The Functional Nerds Podcast

In episode 333 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Annalee Newitz – Tech Culture Editor at Ars Technica, and the founding editor of io9. Previously, she was the editor-in-chief of popular tech site Gizmodo. She is the author of Scatter, Adapt and Remember: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction (Doubleday and Anchor), which was a finalist for the LA Times Book Prize. Her first science fiction novel, Autonomous, will be released from Tor in September 2017. * Annalee’s Website: https://www.techsploitation.com/ * Annalee on Ars Technica: https://arstechnica.com/author/annalee/ About Annalee: Annalee Newitz is the Tech Culture Editor at Ars Technica. Her work focuses on cultural impact of science and technology. She founded the science and science fiction blog io9.com, and is the author of Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction. Her first novel, Autonomous, comes out in September 2017. She has a Ph.D. in English and American Studies from UC Berkeley, and was the recipient of a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT. She lives in San Francisco with many other life forms, some of which have yet to be identified. This week’s picks: * Annalee: An Excess Male: A Novel by Maggie Shen King * John: Lao Tzu: Tao Te Ching – a translation by Ursula K. Le Guin * Patrick: Marco Polo – Netflix original series Links: * Annalee Newitz on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 332 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick and John talk about Stormtrooper armor in Star Wars – why do they even have it?? – Rogue One, G.I. Joe and Cobra characters moving faster than the speed of laser light, Arrow, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Flash and Supergirl, the CW, Netflix, Hulu, io9, Invasion!, binging versus watching in-season, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Black Lightning, Static Shock, Justice League, Batman Beyond, the DC Animated Universe, Disney, Ant Farm, Saved by the Bell, massive comic book crossovers, Batman, and tighter storytelling in the CW Superhero Universe. Links: * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 331 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome back Laurence MacNaughton, author of A Kiss Before Doomsday. About Laurence: He grew up in a creaky old colonial house in Connecticut that he was pretty sure was haunted. As a kid, he was a choirboy in a church that was built in 1754. He also pounded out stories on a black manual typewriter until he sold his first magazine article at age 19. Over the years, he’s been a bookseller, typesetter, printer, copywriter and (somewhat randomly) a prototype vehicle test driver. When not writing, he bikes and hikes the Colorado Rockies, explores ghost towns and wrenches on old cars. But the whole time, he is usually thinking about the book he’s going to write next. He loves connecting with readers. This week’s picks: * Laurence: Canva – free online book cover templates * John: Mr. Big: Defying Gravity * Patrick: Vatta’s War Audiobooks by Elizabeth Moon, narrated by Cynthia Holloway Links: * Laurence MacNaughton on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 330 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome back long-time friend Dave Robison, host of the ARCHIVOS Podcast Network AND creator of the NEW ARCHIVOS Story Development App. About Dave: Dave has indulged in creative pursuits his entire life. His CV includes writing Curious George fan-fiction at the age of eight, improv theater at age ten, playing trumpet at age twelve, as well as a theater degree, creating magazine cover art, writing audio scripts, designing websites, creating board games, hosting mythological roundtables and generally savoring the sweet nectar of expression in all its forms. He is the director of Wonderthing Studios, Editor-in-Chief at Vex Mosaic, and the creator of the ARCHIVOS Story Development Platform. About ARCHIVOS: ARCHIVOS is story mapping and presentation application developed by Wonderthing Studios, designed to support storytellers in the creation and promotion of their story worlds. ARCHIVOS has been in development for over a decade, built upon the idea of a visual representation of the network of interaction between story elements. It’s creator, David Robison, conceived a framework of documentation and relationship that would articulate the dynamics of a story setting more effectively than any wiki or blog. The application serves as both a development tool for narratives as well as a presentation framework for sharing those narratives. This week’s picks: * Dave: Doodle.com * John: Perennial Seller: The Art of Making and Marketing Work that Lasts by Ryan Holiday * Patrick: Cyfe.com Business Dashboards Links: * Dave Robison on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 329 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Rajan Khanna, author of Raining Fire. About Rajan: Rajan Khanna is a fiction writer, blogger, reviewer and narrator. His first novel, Falling Sky, a post-apocalyptic adventure with airships, was released in October 2014 from Pyr. A sequel, Rising Tide, came out in October 2015. His short fiction has appeared in Lightspeed Magazine, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Shimmer, and several anthologies. His