Speculate!

In this episode, we start a new triptych of shows on the work of Andrzej Sapkowski with our reader response to his book The Last Wish, which introduced the character of Geralt of Rivia and The Witcher to the world and inspired CD Projekt’s incredible series of Witcher games. We chat about the book’s crisp […]

Greg and Mike met up with author David Mack at Farpoint in Baltimore, MD. David is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty novels of science fiction, fantasy, and adventure, including the Star Trek Destiny and Cold Equations trilogies. We talked with him about his new Dark Arts series of Alt-History Fantasy, starting […]

Welcome to Episode 180 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers, and Fans. In this episode Mike and guest co-host Elsa Sjunneson-Henry continue our triptych of shows on the work of Mishell Baker, looking at her novel Borderline.  We talk with Mishell about inspiration from gaming and other sources, Millie’s distinct character voice, sense of place, and more. If you […]

Welcome to Episode 178 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode, we launch our third joint production of Speculate and Greg’s Twitch channel (under the moniker Arvan Eleron) as we discuss the world of Portal, Valve‘s groundbreaking puzzle game with a whole lot of story both implicit and explicit.  We […]

Welcome to Episode 176 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers, and Fans.  In this episode we continue our triptych of shows on the work of Malka Older, looking at her novel Infomocracy.  We chat about dystopia (and whether it’s an overused term), idea-driven fiction, narrative disorder, and more–and how all of it is tied […]

Welcome to Episode 175 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers, and Fans.  In this episode we welcome everyone back and thank everyone for their understanding during our hiatus before beginning our next triptych, this one on Malka Older‘s Infomocracy.  This book, which envisions a near future environment where “microdemocracy” has become the dominant political […]

Welcome to Episode 174 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode we start by explaining a bit of what’s been going on with our schedule, and what’s on tap for the future, before moving on to our chat with author Jason M. Hough.  Jason has been on the show before, […]

    Welcome to Episode 173 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode, we venture into the world of healthcare and politics–and yes, they’re related!–as they relate to the speculative fiction community, as we discuss what happens next with authors Gwenda Bond and Kameron Hurley.  Both have talked extensively, on […]

Welcome to Episode 172 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans. In this State of the Field episode we chat with former editor and current agent DongWon Song of the Howard Morhaim Literary Agency about the current publishing environment for speculative fiction, how the line between agent and editor has become increasingly blurred, […]

Welcome to Episode 171 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans. In this episode we chat with author Michael J. Martinez about works past, present, and future. During our discussion we talk about Mike’s Daedalus Trilogy and Majestic-12 series, his love of history in both real and alternate forms, and the ways in […]

Welcome to Episode 170 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers, and Fans.  In this episode we talk about our schedule through the end of 2016 before getting into the show proper, a discussion of Lauren Beukes‘s upcoming short story collection (due out in November) Slipping: Stories, Essays, & Other Writing, focusing in particular on […]

Welcome to Episode 168 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans. In this episode we continue our triptych of shows on the work of Chuck Wendig, looking at his new novel Invasive.  We chat about anxiety in fiction, the nature of messages and themes in stories, the specifics of Chuck’s unique style (and […]

Welcome to Episode 167 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode we talk about a couple of upcoming projects before beginning our next triptych, this one on Chuck Wendig‘s Invasive.  This book, due out on August 16th, follows futurist and FBI consultant Hannah Stander as she tries to uncover the […]

Welcome to Episode 165 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode we continue our triptych of shows on the work of Daniel Jose Older, looking at his acclaimed YA novel Shadowshaper as we speak with the author himself.  We chat about music, Brooklyn, cultural representation, characters of color, and many […]

Welcome to Episode 164 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans. In this episode we talk about Mike’s successful Genrenauts Kickstarter and the new arrival in Greg’s family–the new youngest Speculate podcaster!–along with coming travel plans before beginning our next triptych, this one on Daniel Jose Older‘s Shadowshaper.  This book, about a young […]

Welcome to Episode 162 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode we continue our triptych of shows on the work of Aliette de Bodard, looking in particular at her award-winning and critically acclaimed novel The House of Shattered Wings, as we speak with the author herself (for the second time). […]

Welcome to Episode 161 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode we talk a bit about the current state of the Hugo Awards and two projects of our own–Mike’s upcoming Kickstarter for The Genrenauts and Greg’s recently released graphic novel Icarus–before beginning our next triptych of 2016 with our reader […]

Welcome to Episode 160 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode, we continue our second joint production of Speculate and Greg’s Twitch channel (under the moniker Arvan Eleron) as we discuss the world of Numenera and writing for video games in general with bestselling author and inXile Entertainment‘s Torment: Tides […]

      Welcome to Episode 159 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode, our second joint production of Speculate and Greg’s Twitch channel (under the moniker Arvan Eleron), we return to the world of Numenera and inXile Entertainment‘s Torment: Tides of Numenera as we speak with world designer Shanna Germain, […]

Welcome to Episode 157 of Speculate! The Podcast for Writers, Readers and Fans.  In this episode we continue our triptych of shows on the work of Emmi Itaranta, looking in particular at her novel Memory of Water, as we speak with the author herself.  She discusses her process of writing the manuscript simultaneously in Finnish […]