This week, we launched the Rusty Quill Network. On RQ Network, we’ll be championing the very best in audio drama and audio fiction podcasting, while providing an inclusive platform for new and diverse voices in the audio space.

The first wave of new shows coming under the Rusty Quill banner are themed around cosmic horror, mystery and found footage – so if you have a The Magnus Archives shaped hole in your podcast time, look no further.

So, without further ado, let’s meet the shows.

Cryptids

Produced by Wild Obscrua, Devin Shepherd, Gabriel Rosenstein and Nora Unkel. Written by Alexander V. Thompson. Directed by Devin Shepherd

Cryptids is a compelling supernatural mystery and science fiction audio drama podcast. It was nominated for Best Fiction Podcast by Discover Pods and Won an Audioverse Award for Best Environmental Sound Design at the Audioverse Awards 2020.

It follows Eve, a paediatric hospice nurse, and Trevor, a late-night conspiracy radio show host. Eve listens to Trevor’s radio show during the long, late nights she spends working. She’s a true believer, but believing isn’t enough – Eve wants to prove that the conspiracies she believes are real. Drawn together by their shared beliefs, the pair go in search of the answer to an unanswerable question: what happens after we die?

Their search for the afterlife leads to a discovery beyond their wildest nightmares – The Ones in Charge have their own plans for Trevor and Eve. Before they find the answers they seek, they’ll first meet monsters, aliens… and the ultimate grim reaper.

The Deca Tapes

Written and directed by Lex Noteboom

The Deca Tapes is a found-footage mystery audio drama podcast with psychological thriller and science fiction elements. It is multi-award winning, including two Lovie Awards for best scripted podcast, and was nominated for a Webby as Best Scripted Podcast. It was named best speculative fiction 2019 by The AV Club and best fiction podcast of 2019 by Discover Pods.

Mysterious tapes have been delivered to a news outlet and soon grip the nation. The recordings document the life of ten people, who appear to be trapped in an unknown location. Each person has a set of strict instructions they must follow, and they each play a different role – The Cleaner, The Cook, The Teacher. Unaware of the strangeness of their life, they record daily diaries, giving us a glimpse of their confined existence. It quickly becomes clear that something is very, very wrong.

How did they get there? Perhaps importantly, why are they there? Only one thing is certain: we were never meant to hear The Deca Tapes.

“With a haunting mystery and an intriguing universe, The Deca Tapes is already one of the best debuts of the year.” – The AV Club

How It Ends

Written and directed by Stephanie Resendes and Micah Rodriguez

How It Ends is a character driven suspense audio drama with themes of grief, dreams, memory and mystery. It received multiple nominations for the 2019 Audioverse Awards.

Micah Jones suffers from night terrors and a frightening recurring dream since her father, Nolan, died suddenly when she was nine. With the help of her friends, Devon Williams and Elia Cabral, Micah starts a podcast to explore her nightmares, hoping to set her troubled mind at ease. But then, information surrounding her father’s death and a terrifying event from her past sends Micah and her friends down a path that proves secrets never stay buried and dreams can unlock the truth.

And Micah’s nightmare? She always wakes up before it ends. So – this is How It Ends.

Old Gods of Appalachia

Produced by DeepNerd Media. Written by Steve Shell and Cam Collins. Performed by Steve Shell.

Old Gods of Appalachia is a horror-anthology podcast. It won multiple 2020 Audioverse Awards, including New Storytelling Production, Writing of a New Storytelling Production, Storyteller in a New Storytelling Production, Performance of a Leading Role in a New Audio Play Production, Environmental Sound Design in a New Production and Vocal Composition in a New Production.

In the mountains of central Appalachia, blood runs as deep as these hollers and just as dark. Since before our kind knew these hills, hearts of unknowable hunger and madness have slumbered beneath them. These are the oldest mountains in the world. How dare we think we can break the skin of a god and dig out its heart without bringing forth blood and darkness?

In the shadows of this Alternate Appalachia, digging too deep into the mines was just the first mistake.

“The co-creator and narrator Steve Shell’s gruff twang lulls the listener into a false comfort: In each episode, he unspools nightmarish tales of the folks living in the hills and hollers, surviving on the land and disturbing the earth below in the mines. It’s when their folly meets a dark spirit of the land that utter horror befalls them.” – The New York Times

The Storage Papers

Produced by Grinner Media and written and directed by Jeremy Enfinger

The Storage Papers is a found footage supernatural horror audio drama.

Jeremy has always been interested in the paranormal, so when he wins a series of strange documents at a storage auction, he immortalises them in the form of a podcast. Seemingly paranormal in nature, the papers detail unexplained phenomena occurring in mass in the Southern California area. While each episode starts out seemingly unrelated, Jeremy begins seeing some patterns in names associated with some of them. As he investigates a strange series of symbols, he realises they are all tied together some way – and that he himself is in the middle of a sinister plot.

Now in its third season, it is clear: nothing is what it seems.