Matt cheating on Liam... surely not! Hope listeners to the UDF podcast enjoy his appearance on A Meal of Thorns. A fun chat about Ready Player One!

Dr Matthew Leggatt, Senior Lecturer in the School of Humanities @uniwinchester.bsky.social, is the next guest on speculative fiction podcast Meal of Thorns, talking to host Jake Casella Brookings about Ready Player One. The episode is available from Monday (20 April) on Spotify, Apple and YouTube.

Not wanting to take credit but... we have a history of interviewing people whose books have then gone on to shine at the Locus Awards! Good luck andré! Fully deserved!

Looks really interesting. Thanks for the tip. Memory studies is something I'm particularly interested in having written about nostalgia in the past.

It strikes me that the divide between those who think AI is a scourge and those who are embracing it is actually a divide between those who have seen films and those who haven't!

4 books by 40, with a few days to spare, so why not celebrate the achievement. Liam and I will also be giving listeners to the podcast the chance to win a copy of Wastelands and Wonderlands in the next episode so make sure you tune in for that!

Episode 21: Author Interview - Daniel Olivas, 'Chicano Frankenstein', and Immigration

Happy Easter everyone. Hope you've been enjoying the long weekend. What's more Easter themed than our latest episode on Chicano Frankenstein? (This announcement has not been written by AI).
open.spotify.com/episode/7q32...

Wastelands and Wonderlands

Publication day! It was an honour to work with such an amazing group of scholars for this (list in the comments below). Please consider ordering to your institutional library or purchasing the ebook. More affordable paperback is heading your way in 6 months.
sunypress.edu/Books/W/Wast...

Thanks andré, since you've already guested I think you're safe this time! Although you do have a new book out...

Excited to be interviewing our next guest tomorrow morning and it's an early start for me because of the very substantial time difference... that's all I'll give you!

Episode 21: Author Interview - Daniel Olivas, 'Chicano Frankenstein', and Immigration

Across America the reanimated are plugging gaps in the workforce while the President stokes hatred of them to improve her polling. In this episode we speak to Daniel Olivas, author of Chicano Frankenstein about his novel and the current plight of immigrants in the US
open.spotify.com/episode/7q32...

Tom Junod says his new memoir allowed him carry on 'without the necessity of being silent' Writer Tom Junod discusses his new memoir about his father, 'In the Days of My Youth I Was Told What It Means to Be a Man.'

"[O]ne of the top-selling trends in adult reading right now is dystopian fiction. Some of the top sellers in our bookstore are 'Parable of the Sower' by Octavia Butler, 'Chicano Frankenstein' by Daniel Olivas..."
www.latimes.com/entertainmen... #dystopian

Episode 21 coming next week!

But Ted, if the Federation was founded in the 21st century rather than the 22nd I'd like to think that our podcast would be mandatory listening for all citizens!

Author copies have arrived! It's a beautiful book with a group of wonderful contributors! Massive thanks to SUNY for the production work. Out in April... Wastelands and Wonderlands: Utopias and Dystopias in Film and Literature.

I don't find anything goes viral on here... I blame the algorithm!

Glad to hear it, Daniel! Hope your day goes smoothly. Not long now and you can enjoy the weekend!

Reactionary Worldbuilding: From Speculative Imagination to Political Practice The first in-depth study of the dark side of worldbuilding, exploring the connection between speculative imagination and political practice.Speculative imagination brings to life an array of possible ...

It's available for pre-order!

Lovely interview with @danielolivas.bsky.social this afternoon (or this morning for him... he was off to work when we finished! Wish him luck in the LA traffic!). Looking forward to sharing it with you.

Very excited to be interviewing @danielolivas.bsky.social for the podcast on Friday. I very much enjoyed reading his novel Chicano Frankenstein which is certainly very topical. Dystopia incoming...

Episode 20: Taylor Cavallo and Mark Gatto, Work Dystopias and the Business of Gender

It's new episode day! Episode 20 is here featuring Taylor Cavallo and Mark Gatto. We discuss links between business and organisational studies, parents at work, gender, and dystopia, particularly in relation to The Handmaid's Tale, Severance, and Children of Men.
open.spotify.com/episode/2JU5...

When we started the pod I didn't think we'd make double figures but Friday will see the release of episode 20! We've spoken to many brilliant researchers and writers. I'm pleased to say that trend will continue with our next episode which is a double guester! Looking forward to sharing it with you.

Had a lot of fun chatting to @casella.bsky.social for the @mealofthorns.bsky.social podcast. Watch out in April for an episode on Ready Player One!

Sounds great. Will have to check it out at some point soon!

What was the title?

Yes, I love the movie but the novel is quite different and certainly worthy of discussion in its own right.

Recorded the interview yesterday for our next episode... Not one but two brilliant guests! Here are some things that featured in our discussion...

Thanks so much, Daniel! Glad you enjoyed the interview. His passion is really infectious!

Excited to be recording with not one but two guests on Friday! We'll try not to talk over each other!

Matthew Leggatt, Senior Lecturer in English & American Literature @uniwinchester.bsky.social, has launched a new season of his Utopian & Dystopian Fictions podcast with guest Amy Brookes, an architect who discusses intersections between architecture and speculative fiction. Listen at bit.ly/45zeuyz