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In 2013, Alex Shaw published a small novel called The Cartographer’s Handbook, the first in a series called The New Century Multiverse. The premise is alt history, where post-Civil War America is suddenly overcome with a plague of dangerous monsters that overwhelm the Reconstruction, and bring the nation to its knees. The series is not about its fall, however, but about the heroes that help bring it back from the brink, and step into a wider world that is not the one they knew. New mysteries to unlock, magics to discover, and worlds to explore. Ten years later, the New Century Multiverse is now thirteen books strong, with more on the way. It has had 2 major story arcs, an Avengers style coming together of the heroes of its various books, and multiple worlds and genres to explore. This is its first fan podcast. Through The Wind Door is a deep dive exploration of the novels and their corresponding audiodramas, along with interviews of the cast and creators. Accessible to new readers and long time fans, join Greg and Toby as they share thoughts about this engaging series.
Episodes
Sunday Aug 16, 2020
Sunday Aug 16, 2020
"Complexity isn't a vice."
Part 1 of Episode 9, hot off the presses. Today we start covering Chapters 10-12 of Secret Rooms, where we uncover some of those secrets from past and present. We talk about propaganda, the importance of always questioning, and what it means to have a father that is willing to treat you like you're an adult.
We end up going deep on these subjects, so a bunch of the other interesting things are saved for part 2. Also you may notice that we left out chapter 13... it's not because of superstition. Chapter 13 gets its own episode all to itself, and given we talked close to two hours about that, you'll get to see why in due course.
#BlackLivesMatter
#ProtestEverywhere
No Such Thing As An Alpha Male:
https://www.businessinsider.com/no-such-thing-alpha-male-2016-10
The New Century Multiverse Website:
https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com
The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:
https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/
Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/
Intro is "The Talons of Adventure, The Antlers of Romance" by Doctor Turtle of the Free Music Archive
Outro is "Believer" by Imagine Dragons
Sunday Aug 09, 2020
Sunday Aug 09, 2020
"A well crafted chapter title can prepare the reader for what comes next, while not giving too much away, instead inspiring curiosity."
The second half of our diving into chapters 6-9 of Secret Rooms. Discussion includes further exploration of our primary subjects, the introduction of Tabitha Chorley to our narrative and what that entails, as well as a deeper discussion about some more of the themes of New Century touched on in these early chapters. And there's a hell of a collection of bloopers and outtakes at the end.
#BlackLivesMatter
#PortlandProtest
The New Century Multiverse Website:
https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com
The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:
https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/
Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/
Intro is "The Talons of Adventure, The Antlers of Romance" by Doctor Turtle of the Free Music Archive
Outro is "Set Me In Motion" by Bruce Hornsby and the Range
Sunday Aug 02, 2020
Sunday Aug 02, 2020
"It's the facial expression equivalent of kicking someone's leg from underneath the dinner table."
Now we finally take our first steps into the new world of these Reunified States, and meet some more of our growing cast of characters in New Century. Today's podcast is the first half of Episode 8, where we start to cover chapters 6-9 of Secret Rooms: The Definitive Edition. (as well as a brief dip back into Chapter 5)
While a full analysis on the differences between the first and second publication of this novel is going to be saved till our final episode on this book, it's here that we start to see how the story originally began, before the flashback chapters were added. We talk about the alternate history genre, and influences both historical and fictional. We try to keep it light on real world correlations, but it's hard not to look at our collection of protagonnists and wish we were there, in a world of heroes.
#BlackLivesMatter
#TrumpHasNoPlan
The New Century Multiverse Website:
https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com
The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:
https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/
Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/
Intro is "The Talons of Adventure, The Antlers of Romance" by Doctor Turtle of the Free Music Archive
Outro is "Hazy Shade of Winter" by The Bangles
Sunday Jul 19, 2020
Sunday Jul 19, 2020
"... and what Lucy says in response to this isn't a solution. She doesn't say it is. But... it is something small. Achievable, and helpful. And it's that little glimpse of hope in the darkness that I not only like to hold onto... I need it."
The second half of Episode 7 ended up being much shorter than expected. Once more I used my editing shears liberally, and Toby contributed in a major way to say things more concisely, emotionally, honestly. But I think this one ends on the hope that Alex invests in his works, and moreover, we've got another batch of outtakes at the end for some laughs.
We talk about Doris Cooper, Katherine Holloway, and Joanna Grey. We've got some more surprise Elton John, discussion about why combining elements to create new stories is always helpful when done well, and narrative voice. Most of all, we talk about why a hat can be so important and hard hitting. As always, we bring the feels.
#BlackLivesMatter
#WrathMonth
"World on Fire" - Sarah McLahlan
"My Father's Gun - Elton John
The New Century Multiverse Website:
https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com
The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:
https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/
Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/
Intro is "The Talons of Adventure, The Antlers of Romance" by Doctor Turtle of the Free Music Archive
Outro is "Satellite Call" by Sara Bareilles
Monday Jul 13, 2020
Monday Jul 13, 2020
"They want to keep us chasing/their money and greed/but happiness/oh, I know is free/don't curse the darkness/just be a light/let it shine for the heartless/let it shine through the night." - Tash Neal
Welcome to a brand new episode for a brand new story! The next two episodes cover chapters 1 through 5 of Secret Rooms: Definitive Edition. Like Episode 6, I cut this one into two halves because of length, and also due to additional editing time. Between changing things due to sound issues, cleaning up some wordy asides or removing parts due to feeling like they were insensitive, this is likely the most editing I have done thus far. I hope you'll agree the end product is worth it.
Today we get into some of the fundamental themes that show up in both this book and New Century as a whole: the importance of names, familial relationships both good and bad, and the metaphor of how flawed systems crack more readily when faced with something it's not able to fight easily. We also talk about the role of distaster fiction as a form of escapism during a time of very real disaster.
Be prepared: there's more politics in the pipeline. It's hard not to talk about the real world stuff that comes up when discussing New Century. The topic is baked in, especially because of the way things were getting worse around us due to the election of Trump, and what has come about as a result. But we'll try to keep it light.
#BlackLivesMatter
#WrathMonth
Recommended links for fun and profit learning:
Ian Danskin - "The Artist is Absent:Davey Wreden and The Beginners Guide"
https://youtu.be/4N6y6LEwsKc
"Where Once Poe Walked" - by H.P. Lovecraft
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Where_Once_Poe_Walked
Lindsey Ellis - "Death of the Author"
https://youtu.be/MGn9x4-Y_7A
The New Century Multiverse Website:
https://www.newcenturymultiverse.com
The New Century Multiverse Podcast Feed:
https://newcenturyshow.podbean.com/
Fireside Alliance: https://firesidealliance.squarespace.com/
Intro is "The Talons of Adventure, The Antlers of Romance" by Doctor Turtle of the Free Music Archive
Outro is "Can't Hold Me Down" by GriZ feat. Tash Neal