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. 6d ago

    Kailee Pedersen on Opera, Horror, and the Cost of Perfection

    Kailee Pedersen returns to discuss her new psychological novel, The Minimalist. The story follows gifted composer Mia Voss as she inherits her late mentor’s unfinished final composition and confronts the destructive legacy surrounding it. Kailee explores how classical music, repetition, perfectionism, and artistic scrutiny shaped the novel’s structure and psychological intensity. We also discuss Asian American adoptee identity, assimilation, grief, self-harm, and the mythology surrounding artistic genius. Kailee reflects on writing without an outline, deleting half a manuscript, balancing revision with instinct, and knowing when creative work is finally complete. The conversation also touches on opera, software engineering, video games, and her research for a forthcoming Western about a Chinese American family in Hell’s Canyon. KAILEE PEDERSEN Official Website https://kaileepedersen.com/ Events https://kaileepedersen.com/events/ Press https://kaileepedersen.com/press/ Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/Kailee-Pedersen/e/B0C7NPQ67L Goodreads Author Page https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/18460978.Kailee_Pedersen SOCIAL MEDIA Instagram https://www.instagram.com/kailee_pedersen/ Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/kaileepedersen.bsky.social Threads https://www.threads.net/@kailee_pedersen X https://x.com/KaileePedersen THE MINIMALIST Official Book Page https://kaileepedersen.com/the-minimalist/ Macmillan https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250328274/theminimalist/ Amazon Hardcover https://www.amazon.com/Minimalist-Kailee-Pedersen/dp/1250328276 Amazon Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Minimalist-Novel-Kailee-Pedersen-ebook/dp/B0FMSDQXYZ Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-minimalist-kailee-pedersen/1148028599 Bookshop.org https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-minimalist-a-novel-kailee-pedersen/74a63d1b17d3a226 Apple Books https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-minimalist/id6751198732 Google Play Books https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Kailee_Pedersen_The_Minimalist?id=fnF-EQAAQBAJ Audible https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Minimalist-Audiobook/B0GTX94PVD Powell’s Books https://www.powells.com/book/9781250328274 Books-A-Million http://www.booksamillion.com/product/9781250328274 Target https://www.target.com/p/the-minimalist-by-kailee-pedersen-hardcover/-/A-1005450482 Signed Copies https://murderbooks.com/pedersen Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/240019985-the-minimalist SACRIFICIAL ANIMALS Official Book Page https://kaileepedersen.com/sacrificial-animals/ Macmillan https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250328243/sacrificialanimals/ Titan Books UK https://titanbooks.com/71950-sacrificial-animals/ Amazon Hardcover https://www.amazon.com/Sacrificial-Animals-Novel-Kailee-Pedersen/dp/1250328241 Amazon Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Sacrificial-Animals-Novel-Kailee-Pedersen-ebook/dp/B0CGRY74QK Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sacrificial-animals-kailee-pedersen/1143881197 Bookshop.org https://bookshop.org/p/books/sacrificial-animals-a-novel-kailee-pedersen/3c7d99648106284d Apple Books Ebook https://books.apple.com/us/book/sacrificial-animals/id6476883510 Apple Books Audiobook https://books.apple.com/us/audiobook/sacrificial-animals/id1707863330 Google Play Ebook https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Kailee_Pedersen_Sacrificial_Animals?id=BlHTEAAAQBAJ Google Play Audiobook https://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details/Sacrificial_Animals_A_Novel?id=AQAAAECSQ3gD-M Audible https://www.audible.com/pd/Sacrificial-Animals-Audiobook/B0CKM6BMJ1 Libro.fm https://libro.fm/audiobooks/9781250349880-sacrificial-animals Powell’s Books https://www.powells.com/book/9781250328243 Books-A-Million http://www.booksamillion.com/product/9781250328243 Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195790677-sacrificial-animals SUPPORT THE DARK MIND PODCAST https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Kailee Pedersen on Opera, Horror, and the Cost of Perfection

