Fictional

Aug 29/2021

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  Dr. Freddie Drummond is in a great position: a fulfilling job, a wonderful fiancée, and the respect of titans of industry. So...why is he going out at night, living a double life? Today's story was based on "South of the Slot" by Jack London.
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  Someday Henry Bemis is going to do it. Sometime he is going to go to that wonderful, glorious place and live the life of his dreams. The place? Well, the public library, of course. But...today is not that day. -- Today's episode was inspired by "Time Enough at Last" by Lynn Venable.
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  What happens when your nose leaves your face...and starts living a better life than you? Today's episode was adapted from the story "The Nose" by Nikolai Gogol. You can find the full text here. -- Looking for something else to listen to? Check out Best of the Worst! It used to be a segment on[...]
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  You receive a letter from an old friend. He isn't doing well. He invites you to visit him at his house. His house...that's eating him whole. Today's episode was inspired by "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe.  
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  Two men, a servant and his master, take a drive on a snowy evening. The experience will forever alter both of their lives. Adapted from "Master and Man" by Leo Tolstoy. -- If it sounds like it would be your thing, check out Mitos y Leyendas, Myths and Legends in Spanish! https://myths.link/mitos  
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  It's the 2010s and nuclear war between the US and the Soviet Union has forced humanity into bunkers, scorching the planet and leaving only the Leadys, the semi-sentient robot fighters, to continue to wage the war above against other Leadys. The humans below, however, think that their Leadys might have other motives... -- Adapted from[...]
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  We learn which crime Sherlock Holmes thinks is the absolute worst...and it's not what you think it is. Also, the great detective tries his hand at crime himself. Once he crosses that line, will he be able to come back from it? -- Check out Best of the Worst! https://www.nextpod.com/botw  
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  A young woman working as a servant for a cruel countess falls in love with the man across the street. It seems like a fairy tale, but are there more sinister motivations at play? Adapted from " The Queen of Spades" by Alexander Pushkin
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  Sanger Rainsford, a big-game hunter, just wants to go home, but he finds himself on an island belonging to General Zaroff, a fellow hunter with twisted, unorthodox tastes. Sanger refuses to go along with Zaroff, but what will last longer, Sanger's adherence to his principles...or his life? Adapted by the Weisers from "The Most Dangerous[...]
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  Humanity is isolated for their own safety in their homes, but they settle in to communicate through world-wide messaging and video calls, and face-to-face, person-to-person interaction becomes rarer and rarer, to the point that it's uncomfortable and awkward. And no, the writer had no knowledge of the year 2020. E. M. Forster's prescient work of[...]
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  The story of Arsène Lupin, gentleman thief, begins with him sending a letter to a baron with the exact date and time he will rob the man. The baron immediately contacts the best detective in France. ...oh and Arsène Lupin is actually in prison so the armed guards, locked gates, and flooded tunnels seem like[...]
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  A Halloween episode with two stories from the master of Gothic horror, Edgar Allan Poe. Adapted by the Weisers from "The Masque of the Red Death" and "The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe
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  A professor checks in to a rundown hotel for a long vacation and becomes obsessed with another resident - a pale man who moves from room to room. Adapted by the Weisers from "The Pale Man" by Julius Long -- The shop: https://shop.bardic.fm -- Music: "Andelo" by Blue Dot Sessions "Velda Tallow" by Blue Dot[...]
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  Lester’s work has killed trillions, making way for humanity’s march across the galaxy. But, after a trip off-world and witnessing a dead planet firsthand, he’s now changed. Lester wants out. Will the government release their best scientist and, more importantly, did Lester even return from the wastes? -- The new site: https://fictional.fm -- The next[...]
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  A man comes to Sherlock Holmes with a development: he's making a lot of extra money each week solely because he has fiery red hair. For the famed detective, this is terrible news. -- Check out the new site: https://fictional.fm -- Music: "Vienna Beat" by Blue Dot Sessions "Evidence" by Raphael Costa "In the Box"[...]
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  Four men took part in the ruining of one life. Their reckoning is at hand. It all ends here. -- Sponsors: Bombas: Not only is it fun to say, but they are the most comfortable socks ever seriously if your feet could thank you they would. Go to http://www.Bombas.com/fictional and use the code FICTIONAL to[...]
