No Dragons Press

Episode 13: “Bad News and Good News”

Show Notes for Episode 26

Hey everyone! And I’m actually recording this episode a few days ahead of time, so it feels a little weird talking to the future as if we don’t have this huge temporal gap between us. I know it doesn’t really matter, it’s not like you can’t listen to any episode of No Dragons Press at any time, but I dunno, I never really do it like that for the intro.

So, anyway:

Greetings to the future!

This episode should be airing somewhere around Monday, December 25th, and it’s the last one for the year!

So, let’s talk a little bit about what 2017 means for No Dragons Press.

First of all, I’m not 100% confident I won’t still combine or break apart chapters moving forward if I feel that I need to. (Even though I’ve edited this thing like crazy, I always go through each chapter one last time to make sure everything makes sense and flows well and change anything that still needs to be changed.)

4:20: More than just a pot smoker’s holiday

So I did some counting, and it looks like after this week’s episode, we’ve got about nineteen chapters left in book 1 to work through. Now, I was kind of shooting to wrap up book 1 somewhere around April 20th 2017 just because that sounds fun, and honestly I haven’t looked at a calendar to confirm this yet, but it kind of sounds like I’m right on the nuts right now.

I’m not totally sure what this all means just yet, but you can bet we’re gonna be celebrating this year’s national smoker’s holiday with some sort of giveaway or prize. I’d really kind of like it if that involved a published book you guys can hold in your hands, but we’ll see what happens.

…any book cover designers listening?

Incidentally, if I’ve got any book cover designers listening, and it isn’t too far into 2017 when you hear this, definitely shoot me an email with a link to some of your stuff, and if it fits with what I’m thinking, maybe we can work something out. I could really use some help, and I feel like it’s going to be the easiest for me to work with someone super familiar with the story already, so I don’t have to try to explain everything. If you think that might be you or someone you know, I’d love to hear from you.

New podcast about progressive rock

Something else that’s really exciting: I’m going to be starting a new podcast! It’s not going to be fiction. I’m actually going to be talking about the music I love, which is 70s progressive rock.

I feel like I talk about it enough anyway, and I have all this podcast gear now, and I have a lot of really interesting friends, a lot of whom are a little bit older than me and have actual memories of being around for some of this stuff, and a lot of whom are more or less my age and, like me, have to try to imagine what it must have been like to hear some of this stuff for the very first time and are still just piecing it all together.

Anyway, I think it’ll be a lot of fun, and I’m really looking forward to it!

…any graphic designers listening?

Actually, if I have any just general graphic designers out there, since this isn’t going to have anything to do with No Dragons Press, I really don’t want it to look anything like it, so where I would usually ask Emily Ruf, who has done not just the No Dragons Press illustrations but all of my amazing logos so far, I figured I’d just throw it out here for you guys. Basically I want a road leading toward a big ol’ seventies prog sunburst—check out the cover of Wishbone Ash Live Dates and you’ll see where I’m going with this:

Wishbone Ash: Live Dates

(Oh, and then listen to Live Dates, because it’s maybe the best Wishbone Ash record. Which is exactly the sort of thing I’ll be talking about on the new podcast. Stay tuned.) Definitely send me an email at nodragonspress [at] gmail.com [or use my contact form] if you’re interested in helping out.

That’s it from me!

I hope you enjoy: “Chapter 26: Addie Is Wrong.”

Thanks for listening, everyone. I had a lot of fun with this one, I hope you guys enjoyed it.

And that’s it for the year! Stay safe, everybody. 2016 was a rough one, and 2017 is going to be all about staying strong, looking out for each other, and lifting each other up. Keep checking your facts, stay engaged and empathetic, do not shut down. We’re all in this together, OK?

Thanks everyone. Take care, be well, have a happy and safe New Years, and I’ll see you next time.

No Dragons Press

Episode 25: “Betrayal by Starlight”

Show Notes for Episode 25: Betrayal by Starlight

These are the show notes from No Dragons Press: Episode 15.

Episode 25! Hooray!

Hey everyone! Thanks for checking out the show. This is episode number twenty-five, which is a pretty huge landmark, and it looks like we’re going to sneak one more in before the end of the year! So, that’s totally rad.

Shit’s getting real with No Dragons Press

OK, as far as the story, shit is getting real, and I don’t want to take up too much time here. I just wanted to say, thanks so much for sticking with me this far, you guys.

I’m just so happy we’ve gotten deeper into the Xenia part. I knew I wanted someone who would just completely throw Addie off balance and really push her to take a hard look at herself, and Xenia was perfect: with the No Dragons Press crew, she’s usually the only woman around, and I think it’s really interesting how with every addition or subtraction to a group, dynamics tend to change a little bit and you don’t really know how things are going to shuffle out. And when you just don’t have the luxury of stepping back and catching your bearings and figuring out what to do, you kind of just have to cling together and plow ahead and hope for the best.

Anyway, left you on a bit of a cliffhanger last week (a.k.a. a few days ago), so I’m gonna jump right in: please enjoy chapter 25, Betrayal By Starlight.

No Dragons Press

Episode 24: “Stories and Surprises”

Show Notes for Episode 24

Hey everyone, thanks for checking in!

So, it occurs to me that I never really mention dates in this podcast. I’ve never really felt like it was super necessary, but I’m recording this on December 15, 2016. It’s a Thursday, which is kind of lame because I usually shoot for Mondays, Tuesdays at the latest, but—what can I say, sometimes life happens and things get weird, and it just didn’t happen.

December is bonkers.

I don’t know if it’s all the December running around or if it’s that I’ve got a lot going on personally or maybe it’s just that we’re coming to the end of a really weird, really dark year, but I don’t know, I’ve been feeling really scattered, like no matter how much I check off my to-do list, it isn’t even making a dent. I don’t know. I think that’s how everyone feels toward the end of a year.

So, if you’re feeling particularly bonkers lately: YOU ARE NOT ALONE.

Let me tell you about my talented friends.

Hey! So, speaking of scattered and bonkers, I wanted to mention two super talented friends of mine—not because they’re scattered and bonkers, but because if you still have last-minute Christmas shopping to do, or even if you don’t do Christmas and just had a present for someone, or if you just wanted to buy yourself something awesome, they can totally save you.

Liz: City Stone Studio

So if you follow me on Instagram (@nodragonspress), you may have seen her shop pop up a time or two: basically, any time you see me wearing any sort of super awesome jewelry, it comes from Liz at City Stone Studio. She handcrafts these long gorgeous kind of vintage necklaces, but with these really fresh and interesting combinations of colors and material and all these different precious stones. She’s got these colorful beaded wooden bracelets I’m completely in love with, earrings, basically everything you need to decorate your bod.

She is located right here in Minneapolis, but definitely check out her online store at CityStoneStudio.com—or if you’re around the Twin Cities coming up this weekend here, she’ll be slingin’ beads at Lakes and Legends this Saturday, December 17th, for the Minneapolis Craft Market. That goes from 12 to 5, so stop by and check it out, maybe cross those last lovely ladies off your Christmas list. Buy her a beer and tell her Maggie sent you!

Emily: Ruftimes.com

Awesome thing number two: So you know Emily, who is responsible for all of the amazing artwork you’ve seen for every chapter of No Dragons Press. While the Illustrated Fiction stuff over at Ascraeus Press is taking a break, she’s been busy making a handful of her most fantastic drawings for sale as super limited edition prints.

You’ll recognize her style from the No Dragons Press illustrations, but her own stuff is super stark and bold with these really delicate lines and textures; it just has this incredible depth and starkness and personality and it’s just really powerful, you’ve got to check it out.

You can find those prints at ruftimes.bigcartel.com, that’s “Ruf” spelled RUF, and you know, hurry, because there are not a lot of them left, and when they’re gone they’re gone.

So! (I guess episode dates do sometimes matter…)

Back to the story…

OK. So as far as the story, last week we left off with Nate and Xenia preparing to head off on a scouting mission into the woods, leaving Addie and Duc behind to wonder what will happen next—but what ends up happening isn’t what either of them expected. I’m going to plunge right in, so sit back, relax, and enjoy Chapter 24, Knowledge And Surprises.

Hey everyone, thanks for listening to this episode, and thanks for sticking with me! If you like what you’re hearing, tell a friend—and consider supporting independent local artists like Liz and Emily, or find artists closer to home, wherever you live.

Thanks again for listening, and have a great rest of your week.

No Dragons Press

Episode 23: “Distractions and Death Morels”

Show Notes for Episode 23

These are the show notes from No Dragons Press: Episode 23, where I read chapter 23: “Distractions and Death Morels.”

Hey, everyone, hope you’re doing well you’re in Minnesota. It is cold as shit and I don’t know why am surprised by this every year, but it’s terrible.

ANYWAY.

Weekly Illustrated Fiction is on hiatus

So a couple of things, if you’ve been over on ascraeuspress.com lately, you’ll have noticed that we’ve kind of taken a break on the weekly illustrated fiction. We’re just holding off on it for now, and we’ll check back in about it in a month or so, I just wanted to mention it in case you’ve been wondering. So I will definitely keep you posted, and thanks so much for all of your support!

New podcasting horizons…

There are definitely some other cool things on the horizon and the podcasting world, so stay tuned for that too. You know, I’ve just really been enjoying this podcasting thing, and I figure, I’ve got this idea, I might as well go for it. You guys will be the first to know—thanks for everything.

Chapter 23: Digging deeper with Duc and Addie

So to check in with the story, I’ll be reading chapter 23. It’s a shorter chapter than usual, but it’s really sweet, and I don’t want to dwell on it.

I wanted to look a little bit and Addie’s past but I didn’t want to get stuck there when there’s so much going on in this crazy world they found themselves in, and Duc seem to be the perfect catalyst for that kind of scene. I also really like that Addie and Duc are starting to become even better friends and really kind of help each other out, although it’s still definitely more Duc doing most of the helping.

So, that’s it for this week’s intro! I really hope you enjoy chapter 23: Distractions and Death Morels.

Hey, thanks for listening. I hope you enjoyed chapter 23. If you like what you hear, tell a friend, and tune in next week for the next installment!