Show NotesSeason 2 Episode 9 ‘Miracles of Our Own Making ’Today my guest is Liz Williams. Liz holds a PhD in the History and Philosophy of Science from the University of Cambridge. She is a science fiction and fantasy writer living in Glastonbury, England. She has been published by Bantam Spectra (US) and Tor Macmillan (UK) and is currently published by New Con Press, Reaktion Books, Llewellyn Books, Open Road and Thames and Hudson.Liz is also an occultist and a pagan and has published several non-fiction books on that topic. One is the 2020 book Miracles of Our Own Making: A History of Paganism. Another is the 2025 book Compendium of the Occult: Arcane Artifacts, Magic Rituals, and Sacred Symbolism. She is also the author of Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain.In our dialogue we discuss the status of AI and consciousness studies. We look at the intersection between consciousness, imagination and creativity. We touch on the value of Science Fiction for thinking about other worldviews. And we discuss Liz’s background in paganism and the occult.Thanks for reading WHAT LIES BEYOND! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.ResourcesLiz Williams website.Liz Williams fantastic fiction page (lists her fiction). My original interview with Liz Williams from Interzone Magazine (discusses Liz’s first two novels The Ghost Sister and Empire of Bones).Nonfiction BooksWilliams, L. (2025). Compendium of the Occult: Arcane Artifacts, Magic Rituals, and Sacred Symbolism. Thames & Hudson.Williams, L. (2025). Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain. Reaktion Books.Williams, L. (2020). Miracles of Our Own Making: A History of Paganism. Reaktion BooksJones, T. & Williams, L. (2012). Diary of a Witchcraft Shop. NewCon Press.Topics DiscussedArtificial IntelligenceGary Marcus’ critical blog on Artificial Intelligence.Human beings have causal models in their heads:Pearl, J. (2019). The Book of Why: The New Science of Cause and Effect (Penguin Science). Penguin.Problems with materialism and consciousness:Nagel, T. (2012). Mind and Cosmos: Why the Materialist Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature is Almost Certainly False. Oxford University Press. Creativity and ImaginationTanith Lee’s Fantastic Fiction page (Lists fiction).The case of the woman with an alter who wrote novels:Psi Encyclopaedia page on the Patience Worth/Pearl Curran case.Robert Louis Stephenson’s Chapter on Dreams (Discusses his ‘Brownies’).The kid who thinks he is a reincarnated Hollywood extra:Ryan Hammons reincarnation case (discussed in episode).Title Music: ‘Stranger things’ by Music Unlimited on Pixabey. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whatliesbeyond.substack.com

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