Podcast
The Dark Mind Podcast
Hosted by Vincent Midgard · EN
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.
20episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Haunted Houses, Catholic Guilt, and Cosmic Grief With Michael Boulerice
2w ago01:12:21Tap to summarizeIn 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.comLinktree:https://linktr.ee/michaelboulericeInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/michael.boulericeFacebook:https://www.facebook.com/michael.a.boulericeX / Twitter:https://x.com/TherealkfmAmazon Author Page:https://www.amazon.com/stores/Michael-Boulerice/author/B00HSHMGC8Barnes & Noble:https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Michael%20Boulerice%22Audible:https://www.audible.com/author/Michael-Boulerice/B00HSHMGC8Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7761356.Michael_BoulericeSupport The Dark Mind Podcast:https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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Philosophy, Murder, and Radical Freedom with Charlene Elsby
3w ago01:07:32Tap to summarizeOn 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 Websitehttps://charleneelsby.com/Social MediaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/charlene_elsby/X/Twitter: https://x.com/ElsbyCharleneFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlene.elsby/Where to BuyMerigold Independent: https://www.merigoldindependent.com/charleneelsby-poor-damned-soulsAmazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Charlene+ElsbyBarnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Charlene%20Elsby%22Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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When Protection Becomes Possession with Cleo Ballard
4w ago01:06:22Tap to summarizeCleo 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
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The Horror of Being Seen but Not Known, Mark Mustian
Jun 1601:08:00Tap to summarizeMark 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.comSocial mediaFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/markmustianauthor/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markmustian/X / Twitter: https://x.com/MarkMustianLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-mustian-17066776Mark Mustian author page on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3463600.Mark_MustianPlaces to buyBarnes & Noble, Boy With Wings: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/boy-with-wings-mark-mustian/1146600022Bookshop.org, Boy With Wings: https://bookshop.org/p/books/boy-with-wings-mark-mustian/143eb36ac6f04f87Audible author page: https://www.audible.com/author/Mark-T-Mustian/B0CSF8JY2YSupport The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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Trauma, Home, and Haunted Landscapes with CJ Leede
Jun 901:02:44Tap to summarizeCJ Leede joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss her new novel Headlights, a slow burn supernatural thriller set in the high country of Colorado.We explore serial murder by proxy, violence as a contagious force, and the terrifying loss of control at the center of the story.CJ talks about grief, death, trauma, home, and why Headlights became one of her most hopeful books.The conversation moves through Colorado’s beauty and danger, the shadow of The Shining, FBI procedural research, haunted landscapes, and horror as a way of telling the truth.We also discuss Maeve Fly, American Rapture, Catholic guilt, rescue dogs, writing on the road, and the strange places where darkness becomes meaningful.Official Websitehttps://www.cjleede.comInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/ceejthemoment/Tor Publishing Author Pagehttps://torpublishinggroup.com/author/cj-leede/Simon and Schuster Author Pagehttps://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/C-J-Leede/242938571Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21833637.C_J_LeedeBuy CJ Leede’s BooksAmazon Author Pagehttps://www.amazon.com/stores/C.J.-Leede/author/B0B5N5BC88Barnes and Noble Author Searchhttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/CJ%20LeedeBookshop.org Author Searchhttps://bookshop.org/search?keywords=CJ%20LeedeBooks A Million Searchhttps://www.booksamillion.com/search?query=CJ%20LeedeTarget Searchhttps://www.target.com/s?searchTerm=CJ%20LeedeHeadlightsAmazonhttps://www.amazon.com/s?k=Headlights+CJ+LeedeBarnes and Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Headlights%20CJ%20LeedeTargethttps://www.target.com/p/headlights-by-cj-leede-hardcover/-/A-1007397194Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/240019947-headlightsMaeve FlyBarnes and Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/maeve-fly-cj-leede/1141976651Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/93030763-maeve-flyAmerican RaptureGoodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/221524220-american-raptureSupport The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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The Bomb Under the Table with Brian Sepanzyk
Jun 201:03:10Tap to summarizeBrian Sepanzyk joins the show to discuss his short film Defile and the way empathy can curdle into survival horror.The conversation explores remote cabin dread, moral gray zones, relationship collapse, and the fear that begins when your alarm bells go off too late.Brian talks about building unease before violence, using the woods as a boundary between the ordinary and the monstrous, and deciding what to leave unexplained.We also get into his other films, including Compulsion and In the Shadow of God, along with his work developing Into the Abyss.Along the way, Brian discusses indie filmmaking, VFX work, writing under pressure, editing painful cuts, horror influences, and the creative outlet he finds in his band Waingro.Website and professional profile:https://image-engine.com/crew/brian-sepanzyk/IMDb:https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1559870/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/briantologist/Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/BSepanzyk/Defile coverage and interview pages:https://www.leagueoffilmmakers.com/defile-when-horror-becomes-a-mirror-for-modern-anxiety/https://readrange.com/brian-sepanzyk-in-the-shadow-of-god/YouTube interview and short-film pages:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nUFupbEKFkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aX9R-IBvfLAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpaAr5HhB2kTo watch or stream his short films and related work, these are the verified platform pages I found:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aX9R-IBvfLAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpaAr5HhB2khttps://letterboxd.com/film/defile-2025/I did not find verified Amazon or Barnes & Noble purchase pages for Brian Sepanzyk’s films or books in the current search results, so I’m not listing unverified storefront links here.Waingro official music pages:https://waingro.bandcamp.com/musichttps://waingro.bandcamp.com/album/sportshttps://waingro.bandcamp.com/album/iiiSpotify:https://open.spotify.com/artist/1tqsK5Px4s5tH6Mkehw6DkApple Music:https://music.apple.com/us/artist/waingro/935148728Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/waingrovancouver/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/waingro_van/Support The Dark Mind Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcastFilm and interview pagesBuy and stream film workMusic and band linksSupport The Dark Mind Podcast
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Ride the Spiral with Ben Young: Grief, Fibonacci, and the F You Universe.
