He was the size of a child. One of those twiggy ones they show you on the guilt-o-mercials that you can keep in shoes and chickens for just 30 cents a day. Only he was an old man. His black t-shirt had holes in it.
Podcast: Download
Tag: Artist: Bo Kaier
Bo Kaier is the art director of the Drabblecast, and a tool. Definitely a tool
“What have you got there, Dell?”
Lars twisted his hand painfully to get a look at the ring.
“Where did you find that?…”
Norm introduces all and sundry to his latest favorite, real-life monster animal: the four-inch “Giant Water Bug,” which sucks out its prey’s innards. It can fly and also play dead in order to sucker unwitting prey. The author of the feature story has been published in “Art and Prose,” among other places. A desperate sex slave’s world changes with an unexpected gift and a magical means of escape. Feedback for Episode #41, “Set Another Place at the Table, I’m Bringing My Pimple,” was mixed, and often rather disgusting, like the story itself. Norm reminds the listeners that voting for “People’s Choice” and the contest for “Nigerian Scam Spam” remain open.
Podcast: Download
It starts off like any normal bout of Pre-Menstrual Syndrome. I’m constipated, I’m depressed and I’ve got a pimple the size of a hazelnut on my chin…
This week’s Drabble details a junk mail scam, betraying Norm’s deep interest in e-mail spam scams, later manifesting itself in the Drabblecast’s signature “Nigerian Scam Spam Contest.” Norm wholeheartedly plugs “Between the Cracks Fiction,” the website archive of the feature story’s author, Kim McDougall. Norm issues a warning, that the feature is the grossest story Drabblecast has aired since “The Worm Within.” In it, a young woman spends a very difficult week dealing with a delicate medical condition. Feedback from Episode #36, “Pumpkin Seeds,” a Halloween special, was universally positive.
Podcast: Download
The Drabblecast’s first ever trifecta special, three short stories asking there interesting questions. Is best model, best witness? How much is a dream worth? And what would you do to get a pound of flesh?
This episode marked the first “Trifecta,” as Norm produced an anthology of three short-ish stories connected by a theme. Norm left the specific theme open for speculation by listeners. Was it perhaps, “lethal consumption?” In the first story, “Witness,” a cleaning robot recounts a mysterious incident from its uniquely prosaic point of view. Next, “Wiggin’s General Store,” turns out to be a place that sells dreams. No, really, sells dreams and not the safe kind. (The author, Basil Godevenos, wrote the poem “The Truth about the Reaper” in Episode #34.) The final story, “Pork and Steak Eye” ponders the ethics of willing organ-donor clones. Upon reading the feedback from Episode #33, “Dessert Storm,” a good laugh was had by all.
Trifecta – a run of three wins or grand events. Origin: 1970s from “tri” + “perfecta”
Podcast: Download
“It was 11 at night, and only a few shouts of men in the lifer block penetrated the concrete walls of death row. My name is Michael Zlocinac, and I am a warden of U.S. Federal Penitentiary at Magdalena, New Mexico…”
On this episode of the Drabblecast, on his last day as warden, the titular protagonist explains his complicated history, and the moral conundrums it presents. A rumination on capital punishment, legacy, and war.
Podcast: Download
Ma called it the crazy. She always had. The old lady called it something else. Most of the time, before I- touched one- I used the word Ma used, or sometimes I called it the weirdness, to myself…
On this episode of the Drabblecast, the mother of a unique child must guide him towards greater knowledge of the powers he possesses.
Podcast: Download
Today we bring to you The Worm Within, by Vincent Eaton.
It’s a strange tale. A rather gross tale… about a tail. It’s a tale about a worm tail and a man’s tail area. And meat.
Have you ever felt something was off inside your body? Have you ever racked your brain straining to remember what you put into your body? Something that may have gone terribly wrong?
I’ve already said too much.
Podcast: Download
Warning: Some gore
A day at the zoo turns into humanity’s ultimate struggle for survival…
Episode 11 of the Drabblecast brings us Secret Weapons – the first chapter of the Black and White Animals trilogy. Norm and Kendall Marchman share this story of a trip to the zoo turned strange and terrible. Drabble News reports on recent research involving dinosaur veins. Norm again encourages listeners to vote, and jump into the final week of the Super Animal Deathmatch.
Feature: Black and White Animals: Secret Weapons by Kendall Marchman, Norm Sherman, and Luke Coddington
A Drabblecast original story.
Episode Art: Bo Kaier
Podcast: Download
Ever had one of those days?
Drabblecast episode 8 brings a hard-luck tale like few before – Adam Carvin’s “Epiphany,” which explores just how bad things can really get, and how to keep them in perspective. And a momentous first, Norm launches the original Super Animal Deathmatch, later re-titled the Mega-Beast Death-Match, featuring Telephant vs Hippopotopain vs Crablooey vs DeathMole.
Podcast: Download
Tony goes undercover for the police to get a deal with “The Boss” recorded on tape…
In Episode 7 Norm shares the full version of ‘Rutabaga’, a tale of crime and unusual punishment, the now iconic song played as opening theme music for every episode of the Drabblecast. He reports on the progress of the (original) website, calls for submissions, and once again implores fans to share the Drabblecast with friends.
Podcast: Download
The metrotrain at 6am can be a great place to make new friends…
The Drabblecast’s third episode brings us Luke Coddington’s Next Stop, a short, atmospheric story of an encounter with a homeless man on Baltimore’s metro, with some unexpected consequences. Norm puts his versatile voice to good use, delivering both an unnerved protagonist and an authentically creepy antagonist.
Feature: Next Stop by Luke Coddington
Episode Art: Bo Kaier
Podcast: Download
Not your average fairy-tale about an obese squirrel and a unicorn with back acne….
In episode 2 Norm brings us the quirky story of Gregory, a unicorn cursed with bad health and worse luck. This is also the first episode in which Norm introduces the show as: “strange stories by strange people, for strange listeners.”
Feature: Longing for Love: A Unicorn’s Story by Lindsey and Lacey Anderson. A Drabblecast original story. Art by Bo Kaier.
Podcast: Download