Episode 443: Don Martin talks fandom influences, podcasting, and his work as an Author of poetry, Verity Vox and The Curse of Foxfire, and more
Tales from the Fandom
New York Times best-selling author Don Martin joins me on the podcast for a wonderful episode full of laughs, learning, and beautiful words. We kick things off by talking about his podcast, Head on Fire. Don talks about how and why he started it, and what you can expect to find by listening or watching his episodes. He interviews experts in overlooked fields, searching for answers to life's biggest and smallest questions. From there, we talk about some of his early fandom influences. From the X-Men, to a focus on the Animorphs series by Katherine Applegate. We discuss how his time spent with...
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Episode 442: LexiChuChu returns and talks Video Games, Tabletop Roleplaying Games, Cosplay & Cosplay Judging
Tales from the Fandom
After 5+ years, Lexi aka LexiChuChu on IG returns to the podcast! Lexi's been busy over on their side of the country and we finally had the stars (and schedules) align for their return! We get to catch up a bit before we dive into the realm of Video Games. We kick things off by talking about Hades. Lexi has put in a lot of hours with that game and you'll find out how many hours they've got, plus their favorite weapons for dear ol Zagreus. Plus, we discuss Hades 2 and the different mechanics and gameplay from Hades. Lexi also talks about a game category that we have determined to call Catharsis...
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Episode 441: Darvily talks Video Games, Fantasy, and Cosplay
Tales from the Fandom
We return to Australia after many a year as Darvily joins me for this episode! I had stumbled across her on Threads and loved the fandoms she was into, and we get to jump into a few of them for this episode. Darvily and I kick things off with talking about the broad topic of video games. We talk about the first games that she experienced, starting with Spyro. We focus on a few games that Darvily specifically was into over the years, including Animal Crossing, Pokemon, and Skyrim. Darvily also talks about some of her favorite indie games that she likes and recommends. Want the recommendations?...
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Episode 440: Stacy Kellam talks Romantasy Books and Fantasy inspired costumes & photography
Tales from the Fandom
I stumbled across Stacy on Threads back in early 2025 when she posted about who she was hoping the algorithim would bring to her account. I followed Stacy for awhile and then realized "I bet she has an Instagram page" and followed her work there too. One of my favorite things about Stacy is that she wants to build and engage with those who do follow her on her platforms. I love that, and it's one of the things I enjoyed as I got to know her. This episode is split in half! The first half we're talking about Fantasy and Romantasy books. Stacy talks about what she looks for in a book, and what...
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Episode 439: KaiaKayy talks The Lord of the Rings
Tales from the Fandom
As 2025 ended, I kept stumbling across this really wonderful reels on Instagram that kept going into the lore of The Lord of the Rings fandom. After being shown these several times and being captivated, I followed Kaia on Instagram. After a little bit more, I knew I wanted to have her as a guest and delve into Middle Earth lore. Kaia and I talk about everything The Lord of the Rings that we can fit into one non-extended edition podcast episode! From how she got interested in this fandom to start with, to how she continued her journey and where it has taken her today. We cover everything. From...
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Episode 438: Lola Valentine of Winx Forever Podcast talks Winx Club
Tales from the Fandom
Lola Valentine of Winx Forever Podcast joins me for the final episode of 2025! We're talking all about the Winx Club Fandom! This is a first for the podcast, as I knew nothing about the Winx Club show(s) and movies and only had knowledge via people who cosplayed certain characters. Lola is gracious and gives me (and you listening) a great background into Winx Club, which started in 2004! Lola talks about the original Winx Club series, a 4Kids production back in 2004. We talk about how Lola was definitely the target audience for the show, and how she learned about it back then. We talk about...
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Episode 437: Byuka returns and talks Umamusume: Pretty Derby
Tales from the Fandom
Twitch streamer and fellow Hyrule Gaming Group member Byuka returns to the podcast as we talk about the world wide release of the Umamusume: Pretty Derby game. After nearly a year and a half, Byuka comes back to the podcast as we talk about an app/game that has taken over our lives. Japanese horse girl racing game, Umamusume: Pretty Derby, released world wide earlier this year. A game that has been in Asia for several years, Umamusume providers the player a chance to train and race their favorite horse girl over the course of a 3 year period. What will you train? Speed? Wit? Will you give them...
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Episode 436: Eden Royce returns and talks Psychopomp & Circumstance, writing for an anime movie, and more!
Tales from the Fandom
Real life friend, 7x podcast guest, and multi-award winning author Eden Royce joins me from England as we get to catch up, talk her latest works, and more! We start things off by talking about her latest book, Psychopomp & Circumstance. It's her first published work geared towards adults. Billed as a historical southern gothic fantasy, we talk about how this book came about. From her writing process for adults vs children, the themes of the books, the characters, and the setting. I won an ARC, so I was able to read it a few months ago and there are certain scenes that still stick with me...
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Episode 435: Ashley aka FreakazoidCosplay talks DC, Marvel, Castlevania, and Cosplay
Tales from the Fandom
After following them for quite some time, I am joined by the wonderful FreakazoidCosplay (aka Ashley) for a great discussion about some of their favorite fandoms. We first kick things off with the dual superhero powers, DC and Marvel. Ashley talks about how they first got their start with DC - from the animated series and movies, to the most recent slate, the comics, and much more. We're talking about what their favorites are, their favorite characters, and how it was growing up in a Marvel household. Which leads directly into how they finally got into Marvel. What their first entry point was,...
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Episode 434: Sarah aka SpiritDaySarah returns and talks content creation during pregnancy
Tales from the Fandom
Central Florida creator Sarah aka SpiritDaySarah returns to the podcast after 18 months. I always enjoy seeing what Sarah is doing and creating and am glad to welcome her back. For this episode, Sarah had something special to talk about. While we still remain in the realm of content creation, cosplaying, and bounding, Sarah discusses what it is like doing all that while pregnant. Sarah goes over 5 tips to help creators who are or may become pregnant in the future and advice on how she's had to adapt and pivot her content over the past several months. We talk about batching content, writing...
info_outlineActress Olivia Roldan returns to talk all about the upcoming release of Skye Hoshi 2!
We talk about her experiences with the release of Skye Hoshi, the convention tour, and when she found out that a sequel would be coming.
Olivia talks about the experiences of coming back for the sequel, what people can expect, and much more.
We also talk about some of the other work she's done with Pure Magic Pictures, and what else she's doing!
You can find Pure Magic Pictures at:
https://www.instagram.com/puremagicpictures/
https://www.youtube.com/@puremagicpictures
https://www.tiktok.com/@puremagicpictures
You can find Olivia Roldan at: