Sinopsis
Authors J.A. Ironside and M.E. Vaughan talk about books, films and all aspects of speculative fiction, from the nuts and bolts of writing it, to its (occasionally) obscure origins.
Episodios
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Episode 448: Unbelievably Popular - why do bad books become best sellers?
06/06/2025 Duración: 01h26minHave you ever picked up a book, full of anticipation, only to quit 100 pages in? Or maybe you read the whole thing and were left annoyed and baffled when you reached the end? Welcome to the baked in cognitive dissonance of the bookish community. Uber hyped books can turn out to be...bad. Not just bad in your opinion but objectively bad when employing the metrics of writing skill, storytelling and production values. So why exactly are they selling millions of copies? This week, Jules and Madeleine delve into the roots of this question. Is it really a matter of opinion? Can you measure the fitness of a book based entirely on measurable considerations? Is it ever fair to call any book bad? Join the dragons as they interrogate their own beliefs on the subject. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 447: Wit & Readability - 250 years of Jane Austen
23/05/2025 Duración: 01h11minIf you've noticed all the celebrations, new editions of Austen's work, new adaptations and not a few arguments over issues which seem to amount to 'who's the biggest fan?' then you may have an inkling that it is a major Jane Austen landmark this year. Celebrating the 250th year since Jane Austen's birth, the dragons have decided to do their own thing and judge a pageant of Jane Austen adaptations in film, TV, theatre and book form, in an effort to find their own favourite adaptation of Austen's work. Under the magnifying glass this week - 1995 Pride & Prejudice, Ang Lee's Sense & Sensibility, Bridget Jones' Diary and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 446: Getting Your House in Order - Writing as a Career or a Serious Side Gig
16/05/2025 Duración: 01h16minMaking a living from writing comes with practical considerations which the actual creative process doesn't prepare you for (probably). This week Jules and Madeleine delve into how to be a healthy creative ( spoiler alert: sleep is really important), what you need to consider when planning your finances, what legal considerations you need to bear in mind and a variety of other issues which writers often blithely ignore. We know. We did. Join the dragons as they talk candidly about the less glamorous side of being a writer. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 445: No More Mr Nice Guy - the Geek Misogynist in Speculative Fiction Part 2
09/05/2025 Duración: 01h27minPart 2 of a 2 part episode. This week, Jules and Madeleine return to the 'nice guy' trope. A trope that probably started with good intentions but soured quickly. Can this trope affect perceptions in real life? If so, how far does that go? Can you write a genuinely nice guy? And what is the 'nice guy renaissance'? On the slab this week: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Harker & Blackthorn and many mor Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 444: No More Mr Nice Guy - the Geek Misogynist in Speculative Fiction part 1
02/05/2025 Duración: 01h05minThe dragons are back! Join us for an exciting season delving into new writing topics and speculative fiction takes. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the 'nice guy' trope. While the term is relatively new, the character type is not, cropping up in Shakespeare, Austen and even in folklore. While this was a character archetype introduced originally to balance the over-muscled, over-sexed and under-brained macho male lead of the seventies and eighties, writers took their collective eye off the ball and things went south pretty quickly. So what is a 'nice guy' and why does something so innocuous sounding carry so much collective dirt? Find out in part one of a two part episode. On the slab this week: Friends, Little Women - L M Montgomery, Shakespeare's Much Ado about Nothing and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 443: 2024, the Real Life Experience - A Year in Review
27/12/2024 Duración: 42minAs we bid adieu to 2024, the dragons are once again looking back on a year of news. There have been some definite low points, however there has also been a lot of good news this year which may have gone unremarked. Jules and Madeleine are redressing that balance with a selection of good news stories, scientific discoveries and reminiscences on their favourite books and films of the year. Join us for a hopeful episode as we gear up for taking 2025 by the horns. (This is the last episode of 2024 but we will be back in February after a short break) Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 442: The Witches of Midwinter - Following the Wild Dance and Furious Hosts of Christmas
