The Dark Mind Podcast

Vincent Midgard
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Arts
  • Updated Weekly

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. 5d ago

    Marc E. Fitch: Horror, Human Nature, and Moral Complicity

    On this episode of The Dark Mind Podcast, horror author and investigative reporter Marc E. Fitch joins me to discuss his new short story collection, There Was No One There. We talk about the capacity for evil hidden inside ordinary people and why Marc believes a scare lasts a moment, while horror comes home with you. Marc shares the real-life experiences behind his stories, from a frightening moment in the ocean with his daughter to the Christian hymn that inspired The Starry Crown. He explains how the collection's order follows the rise and fall of a piece of classical music, and why he rewrote the ending of Monster Parade twenty-five times. We also discuss how investigative journalism and horror fiction feed each other, and why he believes much more of life rests on belief than we like to admit. Marc reflects on thirteen years bartending beside a bus station, twelve years in inpatient psychiatric hospitals, and the harder view of the world those years left him with. Finally, he talks about raising four teenagers and why parenthood is the most frightening thing he has ever done. Official Website https://www.marcefitch.com Instagram https://www.instagram.com/marce.fitch/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MarcE.Fitch/[facebook] X https://x.com/fitch_marc[x] Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6506478.Marc_E_Fitch Inside Investigator https://insideinvestigator.org/marc-e-fitch/ There Was No One There on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HDVVQ9PQ There Was No One There on Kindle https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H1FL1ZTD There Was No One There on Barnes & Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/9781958842744[barnesandnoble] There Was No One There on Audible https://www.audible.com/author/Marc-E-Fitch/B00DW6GDV4[audible] Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Marc E. Fitch: Horror, Human Nature, and Moral Complicity

  2. Sep 22

    Chris Panatier on Fatherhood, Fear, and Intrusive Thoughts

    Chris Panatier returns to The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his new novel Worry Box, out September 22 from Angry Robot. The book follows the Martin family as they move into a new home while preparing to adopt their foster daughter, Lailah. Troubled by increasingly violent intrusive thoughts, Lailah writes them down and hides them inside a homemade worry box, hoping to quiet her mind. When disturbing events begin unfolding around the house, the family is forced to question whether the danger comes from Lailah, their new home, or something none of them fully understand. In this conversation, Chris explains why he set out to write a horror novel in which every character is genuinely doing their best and things still fall apart. He talks openly about drawing Lailah's intrusive thoughts from his own experience, which intensified after his daughter was born. He describes the research he did into adoption and foster care, and his decision to avoid the story readers might expect. We get into Alison and Nathan, two parents with very different histories, and the point where they stop being a team and start butting heads. Chris also discusses Dru, the sister who holds on the longest, and why she became one of his all time favorite characters. He breaks down his approach to the house itself, which he treated as a member of the family with a history and a point of view of its own. He shares his theory that a house is essentially a sponge that absorbs the residue of everyone who has lived in it. We talk about the kinship between Worry Box and A Head Full of Ghosts, and where the two books diverge. Chris explains how humor functions as a pressure release valve inside an otherwise intense story. He reflects on twenty five years of trial work, and how prying a story out of unwilling hands taught him that a story never simply arrives intact. He talks about rewriting this book several times, and how instinct in art is acquired through repetition rather than something you are born with. Chris also looks ahead to Daytide arriving from Saga Press, a collaborative comedy slasher with Sam Rebelein called Final Girl Greg, and a forthcoming Angry Robot novel titled So You Want to Summon a Demon. He closes with a candid look at burnout, envy, and why he now celebrates every other writer's success. Official Website https://chrispanatier.com/[chrispanatier] Instagram https://www.instagram.com/chrispanatier/ Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18894703.Chris_Panatier[goodreads] Publisher Page for Worry Box https://angryrobotbooks.com/books/worry-box/[angryrobotbooks] Penguin Random House https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/827562/worry-box-by-chris-panatier/[penguinrandomhouse] Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/1836730322 Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/worry-box-chris-panatier/1149014636 Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Chris Panatier on Fatherhood, Fear, and Intrusive Thoughts

