Cold is the storyteller's church. It is the way revenge is best served; the way a war was fought; the way a story should be told. Join fiction writer, essayist, and blogger, Victoria Dougherty, to ponder the creative life, and endeavor to look at the stories we tell and the stories we live with a cold eye, but never a cold heart.
And please visit the Cold blog at www.victoriadougherty.wordpress.com.
Wordpress, which hosts over 70 million blogs has named Cold as one of its best blogs on writers and about writing.
📻 Siste episoder av Cold
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Small Villains and Faith’s Little Deaths (00:13:52)
This week in the Cold, we're talking about the small villains in the stories we live and love. The casual evil-doers who might just be passing through, but leave an indelible impression on us, a disproportionate one perhaps.
Please support the Cold:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
The Many Faces of Beauty in Fiction (00:19:32)
This week in the Cold, we're talking about beauty and many ways a writer may deploy it and a reader may experience it. From The Maltese Falcon to The Little Mermaid, beauty twists our guts as it entertains us, draws us close, and yes, nourishes our soul.
Support the Cold:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Mothers of Real and Fictional Characters: We Salute You (00:11:26)
This week in the Cold, we explore the roots of family lore as we salute mothers, Mother's Day, and the enchanting, soul nourishing, and formidable process of raising humans.
Support the Cold:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
The Names We Give, Are Given, and Assume (00:14:44)
This week in the Cold, we talk about names, monikers, and aliases; why they matter and what they mean in both our lives and our character's journeys!
Writing Epic Battle Scenes and War Stories (00:14:51)
This week in the Cold, we're going deep on war. Whether it's the focus or merely the backdrop of a story, war is riveting and writing about it presents unique challenges.
Become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
The Meaning of Happiness (00:17:35)
This week in the Cold, we're talking family lore and about the difference between happiness and meaning and how the two are interwoven in our lives.
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon Page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2014/06/25/the-meaning-of-happiness/
An Ode to the Cocktail Hour (00:13:45)
This week in the Cold, we're celebrating the old fashioned cocktail hour. What we're really paying tribute to, however, is not the drink - you can have a mocktail, a bowl of fries, anything that tickles your fancy - it's a designated hour to connect, tell stories, laugh...be a family or community.
Become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Demanding Greatness of Our Characters (00:23:02)
This week in the Cold, we're talking about how to create a character you'd fall on your sword for, rip off your clothes for and beg them to take you, and want as your very best friend in the world. The kind of character who aspires to greatness and stays with you long after you read THE END.
Become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon Page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
10 Reasons Why Men Must Start Reading Fiction Again (00:17:21)
This week in the Cold, the title of the episode says it all. I've got ten really great reasons why men need to start reading fiction again. And I've got a link to a long list of great, high T novels for the guys out there to get started on.
This is a diverse list of novels offered by my writer friends (indie, traditional, non-fiction and fiction), and by literary agents, designers, housewives, an advice columnist, corporate rats, a USMC General, a real estate agent, and even a Pulitzer Prize winner. The only thing they all have in common is fiction, me and Cold.
Start reading, guys:
The By No Means Finished Ultimate Cold Reading List of Fiction For Men | Cold (wordpress.com)
Become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page (featuring some great Cold War thrillers...ahem, guys):
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Lovers and Warriors: On Writing Riveting Passion and Violence (00:20:40)
This week in the Cold, we talk about the necessity of high stakes in a story. How scenes of love and passion must mirror ones of violence and conflict in intensity and yes, sensuality, or else the story feels out of balance, and we shortchange the reader.
Become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
In Defense of Dark Humor (00:20:25)
This week in the Cold, we're taking a deep dive into humor, particularly dark humor. We're discussing its limits - if there are any - its benefits, and the way humor is often perceived.
Relevant links:
#901 Victoria Dougherty: Creating a Story, Character Development, and the Limits of Art (youtube.com)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Join Victoria's newsletter:
Form 5 | victoriadoughertybooks - ConvertKit
How Much Romance Can a Man Take? (00:18:23)
This week in the Cold, we address this the very issue of men and their tentative, at times contentious, and most of all secretive relationship to romance. I also have some surprises for you, and you're going to have to listen to find out about them.
Join the Cold newsletter:
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Redeem your Valentine's Day surprise:
Download Breath (bookfunnel.com)
Support the Cold:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
What Does it Mean to Be an Outlier? (00:19:46)
This week in the Cold, we talk about the observers among us; those who never quite feel like they fit in. Outliers used to be a small, self-identified group of people, but increasingly, at least according to multiple media articles and my therapist friends, more and more people are turning inward.
Join The Cold newsletter:
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Victoria's Amazon Page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Become a Cold member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
The Longest Shortest Twenty Years of Your Life (00:15:46)
This week in the Cold we're embarking on a retrospective of one of the most epic stories of our lives...that of raising a family. The ups and downs, the suspense, the plot twists and turns, the page-turning madness, the beauty, the meaning, the joy. It's all here!
