I’d like to take a moment to reflect on this last year we’ve shared.
One year ago the first story aired on The Voice of Dog. The reality of the pandemic had arrived in my country, and all over the world people were feeling isolated and uncertain and powerless. I started this podcast because I wanted to do something about it —anything, just to make something, anything, better for someone. Anyone.
I decided I wanted to tell people stories. Stories that would give them courage, or hope, and if nothing else, something to look forward to. Even if they didn’t listen to the stories, I still wanted people to know that someone cared enough about them to have a new story for them to enjoy, every time they came back.
The first was, appropriately, “Bad Dog!” by my friend Rob Baird. A story of unfairness, and powerlessness in the face of power — but also a story of defiance and of hope. Many other writers have contributed stories since then. There’s a name for writers who’ve had stories on this podcast, you know. They’re “Friends of the Fireplace” — in early stories I sometimes mentioned that, though I realized I never explained why, and fell out of the habit.
163 stories have appeared on The Voice Of Dog in the last year. 163, by 82 writers — well, 83 now, including me.
Today's story is “Where Stories Are Told”, a riff on the traditional Irish masterpiece “The Humours of Whiskey”, by Khaki, your faithful fireside companion, and friends — and I’d like to take a moment to thank them:
Rob Baird, for Games at Götterdämmerung, Bad Dog!
Televassi, for BlueBucks, Counter-Culture
Huskyteer, for The Lion of the Low Countries, The Zeroth Protocol, Once We Were Meerkats
NightEyes DaySpring, for Glory of the Gods, Foxing for Pizza, The Tomb Guardian, Loving You is Wrong
Altivo Overo, for Rabbit Food, How Menander Got His Name, A Close Port of Call, Beyond Mundane Horizons, Catch Me If You Can, Coyote's Voice, The Blue Eye of the Desert God, Harvest Home, All That Glitters, Gibbous Moon Waning
Toledo the Horse, for Fuzzy Memory, Returning, Secret
Domus Vocis, for Edge of the Universe, Somewhere in the White Void, Hades & Philos: Prelude, Bounty Hunter Uncle
Frances Pauli, for Rats, The Lion Sleeps, Always Tomorrow
Ryan Campbell, for 6 Unbelievable Facts About Unicorns That Will Completely Blow Your Mind, Eagle's Splendour
Mary E. Lowd, for Katelynn and the Hummingbird, Marge the Barge, Shreddy and the Dancing Dragon, Summer Strawberries, Rapscallions, Shreddy and the Carnivorous Plant, Ecto Cafe, The Canoe Race, A Real Stand-Up Guy
Daniel Lowd, for The Canoe Race, A Real Stand-Up Guy
Kandrel, for The Pack, The Adventurers, Adrenaline High, Salute the Flag, To Find You
Carrizo Kitfox, for The Rat's Gift
Faolan, for Earning his Stripes
Dark End, for The Aviatrix
Bill Ricardi, for Unseelie Pie, The Fastest Blade
Kyell Gold, for Cleaning Up, To Catch a Thief, Agent Friendzone
B. P. Rugger, for Colour Me Terrified, Of His Flesh the Mystery Sing
Slip-Wolf, for The Charitable Pact of a Soft Hearted Fool, Kypris' Kiss
Field T. Mouse, for A Little Distraction
Pascal Farful, for The Hadfield Robbery, The Sacred Cross, Nobody's Home
Madison Scott-Clary, for Gigs, Disappearance, Milkshakes and Foxes, The Fool
Ocean Tigrox, for Food, Feuds and Fake Flora
Renee Carter Hall, for The Wishing Tree
C.F. Becker, for A Day With the Skaraks
Nenekiri Bookwyrm, for A Gentle Rustling of Leaves, Unpredictability
Metassus, for The Library, At The Inn, Whitewash, Salted Beef, Crystal, Dear Sara, Snowed In
Ben Goodridge, for Hot Dog
SignificantOtter, for Lone
Kergiby, for Giving Thanks, Home Again, A Number's Game
Dwale, for The River in the Mist, Behesht
Spottystuff, for The Conqueror, Nonna, Let Them Have Cake
Faora Meridian, for Empty, Not So Above It All
Alison Cybe, for Don't Forget your Comic Books!, Space Warrior Hitachi, I Never Wear Underwear
Skunkbomb, for A Rock Among Millions, Broadstripe, Virginia Smells Like Skunk
Dan Leinir Turthra Jensen, for You Are Our Lifeboat, Flying Rat, No Peas In My Garden
W.R. Frixmargen, for Glorvan and the Cart, Little Light Show
Crimson Ruari, for Galician Sled, Tokyo Tension, Going Home, Somewhere In The Cypress, Gate-Keeper
Jaden Drackus, for The Fox and the Lion Cosplayer
Jay "Shirou" Coughlan, for Dragon Roasted Coffee Beans
Joel Kreissman, for A World Lost
TJ Minde, for Missed Feelings, Like Playing a Volkswagen
Kirisis "KC" Alpinus, for No Dogs
Gre7g Luterman, for Dragonslayer
John Bailey, for Twilight Sparkle Goes to Bed
Amy Clare Fontaine, for Of a Hawk and a Lighthouse
Ian Madison Keller, for The Widehorn Herd, Bucking the Trend, Blind Date Blues
Royce Day, for Oiled Leather, To Catch the Lightning, At Prayer
MikasiWolf, for Kenyak's Saga, A Part of the Machine, A Leap Forward, A Leap Forward, A Leap Forward
Chapter I, by Kenneth Grahame, for The Wind in the Willows, The Wind in the Willows
Tempo, for Robin Hood and Her Valkyrie
Utunu, for Water
Rob MacWolf, for Fourth Man Left Outside, "The Last Journey Of Theodore Vulcek, Leader, Beloved Husband, and Pack Brother", and for writing half of today’s song.
H.J. Pang, for Remembering the Forgotten
Thurston Howl, for Ghosts of Cinnamon and Lavender
Ian Madison Keller, for Blind Date Blues, Blind Date Blues
SakaraFox, for A Well-Deserved Rest
Dirt Coyote, for I'm Just Your Stud, Leave It for the Morning, You Can Watch Me Dance
Blouie the Blue Heeler, for Aurora Borealis
K.C. Shaw, for Sound Check
Mog Moogle, for Over the Top
Roland Jovaik, for Variables
Killick, for Sky Defender
J.B. Rockwell, for Monkeyshines
Weasel, for These Are The Days of Our Lives
Dire, for Mischief Makers
J.F.R. Coates, for Lights In The Sky
Alice Clawford, for Feeling Sheepish
Anhedral, for Abstinence
Kayode Lycaon, for A Lazy Monday, Date Night
Tanner Silverpaw, for Winter Snow
Al Song, for Tempus Imperfectum
Aelius, for Urban Mystic, The Scout
Herr Wozzeck, for Shopping Trip
Darius Davis, for Familiar Encounter
Reid Minnich, for Hostage, Chinchilla Attack
Lauren Rivers, for Morning Coffee
JS Hawthorne, for Endless Winter
Kenneth Grahame, for The Wind in the Willows
Vixyy Fox, for The First Snow Waltz
Nachtfangen, for Cease Fire
I’d also like to thank my friend Colson Grainger for the use of his song “Intensely Beautiful and Strange”, a favourite of mine, whose gentle guitar has bookended every story to date.
And last but not least, I'd like to thank you, too. With all the love in my heart, and al the wisdom of the universe:
Thank you for listening to The Voice of Dog.