Imaginary Worlds sounds like what would happen if NPR went to ComicCon and decided that’s all they ever wanted to cover. Host Eric Molinsky spent over a decade working as a public radio reporter and producer, and he uses those skills to create thoughtful, sound-rich episodes about science fiction, fantasy, and other genres of speculative fiction. Every other week, he talks with comic book artists, game designers, novelists, screenwriters, filmmakers, and fans about how they craft their worlds, why we suspend our disbelief, and what happens if the spell is broken. Imaginary worlds may be set on distant planets or parallel dimensions, but they are crafted here on Earth, and they’re always about us and our lived experiences.
https://www.imaginaryworldspodcast.org/
Postcolonial Worlds
The stories we tell about the past can determine the way we understand the present. But what happens when we combine tales of magic and fantasy with some of the most traumatic chapters in history? I talk with novelists P. Djeli Clark, Nisi Shawl, and Zen Cho about how speculative fiction can be a useful tool to reimagine the legacy of colonialism and imperialism. Plus, we hear readings from actress Nneka Okoye.
Books mentioned in this episode:
- A Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark
- Everfair by Nisi Shawl
- Sorcerer to The Crown by Zen Cho
- Babel, or The Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution by R. F. Kuang (author of The Poppy War series)
- A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
Nisi also recommends:
- A Stranger in Olondria by Sofia Samatar
- The Dominion of the Fallen series by Aliette de Bodard
- The works of L Timmel Duchamp and Margaret Killjoy
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