The UK edition was published in paperback by Sphere Books. 

Part cemetery history, part travel memoir Wish You Were Here: Adventures in Cemetery Travel collects my essays from Gothic.Net, Morbid Outlook, Eleven Eleven, and Morbid Curiosity magazine, alongside pieces written specifically for the book. The revised second edition was published by Automatism Press in July 2017. 

My space opera trilogy In The Wake of the Templars — The Dangerous Type, Kill By Numbers, and No More Heroes — were published by Night Shade Books in 2015. Publishers Weekly said the trilogy brought grimdark to space opera. 

Lost Angels, the first book in the As Above, So Below series, is the story of the succubus Lorelei, who pursues the angel Azaziel, only to find herself possessed by a mortal girl’s ghost. That first novel, co-written with Brian Thomas, was originally published by Black Bed Sheet Books under the title As Above, So Below. A revised second edition came out in April 2016 as Lost Angels, published by Automatism Press. A sequel called Angelus Rose is in the works. 

Between 1996 and 2006, I edited the cult nonfiction magazine Morbid Curiosity. I still believe curiosity is a radical, transformative trait. Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues: True Stories of the Unsavory, Unwise, Unorthodox, and Unusual a collection of some of my favorite essays drawn from the magazine was published by Scribner in 2009. 

My travel essays have appeared on Mental Floss, The Daily Beast, GothicBeauty.com, as well as darkening the pages of Search magazine, two Traveler’s Tales books, and the anthology Pills, Thrills, Chills, and Heartache: Adventures in the First Person (edited by Clint Catalyst and Michelle Tea). I explore graveyards as travel destinations regularly at CemeteryTravel dot com. 

My short fiction has been anthologized in Best New Horror #27, Strange California, The Haunted Mansion Project: Year One, Sins of the Sirens: 14 Tales of Dark Desire, and nEvermore!: Tales of Murder, Mystery, and the Macabre.  My stories have appeared most recently in the magazines Occult Detective Quarterly, Space & Time, and Weirdbook.

https://lorenrhoads.com/

"My life changed when I read Dracula at age 10 and then again when I saw Star Wars at 13. Telling true stories came much later, but to me, it’s all interconnected.

My latest book, Tales for the Camp Fire: A Charity Anthology Benefiting Wildfire Relief, came out in May 2019. Northern California’s horror writers came together to raise money for survivors of last year’s devastating wildfire. Contributors include Nancy Etchemendy, Dana Fredsti, Ross Lockwood, Erika Mailman, Gene O’Neill, and more. It was my honor to serve as editor for the project.

199 Cemeteries to See Before You Die guidebook to cemeteries around the world, came out in a gloriously illustrated full-color hardcover from Black Dog & Leventhal Books in October 2017. The UK edition was published in paperback by Sphere Books.

Part cemetery history, part travel memoir Wish You Were Here: Adventures in Cemetery Travel collects my essays from Gothic.Net, Morbid Outlook, Eleven Eleven, and Morbid Curiosity magazine, alongside pieces written specifically for the book. The revised second edition was published by Automatism Press in July 2017.

My space opera trilogy In The Wake of the Templars — The Dangerous Type, Kill By Numbers, and No More Heroes — were published by Night Shade Books in 2015. Publishers Weekly said the trilogy brought grimdark to space opera.

Lost Angels, the first book in the As Above, So Below series, is the story of the succubus Lorelei, who pursues the angel Azaziel, only to find herself possessed by a mortal girl’s ghost. That first novel, co-written with Brian Thomas, was originally published by Black Bed Sheet Books under the title As Above, So Below. A revised second edition came out in April 2016 as Lost Angels, published by Automatism Press. A sequel called Angelus Rose is in the works.

Between 1996 and 2006, I edited the cult nonfiction magazine Morbid Curiosity. I still believe curiosity is a radical, transformative trait. Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues: True Stories of the Unsavory, Unwise, Unorthodox, and Unusual a collection of some of my favorite essays drawn from the magazine was published by Scribner in 2009.

