PROMOS:

• Jamie Jordan’s Second Life live standup comedy project
• Metamediocrity podiobook by Jay Lynn
• Cerulean’s Love of Music
• Dragon Page With Class

Today’s fantastic episode was created by Dan Woodward and friends. Check out their work here and here.

Welcome to the seventh video episode of “Voices From the Darkness,” where the stars and creators are 7th Son fans from across this globe. This is the second of a “triple play” of videos: tomorrow will see the release of the third — and likely final — “Voices From the Darkness” video episodes.

• Scene One: Les Zaldor
• Scene Two: Geoff Schaadt
• Scene Three: Jeremiah McCoy
• Scene Four: Rob Suarez

NOTE FROM J.C.: I had some serious issues with the video for this episode. In the process of troubleshooting, I swapped the order of two clips — Geoff Schaadt’s and Jeremiah McCoy’s — but neglected to change their order in the end credits. The credits list Jeremiah’s clip as being “Scene Two” and Geoff’s as “Scene Three.” The video is inaccurate; those credits should be reversed. The correct credits are listed here in the shownotes.

Please accept my apologies, Jeremiah, Geoff and 7th Son viewers.

• Scene One: Chooch, Viv and family
• Scene Two: Corwin
• Scene Three: Jett
• Scene Four: Micheal Bekemeyer

Wichita Rutherford is the world-renowned podcast celebrity. When Wichita first came on the podcasting scene, it was obvious he was something special. XM is now Wichita’s “satellite radio home” after his two-year run on SIRIUS. His new show, “The Grand Old Time Machine,” has an unprecedented fan base.

PROMOS:

• TreeMe.org

Christiana Ellis is the creator of Nina Kimberly the Merciless, and Space Casey, a ten-episode audiodrama miniseries about a con artist who steals the wrong spaceship. Last but not least, Christiana’s “Shallow Thoughts” has been running continuously since April, providing a daily dose of serene surrealism.

Find her online at ChristianaEllis.com.

PROMOS:

• The Prophet of Panamindorah podiobook
• The Naked Bootleg
• Collapse at Hidden Verse Three Three Two podiobook

Coming up on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: More “Voices from the Darkness” episodes … and Euscocial Networking, the two-part tale by Scott Sigler!

Obsidian: Blackout
Starring Matt Brooks, Holly Barker & Nic Barker
With support from Lachlan Brooks, Kathryn Brooks & Robert Mitchell

Excellent stuff, guys. Thanks so much for playing in my universe, from a half-world away.

PROMO:

• Star Wars: Codename Starkeeper audio drama

PROMOS:

• Jesus Geek
• Seth Harwood’s new Young Junius podiobook
• Adventures In Sci-Fi Publishing’s contest

PROMOS:

• “Double Trouble” promo with Tee Morris and Phillipa Ballantine
• Seth Harwood’s new CrimeWAV crime fiction anthology
• Celebrate Soccergirl’s 300th (and final!) episode
• J.F. Lewis’ Staked print novel promo
• 65 Below podiobook by Basil Sands

We take a slightly different look at the OBSIDIAN blackout in this episode, as we explore the (darkly) humorous side of things, and then wrap up the video with an epic machinima short film. This week’s content is both whimsical and ultra-creative, and J.C. Hutchins is proud to showcase it here.

Contributions by:

• Mur Lafferty
• Beth Case
• Montie Green and The Galactic Watchtower team

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: The conclusion to Nemesis, Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff’s two-part short story!

This week sees the release of Love Thy Neighbor, written by J.C.’s Myxer.com co-worker and friend Jeffrey Sass. Jeff has written and produced for both film and television, with projects ranging from nationally-syndicated childrens’ programming to classic Troma films such as Sgt. Kabukiman, NYPD. Jeff has also collaborated with William Shatner for a PC game based on Shatner’s TekWar novel series.

If you enjoyed this tale, send Jeff Sass and email at jwsass@gmail.com. You can also learn more about him at Sassholes.Blogspot.com and SocialNetworkingRehab.Blogspot.com.

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: The fourth episode in the “Voices From the Darkness” video series!

Dan Klass is the host and creator of “The Bitterest Pill,” an award-winning podcast in which he talks about his life on the outskirts of the entertainment industry while raising his kids under the flight path at LAX.  The show has been described by The New York Times as “intelligent,” “endearing,” and “sublime,” and has been featured on NPR, NBC 4, Fox News and in USAToday.com and The Christian Science Monitor.  He is also the co-author of Podcast Solutions: The Complete Guide to Audio and Video Podcasting.

