Part of Your Broadway World Podcast (S3 EP9)| Mari Mancusi Interview | Sally’s Lament | Twisted Tale

[00:00:49] Hello and welcome to this week's episode of the Party of Broadway World Podcast. Today we have Mary Mancusi who is the author of the fabulous Disney with the tale of books. Today we're talking about her latest one that is coming out this week. It'll be already out when this episode goes up but for right now it

[00:01:19] comes out next week. Sally's Lament. Let's welcome her in. Hi. Hi. First let me ask you how is it is it Mari or Mary? Mary. Okay that's all right. Yeah. Mary. Yeah. Okay. Okay. So how are you? I'm good. How are you? I'm good. I'm good.

[00:01:49] I'm very excited about this interview because I've been a fan of these books for a very long time. It's such a good series. It's such a good series. So I do want to get started by asking you how did you what was the process like to of like the story of creating a story?

[00:02:13] Of creating a twisted tale? Yeah. So basically the idea of creating a twisted tale is first you have to come up with a twist and sometimes Disney will give you the twist they already know and sometimes the author helps come up with a twist. For the Sally book they already had the twist. They wanted it to be about Sally and having her the starring role of the story instead of Jack. And the idea of like how did Sally what would happen if Sally discovered Christmas Town instead of Jack. And then I think about the twisted tales as you're playing with the same characters in the same world.

[00:02:42] It's not like suddenly Sally could be evil or change her personality. You know, everyone has to be the same characters that they are in the original film. It's more of a plot twist. So for this particular one, when Jack is in the graveyard, you know, singing his song and bowing on happy and unsatisfied with everything, he wishes there was something more.

[00:03:01] And then, you know, Jack is watching him in the graveyard. And then, you know, Jack is watching him in the film. And then, you know, he, the China just goes on from there and then he finds Christmas Town.

[00:03:07] But in this story, she accidentally knocks over a gravestone and stumbles out and he finds her, you know, he discovers her in the cemetery and she says what she says quietly, you know, Jack, I know exactly what you mean.

[00:03:20] And then they end up starting to talk. And then, you know, Jack starts to feel better after talking to Sally and he goes home and she's the one that ends up going into the hinterlands by following Zero who runs out there, flies out there and ends up on the adventure.

[00:03:37] And is this, this is your first twist? Is this like your first twisted tale or is this?

[00:03:45] It's my third. I have two that only came out in the, in other countries. So I have set in stone, which is a sword in stone, twisted tale. And I have a Robin Hood, twisted tale. Those didn't come out in the US yet, but they're out in like, England and France and Australia and some other countries. So, yeah.

[00:04:02] I was wondering that because I, because when I went to, because I went to the bookstore yesterday to find a book, like find one of your books to, you know, prepare for my interview and I couldn't find any. I'm like, what?

[00:04:19] Yeah. Well, those two are not available in the US. The Sally one will be, but it's not until October 8th. So you can find them in the bookstore yet.

[00:04:27] Yeah.

[00:04:27] Yeah. And I did pre-order mine.

[00:04:29] Great.

[00:04:30] Yeah. So mine get coming on, on, on the 8th.

[00:04:34] Amazing.

[00:04:35] Yeah. So then I have to ask because I, I watched some of, I've, I've been in, in your lives when, when you do TikTok live interviews and I know that you're an admin Disney fan.

[00:04:52] Yes.

[00:04:53] Yes. So I gotta ask, what's your favorite ride?

[00:04:58] Probably Haunted Mansion is my all time favorite ride.

[00:05:01] Not for, you know, the thrills, but just, I love the vibe and the speakiness.

[00:05:06] And I just really love the lore and the Haunted Mansion.

[00:05:10] As far as thrill rides, I really love Guardians of the Galaxy, Tower of Terror, all those kinds.

[00:05:16] I haven't gone on a Gurgling's Galaxy. I have two chickens.

[00:05:19] I have two chickens. I don't like thrill rides.

[00:05:21] Oh yeah. It's very thrilling.

[00:05:26] So then I also have to ask that this, since Haunted Mansion is your favorite ride, does that,

[00:05:33] like, would that cross your mind to make maybe a Haunted Mansion?

[00:05:39] Yeah. I've always said that I'd love to do some kind of Haunted Mansion tie-in novel.

[00:05:44] Yeah.

[00:05:44] You never know. You know, I can tell Disney that I want to do all sorts of things, but it's really up to them when they decide they want to do stuff.

[00:05:51] So we'll see. But certainly it would be high on my list of rides that I'd like to write a novel about.

[00:05:57] Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

[00:05:59] So then, so it comes out on the 8th, you said.

[00:06:05] So what can people expect from this book?

[00:06:12] So, you know, I think it's a really great twist on the original story because the plot is so different once it spins off.

[00:06:22] But you still get the characters that you love, you know, Jack and Sally and Zero and some of the other residents of Halloween Town

[00:06:28] and the residents of Christmas Town.

[00:06:29] And you also get to meet some brand new characters that aren't in the original film, especially ones from Christmas Town.

[00:06:34] We spend a lot more time in Christmas Town in this one and kind of undercover something that's going on that's a bit nefarious.

[00:06:41] It seems like everything in Christmas Town is so jolly and nice and everything.

[00:06:45] And then Sally starts to realize there's a dark undertone to it.

[00:06:48] Another thing you'll probably find is a lot more Jack and Sally romance than you did in the film.

[00:06:53] I really loved the idea of them getting together.

[00:06:55] So I was able to concentrate on that a lot more where, you know, you actually see them, you know, coming together, becoming friends, falling in love through the story.

[00:07:04] So people who like Stan, Jack and Sally, they are going to be in for a treat for this one.

[00:07:12] And I also got to say, too, because as we all know, like a week ago, Ken Page has passed away.

[00:07:20] Yeah.

[00:07:21] He plays Oogie Boogie.

[00:07:24] Yeah, that's so sad.

[00:07:25] I know.

[00:07:26] He's amazing.

[00:07:27] He's amazing.

[00:07:27] He is.

[00:07:28] And how does that feel to have like a Nightmare Before Christmas book, though, around that time?

[00:07:36] Well, yeah, I know.

[00:07:37] It is very sad.