My travel essays have appeared on Mental Floss, The Daily Beast, GothicBeauty.com, as well as darkening the pages of Search magazine, two Traveler’s Tales books, and the anthology Pills, Thrills, Chills, and Heartache: Adventures in the First Person (edited by Clint Catalyst and Michelle Tea). I explore graveyards as travel destinations regularly at CemeteryTravel dot com.

My short fiction has been anthologized in Best New Horror #27, Strange California, The Haunted Mansion Project: Year One, Sins of the Sirens: 14 Tales of Dark Desire, and nEvermore!: Tales of Murder, Mystery, and the Macabre.  My stories have appeared most recently in the magazines Occult Detective Quarterly, Space & Time, and Weirdbook.

HAWKINS balances energetic Rock and Roll mixed with infectious hooky Pop sophistication. The band embraces an ever-more genre-bending Pop Rock aesthetic as they continue to captivate their audience with musical virtuosity in a manner that is reminiscent of their Rock and Roll predecessors.

They have performed on countless major stages across the East Coast. Notable performances include Mohegan Sun Casino, The Bitter End, Foxwoods Casino, and The Pleasantville New York Music Festival. In Pleasantville, they shared the stage with illustrious acts such as  Blues Traveler, Suzanne Vega, and Living Colour.

Within only their first year of establishing themselves, they have gained an astonishing number of followers. Their talent has been praised by music legends like Eddie Money, Noel E. Monk (former manager of The Sex Pistols and Van Halen), and Michael Caplan (former VP of Sony Music). 

Their debut single "Lights Off" has been written and produced by the band themselves and mastered by the two-time Grammy award winner industry giant, Nathan Dantzler.

https://hawkinstheband.com/

HAWKINS balances energetic Rock and Roll mixed with infectious hooky Pop sophistication. The band embraces an ever-more genre-bending Pop Rock aesthetic as they continue to captivate their audience with musical virtuosity in a manner that is reminiscent of their Rock and Roll predecessors.

They have performed on countless major stages across the East Coast. Notable performances include Mohegan Sun Casino, The Bitter End, Foxwoods Casino, and The Pleasantville New York Music Festival. In Pleasantville, they shared the stage with illustrious acts such as  Blues Traveler, Suzanne Vega, and Living Colour.

Within only their first year of establishing themselves, they have gained an astonishing number of followers. Their talent has been praised by music legends like Eddie Money, Noel E. Monk (former manager of The Sex Pistols and Van Halen), and Michael Caplan (former VP of Sony Music). 

Their debut single "Lights Off" has been written and produced by the band themselves and mastered by the two-time Grammy award winner industry giant, Nathan Dantzler. The single is available now.

Boston-based artist, Olivia MacDonald is best known for her ink drawings she has been creating every day since the winter of 2018. She holds an extensive collection of thought-provoking and unconventionally playful black and white designs, metaphors for her daily experiences and thoughts. Self-taught, Olivia began creating art as a means of expression and experimentation ever since she was a child. After receiving her BFA in creative writing with a minor in illustration in 2020, she now works as a full-time artist and entrepreneur.

Her commission work ranges from custom tattoo designs to music album covers, gig posters, logos, and product labels for worldwide clients like Hilko Guitars and Brahmin designer handbags. She is a featured artist with Strathmore Artist Papers and Sakura of America and her work has been exhibited in local establishments and art fairs.

https://inkbyolivia.com/pages/about

“I'm Olivia, a 22-year-old artist from outside Boston, Massachusetts. Ink By Olivia is a collection of drawings inspired by my everyday life and my love of adventure, nature, antiques, and things around us that hold so much detail and beauty, but are often overlooked. I started my Instagram page in the winter of 2018 to document my progress designing and inking a Medusa skateboard deck, but it turned into much more when I started creating one drawing per day to challenge and practice my skills. My page has grown so quickly and it brings me so much joy to hear from my followers all around the world about how my drawings give them something to look forward to and the motivation to take just one step every day to attain their goals.