The Cold needs your support! Please become a Cold Member:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
You Say You Want a Resolution? (00:11:50)
On this last day of the year, we're talking New Year's resolutions here in the Cold. Not the usual ones - giving up chocolate, blah, blah, blah - but the kinds of game-changers that have a lasting impact on our lives.
Relevant links:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
The Artist's Way: https://www.amazon.com/Artists-Way-25th-Anniversary/dp/0143129252
Support the Cold podcast:
Stories you never want to end; worlds you never want to leave. (ck.page)
Twelve Cold Days of Christmas (00:20:54)
In honor of the coming holidays, we're doing something a little different in the Cold.
This week's listening experience is more like a song. It’s certainly inspired by a song; one I’m sure you know. You’re welcome to do your best to sing along to the tune of the Twelve Days of Christmas (or you can read the written version by following the link to my blog below). You can rap it, if you prefer. Doesn’t matter…as long as you take it into your heart. Maybe if it stays there over not just these next twelve days, but twelve months, you’ll find the spirit of these words and their concurrent offerings will accrue.
Victoria's BREATH series on Amazon:
Breath (3 book series) Kindle Edition (amazon.com)
BREATH on other platforms: https://books2read.com/u/4XrYoN
The Twelve Cold Days of Christmas on the Cold blog:
Twelve Cold Days of Christmas | Cold (wordpress.com)
Building the Architecture of Our Stories and Our Spirits (00:20:39)
This week in the Cold we talk about the architecture of the soul and the spirit. We're being both literal and metaphorical here, and no, we're not being pompous - swear. This makes for a great start to the holiday season!
Support the Cold and become a Cold member:
Become a Cold Member (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2018/12/14/what-we-build-how-architecture-is-changing-my-relationship-with-my-faith/
Breakthroughs (00:15:24)
This week in the Cold, we talk about how to facilitate and maintain the momentum of creative breakthroughs. This is an active, deliberate process, my friends!
If you're enjoying Cold and get meaning from this podcast, please consider giving your support!
Become a Cold Member (ck.page)
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
The Stories We Tell Ourselves (00:14:19)
Every year around this time in the Cold, I like to make a comprehensive list of all the things for which I am grateful. It's more than a list, it's one part meditation, one part story. Because the stories we tell ourselves about our lives, how we frame our experiences, are every bit as important as the stories we consume and tell others.
Bargain Booksy Historical Fiction Giveaway link:
Historical Fiction eBook and Kindle Giveaway – November 15th, 2023 - Bargain Booksy
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon Page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
Shining Daylight on the Creative Impulse (00:17:43)
This week in the Cold we talk about how even seasoned writers can experience creative stammers and what to do about them! This will be illuminating as hell.
Get The Artist's Way:
The Artist's Way: 30th Anniversary Edition - Kindle edition by Cameron, Julia. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
The Story That Changed My Life (00:15:03)
This week in the Cold, I'm sharing with you a story about a one hundred- and two-year-old woman who I met as a teenager. She quite literally changed my life and my perspective, and may just do the same for you.
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2015/08/10/sundays-with-merle/
A Glimpse Inside the Creative Mind (00:16:57)
This week in the Cold, we talk about creators and how we feed our creativity. The life of an artist (and I use that term fairly broadly) can be reclusive, engrossing, and hugely rewarding. But when we feel blocked, or experience a creative stutter, those same inclinations towards solitude that serve us so well when the juices are flowing can turn on us, leave us feeling like we're floating alone in outer space. Well...no more! I've got some inspiration and ideas to help!
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2018/06/29/the-funny-thing-about-the-life-of-an-artist/
Walk With Me Among the Dead (00:22:42)
This week in the Cold, we tell some stories of the dead, as we walk through a few odd and notable cemeteries. It's a spooky, but mostly soulful contemplation that puts a different spin on the Halloween season.
If you'd like to read my essay on the lost cosmonauts of the Soviet Union - the one mentioned in the podcast, you can do so here:
The Lost Cosmonauts of the Soviet Union | Cold (wordpress.com)
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
A Prayer for Victims and Perpetrators (00:02:06)
In light of the recent eruption of violence in Gaza, I hope you'll join me in a short prayer (or meditation) today.
Prague, My Alma Mater (00:14:45)
This week in the Cold, we talk about the institutions and experiences that shape our lives, change our trajectories, and allow us to see ourselves anew. We get contemplative, sentimental, and philosophical...and yes, some great stories are told (ever been chased down a dark alley by a Servian gangster?). Don't even think about not joining in.
Heads up! My novel "Savage Island" is on sale on the following platforms ($.99 October 6-9)
https://books2read.com/u/bowBVR
Victoria's website:
Welcome to Victoria Dougherty Books
Victoria's Amazon Page:
Amazon.com: Victoria Dougherty: books, biography, latest update
This episode is also available as a blog post: https://victoriadougherty.wordpress.com/2014/10/01/prague-my-alma-mater/
