PseudoPod 461: Flash On The Borderlands XXVIII: Britshock II

[Bdoomed]

PseudoPod 461: Flash On The Borderlands XXVIII: Britshock II

by Severity Chase, Richard Kellum, Laura Lam, Andrew Reid, Taran Matharu, & Edward Cox

A gaggle of new Flash Fiction to warm your heart and chill your bones…

Absolution by Severity Chase
Read by Khaalidaah Muhammed-Ali
Severity is mystery.

My Daily Vampire by Richard Kellum
Read by Graeme Dunlop
Richard’s not only an author (Fantasy/Horror) and daydreamer. he’s a fellow podcaster who, along with Chris Brosnahan (Who’s own serial you should totally be reading too), hosts Early Draft. He’s on twitter here and blogs at Elf-Machines From Hyperspace.

The Ghost of Gold and Grey by Laura Lam
Read by Tatiana Gomberg
Laura, geek, author, Californian can be found on twitter here and she blogs here. Her upcoming books are False Hearts & Masquerade. Out now: Pantomime, Shadowplay & The Vestigial Tales.

Run Forever by Andrew Reid
Read by Joe Scalora
Andrew Reid – Cook, climber, teacher, writer and one of the most fiercely articulate, creative people it’s my honour to know. He and I, along with Lou, survived redshirting World FantasyCon together last year. That may mean at some point we open a bar. We’ll let you know… Andrew blogs at My God It’s Raining and tweets here.

Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing by Taran Matharu
Read by Marguerite Kenner
Taran, is the author of the popular book Summoner: The Novice (read 6 Million times and published in 11 languages) and can be found on twitter here.

Gravemaker by Edward Cox
Read by Alasdair Stuart
Edward, author of THE RELIC GUILD and THE CATHEDRAL OF KNOWN THINGS can be found on twitter here and blogs here

And that’s our stories, supplied by The Mushens Agency. I’d like to thank all our narrators and authors for turning in stories that show just how diverse and vibrant a genre horror is.

The stars are right again, and what an age-old cult had failed to do, a band of innocent authors has accomplished. After vigintillions of years the Flash Fiction Contest is loose again, and ravening for delight. Each week, batches of stories will be released into gladiatorial pits to fight for supremacy. The floor will be churned to mud with the blood of the fallen until the mightiest stories remain for your delight and dread. Head over to the forums, take up your stone, and join us in the harvest festivals of the October Country.

It’s easy to be become a member. Sign up for a forum account and make a single post so we know you’re not a bot. This is a good thread to start with. From there, head over to “The Arcade” as the contest thread will not be visible until after you have made at least one post. Authors, encourage friends and families to come over and participate – you just can’t tell them which stories are yours. Visit our forums for rules and details.

Purchase your copy of Queers Destroy Horror! here: http://www.nightmare-magazine.com/ebooks/october-2015-issue-37-queers-destroy-horror/

Buy a copy of Hexed by Anders Manga here: https://andersmanga.bandcamp.com/



Listen to this week's Pseudopod.

[Tim Tylor]

A technical grumble - the interstitial music comes on late before The Ghost Of Gold and Grey and Run Forever, making the first half-minute or so of each story a grim battle between the narrators and Anders Manga. I very much liked both stories and the narration regardless.

[Unblinking]

Hmmm.... I'm hoping someone comes along and comments on some stories, because I'm having trouble remembering what each story was about.  Is there any excerpt text from the stories to jog memory?  The place where I usually comment I can't really do audio, so it's tricky to jog memory at this time without the text to help me a little.


My Daily Vampire
I'm not entirely sure, but rather than vampires and zombies this seemed to be an unreliable narrator's race-based tirade?  At least I got that sense from the zombies, not as sure about the vampire.  I kind of felt like I didn't entirely get it. 

The Ghost of Gold and Grey
Was this the one where the hired helper comes across one ghost and it turns out there are many others?  I thought this one was reasonably good, kind of in the sense of accepting a job and realizing there's much more to it than you bargained, that sinking feeling.  I have dreams about that infrequently and it is always scary even when it doesn't involve ghosts.

Run Forever
Hm, interesting idea, I felt like it was so ambiguous that I had trouble really immersing in it, I was constantly trying to discern between possible interpretations.

[kibitzer]

A technical grumble - the interstitial music comes on late before The Ghost Of Gold and Grey and Run Forever, making the first half-minute or so of each story a grim battle between the narrators and Anders Manga. I very much liked both stories and the narration regardless.

I'm so sorry, that'll be my fault. I'll get a fixed up version out soon.

[Uncanny Valley]

Hmmm.... I'm hoping someone comes along and comments on some stories, because I'm having trouble remembering what each story was about.  Is there any excerpt text from the stories to jog memory?  The place where I usually comment I can't really do audio, so it's tricky to jog memory at this time without the text to help me a little.


My Daily Vampire
I'm not entirely sure, but rather than vampires and zombies this seemed to be an unreliable narrator's race-based tirade?  At least I got that sense from the zombies, not as sure about the vampire.  I kind of felt like I didn't entirely get it. 

My take was that the vampire was actually his nurse.  The pricks on the inside of his elbow were blood draws.

The Ghost of Gold and Grey
Was this the one where the hired helper comes across one ghost and it turns out there are many others?  I thought this one was reasonably good, kind of in the sense of accepting a job and realizing there's much more to it than you bargained, that sinking feeling.  I have dreams about that infrequently and it is always scary even when it doesn't involve ghosts.

Yeah, that's the one.  I liked this one best.

Run Forever
Hm, interesting idea, I felt like it was so ambiguous that I had trouble really immersing in it, I was constantly trying to discern between possible interpretations.

This one I honestly didn't completely get either.  I couldn't figure out exactly what was happening.  I guess he'd lose time and run for hours and hours?

As always, the narration was great on all four.

[adrianh]

Run Forever
Hm, interesting idea, I felt like it was so ambiguous that I had trouble really immersing in it, I was constantly trying to discern between possible interpretations.

Heh. That ambiguity was exactly why I really enjoyed it :–)

[Unblinking]

Run Forever
Hm, interesting idea, I felt like it was so ambiguous that I had trouble really immersing in it, I was constantly trying to discern between possible interpretations.

Heh. That ambiguity was exactly why I really enjoyed it :–)

Ambiguity sometimes works for me and sometimes it doesn't.  What's the difference between the two?  I can't say.

[BrianL]

Run Forever by Andrew Reid

I was listening to "Run Forever". I was running and it was dark and fall time. Creepy!!!! and Good story
Brian

[Moritz]

I really liked the stories. My internal xenophobe was expecting some more "Britishness" in the Britshock stories (e.g. a monster emerging out of a 5 o'clock tea, or something about eery abandoned industrial towns with gangs), but I am actually glad my stereotypes weren't confirmed

[TrishEM]

Hmmm.... I'm hoping someone comes along and comments on some stories, because I'm having trouble remembering what each story was about.

At your service, Unblinking!

Absolution: Ooh, I loved this one -- the shock when I realized that it's the daughter, not the father, who died in the crash, and how the mother's guilt calls her back each year, and how the daughter's forgiveness is what lets her slip back into the peace of the grave ... until next time. Nice details too -- the dogs, the cold, the haircut, etc.

My Daily Vampire: Yep, he's the real monster, a crazy human monster.

The Ghost of Gold and Grey: No big surprises but nicely done. Feels like the prelude to a longer story. Will Irene get the feeling back in her cold, ghost-touched arm? What will the big bad ghost turn out to be, and how will Irene help the housekeeper? Did she get picked to help the housekeeper because other ghost-seers are rare?

Run Forever: I listened to it and thought interesting story, but not exactly horror? Then I heard the outro and listened again. And I'm still not convinced it's a supernatural story, although there's definitely some kind of tragic backstory there. But as I said, interesting. I like the open-endedness of it.

Wolf in Sheep's Clothing: Two very different implications for "We are coming to get you." Rescue or GET you? Given that the little gray people paralyzed her but didn't anesthetize her ...
Maybe Wolf in Sheepdog's Clothing would have been a better title?
I do wonder why they could scan her systems but not remotely trigger the sun shield. Was there an issue of consent, after which everything else followed?

Gravemaker: What creeped me out mostly, oddly, was the sound of the passenger door(s?) opening and closing. I like a stream-of-consciousness story occasionally, even if there's not enough context to fully comprehend what's happening with the fallout and the funeral(s?) and the gravemakers.

[spiritualtramp]

Hmmm.... I'm hoping someone comes along and comments on some stories, because I'm having trouble remembering what each story was about.

Run Forever: I listened to it and thought interesting story, but not exactly horror? Then I heard the outro and listened again. And I'm still not convinced it's a supernatural story, although there's definitely some kind of tragic backstory there. But as I said, interesting. I like the open-endedness of it.

Yeah this one worked for me once I thought about it.

[Unblinking]

Wolf in Sheep's Clothing: Two very different implications for "We are coming to get you." Rescue or GET you? Given that the little gray people paralyzed her but didn't anesthetize her ...
Maybe Wolf in Sheepdog's Clothing would have been a better title?
I do wonder why they could scan her systems but not remotely trigger the sun shield. Was there an issue of consent, after which everything else followed?

Oh yeah, now I remember the story.  I wondered things like that too.  The paralysis while still feeling was ominous, until that moment I was kind of wondering how this was going to be horror since the protag was going to die out there alone anyway.

[Art Contrary]

One minor quibble: are there no Scottish narrators? I found the accent in this one and the one in Eastern Promise really offputting. It's like listening to someone make fun of your accent. I had to force myself to keep listening to Eastern Promise, but I just couldn't do it this time. I don't think the story would have lost anything if the narrator had read it in their own accent.

[Fenrix]

One minor quibble: are there no Scottish narrators?

We've looked for a while. If you know any, send them our way.