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  The Count of Monte Cristo moves his pieces into place. His revenge is at hand. -- Sponsors: Hello Fresh: For a super-easy, super-delicious weeknight meal, check out Hello Fresh. Go to http://hellofresh/fictional60 and use the code FICTIONAL60 KiwiCo: KiwiCo creates super cool, hands-on projects for kids that make learning about science, technology, engineering, art, and math[...]
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    When we last left Edmond Dantes, he was sailing off into the sunset after rescuing one of the only friends he has left. Today's story begins 13 years later, after he's been transforming himself into the count of Monte Cristo, an enigmatic and ruthless nobleman who is heading to Paris to bring justice on[...]
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  All the pieces are in place. Everyone responsible for Prospero's exile is on the island. His island. It's time to take back what's his. -- Sponsors: Wolverine: The Long Night. Check this fantastic scripted podcast at https://www.wolverinepodcast.com/ Bombas: Not only is it fun to say, but they are the most comfortable socks ever seriously if[...]
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  Prospero can't remember the last time he slept. He can't remember the last time he saw his daughter or even how old she is. He has been working on one singular task for decades, and now he's nearly there. He's on the precipice of the greatest discovery of all time... ...and then someone kicks in[...]
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  Dracula has already claimed his first victim, and she is working on many more. Soon, the British Isles and then the rest of civilization will be one of two things: hunter or hunted. The few that Dracula chooses to turn will feed on the rest, and no one within 1000 miles of him knows it's[...]
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  Mina is distraught. Her friend is sick, hit by a strange and sudden anemia the day a ship came into port from the other side of the world - some province in Romania known as Transylvania. Worse, Jonathan, her fiancee, hasn't returned yet. He had gone to visit a nobleman on the continent, and he[...]
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  Jonathan Harker is on a work trip, which means new and bizzare foods, people with interesting stories, and a meeting with a count that people seriously will not stop warning him about. He doesn't see what the fuss is about. It's just an old guy with a handlebar mustache who lives in the woods in[...]
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  Irene Adler. She's in one story, but she left such a permanent, indellible mark on Sherlock Holmes that he will now and forever refer to her as THE woman. Sherlock receives two visits in one night. One is expected: royalty with a problem that could alter the history of Europe. The other is a surprise:[...]
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  In an alternate future, it's 1981 and the UN allies have been at war with the Soviet Union for six years. In that short amount of time, the world has been reduced to an irradiated husk of itself. Standing victorious over a fallen world, the Soviets unexpectedly find themselves overwhelmed by a new technology developed[...]
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  On the season 2 finale, Victor Frankenstein's creation is responsible for two deaths, but Victor fears that the body count isn't close to being finished. The battle between creator and creation will stretch over multiple continents, destroying lives and bringing up questions of our responsibility toward our creations, arrogance, and what it means to live[...]
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  A lurching green monster that's afraid of fire with bolts in his neck. A hunchback assistant named Igor. A menacing, mustache twirling doctor. None of those things are in this episode. Instead, we have an eight-foot-tall introspective giant, a thoughtful, if dangerously ambitious child who doesn't understand the enormity of the task he's undertaking, and[...]
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  A couple in early 1800s Louisiana is headed home when they spot something unusual by a pillar, something that will change their lives, and the lives of the most powerful family in town, forever. -- Sponsor: You have to check out Masterclass. You can learn from professionally produced videos of people who are (literally) the[...]
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  Two stories by the U.S. writer O. Henry. In the first, a young woman is dying, pinning her hopes to a leaf dangling on a branch. In the second, ol' Soapy, a homeless man in New York City, is gearing up for a trip to his summer home: prison. A warm bed, three meals a[...]
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  Our humble hero just wanted to swing by a remote mental institution in the south of France on his way back home to America. He was just going to spend one night in the self-described madhouse to sate his curiosity/gawk at the mentally ill. What could be wrong with spending one night in a rural[...]
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  When we last left Edmond, he was about to hit the rock and start his escape from Chateau d'If when he heard a scream from his friend's cell. This week, we'll see how he finally manages to get out of the inescapable prison...and what happened to his world after a decade and a half of[...]
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  Edmond is in prison and his enemies are celebrating, but something else is coming from Elba that will change their world yet again and make them fear the man they sent to Chateau d'If.   Sponsors:   Our Casper is so comfortable that I can't wait to go to bed. It's so comfortable that we[...]
