Method and Madness

A tarot reading on self-possession, bringing your own carrots, and how to let a little meaning in. Shout out to Dolly. Contact me via your favorite social media or bradwkellyATgmail with TAROT in the subject to set up a personal reading for a reasonable fee.

Matthew Fresta and Matthew Sini from Getting Lit join me to talk Italo Calvino’s whirlwind love letter to writing, reading, and the source of stories. We discuss what Calvino’s delightful use of postmodern technique, why the tone of this book might be the secret to its potency, whether there is a Father of Stories, and much, much more.Getting Lit on Patreon, Substack, Spotify

First published in 1893, “The Million Pound Bank Note” by Mark Twain is a classic of American storytelling. A farcical rags to riches tale.

J. Reuben Appelman is a celebrated writer of true crime (THE KILL JAR, investigating a notorious serial homicide case in Detroit in the 1970s). His latest, THE CHEATING SIDE, is a classic work of hardboiled fiction firmly set in the modern era.From the blurb: When Idaho private investigator Jimmy Chinden’s murder investigation threatens a land deal worth millions, the politically protected Aryan mob comes gunning for his family―but the old money outlaws might be outgunned.

The great John Jay Stancliff joined me to talk about his latest novel, PIERCE, out August 11 from Farthest Heaven. His book is about fatherhood, men, work, and the deep struggle of virtue.BUY PIERCEFollow John on twitter.

A tarot reading on finding home again, growing versus building, and what it means to play the victim. Contact me via your favorite social media or bradwkellyATgmail with TAROT in the subject to set up a personal reading for a reasonable fee.

The great J David Osborne joined me to go deep on the cult classic HOUSE OF LEAVES. We get into what works, what doesn’t, what might have back in 2000, what the house might mean, and why we might never see another book like it in the age of the internet.Follow JDO on twitterBuy JDO’s booksListen to Agitator on Apple, Spotify, or Patreon

Well before she became a household name, Willa Cather contributed this piece to McClure’s Magazine, a photo negative of a bildungsroman, and a tragedy about the draw of glitz and glamour.

A tarot reading on trusting your gut, savoring the solace, and willing yourself to find the edge. Contact me via your favorite social media or bradwkellyATgmail with TAROT in the subject to set up a personal reading for a reasonable fee.

Scott Laudati is a renaissance man. A musician, painter, filmmaker, and a true poet. We talk about being on local television, his ceaseless travels across this beautiful country, throwing away the phone, and his powerful new collection of poetry RAINBOW ROAD.Buy Rainbow RoadScott’s great travel videos on youtube.Scott on twitter.

Good Morning and please listen to me: TREE OF SMOKE is a Great American Novel, about war, espionage, fathers, sacrifice, depravity, and much more. The book’s central metaphor stands everywhere and nowhere, like a dark wraith unfolding itself across the modern psyche.The great Kevin Kautzman, from Art of Darkness, joined me in the tunnels beneath this remarkable book.

Author Kenan Meral joined me to talk about books within books, the terror of sublimity, the reality of deepfakery, and his excellent new novel STIGMA OF THE LIVING FLESH.Follow Kenan on twitterBuy STIGMA OF THE LIVING FLESH from New Ritual Press

In this FREE version of the MADNESS episode, I get into hobby tunneling, Gass via Gaston Bachelard, the linguistic and mythic dimension of matter, and what it means that THE TUNNEL is a novel of the Earth.

I’m joined by the Portuguese fiction writer and aphorist Laeth for a conversation about jazz, writing as discovery, listening for the voice, and his singular work, including his most recent novel SKETCHES OF ALICE Laeth’s website (buy SKETCHES OF ALICE and his other books)Laeth on substackLaeth on twitter

Out of the archives of The Black Mask—the magazine that launched the careers of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler—comes a tale by Harold Ward, an unsung hero paid pennies by the word. Inspector Des Moines is clever, tough, and no nonsense, but when dead people start pulling heists, he has to call on the enigmatic Mohammed Gunga to wage battle against evil itself.

