Creative Dynamos Special - Why Fantasy Matters: Hope, Genre Blending, and Writing in an AI Age

Creative Dynamos 038: Gray Rinehart on Writing, Faith, Baen Slush, and a LibertyCon Charity Album

In episode 38 of Creative Dynamos, I interview writer and musician Gray Rinehart about his long history of creating, from early poetry to later fiction and songwriting, including learning craft through Orson Scott Card’s workshops and bootcamp. Gray compares his approaches to fiction and nonfiction and explains the inspiration and reception of his book A Church More Like Christ, which explores how churches might embody Christlike giving and corporate application of scripture. We discuss how faith influences creativity without requiring “preachy” art, Gray’s unfinished second-world oceanic fantasy novel and how grief after his wife’s death affected his work, and his shift from juggling projects to focusing one at a time. Gray also describes his role at Baen Books as “Slush Master General,” editorial work, and the importance of following submission guidelines. He shares details on a limited-release LibertyCon charity CD and where to find him at grayrinehart.com and grayrinehart.bandcamp.com.00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro00:27 Early Creative Roots03:36 Taking Fiction Seriously06:08 Orson Scott Card Bootcamp08:16 Fiction vs Nonfiction Process11:13 Church Book Inspiration16:05 Reception and Controversy20:44 Social Media Conversations22:31 Faith Shaping Creativity26:57 Christian Writer or Writer Christian30:13 Breaking Out of the Ghetto31:35 Ocean World Novel Concept34:16 Grief and Rewriting Drive37:45 One Project at a Time39:04 LibertyCon Charity Album44:26 Slushmaster at Baen51:17 Submission Guidelines Rant55:49 What Makes a Dynamo01:00:54 Where to Find Gray

Creative Dynamos 037: Mike & Dory on The Othering Podcast, Disability Advocacy, and LGBTQ+ Intersectionality

I welcome Mike and Dory of The Othering Podcast to discuss their path from running an internet radio station 20 years ago to launching a podcast in late 2024/early 2025 amid worsening disability and a tense political climate. Dory shares her experiences with depression, anxiety, and CRPS chronic pain, and explains the show’s focus on humanizing disabled and LGBTQ+ people, highlighting intersectionality, building community, and helping guests feel comfortable through a conversational, low-structure interview style. Mike describes learning to better understand invisible disability as a spouse/caretaker. We discuss scheduling and production workflows, guest outreach now largely driven by inbound requests, audience growth via social media and guests sharing episodes, and where to find the show, including otheringpodcast.com, plus Facebook and Instagram under Othering Podcast. 00:00 Welcome And Introductions 00:19 Origins Of The Podcast 01:59 Dorys Advocacy Journey 04:52 Mission And Niche 07:25 Living With CRPS 09:13 Memorable Guest Stories 10:21 Caregiving Perspective 11:35 Finding And Booking Guests 13:50 Interview Style And Prep 17:47 Balancing Work And Health 20:53 Family Life And Scheduling 21:43 Scheduling Episodes 22:07 Family Logistics 23:04 Pets And Recording 23:39 Finding Quiet Space 25:52 Creative Outlet Benefits 26:11 Mental Health Healing 28:55 Pressure And Buffers 34:04 Rants As Catharsis 37:25 Growing The Audience 41:16 Where To Find Them 43:11 Book Review Victorian Psycho

Creative Dynamos Special - Why Fantasy Matters: Hope, Genre Blending, and Writing in an AI Age

