Prose

 In "The Knowledge Keepers", make the acquaintance of the keepers of all knowledge.  ***  The backing track for this story was taken from the Free Music Archive and is titled “I am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor”, an original piece by Chris Zabriskie. It is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.    The drums here at the end were taken from Freesound.org.  User RTB45 uploaded these sounds, and they are being used under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.  

Experience the world end in "A Sunrise."  ***  The backing track for this story was taken from the Free Music Archive and is titled “New England Air”, an original piece from the album Old Paper Houses by BOPD. It is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.  

In "Sushi Night, or すてきな", endure a Kafkaesque transition.  ***  All three of the backing tracks for this story were taken from the Free Music Archive, and all three are by Blue Dot Sessions from their album Algea Fields.  They are, in order of appearance, “Algea Trio,” “Algea Tinder,” “Collecting Samples,” and “Arame.”  They are being used under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International Licenses.  

Hello and welcome to episode nineteen of Prose.  This week endure a Kafkaesque transition, watch the world end, and make the acquaintance of the keepers of all knowledge.   You should also go follow Prose on Twitter through @prosepodcast or on Facebook under the same handle, though Twitter is the far more active of the two.   I want to take a moment to plug an amazing documentary titled Downstream People.  To quote from their Indiegogo page: “Established in 1972 as the first federally protected river in the United States, the Buffalo National River flows freely for 135 miles and is one of the few remaining undammed rivers in the lower 48 states. Managed by the National Park Service, this gem of the Ozarks is a paradise for camping, swimming, canoeing, fishing, and kayaking.    “It flows through several rural, impoverished communities of the Ozark Mountains, including those in Newton County, now home to C&H Hog Farm. Built in 2013 under a questionable permit process with little public notice, this corpora

In "Grafting Street", Part II, rejoin the dwellers and visitors of Grafting Street and briefly meet a thaumaturgist. ***  I am honored to use a great many artists’ sounds and backing tracks to add to this story.  Most of the sounds were taken from Freesound.org and its users.  The intro piano is by Porphyr, the footsteps by savataivanov, the ominous bass by ERH, the horror track sounds by Xanco123, and the hellish bells by martysonic. Savataivanov’s track is being used under a Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication License.  Porphyr and ERH’s tracks are being used under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licenses.  Xanco123 and martysonic’s tracks are being used under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported Licenses. The larger soundtrack piece was taken from the Free Music Archive and is titled “It Feels Good (To Feel Good Again)”, an original piece off the album Ad Astra Vol. 2 by PCIII. It is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licen

Hello and welcome to episode eighteen of Prose.  This week experience a deified old man, encounter an ominous word in the Philippines, and rejoin the dwellers and visitors of Grafting Street.   In Episode 17.2, the second original musical piece for Prose is present.  This is, yet again, by Mr. David Ezell.  So, do be sure to check that out.  Additionally, you should start to notice other stories that carry over in multiple parts in the coming weeks.  As I mentioned last week, I do hope that intrigues you as much as it does me.  If it does, or even if it does not, please to feel free to contact me through prosepodcast@gmail.com with anything you might want to say, be it praise, critique, advice, or simply saying hello.  You can also keep up with or communicate with the podcast by following Prose on Twitter through @prosepodcast or on Facebook under the same handle, though Twitter is the far more active of the two.   Lastly, I can’t end an introduction without telling everyone to please  head over to iTunes, G

 Experience a deified old man in "The Sweetness of Sugar Grove, or Matthew 25: 40-41" ***  The backing track for this story is an original composition written and performed by David Ezell, the second piece Mr. Ezell has written specifically and exclusively for a Prose story.  David Ezell is a devoted father, a devoted creator, a devoted friend, and a devoted friend of the Republic, not to mention an extremely talented musician.  As I have noted before, long ago, in our heyday, he and I used to make some pretty good music together.  His previous project was a podcast called Dad Hacks, where he gave voice to a community of dads who have learned the tips and shortcuts of parenting and now want to share that with any and all parents, grandparents step-parents, or guardians that find themselves struggling in the midst of the parenting grind. To find more about Dad Hacks, you can find them at Dad Hacks podcast on Facebook and under Dad Hacks on iTunes, Bluebrry, Stitcher, Google Play, and other similar podcast cat