A tarot reading on the things that enslave us, self-medicating and scrolling, and organizing one's mental state to bring vision into reality. Contact me via your favorite social media or bradwkellyATgmail with TAROT in the subject to set up a personal reading for a reasonable fee.

In which we go deep into the life of John Williams: oil booms, abandonment, tall tales about WW2, booze, women, and three “perfect” novels.In this clip, I get into the influence of Yvor Winters’ odd brand of classicism on one of the 20th Century’s greatest novelists.Get access to the full episode at madmethodpod.com/subscribe

Clark Ashton Smith was a poet once called “The Last of the Great Romantics".” But he is more remembered as one of the three most significant writers of pulp mainstay Weird Tales. H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, and Clark Ashton Smith who was perhaps even stranger in his vision than either of them. “The Nameless Offspring” first appeared in Strange Tales in 1932. A tale of family secrets, a haunted manor, and a beast we’d now refer to as a Pale Crawler.

Matt Fresta and Matthew Sini of the Getting Lit Podcast join me to talk about the history of their show, niche literary podcasting, the Australian scene, Sini’s provocative statement that there is no such thing as an atheist fiction writer, and much, much more.Matt Sini’s substack pieces mentioned:No Atheists in PlotholesCurrent Thing Writing Killed the Literary JournalNeo-Passeism piece on Australian sceneMatt Fresta’s stories at Apocalypse Confidential:“A Super Position”“Black and White and Blue”“Count Whack-ula”

The ever-insightful Paul Heron joins me to figure out if History is in fact over, what Fukuyama meant by posing the question, cycles of history, nostalgia for the future, and much much more.Subscribe to Some Private Diagonal and check out Paul’s work at Café Américain

BUTCHER'S CROSSING by John Williams is an unassuming masterpiece. The writer Lake Markham (LO SIENTO) joined me to talk about what makes this book special. We get into the meaning of the Western, the ideas and images that drive this book, buffalo, what Williams has to say about America and Transcendentalism, and some of the things that writers can learn from this potent little volume.BUY LO SIENTOLake on instagram.Lake on twitter.Lake’s website.

David Simmons is a genre unto himself. We talk about his unsettling novel ERADICATOR--a white-knuckle book that is part AMERICAN PSYCHO, part THE FLY, and all Simmons. We also get into his upcoming short story collection FETTY ON THE SWITCHES, his creative process, why Baltimore is such rich terrain for fiction, and much, much more.This will be on the free feed next week.David’s linktreePre-order FETTY ON THE SWITCHES

The dynamic poet Tom Will has yet another modern classic. His new collection, RHYMES out now on Farthest Heaven , a unique exploration of poetic form is the new poetry you need. We talk about the history of the roundel and other poetic forms, the potency of poetry in the age of the algorithm, and much more.Pre-order RHYMES from Farthest HeavenTom on twitter

Grant Wamack is the author and tarot reader. His most recent book is THE SCARECROWS WILL WATCH OVER US, a folk horror thriller about cat people lust-demons stalking a farm in Wisconsin...and the occult practices that have warded them off for years. We also talked about tarot, bigfoot and other cryptids, and Grant’s time working for a psychic hotline.Grant’s twitterBuy SCARECROWS and Grant’s other booksGet a tarot reading from Grant

Explorations of the labyrinths hidden below the cult classic hoodoo novel MUMBO JUMBO by Ishmael Reed. Talking the real Book of Thoth and the secrets smuggled into the modern day through the Corpus Hermeticum, the identity of Moses, the real deal about Voodoo, and much, much more.

"The Open Boat" is a short story by American author Stephen Crane (1871–1900). First published in 1898, it was based on Crane's experience of surviving a shipwreck off the coast of Florida earlier that year while traveling to Cuba to work as a newspaper correspondent. Crane was stranded at sea for thirty hours when his ship, the SS Commodore, sank after hitting a sandbar. He and three other men were forced to navigate their way to shore in a small boat;

[PREVIEW} Down into the labyrinth of THE STRONGHOLD: the curious history of NYRB Classics, theories of literary time, the significance of the barbarian, the dream of Great Tartaria, and much more. Subscribe for full access to this episode, the growing Madness archive, and early access to all guest episodes..

