The Dark Mind Podcast

Vincent Midgard
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Join your intrepid host, Vincent Midgard, as he interviews writers and filmmakers who produce works in dark literature and film, including horror, noir, gothic, as well as nonfiction and documentaries on dark subject matter.

  1. Erich Cannon on Practical Effects and Personal Demons

    3D AGO

    Erich Cannon on Practical Effects and Personal Demons

    In this episode of The Dark Mind Podcast, Vincent Midgard sits down with filmmaker Erich Cannon to discuss his feature film His Monster.They explore the film’s roots in Japanese folklore, its addiction allegory, and the emotional terrain of grief, denial, and spiritual drowning that drives the story.Erich also talks about practical creature effects, the influence of The X-Files, writing from personal experience, and why the Oregon coast became the perfect setting for this kind of dread.The conversation also moves through his journey in sobriety, his DIY approach to filmmaking and distribution, his early work as a production assistant, and the hard lessons that shaped Compassionate Disaster Films.They also touch on Braving Rapids, his connection to Phantogram, his producing work on The Cuckoo Clock, and the creative life he is building in Joshua Tree.This is a thoughtful conversation about horror, recovery, folklore, discipline, and the monsters people live with.WebsitesCompassionate Disaster Films: https://www.compassionatedisasterfilms.comDirector Portfolio: https://www.compassionatedisasterfilms.com/erichcannonSocial MediaInstagram (Personal): https://www.instagram.com/erichcannonInstagram (Company): https://www.instagram.com/compassionatedisasterfilmsX (Twitter): https://x.com/erichcannonFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/compassionatedisasterfilmsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erich-cannon-0b5284a5Where to Watch & StreamHis Monster (2026) & Columbia River Canoe Project (2024)Currently on theatrical and festival tours. Check the official site for screening dates and locations:https://www.compassionatedisasterfilms.comBraving Rapids (2025)Tubi (Free): https://tubitv.com/movies/100038953/braving-rapidsFandango at Home (Vudu): https://athome.fandango.com/content/browse/details/Braving-Rapids/4192853Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Braving+Rapids+movieFall City (2018)Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Fall+City+movieApple TV: https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/fall-cityPoint B (2015)Tubi (Free): https://tubitv.com/search/Point%20BAmazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Point+B+moviePhysical Media (DVDs)Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Erich+CannonSupport The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 14m
  2. Lee Stackhouse: Brutal Precision and Eerie Tenderness

    APR 7

    Lee Stackhouse: Brutal Precision and Eerie Tenderness

    In this episode, I’m joined by author Lee Stackhouse to discuss Diary of a Damsel Dame, a dark psychological horror novel about obsession, projection, love, and violence. We talk about Delilah Vale as both predator and wounded inner child, and why readers can feel repulsed by her while still wanting to protect her. Lee opens up about writing from trauma, using the diary format to capture a secret inner life, and building a character who feels disturbingly human rather than symbolic. We also get into trigger warnings, female villainy, toxic relationships, Substack serialization, book cover design, and the emotional cost of writing from personal truth. Along the way, Lee shares stories about collaborative horror projects, surviving abusive workplaces, living in the woods in Vermont, and why Gordon Ramsay is the perfect creative palate cleanser. Lee Stackhouse Links Website / Main Hubhttps://leestackhouse.substack.com Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/lee__stackhouse/ TikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@lee_stackhouse Goodreads (Author + Book)https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/61171497.Lee_Stackhousehttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/243238238-diary-of-a-damsel-dame Buy Diary of a Damsel DameAmazon: https://a.co/d/02bML2lTBarnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/diary-of-a-damsel-dame-lee-stackhouse/1148695486 Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 15m
  3. Andrew Najberg Returns: Inside the Apocalyptic Horror of Eat the Light