Please subscribe to The Bitterest Pill — and send Dan Klass a well-deserved appreciative email — by visiting TheBitterestPill.com.

J.C. also unleashes gobs of timely news in his “talky-talk” intro and outro, including:

• Parts One and Two of J.C.’s fun interview with Joe on the OnThePodcast podcast, featuring some delicious tidbits about J.C.’s next book, Personal Effects: Dark Art
• An opportunity to lend a helping hand to 7th Son superfan Gemini and her family by making a donation at the Time Well Wasted blog
• A mini-geekout update about Personal Effects: Dark Art, and its state of production
• The 7th Son T-shirt store at Geeklabel.com is closing on Aug. 15. If you want to snag a shirt or two (at less than $15 a pop), get crackin’
• The world premiere of a brand-new Celldweller song — this one is the ultra-intense, incredible “Birthright (Birthwrong Remix by Blue Stahli)”. The full song is available here in this episode; download the song for free at FixtOnline.com/FreeDownloads.html

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: A very special “Voices From the Darkness” episode!

• Click here to listen to the OBSIDIAN-inspired Night Guy episode!

On to this week’s short story, titled Nemesis, written and narrated by Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff. This is the first part of an epic suspense-filled novellette; its conclusion will debut next week. If you like what you hear, be sure to email Mark and tell him so. You can find Mark’s contact information at MarkYoshimotoNemcoff.com.

In J.C.’s intro “talky talk,” he (doesn’t) pimp:

• John Alpha for President
• Cool deets about his new novel, Personal Effects: Dark Art, which can be heard in J.C.’s UltraCreatives interview with Matthew Wayne Selznick
• The easily-accessible blog post for the first installment in J.C.’s serialized text tale, 7th Son: Runner
• Two incredible must-read thrillers: Deep Storm by Lincoln Child and Hide by Lisa Gardner. He’s currently reading His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novick (good so far), and John Steakley’s Armor and Vampire$ are next in the queue

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: An incredible and poignant contribution from “The Bitterest Pill” creator Dan Klass, more “Voices from the Darkness” episodes, and — if J.C. can get his shit together — an OBSIDIAN Clone Line episode.

PROMOS:

• Guy David’s OBSIDIAN-themed Night Guy episode
• New World Orders podiobook
• Sci-Fi Dimensions podcast
• Interview for a Wizard podiobook

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

If you’re a contributor to this episode and want credit for your work, send J.C. an email using the link below.

FANS FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Robert Gasperson

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

All contributions seen in this vidcast were created by 7th Son fans from across the globe.

Behold the 7th Son universe during the blackout, as witnessed by its victims … and captured for all the world to see.

Contributions by:

• Robin Hudson
• Kristina
• Michael Unquera
• Nathan Lowell
• Sam Chupp

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: this week’s “Voices From the Darkness” audio episode, quite possibly a Clone Line episode, and then the first part of novelist and screenwriter Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff’s short story.

7th Son: Runner chronicles the life of Dr. James DeFalco, a supporting (but long-lost) character from 7th Son, Book One: Descent. As you’ll learn in this first text installment, the man has many a secret … and while he doesn’t know it, it’s only a matter of time before he’s hunted for those secrets. It’s a story told in several parts; new installments drop every other week.

Next week will see the debut of the second episode in this serialized tale.

Visit those links above to get in on the action and receive immediate notifications when new 7th Son: Runner episodes are released. Blog announcements such as this one will come long after the most-recent episode has debuted, so if you want to be a part of the unfolding drama and action — and learn how 7th Son: Runner affects the 7th Son universe more than you could ever have imagined — sign up for the free “text blast” announcements (links above, natch), and read the episodes as they go live.

Here’s the link to 7th Son: Runner’s first installment. Link goes to a simple .txt file, which you can read on-screen, print, or save to your computer. Enjoy … and be sure to sign up for the “text blast” list!

–J.C.

New media performance artist, skeptic, atheist, author, musician, (and super-spy, J.C. is convinced of it) and one of the first podcasters ever, Soccergirl has written, starred in and produced nearly 300 episodes of her popular audio and video podcast, “Soccergirl, Incorporated,” reaching an audience of up to 80,000 worldwide.

Soccergirl has also appeared on Sirius satellite radio, television and terrestrial radio, and in various print publications including The New York Times and Wired Magazine. Soccergirl wrote, directed and starred in “The Soccergirl Second,” a theatrical adaptation of her show (performed at The Brick Theater in New York City) and has just completed an absolutely brilliant book of short fiction and essays, forthcoming from Mevio Press.