articles and reviews have appeared at Tor.com and LitReactor.com and his podcast narrations can be heard at Podcastle, Escape Pod, PseudoPod, Beneath Ceaseless Skies and Lightspeed Magazine. Rajan lives in New York where he’s a member of the Altered Fluid writing group. He is represented by Barry Goldblatt of the Barry Goldblatt Agency. This week’s picks: * Rajan: PJ Harvey: The Hope Six Demolition Project * John: Empire of Imagination: Gary Gygax and the Birth of Dungeons & Dragons by Michael Witwer * Patrick: Joe Golem – Occult Detective by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden * BONUS: The Bump in the Night Thriller Story Bundle – including Patrick’s Book, Into the Fire – 15 books for $15… Links: * Rajan Khanna on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 328 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick and John talk about music, social media and the changes they’ve both made in how they consume and interact with it, the political rancor running amok everywhere, music, the Denver Digital Summit, marketing, Spotify and so much more. If you haven’t yet, start listening cuz this is a great one! Links: * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 327 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Rob Reid, author of After On – The definitive novel of today’s Silicon Valley. After On flash captures our culture and technological movement with up-to-the-instant savvy. Matters of privacy and government intrusion, post-Tinder romance, nihilistic terrorism, artificial consciousness, synthetic biology and much more are tackled with authority and brash playfulness by New York Times best selling author Rob Reid. About Rob: Rob Reid is an author of speculative fiction based in New York City. His new novel, After On (release date: August 1, 2017), concerns a diabolical social network (Phluttr) with the means and (perhaps?) the inclination to take full control of human society. His prior novel, Year Zero, was a New York Times bestseller, and depicts a vast alien civilization whose obsession with American pop music bankrupts the entire universe. A former venture capitalist, Rob was the founder, CEO, and later Chairman of Listen.com, which created & developed Rhapsody – the first online music service to secure full-catalog licenses from all of the major labels. Rhapsody created the unlimited streaming model later adopted by Spotify, Apple, and many others. This week’s picks: * Rob: The Go! Team: Rolling Blackouts * John: Setlist.fm * Patrick: Bosch – Amazon Prime Links: * Rob Reid on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 326 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Geek Actually authors Cathy Yardley and Rachel Stuhler! About Cathy: Cathy Yardley needs to get out more. When not writing, she’s usually lurking on social media, playing Fallout 4, or watching D-list movies and adding to her unnatural mental store of character-actor trivia. She’s a fangirl of Supernatural, Doctor Who, Sherlock, LOTR, and too many others to name. She lives with her family in Seattle. They are considering performing an intervention for her addiction to pop culture. CathyYardley.com. About Rachel: Rachel Stuhler hails from Rochester, NY and has worked extensively in the film business. She was a writer on Hallmark Channel’s “McBride” series and has written on a dozen more movies for television, including Lifetime’s popular Kristin’s Christmas Past and the TV adaptation of Janette Oke’s Love Takes Wing. In 2015, her first novel, Absolutely True Lies, was released by Touchstone. She continues to work in TV while living in Los Angeles and is busy plotting her next move in world domination. RachelStuhler.com. About Geek Actually: Friendship. Feminism. Fandom. Meet your new best girlfriends. Michelle is a hard-nosed Sci-Fi editor used to things going her way; Taneesha is a talented video game programmer used to being the odd (wo)man out. Aditi is a Fantasy writer on the verge of her big break; Christina is a rebel on the sidelines of Hollywood. And Elli is a fan – of anything and everything that keeps her from “proper adulting.” Together they are Rebel Scum (at least in their shared group chat), and best friends through thick and thin. They might live far apart but through the power of the internet and a shared love of all things geek, they are ready to face the world together. This week’s picks: * Cathy: The Elder Scrolls Online * Rachel: The Trespasser: A Novel by Tana French * John: Amber Galactic by The Night Flight Orchestra * Patrick: Roadies Links: * Cathy Yardley on Twitter * Rachel Stuhler on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 325 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Sebastien de Castell, author of Tyrant’s Throne (The Greatcoats book 4)! About Sebastien: Sebastien de Castell had just finished a degree in Archaeology when he started work on his first dig. Four hours later he realized how much he actually hated archaeology and left to pursue a very focused career as a musician, ombudsman, interaction designer, fight choreographer, teacher, project manager, actor, and product strategist. His only defence against the charge of unbridled dilettantism is that he genuinely likes doing these things and that, in one way or another, each of these fields plays a role in his writing. He sternly resists the accusation of being a Renaissance Man in the hopes that more people will label him that way. Sebastien is the author of the acclaimed swashbuckling fantasy series, The Greatcoats. His debut novel, Traitor’s Blade, was shortlisted for both the 2014 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Fantasy and the Gemmell Morningstar Award for Best Debut. He lives in Vancouver, Canada with his lovely wife and two belligerent cats. This week’s picks: * Sebastien: * StandardEbooks.com * Spoonbenders: A novel by Darryl Gregory * John: Rush: Album by Album by Martin Popoff * Patrick: The OA Links: * Sebastien de Castell on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio. We’ll be taking a break for the July 4th holiday – look for a new episode the following week

In episode 324 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Steven Barnes, author of Twelve Days: A Novel – being release on June 27th! About Steven: Steven Barnes is a New York Times bestselling, award-winning novelist and screenwriter who is the creator of the Lifewriting™ writing course, which he has taught nationwide. He recently won an NAACP Image Award as co-author of the Tennyson Hardwick mystery series with actor Blair Underwood and his wife, Tananarive Due. For an overview of his 20-plus novels, visit Amazon.com. But Steve’s true love is teaching balance and enhancing human performance in all forms: emotional, professional and physical. In addition to being an author and writing instructor, he is also a life coach, CST coach and certified hypnotist. He has more than 30 years’ experience in the self-development arts, including hypnosis certification with Transformative Arts Institute in Marin, CA, training as a yoga and Tai Chi instructor, and fourth-degree black belt. He has counseled executives, royalty, prominent politicians and Hollywood celebrities at the Moonview Sanctuary in Santa Monica. This week’s picks: * Steven: Wonder Woman * John: The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin * Patrick: Atomic Robo: The Temple of Od Links: * Steven Brnes on Facebook * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio. We’ll be taking a break for the July 4th holiday – look for a new episode the following week

In episode 323 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome Jennifer Gunnels and Marco Palmieri from Tor.com and Tor Labs. Helmed by Senior Editor Marco Palmieri and Editor Jennifer Gunnels, Tor Labs will debut this summer with Steal the Stars, a science fiction audio drama which will be produced in partnership with Gideon Media and written by Mac Rogers, the award-winning writer of the global hit podcast thrillers, The Message and LifeAfter. Steal the Stars is the story of Dakota Prentiss and Matt Salem, two government employees guarding the biggest secret in the world: a crashed UFO. Despite being forbidden to fraternize, Dak and Matt fall in love and decide to escape to a better life on the wings of an incredibly dangerous plan: They’re going to steal the alien body they’ve been guarding and sell the secret of its existence. Steal the Stars Tor LabsSteal the Stars is a noir science fiction thriller in 14 episodes, airing weekly from August 2 – November 1, 2017, and available worldwide on all major podcast distributors through the Macmillan Podcast Network. It will be followed immediately by a novelization of the entire serial from Tor Books, as well as an ads-free audio book of the podcast from Macmillan Audio. This week’s picks: * Jen: Wonder Woman * Marco: Wonder Woman * John: Chuck Klosterman X: A Highly Specific, Defiantly Incomplete History of the Early 21st Century by Chuck Klosterman * Patrick: Made it with Code: The Wonder Woman Google Doodle Links: * Jen Gunnels on Twitter * Marco Palmieri on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 322 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio welcome back Alan Smale, author of CLASH OF EAGLES, EAGLE IN EXILE and EAGLE AND EMPIRE. About Alan: Alan Smale has been writing fiction since he was twelve years old, when he elected to stay inside during school breaktimes to pen stories about intrepid men of action rather than risk going outside to get beaten up by the school terror squads. His novels, “Blood in the Snow” and “Camp Noah”, were deservedly left behind at his parents’ house in Leeds, England when he emigrated to the U.S. in 1988. His first published story, a penetrating study of dragons, heroism, precocious behavior and bad breath, appeared in the Harcourt Brace young adult anthology “A Wizard’s Dozen” in 1993. Since then, nearly forty of Alan’s short stories have appeared in professional and small press markets including “Asimov’s Science Fiction”, “Realms of Fantasy” (six times), Alan atWorldcon “Abyss & Apex” (twice), novella anthologies “Panverse One” and “Panverse Two”,”Apollo’s Daughters”, “Writers of the Future #13,” “A Nightmare’s Dozen”, “Paradox”, “Marion Zimmer Bradley’s Fantasy Magazine”, “Adventures of Sword and Sorcery”, the Meisha Merlin original anthology “Low Port”, edited by Lee and Miller, and the revised edition of “Book of Dead Things”, edited by Jens and Cherry. Audio versions of two of his stories have appeared on “Podcastle” (#101) and “Pseudopod” (#190). In 2011 Alan won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History for his “Panverse Two” novella, “A Clash of Eagles”, and he has also received call-outs in Locus’s Recommended Reading Lists and many Honorable Mentions in best-of-year anthologies. His first novel, CLASH OF EAGLES, set in the same universe as his Sidewise novella, appeared from Del Rey in March of 2015, with sequels in 2016 and 2017. Alan grew up in Leeds, Yorkshire, and received a B.A. in Physics and a doctorate in Astrophysics from Oxford University (St Edmund Hall). He became an American citizen just before July 4th, 2000, but regretfully still can’t quite do the accent. He’s awfully sorry about that. This week’s picks: * Alan: Radiate (The Lightless Trilogy) by C.A. Higgins * John: The Alloy of Law: A Mistborn Novel by Brandon Sanderson * Patrick: Rick and Morty Links: * Alan Smale on Twitter * Alan and The Chromatics * Music included in this podcast provided by Alan Smale * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book:

In episode 321 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, recorded roughly one year from the day SFSignal.com closed up shop, John and Patrick remember how the site, and in particular its front man and resident blogger John DeNardo, impacted their lives and this show – the Functional Nerds. They also talk about the future, conventions, Patrick’s writing, John’s music, and so much more. Really, you should just stop reading this and click the play button already. In fact, we’re kinda surprised you haven’t already clicked it. I mean, come on – this is a really good show, and very heartfelt. We were all choked up recording and editing it. Are you still reading this?! OMG! CLICK PLAY ALREADY! Links: * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio. No castles were made in the skies during this episode…

In episode 320 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio chat with Michael Johnston, author of Soleri – a new hardcover from TOR. About Soleri: The ruling family of the Soleri Empire has been in power longer than even the calendars that stretch back 2,826 years. Those records tell a history of conquest and domination by a people descended from gods, older than anything in the known world. No living person has seen them for centuries, yet their grip on their four subjugate kingdoms remains tighter than ever. On the day of the annual eclipse, the Harkan king, Arko-Hark Wadi, sets off on a hunt and shirks his duty rather than bow to the emperor. Ren, his son and heir, is a prisoner in the capital, while his daughters struggle against their own chains. Merit, the eldest, has found a way to stand against imperial law and marry the man she desires, but needs her sister’s help, and Kepi has her own ideas. Meanwhile, Sarra Amunet, Mother Priestess of the sun god’s cult, holds the keys to the end of an empire and a past betrayal that could shatter her family. Detailed and historical, vast in scope and intricate in conception, Soleri bristles with primal magic and unexpected violence. It is a world of ancient and elaborate rites, of unseen power and kingdoms ravaged by war, where victory comes with a price, and every truth conceals a deeper secret. About Michael: MICHAEL JOHNSTON has always been an avid reader of science fiction and fantasy. He studied architecture and ancient history at Lehigh University and earned a master’s degree in architecture from Columbia University. Michael worked as an architect in New York City before switching to writing full time. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. This week’s picks: * Michael: Imaginary Cities: A Tour of Dream Cities, Nightmare Cities, and Everywhere in Between by Darran Anderson * John: The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson * Patrick: The Defenders Trailer Links: * Michael Johnston on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.

In episode 319 of the Functional Nerds Podcast, Patrick Hester and John Anealio chat with Shannon Lawrence, author of several short stories including, Let’s Play a Game, Salvation Lottery, For Love of the Hunt, Shifting Sands, Sound Advice and Metamorphosis – which is just a sampling of her work. For a full list with links, please visit her website. About Shannon: A fan of all things fantastical and frightening, Shannon Lawrence writes in her dungeon when her minions allow, often accompanied by her familiars, Cleopatra and Nefertiti. She writes primarily horror and fantasy. Her stories can be found in several anthologies and magazines, including Once Upon a Scream, The Literary Hatchet, The Deep Dark Woods, and Dark Moon Digest. When she’s not writing, she’s hiking through the wilds of Colorado and photographing her magnificent surroundings. Though she often misses the ocean, the majestic and rugged Rockies are a sight she could never part with. Besides, in Colorado there’s always a place to hide a body or birth a monster. What more could she ask for? Find her at www.thewarriormuse.com. This week’s picks: * Shannon: Mongrels: A Novel by Stephen Graham Jones * John: The Man In The High Castle * Patrick: The Dark Tower Trailer Links: * Shannon Lawrence on Twitter * John Anealio on Twitter * Patrick Hester on Twitter * The Functional Nerds Patreon Page * Patrick’s New Book: Into the Fire (available everywhere) © 2017 Patrick Hester and John Anealio This podcast contains original music by John Anealio.