Rewriting the Script on Audio Fiction

Imaginary Worlds

Eric Molinsky

Arts, Science Fiction, Fiction, Society & Culture

4.8 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 15 January 2025

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Lauren Shippen is one of my favorite creators of audio dramas. In 2015, she burst on the scene with The Bright Sessions, which was about young people with supernatural abilities who are in therapy. The show was so successful, she used it to create an audio drama network called Atypical Artists, which produces her work and other indie creators. As a writer, Lauren combines a steady stream of revelations and plot twists with an ability to write deeply human characters that keeps me bingeing. And she’s given herself great roles to play as an actress. I talk with Lauren about her creative process, and her newest shows, the post-apocalyptic road trip Breaker Whiskey, and New Year’s Day, which is about two rival magicians who are immortal. This week’s episode is sponsored by Remi and Hims. Get up to 50% off your custom-fit mouth guard at https://www.shopremi.com/IMAGINARY Start your free online visit today at Hims.com/IMAGINARY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to Imaginary Worlds, a show about how we create them and why we suspend
0:04.1	or disbelief. I'm Eric Malinski.
0:07.3	Around eight years ago, I heard about this new audio drama series that was getting a lot of
0:11.8	buzz. It was called the Bright sessions. Most of the episodes were presented as therapy sessions
0:17.8	recorded by a character named Dr. Bright. She specialized in treating
0:22.9	young adults with supernatural abilities. They're called atypicals. In the first episode, Dr. Bright
0:30.9	meets a patient named Sam. She tells Dr. Bright that she is the ability to go back in time,
0:36.5	but only when she has a panic attack.
0:39.8	And then Sam has one of those time-traveling panic attacks during her first therapy session.
0:46.0	When I'm not actually disappearing, I'm worried about disappearing. I'm worried about being caught, about
0:52.1	hurting someone, about not coming back. When I go away, I'm nowhere. I'm invisible. I'm worried about being caught, about hurting someone, about not coming back.
0:54.3	When I go away, I'm nowhere.
0:56.9	I'm invisible.
0:57.7	I'm no one.
0:58.4	And it's not better here where I have no life, no friends.
1:01.8	I don't exist anywhere.
1:03.4	I'm so scared of everything.
1:04.6	And I'm starting to lose my mind.
1:07.8	Sam, Sam, you do exist.
1:10.6	You're here right now with me. You are important and you're a part of
1:15.8	this world, even though it seems like you can simply vanish. You will never truly, Sam, are you all
1:21.6	right? You look very pale. I don't believe this of all the times. Oh, God, I'm so sorry about that.
	...

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