Be mighty, and keep your axes sharp!
A homeless man who talks with birds is convinced he can talk with his dead wife on the moon…if only he can fix a broken radio he found in a dumpster.
Content Advisory: Swearing, mention of alcohol use, depression, dementia, death of a spouse, suicide involving a grotesque brain penetration.
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Credits:
Music: Ergo Phizmiz and Chad Crouch
Story and Narration: Christopher Gronlund
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“Standstill” is one of those stories that turned into something more than I expected. People seem to really like this story, and I must say I like it enough that I want to do more with it in the future.
I’ve bumped into that problem with all the new stories I’ve written for Not About Lumberjacks.
(It’s not a bad problem to have…)
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When she was 18 — for her high school graduation — Maddy was given a pocket watch by her grandfather…along with the warning that it does more than just tell time.
Eighteen years later, she uses the button on the watch her grandfather told her to use with caution. What happens after clicking the button changes the lives of Maddy and her husband, Aaron.
A heartfelt tale about time and love…and the effect the two things have on us all…
Content Advisory: Swearing, sudden onset of cancer, death of a spouse, self doubt.
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Credits:
Music: Ergo Phizmiz and Christopher Costanza
Story and Narration: Cynthia Griffith and Christopher Gronlund
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Sometimes the weight of everyday life catches up with you and, instead of posting the story you intended to post, you end up sharing something older.
Some thoughts about twists in stories, the rush of everyday life, and how sometimes the best defense against it all is simplicity.
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An exhausted single father comes to grips with his children and dating issues during a visit to his psychologist.
Content Advisory: Swearing, parental expectations.
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Credits:
Music: Ergo Phizmiz and Chad Crouch
Story and Narration: Christopher Gronlund
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This episode of Behind the Cut ranks up there with the “Horus” episode (in which I interviewed Cynthia Griffith about narrating the story and tackling the voice of a parrot).
What makes this current story and look behind the story so special to me? I interviewed Mark Hosack, Shawn Kupfer, and Rick Coste about a strange request I made to them:
I know it’s short notice, but can you read these lines of orc dialogue and then grunt and laugh like an orc for the next episode of Not About Lumberjacks?
And they did.
But I also love this episode because it wasn’t until after writing and listening to “The Other Side” that I realized I had written a story about the death of childhood — while still showing that adulthood is not without its own charm.
If you only listen to this episode to hear three good friends grunt and howl, it’s worth it, but I hope you like the interviews and commentary as well.
And if you missed “The Other Side,” it can be heard right here.
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Daniel’s life was not going very well. Not only did his wife divorce him, but he was laid off from his job. With few cares about what would happen to him if caught, he breaks into his childhood home to see if something once in his bedroom closet is still there.
Content Advisory: Swearing, divorce, depression, fantasy violence, alcohol use, fantasy deaths, work/life struggles.
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Credits:
Music: Ergo Phizmiz and Chad Crouch
Story and Narration: Christopher Gronlund
Orcs: Rick Coste, Mark Hosack, Shawn Kupfer, and Christopher Gronlund
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Find out why “Rabbit Eyes” was written, and how this recording differs from the original manuscript.
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The owner of a software company becomes very uneasy when he discovers someone close to him is trying to control his mind.
Content Advisory: Swearing, manipulation, controlling relationship, deception, sex.
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Credits:
Music: Ergo Phizmiz , Chad Crouch, and Craig Kelman
Rabbit Photo: Serious Fun
Story and Narration: Christopher Gronlund
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“Horus” is the first short story I’ve written in at least half a decade. (My focus in recent years has been novel-length fiction.) To get back to short fiction, my motivation was simple: write a story for my wife. My wife is a fan of parrots, so a story about an unemployed writer who lands her dream job, but gets more than she bargained for in the form of an African grey parrot named Horus seemed like a good way to go. “Horus” is almost the most downloaded episode of Not About Lumberjacks. I like to think that’s because the story is good (I, and others, believe it is), but I think so much of the episode’s success was the result of having my wife, Cynthia Griffith, narrate the story. Cynthia’s narration was the highlight of the episode for so many people…so for this episode of Behind the Cut, I interviewed Cynthia about reading the story.
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