    MAR 31

    Andrew Najberg Returns: Inside the Apocalyptic Horror of Eat the Light

    Andrew Najberg returns to The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his new novel, Eat the Light.The book follows two young sisters, Alyssa and Tabitha, who are locked in a fallout shelter by their father and left to survive alone when they emerge into a world that no longer exists.The streets are empty, the rain corrodes everything it touches, and glowing figures known as the Shimmer People stalk the ruins with no logic and no mercy.Najberg breaks down how he used light itself as the ultimate horror element, making it both the thing that sustains the sisters and the thing that can kill them.He discusses writing young protagonists with genuine agency, drawing on his real relationship with his sister and his own children to build the bond between Alyssa and Tabitha.The conversation explores how the novel functions as a philosophical survival story, forcing two children to define meaning and morality in a world stripped of every support system.Najberg also reflects on the influence of Cormac McCarthy's The Road, the origins of the story's beloved character Pom Pom, and what it means to write horror from a place of genuine personal fear.Websiteshttps://andrewnajberg.comSocial Mediahttps://www.facebook.com/andrew.najberg/https://www.facebook.com/AndrewNajbergAuthor/https://www.instagram.com/andrewnajberg/https://x.com/AndrewNajbergBuy Eat the Light & Other Bookshttps://www.amazon.com/Eat-Light-Andrew-Najberg/dp/B0F1Z5Z5Z5 (Eat the Light on Amazon; search for others like The Mobius Door)https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/eat-the-light-andrew-najberg/1146400211 (related title; search Eat the Light)Stream Audiobookshttps://www.audible.com/author/Andrew-Najberg/B0CBNGGV9H (Gollitok, The Mobius Door, Extinction Dream)Support The Dark Mind Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 11m
  4. Jethro Waters on Grief, Guns, and God in Gunfighter Paradise

    MAR 24

    Jethro Waters on Grief, Guns, and God in Gunfighter Paradise

    In this episode of The Dark Mind Podcast, Vincent Midgard sits down with filmmaker Jethro Waters to discuss his surreal southern gothic feature Gunfighter Paradise.​They explore the film’s collision of religion, grief, guns, greed, and dark humor, and how Waters sees it as an expression of the American psychosis.​Waters breaks down how his upbringing in the rural South, his father’s background as a Vietnam veteran and gunsmith, and his own experience with competitive speed shooting shaped the emotional and visual language of the film.​The conversation also dives into surrealism, David Lynch comparisons, cinematic rhythm, visual authenticity, and why Waters wanted the violence in the film to feel sincere rather than stylized.​They discuss Confederate reenactors, the film’s cable installer character, Renato Casaro’s hand-painted poster, and the role dark comedy plays in carrying dread without undercutting trauma.​Beyond Gunfighter Paradise, Waters talks about his upcoming documentary on Vietnam veterans and PTSD, his work as a colorist on Desperate Souls, Dark City, and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy, his music video background, and the literary influences that feed his scripts.​He also reflects on teaching cinematography at UNCSA, the realities of independent filmmaking, his war against motion smoothing, and the creative life he has built outside the studio.JETHRO WATERSOfficial Websitehttps://www.jethrowaters.comGunfighter Paradise Official Film Sitehttps://www.gunfightermovie.comIMDbhttps://www.imdb.com/name/nm9135866/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/jethrowaters/BUY TICKETS TO GUNFIGHTER PARADISE IN THEATERSAMC Theatreshttps://www.amctheatres.com/movies/gunfighter-paradise-83099Fandangohttps://www.fandango.com/gunfighter-paradise-2024-244731/movie-overviewRequest a Screening Near You (Gathr)https://gathr.com/films/gunfighter-paradiseSTREAM OR BUY F11 AND BE THEREApple TVhttps://tv.apple.com/us/movie/f11-and-be-there/umc.cmc.3il2kfqnoe5d4zwc3urnk5tqmAmazon Prime Videohttps://www.amazon.com/F11-Be-There/dp/B08FBHCKQBOVIDhttps://www.ovid.tvKanopy (Free with library card)https://www.kanopy.comPBShttps://www.pbs.org/video/f11-and-be-there-7gjtfc/SUPPORT THE DARK MIND PODCASTPatreonhttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 22m
  5. Tamika Thompson: No Ghosts Needed

