Tales From The Fandom

Amy aka ThreadsandStarlight on Instagram joins me to talk about some of her favorite fandoms. We start things off with Dungeons and Dragons. Amy talks about how she first learned about the game, her experiences with the game, and some of her adventures. From there, we talk about one of the oldest fandoms, The Lord of the Rings. Amy talks about her first experiences with it, her favorite characters, and what keeps her coming back to the series. Plus, hear about one epic day of The Lord of the Rings goodness. Then we wrap up with Cosplay. Amy talks about how she started cosplaying and the characters she cosplays. We talk about body paint, props, and some of the characters she's hoping to cosplay in the future. You can find Amy at: https://www.instagram.com/threadsandstarlight/ https://www.threads.net/@threadsandstarlight https://www.tiktok.com/@threadsandstarlight

After over 4 years, Mayanna Berrin returns to the podcast for a third time! This time, we have a lot to catch up on and share with you. Mayanna and I talk about her many accomplishments and projects out in Los Angeles. We talk about her Improv work in the comedy scene, being named in 2022 as one of the comedic writing fellows by Kevin Hart's Hartbeat and the Sundance Institute, and in 2023 getting a writing fellowship with Nickelodeon Studios. Plus, being a producer for Polly Pocket Adventure Studios, and as a voice actor for Fire Emblem Heroes. Mayanna also details how she and her writing partner get the ideas onto the page, and how pitching ideas works out in LA. If that's not enough, Mayanna talks about her experience playing Vampire: The Masquerade roleplaying game as a character on actual play series, New York by Night. We also talk about how she's now into Dungeons and Dragons, how she creates her characters, how many games she's in, and her upcoming work with TTRPG's and the actual play space. Then we

After a long and patient wait, I am pleased to have Jazz aka NerdyBlasianCosplays join me for an episode of this podcast. We get to talk about the big three fandoms that go hand in hand. First, we're talking Disney. From before she was born to now, Jazz has been in the Disney fandom. Find out her history with Disney, some of her favorite movies and shows, and what keeps her connected to it. From there, we talk Star Wars! Find out the parts of the fandom Jazz loves. From the TV shows to movies, characters, how important animation is to Star Wars, and so much more. The third fandom we hit is Marvel. Specifically, we're talking about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. From her first movies she got exposed to, TV shows that she's enjoyed, characters, and what she'd love to see for the future. Last, we wrap up with Cosplay. Jazz talks about how she got into doing cosplay, along with some of the characters she loves to do. We talk body paint, costuming, and her work volunteering while in cosplay. You can find Jazz at:

After 5 years, MzMedooza (formerly CardiaPlays) returns to the podcast! We get to catch up and talk about what has been going on the past 5 years! After catching up, we talk about her experience playing cRPGs (also known as ISO RPG's) like Baldur's Gate and Pathfinder: Kingmaker, and her switch to games like Elder Scrolls Online, Helldivers 2, and the original Fallout games. From there, MzMedooza talks about her change and experiences on Twitch and going hand in hand with mental health. We have an extended discussion about streaming and the need for mental health and taking time away from streaming. MzMedoosa also talks about what she dubs "The Twitch Endgame" similar to endgames with MMOs and how she sets her goals and expectations. You can listen to MzMedooza's original episode here: https://talesfromthefandom.libsyn.com/episode-147-cardia-of-cardiaplays  You can find MzMedooza at: https://www.twitch.tv/mzmedooza https://www.instagram.com/mzmedooza/ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552026883647  

The first official episode of Year 8 begins with one of my longtime friends. You may have heard her many years ago on a Game of Thrones episode, but now, I have Katherine joining me for her first stand alone episode! Katherine and I have known each other since 9th grade, so you're not only getting the podcast episode, but you're getting some throwback stories as well! We kick things off with a conversation about roleplaying games. We're covering Tabletop Games like Dungeons and Dragons (including Eberron!) to live action roleplaying games, like Vampire: The Masquerade and fantasy LARP's like NERO. Katherine talks about her experiences, how she got introduced to both kinds of gaming and what keeps her coming back for more. From there, we talk about her love of Vampires and how she got hooked into the Horror genre. From classic VHS tapes at a young age, to going all out for Halloween, Halloween Horror Nights at Universal, and so much more. You'll find out what kind of genre that Katherine is into and some of he

