New Apple Podcasts Categories make a huge difference

Jarnsaxa is finally visible on Apple Podcasts.

Ever since Apple made a home for podcasts, whether it was iTunes or (now) Apple Podcasts, no distinction was made between non-fiction and fiction/audio drama/radio plays/et cetera. Thousands of independent immersive stories were buried in categories that didn’t fit. Personal Journals? Society and Culture? Performing Arts? Nothing was a good fit. It was a sink or swim situation. Unfortunately, many shows sank.

This summer, as Apple competes for your attention span with streaming services such as Spotify, Netflix and BBC Sounds , Apple finally decided to give Fiction a category. They even made three sub-categories: Drama, Comedy, and Science Fiction.

As a result, this vibrant, growing community of people and ideas can finally get its head above water. And, guess what?

Jarnsaxa is finally visible.

Here is a screen shot of part of the Apple Podcasts United States Fiction>Drama chart, taken on the 21st of August, 2019, at 5:53 PM.

Screenshot of the Apple Podcasts Fiction Drama chart, 21st August 2019
Can you find Jarnsaxa Rising in this picture? She’s in very good company.

Finally, we’re not buried under thousands and thousand of podcasts, we’re not shoved into a drawer that doesn’t fit. Finally, when people look for a good story on Apple Podcasts, they can find us, along with stories like ours.

Thank you, Apple Podcasts.

If this is your first time here, hello and welcome. Thank you for joining us. Get out your headphones or turn on your speakers. We have a story for you.

Mythic tales, modern problems

Mythic themes help us make sense of a messy world. Jarnsaxa Rising is here for you.

Seems as though all the summer entertainment takes us back to ancient and mythic themes to understand contemporary society. Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame dominated the month of May. The finale of Game of Thrones pitted dragons against mortals to show the difference between dictatorship and democracy. Now, Good Omens uses Biblical themes in a battle between Heaven and Hell to show that friendship is magic.

Photo: BBC/Amazon

I’m not actually 100% sure. I haven’t finished watching it, and I read the book over a decade ago. It’s been a while. The point is, people are trying to make sense out of a flawed world, and they’re turning to ancient myths, legends and stories to cope. They’re also giving a lot of money to huge corporations (Disney, Warner Media, Amazon) to scratch the itch for story. Pro tip: You don’t have to. You have podcasts.

Jarnsaxa Rising gives you Norse mythology, in worlds both imagined and real. Mythic themes sort out justice, climate crisis and wealth disparity. Just like the aforementioned, it’s got the end of the world at stake, rich multifaceted characters, and clever strategies to defeat enemies and surmount obstacles. Plus, the actors are exciting. If you haven’t heard it yet, now’s your chance! You can start with Season 1, Episode 1, on your favorite podcast app. Or, click below for the stand-alone episode, We Who Contain Multitudes, the opening of Season 2.

We Who Contain Multitudes, Season 2, Episode 2

In September of 1944, Jarnsaxa meets mysterious strangers whose plane crashes on her island. She hopes they might release her from her witch bottle, and let her escape. When she finds their agenda is more bellicose and cruel than she could imagine, she takes strides to correct them. 

Content warning: extreme violence, frank discussion of sex, frank discussion of racism, fighting Nazis.

(Hey, look at that! I embedded an audio link! It works! Yay, WordPress!)

Why do we keep pulling mythology out to try to cope with what we cannot understand? It’s familiar, it’s adaptive, and it lets us believe that recklessness and flaws have a place in the world. Nature has its own order, humans just try to impose their will on it. Stories let us make sense of our lives. Get yourself more mythic stories, for free!

Episode 8: Charged and Grounded

jarnsaxa-blue
Illustration by Matt Lichtenwalner.

Jarnsaxa’s final battle with Balder and Thor forces her to abandon her usual tactics. Using Nikea’s flash drive, she explodes the witch bottle, attacking the corporation in a sonic storm. Thor takes her to Yggdrasil. Reunited with Eric, she must make hard choices about the future for her own children, and Eric’s.