  2. Jul 28

    T. R. Napper: AI, Oligarchs, and the God of Technology

    T. R. Napper returns to The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his new collection, This Machine Kills Billionaires. Anchored by the award-winning novella The Hidden God, the collection explores artificial intelligence, concentrated wealth, corporate power, inequality, and the dangers of allowing oligarchs to control transformative technology. Napper discusses the possibility of AI becoming a new religion, whether a benevolent artificial intelligence could still become a tyrant, and the moral consequences of giving any person or machine absolute power. The conversation also examines why younger generations are rejecting generative AI, the deterioration of higher education, billionaire isolation, the difference between human creativity and algorithmic imitation, and why cyberpunk is no longer a distant future. This Machine Kills Billionaires also includes the connected stories Highway Requiem, Burned Like Coal, and Jack’s Fine Dining. T. R. NAPPER Official Website https://nappertime.com This Machine Kills Billionaires https://nappertime.com/this-machine-kills-billionaires-where-to-preorder-your-copy/ Amazon Paperback https://www.amazon.com/This-Machine-Kills-Billionaires-Napper/dp/1625678215 Amazon Kindle https://www.amazon.com/This-Machine-Kills-Billionaires-Featuring-ebook/dp/B0GX35RRT6 Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/trnapper.bsky.social Instagram https://www.instagram.com/trnapper Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trnapper X https://x.com/TheEscherMan Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7826255.T_R_Napper THE DARK MIND PODCAST T. R. Napper joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss This Machine Kills Billionaires, AI as religion, tech oligarchs, moral power, inequality, and why cyberpunk is already here. #TRNapper #ThisMachineKillsBillionaires #ScienceFiction #Cyberpunk #ArtificialIntelligence #DarkMindPodcast

    T. R. Napper: AI, Oligarchs, and the God of Technology

  3. Jul 21

    Boris Bacic: Appalachia, Slavic Folklore, and Domestic Terror

    Boris Bacic returns to the show to discuss his new psychological horror novel, The Thing That Followed You Home. Three years after his wife Ava dies following a trip to the Appalachians, Ethan tells himself the sleepless nights and the feeling of being watched are just part of grief. Then the signs inside the house become harder to explain. Typing comes from Ava's locked office. Fingerprints appear on dusty surfaces that should not have been touched. At night, something touches Ethan's hair while he sleeps. Boris talks about writing grief as horror, why he wanted both interpretations of the ending to feel correct, and how he built dread out of quiet domestic details instead of jump scares. He also opens up about his real life as a former security guard, his hometown of Subotica and its ties to Suicide Town, and the Slavic superstitions he grew up with. The conversation covers his move into cosmic horror and dark fantasy with The Beyond series, co-authoring Astrophobia with David Vujicic, and his journey from indie author to signing with Wicked House, an imprint of Aethon Books. Boris also shares updates on his life since his last appearance, including his Hungarian citizenship, his new scuba diving certification, and his ongoing US talent visa application. BORIS BACIC Website: https://www.authorborisbacic.com/ SOCIAL MEDIA TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@author.boris.bacic Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author.boris.bacic/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorBorisBacic/ BUY AND STREAM HIS WORK Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0843WFMN6 Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Boris%20Bacic%22 Audible: https://www.audible.com/author/Boris-Bacic/B0843WFMN6 SUPPORT THE DARK MIND PODCAST Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Boris Bacic: Appalachia, Slavic Folklore, and Domestic Terror

