166 – Sam Rebelein & You Had Me At “Tongue-Monster!”

Some stories are just too big for one podcast. Some stories should be too big for one book. 

Sam Rebelein’s Edenville is one such story. This 300-something page novel has more crammed into it than your average fantasy trilogy. There is backstory upon backstory, a cosmic framework, and enough different monsters to fill Guillermo del Toro’s minibus. Yet somehow Sam corrals it all into a whimsical horror romp – a well-organised riot.

We talk about ideas… about thinking them up, letting them evolve and, most crucially, getting them on paper. We talk narcissistic writers, the power of dreams, the unique eeriness of the Hudson River Valley and the questionable nature of curses.

This conversation is a call to arms for writers. It’s a weary acceptance that maybe, just maybe, sitting your arse in the chair is the most important thing you can do all day.

Enjoy!

Edenville was published October 3rd by Titan Books and HarperCollins

Books mentioned:

• Echo (2022), by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
• Camp Damascus (2023), by Chuck Tingle
• Hannibal (1999), by Thomas Harris

Support Talking Scared on Patreon

Come talk books on Twitter @talkscaredpod, on Instagram, or email direct to talkingscaredpod@gmail.com