If you enjoyed this small peek into the genius that is the “Soccergirl, Incorporated” experience, please visit SG’s website at SoccergirlIncorporated.com, send her an appreciative email, and check out her other work. (Photo by Chris Marquant.)

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: J.C. takes us out of the blackout for another UltraCreatives interview with J.R. Blackwell, and then we dive back in with audio and video “Voices From the Darkness” episodes.

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

If you enjoy Mur’s tale, please send a few gracious words her way. Her contact information can be found at her website, Murverse.com.

J.C. covers some fun, if familiar, ground in his “talky talk” segments, including:

• The popular John Alpha for President election campaign
• 7th Son: Runner, J.C.’s new serialized mobile phone text story, which is rolling out now. Find details here and here.

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: A priceless video short-short by Soccergirl. A new UltraCreatives interview with J.R. Blackwell will drop after that, and we’ll close out the week with more audio and video “Voices From the Darkness” OBSIDIAN episodes!

PROMOS:

• The Takeover audio drama
• Short Cummings Audio podcast
• Aurora Hunter podcast novel

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

7th Son: Runner chronicles the story of James DeFalco, assistant director of the 7th Son facility. DeFalco was a small supporting character in 7th Son, Book One: Descent — but here, he takes center stage. Astute 7th Son fans may recall DeFalco, and Book One’s facility-wide evacuation that sent all “nonessential” 7th Son personnel topside until the John Alpha crisis had passed. DeFalco was one such employee, and Runner reveals much more about this nigh-anonymous doctor … and the 7th Son legacy … than you could have ever imagined.

This is the first time anyone, anywhere, can actually read J.C. Hutchins’ fiction.

Runner was written for, and is intended to be read on, cell phone screens. Users must have mobile Web access to download and read the Runner .txt files as they are released. But that doesn’t mean folks who don’t have a data plan (or a cell phone, for that matter) can’t enjoy the story. J.C. has made certain that anyone with Internet access can download this serialized text.

Visit this page to learn how to sign up to receive SMS “text blast” announcements when future Runner installments are released. If you’re just now learning about Runner, you won’t be able to receive the FIRST text blast — that’s already been sent into the wild — but you can receive the next blast by signing up today.

All readers — including those who sign up now, folks who do not have a data plan, or folks who are have a mobile carrier not supported by Myxer (the service J.C. is using to release this story), don’t worry: you can find the URLs linking to Runner‘s episodes in the “cell phone” graphic found at J.C.’s Myxer Artist page.

The story’s just started, so sign up — and get ready to run. By the time Runner concludes, the 7th Son universe will never be the same …

All contributions seen in this vidcast were created by 7th Son fans from across the globe.

Behold the 7th Son universe during the blackout, as witnessed by its victims … and captured for all the world to see.

Contributions by:

• Stewart Boyles
• Michael Bekemeyer
• Natalie Metzger
• Brent Weichsel

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: A brief Clone Line episode, and then a short story by novelist Mur Lafferty.

This week’s masterpiece of audio, complete with authentic slang, created by 7th Son fan Mark Smith.

If you want to contribute to future episodes of “Voices from the Darkness,” time is growing short. You have until July 7, 2008 to call the National Blackout Emergency Hotline at 206-222-9158 and leave a message as if you are a victim in this blackout. Remember: J.C. is not looking for traditional short stories — your call must adhere to the conceit that the blackout is real, and you are experiencing it now.

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: The second episode of the video installment of “Voices From the Darkness.”

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

Evo is the man who coined the term “podiobooks,” and was instrumental in assembling the team of founders for the Podiobooks.com service. He is also the co-author of Podcasting for Dummies and Expert Podcasting Practices for Dummies, and blogs at his site, FunAnymore.com.

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: Another amazing “Voices From the Darkness” audio episode, in which we learn all about the world of the blackout … from a ham radio operator’s perspective.

PROMOS:

• Tea and Chat podcast
• The Basics of the Game
• The Geek Spin

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

If you enjoyed Mike’s story, be sure to check out his other work — and send him an email — at StormWolf.com.

J.C. covers some important announcements in this episode’s “talky talk” intro and outro, including:

• An update on John Alpha’s presidential campaign
• Information about the OBSIDIAN “Voices From the Darkness” episodes, and how you can contribute. Call 206-222-9158 to leave your audio mark in the 7th Son universe, or record video footage and email it to J.C. Click here for submission guidelines. Deadline for this content is July 7, 2008.
• Find “sneak peek” video footage from “Voices From the Darkness” contributors at J.C.’s YouTube channel. (More will be released soon!)
• Information about 7th Son: Runner, J.C.’s serialized “cell phone-centric” text story that will debut next week. Click here to learn how to obtain this OBSIDIAN text-only story!

