If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Non-Zero Probabilities” by N. K. Jemisin. What can we learn from this bit of speculative fiction? How can world-building be personal to a character? Can we …

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “A Telephone Call” by Dorothy Parker. What can we learn from this intense interior monologue story? How does this nearly 100-year-old story still reflect mod…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss Curtis Sittenfeld vs ChatGPT. What can we learn from this experiment in comparing a literary author with an AI-generated story? How would we critique the Cha…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Husband Stitch” by Carmen Maria Machado. What can we learn from this exploration of a familiar horror scenario? How can we expand on a common symbol in …

We are back with Joe Chacon and Evan Yoak where we talk about their upcoming game Decisive Action from GMT GamesAv Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast On this episode, we discuss “The Celestial Omnibus” by E. M. Forster (starts page 54). What can we learn from this literary version of a fairy-story? How does the story pit pedantry aga…

Today we have Sean Druelinger, a designer of some great games such as Point Blank: V is for Victory and other designs for Lock N' Load Publishing. We talk about his games, games we love and about game design.Av Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Complete” by Gabriel Smith. What can we learn from this story made up of semi-connected snippets? How can disconnected pieces of narrative connect with …

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Sour Milk Girls” by Erin Roberts. What can we learn from this story about damaged people? Can a story explore a broken character? How can we present backgro…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “An Outpost of Progress” by Joseph Conrad. What can we learn from this classic story? How can a story incorporate a “thesis statement”? Can we step back from…

We are back and today we have Mike Denson the designer of GMT Games Last Hundred Yards.Av Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Island of the Immortals” by Ursula K. Le Guin. What can we learn from this quick story that examines a philosophical question? How does perspective on t…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Jeffty is Five” by Harlan Ellison. What can we learn from this nostalgic story? How does the ending wrap up the arc of the story? How can we tell which char…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Barn Burning” by William Faulkner. What can we learn from this richly voiced story? How can we develop a stream-of-consciousness voice for a story? How can …

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Separating” by John Updike. What can we learn from this vivid and careful short story? Can we say anything about the voice of this story? How does a […]…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “It’s Such a Beautiful Day” by Isaac Asimov. What can we learn from this classic science fiction story? How can a single imagined technology inform a fiction…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Frog King” by Garth Greenwell. What can we learn from this quiet portrait of a human relationship? Is there conflict in this story? Does a story need [……

Team NDNG was in full force at Adepticon 2024. Mike, Tom, Paolo and Mitch wound up in Schaumberg Illinois to attend what turned out to be an amazing event. We rally back at the studio to talk about the next event in Milwaukee WI in 2025.Av Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Destructors” by Graham Greene. What can we learn from this quick but complex story? How can group dynamics be quickly introduced in a story? How can the…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Button, Button” by Richard Matheson. What can we learn from this deceptively simple story? What does it mean that a story’s ending should be surprising yet …

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Civil Peace” by Chinua Achebe. What can we learn from this own-voice story? How can a story use a refrain or leitmotif? How can a theme or exploration […]…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Woman at Exhibition” by E. Lily Yu. What can we learn from this brief story? How can real-life, historical people be incorporated into speculative fiction? …

Today we have Jack and Samuel Gassmann, the brothers behind Masterstroke Game's Force of Virtue, a 15th Century themed skirmish game that focuses on the Borgia period in Rome. This game is one that you will want to check out and when you listen to this episode you can hear the love of the period and the intimate knowledge the design team has for th…

Huge treat for you today in this long (but interesting) episode. We have Hermann Luttmann (A Most Fearful Sacrifice and many others) and Ryan Heilman (Brave Little Belgium and many others) and we talk about their new design "Into the Whirlpool" coming out from Blue Panther Games. We talk about so much more, such as game design and the gaming indust…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Car Crash While Hitchhiking” by Denis Johnson. What can we learn from this great little story? What is a writer’s “eye”? How does sentence structure help de…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “When Stars Collide” by Ottessa Moshfegh. What can we learn from this work of Flash Fiction? How do specific actions and details help define a character? How…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Dead” by James Joyce. What can we learn from the story T. S. Eliot called “one of the greatest short stories ever written”? What can we learn […]…

Today we have Ian Brown, the designer of the game Maneuver Warfare that will be released in 2024 from the Dietz Foundation. Ian is a talented game designer and if I say myself an interesting guy. If you want to play a game about modern warfare by an "insider" then you will want to check out this podcast.…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Bear Came Over the Mountain” by Alice Munro. What can we learn from this story with an unexpected but inevitable ending? How does the structure function…

Join Regulars Garrett Swader, Glenn Van Meter and Tom Mullane for an Interview and overview of upcoming plans for Firelock and the folks at Blood and Pigment. New plastics are discussed as well as what we've been up to since the last record. Listen in and get some minis painted!

