The Cryptonaturalist

Jarod K. Anderson’s new novel set in the world of The CryptoNaturalist is now available for preorder! You can find more information here: https://linktr.ee/jarodkanderson Strange Animals is a cozy, creepy story of a man’s transformative journey into the world of cryptids and rare, hidden knowledge.

They said The Counting Pines didn’t exist, but everything has a price, even discovery. Thanks to Evan Dicken for writing the bulk of today’s episode. By day, Evan Dicken studies old Japanese Maps and crunches data for medical research at Ohio State University. By night, he does neither of these things. His audio fiction can be heard performed on: The NoSleep Podcast, Pseudopod, Beneath Ceaseless S...

Autumn is full of fun, cozy traditions, like keeping watch on the knothole man so he doesn’t reach too far into our world.  Thanks to Harrison Hamm for this episode’s hidden lore segment.  Harrison Hamm is an LA-based poet, screenwriter, and essayist originally from rural Tennessee. Selected for fellowships with New York Stage & Film Filmmakers Workshop, Diverso's The Minority Report, and Roa...

Thanks to Luísa Black Ellis for this week’s hidden lore poetry. Luísa is a Brazilian-American poet and self-taught ecologist methodically inspecting mosses in traditional Nansemond and Chesepian territory. She lives a quiet and devotional life in a monastery with her husband, renowned interdisciplinary artist Jerome Ellis. Her loyalties lie with the lichens. Consider supporting her work with the T...

Audiobook preview for Something in the Woods Loves You, Jarod K. Anderson's new memoir coming this September from Timber Press and Hachette Books. For more information, visit JarodKAnderson.com .

Many seemingly common corvids are cryptids. There’s a world of difference between perceiving a thing and knowing the full story.  Thanks to Jamie Lackey for today’s hidden lore. Jamie Lackey lives in Pittsburgh with her husband and their cats. She has had over 200 short stories published in places like Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Apex Magazine, and Escape Pod. In addition to writing, she spends her t...

Contentment is both a skill and a gift we grant ourselves.  The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson.  Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information.  To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist . Yo...

Contentment is both a skill and a gift we grant ourselves.  The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson.  Preorders for Jarod K. Anderson’s new memoir about loving nature and struggling with depression are now open. Visit JarodKAnderson.com for more information.  To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist . Yo...

Ebbing and flowing, teaming with life, soft to the touch. Some things are better left to themselves. Thanks to Emily Kramer for today’s hidden lore poem “An Absence of Ants.” Emily is a poet from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania with an MA in English from Ohio University. She currently works at a nonprofit for domestic violence and crime survivors. Outside of work, she loves hiking, playing cozy video gam...

Show Notes: Episode 59: Moon Shadow (00:18:45) Night is Earth’s shadow and many creatures call it home. The moon’s shadow  Thanks to Nicolette Nuytten for today’s hidden lore, “Water Bettles.” Nicolette works at the library and spends her free time walking in the woods or reading everything she can get her grubby little hands on. She lives in Manitoba with her wife and a little grey chinchilla. Yo...

Thanks to Steve Shell for voicing today’s field report. Steve is a co-creator, writer, and voice of the narrator on the Old Gods of Appalachia podcast. Old Gods is entering the homestretch of their fourth season and will be heading out on tour again this summer.  Thanks to Emilie Lygren for today’s hidden lore poem, “Chrysalis.” Emilie Lygren is a poet and educator who has published poems in sever...

An early morning record focusing on starting the day The CryptoNaturalist way.  Thanks to Joseph Giglio (Jill-eo) for today’s hidden lore, “The Sky.” Joseph is currently an MFA student at George Mason University and originally from Buffalo, NY. He has been previously published in Corvus Review and Dead Fern Press amongst others. He is often somewhere he shouldn't be looking for birds or ghosts, bu...

There’s something playing music just down the path, but that isn’t the only worthy mystery beneath the trees.  Today’s hidden lore was “The Bone Mother’s Daughter” by Tim Goldstone. Tim Goldstone is based on a true event. He has roamed widely and currently writes in remote rural Wales  Published internationally in numerous print and online journals and anthologies, including The Speculative Book,...