20/12/2024 Duración: 52minIt's that time of year again: frantic last minute shopping, swearing at rolls of Sellotape, covering fir trees with bling....and the dragons emerge with a festive folkloric offering that adds a bit of shadow to the season. This year Jules and Madeleine take a look at the strange relationship between Christmas and witchcraft. If that sounds implausible, stick around - there is a bizarre logic behind it. As with many folkloric traditions, the Christmas witch goes back centuries but some of the modern iterations bring a new level of horror to the tradition. We remember Father Christmas but forget Perchta. We tell stories about St Nicholas but forget St Lucy and her alter Ego, Bloody Lucy. And just who led the wild hunts during Saturnalia and later the twelve days of Christmas? Find out in a special festive episode. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 441: Remaking the 80s - Rewriting Classic Films for a Modern Audience
15/12/2024 Duración: 01h30minThere are few phrases as bedight with dubious associations as 'for a modern audience'. In terms of storytelling, are we saying that the original story was flawed? That tends not to go down well with fans of the original. Or, conversely, does the phrase mean that a modern audience is somehow incapable of engaging with the original and needs to have the material dumbed down? Despite the trickiness of the situation, there has been an upsurge in reboots and remakes lately with even more scheduled for release in 2025. This week the dragons delve into why that is and whether it's a good use of storytelling muscles or not? On the slab this week: Fright Night, Road House, Disney Live action and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 440: The Devil's Music - the Occult, Rock'n'Roll and Storytelling
06/12/2024 Duración: 01h19minMusic has a peculiar relationship with the supernatural, and no branch more so than the occult. Certain musical genres have a long association with the devil, both in folklore and urban legend. But why is that? Where did those stories originate? And how has this shaped modern horror and SFF? This week the dragons dive into Rock'n'Roll to unravel the devil's music. On the slab this week - The Infernal - Kim Wilkins, We Sold Our Souls - Grady Hendrix, Evil in Me - Brom and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 439: It Grows in Darkness - Mushrooms in Horror and SFF
29/11/2024 Duración: 56minFrom devices of comedy to alien antagonists to symbols of deep seated corruption, mushrooms and fungi make strangely appropriate side characters. They are used as set dressing, as indicators of other realms and as terrible weapons. Appropriately, they have woven tendrils so firmly through fiction that it's pretty much impossible to work out when they first entered storytelling cannon - potentially it was when storytelling pre-dated written language. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at these strange beings, examining how they have been used in a variety of genres and how you might want to use them in your own writing. Under the microscope this week - The Haunting of Hill House - Shirley Jackson, What Moves the Dead - T Kingfisher, The Last of Us, The Girl with All the Gifts - M R Carey and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 438: Jeeves Blackadder and Puss - Canny Domestics and Sneaky smart servants
22/11/2024 Duración: 01h11minOn a lighter note this week, the dragons delve into a well loved trope which has its origins in folk and fairy tales, shifting and adapting for audiences over the centuries to reflect the socio economics of the time. The clever servant-foolish master dynamic is one which is still enjoyed today, balancing inequalities of social position, wealth and status with intellect, cunning and personability. The trope is a shapeshifter - played for laughs, delivered straight and used as supporting story. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at why. On the slab this week - The King's Knight, Blackadder the 3rd, Jeeves and Worcester and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 437: Popular, you're gonna be popular - or are you? - Why Stage Production Musicals Often Fail on the Big Screen
15/11/2024 Duración: 01h30minIt's no secret that the dragons are fans of musicals, so they should be delighted by all the film adaptations of popular stage shows, right? Well, that's not entirely the case. There are a variety of reasons why a stage production may not work as a film and vice versa, not withstanding any internet drama that blows up in the wake of an adaptation. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at why these adaptations can fall flat. Under the spotlight this week: Into the Woods, Beauty and the Beast, Sweeney Todd, Les Miserables and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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DD 436: The Tiffany Problem - When Reality is too real for Speculative Fiction
02/11/2024 Duración: 01h30minIt's pretty well established that truth is stranger than fiction, but what do you do when the facts are literally too unlikely for a reader to swallow? When historical accuracy or authenticity is likely to bounce your reader out of your story for being unrealistic? Welcome to The Tiffany Problem. This week Jules and Madeleine examine this phenomenon, follow a trail through some examples and finally, offer suggestions for how to counter it while still being accurate in your storytelling. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 435: Snatchers surfers and Hitchers - Bodysnatching in Speculative Fiction