Another year. We're now at Eight! Eight years of doing the podcast. Thank you to all who listen, support, and come on as guests to share your stories. This year, Taylor aka TayMakesMagic on IG returns. We get to catch up, and then dive into the history of the podcast. From the creation of the podcast, to highlights, and memorable moments. Plus, you get to hear about some of the behind the scenes of the podcast. My day to day, the editing process, and guests themselves. And some possible other podcast projects are tossed around. Plus, Taylor gets to talk about some of her new cosplays, her job, and some looks to the future. Take a listen, go follow Taylor, and onward to Year 9! You can listen to Taylor's original episode at: https://talesfromthefandom.libsyn.com/episode-292-taylor-aka-taymakesmagic-talks-disney-the-marvel-cinematic-universe-steven-universe-disneybounding-cosplay You can find Taylor at: https://www.instagram.com/taymakesmagic/

A Taylor Swift centric episode was always going to be in the works. It was just a matter of when, where, and with who. After a successful first leg of The Eras Tour, and with the release of it into the movie theater and then Disney Plus, it was the perfect time to sit down and talk about Taylor, the tour, and the differences from Tour to Theater to streaming. Kris aka cafe.contessa on IG returns for her 5th episode as we talk all things Taylor. Kris is a Swiftie and its through her that we can explore all three Eras Tours experiences, as she has done all three. She went to the concert in Tampa, saw that Tour in the theater, and then watched on Disney Plus. We talk all about the differences in the experiences, from songs to timing, and to general vibes and what in-person vs at home viewing offers. Kris and I talk about her wardrobe, song choices, and viewing experience with the set design and choreography. This was recorded prior to The Tortured Poets Department and subsequent European leg of the tour. You can

The final episode of May brings Bri aka Disbri_Nerd on Instagram to the podcast! We talk about some of her favorite fandoms, and of course, we get to talk about Cosplay too. Bri and I first start talking about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We talk about what movie she got her start with, and some of her favorite movies. We talk favorite characters, what keeps her coming back to the MCU, and what she's looking forward to in the future. Then we flip from the MCU to a galaxy far, far away. We're talking Star Wars! Bri and I cover how she first got into the movies and a certain scene she may have seen over and over and over again. We talk about the movies, the TV shows, the characters she loves, and more.  Bri then talks about Cosplay. She talks about how she got into cosplay, some of the characters she represents, being a part of the Real Assemblers, and some of her plans for the future. You can find Bri at: https://www.instagram.com/disbri_nerd/ https://www.tiktok.com/@disbri_nerd You can find The Real Assembl

Pre aka WariWariWay returns to the podcast after 3 years to catch up and talk about some old and new fandoms. We start things off with a quick conversation about the Live Action versions of Avatar: The Last Airbender, One Piece, and their ties to their original animated works and bringing new fans into the space. Then we really kick things off with a talk about one of Pre's favorite fandoms, Tekken. We talk about what attracted her to the fighting franchise, the characters she likes, and most importantly, the Tekken community. Blended into the Tekken conversation and standing on its own is a conversation about Final Fantasy 14. It's a fandom that was/is very influential with Pre, and she talks about the FF14 community as it relates to not just the game, but cosplay as well, especially with social media. We also talk about her semi-hiatus from Cosplay, what she may be working on in the future, and what she's done over the past few years with cosplay. We also talk about how she has started streaming again on Tw

I'm really excited to have Byuka join me for this episode, as we've been in the same Twitch sphere for awhile and I really dig her work on Twitch. Plus, she's my first VTuber to be on the podcast! Heck, she's the first person I ever saw doing VTubing years ago. We start things off with Final Fantasy! We talk about our first games in the franchise, the games we love, characters, music, and more. Plus, Byuka talks about her experience with the MMO, Final Fantasy 14. Then we talk about world building video games. Games where you are the mastermind behind the games. We talk about games like The Sims, Animal Crossing, and Stardew Valley. Byuka talks about why she likes those style games and their appeal in being in charge of the world. Lastly, we talk about her streaming on Twitch and VTubing. Byuka talks about how she got into streaming, her decision early on to do VTubing and the evolution of her appearance as the years have gone on. We talk about games she plays on stream, the community we both are in (Hyrule G

