Talk is Cheap (with Malcolm Heitz)

Give us 40 minutes of your life and we’ll give you Ghost Lights! Disposing of a Body! A Flat Character! Malcolm tackles these tropes with a coming-of-age story while guest Maggie tells us all about high school life through the eyes of a lab mouse. So many feelings!!!! We close with a quick detour into an alternate timeline, where apparently kittens have gone savage, taken over the world, and only a rap song remains to chronicle the eradication of humans everywhere. Sad! Unless you’re a cat!

Season 2, Ep 8

(Music credit to J. Cole, Irvin Washington for “Is She Gon Pop” instrumental sample)

This time our guest David joins us on an oral tour “from witches to Hemingway, with a little delving into Maslow and the South American jungle.” Hi five to him for being the only guest with more than one suggestion about things to do in the dark! Justin’s tale  Hush Now, the Machines Are Talking nests the tropes Action Girl, Daddy’s Little Villain, and (something-something) Artificial Intelligence!

Season 2, Ep 7

A new episode? For you? We shouldn’t have! Malcolm pushes the therapeutic boundaries in his tale with the tropes “The Misophonic,” “Brandon’s Zeroeth Law,” and “You Did Everything You Could.” Barry was like “Yeah, I’ll come on your podcast…and share with you the MOST METAL WAYS TO DIE.”

Buckle up!

Season 2, Ep 6

What does it mean to be an adaptive storyteller? Do adults have imaginations? We ask NP Cooper what all the fuss is about in this episode. Malcolm serenades us with his latest short “Gatortown Giveaway,” as we mull over the tropes Unwanted Assistance, Violation of Common Sense, and Mirror Monster. Get your sweet laughter today for the low, low price of clicking this link:

Season 2, Ep 5

Stacy wins the day in this episode (and our hearts) by setting the Talk is Cheap record for shortest-notice appearance! We were recording less than 90 minutes after she volunteered! She wrote her poem in less than 10 minutes! Holy cow! Justin’s short story takes a look at two adventurers trying to find their way in the world with the tropes “Designated Girl Fight,” “Gravity is a Harsh Mistress,” and “Cavemen vs. Astronauts Debate.” Blessed are the listeners, for they shall be entertained.

Season 2 Ep 4

One half of the Cheap Talking team brings you this episode, featuring a sit-down with former colleague and long-time friend Leo. Come hither and be regaled by a poem about one of history’s most perplexing characters, and other stuff!

Season 2 Ep 3

Writing a book is hard. Why complain about it, when you can laugh? And write other things that are not the book, and laugh about those too? In this episode Amanda, Teresa, Malcolm, and Justin each explore the various ways a budding romance can go awry. They also touch on the beingness of their novels in their current state: not-being. Or not-yet-being? Enjoy!

TiC NaNoWriMo 2017 part II

In this edition of cheap talking, fellow National Novel Writing Month participants Teresa Bellrichard and Amanda Langer join us for a total of four poems AND four story snippets! How could such transcendence be captured in just a short blurb? How about in a poem, comprised of lines from each of the eight works:

It’s hard to see, but I know it’s there
The rumble of desire to seek and secure the goal
Even with the blinding, brilliant light the bottom of the hole was out of sight
With the rhyming, stop now stop
Something is definitely wrong here
Do you really think we shouldn’t trust one of our own?
Now with her in his arms he felt whole
Sweet bounty, sparkling in the shade

There you have it!

NaNoWriMo 2017 Part I

Not long ago, in a galaxy identical to our own, Shane Henning was supposed to be the chosen one, and he delivered!!!!! In this episode his quasi-hypnotic baritone emblazes the Padawan in all of us. Also, Malcolm gets our Midi-Chlorians in a bunch with his mystical tale “Destiny Awaits.” See if you can spot his tropes at work, namely “Informed Conversation,” “Lost World,” and……a surprise trope! Stay classy, internet!

S2 Episode 2

Season 2 of Talk is Cheap is here! We asked the stars for a way to be more legit, and this episode’s guest has bolstered us! Her insights have elevated us, to the point where we may be too legitimate to stop!!! Kylee Neuhold is a self-published author with two novel releases under her belt and a third on the way. Also in this edition, Justin’s story “Room Service” blends the tropes “Everybody Knew Already,” “Mermaid Problem,” and “Straw Nihilist.” While you’re at it, cure hangovers with this one weird old trick! Gym owners hate us for our revolutionary weight loss system! Are you paying too much for- – – -I guess this is what happens when you outsource your episode descriptions to spammers 😦

S2 Episode 1

Kylee’s first two novels are available now at the iTunes store and amazon.com! Look out for the May 26th release of her novella “Impossible Girl,” and in August, book 3: “Hard to Resist.”

Worth the Wait

Naughty Angel

Kylee’s Author Profile