  3. Sep 15

    Megan Mostyn-Brown: Writing Horror That Eats at Us

    Megan Mostyn-Brown joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss her debut horror novel, The Need. The novel follows a family living with a rare genetic disorder that requires those who inherit it to consume human flesh or die. Megan explores how this gruesome compulsion becomes a source of shame and survival for one family but a symbol of privilege and power for another. Our conversation examines cannibalism, class inequality, food insecurity, body image, inherited trauma, family secrecy, and the moral boundaries people create to justify survival. Megan also discusses balancing body horror with dark comedy, writing six distinct first-person narrators, and transforming a television concept considered too grisly for the screen into a psychologically intimate novel. We trace her creative journey from child actor and playwright to television writer and producer on series including Gotham, NOS4A2, Bodkin, and Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches. Official Author Page: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2348127/megan-mostyn-brown/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meganmostynbrown/ The Need from Penguin Random House: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/803620/the-need-by-megan-mostyn-brown/ Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=The+Need+Megan+Mostyn-Brown Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-need-megan-mostyn-brown/1148963720 Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/search?term=The%20Need%20Megan%20Mostyn-Brown Libro.fm Audiobook: https://libro.fm/audiobooks/9798217407941-the-need Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Megan Mostyn-Brown: Writing Horror That Eats at Us

  4. Sep 8

    James Oliver: Building the Debilitator Splatterverse

    Extreme horror author, audiobook narrator, and Sadistic Force musician James Oliver joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss Debilitator: A Collection of Wretchedness. His first short story collection combines eight stories and a poem, connecting new material with characters and events from his earlier books. James discusses using graphic violence, bodily disgust, sexual transgression, and dark comedy to confront social frustration and test the boundaries readers bring to extreme horror. The conversation explores the collection’s interconnected world, its most difficult material, and the challenges of adapting the stories for an audiobook and limited cassette edition. James also discusses independent publishing through Pure Abandon Press, editing the extreme metal horror anthology Rotten Requiems, writing children’s fiction as J. W. Oliver, and the relationship between his fiction and music. James Oliver Links Official Website: https://www.jamesoliverhorror.com/ Official Store: https://www.jamesoliverhorror.com/products Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejamesoliver/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW2SE8R-RqaAYhSPBvFCuIg Substack: https://jamesoliverhorror.substack.com/ All Social Links: https://linktr.ee/jamesoliverhorror Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/54899971.James_Oliver Sadistic Force Official Website: https://sadisticforce.com/ Sadistic Force Bandcamp: https://sadisticforce.bandcamp.com/ Buy or Stream James Oliver’s Work Debilitator Book on Tape: https://www.jamesoliverhorror.com/product/debilitator-book-on-tape Audible Author Page: https://www.audible.com/author/James-Oliver/B0DX7MJZVX Storytel: https://www.storytel.com/in/narrators/james-oliver-evelyn-albarran-oliver-carietta-dorsch-jason-rowe-1299447 Amazon, Genital Rot: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0DX7CY2RZ/ Amazon, Sacrificial Slaughter: https://www.amazon.com/Sacrificial-Slaughter-James-Oliver-ebook/dp/B0FHP9MMND Barnes & Noble, Sacrificial Slaughter: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sacrificial-slaughter-r-e-shambrook/1147651321 Godless, Sacrificial Slaughter: https://godless.com/products/sacrificial-slaughter-by-james-oliver-and-r-e-shambrook-july-23rd?_pos=1&_sid=0efbae9eae&_ss=r Support The Dark Mind Podcast [https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast](https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast)

    James Oliver: Building the Debilitator Splatterverse

  5. Sep 1

    Mike Salt: Isolation, Art, and Cosmic Dread

    Author Mike Salt joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his psychological horror novel No One Was Ever Really in This Place. The story follows Felix, a man struggling with anxiety, depression, and invisibility who awakens to find his city completely empty. Mike discusses building an artificial and unsettling world, blending psychological horror with cosmic dread, and writing about isolation without losing sight of human vulnerability. The conversation also explores his Linkville stories, the collaborative Price Manor universe, his direct relationship with readers, and his fast, minimally polished writing process. Mike also reflects on family, supernatural experiences, and the personal fears that find their way into his fiction. Official Website, Currently Unavailablehttps://www.mikesaltauthor.com Official Storehttps://mikesalt.bigcartel.com Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_salt/ TikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_salt TikTok Shophttps://shop.tiktok.com/us/store/mike-salt-spooky-author/7494225790817305839 Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/mikesaltmoose Xhttps://x.com/mikesaltmoose Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14987021.Mike_Salt No One Was Ever Really in This Place at Wicked Househttps://wickedhouse.com/book/no-one-was-ever-really-in-this-place/ Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GSGXSLSN Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/No-One-Was-Ever-Really-in-This-Place-Audiobook/B0HD1FLMKD Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Mike Salt: Isolation, Art, and Cosmic Dread

