Of Now And Then

Realm

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FICTION
EVERY TWO WEEKS

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Fictional stories in the public domain that speak to our present and near future, some with alarming prescience.

28/03/2023

The Machine Stops (Part 3)

By E.M. Forster, 1909 After initial publication in The Oxford and Cambridge Review, the story was republished in Forster's The Eternal Moment and Other Stories in 1928. After being voted one of the best novellas up to 1965, it was included that same year in the populist anthology Modern Short Stories. In 1973 it was also included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two. The Machine Stops describes a world in which most of the human population has lost the ability to live on the surface of the Earth. Each individual now lives in isolation below ground in a standard room, with all bodily and spiritual needs met by the omnipotent, global Machine. Travel is permitted, but is unpopular and rarely necessary. Communication is made via a kind of instant messaging/video conferencing machine with which people conduct their only activity: the sharing of ideas and what passes for knowledge. MUSIC: "Candlepower" by Chris Zabriskie "Tomie's Bubbles" by Candlegravity "But Enough About Me, Bill Paxton" by Chris Zabriskie "God Be With You Till We Meet Again" by Chris Zabriskie "Oxygen Garden" by Chris Zabriskie "Algorithms" by Chad Crouch "I Don't See the Branches, I See the Leaves" by Chris Zabriskie Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

30 min
02/07/2022

The Machine Stops (Part 2)

By E.M. Forster, 1909 After initial publication in The Oxford and Cambridge Review, the story was republished in Forster's The Eternal Moment and Other Stories in 1928. After being voted one of the best novellas up to 1965, it was included that same year in the populist anthology Modern Short Stories. In 1973 it was also included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two. The Machine Stops describes a world in which most of the human population has lost the ability to live on the surface of the Earth. Each individual now lives in isolation below ground in a standard room, with all bodily and spiritual needs met by the omnipotent, global Machine. Travel is permitted, but is unpopular and rarely necessary. Communication is made via a kind of instant messaging/video conferencing machine with which people conduct their only activity: the sharing of ideas and what passes for knowledge. MUSIC: Candlepower (Chris Zabriskie) Tomie's Bubbles (Candlegravity) Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

32 min
01/06/2022

The Machine Stops (Part 1)

By E.M. Forster, 1909 After initial publication in The Oxford and Cambridge Review, the story was republished in Forster's The Eternal Moment and Other Stories in 1928. After being voted one of the best novellas up to 1965, it was included that same year in the populist anthology Modern Short Stories. In 1973 it was also included in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two. The Machine Stops describes a world in which most of the human population has lost the ability to live on the surface of the Earth. Each individual now lives in isolation below ground in a standard room, with all bodily and spiritual needs met by the omnipotent, global Machine. Travel is permitted, but is unpopular and rarely necessary. Communication is made via a kind of instant messaging/video conferencing machine with which people conduct their only activity: the sharing of ideas and what passes for knowledge. MUSIC: "Candlepower" by Chris Zabriskie) "Tomie's Bubbles" by Candlegravity) Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

35 min
02/05/2022

The War Prayer

By Mark Twain, 1904 Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher and lecturer. Among his novels are The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), the latter often called "The Great American Novel." "The War Prayer", a short story or prose poem by Mark Twain, is a scathing indictment of war, and particularly of blind patriotic and religious fervor as motivations for war. MUSIC: "Candlepower" by Chris Zabriskie "Patriotic songs of America" by New York Military Band and the American Quartet "Tomie's Bubbles" by Candlegravity Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

13 min
02/04/2022

The Colour Out Of Space

By H.P. Lovecraft, 1927 Howard Phillips Lovecraft (August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American author who achieved posthumous fame through his influential works of horror fiction. Virtually unknown and published only in pulp magazines before he died in poverty, he is now regarded as one of the most significant 20th-century authors in his genre. Lovecraft was born in Providence, Rhode Island, where he spent most of his life. Among his most celebrated tales are “The Call of Cthulhu” and “The Shadow over Innsmouth“, both canonical to the Cthulhu Mythos. Never able to support himself from earnings as author and editor, Lovecraft saw commercial success increasingly elude him in this latter period, partly because he lacked the confidence and drive to promote himself. He subsisted in progressively straitened circumstances in his last years; an inheritance was completely spent by the time he died at the age of 46. "The Colour Out of Space" is a science fiction/horror short story by American author H. P. Lovecraft. An unnamed narrator pieces together the story of an area known by the locals as the "blasted heath" in the hills west of the fictional town of Arkham, Massachusetts. Special thanks to our good friends BattleBards for their amazing sound effects! MUSIC: "Cylinder Two" by Chris Zabriskie "Gagool" by Kevin MacLeod "Dark Elf City" by Mike Bridge "Moorland" by Kevin MacLeod "Unlight" by Kevin MacLeod "The Tale of the Spine Breaker" by Stephane Lorello "This House" by Kevin MacLeod "Trance of Cluster" by Ars Sonor "Bellow" by Ben Carey "Oneiri" by Kai Engel "Oppressive Gloom" by Kevin MacLeod "Away" by Twilight Tipi "Touch the Darkness" by Kai Engel "Somnolence" by Kai Engel "Dancing on the Edge" by Kai Engel "Universe in Hands" by Kai Engel "Tomie’s Bubbles" by Candlegravity "Candlepower" by Chris Zabriskie Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 30m
02/03/2022

