Guest Artist: Dr. Emily Zarka

Monster Featured: Frankenstein’s Creature!

Release Date: August 31st, 2025

Biography: Emily Zarka earned her doctorate in literature from Arizona State University where she currently serves as an Instructor in the English department. She is a public scholar and digital educator with expertise in the Gothic genre, horror, and monsters in literature and film. Zarka is writer and host of the popular YouTube series “Monstrum,” the flagship show on PBS’ Storied humanities channel. Since its launch in 2019 “Monstrum” has won multiple Telly awards and was a 2022 Webby Honoree in Video-Best Writing. She served as host of the “Rhetoric & Composition” video series in ASU’s groundbreaking Study Hall project. Her Audible Original lecture series Serial Killers: Real and Imagined launches will be available July 11 this year.

Since its launch in 2019 “Monstrum” has won multiple Telly awards and was a 2022 Webby Honoree in Video-Best Writing. She served as host of the “Rhetoric & Composition” video series in ASU’s groundbreaking Study Hall project.

Guest Artist: Lauren Rocha

Monster Featured: Monsters in the Mind!

Release Date: September 7th, 2024

Biography: Lauren Rocha is an Associate Professor of Practice, English, at Merrimack College. Her book, The Sinful Maternal: Motherhood in Possession Films, is now available. Her research interests include horror, popular culture, gender studies, and composition. She enjoys incorporating her research interests into her teaching, such as teaching a horror themed First Year Writing class. Her current project examines portrayals of abuse and women in horror; it combines research with her own experiences as a survivor. Originally from Braintree, Massachusetts, she now lives in New Hampshire with husband and four cats.

Guest Artist: Lee Murray

Monster Featured: Fox Spirits!

Release Date: September 14th, 2024

Biography: Lee Murray is a writer, editor, poet and screenwriter from Aotearoa New Zealand, a Shirley Jackson Award and five-time Bram Stoker Award® winner. With more than forty titles to her credit, including novels, collections, anthologies, nonfiction, poetry and several books for children, she holds a New Zealand Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement in Fiction, and is an Honorary Literary Fellow of the New Zealand Society of Authors. Read more at leemurray.info

Guest Artist: Ayden Castellanos

Monster Featured: Tlahuelpuchis!

Release Date: September 21st, 2024

Biography: Ayden Castellanos is the creator and host of the podcast, Susto. Spanish for fright, Susto is a cultural illness in which some believe the soul separates itself from the body after experiencing trauma. Castellanos titled his podcast Susto because it is centered on paranormal folklore from Latin American and Hispanic cultures. Susto has been independently produced since 2019, featuring classic legends like La Llorona, La Lechuza, and The Girl Who Danced with The Devil.

Castellanos emphasizes that Susto is his contribution to the long-standing tradition of oral storytelling. Each episode is narrative-driven followed up by analysis of the legend. Castellanos attributes his affinity for all things spooky and storytelling to his upbringing in the Rio Grande Valley, on the Texas-Mexico border, a place where the paranormal and folklore were part of family gatherings and in his classrooms.

Susto is available on every podcast platform and you can follow @SustoPodcast on every social media site or by visiting www.SustoPodcast.com.

Guest Artist: The Paranormal Putas

Monster Featured: Pennywise!

Release Date: September 28th, 2024

Biography: Leah & Bethany are two hermanas who were born and raised on the East Side of Austin Texas. As fourth generation Mexican-Americans, they grew up listening to their father and his brothers telling campfire tales that drove their curiosity of the paranormal. As young adults they began having their own paranormal experiences and spent time (a lot of time) enjoying every single episode of Travel Channel's "Ghost Adventures."

During the pandemic they decided to take their love for family tales and wild TV and formulate a podcast that covers it all.

"With every personal story shared with us we have learned that our desire is to continue to explore Latino paranormal stories, spirituality, love, and cultura. WE ARE THE PARANORMAL PUTAS"

Guest Artist: The Different Spectrums Podcast

Monster Featured: Legendary Monsters!