 In the first part of "Lomar," encounter an ominous word in the Philippines.  ***  The backing track for this piece was taken from the Free Music Archive and is titled “FOREST (mixtape)”, an original piece by Violeta Päivänkakkara. It is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.  Thank you to Ms. Päivänkakkara for putting her piece up on the Free Music Archive and to Free Music Archive for providing access to such wonderful works. 

In “My Little Creatures,” meet some individuals with imagination.   *** Alena Abrosimova is originally from Tomsk, Russia (think Siberia, not to be confused with Serbia) but currently resides in Sydney, Australia.  She sails as much as she can, though she is often interrupted by a pesky full-time job. When not sailing or working, she enjoys writing, reading, learning new things (especially all things impractical), and getting to know people, especially positive people who share her unending curiosity about our world.  You can see more from Ms. Abrosimova at her blog “Sails and Commas,” found at sailsandcommas.wordpress.com.     Both backing tracks come from PC III.  The first is titled “Through the Storm” and the second is titled “Klichi.” Both were taken from the Free Music Archive and are being used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.  Thank you to PC III and the Free Music Archive for their contribution.

Dine on glass in "Crunching."  ***  The first backing track from this piece is “Mu Part 2” from Shadows on the Snow, was taken from the Free Music Archive, and is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.  The crunching sounds were made by rLess and come from FreeSound.org. This track is being used under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication License.  Thank you to Shadows on the Snow, rLess, the Free Music Archive, and Freesound.org for the contributions

In Part I of "Grafting Street," meet a desperate man in a near future.    ***   The first backing track from this piece is “Not the Streets You Used to Walk Along” from Phillip Weigl. It comes from his album Sound-trax was taken from the Free Music Archive, and is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.  The second track is “The Talons of Adventure, the Antlers of Romance” by Doctor Turtle.  It was also taken from the Free Music Archive and is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.  Please use the links provided to check both of these artists and the Free Music Archive out.    

Hello and welcome to episode seventeen of Prose.  This week, meet a desperate man, dine on glass, and reconsider your definition of stalker.   In Episode 17.1, you will encounter the first part of a multi-part series that I hope will span a few episodes of Prose.  I hope this appeals to you as much as it does me!  If it does, or even if it does not, please to feel free to contact me through prosepodcast@gmail.com with anything you might want to say, be it praise, critique, advice, or simply saying hello.  You can also keep up with or communicate with the podcast by following Prose on Twitter through @prosepodcast or on Facebook under the same handle, though Twitter is the far more active of the two.   Lastly, as I always plead,  head over to iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or the podcast-catcher of your choice and leave a rating and/or review for Prose.  Doing so truly helps this podcast keep going.    Thank you for taking the time to listen to Prose.  Let’s get to the tales, shall we?   This week, we have Pa

In "Probable Infidelity," confront the rotting stench of adultery. *** The backing tracks for this story were taken from FreeSound.org, an amazing community of artists that set out to help one another through the sharing of their art.  Frankum provided both tracks on this poem, “White Spirit” and “Enchantment.”  This track is being used under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication Licenses.  A sincere thank you to Frankum and Freesound.org for the contribution.   

In "The Long Night, or Frogs," fear the disappearance of amphibians. *** The backing tracks  for this story were taken from FreeSound.org, an amazing community of artists that set out to help one another through the sharing of their art.  Madbob69 is responsible for the frogs throughout the story, and Efecto Fudador is responsible for the  ambient noises at the end.  These tracks are being used under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication Licenses.  A sincere thank you to these two and Freesound.org for the contribution. 

