The Getting Lit Podcast

This week, we’re joined by Lewis Woolston, author of the short story collections The Last Free Man, Remembering the Dead, and the topic of our discussion in this episode—The Everlasting. We chat about short story writing, the process, forming a collection, place and literature, religion, and the marginal versus the mainstream in current literary culture. A great discussion with one of Australia’s...

This week, we discuss the recently departed Australian author, David Malouf. Specifically, his book Remembering Babylon, a strange novel that starts out with a castaway British boy being raised by Aboriginal Australians, and unfurls into something much more mysterious and enigmatic. We talk about historical fiction, how Australian racial history has been Americanised, as well as how colonial histo...

This week, we’re joined by Substack essayist, thinker, and fellow Australian Russell Walter who is also host of The Chudstack Review podcast. We talk about his essay on why LARPing (live action role playing) is important and Good Actually, as well as the idea of “quixotic hero”, an archetype that we need in these troubled times. Read Russell’s LARPing essay here . This is a free episode. But Getti...

Last year, Sini uploaded an episode to the paid feed of his personal Substack podcast, New Mythologies, discussing the oft-mentioned "literary man." Joining him? Glen from Rare Candy , as well as writers J David Osborne and Kelby Losack . This week, we are resharing it for free with Getting Lit listeners. Matt, Glen, JDO and Kelby have an exhaustive discussion about the “where are all th...

To celebrate Easter, we have unlocked our paid episode on Eugene Vodolazkin's Laurus. To access the full archive of episodes and special Back Matter aftershows, got to patreon.com/GettingLit . This week, we're joined by Brisbane musician and composer, Stevan, to talk about Eugene Vodolazkin's novel Laurus. A strange, luminous novel that follows a 15th-century Russian healer whose life...

Brad Kelly joins us once again to talk about and around his new novel, The Earthen Dark. We discuss why men loves holes in the ground, writing about jobs, why humans are so obsessed with underground, MFA writing, "literary men" and much more. Buy The Earthen Dark here: https://www.amazon.com/Earthen-Dark-Brad-Kelly/dp/B0GF67226L And follow Brad on X: https://x.com/bradkelly And Substack:...

This episode, Ivan Niccolai joins us to talk about his short story collection, Like You Have a Choice. We chat about growing up in a cult, Melbourne, wogs, luxury beliefs, the unfiltered earnestness of open mic nights, loving where you lay your hat, writing craft and much more. Buy Ivan's book here: https://www.amazon.com/Like-have-choice-Ivan-Niccolai/dp/B0FLTHP5MV Follow Ivan on Instagram: h...

This is a preview. To get the full version of this episode and access to subscriber-only content, go to ⁠https://www.patreon.com/c/GettingLit This week, we're covering what T.S. Eliot called "the first, the longest, and the best of modern English detective novels." And who better to join us than self-confessed detective fiction fanboy, Alec Mouhibian, of Filthy Armenian Adventures po...

This is a preview. To get the full version of this episode and access to subscriber-only content, go to https://www.patreon.com/c/GettingLit This episode, we are joined by former guests and friend of the pod, Erik and Mac, to talk about Don Delillo's 1985 novel, White Noise. Follow Erik on X: https://x.com/catenjoyer81 Follow Mac on X: https://x.com/polished_steel This is a public episode. If...

This week, Sini is joined by Amir Naaman and Pierre d'Alancaisez, editors of the new anthology Inversion, a book of essays about the current state of the homosexual. We talk about the sexual revolution's aftermath, gay vs queer culture, the lack of "telos" in homosexual, as well as why gays, once bearers of art and culture, seem to be flopping hard in that regard. Buy Inversion h...

We talk about the essay in the Independent about the mythical David Foster Wallace "lit bro", a famous Western Australian young adult writer getting charged with young non-adult material, Meanjin journal getting a new lease on life after being shut down, Australian literary culture's frequent "Main Charactering" of a pretty mediocre Palestinian-Australian author, and much m...

To get all episodes, access to companion show Back Matter, and the full archive, go to https://www.patreon.com/GettingLit We chat about Sidney Lumet's last film, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007), which stars Ethan Hawke, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Marisa Tomei. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newmytholog...