I am currently a creative writing and illustration student. I always had an early love for art as a little girl when painting, crafting paper, writing short stories, or tap dancing. In my first semester of college, I came across Micron pens and became fascinated by artworks of other ink artists. I gave the pens a try and love the convenience of them, allowing me to draw anywhere when inspiration hits, as well as the amount of detail they bring with the different pen sizes. 

Besides drawing, you can find me writing short stories and poems, hiking, cruising around in my VW Bus, skateboarding, and experimenting with new recipes.”

”My name is Jordan Marie Brings Three White Horses Daniel. I am Kul Wicasa Lakota and a citizen of Kul Wicasa Oyate/Lower Brule Reservation in South Dakota. I am also Diné (Navajo). I am passionate about many things. However, I want to connect two of those passions that really make life worthwhile: running and activism.

I was born to run, but I rejected it for quite some time. My Lala (grandfather) Nyal Brings was a long-distance runner for the University of South Dakota and was inducted into the USD Hall of Fame for his running accomplishments. Friendly rivals, Lala Billy Mills and Lala Nyal competed in the mile a few times, with Lala Nyal taking a victory over Billy. In the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Lala Billy would go on to win a gold medal in the 10K. My Lala Nyal took me on my first run and it ended with a half-mile uphill that ultimately led me to not like running. I didn't find it fun at all. My Ina (mother) was a sprinter and my Lala was her coach, with a sure plan to get her to the 1988 Olympic Trials. However, her path led her to become an incredible pediatric, dialysis and oncology nurse. My Até (dad) really helped me develop a mental toughness for running — something I'll never forget.

I grew from tolerating running to really falling in love with the sport. I started with the 5K and 10K my freshman and sophomore years of college, then moved down to shorter distances. However, after college, I moved back to longer distances, then half marathons and eventually marathons. After college, Lala Billy's organization, Running Strong for American Indian Youth, had asked me to join their team for the 2016 Boston Marathon. At the time, I was working with tribes to implement programs, some specifically for Native youth in Washington D.C., and I was glad to help Running Strong raise funds. I suffered an injury while preparing for that marathon but somehow got myself to the starting line in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.

My coach got me into the first wave and corral, so to experience that while fan-girling over my idols gave me the adrenaline to run through the pain. When the gun went off, all I could think about was my Lala Nyal, my Ina, Lala Billy and my entire tiospaye (extended family) back in Lower Brule and Indian Country. I was running Boston, something I never would've dreamed possible. Alongside me, others were running to get a best time or running for a cause, all while running with other Indigenous relatives. I had a lot to reflect on. I got to the finish, feeling happy and emotional. I was in pain, but the joy I felt upon completing that race wasn't for me, it was for Indian Country. The possibilities for Indigenous Peoples are endless and to share that with everyone was beautiful.

That experience led me to use running as a way to change the narrative around how people see or think about Indigenous Peoples. The protests in Standing Rock over the Dakota Access Pipeline really inspired me. While I was working full-time and training, I was also organizing events, rallies and marches to raise awareness about environmental, social and economic issues where running could serve as another platform. The Standing Rock youth who ran 2,200 miles from North Dakota to D.C. to hand deliver a petition opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline to protect water — our first medicine (mni wiconi translates to water is life) — was a great motivator for me, and an example of how I thought I could connect running with activism. 

https://www.jordanmariedaniel.com

”My name is Jordan Marie Brings Three White Horses Daniel. I am Kul Wicasa Lakota and a citizen of Kul Wicasa Oyate/Lower Brule Reservation in South Dakota. I am also Diné (Navajo). I am passionate about many things. However, I want to connect two of those passions that really make life worthwhile: running and activism.

I was born to run, but I rejected it for quite some time. My Lala (grandfather) Nyal Brings was a long-distance runner for the University of South Dakota and was inducted into the USD Hall of Fame for his running accomplishments. Friendly rivals, Lala Billy Mills and Lala Nyal competed in the mile a few times, with Lala Nyal taking a victory over Billy. In the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Lala Billy would go on to win a gold medal in the 10K. My Lala Nyal took me on my first run and it ended with a half-mile uphill that ultimately led me to not like running. I didn't find it fun at all. My Ina (mother) was a sprinter and my Lala was her coach, with a sure plan to get her to the 1988 Olympic Trials. However, her path led her to become an incredible pediatric, dialysis and oncology nurse. My Até (dad) really helped me develop a mental toughness for running — something I'll never forget.