2BR02B

By Kurt Vonnegut, 1962 Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American writer. In a career spanning over 50 years, Vonnegut published 14 novels, three short story collections, five plays, and five works of non-fiction. He is most famous for his darkly satirical, best-selling novel Slaughterhouse-Five (1969). Vonnegut published his first novel, Player Piano, in 1952. The novel was reviewed positively, but was not commercially successful. In the nearly 20 years that followed, Vonnegut published several novels that were only marginally successful, such as Cat's Cradle (1963) and God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater (1964). Vonnegut's magnum opus, however, was his immediately successful sixth novel, Slaughterhouse-Five. The book's antiwar sentiment resonated with its readers amidst the ongoing Vietnam War, and its reviews were generally positive. After its release, Slaughterhouse-Five went to the top of The New York Times Best Seller list, thrusting Vonnegut into fame. He was invited to give speeches, lectures, and commencement addresses around the country and received many awards and honors. "2BR02B" is pronounced "2 B R naught 2 B" and references the famous phrase "to be, or not to be" from William Shakespeare's Hamlet. In the story, the title refers to the telephone number that one dials to schedule an assisted suicide with the Federal Bureau of Termination. Special thanks to our good friends BattleBards for their amazing sound effects. MUSIC "Candlepower" by Chris Zabriskie "Readers! Do You Read?" by Chris Zabriskie "Carefree" by Kevin MacLeod "Somewhere Else" by Candlegravity "Cylinder Six" by Chris Zabriskie "The Star Spangled Banner" by The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps "Frozen Star" by Kevin MacLeod "Tomie's Bubbles" by Candlegravity Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

22 min
02/02/2022

The Star

By H.G. Wells, 1897 Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946)—known as H. G. Wells—was a prolific English writer in many genres, including the novel, history, politics, social commentary, and textbooks and rules for war games. Wells is now best remembered for his science fiction novels and is called a "father of science fiction", along with Jules Verne and Hugo Gernsback. His most notable science fiction works include The Time Machine(1895), The Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), and The War of the Worlds (1898). He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature four times. Special thanks to our good friends BattleBards for their amazing sound effects! MUSIC: "Cylinder Two" by Chris Zabriskie "Cylinder Three" by Chris Zabriskie "Cylinder Five" by Chris Zabriskie "Cylinder Seven" by Chris Zabriskie "Cylinder Eight" by Chris Zabriskie "Original Rags" by Scott Joplin "hydroscope" by Gallery Six "Digya" by Kevin MacLeod "Devastation and Revenge" by Kevin MacLeod "Low Horizon" by Kai Engel "Tomie's Bubbles" by Candlegravity "Candlepower" by Chris Zabriskie Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

32 min
01/01/2022

The Glass Dog

By Lyman Frank Baum, 1901 Lyman Frank Baum (May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919), better known by his pen name L. Frank Baum, was an American author chiefly known for his children’s books, particularly The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. He wrote thirteen novel sequels, nine other fantasy novels, and a host of other works (55 novels in total, plus four “lost works“, 83 short stories, over 200 poems, an unknown number of scripts, and many miscellaneous writings), and made numerous attempts to bring his works to the stage and screen. Special thanks to our good friends BattleBards for their amazing sound effects. MUSIC: Candlepower (Chris Zabriskie) Teller of the Tales (Kevin MacLeod) Thaxted (Kevin MacLeod) Wagner Bridal Chorus (Kevin MacLeod) Cambodian Odyssey (Kevin MacLeod) Tomie’s Bubbles (Candlegravity) Of Now And Then retells fantasy and future fictional stories in the public domain produced as audiobooks. The show is voiced, edited and produced by Aram Vartian. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

18 min

8 Episodes

Station 151 is Antarctica’s first and only astronomical radio observatory. Built by the Telders Corporation at an estimated cost of $200M USD, the station promises to reveal the darkest secrets of the universe. Join Astrophysicist Wayne Robertson at the bottom of the world as he sets off on the adventure of a lifetime (and possibly his last). Station 151 is a science-fiction podcast written by Andy Scearce and Steven James Scearce. It is produced by Bear Weiter and Pale Matter.