Release Date: October 12th, 2024

Biography: Dr. Naz and Spencer are the founders and co-hosts of the Different Spectrums Podcast, a mental health podcast that adds a creative twist by using scenes from movies and shows to help convey emotions for those who struggle to find the right words. Our unique approach is particularly valuable for neurodivergent individuals who may not have the words or understanding of what they feel and why. Cinematic storytelling provides a way for people like us to learn and validate what we feel! #hugs

Guest Artist: L. Marie Wood

Monster Featured: Godzilla!

Release Date: October 19th, 2024

Biography: L. Marie Wood is a Golden Stake Award-winning author, a two-time Bookfest Award winner, a two-time Bram Stoker Award® Finalist, and MICO Award-winning screenwriter, as well as a Rhysling nominated poet, an accomplished essayist, and a burgeoning playwright. She creates immersive worlds that defy genre as they intersect horror, romance, mystery, thriller, sci-fi, and fantasy elements to weave harrowing tapestries of speculative fiction. Wood has won over 50 national and international screenplay and film awards. She has penned short fiction that has been published in groundbreaking works, including the anthologies Sycorax's Daughters and Slay: Stories of the Vampire Noire. She is also part of the 2022 Bookfest Book Award-winning poetry anthology, Under Her Skin, as well as Bram Stoker Award® and Shirley Jackson Award Finalist anthologies Shakespeare Unleashed and Mooncalves. Her nonfiction has been published in Nightmare Magazine and academic textbooks such as the cross-curricular, Conjuring Worlds: An Afrofuturist Textbook. Her papers are archived as part of University of Pittsburgh’s Horror Studies Collection. Wood is the Vice President of the Horror Writers Association, the founder of the Speculative Fiction Academy, an English and Creative Writing professor, a horror scholar with a Ph.D. in Creative Writing and an MFA in Speculative Fiction, and a frequent contributor to the conversation around the evolution of genre fiction. Learn more about L. Marie Wood at www.lmariewood.com.

Guest Artist:

• Rena Mason (she/her)

• Audrey Zhou (she/her)

• Kanishk Tantia (he/him)

• Seoung Kim (he/they)

Monster Featured: Silk & Sinew Monsters!

Release Date: October 31st, 2024

Biography: In May of 2025, Kristy’s Anthology titled Silk and Sinew: A Collection of Folk Horror from the Asian Diaspora premiered for the world to see. With a special thanks to Bad Hand Books, Silk and Sinew teases forth folk horror rooted in the experience of the Asian Diaspora. From lengths of muscle and vein, ground bones, endless ropes of sinew it is with our bodies folk horror is woven. The anthology includes stories, poetry, and essays on history and folklore.

For this special Halloween episode, I introduce you to four stunning authors that will be featured in this collection: Rena Mason (she/her), Audrey Zhou (she/her), Kanishk Tantia (he/him), and Seoung Kim (he/they). All of their Bio’s will be in the link here. And thanks to Kristy’s own masterful brain, this episode explores identity in the world of Asian Folk Monsters, and their ties to us as people.

Guest Artist: Dr. David Puglia

Monster Featured: Goatmen!

Release Date: November 23rd, 2024

Biography:

David J. Puglia, Ph.D., is Professor and Deputy Chairperson in the English Department at Bronx Community College of the City University of New York, where he teaches courses in folklore. He is the editor of Contemporary Legend and the author of four books on legend and folklore, including the Brian McConnell Award-winning North American Monsters: A Contemporary Legend Casebook.

Guest Artist:

• Geneve Flynn (she/her)

  Jen (J.A.W.) McCarthy (she/her)

  Chris Hann (he/him)

Monster Featured: Silk & Sinew Monsters!

Release Date: November 30th, 2024

Biography: In May of 2025, Kristy’s Anthology titled Silk and Sinew: A Collection of Folk Horror from the Asian Diaspora premiered for the world to see. With a special thanks to Bad Hand Books, Silk and Sinew teases forth folk horror rooted in the experience of the Asian Diaspora. From lengths of muscle and vein, ground bones, endless ropes of sinew it is with our bodies folk horror is woven. The anthology includes stories, poetry, and essays on history and folklore.

Now for today’s episode, I introduce you to three ground breaking authors that will be featured in this collection: Geneve Flynn (she/her), Jen (J.A.W) McCarthy (she/her), and Chris Hann (he/him). All of their Bio’s will be linked here. And thanks to Kristy’s own brilliant brain, this episode explores guilt in the world of Asian Folk Monsters, and how difficult it is when it’s part of your cultural past.

