Episodios

  • [From the Vault] Carmen Maria Machado & Passing Literary Kidney Stones

    [From the Vault] Carmen Maria Machado & Passing Literary Kidney Stones
    Dec 2 2025
    It’s all about memory this week. Remember that time literary superstar Carmen Maria Machado came on the show? No? Well here’s your chance to catch up on what you missed. Carmen spoke to me about Her Body and Other Parties and In the Dream House – the former a collection of folktale and fable, spun to hideous effect; the latter a piercing fictionalised memoir of abuse and haunted relationships. This was a daunting interview – we went deep into life, love and all the horrors they can bring. But we came up smiling. It’s a happy memory. Enjoy. The Argonauts (2015), by Maggie Nelson The Ghost Variations (2021), by Kevin Brockmeier A Few Seconds of Radiant Filmstrip: A Memoir of Seventh Grade (2014), by Kevin Brockmeier Proxies: Essays Near Knowing (2016), by Brian Blanchfield Monster Portraits (2018), by Sofia Samatar The Hot Zone (1994), by Richard Preston The Haunting of Hill House (1959), by Shirley Jackson The Bloody Chamber (1979), by Angela Carter Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h y 11 m
  • [From the Vault] Jeff VanderMeer and Our First On-Air Murder

    [From the Vault] Jeff VanderMeer and Our First On-Air Murder
    Nov 25 2025
    Jeff VanderMeer and I did not fall out!! This is a myth that has arisen since Jeff came on the show back in 2021, to discuss his eco-espionage crisis thriller, Hummingbird Salamander. Well, this trip back to the Vault will hopefully dispel that rumour. Instead what you’ll hear is a conversation with the Emperor of Weird fiction, talking about conservation and climate catastrophe, about plans to save the world and the villainy of tech – and about the furthest (Southern) reaches of a mad imagination. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Annihilation (2014), by Jeff VanderMeer Borne (2017), by Jeff VanderMeer The Rain Heron (2020), by Robbie Arnaut Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h y 7 m
  • [From the Vault] Will Dean & The Two Faces of Off-Grid Living

    [From the Vault] Will Dean & The Two Faces of Off-Grid Living
    Nov 18 2025
    Revisiting a true highlight this week! Will Dean’s The Last Thing to Burn is one of very few 10/10 books i've ever featured on this podcast. It’s a flawless study of isolation, survival, exploitation and the most toxic of masculinities – all about a Vietnamese immigrant, trapped in the home of her ‘husband,’ the monstrous Leonard. Will is an amazing writer, with an amazing life. He’s creating classics like this, as well as the ongoing Tuva Moodyson series, all from the depths of a Scandinavian forest. We talk about his journey from small town UK to his fairytale present, the role of landscape and isolation in his work, broken psyches and much more… Trust me, this book will stay with you! Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Misery (1987), by Stephen King On Writing (2000), by Stephen King Room (2010), by Emma Donaghue The Collector (1963), by John Fowles The Road (2006), by Cormac McCarthy Asylum (1996), by Patrick McGrath Tickets for the Northern Weird event at Blackwells, Manchester. Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    56 m
  • [From the Vault] Courtney Summers & The Master of the Bitch

    [From the Vault] Courtney Summers & The Master of the Bitch
    Nov 11 2025
    This flashback episode takes us to early 2021, when I was joined by Courtney Summers – the boundary-pushing author of dark YA fictions for a corrective lesson. Courtney came on the show to discuss The Project, a novel of sinister elite cults, evil charisma and radicalisation. At the time Trump had just been kicked out of office, so those things seemed safe to talk about. Alas… they are maybe scarier now. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Sadie (2018), by Courtney Summers Redder Days (2021), by Sue Rainsford The Children of Red Peak (2020), by Craig Di Louie The Need (2019), by Helen Phillips Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    59 m
  • [From the Vault] Tananarive Due & Black Girls Doing Magical Things

