Derailed Trains Of Thought

We're back! Again! After an extended hiatus to reflect and retool the podcast, Nick and Tim return with a new, live format for Derailed Trains of Thought! This episode was originally streamed live last week at mixlr.com, which allowed us to interact with our listener while recording as well as drastically reduce our editing time. We had a few technical snafus (early on, you'll hear music playing before we intended it to), but overall it was a fun and mostly successful first broadcast! But what, pray tell, did we talk about? Realism in fantasy, a topic inspired by the end of the summer movie season and controversy over Man of Steel in particular. How do storytellers help audiences suspend disbelief? And how does one make a story believable while maintaining the essence of the fantastic? Tim and Nick wrestle with these questions, review some of this summer's movies, babble about their current projects, and more in the long-awaited return of Derailed Trains of Thought! Show Notes

A new year brings new beginnings...like a new podcast about beginnings! That's right, after starting with endings way back in Episode 1, Nick and Tim come full circle to the beginning of things. Whether it's how best to start a story or why audiences like origins so much, your premiere storytelling podcast has you covered. And don't miss as Tim and Nick give their obligatory two cents about who should direct Star Wars in What IF? and share a very important Project Update. So, hang up your new cat calendar, sign up for that gym membership, and listen in to the latest episode of Derailed Trains of Thought. After two years, we're just getting started. Show Notes

Just in time for the holidays, the celebratory 2nd Anniversary Derailed Trains of Thought podcast! So...instead of working ourselves to the bone (you know, as we usually do, trying to get out one episode every 9 weeks or so), we compiled a collection of our favorite segments from the last year. I mean, who can forget our discussion of feminism and story, or the history of punctuation, or our treatise on the theological meaning of Looney Tunes? But, if for some reason you have, that's what this clip show is all about. Sit back and bask in an hour's condensed glory of your premiere storytelling podcast. Also, listen to Nick and Tim nearly break into fisticuffs. Show Notes

We're alive! Tim and Nick emerge from their summer hiatus with an instant classic! It's a modern masterpiece! A genre-setting podcast! The best audio entertainment since "War of the Worlds"! ... Or, at least, we discuss what makes a work of fiction "classic," and that has to be worth something, right? We follow up with A Bit of Story from the "so-unknown-it-must-be-classic" Story Project and finish with a mini Take on Tales. So, if you've been pining for some Derailed Trains of Thought, we've got you covered. It might not be Shakespeare, but who wants to read that ancient fuddy-duddy stuff anyway? Show Notes

Wardrobes, Deloreans, looking-glasses, ter'angreal, blue phone boxes, linking books...if you want to enter a new realm, there are ways. But, of course, someone has to make the world first. Hence, world-building. We start this episode with an interview with Dr. Pamela Jordan-Long, Chair of the Department of Professional Writing at Taylor University and Director of the Center for the Study of C.S. Lewis and Friends. (How's that for a title?) We talk secondary worlds, the act of creating a world beyond this one. In the second half, Tim and Nick have a go at impromptu worldbuilding. So, if you ever have a longing for Faerie-land or perhaps a world reached by stepping just left of this one, listen in! We're sure you'll come back refreshed. Show Notes

This episode we discuss colorful language, and we're not talking purple prose. (And unless you're Sergeant Snorkel from "Beetle Bailey," @!&%#$! probably isn't going to cut it.) So, while Nick tries to avoid swearing like a sailor, we come to the question: when, if ever, is swearing appropriate in fiction and film? Afterward, join us for a Take on Tales where Tim discusses immortal alchemists living as 1930s gangsters (really!) and Nick actually finishes a video game. All this and more in episode 31 of Derailed Trains of Thought, your premiere storytelling podcast. Great Odin's Raven, what more could you ask for? Show Notes

C-3PO. Short Round. Dr. Watson. That funny guy from National Treasure. Just because a character isn't the focus of a story, it doesn't mean he can't make an impression. So, Timothy Deal, with sidekick Nick (or is it Nick Hayden, with sidekick Tim?) take a look at what makes good supporting characters and why they're so essential. Also with us is our own supporting character, Brian Scherschel, who presents Frank Capra's Lost Horizon, a movie that takes the viewer to Shangri-La and back. What more can you ask from the 30th(!) episode of your premiere storytelling podcast? We've been gone awhile, but one listen, and it'll be like we've never left. Like riding a bike. Or something. Show Notes

This episode, we muck around in the filth of humanity, in the deep mires of wickedness, in vile dens of...well, you get the idea. Why do we hang around in these places? We examine evil in fiction--is it psychological, a mistake, a cultural reaction, or something else? All the above? We also present a scene of Satan on trial in "A Bit of Story" and then venture into brighter territory in a whirlwind of other mini-segments. Tune in for philosophical pondering and nerdy silliness in the 29th episode of your premiere storytelling podcast, Derailed Trains of Thought! Show Notes

Greetings, faithful listeners! This episode, Tim and Nick examine how belief interacts with fiction. How does God appear in stories? How do you tell the Truth when you're making things up? Also mentioned: aliens, superheroes, and, as always, the Doctor. We follow up with Project Update (Taylor Trilogy!) and a Take on Tales featuring Alan Moore and girls who jump through time. Join us for this episode of the ever-interesting, mostly coherent, exceptionally wonderful storytelling podcast, Derailed Trains of Thought! Show Notes

