Fan-adored podcast writer and author Lauren Shippen has a new treat for us: Maxine Miles.
Maxine Miles is a podcast with a twist, a young-adult mystery that brings a “choose your own adventure” flavor to the podcast scene. The first episode alone is so immersive that the 30-minute run time flies by, and Hastings, New Hampshire is guaranteed to stay on your mind every day until the next episode releases.
Shippen’s website has this to say on the new show:
“ … join Maxine Miles in the search for her missing friend. Gather clues and then choose one of three Episode 10 versions you think is the solution.”
This is an entirely new, innovative format for podcasts. The interactive drama will be released weekly on Wednesdays, giving listeners seven days to ponder the clues before the next episode. We’d all better pay attention to what Max discovers, though — whichever one of the three available endings is the most popular among listeners will become the official ending for season 1, meaning that listeners decisions have real weight. The consequences of our choices will carry right over into season 2!
Want to know more? Atypical Artists, executive producers of the project, have this to say:
“It’s the fall of 1997 in Hastings, New Hampshire and autumn is the time of year this small town shines. Apple cider, pumpkin patches, farmer’s markets … its idyllic New England. Picturesque, plaid-filled, and, for fifteen-year-old, Maxine Miles, plodding.
Suddenly, Max’s school year starts to look a bit more interesting when a fellow student vanishes. With the help of her misanthropic classmate, Ross, Max starts to look into the disappearance. Her investigation draws her deep into the dark woods around Hastings and even deeper into the secrets and lies that course through the veins of this sleepy town. This new YA mystery from the creator of The Bright Sessions, Lauren Shippen, is an audio drama with heart and wit that asks YOU to solve the mystery … learn more by joining the search party.“
Listeners familiar with Shippen’s work on Bridgewater will know how brilliantly evocative her writing is when it comes to dark woods, secrets, and lies in a small town setting. This fan, for one, has very high expectations for Maxine Miles and absolute faith they will be met!
Best known for her work in fiction podcasts, Shippen was the creator and sole writer of The Bright Sessions, a popular audio drama that ran from 2015 to 2018, winning herself a legion of fans (this writer happily among them!) and several awards. From there, Shippen went on to write and direct the number one podcast Bridgewater with Aaron Mahnke (of LORE fame) as well as Passenger List, MARVELS, and Surviving Hawkins.
An audio trailer for Maxine Miles can be listened to right here:
Maxine Miles is a production of Atypical Artists & iHeartMedia. Created, directed, and written by Lauren Shippen, the cast includes Jordan Cobb as Maxine Miles, Mike Cafalo as Ross Teller, Ishani Kanetkar as Jenna Ambrose, Morgan Elgarten as Theo Combs, Michael Smallwood as Uncle Joe, Shawn Jain as Sheriff Combs, Jacquelyn Llandgraaf as Alana Honeywell, Andrew Nowak as Ransom Archer, Josh Rubino as Mayor Mal, Nate DuFort as Mr. Beatty, Briggon Snow as Roley Stevens, and Pacific Obadiah as Principal Jennings.
Maxine Miles will release weekly on Wednesdays, with 12 episodes of 20-30 minutes each in its first season.
