I’m coming to you from the heatwave from hell – and I’ve never been more burdened by my body. And that is exactly the topic that this week’s guest has written all about. Rose Keating is an Irish writer, whose debut collection, Oddbody, presses enquiring fingers deep into the bizarre meat of our lives. These stories are about the inherent disgust of bodies and their processes. There are women who lay eggs each morning, dads who turn into tapeworms, and ghosts who are toxically obsessed with these meat sacks we’re all carrying around. Rose and I have a great conversation about fem-gore, surrealism and the mad outer limits of body horror. Enjoy. Other books mentioned: Where I End (2022), by Sophie White “Skeleton” in The October Country (1955), by Ray Bradbury “The Swimmer” (1964), by John Cheever “The School” (1974), by Donald Barthelme The Debutante and Other Stories (2017), by Leonora Carrington Mystery Lights (2024), by Lena Valencia Earthlings (2018), by Sayaka Murata Support Talking Scared on Patreon Check out the Talking Scared Merch line – at VoidMerch Come talk books on Bluesky @talkscaredpod.bsky.social on Instagram/Threads, or email direct to [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.