Limited Edition Statue, Buggin Out, and Bugtime Stories Conclusion

Man, this was a big one!

Feb 04, 2025

What’s chirpin’ you Bad Bugs? This week we’ve got another Buggin’ Out segment from Scott, and the ending that you all voted on last week to January’s Bugtime Story!

But before we dive in, we have a special announcement for fans of Death Nell.

This statue is now available on Kickstarter as an-addon for the Death Nell 5 campaign which you can get here.

SCOTT WILKE: Fun fact for our readers, Madeleine is one of the FIRST creators I ever spoke to when I started in indie comics. I met her at her booth at Wild Wild West Con in 2015. She really was a HUGE inspiration to me and her encouragement kept me pursuing this dream. So, thank you for that, Madeleine! Now, for any of our readers that might be unfamiliar with you, tell us a bit about your extensive library of works!

MADELEINE HOLLY-ROSING: I’m the writer/creator of the graphic novel, prose, and audio drama steampunk supernatural series, Boston Metaphysical Society. I’ve also written the crowdfunding book. Kickstarter for the Independent Creator and have done short comic stories which include The Scout which is part of The 4^th Monkey anthology, The Sanctuary (The Edgar Allan Poe Chronicles anthology), The Marriage Counselor (Cthulhu is Hard to Spell anthology), The Glob (Night Wolf), The Infinity Tree (Menagerie: Declassified), and as well as Monster (The Dark Side of Purity Culture anthology).

SCOTT: I know you’ve done a TON of interviews over the years, so this might be a hard question to answer, but tell us something you’ve never mentioned on another interview/podcast. It can be a fun fact, hidden talent, embarrassing moment, etc.

MADELEINE: Fun fact. I was a graduate fellow for the CIA. If I say more, I’ll have to kill you.

SCOTT: *gulp* So…uh, heh heh…let’s time travel a bit. Tell us about young Madeleine.

MADELEINE: I was quiet, weird, and didn’t have a lot of friends until later. Generally, I was a good kid, but definitely a pain-in-the-ass teenager. I loved science fiction and read Ursula Le Guin, Andre Norton, John Christopher, Madeleine L’Engle, and others. My mom enrolled me in lots of art classes. They were fun, but I wasn’t very good.

SCOTT: So cool how your art classes and love of sci-fi shaped you into who you are today! Alright, time traveling again. Madeleine just finished her FIRST script. Which book was it? What was your hope for it at that moment? Did you want to take it to Marvel or DC? Pitch it to Hollywood?

MADELEINE: My first script was for a TV anthology show. (I won’t mention the name as that will date me. LOL) They liked it, but had already done something similar that season and extended an open invitation for other scripts. This was before I went to UCLA for screenwriting. Back then, it had never entered my mind to write comics as I thought all comics were about superheroes. It wasn’t until I had written BMS as a TV pilot and it was suggested I turn it into a graphic novel that I got into comics. (The idea at the time was to create the graphic novel then sell it back to Hollywood.) But a funny thing happened. I discovered indie comics, and I loved them. But to answer your question, BMS was my first comic script, and I’ve never had any interest in DC or Marvel.

SCOTT: Nice! Who needs Marvel or DC anyways, right?! Success stories are great and all, but people really like hearing about failures. Tell us about one of your failures and how did you recover?

MADELEINE: Some may have heard this story before, but my first Kickstarter failed dramatically. We had self-funded the first three issues, then went to KS to fund production of the last three and turn it into a trade. We were asking for 25K, which was reasonable based on what we were trying to accomplish. Of course, with no track record it failed, but we did get over 200 backers and brought in almost 8K before I canceled the project. That gave us the data we needed to relaunch, but this time only doing an issue at a time. The next time out we funded in 24 hours for a 3K goal, and we’ve been successful ever since.

