Jamieson Ridenhour is the writer and producer of the popular audio drama Palimpsest, writer and director of the award-winning short horror films Cornerboys and The House of the Yaga, and the author of the plays Grave Lullaby, Terry Tempest: The Final Interview, and Some Thoughts on the Coming Apocalypse.  Jamie’s short fiction and poetry has appeared in Strange Horizons, Andromeda Spaceways Magazine, TheNewerYork, Across the Margins, Mirror Dance, and Architrave, among others, and has been podcast on Pseudopod, Cast of Wonders, and Radio Unbound.

His ghost play Grave Lullaby was a finalist for the Kennedy Center’s David Cohen Playwriting award in 2012. He has taught writing and literature for twenty years, currently at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, NC. His new play, Bloodbath: Victoria’s Secret, premieres in October of 2020 at Magnetic. You can find more of his work at www.jamiesonridenhourwriter.com.

He's also among my closest friends. I count on his counsel when I'm struggling, and since I know quite a lot of folks who are struggling these days, I thought it might be a good idea to invite him for some conversation about art and resilience and how we process fear. 

Fear is something Jamie knows a bit about. The aforementioned audio drama, Palimpsest, bears the tagline, "Embrace what haunts you."  With an academic specialty in gothic literature and horror genres of writing, he has given more than passing consideration to the roles of both receiving art and creating art as we try to navigate challenging times. Jamie is a brilliant and committed writer of poetry, prose, and plays, and has good tools to offer us as we find our way through these strange and uncertain days.

Sustaining Our Spirits #9 - Jamieson Ridenhour, novelist & playwright