[00:07:38] Oogie Boogie is not actually in my story because we concentrate mostly on Christmas Town.

[00:07:43] But, you know, he's such a legend.

[00:07:45] And it's just it's a terrible time for everyone just to think about him, you know, and all his legacy.

[00:07:51] But, you know, I kind of think that it was the timing, right?

[00:07:56] It's Halloween season.

[00:07:57] So if we really want to honor Oogie.

[00:07:59] Yeah.

[00:08:00] You know, it is the season, right?

[00:08:01] So maybe you can take some solace in that.

[00:08:04] But it is a real loss for sure.

[00:08:08] That was actually my next question is, is Oogie Boogie in the book?

[00:08:15] So you answered my question.

[00:08:16] Yeah, yeah.

[00:08:16] He is not.

[00:08:17] We have a different villain.

[00:08:19] The villain is from Christmas Town.

[00:08:21] So we concentrated on that instead of Oogie Boogie because, you know, he's obviously the big bad in the original.

[00:08:27] So we're going to do something different.

[00:08:31] So have you watched, you've watched the original?

[00:08:34] Of course.

[00:08:35] Yeah.

[00:08:35] Of course.

[00:08:35] Of course.

[00:08:38] So then I got to ask, like, and I think you talked about this already, but I can't remember, like, are there like kind of homages to the original kind of?

[00:08:50] Oh, yeah.

[00:08:51] Yeah, absolutely.

[00:08:52] Because a lot of the characters are the same.

[00:08:55] You know, you get Lock, Shock and Barrel and the witches and the vampires and all the residents of Christmastown and Sandy Claws.

[00:09:01] And so there's a lot of callbacks to the original.

[00:09:04] You're going to feel like you're in the original world just with a different story within that world.

[00:09:09] So Halloween Town is the same.

[00:09:11] You know, if she's walking around Halloween Town, you'll feel all those points undersea Gal on the fountain and stuff like that.

[00:09:17] Okay.

[00:09:18] All right.

[00:09:19] Well, and then I just wanted to switch gears to a little bit after talking about your book.

[00:09:27] I want to switch gears because, again, I know that you're a Disney fan, as am I.

[00:09:33] Yeah.

[00:09:35] And I wanted to talk to you about what you thought about, like, about the, I don't know, because I don't know if you follow D23 or not.

[00:09:50] Mm-hmm.

[00:09:50] But, like, but, but with, with the news about the Monsters Inc. land and the Villains Land, I wanted to get your, and what you thought about that.

[00:10:02] Yeah.

[00:10:02] I mean, I think that Walt said something about the fact that it's kind of like, and the theme park is not ever supposed to be static.

[00:10:11] It's an ongoing adventure.

[00:10:12] It's like a film set that things can change and evolve over time.

[00:10:16] So I think that was his original plan.

[00:10:18] Now, I'm not going to speak personally on what I feel about each individual land, but I think that it makes sense that we evolve, you know, and I know there's a lot of nostalgia in the parks and I feel a lot of nostalgia.

[00:10:30] And I told you there's some rides that I very much miss, like Horizons and Epcot was one of my favorite rides of all time.

[00:10:35] And they put that mission space in instead.

[00:10:38] And that was hard for me to deal with back then.

[00:10:40] So I know that feeling of you're going to miss, but I think that Walt really wanted a park that, you know, was going to refresh and, you know, just kind of reinvent itself every so often to stay relevant.

[00:10:52] And so for next generations and everything like that.

[00:10:54] So I don't think it's something, you know, that he would be rolling around in his grave over.

[00:10:58] I think that he would understand that, you know, change is inevitable and change can be good.

[00:11:02] Change can be positive.

[00:11:03] And I always like to hold out, you know, judgment because of an announcement and a drawing.

[00:11:09] Like, I don't know what that's going to look like in real life.

[00:11:12] So, you know, I want to see it for myself before I would actually make a judgment on whether this is a good change or a bad change.

[00:11:19] I mean, I'm excited for the villains, man.

[00:11:24] I mean, I'm excited for it.

[00:11:25] I think the villains needed a park.

[00:11:28] They needed their own park.

[00:11:32] I think that would be great.

[00:11:33] I mean, you know, all the Halloween stuff they do either in Florida or in L.A. and Anaheim, you know, is so popular.

[00:11:41] And I think people would just love to have more of that dark side.

[00:11:45] I hope there's a Maleficent Castle.

[00:11:47] So that's what I would really like to see.

[00:11:49] I mean, in the concept art, it looked like in the background.

[00:11:54] Yeah.

[00:11:54] There was a castle.

[00:11:56] So definitely.

[00:11:58] I think that actually happens.

[00:11:59] So I think the forbidden.

[00:12:02] Well, what's her castle called?

[00:12:04] It's like something.

[00:12:06] I can't remember.

[00:12:07] Yeah.

[00:12:08] I can't remember.

[00:12:08] It's like forbidden something.

[00:12:09] I don't know.

[00:12:12] But, you know, thank you so much for coming on.

[00:12:17] Of course.

[00:12:18] Thanks for having me.

[00:12:19] And thank you for, you know, being so open to it.

[00:12:23] I was like so nervous trying to see if you wanted an interview.

[00:12:27] I was so nervous.

[00:12:28] Oh, no.

[00:12:29] I love talking to people.

[00:12:30] Like you said, I'm a Disney fan too.

[00:12:32] So, you know, just coming on and chatting about Disney is always fun for me.

[00:12:37] Well, the Saddest Lament comes out on October 8th of this year.

[00:12:44] So, and it's a, it's an, it's a, and you have a link to the book.

[00:12:53] And, but, but, but you can also go to Barnes and Noble's, correct?

[00:12:56] Yes.

[00:12:57] So Barnes and Noble has an exclusive edition that has a purple foil cover and some fancy

[00:13:02] endpapers.

[00:13:02] And so if you want their limited edition, go to Barnes and Noble or order it from their

[00:13:07] website.

[00:13:08] They made a limited amount of them when they're gone, they're gone.

[00:13:11] So if you want that, I would get it sooner rather than later.

[00:13:15] The other editions are anywhere books are sold.

[00:13:18] They'll probably be at Target, Amazon, you know, like anywhere really.

[00:13:22] And you can also order it online.

[00:13:24] So October 8th, which is this Tuesday.

[00:13:26] So not very far away at all.

[00:13:28] No, no.

[00:13:29] And I'm excited to go back to my book, to my Barnes and Noble's and pick up my book

[00:13:34] because I've been so excited about this book.

[00:13:37] Well, I hope you love it.

[00:13:39] And I hope you love Sally's story because it was a really special one for me to write.

[00:13:42] Yeah.

[00:13:42] Yeah.

[00:13:43] Well, that's it, folks.

[00:13:45] I will see you guys next time.

[00:13:48] And bye, guys.

[00:13:50] Thank you.

[00:13:51] Bye.

[00:13:53] Halloween box opening.

[00:13:57] Spicy pumpkin.

[00:14:02] Witch's brew.

[00:14:07] Halloween themed pop out wax tarts.

[00:14:12] Jack-o'-lantern spicy pumpkin candle.

[00:14:16] Dragon's blood.

[00:14:17] Happy Halloween.

[00:14:19] And I thought it would be a nice chance to talk to the people out there about the podcast

[00:14:25] network.

[00:14:25] And you two have glowing testimonials.

[00:14:28] I'm sure.

[00:14:29] Hopefully.

[00:14:30] Maybe.

[00:14:33] Yeah.

[00:14:33] I do.

[00:14:35] And also we're going to tease the upcoming trial of Hamilton.

[00:14:40] Oh, yeah.

[00:14:41] I mean, well, my, I mean, my testimonial, I suppose would be that, I mean, I, I've made

[00:14:47] a lot of great friends doing this.

[00:14:49] I've, I've encountered a lot of differing opinions on things.

[00:14:54] And in terms of just sheer infrastructure.

[00:14:57] Uh, all of you tutorial, all of the tutorials that you have available to people who need it

[00:15:03] were like instrumental to everything I did.

[00:15:06] It was effectively like following a step-by-step guide.

[00:15:09] It was very, very helpful.

[00:15:11] Yeah.

[00:15:12] I, I purposefully designed it that way because that's, that's what always frustrates me when

[00:15:16] I'm trying to learn something new is the guides, the guides tend to just be like, oh, and then

[00:15:22] do this.

[00:15:22] It's like, well, I don't know how to do that.

[00:15:25] Hence the tutorial, why I need it.

[00:15:28] So I, it might be annoying to some, but I go through every little step and I assume

[00:15:34] that if you're watching the video, yeah, I assume that if you're watching the video,

[00:15:38] you know nothing about what you're doing.

[00:15:40] And if you do, it just makes it that much easier.

[00:15:43] Um, I would feel like you're the, the one you did on shorts is basically how I learned

[00:15:47] everything I know in CapCut.

[00:15:50] And like the reason why I can hit the ground, I can, I can, for lack of a better word, shit

[00:15:56] out like five, six shorts in an hour because the infrastructure you built in your tutorial,

[00:16:03] I just followed that.

[00:16:05] You've basically created a template that I just slap onto every single short I make.

[00:16:10] And I can, I can, I can make one real quick in like 10 minutes now because of the tutorial

[00:16:15] that I followed from, from like, from you, from that starting point.

[00:16:20] It's just made it super easy for me.

[00:16:23] My, my thing with CapCut currently is every time you exit out of it, like even if you so much

[00:16:30] is like hit the, hit the button to open another window, it'll load an ad.

[00:16:35] Like you go, you go to, so if I go to grab a, grab a piece of footage, you go back in,

[00:16:39] I got to skip through like four or five ads every single time.

[00:16:43] It's really, it is the most aggravating thing on the planet.

[00:16:46] It's to the point.

[00:16:46] And they're just slowly been blocking off same thing on Canva.

[00:16:50] They've just been slowly blocking off free options.

[00:16:53] So I've been perpetually tempted to get the professional version of those.

[00:16:57] Oh, that was my, that was my next question is do you pay for the pro?

[00:17:00] Cause I, I did the, I got the pro for both.

[00:17:03] I've been tempted lately, especially with CapCut.

[00:17:06] The background remover.

[00:17:08] There's been times where I've wanted the background remover.

[00:17:11] The only reason I got premium Canva was for the background remover.

[00:17:15] Everything else is gravy.

[00:17:16] There's been times where like, I want like an image, but it's on a mosaic background.

[00:17:21] And I just want to get rid of that annoying mosaic background and I just can't do it.

[00:17:24] Like, well, one of the, one of the perks of being part of the RTA podcast Pantheon is if you don't have premium, you know, premium Canva and you need a background and background removed from an image, just, just send it to me.

[00:17:36] I mean, in Canva, it's literally two clicks.

[00:17:39] Fair enough.

[00:17:39] Yeah.

[00:17:40] Yeah.

[00:17:40] Yeah.

[00:17:40] Because, uh, because I had Canva and CapCut pro when I was doing my own, um, editing and stuff and that made it so much easier, but still I wasn't perfect.

[00:17:56] So that's why I, that's why I delegated it to Jake over here.

[00:18:01] Yeah.

[00:18:01] When you delegated it to me in hindsight, I probably shouldn't have, but, um, I was like, I'll do it under one condition.

[00:18:08] Bad spots.

[00:18:09] But it's, it's, it's quite simple though.

[00:18:11] Um, and really the beautiful thing about all this is you very much learn by doing, and I found so many shortcuts.

[00:18:19] In fact, this segment we're recording zoom changed.

[00:18:25] Uh, I don't know what you call that setting or feature.

[00:18:28] And now if you go in and tweak your settings, which if you join the network, there's a new video that shows you how to do it.

[00:18:33] Um, if you record on zoom, instead of going live, like some of the other podcasts do, if you change this one setting, when you go to download your recorded video, zoom will kick out the gallery view.

[00:18:43] And the speaker view.

[00:18:46] Two different video files.

[00:18:47] So you just layer those in your editor and you can cut between them seamlessly.

[00:18:51] It's beautiful.

[00:18:52] We should do it on discord.

[00:18:54] Yeah.

[00:18:55] Yeah.

[00:18:55] And that's fine.

[00:18:56] I it's going live is even less work, but if you like a more, like we could never do Justin, you and I, we can never do the final frontier live.

[00:19:05] It would be too boring.

[00:19:06] Yeah.

