John Henry Fleming’s “Fearsome Creatures of Florida” – Season 2, Episode 7
“The world is less tame than you’d imagined.” So says John Henry Fleming to the unwary visitor arriving to Florida by plane or cruise ship, or as they leave the…
A Conversation with Tampa Bay Historian Andy Huse – Season 2, Episode 6
There’s a long tradition of making cheesy promotional videos to lure people to Tampa Bay area. One of them, from the 1960s, even features an alien visitor who decides to…
Andre Frattino’s “A Land Remembered: The Graphic Novel” – Season 2, Episode 5
I’m joined today by Andre Frattino, whose 2018 graphic novel adaptation of A Land Remembered captures in vivid visual detail all the heartbreak and loss of the MacIvey family.
Matt Peters of Beating Windward Press – Season 2, Episode 4
The exciting, glamorous world of independent publishing, it turns out, actually involves a lot of frustration, hard work, and luck. And during a pandemic year, well... it can still be…
Mike Denham’s “A Rogue’s Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida” – Season 2, Episode 3
Florida was as violent a place as anywhere in the US in the early 1800s as in the 21st century. My guest today is James Michael Denham, author of A Rogue’s Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida. We’ll discuss the frontier era of Florida and the violent legacy it bequeathed to future generations of criminals and law enforcement.
Larry Perez’s “Snake in the Grass” – Season 2, Episode 2
Will monstrous invasive pythons soon be roaming the streets of suburban Florida? Probably not. But that doesn’t mean they don’t represent a pressing ecological crisis. Larry Perez, a long-time ranger…
Vicki Hendricks’ “Florida Gothic Stories” – Season 2, Episode 1
“Grotesque, Florida Man-type stories” is how my guest today, Florida College English Association president Christina Connor, describes Vicki Hendricks’ 2010 collection Florida Gothic Stories. Does that appeal to you?
Shelley Katz’s “Alligator” – Season 1, Episode 8
"Alligator" looks like the cheapest kind of pulp horror novel upon first glance. The cover, the summary, the title – they all do it no favors in terms of perception.…
Shane Hinton’s “Radio Dark” – Season 1, Episode 7
Shane Hinton’s 2019 novel "Radio Dark" doesn’t seem like the kind of book one would want to read in 2020. It’s about a plague that effectively ends society, it uses…
“The Letters of George Long Brown” – Season 1, Episode 6
George Long Brown was no Harriet Beecher Stowe. I mean, he bought slaves when he settled in Florida after emigrating from New England, and Stowe was a fervent abolitionist. But…