May 2601:17:52Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Vincent sits down with author Ben Young to discuss his new novel Ride the Spiral.Ben talks about turning real life grief, parenting struggles, and the search for answers into cosmic horror.The conversation explores neurodivergence, desperation, mental health, string theory, absurdism, and the terror of not being able to fix the people you love.Ben also discusses the influence of Stephen King, Tool, heavy music, indie horror, and the process of writing characters who are already at the end of their rope before the monster appears.Ride the Spiral is available through Aethon and Wicked House, and signed copies and more of Ben’s work can be found at benyoungstories.com.Ben Young Websitehttps://www.benyoungstories.comBen Young Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/benyoungstories/Ben Young Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/benyoungstories/Ben Young TikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@benyoung_storiesRide the Spiral from Wicked House Publishinghttps://wickedhouse.com/book/ride-the-spiral/Ben Young on Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/list/43073675.Ben_YoungStuck on Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/196306469-stuckHome on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Home-Ben-Young-ebook/dp/B0CWXW5F63/Ride the Spiral on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Ride-Spiral-Cosmic-Horror-Novel-ebook/dp/Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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Kathleen Rhodes on Faith, Fangs, and the Monsters That Shape Us
May 1901:03:51Tap to summarizeKathleen Rhodes joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss her new novel Vampire Missionaries.We talk about Mormon missionaries, vampires, religious pressure, dark comedy, and the horror of questioning what you were raised to believe.Kathleen also shares how her background in psychiatric mental health shaped the way she writes trauma, identity, resilience, and characters at their rawest.We also discuss her debut novel The Dark Road, Jungian psychology, inner demons, child protectors, and the strange space where horror and healing meet.Vampire Missionaries is available now from Dead Sky Publishing.Kathleen Rhodes websites and social linkshttps://thedarkroad.nethttps://deadskypublishing.com/portfolio-item/vampire-missionaries/https://go.authorsguild.org/members/9245https://crimereads.com/author/kathleenrhodes/Social mediahttps://www.instagram.com/kathleenrhodeswrites/https://x.com/kathleenRho1https://www.facebook.com/kathleen.rhodes.7106/Where to buy Vampire Missionarieshttps://www.amazon.com/https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/vampire-missionaries-kathleen-rhodes/1147739683https://www.target.com/p/vampire-missionaries-by-kathleen-rhodes-paperback/-/A-1010435925https://bookshop.org/p/books/vampire-missionaries-kathleen-rhodes/cd33bdb282ebdb73https://www.indigo.ca/products/vampire-missionarieshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/list/50927687.Kathleen_RhodesSupport The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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Ian Domowitz on Paracelsus, Golems, and the Future of Fantasy
May 1201:13:32Tap to summarizeIan Domowitz joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss Initial Condition, the third novella in his dark fantasy series The Mechanic’s Diary.The conversation explores Hanzi Boss, a being bred through a 16th century alchemical recipe and taught language like a machine learning to speak.Ian and Vincent dig into golems, homunculi, Jewish mysticism, artificial intelligence, consciousness, and the terrifying idea that speech itself could be treated as a crime.They also discuss why lived experience may matter more than training data, how ancient myth can give fantasy credibility, and why Ian refuses to let generative AI write his fiction.The episode moves from dark fantasy into philosophy, ethics, writing craft, Wall Street, military life, and what it means to create a being that was made by man but still wants to understand its place in the world.Official Websitehttps://www.iandomowitz.comIan Domowitz on Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/iandomowitz/Ian Domowitz on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/iandomowitzIan Domowitz on Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6684744.Ian_DomowitzIan Domowitz Books on Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/list/6684744.Ian_DomowitzIan Domowitz on Academia.eduhttps://independent.academia.edu/IDomowitzIan Domowitz on Mediumhttps://uxdesign.cc/@idomowitzBuy Ian Domowitz on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0D5LQ7LZ3Buy Initial Condition on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FN1F1QVYBuy Ian Domowitz on Barnes and Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Ian%20Domowitz%22Buy Initial Condition on Barnes and Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Initial%20Condition%22%20%22Ian%20Domowitz%22Buy Ian Domowitz on Bookshop.orghttps://bookshop.org/search?keywords=Ian%20DomowitzBuy Four Laws for the Artificially Intelligent on