    MAR 17

    Tamika Thompson: No Ghosts Needed

    Tamika Thompson returns to The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss her debut novel The Curse of Hester Gardens, a Black Gothic horror story rooted in grief, motherhood, faith, and survival. ​ In this episode, we explore how haunted public housing transforms the classic haunted house framework into something inescapable, where economics, danger, and the supernatural are all bound together. ​ Tamika talks about growing up working class in Detroit, the oral storytelling traditions in her family, and how fear became both a lived reality and a literary language for her work. ​ We also dig into moral complexity, youth violence, religion, systemic neglect, and why the real monster in the story is often the conditions people are forced to survive. ​ Along the way, Tamika reflects on her journalism background, her writing process, the role of research in shaping the novel, and what she hopes readers are left questioning after the final page. ​ If you love horror that is psychologically sharp, socially grounded, and emotionally devastating, this is an episode you do not want to miss. CONNECT WITH TAMIKA THOMPSON Website: https://www.tamikathompson.com Newsletter/Blog (Tamika Talks Terror): https://www.tamikathompson.com/tamika-talks-terror Linktree: https://linktr.ee/tamikathompson Instagram: https://instagram.com/tamikadthompson TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tamikadthompson Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tamikathompson.bsky.social Threads: https://www.threads.net/@tamikadthompson Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tamikathompsonauthor X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/tamikathompson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamikathompson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tamikathompson BUY THE CURSE OF HESTER GARDENS Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Curse-Hester-Gardens-Tamika-Thompson/dp/1645663191 Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-curse-of-hester-gardens-tamika-thompson/1147750299 Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/shop/tamikathompson Penguin Random House: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/804756/the-curse-of-hester-gardens-by-tamika-thompson/ Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/237693607-the-curse-of-hester-gardens BUY UNSHOD, CACKLING, AND NAKED Universal Book Link: https://mybook.to/unshod Audible: https://www.audible.com/author/Tamika-Thompson/B07XFFMRNP BUY SALAMANDER JUSTICE Universal Book Link: https://mybook.to/salamander SUPPORT THE DARK MIND PODCAST Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 7m
  6. Jeremy Wagner: The Drug, The Detective, and The Meat Grinder

    MAR 10

    Jeremy Wagner: The Drug, The Detective, and The Meat Grinder

    Death metal guitarist, horror novelist, and accidental publisher Jeremy Wagner joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his savage new novel Wretch. Set in Chicago during the hottest summer on record, Wretch follows three men on a collision course: a hard-boiled detective tracking a killer who should not exist, a mob boss running on grief and vengeance, and Derek Hoffman, a steroid-abusing sociopath whose body and mind have been rewritten by an experimental drug called LIBIDONAL. Wagner breaks down how a real person he knew in the 1990s planted the seed for Derek Hoffman. He talks about his own experience as a human guinea pig in a pharmaceutical research program and how it inspired the Big Pharma horror at the heart of the story. He explains why he spent months interviewing a retired Chicago police detective and doing ride-alongs to get the psychology of law enforcement exactly right. He discusses why even the most monstrous characters in the book needed layers, backstory, and something worth losing. He reveals the one scene in the book that he knew would be misread as pure shock value, and why it was never written that way. Wagner also talks about becoming an accidental publisher with Dead Sky Publishing, what horror fiction needs more of right now, and why Broken Hope lyrics were always micro horror stories long before the novels began. Wretch is available now wherever books are sold. LINKS: Website https://jeremyxwagner.com Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jeremyxwagner Facebook https://www.facebook.com/JeremyWagnerOfficial X (Twitter) https://x.com/JeremyXWagner Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3145526.Jeremy_Wagner IMDb https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7990420 WRETCH - WHERE TO BUY Dead Sky Publishing https://deadskypublishing.com Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/1639511326 Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wretch-jeremy-wagner/1143024616 Bookshop.org https://bookshop.org/p/books/wretch-jeremy-wagner/de816042391431e5 MUSIC - STREAM AND LISTEN Broken Hope on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/7yFcBZceMVuvIoTnZXprFd Broken Hope on Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/artist/broken-hope/74969262 Earthburner on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/7fqhfpH3XM8547KokH7tZm DEAD SKY PUBLISHING Website https://deadskypublishing.com X (Twitter) https://x.com/DeadSkyPub Substack https://substack.com/@deadskypublishing BROKEN HOPE Website https://brokenhope.com EARTHBURNER Website https://earthburner.com Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 10m
  7. N.J. Gallegos: Anatomy of an Obsession

