Richardson's Rubicon

Matt Witten joins me to talk about 51% , his speculative thriller set in a near-future America where corporations own everything, including people. We dig into one of the book’s strongest ideas: a privatised justice system where detectives have to crowdfund murder investigations. That opens up a wider discussion about debt, ownership, healthcare, policing, and how worldbuilding becomes far more po...

My first vampire-themed author conversation on the show. In this episode, I speak with Sara A. Freites , author of the Rise of Midnight series, a YA fantasy that puts a human girl inside a hidden vampire society with its own rules, pressures, and dangers. We talk about Autumn Hayes, past-life power, demons, spellcraft, and the uneasy reality of living among vampires when you are needed, but not fu...

Meteor impacts slam into North America and the crisis doesn’t stay on the ground. In this episode I’m joined by sci-fi author Ryan McGinnis to talk about Terrestrial , a dual-thread disaster story split between scientists investigating strange growth at the impact sites and a stranded crew on the International Space Station dealing with an invasive stowaway. We dig into why parallel narratives wor...

In this episode I’m joined by author Nathan Ogloff to talk about a deceptively powerful worldbuilding constraint: what happens when there’s no oil. (Or coffee, as it happens). Nathan’s Sapien Empire is set after the worst of the collapse, when settlements are trying to rebuild into something like civilisation again. But movement is never casual. Biofuel is expensive, roads are rough, and even shor...

What happens when magic is illegal, but survival depends on it? 🎙️ I’m joined by Melinda Kucsera to talk about Curse Breaker Enchanted, a fantasy world where magic is punishable by death, an enchanted forest has rules of its own, and the people most at risk may also be the people others quietly rely on. Melinda takes us into underground cities, forest rangers, dangerous promises, and a protagonist...

In folk horror, you know it’s getting serious when the locals would rather see a house burn than let an outsider move in. 🔥 I’m chatting with Jack Callaghan about Wyrd Water , set in the Lake District in 1979. We dig into how you build fear with rules rather than jump scares: what a community won’t say out loud, what it will do to protect a secret, and how a place can turn everyday life into a se...

Bob Freeman joins me to talk about the H2 Lift Ships series, a comic science-fiction setting built around solar-sail cargo ships, hydrogen lift, semi-sentient bioGels, and a trading civilisation that has to manage without faster-than-light travel. We get into the practical side of the world, including ship design, unusual crew roles, and what starts to break when the systems people rely on stop be...

In a world where mercy comes with a bill, things get interesting fast. 🎙️ This time I’m joined by Travis Kuffel , author of Unleashed and the Tales of Ganden setting. We talk about why Baksa Ranger Cadel risks his standing by sparing a thief, and how justice changes when the nearest proper prison is a long, dangerous ride away. We also get into Hadrek , a magic system with real costs, plus the way...

Trying to build an epic world or magic system without it collapsing into waffle? In this episode I talk to Mave Hathaway about The Breaking , book one of the Dodsfell Chapter. We get into belief, power, social control, magical limits, and what happens when a world teaches people to fear the very abilities they rely on. We also discuss something I found especially interesting: Mave spent five years...

What if Charles Babbage’s mechanical computers had actually worked, and by 1896 London was already stumbling into an early information age? I’m joined by Tim Standish, author of The Sterling Directive. His version of late-Victorian London has engines, telegraph networks, and a state security machine that’s worrying in a very familiar way: once records become searchable, identity becomes traceable....

What would it take to build a society that looks calm on the surface, but stays that way by controlling what people are allowed to imagine? In this episode I’m joined by sci-fi author Macaulay Christian , creator of the Apocalis series. We talk about Holindrian and The Human Revolution , a prequel that digs into oppression, resource control, and the uneasy trade-offs between freedom and security....

In this episode of Richardson’s Rubicon , I’m joined by Evan Kidwell , author of Timeaous Spark and the Luck Curse . Evan’s world is built around a brutal sorting system: students are put through the Trials to force powers to surface early, so society can classify them, place them, and keep control. That control is reinforced through a rigid bloodline hierarchy, where status shapes everything from...

What makes a 16-year-old aspiring actress the right protagonist for a multiverse story? Because performance, mimicry, and knowing when to lie or tell the truth become survival skills when your world treats speech as dangerous. This week on Richardson’s Rubicon , I’m joined by Aurora Winter , award-winning author of Magic, Mystery, and the Multiverse . We get practical about how she builds a portal...