Happy Valentine's Day (or Singles Awareness Day)! Seeing as the calendar reads February 14, we finally give up our pride, and our prejudice, and examine the idea of romance in fiction. In Story School, author Dawn Crandall shares experiences gleaned from her first novel to help us guys understand what makes a romance work. Then in Cinema Selections, movie-lover Brian Scherschel presents "Summertime," a beautiful, conflicted example of romance in movies. So, show your good sense, and your sensibility, and give a listen to an extra-long Episode 27 of your premiere storytelling podcast. And send us chocolate. Please? Show Notes

KA-POW! In this episode of Derailed Trains of Thought, Tim and Nick--BAM!--fight their way through the--BANG!--dangerous question of what--RAT-TAT-TAT!--makes action awesome. TICK. And what makes it--SNICK! ARGHHH!--just a mess of dead bodies. TICK. Also,in the return of What If?--WHAM!--Tim and Nick examine the horrifying possibility--TICK, TICK--of Michael Bay directing The Wizard of Oz. So, find your favorite bomb shelter--ZAP!--and listen to...wait, do you hear....TICK, TICK, TICK.... BOOOOOOMMM!! Show Notes

01001000 01100101...er, I mean, Hello! I write to you through the wonders of electricity, fiber optics, Pentium chips, and other things that work by magic AKA science. This episode, Nick and Tim examine how technology not only continues to change how stories are told, but what stories are told. We also resurrect Our Take on Tales with short stories by Ray Bradbury and a darker anime series. So, hook up the electronic audio system of your choice and imbibe the first episode of Derailed Trains of Thought of 2012. It's not the flying car you were promised, but it's almost as awesome. Show Notes

Hello, all! A brief, unexpected Side Track here. I had the pleasure to sit down with Donald Merriman for a short interview. If you've never heard of him, he's a self-proclaimed "Christmas Crusader" and quite an interesting fellow. I'm sure you'll enjoy what he has to say. Have a listen. And Merry Christmas! Show Notes

Merry Christmas! It's that time of year again when Tim and Nick spend time looking back, this time at stories that affect us differently now than previously. Listen as we wax nostalgic and consider how time changes tastes. Then join us for discussion of a Christmas movie you've probably not seen, introduced by the world-traveling Brian Scherschel. After all, you can't welcome a new year without at least one more episode of Derailed Trains of Thought! Show Notes

To be brief, this episode features Nick and Tim pondering the task of telling a short story. How do you break a story down to essentials? They also perform live brainstorming. Listen in. Show Notes

Ah, Halloween. This is that festive time of year when such cuddly, creepy, heart-warming, bone-chilling creatures as evil witches, blood-slurping vampires, rotting zombies, and gory chainsaw-wielding psychopaths grace the forefront of our popular culture. Why do people enjoy being scared? And what role does fear have in storytelling? Nick and Tim are joined by frequent-contributor Brian Scherschel to tackle these questions and more. In this topsy-turvy episode, we begin with a Cinema Selections look at a classic 1955 thriller, and then move to discuss the appeal of the horror genre, the merits of suspense over surprise, and try to figure out what's the deal with this zombie craze anyway. Whether you're a horror addict or someone who hides behind the couch at the appearance of a menacing trash can, you're sure to find today's discussion intriguing. Take a listen! Show Notes

Having recovered from their EPIC anniversary episode, Tim and Nick set out to discover new realms of exploration. Along the way they realize, "Hey, it's pretty cool to keep finding new lands and creatures and characters and stuff." So they decided to discuss the art of discovery in fiction. Joined by scholar and writer John Bahler, they delve into mysteries, gaze into unattainable vistas, and ponder the combining of two of their favorite subjects. It's a new era for your favorite storytelling podcast, Derailed Trains of Thought. Show Notes

In honor of the podcast's first anniversary, we've sent our previous episode descriptions through the blender and come up with this: Hello, there! Have we got an original for you! The perfect cure to your sterotypical, connect-the-dots podcast! This episode we turn to the always faithful supplier of conversation--Derailed Trains of Thought, which, coincidentally, is exactly the topic of this episode’s Story School. Join us for a meaty discussion for the both creator and the audience that the San Francisco Herald-Tribune-Gazette calls, "Relentless. Ruthless. And all that brouhaha. Your intrepid and intriguing hosts, Timothy Deal and Nick Hayden, spawn their own subculture.” Along the way, fanfiction writer Laura Fischer, resident YA book expert Natasha Hayden, Nathan Marchand, author of Pandora's Box, and Brian Scherschel jump in. Don't miss it! We promised, we delivered this extra-long, wide-ranging episode of Derailed Trains of Thought! It's not just a podcast, it's Podcast 20! Show Notes

Everyone's a comedian...or are they? In the latest episode of Derailed Trains of Thought (your one and only (please?) storytelling podcast), Tim and Nick tackle the hard work of dissecting what makes the audience laugh. (It's a function of the lungs and/or stomach in 86.15% of cases.) In the second half, we examine the science fiction German silent film "Metropolis" in Cinema Selections, proving that 80-year-old movies are still cool. So take a listen and learn that the mediator between the head and the hands is the funny bone!* *Obtuse joke to be found funny only after listening to the entire podcast. Maybe. Show Notes

Ever had one of those days? Your father's been murdered by your uncle and you just don't know what to do. Your best friend's fallen down the stairs, broken his leg, gotten bone marrow in his blood, and died. And your crazy neighbor's crazy girlfriend just plummeted to her death because she saw a nun. (That's right, a nun.) Life's a tragedy, isn't it? Death, disasters, and hollow victories focus this episode's discussion of the art of the tragedy. What makes a good "bad ending"? Is it more literary to make the audience depressed? What's the meaning of it all? Listen as Tim and Nick wrangle with these intriguing questions, as well as review the summer blockbusters, in the latest episode of Derailed Trains of Thought. Show Notes