Send us a text This week, we're joined by J David Osborne to talk about his new book, Berserker Club. Set in an Oklahoma backwoods militia compound, the novel is one crazy mutant set piece after another. A lot of fun  On this episode, we chat about having a fellow writer as spouse, story as a literal living thing, inspirations for the book, thinking about length and duration when writing book...

Send us a text This week, we're joined by Andrew Edwards, the author of the new psychedelic noir thriller, Crowbar. We had a great conversation ranging over the book's many interesting contours, from conspiracy culture, the influence of James Ellroy and Cormac McCarthy, and much much more. Buy Andrew's book here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FZ93M9GB Music: Part Cherokee by Nudge Squ...

Send us a text Sini and Fresta go through their best reads, watches, and listens of 2025 (mostly things they didn't cover for the show). Support the show This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newmythologies.substack.com/subscribe

Send us a text Here is a sneak peek of our series on Fyodor Dostoyevsky's classic novel of revolutionary violence, Demons. All three parts are available in full on Patreon. Go to https://www.patreon.com/c/GettingLit to listen. Support the show This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newmythologies.substack.com/subsc...

Send us a text Josh from the Dionysian Dream joins me once more to discuss Wicked! This time, we are looking at the sequel to the 2024 movie, Wicked: For Good. We chat about the film, the changes between the stage show and the movie version, the new songs, and why Wicked isn't just for the girls and gays. Follow Josh on X: https://x.com/tragic_fruit Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tragic_...

Send us a text This is part 2 of our Philip K. Dick collaboration with the Rare Candy podcast. Head over to their feed for part 1 ( https://open.spotify.com/show/2cXVcvC3G13PGUuYMVLGZb ), where we cover The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch (1965), before joining us here for the continuation of "Dick Week" as we discuss Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said (1974). In this novel, Jason Taver...

Send us a text On this week's episode, we dive into Ryu Murakami's Popular Hits of the Showa Era, where a group of disaffected men find themselves in an absurdly violent war with a rival society of older women (Oba-sans) after a deadly encounter. We talk about the book's mix of ultra-violence, satirical humor, escalating absurdity, and much more! This a teaser. For the full episode,...

Send us a text In this week's episode, the legendary Bruce Wagner joins us to discuss his new novel Amputation , inspired by the 2025 Los Angeles fires. The conversation moves from the book’s genesis in anger at bureaucratic incompetence to Wagner’s reflections on art, rage, and the sacred. We discuss how indignation can be transformed into creative energy without devolving into polemic, his l...

Send us a text Australian-American writer Lucas Smith joins us to discuss his collection of wonderful short fiction, Spare Us Yet. We discuss the elements of faith in his fiction, the pandemic, lockdowns, literary culture in Australia, as well as his experience running an independent publishing company, Bonfire Books. This is a special crossover event with Sini's New Mythologies Substack, whi...

Send us a text *this is a PREVIEW. To listen to the full episode, go to  patreon.com/GettingLit This episode, Fresta and Sini riff on Fresta's Sydney trip, thrift shop book finds, Bret Easton Ellis, the fantastic Australian crime show Mr Inbetween, ABC Radio National's Top 100 books of the 21st Century, and much more. To find out why this episode has this title, you will have to wait unt...

Send us a text This week, we're looking at Gustav Meyrink's The Golem, a strange novel of occultism, Kabbalah and psychological terror in early 20th century Prague's Jewish ghetto. Joining us on this journey is none other than Brad Kelly, host of the wonderful Method and Madness podcast. Follow Brad on X: https://x.com/bradkelly?lang=en Method and Madness pod: https://open.spotify.c...

Send us a text This week, a big episode discussing a slim novel. We're joined by a couple of our favourite Southerners (Kalob Petty and Banjer Jack) and our favourite Montanan (Ryan Simón) to chat about Carson McCullers' classic Southern Gothic novel about repressed eros and dark desires, Reflections in a Golden Eye.  We talk about the Southern Gothic tradition, why Southerners are so ch...

Send us a text Jasper Ceylon, author of the hoax poetry journal Echolalia Review, has been unmasked as Aaron Barry. Aaron joins us to talk about what's been happening in his life since he revealed himself in The Free Press, his new novel "£, flesh", the internet novel, writing under pseudonyms and much more. Listen to Jasper/Aaron's previous episode with us here: Apple: https:/...