    [From the Vault] Tananarive Due & Black Girls Doing Magical Things
    Nov 4 2025
    Time for a classic haunted house. I’m on a short break from the show, to recoup, read without pressure and generally try not to implode. So we’re heading into the vault for some older conversations that new listeners may have missed and long-termers may enjoy anew. Where better to start that in a haunted house with a Queen of 21st century horror – Ms Tananarive Due! This was our first conversation together, back in May of 2021 – and we explored her bad-place archetype, The Good House, the elegiac horror of her collection, Ghost Summer, plus forays into her scholarship, film and TV work, and her relationships with Stephen King and Jordan Peele. It’s a lot of fun. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: Dark Dreams (2004), edited by Brandon Massey “The Comet” (1920), by W.E. Dubois Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h y 8 m
  • 260 – Joe Hill & The One About the Dragon

    260 – Joe Hill & The One About the Dragon
    Oct 28 2025
    Here be dragons! I’m celebrating Halloween week on Talking Scared with the very cream of the bucket list. Joe Hill is finally on the show! The author of Heart Shaped Box, NOS4A2, “The Black Phone” and Lock & Key is back with his first novel in nearly a decade, and it’s a beast! King Sorrow is an epic of dragons, diabolical deals, decade-spanning friendships, love and hate and everything in between. It’s bloody brilliant! Joe talks about the triple inspiration of The Hobbit, The Secret History and Friends. We tackle tech-bros and trolls (literally), and the formidable role of his mother, Tabitha King. And if we disagree on certain characters in King Sorrow, we’re certainly on the same page when it comes to the role of love in life and writing. This is a special one for me. A special book and a special conversation. Enjoy! Other books mentioned: 20th Century Ghosts (2005), by Joe Hill Heart Shaped Box (2007), by Joe Hill The Fireman (2016), by Joe Hill The Hobbit (1937), by J.R.R. Tolkien The Secret History (1992), by Donna Tartt The Dead Zone (1979), by Stephen King Cloud Atlas (2004), by David Mitchell Old Soul (2025), by Susan Barker The Trap (1985), by Tabitha King “The Jewbird” (1963), by Bernard Malamud Coffin Moon (2025), by Keith Rosson Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h y 21 m
  • Let Us Palaver #5 – ‘Salem’s Lot Debrief

    Let Us Palaver #5 – ‘Salem’s Lot Debrief
    Oct 24 2025
    In our fifth Let Us Palaver, Nat and I dally a little longer in ‘Salem’s Lot to hunt down a few more vamps and follow up some threads mentioned in the main episode. This is where we get spoilery, so this is just for those who have been to the Tower already. But we talk about Chris’s predictions for Father Callaghan, discuss the moral arc of King’s entire fictional project (no big thing right!) and even congratulate the man on his steadfast marriage. Also, my wife makes an appearance bearing tea. Enjoy. Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    33 m
  • The Dark Tower Deep Dive #5 – ‘Salem’s Lot

    The Dark Tower Deep Dive #5 – ‘Salem’s Lot
    Oct 21 2025
    ‘Salem’s Lot is FIFTY years old this month. Hellfire, how did that happen? We’re gonna celebrate the bloodsucking and small town shenanigans for all they are worth!! But some of you know that the Lot sits just to one side of the Path of the Beam – so this is also a key zig in our endless zagging towards The Dark Tower. You may just not know why yet? And neither does Chris, so no one tell him. So in this two-fer episode we honour a true horror classic of 20th century literature, and we inch one step closer to the nexus of all things. Efficient! Enjoy. Other books mentioned: “Jerusalem’s Lot” and “One For the Road,” both in Night Shift (1978), by Stephen King Shitshow (2025), by Chris Panatier The Rats (1974), by James Herbert Dracula (1898), by Bram Stoker The Great Gatsby (1925), by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Harvest Home (1973), by Thomas Tryon As mentioned – here is my Vulture list of the Best Horror Books of 2025 (so far). Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 h y 28 m