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Library of Babel” by Jorge Luis Borges. What can we learn from this work of Philosophical Fiction? How can a speculative story be built upon a philosoph…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Drive My Car” by Haruki Murakami. What can we learn from this quietly contemplative story? What kind of structure can we find in a relatively structureless …

Today we have Michael Riddick, a good friend of NDNG, who talks about his game Magnum Opus which users in a new way to play ancients miniatures. Even if you do not play this period, you will love Mike's approach to gaming and writing rules. Find out more in Instagram by looking up magnum_opus_wargaming…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut. What can we learn from this classic of speculative fiction? How does its cartoonishness impact its humanity? How import…

We too at NDNG are also fans of some of the games we cover and today was a treat for me. I speak with David Freer from Wargame Design Studios, which now hold the John Tiller Games catalog and so much more. We talk about the whole series which spans multiple decades and conflicts. If you want to know more about these great games you do not want to m…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees” by E. Lily Yu. What can we learn from this fanciful story? How does language help create the mood of the […]…

Yet another great interview with an author from Casemate Publishers! We have Timothy Fitzpatrick whose book, The Long Shadow of Waterloo is one not to miss. The book is about, as Tim told me, How Waterloo changed history and how history changed Waterloo. You can find the book here.Av Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Man Who Lost the Sea” by Theodore Sturgeon. What can we learn from this dreamlike science fiction story? How versatile and variable is point of view? Ho…

Join Glenn, Tom and Garrett as they catch up on hobby talk and all things Blood and Plunder. They explore the finer points of command points and round off reminding folks to late subscribe to Blood and Crowns on kickstarter.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “And of Clay Are We Created” by Isabel Allende. What can we learn from this story based on real events? How does point of view help define the […]…

We have another great interview with George Wahington University's Strategic Crisis Simulations leadership. Our own Caroline "CWIS" Gilmore is joined by Cormac Brown and Cassandra Micah and we talk all about the excellent program these talented students run. https://www.gwuscs.org/Av Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Spring in Fialta” by Vladimir Nabokov. What can we learn from Nabokov and his ability to capture moments? How can detailed moments build up a story? How can…

Today we have Adrian Mandzy who published a miniatures scenario book that focuses on the Ukrainian partisan movement during WWII. We also talk about the great game By Fire and Sword, the use of wargames in academics and historical archeology.Av MItch Reed

Today we have Eric Hansen the designer of Blood & Crowns, a new game about the 100-Years War from Firelock Games. We talk about the game and the work involved in the design process. Support the Kickstarter here Great videos on the 100 Years WarAv Mitch Reed

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Paper Menagerie” by Ken Liu. What can we learn from this affecting story with a touch of magic to it? How can we use a bit of […]…

Join Glenn, Tom and new regular Garrett Swader as they are joined by guest start Niguel Vega for a jam packed episode. The Tailsmen discuss Historicon, Adepticon, and the summer of plunder's action.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen” by Tadeusz Borowski. What can we learn from this devastating account of prisoners at Auschwitz? How can a stark,…

Today we have John Chang the designer of Black Powder Red Earth a 28mm ultra-modern tactical skirmish game. We talk about the game and the design process the developers went through to get the game to market.Av Mitch Reed

The boys are back in town! The NDNG crew went to Historicon 2023 in scenic Lancaster PA. It was a full crew, with Tom, Preston, Scott and Matt gaming and creating mayhem. We have a bunch of guests on the show and we talk about our Firelock Ironman and about wargaming in general. 00:00- Welcome to Historicon 2023 21:20- Wrap up of the Blood & Plunde…

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Happy Endings” by Margaret Atwood. What can we learn from this playful bit of metafiction? How can we be playful and experimental when writing a story? How …