Listen now!

A transcript of Episode 8 is available here, via Google Drive.

For more information about the cast and crew, visit

https://jarnsaxarising.com/about/creative-team/

Join our community!

https://www.patreon.com/6630Productions

Twitter: @JarnsaxaRising

https://www.facebook.com/JarnsaxaRising/

Episode 7: The Flow Of Current

1024px-Dendera03Despite Sif’s new wisdom and Eric’s new insight about his relationships, Thor obstructs their mission. Loki uses his experience as the mother of Slepnir to gain Skuld’s trust. Eric uses 21st-century tools to stop Thor, and Sif invokes Jarnsaxa. The Interviewer remembers who she is. Heimdall is caught between Sif’s determination and Thor’s stubborness, and must carve his own path without the Aesir. Ratatoskr returns with intelligence from another world.

Special thanks to Tom Boutell for his understanding of .png files, and to Mark Edmundson for his understanding of ancient electricity.

Listen Now via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

A transcript for Episode 7 is available here.

For more information about the cast and crew, visit

https://jarnsaxarising.com/about/creative-team/

Join our community!

https://www.patreon.com/6630Productions

Twitter: @JarnsaxaRising

https://www.facebook.com/JarnsaxaRising/

Episode 5: Is This Really You?

A red squirrel sits on a tree branch, looking somewhat mischievous.
Red Squirrel by hedera.baltica, Wroclaw, Poland.

Season 2, Episode 5: Ratatoskr warns Sif and Eric that something is wrong at Urd’s Well. Jarnsaxa finds that Mr. Wallace has been collecting some mysterious trophies, and recognizes him for who he really is. Heimdall and Thor strain their relationship and mission with threats and deception. Loki makes Stephanie discover her true voice and identity.

Listen Now via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

For more information about the cast and crew, visit

https://jarnsaxarising.com/about/creative-team/

Join our community!

Transcripts for Episode 5 are available now.

https://www.patreon.com/6630Productions

Twitter: @JarnsaxaRising

https://www.facebook.com/JarnsaxaRising/

Let us tell you a story.

Need a Winter’s Tale?  All ten episodes of Season 1 of Jarnsaxa Rising are available for your listening pleasure. Join her on her journey. Follow these links to listen, or look for Jarnsaxa Rising in the podcatcher of your choice.

Listen and subscribe to Jarnsaxa Rising at iTunes! 

Listen and subscribe to Jarnsaxa Rising at Libsyn!

Listen and subscribe to Jarnsaxa at PocketCasts! 

If you enjoy our story, please leave a review. We’re working on Season 2 now, and want to make sure that you and other folks can find us. Thanks!

Frank Olsen Norway.jpg
The Aurora Borealis by Frank Olsen, Norway

 

 

 

Epic News!

Illustration by Matt Lichtenwalner.
Illustration by Matt Lichtenwalner. Click to view larger image.

Jarnsaxa Rising is nominated for The AudioVerse Awards! This award celebrates the best in independent audio drama podcasting, and provides a signal boost to introduce new listeners to the world of audio drama podcasts. AudioVerse produces a podcast which showcases work from all the nominees.  You can listen and subscribe here: 2016 Showcase.

The list includes some very talented artists. We’re excited to be in such good company. Jarnsaxa Rising is nominated in all categories.

Vincent Friel is nominated for the award for Music, for SoloMom and Jarnsaxa’s Theme.

Lindsay Harris-Friel is nominated for Writing.

Katherine Kupiecki is nominated for the Actress award, for her portrayal of Agent Sumner Bachman.

MaryLynn Mennicke is nominated for the Actress award, for her portrayal of Jarnsaxa.

Ethan Bjelland is nominated for the Actor award, for his portrayal of Loki.

John T. Zeiler is nominated for the Actor award, for his portrayal of Dr. Eric Aspinall.