Bookshop.orghttps://bookshop.org/p/books/four-laws-for-the-artificially-intelligent-ian-domowitz/0660ff188ff10887Buy Ian Domowitz on Apple Bookshttps://books.apple.com/us/search?term=Ian%20DomowitzBuy Ian Domowitz on Kobohttps://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=Ian%20DomowitzStream Ian Domowitz on Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/search/Ian%20DomowitzAuthor Talk with Ian Domowitz on Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/episode/76z0kuQuHPUGub2VsJuxXwSkull Session with Dan Henk and Ian Domowitz on Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/episode/6NTPRLPOClviwkE8CM9fQhAuthor Talk on Apple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/author-talk/id1551896025Support The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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Erin Louis: The Stripper, the Skeptic, and the Storyteller
May 500:57:24Tap to summarizeErin Louis joins The Dark Mind Podcast to discuss her grounded horror thriller There's No Grave Like Home.The novel follows Georgia, a former exotic dancer in her mid-forties forced to return to the rural hometown she fled decades ago after inheriting her estranged father's house.Erin opens up about how growing up as an outsider in a small town shaped the antagonists and the atmosphere of the book.We explore how over two decades of working as an exotic dancer became an informal sociological study that fuels everything she writes.Erin talks about her transition from afterlife satire in the Hellbound series to a more serious, real-world horror approach.We get into her writing process, her refusal to be boxed into any genre, and why her characters tend to take the wheel.Erin also shares her journey through secular advocacy, her work with the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and how losing her mother without the comfort of an afterlife changed the way she copes through writing.We discuss the emotional weight of starting over in your forties, the pressure of perception, and finding fulfillment on the other side of it.This is a raw and honest conversation about horror, identity, grief, and the lives we live between the pages.Websitehttps://www.erinlouis.comBiohttps://www.erinlouis.com/bioBloghttps://www.erinlouis.com/blogSocial MediaFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/erinlouis666/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/erinlouis666/TikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@erinlouis666Blueskyhttps://bsky.app/profile/erinlouis666.bsky.socialGoodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/author/show/11119009.Erin_LouisLinktreehttps://linktr.ee/erinlouis666Buy Erin Louis’s BooksAmazon Author Pagehttps://www.amazon.com/Erin-Louis/e/B00QSHHOW6There’s No Grave Like Home on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GFNWL3ZNThere’s No Grave Like Home on Google Bookshttps://books.google.com/books/about/There_s_No_Grave_Like_Home.html?id=8KvG0QEACAAJSouth of Heaven on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/South-Heaven-Erin-Louis/dp/1953905552South of Heaven on Bookshophttps://bookshop.org/p/books/south-of-heaven-erin-louis/854f3f79c35de9ee?ean=9781953905550Hell Awaits on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0F3JH8J66Colleen on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Colleen-Erin-Louis-ebook/dp/B0CJ759BS4/Stripper Noir on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Stripper-Noir-Armand-Rosamilla-ebook/dp/B0BPNBJP28The Dead Shall Rise on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Dead-Shall-Rise-Mysteries-Thrillers-ebook/dp/B0CCQ89QP8The Dead Shall Rise on Bookshophttps://bookshop.org/a/15248/9781957133577Dirty Thoughts and Awkward Boners on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B7S1QK67Expose Yourself on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Expose-Yourself-Risks-Question-Everything-ebook/dp/B07W1B4R3QDirty Money on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/1544767226Think You Want To Be A Stripper on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Think-you-want-be-stripper/dp/1723577030AudiobooksAudible Author Pagehttps://www.audible.com/author/Erin-Louis/B00QSHHOW6Dirty Money on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/Dirty-Money-Audiobook/B0BRTJPKV3Hell Awaits on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/ac/Hell-Awaits-Audiobook/B0FQDQ8NC5Dirty Thoughts and Awkward Boners on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/ac/Dirty-Thoughts-and-Awkward-Boners-Audiobook/B0BM1QHCF3Think You Want To Be A Stripper on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/Think-You-Want-to-Be-a-Stripper-Audiobook/B0829D1MFSStripper Noir on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/Stripper-Noir-Audiobook/B0C3WVKM3SSouth of Heaven on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/South-of-Heaven-Audiobook/B0CB76Y5GWExpose Yourself on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/Expose-Yourself-Audiobook/B0815SJML4Colleen on Audiblehttps://www.audible.com/pd/Colleen-Audiobook/B0CWWY32V1Signed CopiesEmail Erin Louis for signed copieserinlouis666@gmail.comSupport The Dark Mind Podcasthttps://www.patreon.com/c/thedarkmindpodcast
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