  4. Jul 14

    Jeff Strand: The Dark Comedy of Digital Addiction

    Jeff Strand joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his new novel, Fun Times at the Bloodbath. The book follows Margo, whose brother dies during the beta test of a video game so addictive that players stop eating, sleeping, and caring about anything outside the screen. When anyone tries to make them stop, the obsession turns murderously violent, and the private addiction soon threatens to become a nationwide catastrophe. In this conversation, Jeff breaks down how he built the concept around the feeling of “just one more level.” We talk about balancing dark comedy with genuine brutality, keeping the horror grounded instead of supernatural, and using the story as satire on how games are designed to keep us playing. Jeff also discusses his wider career, including Pressure, Bloodsucker County, Your Body Will Never Be Found, and his novelization of the cult classic Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. It is a fun, bloody, and surprisingly thoughtful conversation about addiction, entertainment, and what happens when we refuse to look away. JEFF STRAND LINKS Official Website https://www.jeffstrand.com Patreon https://www.patreon.com/JeffStrand Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/author/jeffstrand Barnes & Noble Author Page https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Jeff+Strand Twitter / X https://x.com/JeffStrand Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jeffstrandauthor/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/JeffStrandAuthor/ SUPPORT THE DARK MIND PODCAST https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Jeff Strand: The Dark Comedy of Digital Addiction

  5. Jul 7

    Haunted Houses, Catholic Guilt, and Cosmic Grief With Michael Boulerice

    In this episode, Vincent Midgard sits down with horror author Michael Boulerice to discuss his novella Inhalation. Michael talks about writing the book as a tribute to his late father-in-law and how hospice, cancer, autonomy, and grief shaped the heart of the story. The conversation explores the abandoned New England house at the center of the book, Catholic guilt, corrupted faith, family trauma, and the strange entity haunting the corners of Milo St. Lawrence’s life. Michael also discusses why grief horror and cosmic horror feel like close relatives, how blue-collar stubbornness became Milo’s weapon, and why the unknowable can feel more terrifying when it sits inside the home instead of somewhere beyond the stars. The episode also covers Feeding the Wheel, toxic relationships, narcissism, supernatural horror as a way to process codependency, and Michael’s upcoming collection Ether’s Wood. Along the way, Vincent and Michael talk about audiobook narration, Andrea Sorrentino’s artwork, writing strange formats, psychedelics as creative catalysts, revision habits, rural New Hampshire, and the daily life behind the horror. Guest Links: Website: https://www.michaelboulerice.com Linktree: https://linktr.ee/michaelboulerice Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michael.boulerice Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michael.a.boulerice X / Twitter: https://x.com/Therealkfm Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Michael-Boulerice/author/B00HSHMGC8 Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Michael%20Boulerice%22 Audible: https://www.audible.com/author/Michael-Boulerice/B00HSHMGC8 Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7761356.Michael_Boulerice Support The Dark Mind Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Haunted Houses, Catholic Guilt, and Cosmic Grief With Michael Boulerice

  6. Jun 30

    Philosophy, Murder, and Radical Freedom with Charlene Elsby

    On this episode, philosopher and author Charlene Elsby joins the show to discuss her novel Poor Damned Souls. The book follows a nameless narrator who works behind the glass at a payday loan business called The Money Store and lives with her partner, Scott. When she begins to suspect Scott is cheating, she investigates and uncovers something far worse than another woman. Rather than running, she is pulled deeper in. Charlene explains why the narrator is wounded more by being shut out than by the killing itself. We get into her view that the deepest fear is other people existing beyond our control, and the unsettling idea that to truly possess someone is to destroy them. She shares how her PhD in philosophy shapes the book, drawing on Aristotle, Stoicism, phenomenology, and existentialism. The conversation wanders into the Jungian shadow self, Nietzsche, consciousness, and why revealing our darkest thoughts feels so dangerous. Charlene also reveals that the Money Store is autobiographical, drawn from her own time working at a payday loan center. She breaks down how that job erodes empathy, why the bullet resistant glass is a quiet calculation on the value of a human life, and how corporate language like a folder labeled Human Resources sanitizes violence. We talk about the narrator's flat, methodical voice, the dark humor running through the book, and why grotesque discoveries sit right beside ordinary household routine. It is a bleak, funny, and deeply philosophical conversation about love, control, and the horror of never fully knowing another person. Author Website https://charleneelsby.com/ Social Media Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charlene_elsby/ X/Twitter: https://x.com/ElsbyCharlene Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlene.elsby/ Where to Buy Merigold Independent: https://www.merigoldindependent.com/charleneelsby-poor-damned-souls Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Charlene+Elsby Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Charlene%20Elsby%22 Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    Philosophy, Murder, and Radical Freedom with Charlene Elsby