5.0 (5)

SCIENCE FICTION
Undertow is Realm’s premier showcase of original audio horror. Hosted by audio horror pioneer and creator Fred Greenhalgh, each season presents a spooky standalone story, so you can dive in anytime... if you dare! Current Season: Trio of Nightmares Three novellas from Maine-based creators of horror: Chris Bernier, Katherine Silva, and Morgan Sylvia. Brought to life by naturalistic performances and immersive sound design, this season will bring you to a funeral for the magical dead, an estate in Northern England haunted by an accursed art collection, and a world ravaged by unearthly beings after genetic experiments go wildly wrong. Craving More Frights? Explore Past Seasons: Season 1: Simpson Falls - A reporter awakens malevolent forces in his haunted hometown. Season 2: Blood Forest - Every 20 years, werewolves descend for a night of horror. Starring Jack Falahee. Season 3: Dark Tome - A teen unleashes a terrifying story from a spooky bookshop. Season 4: The Well - Family secrets resurface, setting loose horror from an old well. Season 5: The Pulse - A meteorite awakens animalistic instincts in a group of treasure hunters. Season 6: The Sisters - True events inspire a chilling tale of occult & possession. Starring Mae Whitman. Season 7: Last Call - A hustler gambles for his life against the Grim Reaper. Season 8: Narcosis - A rescue dive turns deadly beneath the waves. Season 9: The Harrowing - A barbaric crime heralds the rise of an ancient evil. Season 10: Hovering - A police officer is pulled into unimaginable circumstances when he starts investigating calls about an object in the sky. Binge Ad-Free & Early! Subscribe at realm.fm.

0.0 (0)

DRAMA
Welcome to Geek & Sundry’s hub for all things RPG! Each week, our collection of deeply nerdy storytellers take you on epic journeys across the multiverse in our critically acclaimed actual play podcasts that use tabletop role-playing games to tell ever-evolving, improvised stories, including the complete collection of Critical Role’s Campaign 1. Current Season: Sagas of Sundry: Goblin Mode Three monstrous minions find themselves in charge for once when the evil necromancer they serve mysteriously disappears. Will they remain in the dungeon or venture into the light to tell their own tale? Find out on Sagas of Sundry: Goblin Mode with gamemaster Amy Vorpahl and cast members Jason Nguyen, Danielle Radford, and Dan Casey. And stay tuned for a look inside the episode each week on Quests N’ Answers, our exclusive Goblin Mode after show! Craving even more adventures? Past seasons include: Critical Role Campaign 1 | Vox Machina (C1E1-C115): A band of eight unlikely heroes, find themselves on a quest to save the realm of Exandria from dark magical forces in this epic saga starring Matthew Mercer, Travis Willingham, Laura Bailey, Liam O’Brien, Ashley Johnson, Marisha Ray, and Sam Riegel. The show that inspired Prime Video’s The Legend of Vox Machina animated series. Critical Role Campaign 2 | Mighty Nein (C2E1-C2E19): Set 20 years after the events of Campaign One, a group of seven adventurers coalesce on the continent of Wildemount where they discover ancient evils, sinister plots, and far more than they bargained for. Experience the rest of the story on CriticalRole.com. Relics & Rarities Created by Deborah Ann Woll (Daredevil, True Blood), this bold episodic fantasy story transports you to a world of magic, murder, and monsters. In a story guided by Woll, using Dungeons & Dragons as a core narrative mechanic, a crew of bold players embark on a quest to stop an unholy prophecy from coming to fruition. Special guests include Matthew Lillard, Kevin Smith, Charlie Cox, and more. Plus, we have a plethora of one-shot adventures under our CelebriD&D banner, with guest stars like Vin Diesel, Joe Manganiello, and many more! Video versions and more information available on https://www.geekandsundry.com

4.9 (8)

GAMES
Shadows at the Door brings to life a collection of unearthly tales and spirited debate. Drawing on the haunted landscapes of classic folk horror, the podcast lifts the veil on some of your favourite ghost stories, and presents new fables throughout a series of macabre audio dramas. Shadows at the Door: The Podcast artfully showcases the unsettling, the unearthly, and the uncanny, with new tellings of beloved ghost stories, and spectral yarns created exclusively for the podcast by some of the most exciting writers in modern horror. Join hosts Mark Nixon and David Ault as they bring you ghoulish dramatisations, and discuss what makes the ghost story such a powerful, enduring force in cultures around the world.

5.0 (4)

DRAMA
The first test of light speed flight has gone wrong, hurling an astronaut deep into the future where he searches the planets for remnants of the human race. 12 Episodes. Created, written and directed by Alexander Adell. Join our Discord for bonus content, discussion and AMAs https://discord.com/invite/JbwJN3TVGK Celeritas creator Alexander Adell is writing his next project in public, follow on Instagram to watch the train wreck: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_deDLtoROk/

4.8 (5)

SCIENCE FICTION
When anyone asks Audrey why she moved to Alaska, she tells them for a fresh start. But a lot of the people in Alaska are hiding from something. And Audrey is no different. When she journeyed to Alaska, she found something even more dangerous. Maybe we feel the uncanny valley because long ago, we had to fear something that pretended to be human.

5.0 (1)

DRAMA