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81 Cool Podcasts to Check Out

We asked for your favorite podcasts and you answered (did you ever!). Almost 100 podcasts later, we’ve compiled the list of your suggestions. We’re so grateful for everyone who took the time to share what shows you listen to; thank you again! If you’re in the market for some additional shows to add to your podcatcher, this list should serve you well.

Here’s the final list of podcasts, featuring 15 podcasts with the most recs highlighted.

Dear Bitches Smart Authors

Dear Bitches, Smart Authors Podcast: Hosted by Sarah Wendell and Jane Litte, Dear Bitches, Smart Authors is dedicated to discussing the romance genre, the people and authors behind the scenes making it awesome, and the dedicated readers who love it.

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Galactic Suburbia: Hosted by Alex Pierce, Alisa Krasnostein, and Tansy Rayner Roberts, Galactic Suburbia is a feminist pop culture podcast focused on science fiction and fantasy books, publishing, and fandom. The show is full of insightful commentary and analysis of the genre community and packed with awesome recommendations for cool media.

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Midnight In Karachi: Hosted by Mahvesh Murad, Midnight In Karachi is Mahvesh’s follow up to her successful radio show, 89 Chapters. Mahvesh provides interesting interviews across a wide range of speculative fiction authors, discussing writing and publishing.

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Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men: Hosted by Rachel Eddin and Miles Stokes, Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men tackles the expansive comic world of the X-Men using their vast stores of knowledge about the franchise for both new viewers and more veteran X-Men readers alike.

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Tea & Jeopardy: Hosted by Emma Newman, Tea & Jeopardy is a tea party with a different guest each episode, from authors to agents to discuss geek topics and creativity. This podcast contains delicious tea and cake, good conversation, and mild peril.

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Verity!: Hosted by Deb Stanish, Lynne Thomas, Katrina Griffiths, Erika Ensign, Liz Myles, and Tansy Rayner Roberts, Verity! is a Doctor Who podcast to discuss all things Whovian, from the TARDIS, villains, companions, and the Doctor himself.

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Welcome to Night Vale: Hosted by Cecil Palmer, Welcome to Night Vale is a comedy/paranormal podcast-as-radio show for the fictional town of Night Vale, reporting on the surreal events that occur within it and the odd people who live there.

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Anglo-Filles: Hosted by Reidan, Alina, and Kayleigh, Anglo-Filles is a podcast with three women from Canada, Scotland, and the US who gather together to discuss media, pop and entertainment culture.

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Black Girls Talking. Hosted by Alesia, Fatima, Aurelia, and Ramou, Black Girls Talking is a podcast where four black women gather together to discuss pop culture, talk the representation of people of color in entertainment media, and interview people across the pop culture spectrum.

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Champagne and Socks: Hosted by Alisa Krasnostein, Champagne and Socks is a podcast all about the art of crafting, from knitting to gardening.

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Into It with Elle Collins: Hosted by Elle Collins, Into It with Elle Collins is a podcast where Collins invites on a different guest each episode to talk about something they love and are passionate about across a wide array of topics, from comics all the way to music.

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Invisibilia. Hosted by Lulu Miller and Alix Spiegel. The iTunes summary does the best job sharing the premise of the podcast:

Invisibilia (Latin for all the invisible things) is about the invisible forces that control human behavior – ideas, beliefs, assumptions and emotions. Co-hosted by Lulu Miller and Alix Spiegel, Invisibilia interweaves narrative storytelling with scientific research that will ultimately make you see your own life differently.

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The Female Gaze Podcast: Hosted by Pru, Gus, MK, and Merelyn, The Female Gaze is a podcast that discusses women from a position of the interests and hobbies, from presenting themselves at work to romance novels.

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The Writer and the Critic: Hosted by Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond, The Writer and the Critic is a book podcast dedicated to intense discussion and debate of literature, mostly speculative fiction, as well as thoughtful genre commentary.

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slash report: Hosted by Pru and MK and featuring a wide array of guests, slashreport is a media and pop culture podcast with a clear fannish perspective. The focus on the show ranges widely from discussions about Omega-verse and knotting (don’t google that unless you really want to know), to books, to more formal pop culture media criticism.

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Fangirl Happy Hour, Episode #12 – “Deceptive Mushrooms”

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