The Drabblecast

What other podcasts do you like? Which ones suck? Why?

I'm not a huge fan of this podcast but Variant Frequencies has produced some amazing fiction. They have two parsec awards under their belt, one of which is on my top ten fiction podcast episodes list. - if I actually had a list.

Absolution Insured, written by Matt Wallace and Narrated by Rick Stringer is one of those stories that really stays with you. Yes, it is considered a horror piece, but don't let that put you off if your not into horror.

http://www.variantfrequencies.com/categ ... rd-winner/


What other podcasts are the drabblecast audience listening to?

Yah, I really like Matt Wallace's stories on VF. I haven't heard that one though Kevin, I'll have to check that out.

EP and PP are my staples, but I like
Mysterious Universe, AIr Out my SHorts and Destructomundo too

Mysterious Universe is fun if your into paranormal stuff or if you like to make fun of people who are into paranormal stuff. Sea monsters, flying people, aliens, it's good times.

Air Out my shorts is hilarious sometimes- we get some really crappy subs at Drabblecast sometimes, but we send out nice rejection letters. AOMS reads them and kind of makes fun of them, while drunk.

Destructomundo is a bit long for my taste but it's discussion about end of the world scenarios, so I'm there.

I love how to succeed in evil- fantastic.


There are a few others that I dip in and out of

I like "Tales from the Verse" http://talesfromtheverse.com, but we usually only get one story a month.

I dislike the "Signal" and "Firefly Talk" because they usually go way overboard on talking about every detail of the show, comic and movie. It makes me feel like I am not listening to a podcast about my favorite TV show, but listening to a podcast about Star Trek or something (which I am not a big fan of). They also go way overboard on supporting "all things firefly" and treat decent like heresy." Take for example that crappy excuse for a roleplaying game called "Serenity" (what a waste of time and money), I got a lot of grief for complaining about that.

There is a unique podcast that I like, but he has not come out with stuff for a while and that is "Personal Performances" http://shumays.libsyn.com
It focuses mostly on Arabic music.

Wow - I just checked out Air Out My Shorts. It is ridiculously funny. And I recognize the WW's voice from other podcasts.

I've listened to two episodes but I can not help but wonder - what is the motivation of the writers sending their stories in? Is it a kind of expressive masochism. It reminds me of that reality show on FOX about three years ago were they told the participants that they were looking for good singers and it turned out that they were really looking for god-awful singers.

But the writers here seem aware that their material will be heckled.

Whatever, its still funny as hell.

Does anyone hear listen to podiobooks?

I've listened to a couple. I really like the idea. I can get something useful out of my mundane job by listening to books while I work. But I haven't found any gems so far.

I tried "Seeds of the Machina" and really liked it... But the author seems to have stopped halfway through. I've been left hanging for so long that I've forgotten what I was in suspense about.

"Daughter of the Sun" was meh. There was nothing really original about it and it had one of those endings where a whole bunch of new stuff is introduced at the last second and it feels cheep.

I listened to the first dozen episodes of "Beautiful Red" and was into it at first, but it got real slow and then there was some creepy sex stuff I didn't like, and I kind of lost interest. I'll probably finish it eventually...

Just finished "Singularity." It started out totally awesome and I thought I'd found something worth buying in print and adding to my bookshelf. But then it got totally bogged down in James Bond-type clichés. The A+ beginning made the degradation into cheesy pulp painful to listen to.

"The Failed Cities Monologs" is one I've heard a lot of people really liked. I'll give it this: The production is peerlessly good. But the story itself has a few big holes and is so packed with over-the-top violence that it's hard to take seriously. When ten people are gruesomely dismembered in every single chapter, it gets to the point where you just sort of roll your eyes.

So I definitely like the idea of podiobooks and I will listen to more, but I haven't found any I'd recommend as of now.

While I'm listening to it...

I've been really impressed with The Cthulhu Podcast by a Brit who goes by the name FNH. The format is tripartite - First a bit history about the 1920s, then a piece of music from 1920s, and finally a story by H.P. Lovecraft or something reminiscent of his stuff. I really like the format, and although the stories are sometimes weak, there's always something to love. One of my favorites: I hope it lasts a while.