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  Edmond Dantes returns to France as a captain. He has just received a promotion, and soon he will be marrying the love of his life: the beautiful Mercedes. The only issue? He doesn't realize that he has enemies, and that the last request of his dying captain - simply delivering a letter - could change[...]
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  Watson is happily married and hasn't spoken to Sherlock in months and hasn't been on a mystery in nearly a year. The craziest his life gets now is an abnormal patient or some sensational news story. That's all about to change when the distraught wife of a friend comes to his house late one Thursday[...]
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  In this story by acclaimed science fiction author Philip K. Dick, the author behind last season's "Therein Lies the Wub", a man in 1950s middle America emerges from working in his basement all day to find something horrifying in the center of town, but the strangest thing? No one seems to have a problem with[...]
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  Last week, Macbeth killed his king, his friend, and more. If only he could stop there. Just a note, this is the season finale of Fictional. Stay subscribed, though, because we'll be back in six weeks with season two! Sponsor: Check out http://www.zola.com/fictional for an awesome way to do your wedding registry. Seriously, I wish[...]
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  Macbeth is a story about ambition and violence. Given a prophecy that he will become king, Macbeth finds himself both drawn to and repulsed by the desire that grows within him. On one hand, he could do so much as king: his name would live on forever. On the other, he is a loyal, kind,[...]
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  A routine trip to Mars turns out to be anything but when a ship headed back to earth allows one last passenger aboard. That's...really all I can say about the story "Beyond lies the Wub" by Philip K. Dick. Few authors can boast the sci-fi pedigree of Philip K. Dick. Even if you've never read[...]
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  Professor Angell is dead, but the story of Cthulhu is just beginning. As it turns out, Angell had an heir, and as the young man is sifting through his late uncle's possessions, he's about to find something that will change his world forever. Meanwhile, Captain Johansen returned to Sydney. The last we saw him, he[...]
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  An adaptation of perhaps the most famous story from one of the most important horror writers of the 20th century. H.P. Lovecraft has inspired writers from Neil Gaiman to Stephen King, and this dark tale of chthonic monsters, fanatical cultists, and a secret that has stayed hidden since the dawn of humanity is equal parts[...]
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  Where we left our intrepid, overdressed traveller, he was taking a break from the heat in the ruins of humanity all around him, looking down into the cool darkness...when he saw red eyes open and stare back at him, hinting that there may be more lurking in the future of humanity than he thought. ---[...]
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  "The Time Machine" is a book written by the father of science fiction, H.G. Wells. This is a book so famous that it actually coined the phrase "time machine" to refer to a machine that travels through time. It is a short but sprawling book, flinging mankind into the farthest future where we see how[...]
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  If you were worried that we only have three circles left, well, don't worry. Dante must have felt the same way, because he sub-divides the last two circles into 12 circles, nearly double the number of circles that came before it. Anyway, it's as weird and as wonderful/horrific as last time, so if you liked[...]
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  Dante's Inferno is an epic poem written by Dante Alighieri in the 1300s as the first part in a much longer work called "The Divine Comedy". It's not a comedy in the "ha ha" sense of the word, but comedy because it starts bad and ends well. Dante travels down through Hell, then up into Purgatory[...]
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  Sherlock just wants to take a vacation and not be bothered by mysteries. Just kidding. Sherlock lives for mysteries. Lucky for him (and really only him), even when they get out London they can still manage to get in to a situation with a dead body or two.  Want to really help out the show?[...]
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  The story of two old friends, one strange item that can grant your wildest dreams, and three wishes...but every desire has a cost. Want to leave a review? It really helps the show. Check out http://apple.fictional.fm  Music: Theme song and other music by Breakmaster Cylinder "Visim" by Kai Engle "Scenery" by Kai Engle "Periculum" by[...]
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  This is all about our new show, Fictional. Brought to you by the same two people that make Myths and Legends, Fictional is looking at all things classic lit, diving in to awesome stories like you've never heard them before. ----- Theme song credit: the amazing Breakmaster Cylinder ----- To subscribe, follow these links: On[...]

Classic lit with a modern tone, every other week. From the creators of Myths and Legends, comes an altogether same-but-different podcast set in the world of classic lit. These are the stories of Dracula, The Time Machine, The Three Musketeers. They’re stories written by Jane Austen, Shakespeare, and H.P. Lovecraft, but with a casual, modern tone. Listen as Jason and Carissa Weiser breathe new life into the classics and tell the stories of some of the greatest books ever written.