[00:19:07] Yeah.

[00:19:07] That's why we have to, we have to edit it.

[00:19:09] Right.

[00:19:10] Yeah.

[00:19:11] I mean, for, um, I will say watching, even watching you do live streams, I've, I've learned a lot.

[00:19:17] Like there's, there was a period of time where it was driving me crazy that you had different OBS than me.

[00:19:23] And I couldn't figure out why I was like, why is your OBS different than mine?

[00:19:26] I'm sitting.

[00:19:27] And I was looking up tutorials and I finally realized I hadn't updated my OBS in like 10 years.

[00:19:31] And I was like, now I have all these controls.

[00:19:33] Now I can go like one.

[00:19:35] And yeah, you taught me about hot keys and I can go like one starts the show, two ends the show and then three ends the recording.

[00:19:42] And it's really, it's really useful.

[00:19:44] Oh yeah.

[00:19:44] I still have to do a tutorial on hot keys.

[00:19:46] I forgot about that.

[00:19:48] Um, but yeah, honestly, the simplest solution is just buy like a 40 to $80 stream deck.

[00:19:55] And, but I mean, you're doing the same thing though.

[00:19:58] So I suppose you're just doing an extreme deck versus.

[00:20:01] The only thing is I discovered today is when you're filling out your OBS, I've got, I've got my, my other, not my, my, my numpad, but my actual number of keys.

[00:20:12] I've got it set.

[00:20:12] So number two just plays the trailer for the final frontier.

[00:20:16] Um, and it's, but when you're typing in your OBS description, it, it will activate the hot keys when you're just typing.

[00:20:23] So like, as I'm typing, cause I've today was terrifier movie.

[00:20:26] So I put terrifier two, every time I put in the number two, it would just start playing the trailer and it would just start from the beginning.

[00:20:32] I was like, stop that.

[00:20:34] Yeah.

[00:20:35] That is the only, I guess that's the upshot to the stream deck.

[00:20:37] Cause that doesn't happen.

[00:20:39] Yeah, exactly.

[00:20:40] But Haley, it is your show after all.

[00:20:44] Um, how have you found the experience overall?

[00:20:47] Pretty good.

[00:20:48] Uh, like I said, I delegated most of the work to you cause I'm like, I've been so busy with like interviews that I have like found, found.

[00:20:58] I have like no time to do nothing but interviews.

[00:21:01] Yeah.

[00:21:01] Um, honestly, in, if I had my druthers in my dream world, that's what I would be doing all day, every day.

[00:21:08] Like today, for example, today's a Sunday.

[00:21:10] Uh, so I don't have my normal job.

[00:21:11] I've literally been editing all day and I've been happier than a pig in shit.

[00:21:15] Like it's great.

[00:21:17] I take a certain amount of joy out of, yeah.

[00:21:19] Out of the, just as much as the on camera, the, the behind the, the producing stuff is, it's almost as much fun as the, like as much as it's, yeah.

[00:21:28] Work to, to spend all the time cutting those shorts and all that stuff.

[00:21:32] Yeah.

[00:21:32] I, I, there is a certain level of like, it's better than my regular job.

[00:21:37] Oh yeah.

[00:21:37] The frustrating thing was funny.

[00:21:39] I was talking to Max, um, yesterday who virus box.

[00:21:43] Sorry.

[00:21:44] He doesn't like it when I call him max on tune talk 2.0.

[00:21:47] I was talking to virus box the other day and he was like, you're, you're doing too much, you know, cause he's trying to get me to hire a virtual assistant.

[00:21:55] And I'm like, I don't want a virtual assistant because nobody's going to do it the way I like to do it.

[00:22:00] Nobody is.

[00:22:01] My issue is I don't have enough time.

[00:22:03] If I had enough time, there would be no issue.

[00:22:06] I can edit 50 podcasts if it were my day job, um, which we're trying to get to 50.

[00:22:10] We're trying to get to 50.

[00:22:11] So here's the sales pitch part portion.

[00:22:14] Do you have an idea for a podcast?

[00:22:17] If so, we can help even if, and these two can attest to this, even if you have no idea what you're doing when it comes to things like YouTube or podcasting in general, even if you've never worked a camera before, we can walk you through all the steps.

[00:22:34] Yeah.

[00:22:34] And if you've never, yeah.

[00:22:36] Yeah.

[00:22:36] Even if you've never edited a video before, we can show you how, or I hate to say it this way, cause it was never my intention to do this for money.

[00:22:43] I'm editing too much now where I'll just be blunt.

[00:22:47] If anybody else, if you want me to edit your stuff, um, we're at a point now where you got to pay me.

[00:22:54] They're also fair.

[00:22:56] I didn't have people's stuff for them.

[00:22:58] They asked me to.

[00:23:00] Fair enough.

[00:23:01] Yeah.

[00:23:01] I forgot.

[00:23:01] I didn't even want to, I didn't want to speak for you.

[00:23:03] Um, but we can definitely show you how, because honestly, it's one of those things where it's, it's not technically difficult.

[00:23:11] It's, it's actually quite simple, but if you've never seen it before, you just don't know where to start.

[00:23:16] But once you start learning the programs, um, much like anything else, it becomes a lot less daunting when things start to look familiar.

[00:23:24] When you know what that button does, it's not so scary.

[00:23:28] Finding a launcher platform.

[00:23:29] Like your, your tutorial on, uh, Spotify for podcasts was like instrumental to you often are like, you got things up and running so fast.

[00:23:38] That was instrumental.

[00:23:39] That and, and everything with the backend YouTube stuff.

[00:23:42] Um, it's funny to shout out a fellow podcast on the network, the Goosebumps crew.

[00:23:48] Um, they, they, I don't know if it's out yet, but they have done a, um, are doing an interview with James Rolfe, the angry video game nerd.

[00:23:57] I believe it comes out.

[00:23:59] I believe it comes out today for the, for the viewers.

[00:24:03] Yeah.

[00:24:04] I believe the day that this episode is going, I believe is the day that that episode premieres for them.

[00:24:08] So you should check that out after you're done watching.

[00:24:10] You absolutely should.

[00:24:12] But they put out a post where there were like questions for him and all my questions are like backend YouTube related.

