The fact the Nebula Awards were handed out in Pittsburgh earlier this year meant I was finally able to visit a restaurant I’d been wanting to check out for years. Which was excellent timing, because as it turned out, I got there only a week and a half before it closed.

Conflict Kitchen was based on a fascinating concept—only serve, on a rotating basis, the cuisines of countries with which the U.S. has been in conflict—such as Cuba, North Korea, Iran, and Afghanistan, for example. Unfortunately, after seven years, Carnegie Mellon University decided it would no longer provide administrative support, and so Conflict Kitchen was forced to close its Schenley Plaza restaurant location, perhaps only temporarily, but maybe for good. Luckily, though, not before my guest and I were able to get there for an al fresco Palestinian meal.

Brooke Bolander was on Nebula ballot that weekend in the short story category for “Our Talons Can Crush Galaxies,” and is also on the current Hugo Awards ballot for that same story, one of the most talked-about tales of 2016. Her fiction, which has appeared in Lightspeed, Strange Horizons, Nightmare, Uncanny, and other venues, has been honored by nominations for the Locus and the Theodore Sturgeon awards as well. The Only Harmless Great Thing will be published by Tor in 2018.

We discussed how she ended up as a writer rather than a paleontologist, why the videogame Ecco the Dolphin terrified her but taught her to love science fiction, her early days writing fan fiction, how anger over the electrocution of Topsy the elephant and the deaths of the “radium girls” inspired her newest novella, why she avoids rereading her own writing, what broke the writers block that had gripped her for several years, and more.

Here’s how you can join us for falafel— (more…)

On the final day of the second annual StokerCon—which took place in Long Beach, California aboard the now permanently docked Queen Mary—I disembarked with one of the Guests of Honor to record the fifth and final Eating the Fantastic episode of the weekend. We headed to Thai District, which serves dishes from Northern Thailand, as opposed to most of the other Thai restaurants in the area which tend to focus on that country’s central region.

I’ve known this episode’s guest in the flesh for decades, and on the page for even longer, going back to my earliest days in comics fandom. George R. R. Martin is a multifaceted talent, with a list of credits so vast, many might only be aware of a fraction of them.

Some of might know him from the superhero short stories such as “Manta Ray Meets the Executioner” he was publishing in the ’60s in one of the greatest fanzines of all time, Star Studded Comics (which is where, as a young teen, I first encountered him), or as the creator and editor of the long-running Wild Cards series of mosaic, multi-author novels, some may know him better from such award-winning short fiction as “Sandkings” and “The Pear-Shaped Man,” or novels like Fevre Dream and The Armageddon Rag, while still others might know him best from his TV work … like … you know … The Twilight Zone and Beauty and the Beast—and don’t forget Max Headroom!

We discussed why he was annoyed Marvel Comics printed his letters but DC never did, the reason Gardner Dozois was responsible for his first science fiction short story sale, how the rock ‘n’ roll novel Armageddon Rag got him a job on the rebooted Twilight Zone, what he learned from the arc of Stephen R. Donaldson’s career, how losing the John W. Campbell Memorial Award got him his first editing gig, why he almost became a realtor, the time Harlan Ellison convinced him to apply to be the editor of Analog, and more. PLUS: Hear a snippet from an interview I did back in 1993 in which he makes an amusing admission about “a fantasy novel I’ve been working on off and on for awhile.”

Here’s how you can join us for our Thai feast— (more…)

On the final day of StokerCon 2017, I woke ridiculously early for a breakfast recording of Eating the Fantastic at Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles—to the great skepticism of almost everyone I’d told at the con, who doubted those two foodstuffs were meant to be ingested simultaneously.

Luckily, my guest this episode was not a skeptic, and enthusiastically accompanied me for the greasy goodness. Five-time Bram Stoker Award winning-writer Nancy Holder had been the Toastmaster during the previous night’s ceremony, is the author of the young adult horror series Possessions, and has written many tie-in works set in such universes as Teen Wolf, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Smallville, and Wonder Woman.

We discussed her somewhat secret origin as a romance novelist, why her first horror convention made her burst into tears, how she got off on the wrong foot with acclaimed editor Charles L. Grant, what caused her Edgar Allan Poe obsession to begin, why she was a fan of DC Comics instead of Marvel as a kid, what Ed Bryant might have meant when he called her “the first splatterpunk to chew with her mouth closed,” and more.

