Okay, I have been doing the podcast thing for several years now. And, truth be told, I always consider myself a small fish in a big pond. One of the running in-jokes is that I feel like I sold my soul to the devil, and someone forgot to tell me. Somehow, someway, and sometimes I am totally dumbfounded that I have managed to bring on some incredible talent on the show: Phil Hester, Paul Kupperberg, Maggin, Ron Marz, and, in an upcoming show, Jimmy Palmiotti.
Yes, sometimes I have been known to chase a guest endlessly (though politely!), but still, some fantastic guests have appeared who I feel lucky to have snagged. Yes, in some cases, it is often hard to separate the podcaster from the fanboy.
But who comes on the show is more about giving the fans something different. And some of the bigger guests do draw attention to the show, which hopefully also helps
the indies I feature get more exposure—just by riding the coattails of the bigger shows.
For example, I have an irregular campaign show that comes out whenever everything comes together. Right now, for FCF Showcase 7, Ray MacKay sits down with Brock Smith to talk about his Payne campaign. Also, out right now, is the first part of my taping with Andy Mangels. In the intro to that show, I plug the campaign, with the home as you, the fan—will check out Braock’s campaign, which is a hard‑hitting, street‑level revenge thriller that follows a broken man clawing his way through a corrupt city where every choice cuts deeper than the last. Now, doesn’t that sound fantastically interesting?
Over the years, I have amassed quite a few stories I tell to guests and those around me. People who listen to the show—get, well, a different side of me. My voice and demeanor are different; I try to be somewhat serious while still having fun. Off-camera, I often swear in the most profane ways. I tend to engage in self-deprecating humor.
Quite unexpectedly and in the most humorous of ways—my Mangels taping as entered as one of the entries do those stories. It goes something like this: Mangels was the only show I ever lost complete control of. From there, it just slides downhill, for me, not Mangels.
Now, when I start telling this story about Mangels to people who know Andy, the polite ones smile and nod. The others are more like: Fool? What did YOU expect? Idiot!” Me—not Andy.
Andy is like a national treasure for comic fans. He’s also a force of nature that goes beyond a Category 5 hurricane. I always put together talking points for guests—especially those I could talk about almost endlessly.
The rest of the story goes something like this: Once Andy started, I crumbled up those talking points and tossed them aside. He basically kidnapped me and held the show hostage. I had no control over anything—I just knew that Energizer Rabbit… go and go. Once an hour came around, I found a way to insert myself back into my own podcast. Which, again, if you know, Andy is not easy.
Without question, he is one of my favorite tapings, not because it was like a train wreck in slow motion, going counter to my OCD-planned show, either. I’m not exactly sure how long Andy would have continued had I not wiggled my way back… into my own podcast.
The whole thing was fantastic because Andy knew a lot about comic books, creators, and history. Yes, I am already looking for another way to get him back on the show. Yes, I know full well, I’ll end up in the exact position I was the first time—trying to find a way to not only insert myself back into the show, but a way to seamlessly wrap things up without showing I how another train wrecked show went off the cliff… again.
And, the best part? So friggin’ what? It’s Andy Mangels, and he can come on anytime to talk about anything. And, there you have it—another Untold Tale of Being a Podcaster. I hope you take a look not only at Andy’s show but also at Brock’s campaign show. I think both are something all fans would enjoy.
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