[00:24:19] Like, like, like that's, like, that's what I would want to ask him about all the, all the in the weeds YouTube shit.

[00:24:25] Like, that's what I want to know about.

[00:24:26] Cause that's, that's what's useful to me in terms of information.

[00:24:30] Yeah.

[00:24:30] That's the frustrating thing though, is again, all these technologies change fairly quickly.

[00:24:34] But so one of the other features is you get into our private discord group, which hasn't been super active lately, but that's because everybody's been grinding.

[00:24:42] There haven't been too many.

[00:24:43] Yeah.

[00:24:44] There haven't been too many new developments.

[00:24:46] Um, but the already awards are coming up.

[00:24:48] So, uh, that's where I post all of, I put all of my updates every, every time we go live.

[00:24:53] I, I, you, you sort of, uh, early on, um, instilled the benefits to going live.

[00:25:01] And I, I definitely way less editing because you're like too much editing.

[00:25:05] Um, I, that's part of why I like, I like doing the live because I don't have to edit anything.

[00:25:12] The only thing I have to edit is, is descriptions and that's it.

[00:25:15] Yeah.

[00:25:15] And that's, that's sort of the beauty of it.

[00:25:17] When we set you up in the first video in the tutorial, I think other than, you know, picking your name and your logo is figuring out whether you want to stream, whether you want to go live.

[00:25:25] And we lay out the pros and cons for each one.

[00:25:27] And if you're kind of intimidated by an editor, you can go live in two clicks.

[00:25:32] Exactly.

[00:25:33] It takes a day and a half to get approved, but like, that's it.

[00:25:38] Well, and I, it's not even approved.

[00:25:40] It's like, I don't even know why YouTube bothers.

[00:25:42] I guess it's just to make sure that you're an actual person.

[00:25:46] Probably.

[00:25:46] Yeah.

[00:25:47] But yeah, yeah.

[00:25:48] It's in the tutorial video, what he's mentioning, but free to be here.

[00:25:52] If you want to go live on YouTube and you've never done it before, you have to request permission to do so.

[00:25:56] But within, usually within 24 hours, you're, you're good to go.

[00:26:00] And then it's just one click away.

[00:26:03] Well, two, cause OBS.

[00:26:05] But what was your level of experience prior to starting your podcast when it comes to like making videos, video editing, even posting on places like YouTube and other social media?

[00:26:15] Yeah.

[00:26:17] I was, I've been doing it.

[00:26:21] When do you have it?

[00:26:22] Last year, since 2020 in any major capacity.

[00:26:25] I mean, with my co-host, we had tried to get some stuff off the ground, but we never really committed to anything.

[00:26:34] This keeps us honest.

[00:26:35] I will say that like it keeps, it keeps us committed to a thing.

[00:26:39] But I, I had a TikTok where I, I did a lot of this.

[00:26:46] So a little.

[00:26:48] Big old.

[00:26:48] Oh, really?

[00:26:49] Yeah.

[00:26:50] Big old.

[00:26:51] Oh, wow.

[00:26:53] Really?

[00:26:53] So you hadn't done any of this prior?

[00:26:55] No.

[00:26:56] I was nervous about long form content.

[00:26:58] Like that was always my thing.

[00:26:59] Like, can I, cause, cause me, to be fair, me and Jordan, we had a, we had a podcast that we did once where it was called live from Justin and Jordan's couch.

[00:27:08] And it was just, we were just sitting on a couch and we did exactly like 10 minutes where we rushed through like five minutes worth of topics.

[00:27:18] And then we were just, and that's the end of the podcast over.

[00:27:22] And it was, it went awful.

[00:27:23] So we've always been anxious about like, can we talk for like, and that's where finding a format is really important.

[00:27:30] That would be my number one advice is figure out what your format is.

[00:27:34] Once you figure out what your format is, like what exactly the structure of your show is roughly going to be.

[00:27:42] That makes things a thousand times easier.

[00:27:44] Like once we decided we were going to be like news based and be sort of analysis based that made things easier.

[00:27:51] Yeah.

[00:27:51] Interviews are tough too.

[00:27:53] I know it's the worst feeling in the world when you get somebody there and you're, especially when you're excited about and you get there and there's just like no chemistry whatsoever.

[00:27:59] And it's like pulling teeth to get somebody to talk.

[00:28:03] Yeah.

[00:28:03] Well, Jordan, Jordan's pushing.

[00:28:04] He's not pushing, but he's like, he sees like, like he sees the Goosebumps guys talking to the angry video game nerd and his ears perk.

[00:28:12] And he goes, really?

[00:28:14] And I'm like, yeah.

[00:28:15] And I'm like, I don't, I would, I would be so anxious because he's, I watch it.

[00:28:19] I'm a fan.

[00:28:20] Like how do you approach like inviting people, like guests on?

[00:28:25] That's the, that's the portion where I'm like, it's easy when it's just me and Jordan.

[00:28:29] Yeah.

[00:28:29] It's especially, I've done so many cold interviews and I'll be honest.

[00:28:33] Sometimes it shows where I'm just like, I have no idea what to ask this person.

[00:28:37] I'm very much a third wheel for this conversation.

[00:28:40] Yeah.

[00:28:40] That was my, that was my actual, for this interview that, that, that you are watching right now is this interview.

[00:28:52] I had so much trouble at like trying to figure out what to ask her.

[00:28:56] Cause like, it just was weird.

[00:28:58] Yeah.

[00:28:58] It can be.

[00:28:59] Cause I did, I did an interview with a musician named Papa D.

[00:29:02] Uh, this is the opposite of that because I did my homework because I knew, I knew nothing about him prior to the interview.

[00:29:09] So I'm like, I am not going to look like an idiot during this interview.

[00:29:12] I'm going to know everything there is to know about this guy.

[00:29:14] And he actually said afterward, he was like, wow, you, I was one of the better interviews I've done.

[00:29:20] Cause like, you knew about my background.

[00:29:21] You knew about, you know, what I had done, what some, I'm like, yeah, I didn't want to look like an idiot.

[00:29:28] I mean, that's, that's the, that's my concern.

[00:29:30] Like, where's the line of like being taken seriously or just like being a fan boy or being weird or, you know, you don't want to be like that, that weird viral clip at a press junket.

[00:29:42] You know what I mean?

