The Drabblecast Audio Fiction Podcast

This episode takes you inside Drabblecast audio production. Ever wonder how we produce an episode of the Drabblecast? Wonder no more! We dig into all the technical aspects like voice acting, sound editing and mixing, foley effects, music and more. Preproduction? Reading? Acting? Yeah, it’s all here folks, all the blood sweat and tears that […]

In this week’s Relaunch Prelaunch a chunk of classic Drabblecast musical joy: Bases Covered – “For His—or Her—or Its—or Their Glory” This (fake) album unites all faiths (fake or not) into one perfectly fine and marketable sales campaign! Maybe we’re all just part of some weird baby mouse dream, or maybe Zeus is going to turn […]

And now we present the thrilling conclusion, Drabblecast: 10 Years of Strange Stories (Part II). The Drabblecast had several editorial shifts over the years. We made friends. We won awards. And we were off to the races. What kind of races? I like to think they were wiener dog races (yes, that’s a thing). Tiny, […]

In honor of the eleventh tenth year of the podcast, we thought we’d take you back in time through 10 years of strange stories for strange listeners. That’s right we’re going back to our oh-so-humble beginnings. And they’re pretty humble. And humiliating. Ain’t that show business, folks? Origin story! Yeah that’s the phrase. Every culture’s […]

The Relaunch Prelaunch marches forward as we present the listener-requested “Director’s Cut: Morris and the Machine.” This fan-favorite story originally aired in 2010. It is a haunting tale about relationships, time travel, and the poisonous nature of nostalgia. Author Tim Pratt lives in Berkely, CA and has been featured on the Drabblecast many times. He […]

A compilation of our holiday highlights, including songs, skits and intros from 10 years of Drabblecast Holiday Specials, including: ~ “How the Government Saved Christmas” ~ Conclusion of the Mongolian Deathworm Saga ~ Cryptkeeper Norm segments ~ “Here Comes Phantom Claus” ~ “Twas the Night” ~ “The Thirteen” (Yule Lads)  

As a part of the Relaunch Prelaunch we revisit a listener favorite with special insight from the author, David D. Levine. Enjoy the “Director’s Cut: Charlie the Purple Giraffe Was Acting Strangely.” Our feature originally aired in Episode # 113 way back in 2009. It is a unique tale set inside a televised cartoon world. […]

As a part of the Relaunch Prelaunch we revisit a listener favorite for the “Director’s Cut: Teddy Bears and Tea Parties.” This story was written by S. Boyd Taylor and was originally aired in 2010. It’s a heart-breaking horror story about little girls, stuffed animals, and hunger. Excerpt: Shadows move on the mantelpiece and the […]

“That is Not Dead, Which Can Eternal Lie.” What is the Relaunch Prelaunch? The Drabblecast is back in business, with ambitious plans that you won’t want to miss hearing about. Every week we’ll be digging through the archives to bring you fan favorite stories with author commentary.  We’ll also be featuring some fun compilations, news, […]

This week the Drabblecast presents an originally commissioned story: “Garen and the Hound” by Jeremiah Tolbert. It is a story about the dream world and the relentless pursuit of something dark and sinister. This story is part of our Lovecraft Month, a celebration of all things H.P. and Old Ones. Story Excerpt: The veils of […]

The Drabblecast continues Lovecraft Month with “The Innsmouth of the South,” an originally commissioned story by Rachael K. Jones. Imitation and authenticity are as much a part of the H.P. Lovecraft mythos as any of the Old Ones in today’s open source fiction universe. If one theme pierces all of Lovecraft’s work it is that […]

We begin our month-long celebration of H.P. Lovecraft with a dramatic reading of “The Cats of Ulthar.” Lovecraft Month is our yearly celebration of H.P. and his sprawling mythos. All this month you’ll enjoy some awesome original stories commissioned just for Drabblecast listeners. We’re excited to be featuring works by three of our favorite authors, […]

