295 - The Book of Dale

Jeffrey Cranor (0:05)

Hey, y'all, it's Jeffrey Cranor, and we have a brand new audio drama coming your way this month. My Night Vale co-writers, Joseph Fink and Brie Williams, and I wrote a romance called This Will Ruin The Tour. It's set in a single day in New Orleans, about a 40-something pop star on her comeback tour, and the young journalist looking for his big break. We're really proud of this story, and also even more proud of it once we heard the music, Disparition composed for it. Anyways, it's stunning. This Will Ruin The Tour comes out October 26th, 2026 and is available wherever you get your audio books. And please pre-order if you can, because that really helps creators when you do that. And if you're wanting a scary story for this scary month, then I'll recommend Joseph Fink's The Nudge, a brand new novel about a man running from something, but has he run far enough. This book is Shirley Jackson-level tense with like a breezy Stephen King feel to the storytelling. The print version has drawings by Night Vale artist Jessica Hayworth, and the audiobook version features Night Vale actors Kevin R. Free and Cecil Baldwin. So choose which direction you want to go, maybe both. Oh, also, if you're in Southern California, come see Joseph's final in-store book event at Chaucer's Books in Santa Barbara on October 6th.

Get more info about This Will Ruin The Tour and The Nudge at welcometonightvale.com, click on Books. Last thing, did you know you can smell like Night Vale? The incredible perfumers at Sucreabeille developed a signature scent called, of course, Mostly Void Partially Stars. It smells like a cool night in the desert, sage, sand, eucalyptus. It is clean, and the packaging is so, so good looking. It's very cute, actually, too. I've got a link in the show notes of our two most recent Night Vale episodes, 294 and 285, if you want to get your Mostly Void Partially Stars signature Night Vale scent. Okay, that's it. And hey, thanks. Hey, it's Jeffrey Cranor, your good, good friend who wants you to be happy. And as your friend, I know that you like sci-fi and fantasy and probably even some horror fiction as well. So let me tell you about Lightspeed and Nightmare. Since 2010, Lightspeed has been among the world's leading publishers of sci-fi and fantasy short fiction, showcasing the work of award-winning authors alongside exciting new voices. And in 2012, their sibling magazine Nightmare launched and has been doing the same for horror short fiction. And right now, they're running a Kickstarter for both magazines. They've been around forever and will be around forever. So think about this like a subscription drive, but with bigger and better rewards. Things like signed books, shirts, mugs, subscriptions, D&D games with their publishing staff. But the real reward is in funding new fiction from living legends like Charlie Jane Anders, Grady Hendrick, Stephen Graham Jones, Rebecca Roanhorse, Veronica Roth, Victor Laval, Ken Liu, holy crap, Paul Tremblay, Chuck Windig, Jeff Anber... Anyways, if you're a listener to Welcome to Night Vale, you're probably already a Lightspeed and or Nightmare reader. But if not, get on it now. They're doing amazing work and you need to be reading it. You have until October 15th, 2026 to back Lightspeed and Nightmare magazines. It's about 10 million words they've published on award-winning sci-fi, fantasy and horror fiction. Visit lightspeedmagazine.com/nightvale before October 15th to back the Kickstarter.

SPEAKER_2 (3:21)

So good, so good, so good.

SPEAKER_3 (3:24)

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Cecil Baldwin (3:42)

Let's put a pin in that. And let's stick a knife in that. Oh, and that one really needs a pitchfork. Welcome to Night Vale.

Today's top story. A trial date has been set for archaeology professor and cult leader Harrison Kip for the murder of Jalen Rutherford. Harrison allegedly murdered Jalen with a collection plate. After he discovered Jalen was embezzling donation money that was promised to Harrison's religious organization. The trial is set for February 1st, and Sheriff Sam is currently interviewing candidates for the jury. Anyone interested should email a resume, cover letter and headshot to the sheriff's secret police. The sheriff said they're looking for retribution minded individuals who don't like fringe religions or academic types. We've got a perfect prosecution record here in Night Vale, Sheriff Sam said, and we'd like to keep it that way. So it's important that all jury members have a strong history of guilty verdicts and maybe a death penalty or two under their belts. Harrison's bail has been set at $2 million, which is almost three years salary for a part time adjunct professor at a community college. It's unlikely Harrison Kip will ever be a free man again.