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: a short-short story by Evo Terra. After that, more “Voices From The Darkness” episodes, quite possibly a brief Clone Line episode, and next week’s short story, written by Mur Lafferty…

PROMOS:

• Archangel podcast novel
• PodioMedia Chat
• Notes From the Vault

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

This is first project of its kind in podcast fiction.

Witness the OBSIDIAN blackout victims’ stories … captured for all the world to see.

Contributions by:

• Arri Gaffer
• Martyn Casserly
• Susan Z

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: A blood-chilling short story by New York Times bestselling novelist Michael A. Stackpole.

Turn out the lights and listen to what your friends and fellow fans have created. America has become a very dangerous place indeed.

FANS FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Jon Rice
• Jeremiah McCoy
• Chip Burkhead
• Nick (aka FlippantMoniker)

Your orders for today: Check out the amazing “The Command Line” podcast by Thomas “Command Line” Gideon, and give a shoutout of appreciation to OBSIDIAN producer Shawn Bishop!

Do you want to contribute to future episodes of “Voices from the Darkness?” J.C. would love to have you play in his world. Call the National Blackout Emergency Hotline at 206-222-9158 and leave a message for him as if you are a victim in this blackout. J.C. isn’t looking for traditional short stories — your call must adhere to the conceit that the blackout is real, and you are experiencing it now.

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: The first episode of the video installment of “Voices From the Darkness!”

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

TD-0013′s “A Different Point of View” is a must-listen collection of essays told from a loyal stormtrooper’s perspective. Learn more about TD’s work — and send him an appreciative email — at www.ADPOV.net. This November, TD is participating in a walk across the Arizona desert to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis research. Click the banner below to learn more!

Coming up next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: The debut of “Voices from the Darkness,” collections of fan-created audio content that chronicle the OBSIDIAN blackout as seen by its victims!

PROMOS:

• The Time Well Wasted blog
• Steampod steampunk fiction podcast magazine

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

If you enjoyed Tee’s OBSIDIAN story, be sure to check out his work at TeeMorris.com, and send him an appreciative email.

J.C. Hutchins promotes several items of interest in the “talky-talk” intro and outro chatter for this episode, including:

• An upcoming Ministry of Propaganda mission from Natasha
• JOHN ALPHA FOR PRESIDENT! Visit JohnAlphaForPresident.com to receive your free bumper sticker, and support 7th Son with this fun viral marketing experiment
• 7th Son fan Cactusnic’s UK bike ride to benefit the Alzheimer’s Society
• Snag the full version of “Birthright” — and 15 other songs — for free at FixtOnline.com/FreeDownloads

Coming next on 7th Son: OBSIDIAN: A story by Imperial Stormtrooper TD-0013, from the A Different Point Of View podcast. If only George Lucas could write such compelling ‘trooper tales…

PROMOS:

• Blind Access Journal blog and podcast
• Tale Chasing
• Milf and Cookies

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).

Nearly 100 people have contributed to the OBSIDIAN experience. Tales from bestselling novelists, A-List podcast storytellers and 7th Son fans from around the globe will be featured in this anthology over the next 10 weeks. At least three episodes of content will be released each week, so prepare for full immersion into the OBSIDIAN blackout experience.

In the weeks ahead, you’ll hear stories from these podcast entertainers: Michael A. Stackpole, Scott Sigler, Mur Lafferty, Matt Wallace, Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff, Christiana Ellis, Evo Terra, Dan Klass, Wichita Rutherford, TD-0013, George Hrab, Soccergirl, and the cast of The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd.

Today’s episode features the first half of the short story Miles To Go Before I Sleep, written and narrated by Tee Morris. Learn more about Tee’s work — and send him an appreciative email! — at TeeMorris.com.

There’s huge news in J.C.’s “talky talk” intro and outro segments, including:

• The big reveal about J.C.’s next novel, affectionately nicknamed CODE PHANTOM
• The world premiere of Celldweller’s instrumental version of “Birthright”
• How you can download a full album of Celldweller songs — including the full version of “Birthright” — for free at FixtOnline.com/FreeDownloads
• J.C.’s appearance on producer Shawn Bishop’s podcast, Behind The Lines #14
• The debut of J.C.’s text story, 7th Son: Runner, available as a mobile phone exclusive

Feedback about OBSIDIAN is welcome and appreciated! Send J.C. an email, leave a comment below, or call the Clone Line at 206-984-2566 (CLONE).