I grew from tolerating running to really falling in love with the sport. I started with the 5K and 10K my freshman and sophomore years of college, then moved down to shorter distances. However, after college, I moved back to longer distances, then half marathons and eventually marathons. After college, Lala Billy's organization, Running Strong for American Indian Youth, had asked me to join their team for the 2016 Boston Marathon. At the time, I was working with tribes to implement programs, some specifically for Native youth in Washington D.C., and I was glad to help Running Strong raise funds. I suffered an injury while preparing for that marathon but somehow got myself to the starting line in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.

My coach got me into the first wave and corral, so to experience that while fan-girling over my idols gave me the adrenaline to run through the pain. When the gun went off, all I could think about was my Lala Nyal, my Ina, Lala Billy and my entire tiospaye (extended family) back in Lower Brule and Indian Country. I was running Boston, something I never would've dreamed possible. Alongside me, others were running to get a best time or running for a cause, all while running with other Indigenous relatives. I had a lot to reflect on. I got to the finish, feeling happy and emotional. I was in pain, but the joy I felt upon completing that race wasn't for me, it was for Indian Country. The possibilities for Indigenous Peoples are endless and to share that with everyone was beautiful.

That experience led me to use running as a way to change the narrative around how people see or think about Indigenous Peoples. The protests in Standing Rock over the Dakota Access Pipeline really inspired me. While I was working full-time and training, I was also organizing events, rallies and marches to raise awareness about environmental, social and economic issues where running could serve as another platform. The Standing Rock youth who ran 2,200 miles from North Dakota to D.C. to hand deliver a petition opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline to protect water — our first medicine (mni wiconi translates to water is life) — was a great motivator for me, and an example of how I thought I could connect running with activism.

My whole perspective on running and my place in the world has changed. I no longer care as much about wearing only my sponsor's brand on race day or a normal run day. Now, I want to wear gear that highlights some of the fights and accomplishments going on in Indian Country. From wearing and racing in the "Free Leonard Peltier" singlet that Olympian Billy Nelson handed down to me to promoting gear from Native-owned running and outdoor companies, I want to speak for the causes that I hold dear.

With the help of my coach, I eventually created a "Team 1ndigenous" racing kit to help promote health and wellness for other Indigenous runners, as well as sending the message that we are one — we are all related and connected. Now, whenever possible, I change my bib number to reflect the #MMIW (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women) epidemic in Indian Country instead of my name or number at races. Most recently, I was able to do this at the San Diego Half Marathon, where it sparked conversations with spectators about what #MMIW means after I crossed the finish line.

Running also allows me to connect to the very lands that I advocate for and want to protect and preserve, such as Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, which I visited during the #Truthsgiving weekend. These are sacred lands that Indigenous Peoples have been using since time immemorial. Their protected status is in danger, as more than 83 percent of Bears Ears has been opened to public development, including possible fossil-fuel and energy-extraction projects.

Running is life. It connects me to Unci Maka (Grandmother Earth). It humbles me. It challenges me mentally and physically. I plan to keep running and competing for as long as my body will allow. I've recently started trail running and ran my first 7.5-mile trail race in November. I won for women and set the course record, but it taught me a different kind of running style. Trail running brings me closer to nature, which I respect and value.

Running connects me with my Lala Nyal, who made his journey back in August 2016. I feel him and remember him with every stride. It connects me with my Ina. Every stride forward, I carry Indian Country with me. Running is a not just a community of athletes, it's a family community. It has opened dialogues and cemented long-term friendships. It has been a stress reliever, a healer and has evolved for me as a platform to raise awareness of the very things in life that I care about most.

Continue running if you're able to. Run for fun. Run for meaning. Run for you. Most importantly, get outside and enjoy your surroundings. Appreciate and give thanks. I wish you good health in your running and adventures. Mitakuye oyasin (we are all related)”