SCOTT: You really are such an inspiration! Now, we both have a strong love for Steampunk. (Fun fact #2, Madeleine and I hosted a Steampunk panel together at Phoenix Comic Con in 2016.) What drew you into the Steampunk genre? What keeps you inspired to continue in that genre? And what are you doing to keep the genre fresh (for yourself and for your readers)?

MADELEINE: I fell into it by accident. I had originally written BMS as a straight period piece detective show called 1900 Detective Agency. A directing/producing student in my class at UCLA suggested I redevelop it as steampunk. I had heard about steampunk, but didn’t know much about it at the time. I did some research and determined he was correct, then redeveloped the pilot. I enjoy the genre as it allows me to play with the supernatural, history, and science. The characters always being challenged and changing are what keep it fresh.

SCOTT: I was immediately drawn to Boston Metaphysical Society when I stumbled upon your booth back in 2015. It’s a series that flawlessly marries Steampunk with supernatural horror. Tell our readers a bit about the series. What inspired you to create it and what you have in store for it?

MADELEINE: It’s about an ex-Pinkerton detective, a spirit photographer, and a genius scientist who battle supernatural forces in late 1800s Boston. (In the sequels to the original six issue mini-series, I introduce a new team member.) My inspiration comes from my love of science fiction and history. Hopefully, we’ll finish issues 3 and 4 of Mystery at Pikes Peak in the next year. After that, I have one more BMS series planned as well as finishing the 2nd novel (and 3rd) in a trilogy called, Boston Metaphysical Society: The House Wars. It takes place 35 years before the first graphic novel and is my version of the American Civil War.

SCOTT: Ooooh, I can’t wait! So, you’ve not only written comics, but also books, audio dramas, AND Kickstarter guides. Which of those did you enjoy creating the most? What were some of the unique challenges with each? What other types of mediums are you interested in pursuing?

MADELEINE: I enjoyed writing all of them. I like the challenge of other mediums. It forces my brain to work in a different way. I think the only thing I haven’t done is written for video games or an RPG.

SCOTT: Sign me up for a Madeleine-written video game! Love ‘em or hate ‘em, cons are the lifeblood of indie comics. Tell us your favorite con experience and your least favorite con experience.

MADELEINE: I’ll start with the worst. It was early in my career and a bunch of drunk Aussies showed up at the Con, trying to convince me to give them a kiss and tossing my books. (I called security and they took care of it.) I have two favorites: Larry Niven dropped by the table and I got a bit of a fangirl moment and a picture. The second was when a woman stopped by the table who knew about Granville T. Woods. She was a law student who told us her professor found Granville’s lawsuit against Edison and how it was one of the early precedents for trademark law.

SCOTT: How cool! I need to know more about all of those stories! I always love to hear what works inspire people that have inspired me. What works got you into writing? What works are you totally nerding out on right now? Give us some recommendations for what to check out.

MADELEINE: I have many, but my favorites keep changing. For prose, read Martha Wells (Murderbot Diaries), Lois McMaster Bujold, Elizabeth Moon, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Elizabeth Bear, and Ken Liu. For comics, Jeff Lemire, Marjorie Liu, Joelle Jones, Brian K. Vaughn, Joe Hill, and Amy Chu.

SCOTT: Our good friend, Editor John (John MacLeod) likes for me to ask this question with every guest. What is the Boston Metaphysical Society Session Soundtrack?

MADELEINE: I’m not sure if John is referring to when I’m writing it or if it refers to when someone else is reading it, what is playing in the background. To answer the first part, I don’t listen to music when I’m writing. But for the reader, you can either listen to the audio drama or maybe Bruckner’s Symphony #9.

SCOTT: Appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule to chat! Why don’t you take this time to tell everyone what you got going on right now. What’s in the pipeline for Madeleine Holly-Rosing?

MADELEINE: I’m currently writing a series for Joe Benitez’s, Lady Mechanika, as well as working on characters, worldbuilding, and hopefully an outline (by the time this is posted) for a completely different series.