[00:29:43] Like, Hey, those people get famous.

[00:29:45] That, I suppose that's true.

[00:29:47] But still.

[00:29:48] I will say, I will say though, that part of that was because I have the book to do research on.

[00:29:57] And I got the book like a week later.

[00:30:01] So.

[00:30:03] Fair enough.

[00:30:04] That'll very, yeah, that'll very much do it.

[00:30:06] Cause when, when I interviewed Debbie Lynn on my podcast, who wrote the, uh, uh, the unveiled book series, um, I was adamant.

[00:30:14] I, I actually put her off for a little while.

[00:30:16] Cause I was like, no, I want to finish the book.

[00:30:17] I don't want to be grasping at straws and I don't want to say something stupid.

[00:30:21] Like, Oh, that ending, huh?

[00:30:22] And having not read the ending.

[00:30:24] Yeah.

[00:30:24] Oh yeah.

[00:30:26] Yeah.

[00:30:26] Cause yeah.

[00:30:27] Cause I do, I do mine live.

[00:30:28] So I, that would have just been awful.

[00:30:31] Cause, uh, fun fact, the, uh, what are the, yeah.

[00:30:36] The ending is a bit of a curve ball.

[00:30:39] It's not, it's not a standard ending.

[00:30:41] It's very good book.

[00:30:42] I recommend it.

[00:30:43] You can check out that interview on the RTA media YouTube page after this one, of course.

[00:30:47] My thing with our show is part of the charm of our show is it's just me and Jordan riffing.

[00:30:55] Like it's just me and Jordan.

[00:30:57] I was talking with Jordan about this morning where like, I, I very firmly believe he, he, he disagrees with me on this fact, but I firmly believe he is one of the best improvisers I've ever worked with.

[00:31:08] And there was a moment where it sort of demonstrates that is where our, with October.

[00:31:14] So it's Halloween.

[00:31:15] And so the podcast is the spooky of the moment podcast.

[00:31:19] And I said, he's the spooky and comparable Jordan without missing a beat.

[00:31:22] He just started going.

[00:31:25] And, and then of course, yes.

[00:31:27] And I was like, he periodically does that.

[00:31:30] And it's something to have that effect, but the, just like, he's, he's so good at like, just knowing.

[00:31:39] Like how it, where to take a bit.

[00:31:41] So like to do an interview is so structured.

[00:31:43] I don't, is my, I guess is where I'm going with that.

[00:31:46] I don't know how I would bottle that or confine that onto my show, which is why the notion of guests makes me anxious.

[00:31:52] Cause I'm like, I don't know how to like, let's hypothetically say you were to get someone famous.

[00:31:57] Like how do you confine them to your box?

[00:32:01] I guess if you indeed do that.

[00:32:04] Well, I think, cause here's the, here's the dirty little secret.

[00:32:08] Riffing is a learned, or I should say riffing is a learnable skill.

[00:32:13] Cause some people do naturally have it, but it's one of those things where the longer you do it, the better you get at it.

[00:32:20] Cause like, that's all we do on average intelligence too, is we just riff.

[00:32:23] And Eric is a master.

[00:32:25] Cause believe it or not on that show, I'm the straight man.

[00:32:28] Yeah.

[00:32:28] I would actually recommend though, if you are going to start a podcast and you have a partner, whether you do live or recorded, I would recommend.

[00:32:35] And which again, it's not a one size fits all, but I would recommend one person being sort of the straight man and the other person being sort of like the color commentator, because it can, it can take you down some really interesting paths.

[00:32:47] Cause like on average intelligence, I'm the one that normally does like the in-depth research, but then Eric will bring up a point.

[00:32:55] That had he done as much research as I had, I don't know that he would bring up organically.

[00:33:00] It might feel a little bit like, Hey, but what about this scenario?

[00:33:04] Yeah.

[00:33:04] And you'll see, you'll see me do it all the time.

[00:33:06] You'll see me do it all the time.

[00:33:07] He'll, he'll do it.

[00:33:08] And then I have to go.

[00:33:10] Yeah.

[00:33:11] It turns into an educational experience too, because like your, your co-host becomes a stand in for the audience.

[00:33:18] Whereas like you're teaching him a thing as much as you're teaching the audience, which is really helpful.

[00:33:24] The other thing we're plugging today is we've sort of mentioned it across the podcast network, but I'm going to say it definitively here.

[00:33:30] We're going to put Hamilton on trial right here on the part of your Broadway world podcast.

[00:33:36] Cause I am tired of this musical trancing about being like, look at me.

[00:33:40] I'm fantastic.

[00:33:41] And it's like, no, you're not.

[00:33:44] It does traits about being like, look at me.

[00:33:46] I'm fantastic.

[00:33:47] It is though.

[00:33:47] It is though.

[00:33:49] Well, so that's what we were going to decide, but fun fact, completely independent of this, which this was first.

[00:33:55] The idea for this was first on tune top 2.0 virus comes to me one day.

[00:34:00] He was like, we're going to put characters on trial.

[00:34:02] I'm like, did you watch the show?

[00:34:04] He was like, what are you talking about?

[00:34:05] I'm like, okay, no, you didn't.

[00:34:06] So this idea came up completely organically.

[00:34:09] Apparently he was inspired by a comedian who did something similar.

[00:34:13] And we put on trial very randomly.

[00:34:17] We put on trial Goku, Darth Vader, and specifically the George Clooney Batman.

[00:34:22] Yeah.

[00:34:22] Very specifically the George, because I just watched Batman versus.

[00:34:25] Robin and I kind of realized I didn't hate that movie as much as I was expecting to.

[00:34:29] So fun fact though, if you go back and watch that episode, which I highly recommend both for hilarity.

[00:34:34] You need to watch in real time us come up with a concept.

[00:34:38] Because it very much morphs from how it's supposed to be one way.

[00:34:43] And by the time you reach the end, we completely changed the format.

[00:34:46] That was just, you want to talk riffing?

[00:34:48] That was me just pulling just like shit out of my ass.

[00:34:52] I went into the George Clooney Batman with one argument and it just turned into me making another argument.

[00:35:00] Like it just turned into me tearing into Robert Pattinson's Batman for some reason.

[00:35:05] It was great.

