Head On Fire

2025 has been the most decade-iest of years. The highs, the lows, the tech innovations, the stories that both captured our hearts and the stories that made us step outside and seek grass expeditiously. It's a lot for one person to remember. Thankfully, I don't have to do it alone!

V Spehar of Under the Desk News stopped by to remember 2025...just in time to toss it in the bin.

Buy Where Did Everybody Go? here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire here: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Social media links, contact form, & more here: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

Abby Cox joins me as my conversation partner for the digital launch party celebrating the release of my new audiobook Where Did Everybody Go? Why we're lonely, but not alone. We dive into the subjects of loneliness, underwater basket weaving, and my favorite abandoned malls.

Get more of Abby Cox here.

Buy Where Did Everybody Go? here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire here: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Social media links, contact form, & more here: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

Carolyn, the creator behind Epicurious Expeditions, makes cooking accessible to everyone. Motivated by her own recovery from an injury, she develops inclusive, disability-friendly recipes that minimize standing and chopping, often using simple appliances like air fryers and crockpots. Join us as she shares her inspiring journey to make the kitchen a safe and welcoming space for people of all abilities!

You can follow Carolyn on TikTok, Instagram, and other platforms as @epicuriousexpeditions.

Buy Where Did Everybody Go? here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire here: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Social media links, contact form, & more here: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

Nadira Goffe is a very serious journalist. She's a staff culture writer at Slate who does Real Journalism™️ about Serious Subjects™️. But every now and then she does very silly stuff like talk to me about witches and Appalachia and witches in Appalachia. Nadira turned the tables on me in an interview all about the making of my bestselling debut novel, the importance of young adult literature, and the future of Foxfire.

Pre-Order Where Did Everybody Go? here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire here: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Social media links, contact form, & more here: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

USA TODAY bestselling author Lucinda Berry is a former psychologist and leading researcher in childhood trauma. Her years of experience have helped inform over a dozen thrillers inspired by real casework. Pre-order her latest audiobook here.

Pre-Order Where Did Everybody Go? here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire here: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Social media links, contact form, & more here: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

In my continuing quest to highlight professions that are overlooked or misunderstood, I'd like to introduce you to Shari Phippen. She has decades of experience as a city planner, which is one of the most important roles in determining where we live, how we live, and what we can do while we live there...but nobody seems to know what they do or how they do it.

This also serves as the first teaser for my upcoming audiobook, Where Did Everybody Go?, coming out from Simon & Schuster Audio this November.

Pre-Order Where Did Everybody Go? here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire here: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Social media links, contact form, & more here: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

Jennifer Hale stopped back by the podcast to discuss the nearly yearlong Voice Actors’ strike, forging your own  creative career, and becoming Verity Vox.

Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is available now from your library or  favorite bookseller. https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

Pre-order Where Did Everybody Go? Here: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Find Jennifer here: https://www.jenniferhale.com

Social links: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod
Buy me a Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/headonfirepod

Subscribe to the Head On Fire podcast
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/head-on-fire/id337689333
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4qTYYhCLMdFc4PhQmSL1Yh?si=5387b774ed6e4524

Superheroes dominate cinema and pop culture, and they have for a while now. Sure, there's been a shift in movie theater attendance post-COVID pandemic, but people still show up for superheroes. I wondered why, so I asked an expert on the subject why he thinks caped crusaders and teams of mutant misfits capture our imagination.

Find  @BlerdWithoutFear over on his YT channel!

Social links: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media
Buy Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1
Buy Where Did Everybody Go?: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Support my work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/headonfirepod

Subscribe to the Head On Fire podcast
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/head-on-fire/id337689333
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4qTYYhCLMdFc4PhQmSL1Yh?si=5387b774ed6e4524

The internet has become a place where we all perform for one another, where authenticity is both something to aspire to and something to be wary of. I sat down with Franchesca "Chescaleigh" Ramsey to discuss the role of the content creator, how it differs from an influencer, and what it means to exist on social media these days.

Find Franchesca on her website at: https://www.franchesca.net/

Pre-order Where Did Everybody Go?: https://bydonmartin.com/where-did-everybody-go%3F

Pre-order Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire: https://bydonmartin.com/verity-vox-1

For everything else: https://bydonmartin.com/social-media

If you are someone who has complained that every new piece of media is a sequel, prequel, remake, reboot, or a studio banking on pre-existing IP (intellectual property) to bring in audiences, this is the episode for you. We are kicking off 2025 with Nadira Goffe, a staff writer at Slate, who helps us contextualize this moment in pop culture as well as looking back at a time when media felt like "hope-ium".

Links, books, and more at https://bydonmartin.com/