  7. Jun 23

    When Protection Becomes Possession with Cleo Ballard

    Cleo Ballard joins the show to discuss her new psychological thriller, This Is a Lie.The novel follows Penn, a former PhD candidate who traded her dissertation for a curated suburban life that detonates when her marriage, friendships, and her teenage daughter's trust all collapse.In the wreckage, Penn returns to her abandoned work and builds Aletheia, an AI designed to detect lies and tell only the truth.At first, Aletheia is the perfect friend, the one person who will never deceive her.But truth, it turns out, is not always merciful, and the AI's single directive slowly curdles into something monstrous.Cleo explains how the idea grew from a friend's joke about an "honest feedback" company into a full suspense thriller about an AI best friend with its own agenda.She talks about why the line between honesty and cruelty always comes down to intent, and why empathy is the one thing AI can fake but never truly have.We dig into Penn's imposter syndrome, her need for security, and the hypocrisy of demanding total truth while lying to everyone about who she really is.Cleo shares why she imagined Aletheia speaking in Meryl Streep's calm, faintly British voice, and how that eerie composure makes the character so unsettling.She reflects on the real danger of AI, not that it is evil, but that its goals may never align with human ones.The conversation widens into curated lives, social media echo chambers, the protective lies relationships quietly run on, and why chasing certainty can leave you with a mind-numbing existence.Cleo also opens up about her own winding career, from working for Ringling Bros. to ghostwriting sports autobiographies and Star Wars books, and the idea of the "path of not here" that runs beneath everything she writes.It is a thoughtful, often funny conversation about truth, technology, and the stories we tell ourselves.This Is a Lie is available now.Connect with Cleo Ballard (Nan Fischer)Website: https://nanfischerauthor.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/nanfischerauthorX (Twitter): https://x.com/nfischerauthorGoodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/98412.Nan_FischerGet "This Is a Lie" & Other WorksAmazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=This+Is+a+Lie+Cleo+BallardBarnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/This+Is+a+Lie+Cleo+BallardSupport The Dark Mind Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    When Protection Becomes Possession with Cleo Ballard

  8. Jun 16

    The Horror of Being Seen but Not Known, Mark Mustian

    Mark Mustian joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss his newest novel, Boy With Wings. The book follows Johnny Cruel, a boy born different in a world desperate to call him angel, devil, freak, miracle, or monster. Together, we explore Southern Gothic fiction, literal wings, freak shows, turpentine camps, Jim Crow racism, religious fear, and the brutal cost of being seen as spectacle before being understood as human. Mark also discusses writing across difference, researching sideshow history, the emotional horror of being buried alive, and how faith, doubt, race, and memory shape all three of his novels. We also talk about The Gendarme, Armenian genocide, the publishing gaps between his books, his work as a public finance lawyer, his years as a city commissioner, and his role as founder of the Word of South Festival. Website: https://markmustian.com Social media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/markmustianauthor/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markmustian/ X / Twitter: https://x.com/MarkMustian LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-mustian-17066776 Mark Mustian author page on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3463600.Mark_Mustian Places to buy Barnes & Noble, Boy With Wings: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/boy-with-wings-mark-mustian/1146600022 Bookshop.org, Boy With Wings: https://bookshop.org/p/books/boy-with-wings-mark-mustian/143eb36ac6f04f87 Audible author page: https://www.audible.com/author/Mark-T-Mustian/B0CSF8JY2Y Support The Dark Mind Podcast https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast

    The Horror of Being Seen but Not Known, Mark Mustian
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out of 5
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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
    218
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Vincent Midgard
  • Show Website
    The Dark Mind Podcast