The Feather Fountain is as beautiful as it is deadly and it’s plenty of both. Thanks to Cecil Baldwin for voicing the Stairway Keeper. Cecil has long been one of my favorite voices in podcasting and you can hear him on the show that first inspired me to create audio-fiction, Welcome to Night Vale. Thanks to Kathryn Nuernberger for today’s hidden lore poem. Kathryn is the author of THE WITCH OF EYE...

The Feather Fountain is as beautiful as it is deadly and it’s plenty of both.  Thanks to Cecil Baldwin for voicing the Stairway Keeper. Cecil has long been one of my favorite voices in podcasting and you can hear him on the show that first inspired me to create audio-fiction, Welcome to Night Vale.  Thanks to Kathryn Nuernberger for today’s hidden lore poem. Kathryn is the author of THE WITCH OF E...

The mirror falls, like all water, links us to many other versions of ourself.  Hidden lore poetry by Matt Dennison. Matt is the author of Kind Surgery, from Urtica Press (Fr.) and Waiting for Better, from Main Street Rag Press. His poetry has appeared in Verse Daily, Rattle, Bayou Magazine, Redivider and Cider Press Review, among others. His fiction has appeared in ShortStory Substack, THEMA, GUD,...

Thanks to Tim Murphy for his hidden lore poem “Wildness Unafraid.” Tim Murphy (he/him) is a disabled, bisexual poet who lives in Portland, Oregon. His writing explores disability and our complex, tenuous relationship to the more-than-human world. Tim's poetry appears in Wordgathering, Remington Review, Writers Resist, The Long COVID Reader, and more. “Wildness Unafraid” originally appeared in Writ...

Thanks to Emily Benson for this episode’s hidden lore poem, “On the Question of the Happiness of Clams.”  To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalist. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend.   The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson.  For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anders...

Thanks to Hannah Ringler for this episode’s hidden lore poem, “Hekate Cleans House.” To find bonus content and a variety of strange rewards, support our show by visiting Patreon.com/CryptoNaturalis t. You can also help by rating, reviewing, and telling a friend. The CryptoNaturalist is written and read by Jarod K. Anderson. For books and poetry collections by Jarod K. Anderson and Leslie J. Anders...

All trees talk. Some trees walk. Special thanks to Ellen Weatherford for voicing today’s field report! Ellen is a co-host on the Just the Zoo of Us podcast, a family-friendly show that researches, rates, and reviews wildlife, along with hosting a wonderful variety of expert guests.

All trees talk. Some trees walk.   Special thanks to Ellen Weatherford for voicing today’s field report! Ellen is a co-host on the Just the Zoo of Us podcast, a family-friendly show that researches, rates, and reviews wildlife, along with hosting a wonderful variety of expert guests.  Both of Jarod K. Anderson's poetry collections (Field Guide to the Haunted Forest and Love Notes from the Hollow T...

Hidden lore poetry by Mia Cong. Mia is an aspiring chef, occasional poet, and current scribe working under the handle theshitpostcalligrapher across all platforms. Still looking through the urban wilds of Toronto Canada for a kitchen to call home, you can find her writings and love of the deep ocean and decay at genericpoetryblog on tumblr.   Special thanks to Guy Montgomery for voicing this episo...

The Brambleberry Scrambler is just on the edge of being real, which is a perfectly lovely place to call home. Hidden Lore poetry by Katelyn Allred. Katelyn is a writer and student currently working towards a Bachelor’s Degree in English. Her work has been featured in The Merrimack Review, and you can find her on Instagram @katelynallredwrites. Special thanks to Matthew Zahnzinger for playing Profe...

In this episode, The CryptoNaturalist shares a homemade winter tradition and ponders the importance of making meaning, ritual, and gratitude.  Check out Field Guide to the Haunted Forest by Jarod K. Anderson wherever books are sold.  Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com.  Mailing Address:  The CryptoNaturalist PO Box 837 Delaware, OH 43015  Exclusiv...

Humans once believed that doorways were a separate place  – neither one room nor the other, but their own distinct world.  Broadly speaking, people don’t believe that anymore, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Reminder: Transcripts of this and every episode are available at cryptonaturalist.com.   Exclusive stickers, pins, shirts, and access to bonus content and strange expertise on strange top...