Dead Robots' Society
Writers talking about writing. Writers talking about publishing. Writers talking about life. Authors Terry Mixon, Paul E Cooley, and Veronica Giguerre interview, babble, and usually cover a number of disassociated topics.
SciFi/Fantasy Social Systems and World Building
Does your future or fantasy world require a system of government? How about a social caste system? How in-depth do you need to be in constructing social norms, mores, and taboos?
The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://ww...
Aliens and Religion
What effect, if any, would the discovery of aliens have on today's religions? Will those religions change if we become a truly space-faring race? Will new religions take their place?
The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.te...
Audible, AI, and Lawsuits
Audible is literally stealing from content creators, Eleven Labs is accused of stealing voices, and the DRS Crew is at its wits' end.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Dis...
Timelines and Other Temporal Mischief
Terry and Veronica wonder about timelines and whether or not Paul exists after his surgery.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Co...
Arcs Vs Arcs
What are character arcs vs story arcs? Why do they matter?
The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy th...
So You Wrote A Novel... Now What?
You wrote and sweated over every word. You've revised, you've edited, you've done everything to make this the best story of your life. You've even got a great cover. So what do you do to make that first sale and to keep it going? In other words, how do you "succeed?"
The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
...
Brevity, Foreshadowing, And Sanity
When should you distill an entire scene in a couple of sentences? Do you always have to write an entire scene to convey information? Also, how much foreshadowing is too much?
The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://ww...
Bibles, Fragments, and Corners
What's the best way to create a story bible? What about those little fragments you've written? How do you turn those into scenes or stories? Most importantly, however, how do you write yourself out a corner?
The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: htt...
Publishing Industry News...Now With AI!
Hachette pulls a book. Claude source code leaks. HarperCollins signs a deal with an AI animation studio....
The DRS Crew pontificates.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gift with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://di...
How Do You Climax?
You've taken your characters to the edge. The plot is nearly finished. Now it's time for the big reveal. How do you make it happen? The DRS Crew discusses.
DRS caffeinates with Larry's Coffee. If you want to purchase fair-trade, organically grown beans that brew into smooth, balanced, never-bitter coffee, visit LarrysCoffee.com/drs, receive a free gif with your purchase, and help support The Dead Robots' Society.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.co...
Sciency-Solutions and Technobabble
"Captain! The doomaflachie is reaching critical something-or-other!"
Science fiction literature is rife with technobabble, questionable science, and straight-up fantastical solutions to both celestial and relatively mundane problems. How much is too much? The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and r...
Slimmin' Down and Toe-Taggin'
Publishers sometimes require a minimum word count, while magazines, contests, etc might impose a maximum word count. While adding words is easy, how do you decide what to cut?
Also, what is an "unhappily ever after" story, and why does Paul write them?
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and f...
The Lesson of John Wick
Paul is on a walkabout, so Terry and Veronica are on deck to extoll the virtues of John Wick. Chiefly, how he responds to animal abuse.
Join Terry and V as they discuss how best to use animals in stories. Also, what not to do... Unless...
Chat will bring their favorite pet.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? C...
John Wick Is Boring
Gunfights? Explosions? Marvelous melee mayhem? Non-stop action scenes that go on for dozens of minutes? Works great in visual media, but how well does it translate into literature?
The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the p...
Love, Lust, and Sex
It's Valentine's Day, and the DRS Crew is in the mood for romance. And maybe a little "rumpy-pumpy."
Chat will bring flowers and chocolate.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More information a...
Repeat The Plot?
The DRS Crew recently discussed violating reader expectations. But what should writers expect from their readers? Can you trust them to remember vital clues or key details? Or do you have to repeat them every so often?
The DRS Crew has thoughts. We're sure chat will, too.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Bu...
Space Opera With Dinosaurs!
When as a reader do you draw the line on suspension of disbelief? Should writers mash up genres without significant tells that the story will have left turns? And if you're going to write that kind of story, what should you be concerned about?
The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or...
Topic? What Topic?
The DRS Crew didn't do their homework and have nothing planned for today's lesson. Therefore, we'll regale you with whatever comes to mind...
Perhaps chat will help/hinder us.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and r...
Happy New Year! Now Get To Work!
It's 2026, and the DRS Crew has plans. What are they doing to make 2026 more successful?
What are you doing to make your 2026 successful?
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More information at h...
2026 Approaches...
While Terry is on a walkabout, Paul and V discuss plans for 2026, including ad budgets, editing budgets, cover budgets, etc. Also? Aren't we supposed to write, too?
The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast f...
Karmic Monsters
Monsters are not always forces of nature. Sometimes they only come for those who deserve them. The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More information at https://patreon.com/drspodcast and ht...
Websites, Social Media, and Stores--What Do You Need?
