Exploring the Nancy Drew-niverse one title at a time! With segments such as Fashion Police, Wound Watch, The Drew Haiku, and of course, The Gumshoe Game Show, Meghan and Colleen are here to read, recap, and review the books, games, and other media within the wide, wide world of Nancy Drew. Whether you read along with the podcast or listen without knowing a single thing about Nancy, we (and this podcast) hope to delight, entertain, and spread the love of Nancy Drew.
Who are we? Meghan (she/her) and Colleen (they/them) (seen here as Daphne and Velma, respectively) are theatre dorks, book nerds, and overall weirdos who were lucky enough to find each other by randomly both being hired at the same school. Though they now live worlds apart (like, ninety minutes by car), they are still very close friends who enjoy each other’s company enough to try to overpower their various neurodivergent traits (and to try to overpower the ennui that the world at large can inspire) to make a silly podcast about their heroine, Nancy Drew.
Meghan is a huge Lord of the Rings fan, a mom to two ridiculously adorable dogs (Sammy and Luffy), and enjoys playing video games and watching anime with her husband. Colleen is a huge The Locked Tomb fan (who got Meghan into the series), a writer of bizarre murder mystery parties, and a thespian who engages in a ton of weird local theatre.
Classic Book Episode Segments
(deployed as needed) (meaning, not every segment is in every episode)
Intro: In which we remind the listeners who we are, what the podcast is, and what book we’ll be discussing that episode.
Poetic Recap: In which, through strict poetic limitation such as a Drew Haiku or a limerick, we each attempt to convey the plot of the book.
Thirty-Second Recap: In which, with no limitations but the stress of a ticking clock, we each have thirty seconds to convey the rest of the plot of the book that we didn’t get across in the poetic version.
Cliffhangers: In which we each share our favorite chapter-ending dramatic line from the book (since, usually, every single chapter attempts to end on a high-stakes cliffhanger, there are many to choose from).
Ship of the Week: In which we each present our favorite relationship (which may or may not be explicit in the text) from the book we are discussing…this usually is between two people, but might be between a person and an object…or a person and a concept…
Cooking Corner: In which we discuss the wide variety of usually-not-plot-relevant meals and snacks Nancy and her crew devour.
Fashion Police: In which we learn more about the extremely specific outfits worn by the characters in this book.
Picture Perfect: In which we discuss our thoughts on the illustrations within the book (and post the visuals on our Patreon without a paywall for listeners to view, for any episode that includes this segment).
Blast from the Past: In which we go through elements of the plot, phrasing, and mystery-solving that would be different in today’s time period (for better or for worse).
Wound Watch: In which we check in on the health of our dear protagonist (and keep a running total of how many times she has been knocked out and/or kidnapped).
Crash Course: In which we check in on the health of the car of our dear protagonist, who canonically has SO many car troubles (even in her old classic movies).
Drew’s Clues: In which we discuss the clues we’ve picked up about Nancy’s personal life (and that of her family and friends) throughout this book.
Sleuthing Skills: In which we keep track of the detective-and-also-just-random skills that Nancy has and therefore that you, as a listener/detective, must also acquire before beginning your first case.
Accidentally Gay: In which we note anything that seemed a bit queer, so to speak, about the characters in the book, whether that is outdated phrasing or close bosom friendship activities that make them seem more like “oh my god they were roommates” than “yes, that is platonic as heck.”
Miscellaneous Mysteries: In which we go through any leftover observations and quandaries that weren’t covered by any previous segment.
Gumshoe Game Show: In which Colleen tortures Meghan (and the listeners) with trivia questions revolving around one tiny, often-barely-relevant detail of the book, and in which Meghan utilizes her educator background to deploy her best Test Taking Skills since Colleen doesn’t let her see the questions beforehand.
Credits & Moral of the Episode: In which Colleen and Meghan wrap up with their gratitude and with a line from the book that listeners should definitely remember in their daily lives.
Speaking of gratitude, we couldn’t do this without:
Colleen’s brother Ben, who designed many of the sound cues, including the theme song and the Wound Watch one, where he sounds like Ben personally is getting punched, which Colleen finds hilarious and plays aloud often, just for fun :)
Meghan, who designed the rest of the sound cues (which do not involve getting punched)
Our partners, friends, and families, who provided unending love and support even though it took us a WHILE to get this off the ground (and, in our partners’ cases, for letting us borrow their microphones)
The Greater Columbus Arts Council, who funded Colleen’s individual artist grant, which let us pay for our podcast editing software, our website, and the craft supplies needed for Patreon perks!
Our Patreon supporters (if that’s not you…it could be!)
Mildred Wirt Benson, who wrote the original Nancy Drew books (and everyone else who’s written as Carolyn Keene since Mildred), and HerInteractive, who created the Nancy Drew computer games
Colleen’s beloved late mother Char, who had the idea for the podcast in the first place, who came up with many of the segment ideas, and who inspired Colleen’s love of Nancy Drew ♥