    MAR 3

    N.J. Gallegos: Anatomy of an Obsession

    N.J. Gallegos returns to The Dark Mind Podcast. She is an Emergency Medicine physician, horror author, and co-host of the Scream Kings Horror Podcast. Her new novella, Eat Your Heart Out, is published by Black Hare Press and releases March 14, 2026. The book follows Jules, a first-year medical student with an exceptional mind for anatomy and a carefully controlled emotional life. That control shatters when she meets Maureen, a magnetic and confident woman who effortlessly draws desire. What begins as attraction quickly deepens into something darker and more consuming. Jules mistakes intensity for intimacy, chemistry for destiny, and fixation for love. As their relationship lurches between passion and distance, Jules begins to unravel. The boundaries between study and obsession blur. In this episode, Gallegos breaks down the psychology of obsession, the powder keg of medical school, the cultural narratives that make devotion dangerous, and what it means to write a toxic queer relationship without flinching. She also discusses how her years working in the emergency room shape the horror she puts on the page. Website): https://njgallegos.com/ Author Store): https://www.njgallegos.com/products X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/DrSpooky_ER Bluesky): https://bsky.app/profile/drspookyer.bsky.social Goodreads): https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22352302.N_J_Gallegos Buy Eat Your Heart Out Apple Books): https://books.apple.com/us/book/eat-your-heart-out/id6757347465 Kobo): https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/eat-your-heart-out-22 Black Hare Press): https://blackharepress.com/products/eat-your-heart-out-by-nj-gallegos Buy The Fatal Mind Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/stores/N.J.-Gallegos/author/B0CGMS4BSJ Barnes and Noble): https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-fatal-mind-n-j-gallegos/1146422660 Audible): https://www.audible.com/author/NJ-Gallegos/B0CGMS4BSJ Buy The Broken Heart Barnes and Noble): https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-broken-heart-n-j-gallegos/1143619606 Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/stores/N.J.-Gallegos/author/B0CGMS4BSJ Scream Kings Podcast Website): https://www.screamkingspodcast.com Apple Podcasts): https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/scream-kings/id1286579957 Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/show/4xb6C1lAYeFSeZUP7ySnGS Publisher Winding Road Stories): https://windingroadstories.com/project/n-j-gallegos/ Black Hare Press): https://blackharepress.com/products/eat-your-heart-out-by-nj-gallegos Support The Dark Mind Podcast Patreon): https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 8m
  8. Geoffrey Kelly: The FBI's Hunt for 13 Perfect Fugitives

    FEB 24

    Geoffrey Kelly: The FBI's Hunt for 13 Perfect Fugitives

    In 1990, two men disguised as Boston police officers stole 13 priceless works of art from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in what became the largest art heist in history, valued at over $1 billion. FBI Special Agent Geoffrey Kelly spent 28 years as one of the founding members of the FBI Art Crime Team, and in 2002 inherited this cold case. Rather than working it as a standard property crime, Kelly treated the missing paintings as fugitives, enlisting the media and public to help track them down. In his new book, 13 Perfect Fugitives, Kelly pulls back the curtain on the full investigation, separating fact from decades of myth and misinformation surrounding the case. Kelly also served as the real-life inspiration for Jon Hamm's FBI agent character in the film The Town, and currently teaches at Harvard Extension School alongside the Gardner Museum's security director. The paintings remain missing to this day, but Kelly believes they will be found. WEBSITE Argus Cultural Property Consultantshttps://arguscpc.com SOCIAL MEDIA LinkedIn (Geoffrey Kelly)https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffrey-kelly-7a18202b8/ LinkedIn (Argus CPC)https://www.linkedin.com/company/argus-cultural-property-consultants Facebook (Argus CPC)https://www.facebook.com/arguscpc Bluesky (Argus CPC)https://bsky.app/profile/arguscpc.bsky.social X/Twitter (Argus CPC)https://x.com/ArgusCPC BUY THE BOOK: THIRTEEN PERFECT FUGITIVES Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0FDGTZJH9 Barnes and Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/thirteen-perfect-fugitives-geoffrey-kelly/1147669547?ean=9798895653173 Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    1h 11m
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About

Join your intrepid host, Vincent Midgard, as he interviews writers and filmmakers who produce works in dark literature and film, including horror, noir, gothic, as well as nonfiction and documentaries on dark subject matter.

Information

  • Creator
    Vincent Midgard
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    202
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Vincent Midgard
  • Show Website
    The Dark Mind Podcast

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