This week on Craft and Chaos, Misty wrangles the chaos as the team dives into the comfort of cozy mysteries, the horror of genre snobbery, and the existential unraveling that occurs when you go viral and absolutely nothing happens.

We kick off with a round of “what are you enjoying,” which—shockingly—turns into a love letter to Murderbot, Idris Elba, and Helen Mirren solving crimes while wearing cozy cardigans. Pete accidentally reboots his Apple TV algorithm. Ryan makes new famous friends. Kyle shares a Netflix recommendation so charming it may cause spontaneous Britishness. And Misty just got back from Edinburgh Fringe with a play that involved one tire and possibly a direct hotline to the gods of storytelling.

Then we take on a deceptively gentle listener question: “How do you find a supportive creative community when yours has turned toxic?” Cue the most emotionally validating roundtable since that time you cried in your car after improv class. The crew gets real about vibe checks, class-based writing groups, running far away from bad energy, and possibly forming a new community by declaring “you’re in my group now” to strangers in a bookstore café.

We have a rousing round of Craft Confessions this week and we unpack a brutally honest essay from Amy McNee, whose appearance on a massive podcast should have led to skyrocketing book sales. It didn’t. At all. And that leads us into a real conversation about what success actually looks like when the “big break” doesn’t break anything.

Finally, we ruin classic movies. Bet you’ll have Little Women: Too Little, Too Women. living rent free you-know-where when it’s over.

Links & Notes

Shows, Movies, and Books

• Hijack
• Only Murders in the Building
• High Potential
• Knives Out / Glass Onion / Wake Up Dead Man
• Thursday Murder Club (based on the books by Richard Osman)
• Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
• Murderbot Audiobooks via GraphicAudio
• Sandstorm by James Rollins
• A Letter to Lyndon B. Johnson or God, Whoever Reads This First by Xhloe and Natasha

Writers & Creators Mentioned

• Amie McNee (Author of We Need Your Art)
• "I went on one of the biggest podcast in the world" by Amie McNee

Bonus D&D Reference

• Deborah Ann Woll explains D&D to Jon Bernthal

• (00:00) - Welcome to Craft and Chaos
• (01:04) - What are you enjoying right now?
• (09:57) - Listener Questions!
• (23:22) - "Sponsor" The Other Orange
• (24:54) - Craft Confessions
• (37:15) - What's the Bump? Tell me what's a-happenin' ... How do you define success?
• (57:48) - "Sponsor:" Your Favorite Comfort Show
• (58:59) - The Terrible Sequel Generator