As a bonus, here is a sneak peek from Madeleine:

MADELEINE: OK, you guys are getting an exclusive first look at my new IP called, Morgana Pendragon. Logline: Having lost her magic when she fled England twenty years ago, Morgana leads a mercenary team wherever the best paycheck is. All that changes when she receives a message to return—her brother, King Arthur, is dying. Now, she must not only face Mordred, the child she left behind, but a new threat which may forever change her and the future of her country.

Follow Madeleine below:

Website: http://www.bostonmetaphysicalsociety.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BostonMetaphysicalSocietyComic/

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/mhollyrosing

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/mcholly1

Store: https://boston-metaphysical-society-comic.square.site/

“Use the board!” Phil shouted. “Hurry! Move the planchette to ‘goodbye’!”

The nurse, a stocky man named Harry, stared at Phil in disbelief.

“Mr. Barlow, you aren’t making sense,” the nurse said, kneeling. “I think you may have hit your head.”

Phil tried to shake the man off. His strength was ebbing quickly due to the blood loss from his fingers. It must have been those goddamned blood thinners.

“Don’t worry about me!” Phil pleaded. “Use the damn board!”

Phil pointed with a shaky red finger at the board on the table. Harry’s eyes flitted to the board just as another flash of lightning illuminated the room. The dark shape loomed over them both, its eyes burning with an internal fire. Phil swallowed hard. He knew what he had to do to stop this thing.

“Help me, Harry! This said he was gonna kill me!”

“Who the hell are you?” Harry thundered, placing himself between Phil and the figure.

“I was the first,” the shadow said, grabbing Harry by the throat.

Phil used the distraction to pull himself back up to the table. His legs were shaking, and his grip was poor from all of the blood, but he couldn’t give up. Everyone in this facility was relying on him to fix his fuck-up. Once he was standing, he cast a weary glance at poor Harry. The man was convulsing as blood oozed from his mouth. The dark figure was simply laughing—a hollow sound that reminded Phil of an emphysema cough.

Suddenly, there was shouting in the hall as more aides and even some residents came to see what all of the shouting was about. The demon—for that is what Phil decided it must have been—continued its rattling laugh as it stepped into the hallway. The lights went out before it exited the room, preventing Phil from seeing its true shape. Screams from outside the room told Phil that he was already too late.

His sticky fingers gripped the planchette, and he pushed with what little strength he had left to move it to the word “goodbye” toward the bottom of the board. After several agonizing moments punctuated with screams of pain and horror, Phil was able to tell the board what he wanted. Lightning flashed again, heralding an inhuman screech that caused Phil’s chest to tighten. The old man collapsed onto the table, sending the board and planchette clattering to the floor.

Nearly a week later, Phil Barlow awoke in the ICU of St. Augustine Hospital. The rhythmic beeping of his heart monitor nearly lulled him back to sleep. The room smelled of anesthetic and full bedpans. His chest ached, and his head felt like it was full of cotton balls.

“He’s awake!” a voice from the hall shouted.

A nurse rushed in to check his vitals. They were followed closely by a police officer holding a notepad.

“Mr. Barlow,” the nurse said, her voice unnaturally comforting. “We are so glad you are awake.”

“What happened?” Phil asked.

“I was hoping to ask you that,” the cop said.

Ignoring the officer, the nurse said, “You suffered a major heart attack, Mr. Barlow.”

“And seven people were killed in and around your room at the nursing home,” the cop growled. “We’ve been waiting all week to ask you what you saw that night.”

“I didn’t see a damn thing,” Phil whispered.

“Can’t this wait?” the nurse asked. “Dr. Cunningham will want to examine him first.”

The officer nodded and sulked out of the room.

“Can I get you anything while you wait?” the nurse asked with a smile.

“A phone book if you could,” Phil said.

“Why, of course, dear,” she said. “What do you need that for, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“I need to find someone who can do a seance,” he thought.

“Oh, you know, an old coot like me doesn’t usually learn from his mistakes, and I’ve got someone I’m dying to talk to.”

Rain began to softly patter against his window.