Episode 15 – Historically Speaking w/ Cherie Priest

Sims has a big announcement! I have a new website! And author, Southern gothic zombie steampunk historical enthusiast Cherie Priest talks about her book, Boneshaker, as well as Alfred Hitchcock and why historical fiction or steampunk culture shouldn’t forget about the fun.

The Rundown:

  • For EVERYTHING Cherie Priest is involved with, please check out her website and twitter. Also, please purchase Boneshaker or the rest of her books.
  • Though we are lowly podtrash, WFMU’s The Best Show is a favorite of all of us here at War Rocket Ajax.
  • Check out my new hip hop blog, Self Titled (Eponymous) if you’re into that sort of stuff (like 1,200+ word write ups of old De La Soul records).
  • Though he won’t be contributing art to our show for a little bit, please continue to check out more of Rusty Shackles’ amazing work at his website, if you haven’t already.
  • Sims has been churning out great content at not only The ISB, but also at ComicsAlliance and Heavy.com. Please check them out if you get a chance.
  • Check out AdamWarRock.com for some fresh rhymes and dope beats.

20 thoughts on “Episode 15 – Historically Speaking w/ Cherie Priest”

  1. I’ve never felt so close to the simultaneous beginnings of a groundbreaking writer, artist, and hip-hop sensation. This is going to be awesome!

  2. Speaking as a certified Hater, congratulations about Resurrection, boys! Great news! And also to Euge about the new blog.

  3. I know your plates are full, but for the x-mas special,could we get a special musical number? Say, The Little Reggatone Airhorn Boy? After all dums are so B.C. Congrats on the good news, guys!

    1. We may be able to satisfy your musical number wanting ass, Stephen.

      Tim and MadAction, thanks for the big ups.

  4. And humanity trembles in fear as Chris inches closer to his prophetically-fabled run on Jimmy Olsen!

    ….just kiddin’ (right). Congrats Chris and Rusty!

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  6. thanks for the kind words folks and great ep as usual! I should have time to return for the xmas ep for art which might be it for me for the foreseeable future, but you never know!

  7. As much as I like Rusty’s art for the site, the Oni strip sounds like a much better use of his time. Looking forward to it, and I might just have to go and catch up on Resurrection first, dammit.

  8. Dizamn i’m lovin the podcast, please do a hippty hoppin rappin opera style musical for the christmas ep, and more regaeton airhorn please

  9. Great show. But the best hip hop track is actually a two-fer: Contracct on the World Love Jam –> Brothers Gonna Work It Out by PE from Fear of a Black Planet.

    Either that or Posse’s on Broadway by Sir Mix-A-Lot.

  10. Great convo that makes me want to pick up her book.

    My Sad Thoughts:

    1) Cherie Priest is hot, short-sighted and a fan of comics. That is a pretty intoxicating combination, innit?

    2) One of the difficulties with literary sub-genres like steam-punk is that sometimes there is a great example that you can’t use because the example becomes too popular. Like say Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang which is a perfectly fine steam-punk film, but if you told people that who are unfamiliar with the sub-genre they would just say that Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang isn’t steam-punk, it’s Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang.

    3) Very cool for Action Age on the Oni gig.

    4) Not to be the “You Forgot” guy, but if Chris is doing Chris vs. Twilight on Twitter, you might want to mention it on the show notes rather than idly mentioning it with about thirty seconds left in the podcast. Or is it supposed to be a deep-dark secret?

    5) The aforementioned Chris vs. Twilight may force me on to the Twitter.

    6) Cool music conversation even though I barely recognized any of the music that you were mentioning.

    7) Cherie said something about how she believes that popular culture should be fun, but that she hadn’t worried about it until Boneshaker because before that she was writing horror. So, wait, horror is not fun? No wonder she haterizes Psycho. Oh also, Southern Gothic writer hating Psycho? Isn’t that like a superhero writer hating on Jack Kirby’s Fantastic Four?

    8) Is is sad that these are what I thought as I listened?

  11. yes wooohoo, i gotta listen to the christmas special episode keep on the hippity hoppin and more reegaeton airhorne please

  12. Just listened to the whole interview, as I had gotten Boneshaker from the Library last Friday and didn’t want to spoil it before finishing- It’s very cool, btw, and people that haven’t picked it up should. Great episode guys. I have to say that the “literary folks” (Misses Priest and Coover and Mr. Nevins) have probably been my favorite, I’d love to see them come back or have some more cool people from the circles they run in as future guests.

  13. That was a fun one guys and Cherie Priest was a pretty cool & groovy guest. Bless her little heart for not folding in the face of the two of you! Have you sent her a Best of the Wu-Tang for the holidays? Think I’ll be giving that Boneshaker a read sometime soon.

    BTW, in terms of steampunk, though I wouldn’t claim it to be the first expression of it, you should check out Pat Mills and the great Kev O’Neill’s (and later, Bryan Talbot’s) work on Nemesis the Warlock where they had an alien world, the Goths, that continued the development of the Victorian era British Empire without the major upheaval of WW 1. Well, until the human Terminators (not that kind) start slaughtering them. Well worth a look, guys.

    Keep up the great work. I’ll be sure to get through the rest of the podcasts before Christmas. Have a fun one!

    Oh, and as a P.S., where’s the love for Ice-T? Sure he’s sold his sorry ass out years ago, but man, the Iceburg and, in particular, O.G. were the fucking shit! And, for the most part, they still stand up today.

  14. Picked up Bone Shaker because of this interview. I’m excited to hear it. I live in the Pacific Northwest, so that was also another reason for the purchase! Excited for a pulplicious read!

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