The legendary Ken Layne joins me to talk about how he found the desert, what’s going on with UFOs, our Eldritch Republic, the role of the folklorist, and much, much more.Follow Ken.

The ever-insightful Jack BC joined me to discuss a paradoxical little masterpiece: THE STRONGHOLD by Dino Buzzati. To some, better known as THE TARTARIAN STEPPE. It’s a homage to Kafka, a beautiful bit of existentialism, and a torturous confrontation with the nature of time in the lives we live.Check out Jack on his great podcast BOOKCLUB FROM HELL.

Iain Ryan is the author of 8 books. His latest, THE CASINO, is a pulse-pounding crime story about police corruption in Queensland in the 1980s. He joined me to talk about the writing of this book, his overall Gold Coast Quartet--of which this book is just one part, the uneasy appeal of the 1980s, and much, much more.Buy THE CASINOFollow Iain

Matt Cardin is the author or editor of 12 books and ranks among the very finest of contemporary writers of Weird fiction and cosmic horror, as well as one of the most consistently interesting contributors to substack. His most recent book, WRITING AT THE WELLSPRING, is a spiritual guide for creative work and a manual for cultivating your relationship with your own daemon muse.

Author and podcaster Frank Kidd joined me to discuss his page-turning Western/frontier novel MEDICINE WOMAN (winner of Ian Barr’s Indie of the Year 2025), what makes a genre, why the Western still matters, and what makes America Weird.Buy MEDICINE WOMAN.Follow Frank on twitter.

A preview of the MADNESS presentation on Cormac McCarthy’s THE CROSSING. Here talking about the very, very strange relationship between man, wolf, and the other world. For access to the full thing, subscribe via substack or patreon. latest book: CROWBAR

UTTER GOODNESS is UTTERly GOOD. The writer Audrey Lee joined me to talk about her exciting new collection of short stories, out now via Farthest Heaven, comprehending America, STONER, and the state of confessional writing.Buy UTTER GOODNESS

The incredible writer Andrew Edwards joined me to talk about Cormac McCarthy’s oft-overlooked masterpiece THE CROSSING. We get technical on McCarthy’s high style, Crossings of all sorts, the spiritual bond of brothers, and what it means to say that the world is but a tale.Buy Andrew’s latest book: CROWBAR

The first 3 chapters of my new book THE EARTHEN DARK for your listening pleasure. Get a copy of the book: bradkellyesque.com.SPECIAL DEAL: In 2026, if you sign up for a yearly paid subscription to Method and Madness (via substack or patreon), and provide a US postal address, you’ll get a special signed copy of THE EARTHEN DARK, along with two hand-edited manuscript pages of early drafts, and a one-card tarot reading (with card). You’ll also get all the other benefits: early access to all episodes and exclusive access to one-of-a-kind MADNESS presentations.

A peek behind the paywall. In this episode, I go in depth on Ellroy’s stylistic forebears, play a little Glass Bead Game between AMERICAN TABLOID and very different book, give the quick and very dirty history of CONFIDENTIAL MAGAZINE, and go full-on true crime telling the ‘real’ story of Chuck Rogers.

In this clip from the full episode, I dive into the career of Hugh Everett III, a brilliant physicist who developed the groundbreaking Many Worlds Interpretation—and ushered in the algorithmic age with classified work for shadowy government entities.

Anthony Metivier is known as the magnetic memory master. Using time-tested techniques he has not only taught himself to memorize large quantities of complicated information, but he’s gained a reputation for being among the very best teachers of memory practice. Now, he’s written his second novel in the Decline series, a bold detective saga that puts these memory methods in praxis and takes the reader on a wild ride: serial killers, exotic drugs, and conspiracy, and the gradual fall of civilization.Find everything Anthony Metivier is up to here.

Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic 1836 story, first appearing in The Token and Atlantic Souvenir, later re-published in TWICE-TOLD TALES.

Andrew Edwards, the author of what just might be the best novel of 2025, joins me to talk conspiracy, LSD, the interior journey of writing, the 1980s, literary gnosticism, the quantification of everything, and, of course, his certified banger CROWBAR. Buy Crowbar

Jacob Austin, mastermind behind the fantastic Gnostic Pulp substack joined me to talk about the work of Thomas Pynchon, what the heck was going on with PKD, the nature of UFOs, and much, much more.LinktreeSome Gnostic Pulp pieces we touched on:Further Adventures in Pynchonian RealityYear of the LichenMoby-Dick is about UFOs

Writer, critic, and host of the podcast Strange Exiles, Bram E. Gieben joins me to talk about Philip K. Dick’s most unsettling work: THE THREE STIGMATA OF PALMER ELDRITCH: suspicion about reality, the commodification of the mind, PKD’s conception of God, whether sci-fi is still the trash stratum, and much more.Subscribe to Bram’s substack for his ongoing series CRISIS masculinity, the latest episodes of Strange Exiles, his upcoming book on PKD, and everything else he’s up to.Bram’s linktree.

The multi-talented Scott Laudati joined me to tell the crazy story of being courted by Hollywood for his great novel PLAY THE DEVIL, finding the spirit of America, and what it means to put in a hard day’s work.Scott’s twitterTo Kingdom Come (full tour movie)Buy PLAY THE DEVILScott’s linktree

Freud’s influence on the history of Egon Praediger’s favorite drug.Subscribe or sign up for a trial and check out the full episode:We get into the strange fates of several real figures referenced in the book, and the stories of one Pynchonian figure who may have proved ESP in the SHADOW TICKET era (J.B. Rhine) and another (Moritz Schlick) whose work made such things unmentionable in intellectual society.

Writer David Leo Rice  joined me to talk about his wildly imaginative and startlingly resonant new book THE SQUIMBOP CONDITION—along the way we discuss the deep meaning of the A-Bomb, the status of the American Dream, and how David came to be so freaking productive.Buy David’s latest book THE SQUIMBOP CONDITION out now from 11:11 Press.David’s substackDavid’s twitter

The brilliant writer David Leo Rice joined me to talk Thomas Pynchon’s latest, and possibly last, novel SHADOW TICKET. Pynchonian Zones, the warp and weft of history, the end of the systems novel, and the uber-American triad of Beer, Cheese, and Bowling.Buy David’s latest book THE SQUIMBOP CONDITION out now from 11:11 Press.x.com/raviddiceraviddice.com

The relentless writer J David Osborne joins me to talk GODS FARE NO BETTER, his upcoming novel BERSERKER CLUB (pre-order now, out 12/1/2025), drilling mud, escaping twitter, the brilliance of sitcoms and Spark Master Tape—and helps me get my mojo back.

In 1924, Weird Tales published a story by the world famous magician Harry Houdini entitled “Imprisoned with the Pharaohs.” In truth, this story was written by H.P. Lovecraft with some initial ideas provided by Houdini, who is also the narrator of the tale—presented as a genuine encounter that Houdini experience in Egypt in 1910. The story has also been called “Under the Pyramids” and “Entombed with the Pharaohs.” This is a story that predates Call of Cthulhu and the Shunned house and At the Mountains of Madness and yet is arguably represents a subtle turning point in Lovecraft’s oeuvre. lovecraft, weird tales, houdini, weird fiction, cthulhu, egypt

The writer and photographer Lake Markham joins me to talk about Texas, Cormac McCarthy’s SUTTREE, and his brilliant novel LO SIENTO, coming October 21, 2025 from Apocalypse Confidential.BUY LO SIENTOLake on instagram.Lake on twitter.Lake’s website.