I welcome a panel of fantasy authors—David and Michael (writing as Paragon Exordium/Mikel Melwassul), Caroline Ailanthus, and Jay Requard—to discuss why fantasy remains culturally relevant amid technology, AI, and shifting reader tastes. Panelists share current projects and favorite fantasy IPs (A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones, One Piece, Tolkien, and R.A. Salvatore) and argue fantasy’s durability comes from escapism, safely exploring difficult topics, and a renewed hunger for hopeful heroes after years of grimdark. They debate how fantasy blends with other genres, what defines fantasy versus science fiction, and the importance of grounded worldbuilding, research, and avoiding anachronisms. The conversation closes with how authors’ worldviews seep into their work, plus where to find them and which fantasy objects they’d want. 00:00 Fantasy Panel Kickoff 00:40 David Introduces Paragon 02:01 Michael Updates Projects 03:08 Caroline Tolkien Response 06:25 Jay Salvatore Influence 07:37 Host Favorites And Question 09:10 Fantasy Relevance Today 14:56 Escapism And Social Themes 16:56 Caroline On Fantasy Functions 20:17 Yellowstone As Modern Fantasy 23:08 Why Fantasy Blends Genres 26:52 Defining Fantasy Rules 32:08 Magic Versus Sci Fi 35:39 Bright And Veneer Critique 39:08 Author Mission And Tropes 41:58 Mythic Beasts as Memory 43:28 Paragon Collective Amnesia 44:08 Genre Lines and Examples 46:21 Fantasy Without Shortcuts 49:14 Publishing and Subgenres 51:33 Technology Dates Urban Fantasy 55:15 Research and Anachronisms 59:09 Modernizing Dragon Warfare 01:04:44 Worldview and Allegory 01:11:28 Timelessness Versus Politics 01:13:50 Coauthor Perspectives and Goals 01:17:53 Fantasy Objects and Farewell

Creative Dynamos 036 - Brian Rathbone on Fantasy, Marketing, and “Witches and Scoundrels and Fools"

In episode 36 of Creative Dynamos, fantasy author Brian Rathbone discusses his path from horse training and a 35-year technology career to self-publishing, including mentally developing stories for years before writing after a 2005 layoff. He recounts early mistakes like an expensive print run with no distribution, later success selling eBooks via MobiPocket (before Amazon acquired it), and setbacks from Amazon’s 2016 algorithm and Kindle Unlimited shift. Rathbone explains defining personal success, building audience through free podcast novels, and focusing on long-term backlist sales using aggressive price rotations, SEO-focused metadata, and wide distribution, with Google Play and Chirp as key channels. He outlines his 12-book epic fantasy series built as four complete trilogies, a children’s book success (“The Silliest Dragon”), lessons on cliffhangers, community collaboration, and his in-progress historical fantasy duology “Witches and Scoundrels and Fools,” aiming for completion by year’s end. He shares where to find him at https://brianrathbone.com, on Threads as “Fantasy author Brian Rathbone,” and via email at brian@brianrathbone.com. 00:00 Meet Brian Rathbone 00:32 From Farm to Fantasy 02:24 First Epic and Publishing Reality 04:35 Print Run Mistakes and Early Ebooks 06:17 Amazon Shifts and Cliffhanger Lessons 07:58 Defining Success and Audiobooks 12:12 Backlist Strategy and Going Wide 16:33 World of Gods Premise 19:19 Accidental Kids Books 21:50 Unexpected Global Readers 23:45 What Epic Fantasy Means 26:33 Writing Accessible Series and Social Snippets 29:03 Content That Feels Human 30:19 Platform Wins and Flops 31:49 Plotting an Epic Series 32:09 Writing Like a Coder 33:12 Finding the Series Ending 34:26 New Historical Fantasy 36:16 Duology for Marketing 37:18 Shorts as Proof of Concept 41:02 Pricing and Free Hooks 42:16 Retailer SEO Strategy 44:40 Chirp and Box Sets 47:43 Collabs and Promoting Others 50:23 Building Writer Community 54:39 Podcasts and Approachability 56:57 Where to Find Brian

Creative Dynamos 035: Eric Swett on Armageddon Angels, Faith in Fiction, and Selling Books at Events

In episode 35 of Creative Dynamos, I talk with author Eric Swett, discussing the value of local writer communities for sharing advice on writing, marketing, and events. Swett traces his path from D&D dungeon mastering to fiction, shifting from formulaic fantasy to a post-apocalyptic serial and a daily 100-word exercise that became his first published book. He describes his Armageddon Angels series, featuring Justin—an angel who becomes the Grim Reaper—and a four-book arc focused on the horsemen, plus mystery-focused books filling a five-year gap. Swett explains his approach to worldbuilding, his blend of Christian-influenced mythology with fantasy elements, and inspirations like Supernatural and Lovecraft. We cover the benefits and costs of in-person events, strategies for low-cost venues, supportive author communities, and the guiding principle “progress, not perfection,” before sharing where to find Swett online and at upcoming events. https://www.instagram.com/innocenteric/ https://www.facebook.com/ericswettauthorinprogress/ https://bsky.app/profile/innocenteric.bsky.social https://www.tiktok.com/@eswett_mywritersc