Guest Artist: Susto

Monster Featured: Luisón!

Release Date: January 31st, 2025

Biography: Hiya Cuttles!

Welcome to Season 3 Episode 10.5, the first ever Episode Swap on the Floaties for Krakens Podcast - Luisón.

Featuring none other than our extra special Ghoulfriend Susto Podcast!

The Storyteller, the Myth, The Legend

Take it away Ayden...

🎶There's a she-wolf in the closet!🎵 In this episode, Ayden shares a Susto Original based on the legend of Luisón, a creature from Guarani mythology in Paraguay.

Want to share your own creepy story, picture, or recording? Leave a 5 star review with your story attached, email Ayden at sustopodcast@gmail.com, DM on social media, or visit http://sustopodcast.com/  to be shared on the show!

Sign up for Patreon here!: https://patreon.com/sustopodcast?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink

Guest Artist: Andy Boyd

Monster Featured: Wendigo!

Release Date: February 1st, 2025

Biography: Andy is the owner and game designer behind Pandion Games. He has a love for old summer camp nostalgia, and the outdoors in general. Growing up, he spent many hours playing point and click adventures games and is where his love of storytelling grew. His games draw inspiration from some of his favorite shows and games such as Gravity Falls, Outer Wilds, Grim Fandango, The Longest Journey, Psychonauts, Over the Garden Wall, and Hilda to name a few. Andy loves finding just the right mechanics to pair with the different types of stories each of his games explores.

Guest Artist: Hunter Bowles

Monster Featured: Spartans!

Release Date: February 8th, 2025

Biography: “Hi! My name is Hunter Bowles and I am a historian and folklorist. I am currently the collections manager at the Simpson County Historical Society. I always enjoy foodways study as well as military history and material culture. I really got into the world of the spooky through historical study and the depictions of monsters in Old Norse Sagas, Greek tales, and other such stories. “

Guest Artist:

• Ayida Shonibar (she/they)

  Rowan Cardosa (they/them)

  Naz Arjoyan (he/him)

  Kristy Park Kulski (she/her)

Monster Featured: Silk & Sinew Monsters!

Release Date: February 15th, 2025

Biography: In May of 2025, Kristy’s Anthology titled Silk and Sinew: A Collection of Folk Horror from the Asian Diaspora premiered for the world to see. With a special thanks to Bad Hand Books, Silk and Sinew teases forth folk horror rooted in the experience of the Asian Diaspora. From lengths of muscle and vein, ground bones, endless ropes of sinew it is with our bodies folk horror is woven. The anthology includes stories, poetry, and essays on history and folklore.

Now for today’s episode, I introduce you to three truly phenomenal authors that will be featured in this collection: Ayida Shonibar (she/they), Rowan Cardosa (they/them), Naz Arjoyan (he/him), and I’m so excited to finally introduce Kristy Park Kulski (she/her). All of their Bio’s will be linked here. And thanks to Kristy’s own brilliant brain, this episode explores Metamorphosis in the world of Asian Folk Monsters, and how transformation is complicated but necessary in our cultural makeup.

Guest Artist: C.A. Serna

Monster Featured: Jaws!

Release Date: February 22nd, 2025

Biography: C. A. Serna is a new and upcoming horror author that loves writing scary stories that will make you afraid of the dark. Exposed to horror at a young age, he learned to channel his fears and craft ghastly tales that will surely make your skin crawl…

C. A. Serna is currently working on his debut novel, with plans of writing and releasing more short stories in the future.

• ‍ Insta -https://www.instagram.com/c.a.serna.writes/profilecard/?igsh=MTlmeGU4cjI2cjZn

• Threads - https://www.threads.net/@c.a.serna.writes

• ‍ Linktree - https://linktr.ee/c.a.serna.writer

• ‍ “A Therapy Session” on Amazon

‍ ‍

Guest Artist: Autumn Orange

Monster Featured: The Entities!

Release Date: March 8th, 2025

Biography: Autumn Orange, aka Vaughn, would describe themselves as a charming composer, creative creature, and coffee connoisseur. Growing up, music, monsters, and their creativity played a crucial role in making them who they are today. Although they have been making music since middle school, their first release as Autumn Orange debuted in January of 2019. Since then, they have released over 200 songs under that moniker and are poised to release more.

