Untitled Dad Project

You can't figure out your title till you know your story.  From Spoke Media, Untitled Dad Project premieres July 1. Chapters drop weekly.  Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

Before you begin. Everything you need to know about everything we already know, so together we can figure out how to make it a good story. Chapter 1: Inciting Incident drops next week. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Let us know your story at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Original music composed in response to each episode is by the incredible Rat Rios Our artwork is by Kevin Craft Co. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

Jan activates her learnings from Robert McKee by talking to her Mom Character. A surprise, a big failure, a small miracle, and grapes.  Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your Inciting Incident(s) at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Original music composed in response to each episode is by the incredible Rat Rios Our artwork is by Kevin Craft Co. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

“What is the event that radically threw life out of balance?” Jan and Cat review an interview with story teacher Robert McKee, and learn where to begin her story. Oh and also, that Jan’s whole life is a lie? More of Robert McKee’s work, including his books and popular “Story Seminars”, can be found at https://mckeestory.com/ Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Let us know about your Inciting Incident(s) at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io! Original music composed in response to each episode is by the incredible Rat Rios Our artwork is by Kevin Craft Co. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

“And now I’m the... surprise bastard daughter in a soap opera?” Jan and Cat figure out how to embrace Jan’s new genre with actress and former soap opera star Taylor Anne Ramsey. Can Jan re-cast herself from scandalous side character to powerful protagonist? Is this how she confronts her Dad Character? Will she ever properly throw a drink in a man’s face? Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your Genre at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Original music composed in response to each episode is by the incredible Rat Rios Our artwork is by Kevin Craft Co. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

This week, Carson and Jan share a favorite interview that doesn’t fit in a specific Chapter but matters to the narrative! Podcaster and author Nora McInerny has made a career out of sharing beautiful, honest stories about devastating losses, oftentimes her own. In 2017, Jan was at a crossroads and came to her with questions: Is it okay to make art about grief while you’re still *in* the grief? How bad does it hurt to tell your own story? And, when people ask about your podcast at dinner parties, do you just casually talk about your own trauma? Check out Nora’s excellent podcast Terrible Thanks for Asking, and non-profit @stillkickingco. Next week we get on-track and go off-script with CHAPTER 3: Script! Follow along at @untitleddadproject Original music composed in response to each episode is by the incredible Rat Rios Our artwork is by Kevin Craft Co. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

What happens when the script fails you? Jan goes off-script with the Reverend who officiated and wrote the “script” for her Dad Character’s funeral. Carson and Jan discover what it means to bear witness to another’s story, even (especially) when words don’t work. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your experience with Scripts at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Original music composed in response to each episode is by the incredible Rat Rios Our artwork is by Kevin Craft Co. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original. Check out Care/Of vitamins, and use the code DADPROJECT at checkout

What do you do when your plot... twists? Janielle wrestles with her broken, no-good, dead-Dad plot, with help from plot expert Professor Peter Brooks. Carson and Jan confront the aftermath of a plot twist: Do you ever really “move on”? What do you do with all the “could have beens”? And how do you say goodbye to the plot you wanted? Learn more about Peter Brooks and check out his book “Reading for the Plot”. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your experience with Plot at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original. Note: Cat and Jan in no way believe they got string theory right. If you’d like to know what string theory *actually* is, check out String Theory. Thanks, string theory, for helping us figure out our story, even though we got you wrong!

Can you escape your own foreshadowing? Janielle confronts the theme that’s been chasing her from the beginning: “Daddy Issues”. With help from therapist Shea Theillman, father-loss expert Dr. Don Hebbard, and a slew of pop-culture references, Carson and Janielle figure out how to stop running and reckon with Oedipus (...not in the way that you think). More of Shea Thielemann here. More of Dr. Don Hebbard here. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your experience with Foreshadowing at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

Another very special departure from the narrative Chapters! At some point, Carson and Janielle wanted to nail down the character archetype of an “Objectively Good Dad”. Luckily, Carson’s got one of those. Janielle came to Jeff McCain with questions about being a Good Dad, and instead of answers got a bunch of love and encouragement and support (apparently that’s kind of the gig when you’re loved by a Good Dad). If you’re also in need of some Good Dad energy - enjoy! Next week we’re back with a heap of empathy and nuance in CHAPTER 6: Character Development! Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your experience with Foreshadowing at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

How do we consider a character’s nuances, contradictions and dimensions? Janielle and Carson set out to reckon with her Dad/Rick Character, but a disorienting interruption changes everything. With help from her Mom, her Dad’s sailing friend Charley, and the box of things he left behind, Janielle begins to piece together a vision of the “Rick” as well as the “Dad” - and maybe even discover a little love for a complicated character. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your experience with Character Development at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

So many potential threads ended up on the cutting room floor, but one metaphor in particular snuck its way back into the story: cats. This week we come full-circle with Dad’s cat, Cat’s cat, and every abandoned kitten ever. If you’re compelled to help the feline race, consider sponsoring a family of stray kittens in medical need, currently fostered by our very own Rat Rios.   Follow along at @untitleddadproject, or email us at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io!   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

There comes a moment when you realize you’ll never be the same. Carson and Janielle take inventory of all the potential third act breakthroughs for this story: casserole drop-offs, smoking ceremonies, full-circles, and beauty anyway. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your experience with Third Act Breakthroughs at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io.   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

Before facing her resolution, Jan checks back in with a special guest: Mom Character. Mom Character joined Jan in-studio after listening to 1A and 1B before they were released. Together, they discuss why it was hard to talk about the hard things, revisit swallowed-back questions, and explore what it means to have your own story. Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us about your Mom Character at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io.   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

One more minisode to prepare us for the FINALE! Jan interviewed death educator and somatic psychotherapist Jeanne Denney years ago to get a more New Age perspective on grieving practices for her Third Act Breakthrough. In hindsight, Jeanne instead brought into focus the themes that’ve been at play in the story since the beginning. Clarity, rage, rejection, and legitimacy prepare us for our final resolution with Jan Character.  Follow along at @untitleddadproject! Tell us your story untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io.   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

Closure? Forgiveness? Resolution. A story is told, a funeral is thrown, and we get our final scene with Jan Character. Follow along at @untitleddadproject. Tell us your experience of the Finale at untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io.   Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

Because full-circles.  Thank you for listening.  Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media original.

We think your story matters. And we want you to share it. Tell us how you and your story has been affected by Untitled Dad Project. You can send a voice-memo to untitleddadproject@spokemedia.io or leave a voicemail at 972-399-9029. Produced by Spoke Media.

We're excited to share with you a sneak peak of Family Ghosts Season 3. In The Clotilda Legacy - Part 1: The Descendants producer Vera Carothers travels to Mobile, Alabama, to investigate the story of Africatown, a community founded by the descendants of the enslaved people brought to America on the Clotilda, the last known slave ship to enter US waters. You can listen to Family Ghosts here. Episodes drop weekly starting December 4th. Untitled Dad Project is a Spoke Media production.