Tales from the Trunk
Reading the stories that didn't make it
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Episodes
Friday Apr 16, 2021
Friday Apr 16, 2021
This time around, we're joined by Nino Cipri (@ninocipri) to talk about their forthcoming Defekt, sequel to the amazing, Hugo-finalist novella, Finna. Nino reads their trunked story, "Presque Vu" (no, not that one, the trunked one), and we talk about their thoughts on composting stories, writing workshops, and why capitalism is bad, actually.
Things we mention in this episode:
Homesick, by Nino Cipri
The Clarion (and Clarion West) Workshop
"Presque Vu," by Nino Cipri
IKEA
420 (nice)
The Nebula Conference
AWP
N. K. Jemisin
John Scalzi
Jim C. Hines
Nino's website, insta, and newsletter
Join us again in May when our guests will be Sarah Loch and R. J. Theodore!
Friday Apr 02, 2021
Friday Apr 02, 2021
This time around on book tour, we're joined by Steve Toase (@stevetoase), whose collection, To Drown in Dark Water, releases on April 27th, 2021! After Steve reads a selection of flash stories from the collection, we talk about cosmic horror, organic servers, and the Munich art scene.
Things we mention in the episode:
Jordan Kurella's appearance on the show
The Best Horror of the Year, volumes 6 and 11, edited by Ellen Datlow
Stefan Koidl
Hazel Ang
Short Story Day
"Terminus Post Quem," by Steve Toase
Mad Scientist Journal
Analog
Dendrochronology
RFC (Request for Comments)
April Fool's RFCs
Hyper Text Coffee Pot Control Protocol
IP over Avian Carriers
Whale fall
"The Silent Brush of Wings," by Steve Toase, in Three-Lobed Burning Eye
Franz Marc
Der Blaue Reiter
Atelier
"Simplicity," by Wassily Kandinsky
Death in Venice, by Thomas Mann
Gladius Dei, by Thomas Mann
Robert W. Chambers
M.R. James
our awful, racist uncle, Howard (Phillips Lovecraft)
Paul Klee
Cosmic horror
The King in Yellow, by Robert W. Chambers
The Yellow Sign, by Robert W. Chambers
Fortean Times Magazine
Harrogate, north Yorkshire
Flint knapping
Silicosis
Asbestosis WARNING: some gross images on that wikipedia page
Embodied Geographies, edited by Elizabeth Kenworthy Teather
Steve's blog
Steve's newsletter
Steve's patreon
Join us again on April 16th, when our guest will be Nino Cipri!
Friday Mar 19, 2021
Friday Mar 19, 2021
Hello, and welcome to season 3!
This time around, we're joined by Kelly Robson (@kellyoyo), whose new collection, Alias Space, comes out April 30th, 2021, from Subterranean Press! Kelly reads her story, "Deadfall," which she wrote as a futurist-in-residence during a conference, and we dive right into talking about what being a futurist is all about.
Things we mentioned in this episode:
A. M. Dellamonica
Stan Rogers
The Book of Dragons, edited by Jonathan Strahan
The Newsflesh series, by Mira Grant
Little Brother, by Cory Doctorow
Shaw Broadcasting
Stantec Engineering
Nakoda (Stoney) Tribe
Lenape (Delaware) Tribe
Karl Schroeder
IBM
Madeline Ashby
Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity
Futurescapes
Oculus VR
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Codex Writer's Group
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
Nanowrimo
Moby Dick, by Herman Melville
Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
An Unkindness of Ghosts, by Rivers Solomon
Subterranean Press
Alias Grace, by Margaret Atwood
Join us again on April 16th, when our guest will be Nino Cipri!
Friday Mar 05, 2021
Friday Mar 05, 2021
This time on book tour, we're joined by returning guest Karen Osborne (@karenthology) to talk about Engines of Oblivion, the amazing sequel to last year's Architects of Memory, and conclusion of the Memory War duology. Karen reads us an excerpt from the book, and we take some time to talk about some of her favorite bits both that made it into print and that got taken out in edits.
Things we mentioned in this episode:
The Imperial Radch Trilogy, by Ann Leckie
Ninefox Gambit, by Yoon Ha Lee
Wandavision
"Agatha All Along"
Interstellar
Mass Effect
The Expanse
"The Sky is a Neighborhood," by Foo Fighters
"Trip Switch," by Nothing but Thieves
"Daddy Lessons," by Beyonce, featuring the Dixie Chicks
Don't Touch That: An Anthology of Parenthood in SFF, edited by Jaymee Goh
Join us again next time, when my guest will be Kelly Robson!
Friday Feb 19, 2021
Friday Feb 19, 2021
This episode, we are joined by Nebula-nominated author and journalist extraordinaire, Jason Sanford (@jasonsanford). Jason reads us his story, "The Wheels on the Torture Bus Go Round and Round," and we discuss progress in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror community, the joys of short fiction, and Jason's Genre Grapevine column on his patreon, where he covers news in the field.
Things discussed in this episode:
Meadowbrook Press
Shel Silverstein
Newfangled Fairy Tales, edited by Bruce Lansky
"Rumplestiltskin, Private Eye," by Jason Sanford, in Newfangled Fairy Tales #2
A. J. Hackwith on Tales from the Trunk
"May Our Voices Sing Like Blood from Open Wounds," by Jason Sanford, in Intergalactic Medicine Show
"The Eight-Thousanders," by Jason Sanford, in the September/October, 2020, issue of Asimov's
Locus
The Society of Professional Journalists
Lady Whistledown's Society Papers
Sad Puppies and Rabid Puppies (the sad/rabids)
Under Everest, by D. H. Dunn
Uncanny Magazine
Analog Magazine
Randall Kenan
Let the Dead Bury Their Dead, by Randall Kenan
"Run, Mourner, Run," by Randall Kenan, in Let the Dead Bury Their Dead
The Peace Corps
If I Had Two Wings, by Randall Kenan
The Murderbot Diaries, by Martha Wells
Sarah Gailey on Tales from the Trunk
Tor.com Publishing
"Sublimation Angels," by Jason Sanford
Plague Birds, by Jason Sanford
Join us again next month, when our guest will be Kelly Robson
Friday Feb 05, 2021
Friday Feb 05, 2021
This time around, we're re-joined by Sarah Gailey (@gaileyfrey), who brings us an exclusive excerpt from their forthcoming novel, The Echo Wife, which releases on February 16th, 2021. Following the reading, we talk a bit about some not-so-usual book-event questions.
Other things we mention in this episode:
The Echo Wife in Entertainment Weekly
in Cosmopolitan
"Look," the scary eyeball story, by Sarah Gailey
Hamilton
Sarah (Other Sarah) Hollowell (on Tales from the Trunk)
Magic for Liars, by Sarah Gailey
The Echo Wife tour
Miriam Weinberg
River of Teeth and Taste of Marrow, by Sarah Gailey
When We Were Magic, by Sarah Gailey
Sarah's Substack newsletter, Stone Soup
Sarah's Instagram
Maggie Tokuda-Hall (Instagram)
The Mermaid, The Witch, And The Sea, by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
Gritty
Tune in again in two weeks, when our guest will be Jason Sanford!
Friday Jan 15, 2021
Friday Jan 15, 2021
We're joined this time around by Fran Wilde (@fran_wilde), who reads her story, "How Sentient Kudzu Solved the KRYPTOS K4 Code and How the CIA Covered It Up A Revolution in Four Parts," which leads us into a discussion of invasive plants, poetry, and some unexpected connections from our shared alma mater.
