Journey #131 - The Black Bird by David Barr Kirtley

Sam Spade obtained a worthless statue of a bird from his latest case.  Seems typical for his luck.  But then it starts talking.

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David Barr Kirtley is the host of the Geek's Guide to the Galaxy podcast on Wired.com, for which he's interviewed well over a hundred guests, including George R. R. Martin, Richard Dawkins, Paul Krugman, Simon Pegg, Margaret Atwood, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and Ursula K. Le Guin.
His short fiction appears in magazines such as Realms of Fantasy, Weird Tales, Lightspeed, and Intergalactic Medicine Show, on podcasts such as Escape Pod and Pseudopod, and in books such as The Living Dead, New Cthulhu, The Way of the Wizard, and The Dragon Done It. His story "Save Me Plz" was picked by editor Rich Horton for the 2008 edition of the anthology series Fantasy: The Best of the Year.

David is the son of Buckley prize-winning physicist John R. Kirtley. He majored in Government at Colby College and holds an MPW (MFA) degree in screenwriting and fiction from the University of Southern California. For the past decade he's appeared as a staff instructor at the Alpha Workshop for Young Writers. He lives in New York.  Find out about more of Dave's work at davidbarrkirtley.com

Cast of characters:

Rish Outfield (of Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine) as Sam Spade, and the Black Bird
Marshal Latham as Narrator

Related Links
Read the text of "The Black Bird" over at Lightspeed.


Music used in this production:
"Unseen Horrors" by Kevin MacLeod, and assorted public domain movie scores.

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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Journey #41 - Red Road by David Barr Kirtley

Francis and Benjamin, unlikely companions, venture out an a quest of vengence for the dead mouse king.

Episode art provided by Nick Greenwood

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David Barr Kirtley is a terrific short story writer who lives in New York City. He has published many great stories, including several featured in John Joseph Adams' anthologies, such as The Way of the Wizard, The Living Dead, and in the recently released anthologies Armored and Under the Moons of Mars. David is also the co-host of the fantastic interview and geek talk podcast Geek's Guide to the Galaxy. You can find out more out more him at his website.

Authors Note: David wrote a short “behind the scenes” essay about how he wrote this story.

Cast of characters:
David Barr Kirtley as Benjamin
Wilson Fowlie as King Francis, the Owl, and the leader of the Westboro Rats
Big Anklevich (of the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine) as Guard mouse
Rish Outfield (of the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine) as Courtier mouse
Marshal Latham as Narrator


Suggested Podcast Episode: "Veil of Ignorance" by David Barr Kirtley on MechMuse Audio Magazine


Music used in this production:
Fighting Fire with Fire Suite by Brandon K. Guttenfelder
Rising Legends, Grasping Some Beauty, Night Hunter by Epic Soul Factory
and other podasfe music


Several sound effects were found at freesound.org.

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space.

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Journey Into an Interview with David Barr Kirtley and Dustin M. Thomas

Dustin has started a Kickstarter campaign to fund a short film adaptation of "The Seconfd Rat", a story by David Barr Kirtley.

Art provided courtesy of Matthew Perry ( www.perrypixel.com )

To download, right-click here and then click Save

Related Links:
 Learn more and DONATE to The Second Rat Kickstarter campaign
Read "The Second Rat"
Listen to "The Second Rat"
More on Dustin M. Thomas
Other stories by David Barr Kirtley



Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space.

 

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Journey #13 - The Trial of Thomas Jefferson by David Barr Kirtley

Time travel allows the UN to go back, capture Hitler, and execute him.  But why stop there?

To download, right-click here and click Save

Art for this episode was provided by Nathan Hale.  Check out more of his work here.

Cast of characters:
Rish Outfield (of the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine) as Narator, UN soldiers, and Thomas Jefferson
Big Anklevich (of the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine) as Nazi soldier, and The Chairman
Abigail Hilton (of the Fullcast Podcast and Guild of the Cowry Catchers) as Cassie
Marshal Latham as Sol
Dave Thompson (of PodCastle) as the young paralegal

Music used in this production:
Die Braune Kompanie
Relent by Kevin MacLeod

Several sound effects were found at freesound.org.

Theme music: Liberator by Man In Space

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