The moon is full, the snow is red, and the beast is staring back from the glass.

From ancient Greek curses to modern psychology, this episode dives deep into how the werewolf myth reveals the primal truth about rage, guilt, hunger, and the dark instincts we try to suppress.

You’ll discover:

🌕 Origins of the Curse – The story of King Lycaon and how the first werewolf became a punishment for moral corruption.

🧠 The Psychology of Transformation – Carl Jung’s “shadow self” and the idea that the beast within us is just our repressed humanity clawing its way out.

🩸 Clinical Lycanthropy – Real-world cases where people believed they were turning into animals, and how modern neuroscience explains it.

🐺 The Wolf in Culture – From medieval trials to Hollywood icons like The Wolf Man, An American Werewolf in London, Ginger Snaps, and Underworld.

🔮 Symbolism of the Moon & the Mirror – Why every generation redefines the werewolf as a reflection of fear, desire, and identity.

If vampires are about seduction and control, werewolves are about release—the primal scream we keep caged beneath civility.

🎧 Tune in for horror storytelling, mythology, psychology, and a chilling reminder that sometimes the scariest monsters are the ones in the mirror.

🔗 Connect with Brad Ricks:

Website & signed books: BradRicks.com

Facebook & TikTok: @BradRicksAuthor

The Night Crew Book 2: Bloodlust — available now for pre-order

Keywords: lycanthropy, werewolf psychology, Carl Jung shadow self, clinical lycanthropy, werewolf transformation, werewolf myths, horror podcast, Brad Ricks, The Night Crew, monster psychology, werewolf legend, ancient werewolves, horror storytelling, Jungian horror

Hashtags:

🩸 Episode Description

On this episode of The Night Crew Podcast, Brad Ricks sits down with Viggy Parr Hampton—author, podcaster, and epidemiologist—to explore the dark science and creative sparks behind her chilling fiction and hit horror shows.

Viggy shares how she:

Along the way, Viggy talks about:

🔗 Connect with Viggy Parr Hampton

Whether you love body horror, cosmic monsters, or insider tips on writing and podcasting, this conversation is packed with inspiration, craft secrets, and nightmare fuel.

🧛‍♂️ Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and check out The Night Crew novel series wherever you get your monster-hunting fiction. Stay creepy, friends.

Viggy's Bio:

Viggy Parr Hampton, MPH is an epidemiologist, content marketing strategist, host of the podcast “Horror Humor Hunger,” and the author of A Cold Night for Alligators, Much Too Vulgar, and The Rotting Room. She is a graduate of Georgetown University and Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health.

keywords

Viggy Parr Hampton, horror writing, podcasting, A Cold Night for Alligators, The Rotting Room, Much Too Vulgar, writing process, literary influences, horror monsters, inspiration

Hashtags

#HorrorPodcast #ViggyParrHampton #BodyHorror #Shapeshifters #JohnCarpenterTheThing #Pennywise #IndieAuthor #WomenInHorror #TheNightCrewPodcast #BradRicks #MuchTooVulgar #TheRottingRoom #AColdNightForAlligators #HorrorHumorHunger #CosmicHorror #WritingProcess #PodcastInterview #DarkFiction #MonsterLore #BookRecommendations

🔍 Episode Description:

In this episode of The Night Crew Podcast, host Brad Ricks sits down with horror author Edmund Stone—the creative mind behind Tent Revival, Soul Mirror, and multiple dark short story collections, as well as the layout and formatting wizard for The Night Crew novels.

Together they dive deep into:

Along the way, Edmund shares funny behind-the-scenes convention stories (including TBRCon antics), the origin of his dedicated fan group The Edmund Stoners, and what it’s like to see readers react—good, bad, and baffling—to his books.

🔗 Find Edmund Stone online:

Whether you love cosmic horror, small-town mysteries, or creature features that belong on the big screen, this episode will feed your dark imagination and make you rethink what lurks beneath the water.

🧛‍♂️ Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and check out The Night Crew novel series wherever you get your monster-hunting fiction. Stay creepy, friends.

keywords

Edmond Stone, horror writing, writing process, character development, literary influences, book reviews, aspiring authors, horror genre, inspiration, collaboration

Hashtags

#TheNightCrewPodcast #HorrorPodcast #IndieAuthor #CosmicHorror #TentRevival #SoulMirror #EdmundStone #BradRicks #WritingProcess #Kraken #Cthulhu

🔍 Episode Description:

On this episode of The Night Crew Podcast, host Brad Ricks sits down with author EM Otero—a writer who blends mecha sci-fi, cosmic horror, and blood-soaked folklore into unforgettable stories.