Things we mentioned in this episode:
Gritty
Kryptos
Kudzu
Philadelphia World's Fair
Elise Tobler
Shimmer
John Bartram
Warren Wilson College
Rita Dove
Debra Nystrom
Gregory Orr
Charles Wright
Heather McHugh
Eleanor Wilner
Brigit Pegeen Kelly
Larry Levis
Joan Aleshire
"One Art," by Elizabeth Bishop
George Oppen
"Without," by Fran Wilde, in Nature: Futures
"Everlasting," by Fran Wilde, in Daily Science Fiction
Updraft, by Fran Wilde
The Nebula Awards
Life on Mars, by Tracy K. Smith
Julia Rios
Lanternfish Press
Klein bottles
European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman, by Theodora Goss
Fran's Patreon
Ideomancer
Sam J. Miller
Uncanny Magazine
Viable Paradise
"The Ghost Tide Chanty," by Fran Wilde
"Mayor for Today," by Fran Wilde, in Asimov's, January/February 2021
"Rhizome by Starlight," by Fran Wilde, in Rebuilding Tomorrow
The Ship of Stolen Words, by Fran Wilde
Riverland, by Fran Wilde
Narnia
Clock Star Rose Spine, by Fran Wilde
Boskone
Futurescapes
Cat Rambo's classes
Wester Colorado University's MFA in Creative Writing program
Join us again on February 19th, when Jason Sanford will be our guest!
Friday Jan 01, 2021
Friday Jan 01, 2021
Happy new year, everyone! It's been awards season for a hot minute already, but it takes a little while to do a roundup for all my guests who are interested in being a part of it, so here we are!
Works mentioned in this episode:
When We Were Magic, by Sarah Gailey
Upright Women Wanted, by Sarah Gailey
“We Don’t Talk About the Dragon,” in The Book of Dragons, by Sarah Gailey
“Drones to Plowshares,” by Sarah Gailey
“Tiger Lawyer Gets It Right,” by Sarah Gailey
“Everything Is The Hunger Games Now,” by Sarah Gailey
Here's the Thing
Sarah's awards post
“Raff and the Scissor-Finger,” by R. K. Duncan
“Clever Jack, Heavy with Stories,” by R. K. Duncan
“For Every Jack,” by R. K. Duncan
"Witness," from Fireweed: Stories of the Revolution, by R. K. Duncan
R. K. Duncan's awards post
Prime Deceptions, by Valerie Valdes
Chilling Effect, by Valerie Valdes
The Archive of the Forgotten, by A. J. Hackwith
The Library of the Unwritten, by A. J. Hackwith
Finding Faeries, by Alexandra Rowland
Be The Serpent
Beneath the Rising, by Premee Mohamed
“Everything As Part Of Its Infinite Place,” (Patreon-locked) by Premee Mohamed
“The Redoubtables,” by Premee Mohamed
“Restoration of function to Biochemical Structure 34 using iterative molecular construction techniques: teaching an old dome new tricks,” by Premee Mohamed
“An Empathy of Fear,” by Premee Mohamed
The Big Idea: Premee Mohamed, John Scalzi's blog, March 2020
Whatever, John Scalzi's blog
Premee's awards post
“And All the Trees of the Forest Shall Clap Their Hands,” by Sharon Hsu
“Upon What Soil They Fed,” by Jennifer Mace
“In the Salt Crypts of Ghiarelle,” in Silk and Steel, by Jennifer Mace
Silk & Steel: A Queer Speculative Adventure Anthology
"saltwashed," by Jennifer Mace
“Open House on Haunted Hill,” by John Wiswell
Machina, by Fran Wilde, Malka Older, Curtis C. Chen, and Martha Wells
A transcript of the show is below:
--
Before we get started, a quick reminder that I’ll be returning as a guest on the next episode of We Make Books, which should be hitting the feed on January 5th, talking about the process of trunking things. A huge shout out to Rekka and Kaelyn for inviting me back on the show!
[“Paper Wings” plays]
Hello, and welcome to Tales from the Trunk: Reading the stories that didn’t make it. I’m Hilary B. Bisenieks.
It’s awards season once again, and while I’ve already made my obligatory awards post on social media, that doesn’t do a whole lot if you don’t follow me or the show on Twitter. So once again, I’m collecting awards information for the show and all interested guests here in the feed.
This show, Tales from the Trunk, is once again eligible for Best Fancast and is my only eligible work for 2020.