Whoa- that sounds right up my ally Tweedy, I'll check it out, Thanks!

Here is one I enjoyed over the holidays. It is not for everybody. Gore, Violence, and more Gore. But if horror is your cup of tea then this one is an excellent way to kill 20 minutes. It's a Zombie tale that not only has four legged Zombies, but has a skin crawling ending.

Again - not for everyone.

http://welltoldtales.com/content/tales/ ... _bitch.php

YES! That podcast (and story) rocks! Thank you very much for mentioning that.

If you like zombies, The Dead Report is great:
http://www.thedeadreport.com/
Because it is a video cast, it does not come out as often as I like, but I am not going to complain about a free media source.

Another zombie podcast is Dr Pus's "Library of the Living Dead"
http://dr-pus.podomatic.com
This guy is really entertaining, but the show is long and back when I listened to it, had too many spoilers. BUT, there is lots of fiction.

Well, I really like short fiction (especially science fiction). I get my fix from Escape Pod and Drabblecast, though I prefer the 15-20 minute length of Drabblecast. Other fiction podcasts that seem to be of this length are Realm of Dreams, The Great Beyond, Well Told Tales, and X-1 Podcast (though I haven't really listened to them). Voices of Tomorrow, the podcast of 365 Tomorrows also seems to provide a short fiction fix, but it might not consistently come out.

I don't know if you read the onion, Norm, but I bet you would really enjoy the Onion Radio News (daily 60 second snippets of pseudonews)

Of course, I also love How to Succeed in Evil, Playing for Keeps, and A Different Point of View.

I'm big on Well Told Tales as well, though the most recent episodes have been some of their weakest.

It's sporadic, and frustrating when its stories get broken up in to parts (especially for someone who gorges on drabble), but I greatly enjoy the Hall of Mirrors podcast:

http://hallofmirrors.podshow.com/

Mike Bennett's delivery and enthusiasm remind me of what it might sound like in an alternative universe where Norm hailed from the UK.

Oh, and I'm a great EP and PP fan as well. I'm a PP fan... teehee.

Thanks for the suggestion- I'll check them out. I've been really diggin Well Told Tales- wow, that Death's a Bitch episode was INSANE!

Just listened to Kevin Anderson's "The Lure of Heaven"- Well Told Tales Ep 20. Bravo!
Check it out here folks...
http://welltoldtales.com/content/tales/ ... heaven.php[/url]

"Dragonpage - Cover to Cover" - Kind of a Fantasy/Sci-Fi lit news show. They interview authors, do book reviews, anounce up-coming releases, lots of things. Plus, they usually do two shows a week, which is always nice.
"Kick-Ass Mystic Ninjas" - Same folks as the above. They discuss classic scifi/fantasy/horror films and movies.

What do I not like? I don't care for "Wingin' It." I tried. I really did.
They've got this "buddies hanging out in the basement" vibe, which can be fun, but there are so many inside jokes and private references that new listeners (me) can't really follow it. Also, they get drunk. This sounds fun, but generally makes for a lousy production.

Science Friday podcast- if your an NPR fan!

After initial skepticism, I am getting more and more into Metamor City. Of course EP and PP and, if it ever happens, PC. And a ton of NPR programs that I either miss or that don't run in my market.

normsherman wrote:Science Friday podcast- if your an NPR fan!

I like that one, it's like 5 for the price of 1. I recently added the NPR Health & Science and NPR Technology which are pretty good and don't overlap too much.

Anyone who is a fan of Onion News and similar silliness might enjoy weeklyradioaddress.com

I'm with Mr. Tweedy!

I can get something useful out of my mundane job by listening to books while I work.

He's stopped posting, but it's certainly worth going back and listening to all of the Come, Let Me Whisper stories by Russell L. Burt. http://rlburt.blogspot.com/

I'm also a big Podiobooks fan. Phil Rossi's "Crescent" was a great listen, and I liked both Mike Bennett's "Hall of Mirrors" and "One Among the Sleepless". Also, got a kick out of "The Lamp Post Motel" by Joe Gold.

Now, I'm gonna check out some of your sweet suggestions while I wait for the next Drabblecast