[00:35:07] My favorite moment though is I have to shout out Virus.

[00:35:10] My favorite moment will forever be, and I need you to make it into a short of his opening statement.

[00:35:17] His opening statement for Goku.

[00:35:20] Because it, it, Haley, you're not a Dragon Ball fan, I don't imagine.

[00:35:24] But it is, as a Dragon Ball fan, simultaneously a surprisingly accurate opening statement.

[00:35:30] And unbelievably, just character assassination like you would not believe.

[00:35:37] And it was, it was brilliant.

[00:35:39] It made me go, I, I was on Jake's side, but I'm like, Jake, he needs my help.

[00:35:46] No, it's, it's, it's quite a thing to behold.

[00:35:48] Because again, if you're a Dragon Ball fan, you will see that this is simultaneously like a really good synopsis.

[00:35:55] And also just obvious he's never watched the show a day in his life.

[00:35:59] I was watching.

[00:36:02] I was, I was, I was watching it.

[00:36:04] And like, I gotta say, Jake, your woman appreciated for Leia was just spot on.

[00:36:10] Oh, I mean.

[00:36:11] It was nowhere near spot on.

[00:36:14] It was spot on as a woman.

[00:36:16] Jake's, Jake's ability to, I mean, you're, you're Obi-Wan.

[00:36:20] Your Obi-Wan was pretty phenomenal.

[00:36:23] I try, I try.

[00:36:25] I just love hearing Ewan McGregor tell that story about when he gets, what is, you know,

[00:36:30] we see somebody like run a stop sign or something and he pulls up next to him and he's like,

[00:36:33] and I'm burrating him and I'm saying this.

[00:36:35] And he just stares at me and it's like, that's fucking Obi-Wan Kenobi.

[00:36:39] Obi-Wan Kenobi.

[00:36:40] My, one thing I will say that is of a benefit that has helped, helped us generally is this

[00:36:45] sense of camaraderie and that like having people who consistently like your shit on the internet,

[00:36:53] like instrumental, like we're, we're, we're on TikTok.

[00:36:57] We're our, we've got maybe 30 followers, but I'm doing 600, 700, like sometimes a thousand

[00:37:06] videos or views of video.

[00:37:08] Sometimes on TikTok, my videos do better than they do on YouTube and vice versa.

[00:37:12] And that all comes from having people who consistently, the algorithmically speaking, the algorithm loves

[00:37:19] it.

[00:37:19] When, when you have people with, they perceive you, even though, even though we're cohorts,

[00:37:25] they perceive you as audience members constantly liking my stuff and that boosts the shit and

[00:37:30] boosts your stuff.

[00:37:31] And that is part of the benefit of being in the network.

[00:37:34] Cause you have a core group of people that will do that all the time and that helps rising

[00:37:39] tide all ships.

[00:37:40] Yeah.

[00:37:41] And that's very much the mentality.

[00:37:43] So, um, there's so many perks and I don't want to try to oversell it, but it literally

[00:37:47] costs you nothing.

[00:37:48] Um, except you, you might be inclined to buy some software, but you can literally do this

[00:37:53] for free.

[00:37:53] I guess, I mean, there, well, there's a minor investment in getting like a decent microphone

[00:37:59] and although, but honestly, I upgraded.

[00:38:05] Now I listened to like, we did the first five or six episodes of the final frontier with my

[00:38:11] older microphone, which was fine, but comparatively speaking, it's like night and day.

[00:38:17] I mean, we went, we went from Bluetooth headsets, like our first three or four episodes, we were

[00:38:23] both on Bluetooth headsets.

[00:38:25] And yeah, we went to, was the, our, our already award-winning episode, uh, Jordan's birthday

[00:38:32] special, I believe was the first episode we went to the Yeti mics and, uh, yeah, you can,

[00:38:37] you can, like I can, uh, Jordan makes fun of me cause he calls me a narcissist, but, um,

[00:38:42] I I've started listening to when I'm at work, we're just listening to our podcast and on the

[00:38:47] Yeti, we sound professional.

[00:38:49] Yeah.

[00:38:50] It's a, it's a totally different animal, but I'm glad you brought up already award-winning

[00:38:53] because that's another perk is if you have a podcast on the network, you become eligible for

[00:38:59] the Arties, including the coveted podcast of the year award, which you can't see because of my

[00:39:04] background, but you get a custom made belt when you win.

[00:39:07] We're coming for the belt.

[00:39:09] That belt, I keep saying that belt will look great on my wall.

[00:39:11] And you're also eligible for the average intelligence world championship, which is currently, um,

[00:39:19] would you say there is yet to be a champion crown, but it's going to happen soon.

[00:39:23] And then everybody in and, you know, like tertiary surrounding the network are eligible to compete

[00:39:29] for this.

[00:39:30] So, um, that's also cool.

[00:39:33] Originally we had the all events welcome championship, but it has been retired.

[00:39:36] But if you go to art media.org, you can see the entire history of that championship and

[00:39:41] the absurdity that it is.

[00:39:43] Um, it was once won the staring contest.

[00:39:46] So just to give you an idea, there's a bunch of perks, but back to this trial, because I

[00:39:51] want to make sure people understand what's going on here.

[00:39:53] Um, but you can check out.

[00:39:55] So it's going to be, it's going to be very funny.

[00:39:57] I intend to make this extremely comedic.

[00:39:59] Um, but at the same time, I'm coming for Hamilton and I I'm going to expose it for the

[00:40:03] mediocre show that it is.

[00:40:05] Is this a, is this the one that this is the one I get to judge, right?

[00:40:08] Yes.

[00:40:09] You will be the judge.

[00:40:10] I judge jury and I execute if I decided if I, if I, uh, yes.

[00:40:19] Do I, do I get, do I get to administer, uh, a punishment?

[00:40:22] You can administer punishment.

[00:40:24] Yes.

[00:40:24] So you get, you get to handle sentencing.

[00:40:26] All right.

[00:40:27] All right.

[00:40:28] I promise to be a fair and impartial judge.

[00:40:33] That's why I, that's why I asked you to be the judge.

[00:40:35] Cause you're literally somebody who was like, no, hate it, but I don't love it.

[00:40:39] It's just kind of there for me.

[00:40:41] It makes sense that a Canadian, it makes sense that a Canadian should judge Hamilton though.