Eric takes us deep into:

They also geek out about vampires—from Lost Boys and The Passage to Empire of the Vampire, The Strain, and the evolution of vampire cinema from 80s leather-and-motorcycles to grimdark epics.

Eric’s key advice for aspiring authors: skip the MFA, skip the rigid outlines—just read widely and write bravely.

Bio:

EM Otero is a Puerto Rican author and lover of all things weird. When he isnt writing he is living the busy life of a husband and father. While working outside or hiking, he loves to take pictures of plants, insects, and anything else he finds interesting or strange. He loves showing his daughter and wife the curious things in nature.

His writing is inspired by our weird world, robot anime, horror stories, and science.

🔗 Connect with Eric M. Otero:

Whether you love cosmic mecha horror, evolutionary vampires, or the gothic quiet of old cemeteries, this conversation is packed with creative fuel and midnight chills.

🧛‍♂️ Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and check out The Night Crew novel series wherever you get your monster-hunting fiction. Stay creepy, friends.

keywords

Eric Otero, writing, horror, vampires, developmental editing, cultural influences, inspiration, cemetery, writing process, literary influences

Hashtags

#HorrorPodcast #MechaHorror #CosmicHorror #VampireLore #IndieAuthors #WritingProcess #BradRicks #EricMOtero #TheNightCrewPodcast #AuthorInterview

Welcome to The Night Crew Podcast, where shadows breathe and monsters listen. In this moon-drenched episode, host Brad Ricks takes you on a chilling hunt for one of horror’s oldest, hairiest legends: the werewolf.

From the first eerie howl to the silver bullet finale, discover:

🌕 Ancient Origins – King Lycaon’s curse in ancient Greece and Norse wolf-coat warriors who fought like beasts.

🏰 Dark Middle Ages – Gruesome true accounts like the Beast of Gévaudan and the bloody werewolf trials of Peter Stumpf.

🔬 Science & Myth – Rabies, rare disorders, and moonlit superstition that shaped clinical lycanthropy.

🎥 Pop Culture Evolution – From The Wolf Man (1941) to An American Werewolf in London, Teen Wolf, Underworld, and modern reinventions in gaming and streaming.

🐺 The Inner Beast – Why this creature still reflects our fear of losing control and our secret desire for wild freedom.

Packed with vivid storytelling—from a spine-tingling forest prologue to deep dives into history and film—this episode is part horror story, part cultural archaeology, and 100% nightmare fuel.

🔗 Stay connected:

Signed books & updates: BradRicks.com

Follow Brad on Facebook & TikTok: @BradRicksAuthor

Lock the door, load the silver bullets, and press play—because the hunt begins now.

#WerewolfHistory #MonsterMythology #HorrorPodcast #Lycanthropy #BradRicks #NightCrewPodcast #HorrorMovies #FullMoon

📖 Episode Description

In this episode of The Night Crew Podcast, Brad sits down with horror author Shannon Bradner to talk about her journey from childhood stories inspired by her grandmother to publishing dark, twisted tales on Godless and with Baynum Books Press.

Shannon opens up about:

Along the way, Brad and Shannon also swap stories about The Lost Boys, zombie flicks, Fright Night (original vs. remake), and why practical effects still matter in horror.

If you love indie horror, dark humor, and authors who keep the genre alive with grit and passion, this is one conversation you won’t want to miss.

Follow Shannon Bradner:

📚 Find Shannon’s work on Godless and through Baynam Books Press, and follow her on Instagram at @murder_shan_wrote.

#HorrorPodcast #Splatterpunk #IndieHorror #Vampires #AuthorInterview #TheNightCrew

keywords

writing, horror, self-publishing, Godless, inspiration, editing, literary influences, vampires, practical effects, upcoming projects

🔍 Episode Description:

In this fun and cryptid-filled episode of The Night Crew Podcast, host Brad Ricks is joined by horror author Ross Killey for a wide-ranging conversation about writing, monsters, and that one time a tree started shaking in the Indiana woods.