Here’s how you can take a bite out of that chicken and waffles, too— (more…)

Some of my favorite moments from last year’s inaugural StokerCon were those spent talking late into the night with William F. Nolan and Dennis Etchison. So when this year’s StokerCon rolled around, I knew I had to capture them both for Eating the Fantastic. You’ve already heard me chat with Bill over Thai food aboard the Queen Mary back in Episode 38 (at least I hope you have). Now it’s time to for you to eavesdrop as Dennis and I dig into a couple of classic dishes at Long Beach’s Chen’s Chinese Restaurant.

Dennis is a writer and editor who’s a three-time World Fantasy Award winner and a three-time British Fantasy Award winner. His 1982 debut short story collection, The Dark Country, is one of the best horror short story collections ever. And you don’t have to take my word for how good he is—some guy named Stephen King has called him “one hell of a fiction writer.”

We discussed how Philip K. Dick staged scenes as he wrote his stories, Ray Bradbury’s baffling advice which helped Etchison make his first fiction sale, whether he’d still have become a writer had he not been an only child, why most writing workshops don’t work, how he came to write his best-selling Halloween novel for John Carpenter in six weeks, the speech he really wanted to give when he received his Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association, and more.

Here’s how you can dig into dumplings with us— (more…)

When I was investigating venues where I could record episodes of Eating the Fantastic during the recent Long Beach StokerCon, one dish stood out above all others—the whole grilled snook served by chef Sergio Peñuela at his restaurant Cheko El Rey Del Sarandeado. So that’s where I headed for dinner on Thursday during the con, in order to learn whether that dish lived up to its rep.

Spoiler alert: It did.

My guest that night was Elizabeth Hand, a brilliant writer who’s won four World Fantasy Awards, two Nebula Awards, three Shirley Jackson Awards, and more other awards than I have space to mention. The latest novel in her Cass Neary series, Hard Light, was released last year.

We discussed why she probably won’t take LSD on her deathbed, what made her a fan of Marvel rather than DC when she was a kid, her unusual fee for writing term papers back in college, the true meaning of Man’s Search for Meaning, the unfortunate occupational hazard of book reviewing, who was the best science fiction writer of all time (and why), plus more.

Here’s how you can hook a snook with us— (more…)

Balticon 51 ends today, but the fun doesn’t have to be over—because on Saturday, I interviewed a baker’s dozen of attendees about their favorite Balticon memories. And I did it over donuts!

(If you’re a regular listener and were therefore anticipating Episode 39 to be the previously announced dinner with Elizabeth Hand, don’t worry—that’s still planned to appear on June 9. But I thought it fitting that the Balticon episode go live now, to help assuage the sadness some might be feeling as they bid farewell to Baltimore for another year.)

Since last July’s Readercon Donut Spectacular episode of Eating the Fantastic has proven to be so popular, I thought I’d try harvesting memories about another long-running con, and so plopped myself down in a high-traffic area of the Balticon hotel with a dozen Diablo Donuts. But first, I shared this photo on social media so the hungry hordes would know to be on the lookout for me.

Most episodes of Eating the Fantastic involve deep-dive interviews with a single guest, so for the most part, I’m in control, but with something like this, you never know what’s going to happen, because I don’t choose the guests, the guests choose me. But I consider that controlled chaos a feature, not a bug, and think you’ll like what those who did sit down for a bite and a chat had to say about their decades—and in one case, mere hours—attending the con.

Listen as 13 guests begin Balticon’s second half-century with a dozen Diablo Donuts and reminisce about the time George R. R. Martin pretended to beat one of them to death with a cane, how a live birth almost ended up as part of the science programming, why it’s so wonderful to be able to make a Star Trek joke and have people get it, Allen Steele’s wonderful depiction of the 1939 Worldcon in his novel Arkwright, Marty Gear’s indispensable rule for self-care during convention-going, plus more.

Here’s how you can eavesdrop as my guests dig into their donuts— (more…)

All aboard!

Welcome to the permanently moored Queen Mary, which sailed the seas from 1936 to 1967, but which is now a retired ocean liner turned hotel in Long Beach, California—and last month the home of the second annual StokerCon. My guest for this episode snuck away with me from the con for some peace and quiet in my room—and to share take-out food delivered from nearby Thai Silk.

