20 Minutes with Matthew Wayne Selznick

Tee Morris is a primal force. We mean that in a good way. I mean holy crap… podcasting pioneer, author of one of the very first podcast novels, co-founder of Podiobooks.com, co-author (with Pip Ballantine) of the ever-growing canon of The Tales of the Ministry (including two novels: Phoenix Rising and The Janus Affair)… and those are just the highlights. Buckle up, friends… it’s going to be a wild ride.

We had hoped that Lee Harris – editor at Angry Robot Books, Chair of the British Fantasy Society, and evil genius behind the Hub Fiction E-Zine – would lend a bit of dignity to the Roundtable. We were wrong, but in the most wonderful and delightful way imaginable. While he shares generously of his broad experience and vital insights into the realm of genre fiction, it turns out that he’s a warm, funny, sometimes snarky, and always charming guy. Who knew?

Showcase Episode: Brion and Dave sit down with J. Daniel Sawyer and discuss character development, beta readers, genre, audience and more. We think you’ll agree, the twenty minutes is over too quickly, but listeners will find a wealth of writing insights.

Paul Elard Cooley (aka The Fiendmaster) has evolved a growing canon of psychological and supernatural horror. Notable not only for its bone-chilling dread, but also its use of history as the backdrop for the progression of tales he tells, Paula has distinguished himself as a storyteller and a student of history. And if you’ve heard what he does to Muppets, you might question our sanity in bringing him on the show. As it turns out, he’s a cool guys with a lot of excellent insights for writers and horror fans.

Cherie Priest is a true Storyteller. She’s an author (of course) who has blazed her own trail through so many genres of SpecFic – Steampunk, Horror, Alternate History, Southern Gothic, and Urban Fantasy – and has received professional accolades for her fiction (her novel “Boneshaker” has even been optioned as a motion picture). Beyond that, she is a singular personality who defies convention at every turn. Our conversation with her was not only delightful but glitters brightly with literary gold.

Pip Ballantine – New Zealand’s first podcasting author – takes time from the wonders of the Ministry, the Order, and the Shifted Worlds to join us for (a little more than) a twenty minute chat. In spite of her many achievements and gift for crafting exquisite worlds, Pip has her feet on the ground and speaks frankly and with ease about her work, the evolution of a story, the role of mythology in her work, and the characters she’s crafted.

Ada Palmer – scholar, composer, and author of the astonishing and richly-acclaimed “Too Like the Lightning” (and so much more) – returns to brainstorm a tale of political oppression, intrigue, and Lovecraftian deities.

Michael Sullivan is incredibly dedicated to his craft. He studied and scrutinized the styles of the greatest writers in literature, taking the best of each to craft his authorial voice. The hard work shines through in his “Riyria Revelations” novels which have been lauded and recognized by literati and and reviewers since they hit the shelves.

In this intriguing 20(ish) minutes, Michael shares generously with me and Ryan Stevenson some of his insights into POV, the writing of prequels, using dialog to handle world-building and backstory, and more.

Gareth Powell – author of “Ack-Ack Macaque”, “The Recollection”, “Silversands” and many more novels, stories, and poems – continues to explore the diversity and nuance of creative expression. With experience ranging from advertising copy to music to beat poetry and (of course) speculative fiction, Gareth brings a rare aesthetic to any project with which he engages.

Ryan Stevenson and I discovered much writerly goodness in the 20(ish) minutes of conversation where Gareth explores his editing and revision process, his experiences with collaborative fiction, the genesis of “Ack-Ack Macaque”, and more!

Seanan McGuire – author, musician, poet, artist, essayist, (I could go on but there’s only so many pixels on the screen) – is an amazing person to speak with. It’s the conversational equivalent of speaking to the genetic fusion of Jane Austen, Ernest Hemingway, and HP Lovecraft while drinking from a fire hose and holding live electrical wires. She is an astonishing and intense storyteller, versed in all mediums of the craft, and incredibly forth coming on any topic you care to throw at her. We tossed a few in and she gave us back gold… lots of it.

Dan Wells is an author who has crafted some truly superb tales that shine a light on the darker facets of humanity, including the John Cleaver novels, the dystopian YA novel “Partials” (and the soon to be released sequel “Fragments”, The Hollow city, and more. He’s also one of the co-hosts of the Parsec Award winning Writing Excuses podcast. With such a vast range of experience in both the crafting of fiction as well as discussing the finer points of the craft, you know this 20(ish) minutes is going to be chock full of writerly goodness. And you know what? You’d be absolutely right!

Lauren Beukes will do anything to avoid writing. In spite of her best efforts, however, her literary credits continue to find their way into the world (which is a very good thing indeed). She’s a journalist, a writer of animated TV series, producer of documentaries, author of novels (non-fiction fiction, and graphic), a shark swimmer, and Queen of Cape Town.

With such a broad canvas splashed with such startling and remarkable works, you KNOW our 20(ish) minutes I and Ryan Stevenson have with her is not only a pure delight, but also brimming with writerly goodness.

  Gail Carson Levine – best-selling author (on just about every literary list) of Ella Enchanted and many more delightful…

Jerry Gordon is an author and editor of short and long fiction. As an editor, his work with Maurice Broaddus in the creation of the “Dark Faith” and “Dark Faith: Invocations” anthologies have informed his knowledge and perspective on the craft and qualities of good storytelling. Writing is own fiction – including the upcoming PRE-apocalyptic “Breaking the World” has further refined those sensibilities.

This was an exceptional 20(ish) minutes where we explored the challenges of using known history in your stories, the weaving (not mashing) of genres, and the value of reviewing and critiquing other writer’s works

Myke Cole – author of ShadowOps: Control Point, first in the ongoing ShadowOps trilogy – graciously returns to the Roundtable to help workshop a tale by writer John Walker. John’s story idea is the second in his series the Statford Chronicles about a scruffy gumshoe who is also the defender of humanity. When his character is called upon to defend the devil, Myke, Brion, and Dave step up to lend a hand. Mythology, religion, gumshoes, murder, and the Devil… sounds like a recipe for mayhem, and we certainly dove in to the fray!