Dreaming of Kafka Podcast

I wonder where to start. As I tell you my story, will you find it hard to empathize? I am what some call an unreliable character and I have done something unthinkable. But I implore you to listen. As the storyteller, I need you on my side. And we know that a story is only as good as its beginning. - A Splintering by Dur e Aziz Amna Between the tone, tension, and pacing, this is shaping up to be on...

I hope you’re all doing well on this beautiful Friday afternoon. Earlier this year I read an amazing novelette, 1989 by Vince Omni . Published earlier this year, 1989 won the CRAFT 2025 Novelette Print Prize. The book that has stayed with me long after I finished the last page, and I’m incredibly excited to see what Vince does next. So without further ado, here is the interview. (And an accompanyi...

There were few places one could escape the oppressive air and politics of 17th century London, that is until the first coffee shop arrived. When the brits finally learned of the brew (hundreds of years after its discovery in Ethiopia), it quickly drew the ire and attention of conservatives and victuallers alike. There was widespread fear it would replace alcohol, and foment discord among the drunk...

The Doer of Good It was night-time and He was alone. And He saw afar-off the walls of a round city and went towards the city. And when He came near He heard within the city the tread of the feet of joy, and the laughter of the mouth of gladness and the loud noise of many lutes. And He knocked at the gate and certain of the gate-keepers opened to Him. And He beheld a house that was of marble and ha...

I am colored but I offer nothing in the way of extenuating circumstances except the fact that I am the only Negro in the United States whose grandfather on the mother’s side was not an Indian chief. I remember the very day that I became colored. Up to my thirteenth year I lived in the little Negro town of Eatonville, Florida. It is exclusively a colored town. The only white people I knew passed th...

Death By Lightning, is a four part miniseries on Netflix that deftly depicts the violence of men and the political climate that emboldens them. Based on the book, Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard, this historical drama examines how political rhetoric has contributed to what historian Richard Hofstadter calls, the Paranoia Style of Politics, a uniquely American phenomenon that ultimately...

SOON as the sun forsook the eastern mainThe pealing thunder shook the heav’nly plain;Majestic grandeur! From the zephyr’s wing,Exhales the incense of the blooming spring. Soft purl the streams, the birds renew their notes,And through the air their mingled music floats. Through all the heav’ns what beauteous dies are spread! But the west glories in the deepest red:So may our breasts with ev’ry virt...

Droning a drowsy syncopated tune, Rocking back and forth to a mellow croon, I heard a Negro play. Down on Lenox Avenue the other night By the pale dull pallor of an old gas light He did a lazy sway.... He did a lazy sway.... To the tune o’ those Weary Blues. With his ebony hands on each ivory key He made that poor piano moan with melody. O Blues! Swaying to and fro on his rickety stool He played t...

In honor of spooky season, I decided to do a fun little narration of the Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe. I chose Poe because like many others, I was introduced to his work in high school and his neurotic, gothic style has appealed to me ever since. This is one of what I hope to be many voiceovers as I learn the ins and outs of the craft, so if you have any thoughts, questions, or feedback, fee...

The story behind the indie game, Peak , is simple enough. After crash landing onto an unknown island, you and your friends must climb to the top of a mountain peak where you can light a flare to be rescued. The salvation of you and your crew rests solely in the hands of this cute little blob with stubby arms, four fingers, and tremendous dexterity. Throughout your climb you’ll encounter a head-spi...

Set in an alternate reality where the U.S. is under the control of an authoritarian regime (lol), The Long Walk is a story about a group of young men who must march across the country and outlast one another for the chance to win untold riches. Fifty boys, one from each state, must walk at a pace of three mph until they are the last one left. If they fall below that speed for too long, they die. I...

Spoiler Alert In Things Fall Apart , Chinua Achebe composes a cautionary tale of the innumerable ways patriarchy fails us all. The story centers Igbo people living in the fictional village of Umuofia, a society with values not too different from our own. Men occupy most if not all positions of power, the most important identities imposed upon women are as mothers or homemakers, and the one of the...