May has one of the nerdiest days on the calendar, as Star Wars fans celebrate May the 4th! Plus, there is Revenge of the 5th, and I like to think we can celebrate Revenge of the 6th as well. Tiara aka Crafting_on_Ilum joins me to talk all about Star Wars and Cosplay! We talk all about the franchise that is in a galaxy far, far away. From her first exposure to Star Wars, to some of her favorite media and characters. We talk a bit at length about The Phantom Menace, along with the latest show, The Bad Batch (recorded prior to the finale) We ponder upcoming works and what still keeps her in the fandom. Tiara also talks about the intersection of her Star Wars fandom with her cosplay. From how she got into Cosplay, the cosplays that she's created and work she has put in, and what she would like to do in the future. You can find Tiara at: https://www.instagram.com/crafting_on_ilum/ https://www.tiktok.com/@craftingonILUM https://linktr.ee/craftingonilum

Continuing on with bringing authors to your ears, I was lucky enough to have Carolina Cardona aka TheTropicalEccentric, join me to talk about fandom and her work as an Author! We first kick things off with talk about Anime. Carolina talks about growing up in Puerto Rico and the anime that was shown there, and then her transition to living in New Orleans and her anime experiences there. We discuss some of the anime we both grew up on as kids, anime like Attack on Titan, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and what kind of anime she enjoys. We blend that conversation into a conversation about Japan as a whole. Carolina talks about her experiences in Japan, what draws her to visiting there, and why she thinks everyone should visit the country at least once. Then we get to talk about her work as an Author. Carolina talks about her writing and creative process, and we talk about her book, Andújar: The Robot Gentleman of San Juan. We talk about the plot and setting, and focus on the two main characters - Santos and Violeta, a

I always love seeing who people are sharing on their instagram stories. It helps me find new people for this podcast, including today's guest, Yaya aka SpaceCowgirlYaya (or Yaya Cosplay). I fell in love with their traditional Mexican Sailor Moon Cosplay. I knew I needed to get her on the podcast to share her stories. Yaya joins me as we divide the episode in two. The first half of the episode we're talking all about Cosplay. We talk about how Dragonball was her first entry point into anime and what she enjoys about that series. We also touch on anime like Trigun, Full Metal Alchemist, and Attack on Titan. It's a great reflection on where anime fit in Yaya's early life and where she is now with it. In the second half, it's all about cosplay. We talk about how she first got into cosplay, and the motivation behind her Mexican infused cosplays such as the traditional Mexican Sailor Moon fuku, Charro Chibiusa, and Selena x Sailor Moon mashup. Yaya talks about what she's working on for the rest of the year, and the

Content Warnings: 18+, NSFW, Kink (further content warnings related to kink listed below)  After a desire to read more and have more authors on the podcast, I made a post on Threads expressing that. The response was overwhelming, and our first Author joins me from that post, Ally Marr. Ally and I talk first about Dungeons and Dragons. She talks about how she first got into playing, what hooked her into continuing to play, and how her play style has evolved since those first games. We also talk about other tabletop roleplaying games outside of the D&D sphere. The possibility of romance and flirting within D&D leads us into a conversation about romance in that arena, alongside literature. This leads us into talking about Ally's work as an author. 37min 46seconds CW: Kink, Bondage / BDSM, female dominance, orgasm denial Ally talks about how she first started writing, and writing the stories that she wanted to read but didn't seem to find out there. We talk about her book, Desire for Dominance, which is t

There's always guests that are into so many things that it is tough to contain it all in one episode. Today's guest, Heather Boddy, is one of those guests. She's into so much and does so much that we did our best to squeeze it all into one episode. We kick things off with talking about the nostalgic movies from our childhood. For Heather, we talk about two that stuck with her - Gremlins and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. She talks about how these movies were instrumental in her childhood, particularly Rocky Horror.  From there, we go into Marvel. Not just Marvel Comics, but the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well. Heather talks about how she got into the Marvel side of life, and we talk about one of her favorite characters, She Hulk. Then we talk all about Heather! We dive into the realm of Cosplay and how she was already into it without being into it (listen to the episode to understand that!). We talk about the business she launched, Geeknasium, which is nerdy workouts you can do in the comfort of your own ho

