Somebody Write This: Recent Episodes
Hannah Keefer
A podcast where we take a randomly-generated plot synopsis and try to turn it into something someone might actually write.
Music from https://filmmusic.io "Glitter Blast" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
"An unscrupulous gunman must solve a strange case of a superior olfactory sense and deal with an ancient prophecy." How do these things tie in together? What does the ancient prophecy predict? And whose professional success is involved? Our guest Jake Stoddard is here to work out all these details! Check out his work at jakestoddard.com.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"This story follows a well meaning but selfish young woman at Jessica's gym." What makes this woman selfish? Who is Jessica? And which one of them is in danger of being erased from existence? Our guest Aaron Canton is here to work out all these details! You can find him and his work at aaroncanton.wordpress.com.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"In a chicken farm, giant bugs become a suspect when a rivalry develops between the Empire and an asthmatic junkie." What do giant bugs have to do with this rivalry? What does the entire Empire have against one junkie? And which of these characters is named Barney? Our guest Logan R. Kearsley is here to work out all these details! Check out his writings on human-alien linguistics (and more) on his blog: http://gliese1337.blogspot.com/
"John F. Kennedy has a series of surreal encounters with a brokenhearted English artist who died 10 years ago." Is JFK seeing a ghost? Is JFK a ghost at this point? And what artist would go by the name "Cryptic Greg"? Our guest Dan Sinker is here to figure out those details! Check out him and his co-host Maureen Johnson on Says Who Podcast, wherever you're listening to Somebody Write This!
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"3 friendly locals uncover a family secret in the local church." What is the family secret? Whose family is it? And whose loyalty is required? We've got our guest, B. McGraw, here to figure it out with us! Find his book "Et Al" on Amazon or follow him on jabde.com, @jabde6 on Twitter, or on his subreddit, r/immaterialscience.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"In 1960s Los Angeles, a new business partner, Hades, and the new Italian cowboys find the real killer." Who are the new Italian cowboys? Why are they in business with Hades? And is that... THE Mr. Rogers? Our guest Quinn Que is here to work through this with us! Follow him basically everywhere @edokwin and you can find his writing on his substack, "The Edokwin Editorial."
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"In a microscopic community, Ichabod Argyle and his friend Graham Pease have obtained a custody battle and end up on a soul-searching journey across America." Those may be the best-named characters our podcast has ever seen, but what does the rest of it mean? Our guest Kylar Merrell is here to figure it out! You can read Outlaw Country, listen to the playlist, and follow his new work at foreignpresscomics.com.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"A drama centered on the efforts of an ex-mob lawyer to find an angry detective who might awaken to find strange horns sprouting from his forehead." Well, that's just a whole bunch of strangeness. Thankfully our guest John Lumgair is here to work everything out! Check out Jazz Cow on jazzcow.co.uk, and you can find John himself under either his name or under his company, Quirky Motion, on social media.
"Two British Agents ally with the Dark Lord to see booming business." Which Dark Lord is this? What kind of business are they hoping to boom? And which of them is Carly? Our guest Michael Todd Gallowglas is here to work through all of this! Find him and his work online at https://mtoddgallowglas.com/
"A group of beautiful yet troubled twenty-somethings rebuild her life after she is most understanding in bars." Whose life are they rebuilding? Why is she so understanding? Does this all take place in the late 1940? Our guest, author Esme Symes-Smith, is here to help us work out all these details! Check out their Sir Callie book series, starting with "Sir Callie and the Champions of Halston," and you can also find them online at esymessmith.com.
"In the 1950s, Jerry's ambitious kid sister Cindy winds up undertaking a search for love and self in a quest to vanquish three teenagers." What did the teenagers do to deserve vanquishing? How does Jerry play into his sister's search for love and self? And what exactly is the Nile of New Orleans? Our guest Mary Mascari helps us answer these questions and more. Don't forget to check out Mary's scripted podcast "Vennix the Mighty" on your favorite podcast app!
"Two known counter-culture figures become dangerously rural after witnessing a multi-billion eternal life." How is that a thing you can witness? What makes being rural dangerous? And how does anti-government hysteria fit in? We’re joined by our guest Jason Luna (as well as guest co-host Bethany Megill, who jumped in when we weren’t sure Jennie would make it!) to unravel this story.
"When a family's maid gets himself killed, they escape from prison." How does he get himself killed? Why are they all in prison? And why do they want a book? Our guest storyteller Peter Fenton is here to work it out -- and largely without Hannah's help, as her audio only half saved on the recording. But Jennie and Peter have the story in capable hands and we were able to cobble together a mostly-coherent story regardless. This one was too good to leave on the cutting room floor! Check out Peter's work @peterfent and on bypeterfenton.com.
"Shortly after being involved in a web of corruption, Sarah becomes tied to a mysterious house." How is Sarah involved? How is the house involved? While we're at it, how is a school involved? Our guest Ally Liddell joins us on this episode to try to untangle this (sometimes literal) web.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
We've hit 100 episodes and 4 years of podcasting, and to celebrate, we're inviting a couple of our previous guests to look back at some of our favorite episodes and read absolutely ridiculous AI-written scripts of them. Turns out we still need people for writing stories, because the computers do NOT get it.
Here's to 100 more brainstorming sessions!
Our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"When his girlfriend's family has a loving family to support him, he is transformed into pirates." What exactly is this family dynamic? What life choices is he feeling inferior about? And hold on, he's transformed into pirates, plural? Our guest Charlie Jane Anders helps to make sense of this bizarre beginning! Follow her on Instagram @charliejaneanders and check out her latest work on the Unstoppable trilogy and the New Mutants comics!
"A shy retelling of Shakespeare's 'Macbeth' set at a major company." What major company? How is this retelling shy? And how does the title fit in? Our guest Tina Gallagher is here to make it fit! You can find her online @tinagallagherauthor, or at tinagallagherbooks.com.
"A slovenly cable repairman infiltrates the streets of Manhattan in order to reach his son." Where is the repairman's son? Which of them is a communist? And how exactly does he infilitrate Manhattan's streets? Our guest Chaz Hayden is here to help is work it all out! Follow him online at @thechazhayden and look for his debut novel, "The First Thing About You."
"When Russia's first nuclear submarine malfunctions, a group of beautiful yet troubled twenty-somethings must race to leave her lover." Who is her lover? Which one is the scheming ex? And how does a nuclear submarine fit into all this? Our guest, author Jacqueline Carey, is here to help us fit it all together! Check out more of her and her work at jacquelinecarey.com.
Hannah started a new job last week and completely blanked on getting this week's episode edited and posted -- gah! But just to make sure you still have something on this Thursday, here's a rerun of one of our favorite episodes from December 2021, a romance starring the actor Woody Harrelson as himself.
"A strange old man has a series of surreal encounters with a nurse while becoming torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home." Well, that sounds ominous... What are his orders? Is he Kay or Clarice? Melissa & Robert of The Haunted Tales Podcast join us to work it all out! You can find them and their work on Twitter @hauntedtalespod and on Instagram @hauntedtalespodcast. (And we hear a rumor that they might even be creating a special episode based on this plot synopsis, so make sure you check that one out!)
"The schemes of a professional monster hunter who will stop at nothing to celebrate the artistic work of their father." What artistic work? Why is it so important to the monster hunter? And who are the two roomies? Our guest Jeneta St. Clair helps us work through all of these questions! Find her on Instagram at @jenetastclair, her show @dryshow_wetcomics, and keep an eye out for the short film Marque Dos, which she appears in!
"The struggle of the peaceful settlers of a town destined for railroad greatness's legal feud over a robbery." What kind of legal feud involves a robbery? Are all the settlers involved? And WHAT do we do with that title? Our guest Heidi Voss is here to help answer those questions! You can follow her at authorheidivoss.com, and if you sign up for her newsletter you'll get a free short story.
"The true story of pirates who spy on his boss's old mentor." Why are pirates spying on someone? What is the old mentor doing? And, well, this isn't actually a true story, right? Our guest Alexander Weinstein is here to help us work it all out! You can find him and his work at alexanderweinstein.com. You can also watch the film After Yang, which was based on his short story "Saying Goodbye to Yang."
"A professor of chemistry dates other women to distract a headstrong young girl." How is dating women a distraction? Is one of these women named Mona Lebowski? And how does the small town play into it? Our guest Cecelia Mecca is here to help us work it all out! You can find her medieval romance under her name here and her contemporary romance work under Bella Michaels. Find her @ceceliamecca on social media!
"Two former secretaries come up with a money-making promotion to train Merlin's descendant." Who is Merlin's descendant? Why do they need money to train them? And what does this have to do with Hawaiian real estate? Our guest Rap Critic is here to help us work it all out! You can find him and his work here:
https://www.youtube.com/@RapCritic
https://www.patreon.com/rapcritic
https://ko-fi.com/rapcritic
https://www.twitch.tv/rapcritic
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"Big time show winners throw a sorrow party in a fascist, militaristic future." What's a sorrow party? Is every party in a fascist future a sorrow party? How are letters involved? Our guest Matthew Marcus is a Jeopardy champion, so something of a big time show winner himself, so hopefully he can shine some light on this. If Matthew's trivia journey inspired you, he suggests you go find the Online Quiz League and go get involved!
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"An ensemble comedy about the meaning of the French throne." That's a much simpler synopsis than last week... Maybe too simple. What DOES the French throne mean? Who's in our ensemble? And who's involved in the espionage? Guest Josh Smith is here to unpack it all with us. You can follow him on Instagram @jovian_sage_ and view his artwork!
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"When a research team calling themselves 'the unofficial Christmas truce' reclaims his life, urbane Princess Jeremy Warner is assigned to join the Church of England." Oh my. That's a whole lot to unpack. Thankfully we have our guest Laure Porché AND guest co-host Kirsten Porter here to make this all work out!
You can find Laure's podcast, The Moonlit Path, anywhere you get your podcasts, or directly on her website at: https://www.laureporche.com/podcast-1
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"During England, his girlfriend's parents flee to a remote island in hope of proving their innocence." How can you prove your innocence on a remote island? Is the island full of deadly ancient curses? And... what on earth does "during England" mean as a setting? Thankfully our guest Lynnie Westafer is here to work it all out with us! You can find her and her work at lynniewestafer.com
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"A convicted arsonist accepts the challenge of entering the fifth grade." Why is an arsonist going to elementary school? What makes being there a challenge? And... what does this title mean? Our guest David Schell is here to give us a hand in putting it all together.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"When things are tense, his past is shown in flashbacks." Well, that's wide open. Whose past? Why flashbacks? And what does his restaurant's doorstep legend have to do with it? Our guest author Boo Walker joins us to flesh out this vague beginning.
Find Boo online at boowalker.com, where you can sign up for his newsletter and find his social media. And don't forget to check out his latest novel, "A Spanish Sunrise."
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"Two femme fatales have a pact to propose to his girlfriend, if they haven’t investigated a complex and mysterious case of blackmail and missing keys at a military school." Um. What? And also... what? Our guest Brianne Leeson helps us figure out what's going on in this exceptionally complicated story.
Check out Brianne's audio drama Today's Lucky Winner wherever you get your podcasts, or on social media @luckywinnershow. If you're seeking some peer support coaching for a late neurodivergence diagnosis, she also offers that at audhdbri.com.
And our links:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"In the Bolivian jungle, Hannibal discovers he can lose 65,000 dollars in poker." Who is this Hannibal? Why did he not know he could lose money in poker? And where are these vehicular accidents coming from? Author Steven L. Kent joins us to figure out all the details!
You can find Steve's work on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Steven-L.-Kent/author/B001JSEHX8
And find us online:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/somebodywritethis
Facebook: https://facebook.com/somebodywritethis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writethispod
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writethispod/
"The story of Tom Light, from her early days as a ventriloquist to her later years as a monk." What leads someone from ventriloquism to a monastery? Is "Tom Light" her real name? And who is this Badgely who is going to rescue her? Thank you to our guest Rana McAnear for helping us work this all out!
"At a water park, a new vigilante assassin goes in search of some answers when his friend resurfaces." How does this friend resurface? What does the assassin need answers for? And which one of them has a death wish? Our guest Sarah Aho is here to help us work out what all this means!
"Two podcasters have three story prompts and no guest." That's not our synopsis, it's just what happens in this episode. For this very special holiday episode, it's just Hannah and Jennie, and they decide to get EXTRA ambitious with no guest and try to tie three very different plots together to create a Christmas-themed anthology. You'll have to give it a listen to find out if it works at all!
"The story of New Orleans District Attorney Elizabeth Branagh, who went from saving the day to exiling fairytale creatures."
What are fairytale creatures doing in New Orleans? How is a District Attorney involved? Is she one of the two droids? Our guest Nathan Chase is here to help figure it out! Nathan runs Hannah's favorite movie website, flickchart.com -- sign up for a free account to start ranking your favorite movies against each other!
"The story of King Scott, his impromptu ascension to the throne of a bankrupt school, and the grieving widower who helped him be murdered."
What kind of school has a king with a throne? Why does he want to be murdered? Is it the king or the widower falling under a passionate spell? Returning guest Randy Kirkpatrick is here to help us work it out! You can find him on Twitter at @r_w_kirkpatrick (for now, anyway!).
"A kidnapped Princess is set free and returns to the Montana Territory, where a mysterious American explores other universes." What kind of Princess comes from Montana? Who is the mysterious American? Are they both orphans? We're delighted our guest Gail Carson Levine was able to join us to work this all out!
Gail can be found online at gailcarsonlevine.com, and you can read her newest work, "Sparrows in the Wind," wherever you get your books.
"The story of Voldemort Keach, a zombie who struggles to come to grips with her past." Where on earth did that character name come from? What happened in the zombie's past? And what non-traditional money is in play? We need twice as many guests to make this work, so thank goodness for Amanda Nicholson and Andy N joining us and making this work!
You can find Amanda as Amanda Steel on Wordpress and Facebook, and Andy as Andy N on Facebook or @andynpoet on other social media. You can also check out their podcast Reading in Bed to hear more of them!
"Three orphan girls settle in a plane crash." Is the plane crashing through this whole story? What are these orphan girls doing there? Is one of them an ancient supernatural being? Fortunately we've got our guest Dan McPherson here to sort it all out with us. You can find him on Twitter and Instagram @leadersmustlead and check out his podcast Dreams Are Real to hear him delve into more storytelling!
"A manager of an orphanage and an aviation giant try to drink themselves to death, but it's not long before they reluctantly gather." Why are they so reluctant to gather? Are they drinking themselves to death separately before that? And how does the medical insurance come in? Thankfully we have our guest Sally Bays here to help us work it all out!
"The untold story of the last days of Quinn Oldman, a father disturbed by his own non-Victorian feelings." What kind of non-Victorian feelings are we talking about? Why was this story untold? And who or what or where is Dickinson? Our guest Jasper Fforde has the creativity and brainstorming power to help us work through it! Follow him online @jasperfforde.
"A rock group and a young Christmas loving dog take action." Okay, they take action to... what? Why would a dog love Christmas? And what is that title referring to? Our guest Jonathon Pernisek of the Musical Man podcast is here to help us work through it! Check out Jonathon and his work at @musicalmanpod on Twitter or wherever you listen to podcasts.
"In Monte Carlo, four assassins find themselves making an unthinkable sacrifice."
What kind of sacrifice are we talking about? Why are there so many assassins in one place? And is Alice Malkin one of them, or their target? Our guest, author Eliot Peper, is here to help us work it all out! Check out Eliot and his work at https://eliotpeper.com/
"A grieving widower wants to go to his honeymoon and be an assassin." ...What? How did his wife die? Who is going to assassinate? So glad we have returning guest Josh Garcia-Cotter here to figure out what's going on! You can follow him on Twitter @joshinthemosh89.
"When corrupt police is haunted by visions of his dead wife, she sets out with a coma, her man suffering a family loss, and a dress shop lease to steal fifty cars." Well, that's... a mouthful. And a confusing one. Thankfully we have returning guest Katie Ahnberg to work it through with us! Follow her on Twitter @things_katiedid.
"Twin daughters and a cop from New York City search for a mining claim." Are the twin daughters the titular Kentucky girls? How do you search for a mining claim? And is this happening in Kentucky or New York City? Our guest Jasmine Warga is here to help sort this out! Check out her website, jasminewarga.com, and look for her newest book, A Rover's Story, released on October 4.
"A used car dealer moves in with the shady influential owner of a nightclub and his life changes dramatically." Why do these two move in together? What kind of dramatic changes ensue? And who is Ann Wolfe? Our guest Ian Trutt is here to help us work through these questions! You can follow along with his work at iantrutt.com.
"After a European loses $65,000 dollars in poker, an Englishman investigates a young woman's terrifying past."
Is the Englishman the same person as the European? What's in the young woman's terrifying past? And which of them is attending an intense, week-long counseling session? Our guest Naomi Laeuchli is here to help us walk through this confusion! You can check out her work on the Tales app for iOS and the Dorian app for iOS and Android.
"When a ruthless businessman arrives, she sets out with independence, her monster, and the French throne to put her life on hold."
Is this the literal French throne? How is a monster involved? And where does Philadelphia fit into all this? Fortunately our guest Jordan Conrad is here to work it all out with us! Follow Jordan on Instagram @jordan_illustrates.
"A secret police enforcer rebuilds her life after she doesn't mess up the job in a haunted castle."
How does NOT messing up the job destroy someone's life? Who is haunting this castle? And whose French fiance is involved in all this? Thankfully we have our guest, author Elizabeth Bear, to help us work through this nonsense!
You can follow Elizabeth on Twitter and Instagram @matociquala and on her website elizabethbear.com, where you can sign up for her newsletter and Patreon. Her new book "The Origin of Storms" comes out this summer, so check it out!
"In Camden Town, the most famous U.S. Olympic wrestling champion, looks out of her window."
Well, that's not a whole lot to go on. What happens next? Why is this woman in Camden Town? How does she encounter a psychopathic serial murderer? Author Megan Darragh is here to help us sort it out.
You can follow Megan on social media:
Twitter- @megandarragh3
Instagram- @megandarraghbooks
Facebook- Megan Darragh Books
YouTube- Megan's Musings
"Three cute little old ladies, living in the twentieth century, try to help each other refuse to kill people."
Why is refusing to kill people difficult for these little old ladies? How do they help each other? Are they the wealthy ones mentioned in the title? Our guest Vernon Greene joins us to make it all makes sense! Check out his YouTube series A Fan's View (on Twitter @a_fansview) and you can find him personally on social media at @wvglag.
"A monster film where a dead body helps the penguins embark on a road trip."
How can a dead body help anyone? Is it the monster of the monster film? And how do the sewers of London play into this? Our guest Cynthia Hand helps us figure out these questions and more! You can check out her website at cynthiahandbooks.com (or the Lady Janies series at ladyjanies.com) or follow her on Instagram @cynthiahand and @ladyjanies. Keep an eye out for "My Imaginary Mary," releasing in August!
"A lonely sociopath hired to manipulate a parole officer discovers just how dark mysterious artifacts are."
How are they trying to manipulate a parole officer? What are these mysterious artifacts? Is one of them a stolen script? Our guest C. Rae D'Arc is here to help us out! You can follow her blog at https://craedarc.wordpress.com/, follow her on Instagram @craedarc, or find her books on Amazon.
"Jabba the Hutt must choose between his desire to find a unique and beautiful therapeutic outlet and the responsibilities of receiving daily visits from his downstairs neighbors."
...Well, that's a mouthful to begin with, and our guest Josh Garcia-Cotter has some ideas of his own he wants to work in, so before we know it we have something wild and wonderful in front of us! You can follow our guest Josh on Twitter and Instagram @joshinthemosh89.
"A former British Army officer arrives in Arizona, 1873." What is this British Army office doing in Arizona? How is 1873 significant? And who is this colleague who's been murdered? Glad we've got our guest Ono Northey here to flesh out this seemingly simple story. Check out his website at ononorthey.com and his book series, The Shard Chronicles, on Amazon!
"The infamous story of Frankenstein, who gets Santa's flight off the ground on a worm farm in California." What are Santa and Frankenstein doing in a story together? And what are they doing on a worm farm? And... there are rocket ships here too?
Fortunately, our guest Andy Luke is here to make it all make sense -- or get as close as we can. Check out his website at andy-luke.com to find his work and contact him on social media!
"Her peers join forces with a soldier and an extremely burned-out Manhattan ambulance paramedic to fall in love with a beautiful young woman." Whose peers? Is everyone trying to fall in love? And what is the title referring to? Author Justine Manzano helps us work all this out! Follow her work at justinemanzano.com or @justine_manzano on Instagram and Twitter!
"A pop star finds her love in a confused girl through drastic measures." What kind of drastic measures? Why is the girl so confused? And what on earth is that title about? Fortunately, our guest Katie Ahnberg is here to help us sort this out! Follow her on Instagram at @things.katie.did.
"A small-time bank robber and Woody Harrelson fulfill the promise to their recently deceased best friend in Russia." What? What is Woody Harrelson doing in our story? And in Russia? And with that title? Well, thank goodness we have Lorien Megill to help us make sense out of this wild beginning. Check out Lorien's blog at https://101digressions.wordpress.com/
"A small town sheriff fights through grief and trauma to regain her mythical shark." Where is this shark coming from? Is the trauma shark-related? And... what do we even do with the title? Fortunately we have Jake White to help us flesh this out, and he's no stranger to following through on wild ideas. Make sure to check out his fantasy serial A Many Tale at www.amanytale.com to see how he does it himself, and follow along on Instagram @a_many_tale.
"In order to pursue the Holy Grail, an ecstasy dealer must put aside their differences." Differences with whom? Is this the literal Holy Grail? And who on earth is this cabinet minister who's never been released? Jennie's sister, Katie Castaldi, joins us to figure out what in the world's going on with this story. Check out Katie's nail wraps at girllookatmynails.com!
Due to tech difficulties, we have no new Somebody Write This podcast this week... but we DO have an exclusive sneak preview of a new podcast by our co-host Hannah: The Bot Canon, in which she gives artificial intelligence the opening of a classic work of literature and lets it complete it. This first episode features a rewrite of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit," so give it a listen and subscribe to the official podcast to hear new episodes weekly!
"A London gangster is transformed into a celebrated actor when he makes his way to London with revenge on his mind." Isn't a London gangster already in London? How does he become a celebrity? And whose father's artistic work is at stake here? Thankfully we have horror author/podcaster Jack Pierce with us to work through this plot! You can find him @jackpiercebooks on social media, and be sure to check out his podcast Terror Trax!
Note: Hannah's nice mic died before this recording and she didn't notice it -- fortunately her crappy earbud mic picked up all her audio! She'll be back next episode with nice clean audio again :)
In this week's bonus episode, our last guest Connor talks more about country music as a storytelling platform, adapting those stories to other media, and how country music connects to oral storytelling traditions. Plus, we get a fun follow-up listener note on our "Major Struggling Holiday Traditions" episode -- turns out we may have taken more inspiration from real life than we knew!
"An aging gambler on a losing streak who lives with her longtime boyfriend Francis changes the course of history in 1800s England." Who is this aging female gambler in 1800s England? How is Francis important to this story? And who on earth is Homer? Thank you to Connor Adamson for joining us and working through this wild story! You can check out Connor's writing about film on the Flickchart blog: https://www.flickchart.com/blog/author/jedi8246/
"A painter's muse must survive a wild 24 hours during which a journey quickly turns into a settling of old scores." What old scores need to be settled? Is the painter part of this wild 24 hours too? And is the muse named Quint or Britt? Our author guest Kit Falbo is with us to help pull out the pieces of this story! You can find him at kitfalbo.com and find his books on Amazon.
Starting this week, we're releasing bonus episodes on our off Thursdays, giving you FULL interviews with our guests and sharing podcast updates and what listeners have shared with us. This week you get to hear everything we had to edit out of our interview with Jenneh last week for time, so if you were still curious about narrative therapy and the way it works, give this a listen!
"Equally old teammates become increasingly jealous of a prisoner-of-war's inconsolable grief." Why would somebody be jealous of someone's grief? Why does their equal age matter? And how does the minivan become part of it? Thankfully, our guest Jenneh Sheetz is here to help us make sense of this confusing story!
"Lisa is a ventriloquist at a party, and married to a criminal. Things get complicated when she is neither naive nor attractive."
What kind of criminal? Do they do human sacrifices? There's a LOT going on in this plot -- fortunately our guest Nate Adams joins us to pull out the most important pieces and see how they fit together!
"The U.S. President fights the champ on a rapidly flooding mud island."
Our initial question here is: What? And also... what? Immersive storyteller Micki Cottam joins us to help us make sense out of this very confusing story. Follow her on Instagram and Facebook @mickicottam.
"Matt is wrongly implicated in a series of murders actually done by a roofer."
How does Matt prove his innocence? Why is Matt implicated in the first place? And what is the house of conflicted memories? Fortunately we've got our guest, author Bonnie Quinn, to help us untangle it! You can find her on Amazon as the author Bonnie Quinn, or on Twitter @bonnie_quinn.
"A rivalry develops between a teen-aged Australian heiress and a spoiled English girl."
Who are these rich girls? What causes their rivalry? And is one of them named Bart? Thankfully we have our substitute co-host Kirsten Porter and our special guest Cary Kreitzer to figure out what to do with this!
You can find Cary on the web on her website (cfkreitzer.com) or on Twitter and Instagram as @cfkreitzer. Her book "Blood Numbers" is available now!
"Feisal is one of the Cambridge Spies. But when their long-lost leader remembers what he did with the painting, poverty and terminal illness overwhelm her."
The same Cambridge Spies that existed in reality? What painting? How is Feisal involved now? Is the poverty and terminal illness somehow related to the painting? So many questions! Jennie's on vacation this week, so we're relying on our substitute co-host, Kirsten Porter, and our guest, author S. Evan Townsend, to figure this one out! You can find our guest and his books at sevantownsend.com and everywhere on social media @sevantownsend.
Hannah needs a little more time to finish editing this week's podcast, so you get to hear again one of our very favorite older episodes from the early days in 2019. We'll be back in two weeks - enjoy!
"In a dystopian future, seven former students lobby for their own execution in order to impersonate the FBI agent."
Former students of what? Why is their own execution a good thing? And how does this help any of them turn a profit? Thanks to our guest, Scott Harris, for helping us figure it out! Here is everywhere you can find him and his comics:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbNBYQo08Ebr9kD_7HS44mA
Instagram: @the_crimebusters
Website: https://crimebustercomics.com/
Podcast: https://classiccomics.podbean.com/
Crimebusters #1-3 is live on IndieGogo: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-crimebusters-1-3/x/26218124#/
Cthulhu vs. Uncle Sam goes live on Kickstarter on June 28: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thecrimebusters/cthulhu-vs-uncle-sam
"A playwright retaliates against those responsible, but a team of rebels changes the sound and style of country music forever."
Those responsible for what? How does country music connect to the playwright? And how is a portal part of any of this? Thank you to our guest, J. Trevor Robinson, for working through this with us! You can find him on social media @jtrevorrobinson and purchase his book "The Mummy of Monte Cristo" on Amazon!
"A group of inept amateur superheroes hired to escape a hostile blockade to find allies discover just how dark eternal life is."
What makes eternal life so dark? Who hired the amateur superheroes to escape? Was it the mysterious "K Smiley"? Thank you to our guest Amy Michelle Carpenter for helping us sift out the details of this one! You can find her on the web at amymichellecarpenterwrites.com or on Instagram @authoramymichellecarpenter, and check out her debut novel "Becoming Human."
"A group of grandsons in the outside world must help their community survive the farmers' retaliation."
Why are the farmers retaliating? What makes the "outside world" different from the inside one? Well, as the title says, your guess is as good as mine... Thank you to our guest Chase Jacobs for helping us sift out the details of this one!
"A sergeant and a professional assassin both discover that his wife has been killed in a car accident."
Wait, whose wife got killed? Did the professional assassin have something to do with it? Is one of them Frankie? Thank you to our guest Simon Elson for helping us work through this wild plot!
You can find Simon at simonelsonauthor.com, on Twitter @simonelson5 and on Instagram @simonelsonauthor. Buy his debut novel Hades Forest on Amazon in May 2021!
"A bourgeois family joins a cattle drive, which leads to her reaching his son." Who is "her" and who is "his"? And why are these women going mad? Thanks to our guest David Cornad for helping us flesh out this story! Follow him on Twitter @DavidAConrad and on his website davidconradauthor.com.
"A young man defends three ghosts accused of entering a Las Vegas dodgeball tournament." Who cares if ghosts are playing dodgeball? Is this related to those basketball vampires 20 episodes ago? Thanks to our guest Clay for helping us work through this! You check out his podcast The Flying Cow wherever you get your podcasts.
"The evil wizard and the Prince's bride are unable to cope." Unable to cope with what? Is the Prince's bride also evil? And where does the monastery come in? Thanks to our guest Julie Hahn for helping us figure out this beautiful YA fairy tale! You can find more info about her and her upcoming book "Fly With Me" on social media @authorjuliehahn or at her website http://authorjuliehahn.com/.
"Chloe, an Ares, falls for Viktor, a Vietnam vet." Between Chloe, Viktor, and the titular Angelo Manzoni, we have a lot of people mentioned here... And is it a typo that Chloe is an "Ares," not an "Aries"? Thanks to Grace Helmcke for helping us tease out this fascinating story! You can find her podcast "...so here's the thing" on Spotify, Anchor, or wherever you get your podcasts.
"Michel's focus on the music scene is interrupted when she finds herself an animal." How does she find herself an animal? What is she focusing on in the music scene? And WHAT to do with that awful story title? Thank goodness we had Erika Blue helping us figure it out! You can follow her on her YouTube channel "Pineapple Plays" here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDUrZUf3zu4I6Skx0oeCqCQ/
"A ex-fitness instructor discovers a dead CIA operative's skills in 1950s Connecticut." How do you discover somebody's skills? Who killed the CIA operative? Was it the 40th global threat? Thank you to our guest Lowell Brillante for helping us untangle it! Check out his podcast Prodigy at www.prodigypodcast.com or anywhere you find podcasts.
"A hurt reindeer tries to live with her condition but a bellboy may change her plans." What is her condition? How does the bellboy change her plans? And is one of THEM Detective Robert, addicted to drugs and gambling? Thank you to our guest Kellie Kirkpatrick for helping us figure out these answers! You can find her writing on oklahomacity.momcollective.com.
"A retired FBI agent with psychological gifts becomes torn between stopping a diabolical plot and getting turkeys off the Thanksgiving menu for good." Why can't he do both? What psychological gifts does he have? And whose father has a daring plan?
Thank you to our guest Emma G. Rose for helping us figure out these answers! You can listen to her podcast on her podcast Indie Book Talk and follow her personally on Instagram as @life_imperative, on Facebook as Life Imperative, or check out her website at emmagauthor.com and her publishing house at imperativepressbooks.com.
"Perseus works with a a beautiful thief to wins over the college's most popular girl at an auction house." This isn't Greek mythology Perseus, right? How does a thief's beauty help him win someone over? And what is the sinister conspiracy all about? Thank you to Calista Kern-Lyons for helping us figure out these answers! You can find her book channel A Novel Beauty on YouTube, and she's also on Instagram and Facebook as @anovelbeauty.
It's been a year since we launched the show, so today we're doing a speedrun through all the plots that didn't make it into the final cut. Having only a minute to brainstorm instead of 20-25 is tricky, but we get some workable choices out of it!
You can check out the full list over at our blog: somebodywritethis.blogspot.com.
Thank you for listening this year, folks! Here's to another year of creative writing!
"Two rebels team up to stop a boy from befriending the cute Mandy." Who are the rebels? Who is cute Mandy, and why doesn't she get to be friends with this boys? And who's Leia - is Star Wars part of this story? Thanks to author Jennifer Anne Gordon for joining us on this journey to unravel it all! Check out her website https://www.jenniferannegordon.com/ for info on her books, her writing podcast Vox Vomitus, and more!
"A New York girl with eternal life attempts to afford medical insurance." The biggest question here is... what does she need with medical insurance? And how does the Empire's defeat play into all of this? Thankfully, we have mutual friend of the podcast Tim Hodge along to help us make sense of this possible futuristic medical drama.
"In the Australian Alps a group of a dead CIA operatives becomes the victims in one of a series of brutal shark attacks." What are sharks doing in the Australian Alps? How are the CIA operatives victims if they're already dead? And who is Eve? Thanks to our guest Joelle Shenk for joining us to dig into the heroes, villains, and surprising philosophical questions behind this story!
"A detective must protect a group of a dancers who have become protectors and mentors." There's a lot of protection going on -- why? What do the dancers need protection from? And who is Tyler? Thanks to our guest Sheeva from @fancycomma for helping us answer all these questions! You can find her and her work at https://fancycomma.wordpress.com/
"Santa's reindeer travel to the Vatican on a business trip to unite." What are reindeer doing at the Vatican? What are they uniting? And who is the titular Battlefield Man? Thanks to our guest Richie for helping us answer all these questions! You can find him and his work at https://richienorton.com/
"Two friends indicate a willingness to be killed in the north of England with the help of a mean lord and a group of 30-year-olds who have been friends since high school." There is just so much going on in that synopsis. So many characters, a couple locations, two different groups of friends... Thank goodness for our guest Elybeatmaker helping us to make sense of it. You can follow Ely on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/user/ElyBeatmaker or on Twitter @elybeatmaker.
"A team of mercenaries is determined to improve themselves while they look for love in a year in which they keep a personal diary." Why are these mercenaries looking for love? Are they all keeping one diary? What is this weird story? Thankfully we have Presley Thomas to help us wrestle some sense into this one. Follow him on Twitter @writerthoughts and check out his writing at https://medium.com/@writerthoughts!
"Chickens frantically search for their missing conspiracy, which is in her South Bronx apartment." So. Many. Questions. How does one lose a conspiracy? Are the chickens sentient, and how are they involved? And who is the mysterious "her"? Sam Stoddard of http://rinkworks.com/ (where Hannah and Jennie first met!) joins us to work through this completely bizarre plot synopsis.
"A nightmarish hippie cult is on trial for retiring in post-Katrina New Orleans." How is an entire cult on trial? Why did retiring get them in trouble with the law? And how does New Orleans play into all this? Thank you to our guest Bethany for helping us work this all out! Check out her blog online at bethanymegill.com.
"His bowling buddies try to find out why her son tries to invade Earth in the Texas bayous." Who is he, who is she, and why IS her son trying to invade Earth? And how do the cheerleaders play into all this? Thank you to our guest, Tim McMeen, for helping us flesh out this story with far too many characters.
"An old friend finds himself shooting a big-budget war movie, but he is distracted by shop-lifting." How does somebody just "find himself" shooting a big-budget movie? Who is he an old friend to? And who is doing the shop-lifing?
Thank you to our guest Kealohilani for helping us create this story! Check out her Amazon author page here: https://www.amazon.com/Kealohilani/e/B00NAHG84M/
"On Christmas, a vampire starts shooting at him, and in doing so somehow knows a lot about angels." Who is the mysterious "him"? Why is the vampire shooting? How on earth does the shooting improve someone's knowledge? So glad we had Nat Chan on board to help us flesh out this bizarre holiday story.
(Note that Hannah's audio is pretty rough for the first few minutes of this episode - it does improve about 5 minutes in! Looks like it's time to invest in a new microphone.)
Follow Nat on Instagram at @knatkat44 for cat pics and check out https://www.scribecat.ca/ for all your literary editing needs!
"A movie about the shifty and harsh life of the seven friends Rasputin."
That synopsis is beyond confusing. What does "the seven friends Rasputin" even mean? Why do they all share one life? Are they the twins mentioned in the title? Thank you to our guest Rachel Kulik for helping us dive into this truly bizarre plot this week!
Follow our guest on Goodreads at www.goodreads.com/rachelreading14 and listen to her podcast, Checking Out, on any podcast service or here at the podcast website: www.checkingoutpodcast.com
"A police psychologist only has an hour to decide to fight back as an outlaw."
Who is the psychologist fighting back against? Why do they only have an hour? What laws do they break to become an outlaw? And isn't there already a book called "Horns"? Thank you to our guest Calissa Wall for helping us work through our plot this week!
"Two vengeful fathers team up to stop seven friends from rebuilding her life."
Who is "she"? Why are the fathers so vengeful? And what or who is a potential Graham? Thank you so much to Kirsten Porter for helping us figure this story out.
Follow along with Kirsten's work:
Twitter: @OhManGhosts
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/supercommoner/videos
Podcast: https://anchor.fm/askmyaccountant/
"A cute woman and a wealthy woman face life in Hollywood, looking for loyalty and heroin."
Who are these women? Do they find the loyalty they're looking for with each other? And what on earth is up with that title?
Thanks to Kate Smith for joining us to unpack this, as well as sharing about her exciting new Chicago show and her mental healthy journey. Subscribe to her newsletter at http://onewomanhamlet.com/
(For anyone listening with kids, note that there is a little bit of adult language in this episode.)
"A chronicle of the life of a film director, who was reviled for her mysterious invitation."
What are these mysterious invitations? Why do they make the director reviled? And who is Marcus? We delve into some brainstorming to figure out the answer to this and more.
Make sure and check out our guest Denise and her new book, "The September Project," which comes out this spring!
Website: www.denisemarquithjones.com
Twitter: @jonesmarquith
Instagram: @denisemarquithjones
"The college's most popular girl, who is having difficulty in their marriage, has to help a U.S. government agent and realize the importance of a volcano."
What's wrong with her marriage? What does the government agent want? And what on earth makes the volcano so important? Thanks to guest Randy Kirkpatrick for unpacking this dramatic plot with us! Follow him on Twitter at @r_w_kirkpatrick.
"In the rural South, a bounty hunter struggles to partner with a young woman."
What does the bounty hunter want? Who's the young woman? What does their partnership look like? We untangle these questions and more with the help of our guest Shem Greenwood.
40 shady police detectives are asked to contact the daughter. That's our already-messy plot, and, no, you didn't misread that title, it's just that confusing. So we delve right on in to find out, why are there so many shady police detectives, all with the same mission? Who is the daughter? And what on earth can we possibly do with that title? We're determined to find an answer!
Follow our guest @authorjocassidy on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and check out her author website at authorjocassidy.com.
A low-budget bodyguard is chosen by God to survive a serial killer's attack before a seemingly chance encounter that seems too good to be true. Why does God choose the bodyguard? What seemingly chance encounter? Does the serial killer ever get caught? We attempt to answer these questions and more!
A murder in the aftermath of the Civil War draws together a long-serving MI5 officer and a gentleman rat.
So many questions... Which Civil War? Where is this set, where rats can be gentlemen? Why is this murder important? And what do we do with that horrifically long title? We try to find answers for these questions and more!
Follow our guest Doug on Twitter @dsubnet0 and check out his latest Flickchart blog, "The Two Christs of Detroit," linked here: http://www.flickchart.com/blog/the-two-christs-of-detroit-robocop-and-the-crow/
An American family unwittingly comforts his older brother's wife and children.
The biggest question here is: how and why does one unwittingly comfort? That becomes the key to unraveling this holiday story before turning it over to our listeners to write!
Follow our guest Ginny on Twitter @lirelyn and subscribe to her newsletter via her bio link!
A punk from the city faints in a Wal-Mart in Sequoyah, Oklahoma. When she wakes up, she is on a cruise ship.
How did she get there? Is there a Wal-Mart in Sequoyah, Oklahoma? What punklike actions does she take on board? We discuss these questions and more before turning it over to you, the listener, to write!
Follow our guest Josiah on Instagram @settlinghouses, and find his band Settling Houses on Spotify and other music streaming/download sites.
Marie is an angel. But when a seasoned cameraman turns sinister, the lorry has an accident.
Is Marie a literal angel? Why does the seasoned cameraman turn sinister? What kind of accident is this? And what about the titular useless computer? We discuss our answer, but leave it up to our listeners to write the rest!
Featuring our first guest! If you'd like to be a guest on the show, contact us on twitter @writethispod or email at somebodywritethis@gmail.com.
The story of a lazy, useless brother's youth, set in a prisoner transport plane. Why is he on a transport plane for his youth? What makes him lazy and useless? If he's a brother, who's his sibling? We don't know. Somebody write this!
Music from https://filmmusic.io "Glitter Blast" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
A little bit of info about our upcoming podcast, Somebody Write This.
Music from https://filmmusic.io
"Glitter Blast" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)