During this time of self-isolation and quarantine, one thing that’s really giving me comfort, is my usual round of true crime podcasts. One that’s keeping me company lately is Luminol, hosted by Sarah Pardi and Caitlin Sparks. Each themed episode mixes serious true crime topics with fun and friendly banter that leaves me feeling like I’m hanging out with two of my best friends.
I recently had the opportunity to ask Sarah and Caitlin a few questions about their podcast and their upcoming “Luminol Ball.”
Sarah and Caitlin from Luminol
Q: Tell us a little bit about your podcast Luminol and how you started it.
CAITLIN: Luminol is a true crime podcast – but it feels like so much more than that. We choose a theme for every episode – things like conspiracies, aliens, missing persons, unusual weapons, to name a few – and we try very hard to choose cases that are not talked about on a wide scale. We want to bring attention to cases that most people have not heard of. We also are people who laugh and make jokes to lighten heavy topics, and we bring that through on the podcast. We do not laugh at victims’ expense, only at evil people, and bad situations. It’s our coping mechanism. We bring our true selves to this podcast, and I believe that is part of what makes it special. Oh! And starting it, was kind of random. We used to joke when we said funny things about how great they would sound on a podcast. Then one day, we just went for it!
SARAH: Yep! Our episodes come out every week, on Wednesdays. They’re about an hour long and include two stories that fit whatever theme we have chosen. One thing that I am honestly SHOCKED Caitlin forgot to mention is… the beer. Every episode, we do a short review of a beer, and we try a new beer each episode. Usually, we choose a beer from the state or country the crime happened in.
Q: What is the Luminol Ball?
CAITLIN: The Luminol Ball is something Sarah and I put together, at first, to bring listeners and friends together during quarantine. We decided to have a ‘ball’ over zoom. Then, we thought, let’s do MORE with this. We thought, what a great fundraising opportunity this could be – and it didn’t take us long to think of the National Domestic Violence Hotline as our cause. The ball will be held over zoom on June 13th – it is free to ‘attend’. There will be prizes (all donated by wonderful businesses) that will be raffled off. ALL of the proceeds from raffle tickets will be donated straight to the NDAH. Sarah and I are matching up to $100 – WHICH – we have ALREADY hit.
SARAH: This ball will be a fun time that we can connect with our fans and friends and raise money for an important cause. To sign up for the ball, head on over to our Instagram page @luminolpod and click on the link in our profile.
Caitlin and I haven’t discussed this yet… but this COULD be something we do annually...
Q: Why did you choose the National Domestic Violence Hotline to support with this ball?
CAITLIN: We chose the National Domestic Abuse Hotline because we kept thinking and talking about quarantine, due to COVID-19. And this made us think about how many are stuck at home in bad situations – people living with abusive partners were stuck at home with them. Many people were losing their jobs, which could escalate a lot of these cases even more. And the hotline needs donations to make sure someone is always there to answer the phone.
SARAH: Caitlin is spot on. I also read that The National Domestic Violence Hotline is seeing an increase in calls and texts during this time, so we felt it was really important that we gave to them so there could always be someone on that line when people make, arguably, the most important text or call of their life.
Caitlin from Luminol
Q: What are you most excited about the event?
CAITLIN: One, raising money for such a great organization. Two, getting face time with so many listeners – I CANNOT WAIT to meet them and chat.
SARAH: I am actually pretty nervous about it. This is the first “live” interaction we are having with our fans and I just want everyone to have SO much fun. I am excited to “live” donate to a good cause and to give out prizes!
Q: I hear there is a costume contest. Have you both picked out your costumes?
CAITLIN: NO! I can’t decide between Christmas pajamas or a dress (that I can’t disclose, because I want it to be a surprise to Sarah)
SARAH: We are so excited about the contest. We’re calling it “Best of the Ball” and we aren’t limiting it to costumes… attendees can wear a ballgown, a costume, their favorite outfit… really ANYTHING they feel their best in. Only thing off limits is birthday suits. I also have not decided. Part of me wants to wear something era-specific… I guess you will have to wait and see ;)
Q: Your podcast very successfully balances humor and serious true crime content. Why do you think the two work well together?
CAITLIN: We truly are great friends outside of the podcast – and we were great friends before the podcast – I think it’s as simple as that. We talk all of our decisions through, and we both are very easy going – and very similar. But we are also very different – I am loud and never shut up, while Sarah thinks things through before she says them. We balance each other out. I adore Sarah so much, so it’s easy to ‘run’ a podcast with her – I value her and appreciate her. This would not work without so much mutual respect and just so much friendship-love between us. Too cheesy?? Haha.
SARAH: LOL. I can’t speak for other podcasts with this format. We obviously aren’t unique in this facet. But, I think it works well for us because of what Caitlin said. We both are very similar and we have pretty strong feelings about appropriateness in comedy when mixed with difficult topics. We very much respect the people who worked the cases, the victims, and the survivors. Even though we have a rule that we can’t make jokes at the expense of victims, OR at the expense of religion, race, sexuality, etc… we never actually have to remember that rule because we both just don’t GO there. It’s so against our personal belief systems.
Q: I love your drink descriptions in your episodes. What drinks are your favorites right now?
CAITLIN: Oh boy – I am a big fan of red wine (cabs and malbecs), and OF COURSE IPAs. Right now, I am loving trying lots of different beers. When I am at home, I mostly drink red wine. When I go out, it’s normally beer. But, I do enjoy the occasional whiskey or scotch cocktail (never on its own, I am not there yet, like Sarah is).
SARAH: Ok at first I thought you said “carbs and malbecs” LOL. Beer is ALWAYS a go to for me, but my favorite alcoholic drink is smokey scotch or whiskey. I am a sucker for a prohibition cocktail. If I had to pick my favorite BEER of the moment, it would be the Trippel from New Belgium. Super boozy, but not too heavy.
I hope you’ll join me in supporting this fabulous cause by reserving your spot for the Luminol ball through the Luminol instagram and get your raffle tickets to win some very cool prizes. I’m personally excited to see what Sarah and Caitlin will be wearing and to “meet” them via Zoom.
Also, make sure to head to their website to see all the places where you can listen to Luminol.