  6. Aug 25

    Alex Grass: From Mortuary School to Weird Fiction

    EPISODE DESCRIPTION Author Alex Grass joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss Infernal Tramps: Tales of Weird Terror, a collection held together by an intuitive cadence and a recurring uncertainty about what is real. Grass examines the unexpected connections between vanity, hunger, greed, corporate power, bodily transformation, and monstrous behavior. The conversation explores The Golden Mile, in which a resurrected dog drives Philadelphia toward collective madness, and Ever Shall They Feed, a story shaped by Grass’s familiarity with funeral homes and mortuary work. Grass also discusses the polarizing use of untranslated German, the difference between flash fiction and longer stories, and the challenge of controlling surreal imagery during revision. He explains how the collection’s illustrations were created from modified public-domain images and why he refuses to use artificial intelligence for that work. The episode also covers independent publishing, creative control, the discomfort of revisiting older work, and the decision to leave law school for writing. Grass concludes with a reading from A Woman of Distinction, featuring a five-hundred-year-old killer who considers good manners a matter of life and death. GUEST LINKS Official Infernal Tramps Websitehttps://www.infernaltramps.com/ Dickinson Publishing Grouphttps://www.dickinsonpublishinggroup.com/ Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/infernaltramps/ Dickinson Publishing Group on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/dickinson-publishing-group-61a894425/ Amazon Author Pagehttps://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B08KPKTV9R Goodreads Author Pagehttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20768021.Alex_Grass Goodreads Book Pagehttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/249709542-infernal-tramps AllAuthor Profilehttps://allauthor.com/author/alexgrass/ Piker Press Author Pagehttps://www.pikerpress.com/author/774/alex-grass Amazon Kindle and Kindle Unlimitedhttps://www.amazon.com/Infernal-Tramps-Tales-Weird-Terror-ebook/dp/B0GSN4BX4Y Amazon Paperbackhttps://www.amazon.com/Infernal-Tramps-Tales-Weird-Terror/dp/B0H3QQ2J9Q Barnes and Noble Paperbackhttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/9781735888569 Target Paperbackhttps://www.target.com/p/infernal-tramps-by-alex-grass-paperback/-/A-1012836556 Stream Odd Egg on Weekly Spookyhttps://www.weeklyspooky.com/alex-grass/ Stream Odd Egg on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrsdXjlnpsM Stream Night of the Living Bedsheet on Apple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/night-of-the-living-bedsheet-by-alex-grass/id1581361592?i=1000766437331 Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Alex Grass: From Mortuary School to Weird Fiction

