About Us
The Power of You in Fiction Podcast
The non-fiction narrative podcast about fiction and its very real effects on our lives. The POYIF podcast reveals the superpowers we get through our interactions with fictional characters. We sincerely believe that the goal of the fantastical is to give a perspective on the real. And with every episode we aim to remind our listeners that seeing ourselves in fiction validates our existence in reality.
Want to keep up with us? Follow #POYIF on your favorite social media account!
When we finally got our first podcast off the ground in 2015, we were creating a podcast that tapped into a unique voice that our engineering friends felt we had. As engineers, we’re analytical and like many engineers we’re self proclaimed nerds. Perhaps it was Wilson’s interest in sociology paired with my interest in philosophy or the fact that both our mothers were English teachers, but Wilson and I always had a propensity for applying our analytical skills to fiction. So when we started the Comicidal Podcast we simply hoped that there would be an audience that wanted to hear in-depth analysis of the themes and characters in comic related fiction.
Original Podcast Logo
Over the course of nearly 100 episodes and 4 years of incremental growth we began to settle into our identity as podcasters. We began conducting interviews, developed consistency, mic rapport, and a dialect specific to the show. However, as creators began to feel we had outgrown the show. Episodic analysis of various works of fiction (some of which were no longer comic related) and the weekly grind of a chat cast did not seem to be worth the effort. Our voice and the level of gravitas we gave fiction were not best suited for, or fulfilled by, this type of discussion. So we decided that the podcast needed to evolve as we had.
While reviewing our podcast feed we realized that we were at our best when we talked about fiction’s parallels to reality in our analyses, and the real impact the creative process had on the reality of the creators we’ve interviewed. Around this time, Netflix launched “The first time I saw me” ad campaign, and the concept of that campaign showed us what our perspective was missing. Wilson and I realized the void we could fill. There are not enough discussions about the impact of fiction and the impact it has on the lives of everyone who interacts with stories. Fiction offers us a lens through which we can view the world and learn to navigate reality.
We then set on a half-year long interview campaign where we hoped to make our broad lens more specific. We interviewed several creators and consumers of fiction and sought to answer specific questions. “When have you seen yourself in a fictional character?” and “What impact has that had on your perspective, your life, and your values?” This series of interviews would serve as the core content for what would become the final season of The Comicidal Podcast, and the pilot season of the ‘Power of You in Fiction Podcast’.
While I took a hiatus from the cast after the pilot season to work on our transition plan, Wilson tapped LaKase Perry to co-host our Women’s History Month special with him. We first came across LaKase after reading a piece she wrote on how the character Martha Washington changed her life. After reading that piece, I recognized that her experience was exactly what we wanted to highlight on the podcast so we tracked her down for an interview. LaKase’s responses to our questions were powerful, thoughtful, and direct; so much so that LaKase ended up being in two episodes from our pilot season. LaKase’s personality combined with her background in writing and journalism made her the perfect woman to work on the WHM special.
After our experience with LaKase we recognized that a more diverse slate of voices behind the mic, translates to a wider perspective in the topics we cover. That is why as we grow as a podcast we will continue to seek voices from different communities so that people from the communities we cover can have their own voices represented.
Our 5-part 9 episode pilot season served as an introduction into the impacts we will explore on the podcast moving forward. In the first episode we discussed the researched academic effects of fiction on individuals with psychology professors, Dr. Raymond Mar and Dr. Keith Oatley, who study the impact of fiction on the human psyche. The rest of our episodes told stories of how fiction impacted people in different ways through the eyes of those impacted. We told a story about how fiction gave people who experienced othering the avenue to grow to accept themselves fully. The last three episodes showcased how fiction can be used to travel through time by helping us cope with the past, reflect on the present, and simulate the future.
As we continue we hope to highlight these effects in specific marginalized communities. We hope you stick with us!
~Lu
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What's Up Wednesday w/ Anne Bean – 3 Year Anniversary of Emerald Comics Distro
Meet Your Co-Pilots
Lucius
“Co-Host, interviewer, storyteller extraordinaire, patron of the arts, lover of all things beautiful, shy of compliments, but also humble of heart.” At least that’s what a special friend of mine told I should put in my bio…find people in your life who hype you like this.
I’m a dialectician who thinks entirely too much about everything, speaks in this mix of AAVE and poly-syllabic words, and is super into storytelling and its formation. This podcast serves as the place in my life where all of that is not only okay, but is the very foundation of our voice.
I’m a structural engineer in my day job, and minored in philosophy with a focus in ethics. Which is a reflection of my obsession with structures (relationships between the parts or elements of that form something complex), and the ethical lens through which I interpret stories.
R.P Wilson
Warmest salutations! Safe to say you came to this ‘About Us’ page to gain more insight on the podcast, my co-host and I, and maybe how our values and interests may align with yours; so here’s a little blurb about Wilson from Wilson.
I’m really into understanding the human condition (honestly there’s a mild obsession with sociology involved), especially through fiction. I think fiction does an amazing job of highlighting those seemingly unique and individual experiences that are felt by many, but are rarely discussed with candor and thoughtfulness. I believe character development is essential for a well told story and I’m always on board for a subversion of tropes. I’ve got the biggest soft spot for secondary and tertiary characters; without failed, I’ll gravitate towards those in the background before connecting with the protagonist. Seeing myself in fiction means seeing kindness being demonstrated as a strength, and the character that I consistently aspire to be more like is Uncle Iroh.
THE ULTIMATE
Podcasting experience
It’s here! It is finally here! Part 2 of #POYIF episode five “Trying to be Like You”. Wilson and Lu are continuing to weave the tale of fictional aspirational figures and how they can impact our real life desires and goals.