Jarnsaxa Rising is nominated for the award for Best Ongoing, Short Form, Small Cast, Original, Dramatic production.

To celebrate the nominations, Matt Lichtenwalner, a strong supporter of Jarnsaxa Rising, made the beautiful piece of art that accompanies this post. You can see more of Matt’s art at Dragonbones.net.

14425433_10157460339785481_195091194376038543_o-2Voting will happen soon, and the awards ceremony should coincide with World Audio Drama Day, on October 30th, 2016. Click the link on the left to follow this website, and we will send you an update as soon as voting is open.

Congratulations to all the nominees!

All episodes of Season 1 of Jarnsaxa Rising are available for your listening pleasure. Listen now on iTunesPocketCasts, or whatever your preferred purveyor of pod entertainment may be. 

Audio Drama Sunday!

Ills bu Arthur Rackham, 1910

All episodes of Season 1 of Jarnsaxa Rising are available for your Audio Drama Sunday listening pleasure. Listen now on iTunesPocketCasts, or whatever your preferred purveyor of pod entertainment may be.

How many people work 9-5, Monday through Friday jobs? How many people see Sunday as the day of last-ditch effort, to get a few things accomplished for themselves, maybe stir their imagination a bit, before returning to the weekly grind?

Audio Drama lets you do both. Pop in your earbuds, or crank up the G-Boom, and you can have as much action, adventure, romance, comedy and joy as you can with hours of Netflix or Hulu, but without the sitting on your butt that can cause sciatica.

Thrym King of JotunheimThrym, King of Jotumheim, says that audio drama pairs well with knitting. Whatever you’re up to today, make it dramatic.

 

Episode 9: Sowing Chaos

Burning_ship
Photo by Phil Carroll.

Agent Bachman confronts Mrs. Wallace over the stagnation in their relationship, and pushes her to make a bold choice, with disastrous consequences. Thor confronts Jarnsaxa, making her a peculiar and dangerous offer.

Mrs. Wallace: Molly Pach Johnson

Agent Bachman: Katherine Kupiecki

Dr. Aspinall: John Zeiler

Fenja_och_Menja_vid_kvarnen_Grotte_(xylograph)
Carl Lansson, 1886.

Jarnsaxa: MaryLynn Mennicke

Thor: Derek Meyer

Credits: Leslie Vincent

Special thanks to Keith, the bartender at The Sheraton Minneapolis Midtown, for his performance as The Sound Guy.

Written by Lindsay Harris Friel

Directed by Carin Bratlie Wethern

Sound design, engineering and music by Vincent Friel

Dramaturgy by Kit Gordon

This episode of Jarnsaxa Rising was sponsored by The Anonymous Ninjas of Generosity

Subscribe, review and rate us on iTunes! We want to hear from you.

For more information, visit JarnsaxaRising.com.

Listen using iTunesPocketCasts, or Libsyn!

Episode 7: How To Take Revenge

Sif and Loki. The Children of Odin, The Book of Northern Myths, by Wolly Pogany, 1917.
Sif and Loki. The Children of Odin, The Book of Northern Myths, by Wolly Pogany, 1917.

Loki takes Agent Bachman to Asgard, to avenge Jarnsaxa and Jotunheim. During the wedding feast of Thor and Sif, Loki seduces the bride. Bachman must teach Loki a lesson, and The Aesir must mete justice upon the remaining descendants of Jotunheim.

Jarnsaxa: MaryLynn Mennicke

Loki: Ethan Bjelland

Agent Bachman: Katherine Kupiecki

Dr. Aspinall: John T. Zeiler

Sif: Amy Pirkl

Balder: Shannon Troy Jones

Thor: Derek Meyer

Written by Lindsay Harris Friel

Directed by Carin Bratlie Wethern

Sound design, engineering and music by Vincent Friel

Dramaturgy by Kit Gordon

This episode of Jarnsaxa Rising was sponsored by Jane and David Broude.

Listen using iTunesPocketCasts, or Libsyn!