The first of five episodes I captured for you while out West is with the legendary William F. Nolan, who’s written more than 2,000 pieces of fiction and non-fiction, co-wrote with George Clayton Johnson the novel Logan’s Run, co-wrote with Richard Matheson the screenplay to the movie Trilogy of Terror (which contains perhaps the scariest doll ever seen on film), plus—he’s received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association and was named a World Horror Society Grand Master. His most recent short story collection is Like a Dead Man Walking.

We discussed how Ray Bradbury helped him sell his first short story in 1954, the way a slush pile sale to Playboy convinced him to abandon a successful career as a commercial artist, why his Twilight Zone episode was never filmed, the difference between the real truth and Charles Beaumont’s “greater truth,” why he only ever acted in one movie (and got punched by William Shatner), how Stan Freberg pranked diners aboard the Queen Mary and made them think the ship was sinking, which novel he thinks is his best (and it’s not Logan’s Run), and more.

Before you dive in, a reminder—if you like what you hear and what Eating the Fantastic is trying to accomplish, check out how you can support the show by subsidizing some of the travel, bandwidth, meal, and other costs over on Patreon. (There are perks for all patrons, of course.) Or, if you’d prefer, make a one-time donation via Paypal.me. With your help, I can keep capturing all those who make the world of the fantastic great, and also make this podcast even bigger and better.

And now—here’s how you can dig into some of that Pad-Se-Ew with us— (more…)

I visited the Watergate Hotel recently, and in case those of you familiar with the history of that infamous location might be thinking I went there to bring down a president with a Bob Woodward/Carl Bernstein-style investigation, let me quickly add … no. Rather, I went there to investigate the food at the recently opened Kingbird restaurant, with a guest who surprised me with her sudden visit to Washington, D.C., and whom I somehow managed to convince that a meal with me would be oh, so much more fun than visiting the National Air and Space Museum.

Joining me within the walls of the Watergate Hotel was Cynthia Felice, who published her first short story, “Longshanks,” in 1976 in the pages of Galileo, a science fiction magazine published by the late, great Charlie Ryan, and her first novel, Godsfire, two years later. She is also the co-founder with Ed Bryant—about whom, alas, I must also say late and great—of the Colorado Springs Writer’s Workshop.

We discussed how Frank Herbert’s Dune made her say, “Hey, I can do that,” the virtues of owning a motel while being a writer, the marriage advice Kate Wilhelm gave her at Clarion, what Thomas M. Disch told her that fixed one of her short stories, why we all loved the late, great Ed Bryant, the extraordinary lengths David Hartwell went to as he edited her second novel, how her collaborations with Connie Willis began, and more.

Here’s how you can break into the Watergate with us— (more…)

During last year’s Capclave in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Brenda Clough tantalized me with tales of JDS Shanghai Famous Food, telling me they made some of the best soup dumplings in the D.C. area. So when it was time for her appearance on Eating the Fantastic, how could we go anywhere else?

Brenda has published short fiction in Analog, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, my own Science Fiction Age, and many others, and was nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for her novella “May Be Some Time.” She’s also written many novels across multiple series, and teaches writing workshops at the Writers Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

We discussed how Superman started off her science fiction life, whether she’s a steeplechase horse or a Kentucky derby horse, the time Harlan Ellison phoned to tell her she wrote like an angel, how surrendering to the concept of “false endings” helped her become a better writer, why she’d never want to be one of her own characters, which Anne McCaffrey book she threw in the trash, why she decided to knit a life-sized giant squid, and more.

Here’s how you can dine on dumplings with us— (more…)

I wish I could get to Baltimore’s Woodberry Kitchen more often. This should help you understand why: Bill Addison, Eater’s restaurant editor, has written of Woodberry Kitchen that when it opened in 2007, “it was the most forward-thinking Baltimore restaurant in years,” and in 2016 he included it on his list of 38 restaurants that shaped and defined American dining.

So I was glad to be able to return for a meal with K.M. Szpara, who has published short fiction in Lightspeed, Shimmer, Glittership, and other magazines, and has recently completed his first novel. He edited the acclaimed anthology Transcendant: The Year’s Best Transgender Speculative Fiction, about which Kirkus wrote that it “challenges readers’ expectations in ways that few have managed to do before.”

Listen in and learn about his formative years writing Hanson and Harry Potter fanfic, which darlings he had to kill to complete his first novel, why rewrites are like giving a floofy poodle a haircut, what he didn’t know about short stories when he began to write them, the many ways conventions are like big sleepovers, the reason he was able to eat one of George R. R. Martin’s dragon eggs, and more.

Here’s how you can join us at the table— (more…)