In "The Vodka Talks" question sanity and monogamy. *** The backing track for this story was taken from FreeSound.org, an amazing community of artists that set out to help one another through the sharing of their art.  Frankum wrote and recorded this track, titled “Sweetness Dark.”  This track is being used under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication Licenses.  A sincere thank you to Frankum and Freesound.org for the contribution. 

In "Cheeks," experience a dream come true.   *** The backing track for this story was taken from FreeSound.org, an amazing community of artists that set out to help one another through the sharing of their art.  Summonhue provided the track, which is being used under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication Licenses.  A sincere thank you to Summonhue and Freesound.org for the contribution.  The track that you are listening to now is titled “Neither Here Mix 1” and is by Massive Lad.  You can find more from Massive Lad at his Sound Cloud page: soundcloud.com/massive-lad.  Massive Lad happens to be my younger brother and has given me permission to use his track; however, these tracks are, indeed, copywritten materials and should be treated accordingly.  Thanks so much for the tunes, little brother. The stories are better for them.

Hello and welcome to episode sixteen of Prose.  This week, have a dream come true, question monogamy, fear the disappearance of amphibians, and confront the rotting stench of adultery.   In Episode 15, I mentioned that our most current guest author in residence Nicholas B. Morris’s set of stories was at an end here on Prose.  After which, several people emailed in about possibly getting some more of his work to show up on the show.  Well, I’ve heard you, and I’m reaching out to Mr. Morris to see if that might be possible.  In that vein, please to feel free to contact me through prosepodcast@gmail.com with anything you might want to say, be it praise, critique, advice, or simply saying hello.   Also, as I always plead,  head over to iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or the podcast-catcher of your choice and leave a rating and/or review for Prose.  Doing so truly helps this podcast keep going.  You can also keep up with the podcast by following Prose on Twitter through @prosepodcast or on Facebook under the same

In "Asclepius," take a poetic crash course in comparative religion.   ***   The backing tracks  for this poem were taken from the FreeSound.org, an amazing community of artists that set out to help one another through the sharing of their art.  The opening track comes from Roigianno, the second track is the work of Kickhat, and Frankum is responsible for the final track on the poem.  Roigianno and Frankum’s tracks are being used under CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication Licenses, and Kickhat’s track is being used under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.  A sincere thank you to these three and Freesound.org for the contribution. 

In "Gravediggers," find yourself two feet in the grave.   *** Nicholas B. Morris grew up in Arkansas but fell in love with Colorado. His stories and other assorted writings have been published in The Harpoon Review, Cliterature, Connotation Press, Danse Macabre Online, and Nebo. He has published two short story collections, the full-length Tapeworm and the chapbook The Boy in the Well, both with the now sadly defunct Monkey Puzzle Press. (You can buy copies of Tapeworm from him directly on Amazon.) He works in his dream job as Assistant Professor of Humanities at the Community College of Denver and watches endless re-runs of Star Trek with his partner Alyssa Piccinni. Mr. Morris tweets at @totallynotNickM.  Caleb Hicks produced the original audio for the narrative.  He and Mr. Morris worked closely together on the spoke album of Mr. Morris’s stories called The Boy in the Well. The backing tracks for “Gravediggers” were taken from the Free Music Archive at freemusicarchive.org, an amazing community of artis

"Nogal" features a leap into forgiveness and death intertwined.  *** The first and last backing track for this story you hear is an original by David Ezell, written specifically for this story.  David Ezell is a devoted father, a devoted creator, a devoted friend, and a devoted friend of the Republic, not to mention an extremely talented musician.  Long ago, in our heyday, he and I used to make some pretty good music together.  His most current project is Dad Hacks, where he gives voice to a community of dads who have learned the tips and shortcuts of parenting and now want to share that with any and all parents, grandparents step-parents, or guardians that find themselves struggling in the midst of the parenting grind. To find more about Dad Hacks, you can find them at Dad Hacks podcast on Facebook and under Dad Hacks on iTunes, Bluebrry, Stitcher, Google Play, and other similar podcast catchers.   You will hopefully be hearing more music from Mr. Ezell quite soon.  The second track was taken from the Free