Funky

Episode 140 – Reaching Geek Culture

Table top games. Cosplay. Anime. Superheros. Star Wars. Conventions. These are a few of a geek’s favorite things. Those who love these things love to share them with others. Together, they make up geek culture. But behind these shared interests and hobbies are individuals who need the love and hope of Jesus Christ. In this…

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Episode 139 – Again, Again!

It’s easy to complain about derivative plots and copycat characters, to want something fresh and new that doesn’t recycle the same old tropes. But this can obscure that fact that sometimes we like repetition–if it’s done well. I mean, who doesn’t want to see Lucy pull the football away from Charlie Brown one more time?…

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Episode 138 – There Better Be a Wedding at the End

The Rom-Com. It’s boy meets girl. Or girl meets boy. Or hard-working single woman meets arrogant British chap. Or womanizing marine veterinarian falls for an art teacher with amnesia. Or…you get the idea. The romantic comedy is a genre with its own beats and its own fans. What makes rom-coms appealing? How have they changed…

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Episode 116 – The Lie

“Did God really say…?” From the beginning, lies have been a central feature of the drama of mankind. Not surprisingly, they also fuel many of our stories. Hosts Timothy Deal and Nick Hayden dig into layers of deceit to determine why and how best to use

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Episode 115 – What Was That Title Again?

Remember your favorite episode of Derailed Trains of Thought? Yeah–that one. It was about…I mean, there was a funny What If? and…yeah, a great discussion about books…or something. Have you ever found yourself forgetting the details of your favorite

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Episode 109 – Answering the Call of the Wild

Has urban life made people soft? Does living off the grid make you one with Nature? Does eking out an existence on a deserted island improve your moral character? Following up last episode’s discussion on nature, Tim and Nick examine how characters are ch

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Episode 102 – Character Developing, Please Wait…

A wise and weird man once said, “My, my, this here Anakin guy, May be Vader someday later, now he’s just a small fry.” Which raises the important question: How? How does the village coward become a brave knight? How does a fussy old Hobbit become an adven

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Episode 82 – The Clothes Make the Character

You may not want to judge a book by its cover, but why not judge a character by his clothes? We can talk all day about motivation and emotional turmoil, but, seriously, can you believe what Effie Trinket is wearing? So, Timothy and Nick discuss what a cha

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Episode 78 – Everything is Story!

Here at Derailed Trains of Thought, your premiere podcast on storytelling, we like to discuss, well, telling stories. So this episode we unpack the assertion that EVERYTHING is story…or, at least, it can be if looked at right. Then, in our second half,

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Episode 67 – The Once and Future Podcast

Foretold by prophecy and brought forth from its pleasant village in the Woods of Tranquility to liberate the Intrawebs from the forces of evil memes, Episode 67 is here! To guide it upon its hero’s journey, guides Nick and Tim train it in the ways of the

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