I was talking to my friend, Cory, over the weekend, and we decided that we would each read and release something the other had written, because why not?
I’m a huge fan and admirer of Cory both as a human and as a creative person. He’s been my primary mentor since I started writing professionally, and I owe him more than I’ll ever be able to properly repay. It’s not unreasonable to say that, without Cory’s guidance and kindness, I wouldn’t be a published author.
So it’s with excitement (and a little trepidation, because I don’t want to disappoint my friend) that I chose one of Cory’s fantastic short stories from way back in 1999, which he describes this way:
This is the story of the ogres who run the concession stands on Pleasure Island, where Pinocchio’s friend Lampwick turned into a donkey. Like much of my stuff, this has a tie-in with Walt Disney World; the idea came to me on the Pinocchio ride in the Magic Kingdom, in 1993.
You can grab my narration at my Soundcloud. I hope you enjoy it.
When we were talking, Cory asked me if I he could read something of mine on his podcast, so I sent him a diary I wrote about my son and Cory’s book, Little Brother. He read it on his podcast, making this an official Podcast Swap, which I did not know was a thing.
Oh, so interesting! I always like stories to have all the loose ends tied up at the end (the OCD me), but this one didn’t bother me too much. I really enjoyed that a lot, and of course I enjoyed your narration. Even with the mistakes and dogs – lol. Thanks, Wil!
I’m glad you enjoyed the addition of the environmental sounds. I’m doing these cold, without any production or editing, because that keeps this fun, instead of work. Thanks for your kind feedback,and thanks for listening.
Thank you both, this is an amazing initiative!!!
Great story and narration. Agreed that the cold narration adds something — maybe a sense of the creative process of created an audiobook. Thanks for doing this project!
Thank you for another wonderful performance, Wil! And thanks also to Cory Doctorow for his generosity in allowing you to use his story.
This was a cool story and I loved listening to you telling it. I enjoyed the rethinking of one part of Pinocchio’s novel, introducing the different race besides the soft one gave it an interesting twist!
Also, you’ve been my soundtrack in my first walk with my 12 months old son after 42 days of quarantine, this is the first day we’re allowed to have a one hour walk in the country I live in, Spain!
Stay safe!