This week on Richardson’s Rubicon , I’m joined by author Mike Oppenheim to talk worldbuilding through pressure and consequence, using his novel The Curse of Cortez as the case study. We dig into a deceptively simple engine: a cursed talisman with strict rules, awkward limitations, and social fallout. Mike breaks down how those constraints create tension, force character choices, and escalate the s...

Ever wondered what an audiobook narrator hears in your worldbuilding? In this episode of Richardson’s Rubicon, I’m joined by Liza Jacob, a voice actor and award-winning audiobook narrator (with a career path that started in children’s book illustration). We talk about what it takes to turn a manuscript into a performance, and why the strength of a story’s worldbuilding changes everything, from acc...

This week’s episode of Richardson’s Rubicon is one you won’t want to miss. I’m joined by Dr. Larry Smith, author of 2084: The Neuroxone Conspiracy, a dystopian medical thriller set in a near-future where addiction has been “solved” by mandate. The catch: recovery becomes compliance, and choice starts to look like a risk. We talk about how you build a world like that so it feels real rather than ca...

What happens when the universe sends… cats… to nudge humanity in a better direction, one “paw biscuit” at a time? 🐾 In this episode I’m joined by Momoko Uno, author of the sci-fi comedy Hello Humans , where an Intergalactic Committee debates whether Earth deserves an invitation to the cosmic family, and a parade of species (Feline Federation included) get far too involved in our messy little sand...

✨ Four Horsemen. Romance. A peace treaty between humans, angels, and demons. It works better than it has any right to. In this episode of Richardson’s Rubicon, I’m joined by J.F. Monroe, author of The Legendary Guardians trilogy. We talk about flipping the Four Horsemen from the apocalypse omens into world protectors, and why “power has a price” is only interesting when it actually forces ugly ch...

What happens when a retired schoolteacher finds himself transformed into his game avatar, chased by wolves, and trapped in a fantasy world? Well, that’s just the beginning of the adventure with New Rock series author Richard Sparks! 🎮📚 As the third book is now out, New Rock New Rules, we introduce you to the first book of the series New Rock New Role. In this episode, I chat with Richard, who’s...

B Marcus Walker joins me, John Richardson, to talk about building cultures and societies in fantasy without drowning the reader in lore. We dig into Brian’s “less is more” approach, why outsider viewpoints can be the cleanest way to immerse an audience, and how cultural interplay can create pressure without turning every interaction into a culture-war subplot. We also unpack Brian’s novel Spirit o...

I sat down with Sarah Marshall, author of Playa Dust in My Soul, former Silicon Valley operative, and longtime Burning Man attendee, to talk about turning an uncategorisable real-world experience into a novel that feels like a fully realised world. We unpack what Burning Man actually is (Black Rock Desert, Nevada, dust storms and all), why Sarah says ten people will give ten different versions of...

I sat down with Diana Colleen to talk about her award-winning novel They Could Be Saviors , a near-future speculative story with a wild premise: what if the only way to tackle the climate crisis is to kidnap the billionaires fueling it, then force them into rehabilitation? Diana is a Canadian author now living in the United States, and she shared how the book came together after a big life pivot....

In this episode I sat down with Russell Van Brocklen, a New York–based, state-funded dyslexia researcher with strong opinions about writing, world-building, and why so many Hollywood films collapse under the weight of their own unfinished scripts. Russell works with highly intelligent dyslexic students who are often written off early. His methods are bluntly effective. In one year, students strugg...

Christian Hurst joins Richardson’s Rubicon to talk about the Lily Starling space opera series, starting with Lily Starling and the Voyage of the Salamander . We dig into a familiar sci-fi opener, waking up with amnesia, and why it works when the reader discovers the world at the same pace as the protagonist. Christian explains how he builds stories from character and theme first, then lets worldbu...

Dead Kings, Living Stories: Richard H Moon on To Conquer Death Welcome back to Richardson's Rubicon ! In this episode, I have the pleasure of sitting down with Richard H. Moon, screenwriter, producer, and now, fascinating author of the historical fantasy novel To Conquer Death . Richard takes us behind the scenes of his creative journey, from navigating the trenches of indie film production to the...