Sarah Gailey, who appeared on our very first episode in March of 2019, is eligible for the Lodestar and other YA awards for When We Were Magic. They are eligible for Best Novella for Upright Women Wanted, (one of my favorite books of the past year). In the Best Short Story category, they have the following eligible stories: “We Don’t Talk About the Dragon,” “Drones to Plowshares,” and “Tiger Lawyer Gets It Right.” They are eligible for Best Related Work for their essay “Everything Is The Hunger Games Now,” and for Best Fan Writer for their newsletter, Here’s the Thing. A link to their awards post will be in the show notes.
R. K. Duncan, our May 2019 guest, has three stories eligible for Best Short Story: “Raff and the Scissor-Finger,” “Clever Jack, Heavy with Stories,” and “For Every Jack.” Additionally, their poem, “Witness,” is eligible for various poetry awards. A link to their awards post will be in the show notes.
Valerie Valdes, our July 2019 guest, is eligible for Best Novel for Prime Deceptions, the excellent sequel to last year’s Chilling Effect.
A.J. Hackwith, who was on the show in September of 2019, is in her second year of eligibility for the Outstanding Award for New Writers. The Archive of the Forgotten, the sequel to last year’s stellar debut, The Library of the Unwritten, is eligible for Best Novel.
Alex Rowland, who came on the show in October of 2019, is eligible for Best Novella for Finding Faeries, and Best Fancast for Be The Serpent, along with our October 2020 guest, Jennifer Mace.
Premee Mohamed, who joined us in November of 2019, is eligible for Best Novel for her debut, Beneath the Rising. The following are eligible for Best Short Story: “Everything As Part Of Its Infinite Place,” “The Redoubtables,” and “Restoration of function to Biochemical Structure 34 using iterative molecular construction techniques: teaching an old dome new tricks.” She is eligible for various nonfiction awards for her essay “An Empathy of Fear,” and her appearance on John Scalzi’s “Big Idea” feature on his blog, Whatever. A link to Premee’s awards post will be in the show notes.
Sharon Hsu, our December 2019 guest, is eligible for Best Short Story for “And All the Trees of the Forest Shall Clap Their Hands.”
Macey, AKA Jennifer Mace, who joined us in October of this year is eligible alongside their podcasting compatriots, Alex Rowland and Freya Marske, for Be the Serpent in the Best Fancast category. Macey’s stories, “Upon What Soil They Fed” and “In the Salt Crypts of Ghiarelle” are both eligible for Best Short Story. Silk & Steel: A Queer Speculative Adventure Anthology is eligible for the World Fantasy Award for Best Speculative Anthology, and “saltwashed,” is eligible for poetry awards.
John Wiswell, who joined us in November of 2020, is eligible for Best Short Story for “Open House on Haunted Hill.”
Finally, Fran Wilde, who will be joining us on the show in two weeks, has the Serial Box serial, Machina, eligible for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form, along with Malka Older and Curtis C. Chen.
Links for eligibility posts, as applicable, along with all the works mentioned on this episode will be available in the show notes.
Tales from the Trunk is mixed and produced in beautiful Oakland, California.
Our theme music is “Paper Wings,” by Ryan Boyd.
You can support the show on patreon at patreon dot com slash trunkcast. All patrons of the show now get a sticker and logo button, along with show outtakes and other content that can't be found anywhere else.
You can find the show on Twitter at trunkcast, and I tweet at hbbisenieks.
If you like the show, consider taking a moment to rate and review us on your preferred podcast platform.
And remember: don't self-reject.
[“Paper Wings” plays]
Friday Dec 18, 2020
Friday Dec 18, 2020
This time around, it's my pleasure to welcome Phoebe Barton (@aphoebebarton | phoebebartonsf.com) onto the show! Phoebe reads their story, "More Things Than Are Dreamt Of," which leads us into a great conversation about how the submissions game has changed since we got started and what Phoebe's just-released interactive fiction game, The Luminous Underground, taught her new things about writing linear fiction.
You can find links to purchase The Luminous Underground on the Choice of Games website.