Ross discusses his journey from outlining stories during security shifts to publishing werewolf horror comedies and zombie tales in Vietnam. You’ll hear all about his books—Full Moon Highway, Stuck to a Monster, and Nightmare Jungle—as well as the inspiration behind his wild and weird horror concepts.

The duo nerds out about Bigfoot (Ross’s favorite monster), horror movie recommendations (including the Blair Witch creator’s Sasquatch film Exists), the joys and pains of outlining, and the tragic sacrifices of Warhammer painting in exchange for writing time.

Stick around for Ross’s top cryptid book picks, including Dweller by Jeff Strand and The Mountain King by Rick Hautala—plus a hilarious story about the one time Ross might’ve almost met Bigfoot in the wild.

📚 Topics Covered:

Cryptid Book Recommendations:

Follow Ross Killey:

🧛‍♂️ Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and check out The Night Crew novel series wherever you get your monster-hunting fiction. Stay creepy, friends.

keywords

Ross Kelly, author, writing journey, horror fiction, cryptids, Sasquatch, Bigfoot, writing process, inspiration, horror comedy

#TheNightCrewPodcast #HorrorPodcast #AuthorInterview #RossKilley

📄 Episode Description:

In this episode of The Night Crew Podcast, host Brad Ricks welcomes indie horror author Zach Ellenberger for a wide-ranging and hilarious conversation about writing, folklore, and how music and history collide with monsters.

Zach—author of Potato Kingdom and dozens of eerie short stories—shares how his love of history, horror, and punk music shaped his storytelling voice. The two talk about cryptids, creepy facts from history, Slavic and Native American folklore, and why the Wendigo tops Zach’s list of terrifying monsters. Plus, he reveals his process for mixing fact with fiction to ground his horror stories in real-world dread.

You’ll also hear about his comedy storytelling podcast Party Bonus, which combines improv, sketch writing, and mad-lib chaos to hilarious effect. And yes, they absolutely talk about bad signatures, the dancing plague of 1518, and what it’s like being part of the indie horror world.

📚 Topics Covered:

🎧 Also Mentioned:

👹 Favorite Monster: The Wendigo

🔗 Where to Find Zach:

🧛 Don’t Forget:

If you enjoyed the show, follow, rate, and review The Night Crew Podcast. And check out Zach’s work—especially if you love horror that digs its claws into real-world history.

keywords

writing, author, historical fiction, horror, indie authors, storytelling, folklore, collaboration, creative process, literary influences

#TheNightCrewPodcast #HorrorPodcast #AuthorInterview #ZechEllenberger

In this episode of The Night Crew Podcast, horror author and host Brad Ricks takes listeners on a cinematic coffin crawl through the history of vampires on the silver screen.

🎥 Silent beginnings: Nosferatu (1922) — Count Orlok’s plague-ridden nightmare and Bram Stoker’s widow’s lawsuit.

🦇 Universal era: Bela Lugosi’s Dracula (1931) — the cape, the accent, and the birth of the sexy vampire.

💉 Hammer Horror: Christopher Lee’s blood-soaked Dracula, cleavage, and technicolor gore.

🎶 1970s experimentation: Blackula, lesbian vampires, and disco-era bloodsuckers.

🎸 1980s cool factor: The Lost Boys, Fright Night, and Near Dark.

🕯️ 1990s Gothic revival: Coppola’s Dracula, Interview with the Vampire, and From Dusk Till Dawn.

🗡️ Action-horror hybrids: Wesley Snipes in Blade and the Underworld saga.

📺 TV fangs: Buffy, True Blood, and The Vampire Diaries.

✨ Twilight & beyond: Sparkly abstinent vampires vs. HBO’s blood-soaked camp.

🎭 Modern reboots: Eggers’ Nosferatu, Renfield, Abigail, and the vampire “renaissance.”

Vampires in film reflect our fears, desires, rebellion, and immortality fantasies. From rat-faced nightmares to romantic heroes, they never truly die — they just reinvent themselves.

📚 Grab signed copies of Brad’s books → BradRicks.com

Episode Description:

Brad opens up about:

Courtney and Brad also geek out over classic horror novels, favorite vampire movies (yes, The Lost Boys wins), and Brad reveals the secret sauce behind his writing routine. And yes, bourbon is involved.

🎂 It’s a birthday celebration, horror fan confession, and behind-the-scenes author chat all rolled into one bloody good episode.

🔍 Show Notes: