Auditory Anthology
Embark on a journey through time and imagination with 'Auditory Anthology,' a weekly podcast bringing to life the most captivating science fiction stories. Each episode, award-winning voice-artist and host of Weird Darkness Darren Marlar breathes life into a unique blend of classic and modern tales, ranging from time-honored masterpieces to groundbreaking works by emerging authors. Curated and produced by Keith Conrad. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Wake Up & Maiden Voyage – Chapter Four: The Opportunity
On the maiden voyage of the MV Atlas, the world’s largest cruise ship, a ghost operative team attempts a silent extraction of a high-value defector carrying an impossible secret: an ancient, non-human artifact. Hidden amongst twenty-two thousand passengers and stalked by an elite foreign intelligence network, the team must execute a precise, high-stakes tradecraft operation in international waters — one wrong move could blow their cover and trigger a confrontation that could break the global order.
Become a paid subscriber at https://auditoryanthology.substack.com/ to hear Maiden Voyage
Our companion short story, “Wake U...
The Outsider by H.P. Lovecraft
Raised alone in an ancient, decaying castle with no memory of family or the outside world, a lonely figure finally attempts what seems impossible: climbing the one ruined tower tall enough to reach the sky above the trees. What waits at the top — and in the strange, moonlit world beyond — builds toward one of Lovecraft’s most haunting and often-cited revelations.
H.P. Lovecraft (1890–1937) was an American writer whose atmospheric horror and cosmic dread reshaped the genre, influencing generations of writers who followed. “The Outsider,” first published in Weird Tales in 1926, remains one of his most anthologized...
Coffee Grinder Love by Siobhan Gallahger
After a disastrous divorce sparked by her fatally toxic coffee, a desperate woman navigates interspecies dating and Martian travel to prove her domestic worth—and finally stumbles upon an insectoid suitor who appreciates a decent cup of tea.
Siobhan Gallagher is a turnip queen, currently residing on the side of a mountain in Colorado. Her fiction has appeared in over thirty publications, including On Spec, PodCastle, Abyss & Apex, and Cosmic Horror Monthly.
This story was inspired by an early 1960’s Folgers commercial (it can be found on Youtube), where the husband declares his wife...
The Man at the Table & Maiden Voyage - Chapter Three: No Way In
On the maiden voyage of the MV Atlas, the world’s largest cruise ship, a ghost operative team attempts a silent extraction of a high-value defector carrying an impossible secret: an ancient, non-human artifact. Hidden amongst twenty-two thousand passengers and stalked by an elite foreign intelligence network, the team must execute a precise, high-stakes tradecraft operation in international waters — one wrong move could blow their cover and trigger a confrontation that could break the global order.
Our companion short story, “The Man at the Table,” follows a different operative entirely as he breaks into an empty house ch...
Pink Grass Planet by Sam Merwin Jr.
After five years stationed on the alien world of Lri-gTu-riANa, Ricardo Webb finally makes it home to Earth, his fiancée, and everything familiar he’s been dreaming about — only to discover that “home” doesn’t feel quite the way he remembers it. What follows is a sharp, funny look at culture shock turned inside out, asking what happens when the place you left behind changes just as much as you did.
Samuel Kimball Merwin Jr. (1910–1996) was an American mystery writer, editor, and science fiction author best known in the genre for his editorial work — he served as edito...
I’ve Heard That Pluto is Nice This Time of Year by Lyle Talbot
As Earth’s atmosphere runs out, Clark and Alice have minutes to choose which planet they’ll spend the rest of their lives on — but Clark’s endless second-guessing about tobacco, cave crawlers, and the size of the locals may cost them both a ticket out. Lyle Talbot delivers a story that’s equal parts dark comedy and heartbreak, about how hard it is to let go of home even when home is disappearing around you.
We love bringing you stories from writers just like Lyle — if you’ve got a tale of your own itching to be told (sc...
Potential & Maiden Voyage - Chapter Two
On the maiden voyage of the MV Atlas, the world’s largest cruise ship, a ghost operative team attempts a silent extraction of a high-value defector carrying an impossible secret: an ancient, non-human artifact. Hidden amongst twenty-two thousand passengers and stalked by an elite foreign intelligence network, the team must execute a precise, high-stakes tradecraft operation in international waters. One wrong move could blow their cover and trigger a confrontation that could break the global order.
Become a paid subscriber at https://auditoryanthology.substack.com/ to hear Maiden Voyage
Our companion short story, “Pote...
I'll Kill You Tomorrow by Helen Huber
A night-shift nurse walks into the hospital’s basket room to find something impossible: thirty newborns, all in complete, unnatural silence. What she discovers waiting behind one set of very old eyes sets off a race against time before the nursery’s littlest patients grow into something no one could stop.
“I’ll Kill You Tomorrow” first appeared in If Worlds of Science Fiction in November 1953. Helen Huber remains something of a mystery in pulp SF history. This story appears to be one of the few (if not the only) piece of her published work, though readers ha...
On the Edge of Air by Ciro Capao
When a bomb tears through the Adjuster’s headquarters, security officer Jonathan is thrown into a chase that leads him to the ravaged, weather-controlled outskirts of a domed city — and a suspect willing to risk everything to stop the world from being “adjusted.” Ciro Capao delivers a tense sci-fi thriller about climate control, class divides, and how far someone will go when they’ve got nothing left to lose.
We love bringing you stories from listeners just like Ciro — if you’ve got a tale of your own itching to be told (sci-fi, horror, supernatural, or anything in be...
Maiden Voyage - Chapter One: The Artifact (Free Preview)
When a mysterious, unyielding artifact—made of an impossible extraterrestrial material—begins responding to a precise frequency, senior researcher Chen Liang realizes his team isn't just analyzing an unknown object; they are waking something up.
On the maiden voyage of the MV Atlas, the world’s largest cruise ship, a ghost operative team attempts a silent extraction of a high-value defector carrying an impossible secret: an ancient, non-human artifact. Hidden amongst twenty-two thousand passengers and stalked by an elite foreign intelligence network, the team must execute a precise, high-stakes tradecraft operation in international waters. One wrong move c...
The Small Assassin by Ray Bradbury
New parents David and Alice Leiber should be settling into blissful domesticity with their newborn son. Instead, Alice is convinced something is deeply wrong with her baby — and as strange accidents start piling up around the house, David finds himself forced to consider whether her fears might be more than exhaustion and nerves.
Ray Bradbury wrote “The Small Assassin” in 1946, decades before he’d become a household name with The Martian Chronicles and Fahrenheit 451 — but the psychological horror and razor-sharp unease that would define his career are already fully formed here.
If you have a story yo...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Photograph
While clearing out her late mother's house, Annabelle finds a decades-old family photo of a gathering at a house no one recognizes, presided over by a stranger who stares straight into the camera while everyone else looks away. The more relatives she consults, the more names she recovers and the less she learns about the one face that matters — until the figure in the corner becomes less a mystery to solve than a presence she can't quite put down.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into do...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty Seven
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
Ely's Automatic Housemaid by Elizabeth W. Bellamy
When a well-meaning inventor sends his two experimental "Automatic Household Beneficent Geniuses" to his desperate friend, the resulting domestic comedy proves that while a machine might be able to clean a house, it lacks the human touch required to keep it from descending into chaos.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode co...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Empty Seat
While trying to survive his second high-stakes family dinner with his girlfriend's relatives, a nervous newcomer discovers that the mysteriously warm, perpetually set empty chair at the head of the table belongs to a beloved grandfather who passed away eleven years ago.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a story...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty Six
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
A Great Day for the Irish by A.M. Lightner
When a rigid quarantine inspector travels to a remote frontier planet, she finds her professional duty to protect the world from invasive species hopelessly complicated by a charming, rule-breaking gardener—and the very pest she once tried to destroy.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keit...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Overnight Returns
A newly hired librarian discovers that a long-deceased patron is still returning his favorite books to the after-hours drop, each containing a handwritten note that slowly reveals a life lived entirely through the stories he loved.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to th...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty Five
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
The Vilbar Party by Evelyn E. Smith
An antisocial Saturnian professor sent to Earth for a prestigious exchange program finds himself tormented by overwhelming popularity and forced into a year of constant pampering.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee/keithrconrad
Narrator: Darren Marlar https://darrenmarlar.com/
...Tales From the Blue Line - The Crossing Guard
A mother’s attempt to file a simple thank-you note for her son’s longtime crossing guard unravels into a mystery that reveals a protective presence who has been guiding generations of students safely across the street, long after her official retirement—and her death.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty Four
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
Rabbits Have Long Ears by Lawrence F. Willard
An interstellar exploration crew mistakes Earth for a world of ferocious, weapon-wielding giants after misinterpreting humanity's broadcasted radio signals and television shows.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee/keithrconrad
Narrator: Darren Marlar https://darrenmarlar.com/
Other sh...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Night Gardener
When a landscape architect moves into a new neighborhood and discovers that her garden is being meticulously tended by a mysterious nocturnal presence, she uncovers a decades-old legacy of quiet, trans-generational care.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can vi...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty Three
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
Beyond the Door by Philip K. Dick
A discarded husband discovers that his wife’s cherished cuckoo clock hides a jealous, lethal occupant that refuses to remain confined behind its small wooden door.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee/keithrconrad
Narrator: Darren Marlar https://darrenmarlar.com/
Tales From the Blue Line - The Regular
A bartender at a long-standing neighborhood pub discovers that the mysterious regular who has occupied the same stool every Friday for seven years appears in photographs dating back to the bar's opening in 1954 without having aged a single day.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a story you’d like to...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty Two
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
The Planet of Illusion by Millard V. Gordon
When an interstellar exploration crew encounters a mysterious crimson planet that doesn't exist on their instruments, they realize they have stumbled into a cosmic mirage where two universes are colliding.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee/keithrconrad
Narrator: Darren Ma...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Note
A woman returns to the summer retreat of her childhood only to find herself living in the exact week she turned twelve, giving her the impossible chance to leave a message for her younger self.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the se...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty One
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
The Worlds of Joe Shannon By Frank M. Robinson
A brilliant inventor creates a machine that allows anyone to escape their unhappy life for a custom-built paradise, but he soon discovers that the promise of a perfect world might just empty the real one entirely.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Copy Room
A young intern at a prestigious firm discovers that the office printer is surreptitiously editing her work into a version that is significantly better than her own, leaving her to wonder if she is being haunted by a ghost or by her own suppressed potential.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Twenty
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
The Enormous Word by William Oberfield
Captured by alien invaders who believe nuclear weapons are an impossible myth, a desperate resistance fighter swallows Earth's last capsule of Uranium-235 and baits his torturers into triggering the ultimate human atomic bomb.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Conrad linktr.ee/keithrconrad
...
Tales From the Blue Line - The Caretaker
When a young historian takes a job as the live-in caretaker of a sprawling Victorian estate, she discovers that the restless spirit of a teenage girl trapped in the past isn’t haunting the house—she’s just bored and looking for a friend.
Tales From The Blue Line: Every morning at three, Mason and Ally ride the Blue Line into downtown Chicago together. The train brings out its own brand of weird, which has led to Mason and Ally trading spooky stories to help their commute pass a little faster.
If you have a stor...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Nineteen
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...
New Murders for Old by Carter Dickson
A wealthy hotel magnate returns from a global voyage to find his own obituary in the newspaper, only to realize he is walking into a meticulously staged supernatural murder plot designed to replace him with his own double.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every episode completely ad-free!
Curator: Keith Co...
The Mind Mirror by Calvin Leavitt
A teenager recovering from a traumatic head injury discovers that his vivid dreams of a peaceful, pastoral "meadow" are actually a subconscious prison for the emotions he has suppressed his entire life—and now, one of those suppressed parts is ready to swap places with him.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://auditoryanthology.substack.com
By becoming a paid subscriber you can listen to every epis...
The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells: Chapter Eighteen
For our Serial Sunday series, we are presenting The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. When mysterious cylinders fall from the sky, Victorian England is thrust into a terrifying struggle for survival as Martian machines lay waste to the countryside. Told in serialized chapters, this landmark science-fiction classic unfolds as a gripping tale of invasion, panic, and humanity pushed to the brink.
If you have a story you’d like to contribute to the series, you can visit https://submissions.soundconceptmedia.com/
You can support the show by becoming a paid subscriber on...