Speculative Sandbox: a podcast for writers and readers

What could possibly be worse than death? Storytellers will tell you! Author Matthew C. Brown returns to the podcast to talk about all the various ways authors can torture their characters.

The video version of this episode can be found on Spotifyand YouTube.

Speculative Sandbox is for entertainment purposes only. This is a volunteer-run program. Opinions expressed by individuals on the podcastare their own.

In honor of Halloween, guest Michael Crawford and Vickie Lan sit down to watch and unpack the tropes found in the classic 2000 horror movie American Psycho, including 80s yuppie culture, the unreliable narrator, psychopath characteristics, and the purposeful ambiguity of its characters and settings. Rewatch with us! "American Psycho" is currently available on Netflix. Rated R.

Speculative Sandbox is for entertainment purposes only. This is a volunteer-run program. Opinions expressed by individuals on the podcast are their own.

Main cover photo by J.D. Fitzgerald.

Individual episode covers feature royalty-free photography from Pexels.com or Canva. 

Angela Alvarez joins Vickie Lan to talk about Latinx representation in speculative fiction and the powerful story opportunities that come from writing through an authentic lens.

Note: "LatinX" in the context of this episode is used to to inclusively refer to all genders within the community.

The video version of this episode can be found on Spotifyand YouTube.

Speculative Sandbox is for entertainment purposes only. This is a volunteer-run program. Opinions expressed by individuals on the podcastare their own.

Crispin Jeffrey-Franco, owner of Stacks Book Club, joins Vickie Lan on the podcast to talk about tropes from a bookseller's perspective. Learn which tropes are tired and which tropes are on the rise, what booksellers look for when curating their list, and how indie authors can build relationships with their local bookstores.

Note: Stacks Book Club will be hosting in-store novel writing events in November of their own design, unaffiliated with the NaNoWriMo organization.

The video version of this episode can be found on Spotify and YouTube.

Speculative Sandbox is for entertainment purposes only. This is a volunteer-run program. Opinions expressed by individuals on the podcast are their own.

Main cover art illustrated by Sofia Hansson

Individual episode covers feature royalty-free photography from Pexels.com or Canva. 

It's time to unpack spicy books with Wendy Dwan, LAC EMDR Therapist and smut expert! Wendy and Vickie Lan talk trigger warnings, societal impressions and taboos, and the mental health impacts of spicy fiction.

The video version of this episode can be found on Spotify and YouTube.

Speculative Sandbox is for entertainment purposes only. This is a volunteer-run program. Opinions expressed by individuals on the podcast are their own.

Main cover art illustrated by Sofia Hansson

Individual episode covers feature royalty-free photography from Pexels.com or Canva.