[00:40:46] I will say that the thing, the reason why I feel I'm the most qualified person to, to,

[00:40:50] to, to be the judge is the only other one I would say would be equally qualified would

[00:40:54] be at my cohost Jordan.

[00:40:55] And that's simply because when you, when you pointed out the fact that they gave away the

[00:40:59] ending at the beginning, I immediately went, huh?

[00:41:02] I hadn't thought of that before.

[00:41:03] That's such a valid point.

[00:41:05] Dang it.

[00:41:07] The only thing I haven't worked out yet is dude.

[00:41:09] I mean, we can't, I don't know that we can really have witnesses per se, although I bet

[00:41:13] we could have Max in as a funny Lin-Manuel Miranda.

[00:41:16] We need to get some, we need to get someone who could do a decent Lin-Manuel Miranda impression.

[00:41:21] Oh, just somebody who can rap media with mediocre skill to the same beat and everything he does.

[00:41:26] Yeah.

[00:41:26] I'm sure we can find that.

[00:41:28] I mean, yeah, I would say that the thing I respect the most about our network is that

[00:41:37] we don't all exist on the same spectrum of, of like the world.

[00:41:43] And that we could all disagree civilly.

[00:41:45] We prove that the world can disagree civilly on things.

[00:41:49] And that we can put Hamilton on trial.

[00:41:53] And still be friends afterwards.

[00:41:55] Cause it's all in good fun.

[00:41:56] And still be friends afterwards.

[00:41:57] Um, I am, I'm actually, I'm actually very proud of that fact though.

[00:42:01] Cause that's one of the things I'm adamant about because I mean it when I say barring like

[00:42:06] a handful of just really extreme positions that I won't tolerate.

[00:42:10] Like everybody's got a voice here.

[00:42:12] Greetings boys and girls.

[00:42:13] My name is Isaiah Vargas.

[00:42:15] For over three decades, R.L. Stine's Goosebumps has reigned as one of the best selling book series

[00:42:19] in history.

[00:42:20] Spawning a monster franchise that's lasted since 1992.

[00:42:24] And spawning a massive fan base.

[00:42:26] Folks who love to talk about this influential series.

[00:42:29] And that's where we come in.

[00:42:31] Join the Goosebumps crew, Nick Shaw, Bjorn Panelig, and myself every week as we dive into the world

[00:42:36] of Goosebumps and talk about everything from the books, TV shows, movies, video games,

[00:42:42] merchandise, and so much more.

[00:42:44] Many like-minded Goosebumps fans and a growing list of special guests join us.

[00:42:48] So if you want Goosebumps, get with the program.

[00:42:51] Tune in to the Goosebumps crew every week on YouTube and audio platforms.

[00:42:56] Become a Goosebumps crew member today.

[00:42:58] Listen with the lights on.

[00:43:11] Haley, would you like to close out the segment being that it is your podcast and we have stolen it?

[00:43:17] You have.

[00:43:18] And I will find a formal punishment for that.

[00:43:25] Wait, is this-

[00:43:25] Sorry, is this getting smushed in the-

[00:43:27] Or is this getting put in the-

[00:43:28] Sounds dirty.

[00:43:29] Smushed.

[00:43:29] It's why I stopped saying it as soon as I said it.

[00:43:31] Not like that!

[00:43:32] Is this getting put in-

[00:43:34] Is this getting put in the Hocus Pocus episode?

[00:43:38] No, it's at the end of it.

[00:43:40] Remind us, what book author did you interview for this episode?

[00:43:45] Like, Editor Jake knows, but Present Jake forgot.

[00:43:49] Present Jake forgot.

[00:43:51] Mary Mancusi.

[00:43:53] Mary Mancusi.

[00:43:54] Oh, so you're-

[00:43:55] So we're on the end of an episode where you interviewed her about that book?

[00:44:00] Yep.

[00:44:01] Got it.

[00:44:01] Okay, cool.

[00:44:02] I just want to make sure I was promoting correctly.

[00:44:04] Sally's Lament.

[00:44:04] Sally's Lament.

[00:44:05] No, I answered my own question because I was like, is that Nightmare Before Christmas, Sally?

[00:44:09] But then I see the Spiral Mountain down there at the bottom.

[00:44:11] Oh, absolutely.

[00:44:12] So is it one of those, like, Jordan talks about them all the time.

[00:44:18] Like, what if Disney but different kind of style books?

[00:44:23] It's like the what if books.

[00:44:26] So, for example, it's what if Sally discovered Christmastown?

[00:44:35] Oh, interesting.

[00:44:37] So instead of Jack.

[00:44:39] So.

[00:44:40] Oh, cool.

[00:44:42] Jordan just told me about one where it was instead of, like, instead of Merida getting,

[00:44:48] or the Merida's mom getting turned into a bear in Brave, she gets sent back in time,

[00:44:53] and she, like, meets the mom as a kid, and, like, they team up or whatever.

[00:44:58] Yeah, he constantly tells me about this.

[00:45:00] So that sounds really cool.

[00:45:01] Yeah.

[00:45:02] I love these books because I also have one by a different author.

[00:45:07] I can't remember that off his name, but it's like what if Jafar had found the lamp and not Aladdin?

[00:45:14] If you think you can do this, we can help you make a podcast.

[00:45:19] It's true.

[00:45:19] Hey, we managed to steer back on topic and talk about the book of the author that Haley is interviewing

[00:45:26] on this very episode of your watching of the Part of Your Broadway Podcast World.

[00:45:31] Nailed it.

[00:45:32] It's almost like we know what we're doing.

[00:45:35] So, again, I hope you guys enjoyed this episode, and if you did, please, please, please, if you're

[00:45:44] considering it, please buy the book because it is very good.

[00:45:49] If you go to Barton Nobles, they have a Barton Nobles edition that has, like, the little gold

[00:45:59] Barton Nobles emblem sticker.

[00:46:02] So, yeah.

[00:46:05] So, yeah.

[00:46:06] That's all.

[00:46:07] Thank you guys again for watching, and I will see you guys next time.

[00:46:18] That's all, folks.

[00:46:19] We did it.

[00:46:20] We nailed it.

[00:46:22] Nailed it.

[00:46:22] Nailed it.