The Drabblecast concludes Women and Aliens month with “SUN MOON CAT MAN” by Julia Reynolds. This is a story about #Language#. #Language# is a key. #Language# can open doors of emotion, of empathy, and of connection. It unites us, it bonds us. #Language# can also lock those doors and keep us together alone. Story Excerpt: […]

Women and Aliens month continues with “Down the Well” by Alaya Dawn Johnson. Alaya is the author of speculative and historical fiction and has written six novels. Her stories have been featured in Asimov’s, Fantasy and Science Fiction, and Welcome to Bordertown. She is also a recipient of the Cybils and Nebula awards. Story Excerpt: […]

Women and Aliens Month slithers forward with this week’s story: “Unathi Battles the Black Hairballs” by Lauren Beukes. Lauren Beukes is an award-winning, best-selling novelist who also writes comics, screenplays, and TV shows. Her novels include The Shining Girls, Broken Monsters and Zoo City. Story Excerpt: Unathi was singing karaoke when the creature attacked Tokyo. Or […]

We kick off Women And Aliens Month with “The Four Generations of Chang E,” by Zen Cho. It’s a dystopian space story steeping in Eastern mythology and tradition. And rabbits. Moon rabbits. Story Excerpt: In the final days of Earth as we knew it, Chang E won the moon lottery. For Earthlings who were neither rich […]

This episode of the Drabblecast presents “Water Spots,” by Rebecca Gomezrueda, a troubling tale of murk, darkness, and the complexity of the human experience. Is it something in the water? Consider yourself warned. Story Excerpt: “They found your brother…” Her mother leaves the sentence unfinished, and she wants to tell her not to go on. He […]

A plate, a plate, another plate burst upon the kitchen tile. This one broke into three large pieces and assorted ceramic crumbs. Giraffe closed her long-lashed eyes and prayed to her many makers. Why in the world would the people make one hard thing that was so likely to smash into a second hard thing? […]

The canary yellow shirt read “Camp Fit,” but it didn’t quite fit the bulbous, pre-adolescent boy cringing in the cabin’s corner. Rows of bunks lined both sides of the room. Standing over the boy, Worgly raised his shaggy brown arms and roared with his terrible roar. “You’re going to eat me!” And the monster gnashed […]

This episode of the Drabblecast brings you “A Last Kiss for Lazarus Winters,” another story in D.K. Thompson’s Saint Darwin’s Spirituals series. D.K. Thompson was the host and co-editor of PodCastle, a fantasy fiction podcast, for five years, and has narrated audiobooks by Tim Pratt, Greg van Eekhout, and James Maxey, among others. Story Excerpt: […]

When it comes to ghosts, my grandmother has one solution: brew a pot of coffee. Like today, in Sadie Lancaster’s kitchen. Sadie clutches her hands beneath her chin and stares at our percolator, her eyes huge. The thing gurgles and hisses as if it resents being pressed into service. My own reflection in its side […]

Anton drew his legs up underneath him. The car seat was huge and puffy, and the leather made a breathy creak when he moved. It sounded like it was sighing. ‘How much longer?’ he said. For a while, nobody answered. He thought maybe they hadn’t heard him, but then his mother said, ‘We’ll be there […]

Sato lay on the cement floor of the workshop in a pool of his own blood and tried desperately to get Kuro-4’s legs working again. The robot, in turn, tried to deal with the gaping wounds in Sato’s smashed leg and pelvis. Useful Objects by Erica L. Satifka   After he passes the age of […]

Earnest was in kindergarten when Jackie the Janitor got fired for “choking the chicken” in the girls’ bathroom. That phrase, along with his best friend Bradley Watson’s accompanying hand gestures, stuck in Earnest’s head so hard that whenever he looked at the thing between his legs, all he could see was a bald, pointed bird […]

There are two things I love, and one is the tiny grey owl outside my window. He is not afraid of me. He hoots and hops to my windowsill so I can stroke his downy head and feed him worms I’ve saved in my pocket. It is hard to get the worms from my pocket, […]