Things we mentioned this episode:
SFWA
Cowboy Bebop
Bakka-Phoenix Books
Analog
Asimov's
“The Paragon of Animals,” by Phoebe Barton (Analog, March 2013)
F&SF
Weird Tales
Chocobos
John W. Campbell
Choice of Games
Ghostbusters
Choice of Games: pitching
Twine
NaNoWriMo
Clarion West
Worldcon
Join us again on January 15th, when our guest will be Fran Wilde!
Friday Dec 04, 2020
Friday Dec 04, 2020
For this month's bonus episode, I'm talking a bit about NaNoWriMo! The transcript for this episode follows:
--
Hello, and welcome to Tales from the Trunk: reading the stories that didn’t make it. I’m Hilary B. Bisenieks.
Twenty twenty might have been simultaneously the best and worst year to try to do NaNoWriMo. Best because we didn’t have our usual distractions thanks to the pandemic, so we could spend more time at home working on our writing. Worst because, well, everything. And despite or because of all that, many of us tried to write a novel this November.
As some of you may have seen on my main twitter account, I won NaNo this year. This was my first time winning—by which I mean writing over fifty thousand words during November—though it was my sixth November attempt. I wrote fifty thousand, four hundred and fifty one words of a brand new manuscript in November, which represents what I estimate to be about fifty five percent of the first draft of this book. So yes, I “won” NaNo in that I wrote all those words, but I didn’t finish the book in November.
That’s ok, though. I’m over halfway done with the first draft of a novel. I wrote more in the past month than I did in the previous few years combined. That’s a huge win for me. And like John Wiswell said on our November episode, if you manage to write any words in November, you’re doing better than most writers out there. So however much you wrote in November, good job! And if you didn’t write in November, guess what? You’re still doing great.
So as someone who finally won after five quote-unquote unsuccessful attempts, what did I learn? What were my secrets?
Mostly it came down to having support. Nobody actually writes (or creates any other art, for that matter) in a vacuum. In my case, I couldn’t have written as much as I did without the support of my spouse (who won NaNo on her first try!) or all my friends online, who encouraged me to sit down and write for half an hour with them at whatever time I was at my computer. Elizabeth, Macey, Noah, Caitlin, Rem, Val, Laura, and so many other folks were right there cheering me and everyone else along.
It turns out for me that doing sprints like that is the most-consistent way I can get words out. If I just sit down to write with the goal of just making wordcount for the day, often I’ll just stare at the blinking cursor. If I sit down and put on a timer for fifteen or thirty minutes and announce on twitter or slack or to my spouse that I’m going to write for a set amount of time, that creates enough pressure on me to get words out, and if I can just keep going after that timer goes off? Great! And if not, there will be another run after a short break.
The other thing, which I learned about myself a while ago, but which doing NaNo really reinforced for me, is that I need an outline for longer works, but that I shouldn’t be too precious with it. While for most of the month I had at least two thirds of the book outlined, I only really needed to have the next two chapters firm in my head, because anything beyond that was likely to change in some way or another anyway.
Finally, I learned that I can, in point of fact, win NaNoWriMo. I went in with the goal to write fifty thousand words, an average of sixteen hundred and sixty-seven words a day, and I did that. If I didn’t hit par one day, and I frequently didn’t, that was fine. And if I hadn’t won? That would have been fine, too. Any words I made in November would be a win. Any words you can make any month are a win.
NaNo doesn’t work for everyone, and that’s ok. You know the best way to make words for yourself, and anything anyone else tells you is at best a helpful suggestion.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go make some more words. This novel isn’t going to finish itself, however hard I might wish that it would.
Tales from the Trunk is mixed and produced in beautiful Oakland, California.
Our theme music is “Paper Wings,” by Ryan Boyd.
You can support the show on patreon at patreon dot com slash trunkcast. All patrons of the show now get a sticker and logo button, along with show outtakes and other content that can't be found anywhere else.
You can find the show on Twitter at trunkcast, and I tweet at hbbisenieks.
If you like the show, consider taking a moment to rate and review us on your preferred podcast platform.
And remember: don't self-reject.