  7. Aug 18

    A.P. Thayer: Hunger, Identity, and Parasitic Horror

    A.P. Thayer joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his debut horror novel, Tapeworm.Set in the isolated California desert, the novel combines parasitic vampires, body horror, sexual tension, and the unraveling of longtime friendships.Thayer discusses the real writing retreat that inspired the story and his decision to replace traditional gothic vampires with something stranger, sexier, and more grotesque.The conversation explores aging, identity, buried desire, queer horror, and the instability of the human body.Thayer also discusses his other fiction, his writing process, his concept of nightmarism, and receiving an autism diagnosis as an adult.GUEST LINKSWEBSITEOfficial Websitehttps://www.apthayer.com/Newsletter: Strange Speculationshttps://apthayer.substack.comContact Pagehttps://www.apthayer.com/contactSOCIAL MEDIAInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/apthayerBlueskyhttps://bsky.app/profile/apthayer.bsky.socialThreadshttps://www.threads.com/@apthayerGoodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17770269.A_P_ThayerReddit AMAhttps://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/rlfgez/im_ap_thayer_a_published_short_story_author/BUY OR LISTEN TO TAPEWORMEvil Twin and Zando: Hardcoverhttps://zandoprojects.com/books/tapeworm-hardcoverEvil Twin and Zando: Ebookhttps://zandoprojects.com/books/tapeworm-ebookEvil Twin and Zando: Audiobookhttps://zandoprojects.com/books/tapeworm-audiobookPenguin Random House: Hardcoverhttps://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/811852/tapeworm-by-a-p-thayer/Penguin Random House: Audiobookhttps://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/834553/tapeworm-by-a-p-thayer/Amazon: Hardcoverhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/1638933456Amazon Canada: Hardcoverhttps://www.amazon.ca/dp/1638933456Barnes and Noble: Hardcoverhttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tapeworm-a-p-thayer/1149462667Barnes and Noble: Nook Ebookhttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/?ean=9781638933939Barnes and Noble: Audiobookhttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/?ean=2940202156281Bookshop.orghttps://bookshop.org/p/books/tapeworm-a-vampire-novel-a-p-thayer/487f028c9b6f65c9Targethttps://www.target.com/p/tapeworm-by-a-p-thayer-hardcover/-/A-95278559Apple Books: Ebookhttps://books.apple.com/us/book/tapeworm/id6759136577Google Play Books: Ebookhttps://play.google.com/store/books/details/A_P_Thayer_Tapeworm?id=LC_BEQAAQBAJGoogle Play: Audiobookhttps://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details/A_P_Thayer_Tapeworm?id=AQAAAEAaf2g_YMAudiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/Tapeworm-Audiobook/B0GNFVR18KLibro.fmhttps://libro.fm/audiobooks/9798217410583Spotify Audiobookshttps://open.spotify.com/show/0OEDJ32TyYbuRoiQNNqYTcChirphttps://www.chirpbooks.com/isbn/9798217410583Audiobooks.comhttps://www.audiobooks.com/audiobook/9798217410583AudiobookStore.comhttps://audiobookstore.com/audiobooks/tapewormLibby and OverDrive: Audiobookhttps://www.overdrive.com/media/12891079/tapewormLibby and OverDrive: Ebookhttps://www.overdrive.com/media/12891923/tapewormWaterstoneshttps://www.waterstones.com/book/tapeworm/a-p-thayer/9781638933458Blackwell’shttps://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/9781638933458Penguin Books New Zealandhttps://www.penguin.co.nz/books/tapeworm-9781638933458Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    A.P. Thayer: Hunger, Identity, and Parasitic Horror

  8. Aug 11

    Lauren Lee Smith: The Night Pool, Feminist Horror, and Forgotten History

    Author Lauren Lee Smith joins The Dark Mind to discuss her debut novel, The Night Pool. Set in Gold Rush-era Coloma, California, the novel follows three women confronting human brutality, supernatural forces, and the histories buried beneath the mythology of the American West. Lauren discusses transforming the land itself into a source of possession horror and using monsters as vessels for grief, rage, and resistance. She also examines the destruction of Nisenan communities, violence against Chinese immigrants, and the challenge of writing experiences that have been neglected by the historical record. The conversation explores her severe postpartum depression and anxiety, the personal origins of The Playroom Ghost, her rural Northern California childhood, and the horror films that shaped her imagination. Lauren also reveals that The Night Pool has been optioned, discusses the screenplay adaptation, previews her Mojave vampire novel, and explains why she believes human intention cannot be replicated by artificial intelligence. The Night Pool will be published by Blackstone Publishing on August 25, 2026. GUEST LINKS Lauren Lee Smith Website http://laurenleesmith.net/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lololeereverie/ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@lololeereverie Threads https://www.threads.com/@lololeereverie X https://x.com/lololeereverie Substack https://substack.com/@laurenleesmith Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/61062312.Lauren_Lee_Smith THE NIGHT POOL Blackstone Publishing https://www.blackstonepublishing.com/products/book-jqoy Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/9798228350274 Barnes & Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-night-pool-lauren-lee-smith/1148495489?ean=9798228350274 Barnes & Noble Audiobook https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-night-pool-lauren-lee-smith/1148495489?ean=2940201219772 Audible https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Night-Pool-Audiobook/B0FW7LWFS8 Google Play Books https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Lauren_Lee_Smith_The_Night_Pool?id=CCeOEQAAQBAJ Target https://www.target.com/p/the-night-pool-by-lauren-lee-smith/-/A-95269156 Indigo https://www.indigo.ca/en-ca/the-night-pool/9798228350274.html OTHER WORK Pretend You Don’t See Her: The Invisible Woman Includes Lauren Lee Smith’s story Selkie’s Stew Kandisha Press https://kandishapress.com/pretend-you-dont-see-her/ Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H7G21ZDY The Playroom Ghost FOLIO Literary Journal https://www.folioliteraryjournal.com/2023-horror Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Lauren Lee Smith: The Night Pool, Feminist Horror, and Forgotten History
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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
    226
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Vincent Midgard
  • Show Website
    The Dark Mind Podcast