Their music is most often instrumental and tied to a core narrative or theme; sometimes it's fanwork of the show Critical Role, other times it's far more broad. You can enjoy their music most places one would stream or purchase it.

When not making music, Autumn can be found playing video games, writing, game mastering various TTRPGs, looking for fellow cryptids, or hanging with those they love. 

They’d like to make a request to dedicate this episode to their grandfather, Don and would like to shout out.

LINKS:

Music~

https://autumnorange.bandcamp.com/

Visuals~

https://www.youtube.com/@autumnorange613

Social~

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/autumnorange.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/autumnorange.lofi

https://linktr.ee/autumnorange.lofi

Support~

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/VaughnSwanson

Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/vaughnswanson

Guest Artist: Tyler Battaglia

Monster Featured: Demons!

Release Date: March 12th, 2025

Biography: Tyler (he/iel/any) is a queer and disabled author of horror, dark and urban fantasy, and other speculative fiction who is especially interested in subjects that interrogate the connections between faith, monsters, love, queerness, and disability. Tyler lives in Canada with his partner and a grumpy cat.

Tyler’s Website: https://www.tylerbattaglia.com/

Author Site: https://tylerbattaglia.carrd.co/

Pray for Him: https://books2read.com/PrayForHim

Image by: @Heavenlyystar

Guest Artist: Larry Hinkle

Monster Featured: Zombies!

Release Date: March 29th, 2025

Biography: In his own words, Larry Hinkle is the least famous writer you’ve never heard of. A copywriter living with his wife and two doggos in Rockville, Maryland, when he's not writing stories that scare people into peeing their pants, he writes ads that scare people into buying adult diapers, so they’re not caught peeing their pants.

His new cosmic horror novella, The Eris Ridge Trail, was released in March 2025, while his debut collection, The Space Between, was published in February 2024. His work has also appeared in The Rack: Stories Inspired by Vintage Horror Paperbacks; October Screams: A Halloween Anthology; and multiple times on The NoSleep Podcast, among others.

He's an active member of the HWA (his short stories made the preliminary Stoker ballot in 2020 and 2022); a graduate of Fright Club and Crystal Lake’s Author’s Journey short story and novella programs; an HWA mentee; and a survivor of the Borderlands Writers Bootcamp.

Stop by and visit him at thatscarylarry.com or stalk him on the socials at @thatscarylarry.

Guest Artist: Espooky Tales

Monster Featured: Siguanabas!

Release Date: April 5th, 2025

Biography: Cristina is a freelance podcast editor/producer and an indie podcaster. She found her love for podcasts in 2020. Since then, she has worked with huge, small, non-profit, history and paranormal podcasts. All sorts of podcasts, especially those focusing on diverse voices. But especially Latine voices.

And if you’ve never heard of Cristina’s amazing show Espooky Tales, it is a podcast full of Latin American folklore, myths, legends, haunted places and espooky cuentos del rancho. Hear the stories you grew up with like La Llorona, as well as true stories from listeners and guests. Join twins, Cristina & Carmen, every Friday and hear these tales, plus laugh a little.

Guest Artist: Rie

Monster Featured: Tomie!

Release Date: May 10th, 2025

Biography: Rie is a passionate artist, TTRPG streamer and horror enthusiast. She's almost always involved in more than one creative project. When she's not diving head first into a new obsession or crafting epic stories with loved ones, she makes time to bake wonderful vegan treats for her friends and family. You can catch her in Mortal Roles on Monday nights, where she plays the fated angel turned mortal, Eve, or on Wednesday nights in House of Tremere, where she plays the eerie and enchanting vampire Miruna. You can also commission her for character art should her portfolio catch your eye!

Mortal Roles:

https://www.twitch.tv/mortalroles

https://www.youtube.com/@MortalRoles

House of Tremere:

https://www.twitch.tv/thecatsmeowshow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8B5TojOTeEg&list=PL0UWonIecYWOpVuztdXhaJK1RQlOgbigC&ab_channel=TheCat%27sMeowShow

My Instagram Accounts:

https://www.instagram.com/just.as.sweet/

https://www.instagram.com/firefly.fortunes/