My first international guest of 2024! Polly aka Co_Mixed on the socials joins me from Serbia to talk all about her favorite fandoms. Note - there may be a few audio echoes in the episode. Polly and I start things off with talking about Marvel. Not just the Cinematic Universe, but we start with a conversation about the comics, TV shows, and movies pre-MCU. Find out why Polly loves the X-Men, her rewatch of the X-Men animated series, and more. We talk about some of the pre MCU movies like Spider-Man and the X-Men movies, and we also delve into the Cinematic Universe with the movies and TV shows. From there, we switch gears and go to Hell... or maybe a Hellmouth. We're talking about Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We joke about some of the comics that came out post TV series, but we focus on the TV series. Polly talks about how she got into the show, some of her favorite characters, the Angel TV spin-off, among other things. Then we're talking about the Battlestar Galactica reboot series. Find out who failed up in Pol

Rounding out the March 2024 slate is Keir aka Keirtastic7 on Instagram! After talking with his fiancee, Rebellious Dreamer, I got to have the pleasure of having him on this year! We start things off by talking about Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. It's a new to me fandom, though I've heard of it by name. Keir talks about what the show is, how he got into it, and what it's all about. From there, we go to Indie Comics. We talk about the comics that we both were/are drawn to in the indie scene, the evolution of some indie comics becoming mainstream, and supporting the indie comic creators. Then we go into Audio Dramas. Keir talks about what draws him to the medium, as he talks about the Marvel audio dramas regarding Wolverine, and I bring up some of the podcast audio drama work (including a shout out to Fool and Scholar Productions!) We wrap things up talking about film festivals. From Keir's work with them, to some of the behind the scenes things that go on, plus some tips about attending your first film festival. Yo

Threads is the new social media platform and something that I've taken to quite well. And today's guest, Jazmin aka ThatOneNerdyFanGirll is my first guest that I stumbled across on the Threads platform! Jazmin joins me to talk about two of the long running, big fandoms out there! First, we talk about Star Wars! Jazmin talks about how she got into Star Wars, some of her favorite media from the franchise, favorite characters, and what she'd love to see in the future! Then, we get to talk about The Lord of the Rings. We talk about the trilogy, the characters, and her first experiences with it. Jazmin then talks about Cosplay. From her first getting into Cosplay, the characters she does, how she decides who to cosplay, and some of her future plans. You can find Jazmin at: https://www.instagram.com/thatonenerdyfangirll/ https://www.threads.net/@thatonenerdyfangirll https://beacons.ai/thatonenerdyfangirl  

Content Warnings: NSFW, 18+, wide ranging and frank mental health discussion Amber aka TheSpaceJamber returns after two years as we get to catch up and talk about life and everything that's been going on recently! We first get to catch up and chat for a bit before diving right back into one of Amber's main passions, Danny Phantom. We talk about the series again (listen to their original episode linked below for more Danny Phantom discussion) before Amber talks about an actual play series they ran for a tabletop roleplaying live stream (links to the stream also below!) We segue into the realm of tabletop roleplaying games. Amber also talks about being ENNIE nominated in the TTRPG space and the work they've been doing with Flabbergasted and Necrobiotic. Amber also reveals that they're working on the latest CHEW tabletop rpg (based on the Image comic) Then Amber and I talk about mental health. Amber talks about the past two years and her experiences. Amber talks about the importance of therapy. The discussion is

I'm excited to get to share Sara aka Alto.Girl2019's stories and fandoms with you. I've been in the same community as Sara for several years and was happy when she said yes to being a guest! We start things off with talking about the animated series, Adventure Time. They talk about what brought them to the series, their favorite characters, and what the show means to them, amongst other things! Then, we talk about a new(ish) video game, Ooblets. Sara gives us the backstory about the game, how they got into it and watching others stream it, the game play, and what they enjoy about it. For the last half of the episode, we're talking all about Sara. We get to learn about how Sara got into art (and digital art), singing, songwriting, and streaming all of those on Twitch, along with video games too! You can see Sara's work across multiple channels, and find them on Spotify too! You can find Sara at: https://www.twitch.tv/altogirl2019 https://www.instagram.com/alto.girl2019/ https://www.threads.net/@alto.girl2019 h