cobalt-knave

[cobalt-knave]

I've been getting into ghost themed fiction lately (CBS Ghosts, Shaine Lende by Darcie Little Badger, Ghost InSpectors). Does anyone have any good ghostly fiction podcast recommendations?

(CC: @boombox-fuckboy @pod-bird)

[cobalt-knave]

White boy shocks everyone at the restaurant by emitting a massive electromagnetic pulse

[cobalt-knave]

More writers should consider just not telling their readers all of shit. Just don’t tell them stuff. What’s that monster? Fuck if you’ll find out. How did that weird as hell landscape marker come to be? Wouldn’t you like to know. How does the magic work? Just believe it does, motherfucker.

Readers don’t need to know everything. In fact, I absolutely advocate for not telling them certain stuff. If the characters don’t know, neither do they. If the narrator is omniscient? Lol no they aren’t.

Is this necessary for every story? Probably not. There’s plenty of good stories you could write while explaining all of it. But leaving those gaps, leaving those holes, can bring a story to life. Sometimes things happen in life that just… happen. Fucked if anyone knows why. Sometimes information gets lost. Sometimes information is hidden. But even beyond that, it expands the narrative.

If you explain when and why and how the murder monster became a murder monster, well… that’s forever set in stone now. Now they know. But if you leave it blank, absent of explanation, any explanation… it becomes an unknown. It forces your audience to wonder. Makes them think. That, more than you might think, makes a story get into your audience’s head, and once you’re there, you can make some real impacts.

So yeah, tell a story. But sometimes? Don’t tell your readers something. Make them fill in the blanks themselves.

[cobalt-knave]

I've been getting into ghost themed fiction lately (CBS Ghosts, Shaine Lende by Darcie Little Badger, Ghost InSpectors). Does anyone have any good ghostly fiction podcast recommendations?

(CC: @boombox-fuckboy @pod-bird)

[cobalt-knave]

㋡🥀

[cobalt-knave]

Why you should listen to Ghost InSpectors

Ghost InSpectors is a 7-episode comedy-mystery podcast where two private detectives are killed and try to solve their murder along with a friend.

Here are some things I enjoyed in the podcast in no particular order:

MULLIGAN AND NED ARE BUDDIES. FRIENDS.

Seriously, the world needs more M&F friendship stories. I am so pleased.

There is a cat who is an MVP.

MUILLIGAN AND NED AND OLIVER ARE FRIENDS. BUDDIES.

"You're too excited to die" (vengeful)

Great balance of comedy and action and character study!

It also has a good balance with the inherent melancholy of a ghost story. That's something key that is needed in any ghost story!!

[cobalt-knave]

to me, the most fascinating (and utterly unintentional) feature of TAZ Balance's narrative structure is the way that on the first listen, Tres Horny Boys are the audience surrogates because they, much like us, have no idea what the fuck is going on, but on all subsequent relistens, then Lucretia, and sometimes Barry, and arguably especially Lup in the umbrella become the new audience stand-ins, because just like us, they are, in fact, painfully aware of what the fuck is going on :)

[cobalt-knave]

LETS GO TAZ:GRADUATION.

[cobalt-knave]

MULLIGAN AND NED FRIENDS I LOVE THEM

[cobalt-knave]

I think I could get out all of my feelings about devo la main at once by going outside and screaming for as long and loud and hard as possible. But that is generally frowned upon. So I have to post instead

[cobalt-knave]

Devo angrily asking zoox “do you expect pity?” after zoox nearly kills himself trying to open the coral dome makes me so. Because devo has spent the whole season making bids for sympathy and personal connection, only to have the world consistently and thoroughly beat him down for expressing his emotions the only way he knows how. So for devo, the lesson from all of this — from his whole life! — is that he’s not worthy of pity. He’s a terrible person! He’s an asshole! Every time he tries to reach out to other people, he only hurts everybody involved! In his eyes, the only way he can redeem himself is to put his own life on the line, and push his friends away in the hopes that they don’t get caught up as collateral.

But here’s zoox doing the same thing — and it fucking pisses devo off!! It complicates his straightforward view of the world where he is the martyr, the protector, shouldering the burden for everyone else. He can’t stand seeing his friend get hurt for his sake. Because if zoox is worthy of pity, then maybe devo is too. And twenty three years of experience have told him that can’t possibly be true.

[cobalt-knave]

Me and my favorite mechs photos against the world :)

[cobalt-knave]

I will NEVER not fuck with women using a traditionally masculine title. Tell me more about that girl that's also a prince.

[cobalt-knave]

[cobalt-knave]

Lady of shallot. Lady of onion. Lady of garlic. Lady of chives.

[cobalt-knave]

I love you audio drama

I love you podcasts

I love you audio based storytelling

[cobalt-knave]

The Mechanized Card Deck is now AVAILABLE!

If you are interested in a deck of playing cards of the mechanisms, it is now available for purchase! Drafts of the face cards and pips are all on my tumblr under the tag "mechanized card deck". The card backs and joker designs are exclusive to those who check out the deck itself.

The price is about $20 USD (plus shipping), but I think you get a discount for buying multiple and can get the different decks purchased shipped to different addresses, so I recommend teaming up with others to buy them to get a cheaper price. I haven't tested those features, but they seem useful.

I have gotten a deck myself and was really pleased with the quality. They have been play tested with Stress, Texas Hold 'Em, Five Card Stud, and a very funny fake tarot reading for a dog.