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StarShipSofa No 693 Lavie Tidhar
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Main Fiction: "Gubbinal" by Lavie Tidhar
Lavie Tidhar is author of Osama, The Violent Century, A Man Lies Dreaming, Central Station, Unholy Land, By Force Alone, The Hood and The Escapement. His latest novels are Maror and Neom. His work encompasses children’s books (The Candy Mafia), comics (Adler), anthologies (The Best of World SF) and numerous short stories. His awards include the World Fantasy Award, the British Fantasy Award, the John W. Campbell Award, the Neukom Prize and the Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize, and he has been shortlisted for the Clarke Award and the Philip K. Dick Award amongst many others.
This story originally appeared in Clarkesworld, no. 142, July, 2018.
Narrated by: Rikki and Isis LaCoste
Rikki LaCoste is a veteran Canadian narrator from Toronto, of various short story audio magazines such as Tales To Terrify, the No Sleep Podcast, Cast of Wonders, Pseudopod, and StarShipSofa of course, as well as lending his voice—and voice acting—to other projects and podcasts. Today, Rikki is collaborating with his daughter Isis LaCoste, a chip off the old block. They have worked together before, to present various stories. In particular, the Cast of Wonders staff pick of 2015: a short science fiction tale by Ellen Klages called "Amicae Aeternum", in which Mur Lafferty's daughter, Fiona “Princess Scientist” Van Verth also appears.
Unfortunately, Rikki lost everything in a terrible house fire and had to drop out of audio projects for a number of years.
Fortunately, he and Isis are now back in business, Rikki is involved in various organizations to help the less fortunate, and Isis is about to enter college to be an animator…and today's story happens to be the very first audio project for their comeback debut.
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StarShipSofa 720 Dominica Phetteplace
48:26Main fiction: "Nice For What?" by Dominica PhetteplaceDominica Phetteplace writes fiction and poetry. Her work has appeared in Ecotone, Copper Nickel, PANK, The Los Angeles Review, Zyzzyva, Wigleaf, Best Microfiction and The Year's Best Science Fiction and Fantasy. Her honors include two Pushcart Prizes, a Rona Jaffe Award, a Steinbeck Fellowship and support from MacDowell, Tin House and Djerassi.This story originally appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, July/Aug 2019.Narrated by: Mary MurphyMary is a New York based actor/voice-over artist. She loves the world of audio drama and is delighted to be back on board the StarShipSofa. She has performed in theatre, film, TV, animation, radio, and video games. A few of her recent credits include the one-woman play An Evening With Lola Montez, It’s a Wonderful Life, a streamed performance of the piece Near Nellie Bly, Divination of The Three for Asheville Fringe, and the audio dramas Frontier Gentleman, Chinook, and Newfield. She can be heard voicing various characters for Disney, GoKidGo, LeapFrog, the Center For New American Media, Audible, and Audimance. She has also been a regular performer on the audio drama series Fireside Mystery Theatre, The NoSleep Podcast, The Wicked Library, To the Manor Borne By Robots, and Campfire Radio Theater. marymurphyonline.comFact: Looking Back At genre History by Amy H SturgisStarShipSofa 719 Jay O'Connell
38:56Main fiction: "Other People's Things" by Jay O'ConnellJay O’Connell is a graduate of Syracuse University, Clarion West, Launchpad, and the school of somewhat hard knocks. He’s worked as a software executive, UI/UX designer, business writer, illustrator, animator, graphic artist, construction worker, house-cleaner and burger flipper.As RAH put it, specialization is for insects.He lives in—and writes about—a world rapidly approaching the event horizon of the fabled SF singularity. He is fortunate to have a supportive spouse, two grown GLBTQ children, and so many wonderful friends along for the ride as we spiral into the beautiful and dangerous unknown.This story originally appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Sept/Oct 2014.Narrated by: Mark NelsonMark Nelson began audiobook narration in 2006, and now has over 180 titles at LibriVox, and recording as “Harry Shaw,” more than 100 for Audible. While Mark mainly records sci-fi, fantasy, and horror titles, he has also ventured into the classics, including Hugo and Dostoyevsky.StarShipSofa 718 Lincoln Michel
01:25:33Main fiction: "Red Oil" by Lincoln MichelBio: Lincoln Michel's debut novel, The Body Scout (Orbit), was named one of the ten best SFF books of 2021 by The New York Times and one of the fifty best science fiction of all time by Esquire. He is also the author of the story collection Upright Beasts (Coffee House Press) and the co-editor of the anthologies Tiny Crimes (Catapult) and Tiny Nightmares (Catapult). His fiction can be found in The Paris Review, Lightspeed, F&SF, One Story, and elsewhere. You can find him online at lincolnmichel.com and his newsletter Counter Craft.Narrated by: Anthony BabbingtonAnthony Babington is a voice actor who looks just slightly off from how he sounds. From his secret volcano lair in Minnesota he narrates podcasts, and leases his soul to corporate America. he can also be heard on the Tales to Terrify podcast, and has recorded for both the "Far Fetched Fables" and "The Cursed Inn" podcasts.Fact: Looking Back At Genre History by Amy H SturgisMessage from the Captain - My Health
41:02My HealthLittle update on myselfTreat me to a coffee as I won’t be doing much physically for a while: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/tonycsmithStarShipSofa 717 Karl El-Koura
52:14Karl El-Koura lives with his family in Canada's capital city and works a regular job by day while writing fiction at night. This is his second appearance in StarShipSofa (his story "The Undertow Jackpot" was featured in issue #685). Visit www.ootersplace.com to learn more about his work.This story originally appeared in Utopia Science Fiction, October 2021.Narrated by Randal L. SchwartzRandal L. Schwartz is best well known for his seminal books on the Perl programming language that helped make the world wide web possible and popular. He produced a weekly audio and video podcast on open source software, but has given that up after 13 years to get those five hours per week back again. Between the podcast, and bouncing all over the world teaching programming and speaking at conferences, he’s no stranger to the limelight. He enjoys pulling out his gear to record yet another narration, and likens it to “getting to read bedtime stories to the kids I never had”, and looks forward to future assignmentsStarShipSofa 716 Tara Campbell
01:13:01Main fiction: "The Orb" by Tara CampbellWith a BA in English, an MA in German, and an MFA in Creative Writing, Tara Campbell has a demonstrated aversion to money and power. Originally from Anchorage, Alaska, she has also lived in Oregon, Ohio, New York, Germany and Austria. She currently lives in Washington, D.C.She is the recipient of the following awards from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities: the 2016 Larry Neal Writers' Award in Adult Fiction, the 2016 Mayor's Arts Award for Outstanding New Artist, and Arts and Humanities Fellowships for 2018 - 2022. She is also a 2017 Kimbilio Fellow and winner of the 2018 Robert Gover Story Prize.Tara earned her MFA from American University in 2019, and is a fiction editor at Barrelhouse. She teaches fiction with American University, Johns Hopkins University's Advanced Academic Programs, the Writer's Center, Politics and Prose, Catapult, and the National Gallery of Art's Virtual Studio.Narrated by: Tristin Rutherford Tristin Rutherford was born and raised in Alaska and spent her twenties working around the US. She is a poet, writer, voice actor, and educator, and is pursuing her MFA at Goddard College. She currently lives in Massachusetts with her fiance and their cat, Pops.Fact: Looking Back At Genre History by Amy H SturgisStarShipSofa 715 Christopher Rowe
34:39Main fiction: "The Unveiling" by Christopher RoweChristopher Rowe's stories have been printed, reprinted, and translated around the world and he has been a finalist for many awards, including the Hugo, the Nebula, and the World Fantasy Award. He lives in Lexington, Kentucky with his wife and many pets.This story originally appeared in Asimov's Science Fiction, January 2015.Narrated by: Drew MalloryDrew Mallory is a professor of organizational psychology and management coach in Bangkok, where he studies workers with unique backgrounds and needs. In addition to his work with neurodivergent, queer, and disabled people, Drew spends his time in his rooftop garden saving green things from a dry death and accompanied, like any good psychologist, by his pet rats. You can learn more about him and his work at coachwithdrew.todayStarShipSofa 714 William Meikle
46:17William Meikle is a Scottish writer, now living in Canada, with over thirty novels published in the genre press and more than 300 short story credits in thirteen countries. He has books available from a variety of publishers including Dark Regions Press and Severed Press and his work has appeared in a large number of professional anthologies and magazines. He lives in Newfoundland with whales, bald eagles and icebergs for company. When he's not writing he drinks beer, plays guitar, and dreams of fortune and glory.This story originally appeared Transmissions from Punktown, 2018.Narrated by: Josh RosemanJosh Roseman (not the trombonist; the other one) has narrated several stories for StarShipSofa and the District of Wonders over the past fifteen years. In addition, he's an author with more than three dozen books and short stories published (some under pseudonyms). He lives in Georgia (the state, not the country) and absolutely loves to pet dogs (especially pitbulls). Find him online at roseplusman.com or on Twitter @listener42Fact: Looking Back at Genre History by Amy H SturgisStarShipSofa 713 Jeff Somers
30:42Main fiction: "I am the Grass" by Jeff SomersJeff Somers (www.jeffreysomers.com) began writing by court order as an attempt to steer his creative impulses away from engineering genetic grotesqueries. He has published nine novels, including the Avery Cates series and the Ustari Cycle series, as well as over fifty short stories, including “Ringing the Changes,” which was selected for inclusion in Best American Mystery Stories 2006. He is a contributing editor at Writer’s Digest Magazine, which also published his book on the craft of writing Writing Without Rules. He lives in Hoboken with his wife, The Duchess, and their cats. He considers pants to always be optional.This story is original to StarShipSofa.Narrated by: Mike BorisMike’s a long-time fan of the show and is always happy to record a story for the “Sofa.” He narrated Adam Troy Castro’s “Of A Sweet Slow Dance in the Wake of Temporary Dogs” 600-some episodes ago in 2009 (Aural Delights 87). He’s an IT consultant and e-learning narrator over in the Colonies, and his neighbors still think the soundproof booth in his basement is for recording…so far, so good. He’s got a wife, kids, cats and all that…. Okay, that’s enough about Mike—let’s get to today’s show!