A DRS Patron asks the question: Do you need an author website? Do you need a store?
The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More information at htt...
Influence and Reimagination
How does fiction influence society? What about the inverse?
Also, can one pull plots from classic literature or films and repurpose them in modern works?
The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free a...
Author Nation Autopsy
Veronica and Terry have returned from the "Author Nation" convention and have more than a few thoughts. Paul will heckle.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More information at https://patreon.com/drspodcast and ht...
Going Solo
Can you have subplots when there's only a single main character? How do you handle it when there are no repeated secondary characters?
The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. M...
What's Going On?
There's more Amazon/Audible news. There's Salesforce news. There's...
How do you keep up on the industry gossip, buzz, and class action lawsuits? The DRS Crew discusses and takes on chat. They've been obnoxious lately...
Our links:
Dead Robots' Society: https://deadrobotssociety.com
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter, and for as little as $1 a month, you can help k...
Zero Drafts and Lovecraft
What is a "Zero Draft?" Can the processes outlined help you in your writing?
Also in this episode, Paul and V discuss Lovecraft's "Call of Cthulu."
Our links:
Dead Robots' Society: https://deadrobotssociety.com
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter, and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More in...
Sea Turtles and Deadlines
Paul has returned from an eco-tour of Costa Rica. While he had a great time, he's now behind the proverbial 8-ball with a deadline. Terry knows how he feels. So does V.
Why are deadlines terrifying to some, but a motivating factor for others? The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or...
We're Gonna Need A Bigger Starship!
Terry has gone full bonkers for starships, including creating blueprints and statistics. This madness must be appreciated., The DRS Crew discusses the kinds of detail you should have for your ships, what you should ignore, and when to know the difference.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a...
Audible 2 Scamaloo and Going Wide
Turns out that the Audible Premium Plus scam was before our eyes all along...
After that discussion, the DRS Crew explains how to go wide.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive exclusive content. More information a...
Alien:Earth and Worldbuilding
Paul has thoughts about the new series Alien: Earth. Would the series work if it weren't part of the Alien franchise universe? The DRS Crew discusses world-building and the necessary ingredients of a cyberpunk future.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep t...
Audible Is Destroying Livelihoods!
Audible's new "Audible+" program will destroy the livelihoods of narrators and authors. How will it do that? The DRS Crew discusses, and V brings cats to help explain things.
For background, please watch:
• Audible Is Broken
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter, and for as little as $1 a mont...
Pruning Season
The DRS Crew discusses how to prioritize those pesky side gigs (anthologies, short-story magazines, etc) and decide whether they are compatible with your long-term goals.
In other words, knowing when to say "No, thanks."
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help k...
Sticking To It
Terry has published over forty novels. Paul? Almost twenty. V has contributed both her writing and vocal talents to dozens of novels. None of these things happened overnight and required persistence.
The DRS Crew discusses how to keep on keeping on.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as l...
What's Up, Doc?
Author Doc Coleman joins Terry and Paul for a discussion on all things Steampunk, Gaslamp, and anything else we can think of.
Doc Coleman: https://www.doccoleman.com/
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive e...
Art In Darkness
When the world is filled with darkness and despair, creating art is one of the most courageous acts most of us can accomplish. Are we allowed to find joy in our creations during times of war, disease, and civil strife? More importantly, do people need art to survive? The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a...
Good Writing Neighbors
Writer's groups can be an excellent place to exchange ideas, discover new resources, and meet new people. They can also be toxic waste dumps.
What are the traits of good writing neighbors and neighborhoods? What's the proper etiquette for becoming a good writing neighbor?
The DRS Crew gives their thoughts.
Chat will no doubt complain about the Discord server.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS...
The Public Domain Is Your Playground
Stuck for an idea? Want to pay homage to a class work? Is it in the public domain? If the answer is yes, it's your playground. The DRS Crew discusses.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive e...
Tropeic Topics
What tropes do you have to have in a romance? How about suspense versus thriller? The DRS Crew once again takes a question from chat and runs off the rails.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for as little as $1 a month, you can help keep the podcast free and receive e...
Author/Genre/Reader Expectations
The DRS Crew trolled the topics channel and hit paydirt.
We'll discuss how to tell when you're writing in the wrong genre, expectations of genres, and reader expectations. Should we have time, we'll also touch on getting new readers and integrating backstories.
Our links:
Paul's store: https://payhip.com/paulecooley
Paul's site: https://shadowpublications.com
Terry's site: https://www.terrymixon.com/
Veronica: http://www.voicesbyveronica.com/
DRS Discord: https://discord.gg/pgmQxaVbGP
Enjoy the show? Consider becoming a Patreon or Buy Me A Coffee supporter and for a...