25/10/2024 Duración: 01h18minPossession is a regular trope in horror and sci-fi. The idea that a physical body could be taken over by an external entity is as disturbing as it is enticing. However, there are many sub categories of this kind of bodysnatching, from parasites that physically puppeteer to Freaky Friday-esque body swaps. This week, Jules and Madeleine delve into the humour and horror of the trope, drawing on a wide range of speculative fiction and there own work where appropriate. On the slab this week: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, V, the Bodysnatchers and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 434 -The Allure of the Curse - Speculative Fictions Oldest Trope
18/10/2024 Duración: 01h05minGenerations of a family punished for the ill-advised actions or an ancestor? Crossed paths with the sidhe and worded an answer impolitely? Fallen foul of someone's desire for revenge? Chances are, in speculative fiction, the problem will turn out to be a curse. It may not really be the oldest speculative fiction trope but it's definitely got history. In this episode of the Dragons' spooky season, Jules and Madeleine drill down on the well used SFF and Horror trope of 'the curse'. How can you use the trope in a way that reads as fresh and novel? What are the main types of this trope? And what historical precedent is there for this occurrence in fiction? On the slab this week: Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynn Jones, Unveiled, The Ring and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 433: The Woods, the Mountains and Emptiness - an Examination of Survival Horror
11/10/2024 Duración: 01h16minContinuing with the spooky season, this week the dragons delve into the popular sub genre of survival horror. While you could argue that the point of every horror story is survival, this sub genre takes it to the next level with characters pitted against nature, the wild and even space - sometimes with a twist of the supernatural thrown in. But how do you go about writing survival horror that lands? What attributes should you be looking for in a main character? Why is setting so important? Join Jules and Madeleine for a discussion on all this and more. On the slab this week: Devolution - Max Brooks, Alien, The Luminous Dead - Caitlin Starling and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 432: Haunt Sweet Home - How to Write a Haunted a House
04/10/2024 Duración: 01h17minThe dragons kick off spooky season with a look at one of the staples of horror - the haunted house. It's so ubiquitous now that haunted house stories are really a sub genre in their own right with their own tropes and conventions. So why do some haunted house stories work while others fall flat? This week Jules and Madeleine present a blueprint on how to build your own haunted house story complete with flickering lights, sordid history and reappearing blood stain. Rattling chains in the attic optional. On the slab: The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, The Little Stranger and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 431: This is Fine - Writing Trauma in Scifi and Fantasy part two
27/09/2024 Duración: 01h07minPart two of a two part episode Most speculative fiction will involve traumatising your main character at some point but how do you make it clear to a reader or viewer that this is what is happening without ponderously 'telling' it? What narrative techniques can be employed to show this instead? How do you deliver the message with emotion without tilting over into melodrama? How do you make trauma believable? This week Jules and Madeleine delve into this tricky part of storytelling. On the slab - The Stand - Stephen King, The Mask Falling - Samantha Shannon, The Blood of the Delphi and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 430: This is Fine - Writing Trauma in Sci-fi & Fantasy
20/09/2024 Duración: 01h04minPart one of a two part episode Most speculative fiction will involve traumatising your main character at some point but how do you make it clear to a reader or viewer that this is what is happening without ponderously 'telling' it? What narrative techniques can be employed to show this instead? How do you deliver the message with emotion without tilting over into melodrama? How do you make trauma believable? This week Jules and Madeleine delve into this tricky part of storytelling. On the slab - Daredevil, Twilight, I Belong to the Earth and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
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Episode 429: All in the Details - How to Use Description in Speculative Fiction part 2
13/09/2024 Duración: 01h13minPart 2 of a 2 part episode Following on from last week's over view episode, this week Jules and Madeleine get, appropriately, into the details of what to include or exclude when writing and worldbuilding. Speculative fiction can, by it's very nature, require extensive world building which in turn requires plenty of detail. But how do you know what to include or exclude? How much detail should you go for? Is there such a thing as too much detail? On the slab this week - Harker & Blackthorn, The Sons of Thestian, Strange the Dreamer - Laini Taylor, Immortal Pleasures - V Castro and many more Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic