The Storytellers Network

They've been in radio for years... sometimes on the same show in some form or fashion. Now, they produce a podcast that covers local happenings, cool stories and lots of laughter. It's kind of like a morning radio show without the corporate to-do list. For the season finale of Season 2: Podcasts, Steph, Scotty Bud and Diane welcomed me back to their show, Southwest Michigan’s Fake Radio Show for a fun experiment. This is like a DC-Marvel crossover… I got to take over their show to ask them my questions about storytelling. We dive into podcasting as their chosen medium, how it compares to radio, how technology shapes storytelling and even some personal stories. If you want personality, Michigan-focused stories and an hour-long escape, check out the show. 

Wally Carmichael is a husband, father, retired Army Medic, Department of the Army Operations Specialist and Podcast Host of the Men of Abundance Podcast. He was born and raised in Phoenix Arizona and joined the Army to travel the World and to escape what was clearly a destructive lifestyle. Wally is grateful to have traveled to 23 countries on five continents. He and his family have lived in Panama, Germany, Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, and currently lives in Hawaii.

Next to family, his greatest passion is hosting his Men of Abundance Podcast - The Pay it Forward Community, where he has conversations with other Abundant leaders as well as up and coming entrepreneurs, authors, and thought leaders doing amazing things in their community. He's been a professional connection who has developed into a friend, and is a master storyteller.

Kim Moffat is a podcast co-host, a podcast producer, a filmmaker, a television industry worker, a songwriter, a published author, a talker and an all-around storyteller. Her podcasts For Love of Show and Kim Knows Nothing explore different sides to her life. She works on Fuller House. She's worked on Hart of Dixie and Southland, among other projects. Her novella December is a beautifully tragic tale. Kim took time to share her storytelling life with Dan Moyle - who happens to be family as well as a fan. In short, Kim tells stories and loves the craft.

You want to be really protective of your story... to say, this story is really personal to me, so what I want to do is I'm going to hold your hand as a reader... But I think that the biggest challenge is saying ... Once that book is done, it's not for you now. So you, I don't want to hold your hand too much because you're not going to be able to connect with it in that way. - Kim Moffat on the challenge of storytelling

Without Jaime Jay (and Sara Parrish), The Storytellers Network would not exist. From Jaime and Sara's Podcast Pilot and Castrly, to Jaime's guidance and encouragement, to his show Stop Riding the Pine, this little show would still be just a dream. Jaime Jay is an amateur hockey player and a "starter geek" who founded Slapshot Studio back in 2013, combining the business of building websites with his love of hockey. Jaime also runs Bottleneck Virtual Assistants, helping businesses find virtual VAs to help their business. And if that wasn't enough, Jaime is a generous soul who loves to help those around him, making the world a better place. As an entrepreneur and podcast host, Jaime says storytelling is huge in his world. Rising above the noise? He has a tip...

I think personalization is everything. That's how you rise above the noise. If you're trying to do everything for everybody, and you're just saying, 'It's for everybody. Everybody can use it,' well, I think you're missing the boat there. The more specific you get, the better off it is, the easier you'll find it is to convey your story to others - Jaime Jay

He's the host of The Marketing Book podcast. He's interviewed hundreds of thought leaders in the sales and marketing space. He's a voracious reader. Douglas Burdett brings knowledge, expertise and an inspiring level of humility to the podcasting world. Douglas also owns the marketing agency Artillery Marketing, runs a HubSpot User Group (HUG) and speaks around the country. This sharer of stories. To him, stories are a powerful communication tool.

I was in Chicago giving a talk to a lot of manufacturers. Instead of standing up there and giving the standard PowerPoint presentation, I started with a story... Their guard comes down when you're telling a story and it activates much more of the audience's brain. - Douglas Burdett on the power of story

He's a podcasting expert even though he doesn't currently have his own show; it's because of how many shows where he's actually been the guest! Tom Schwab, author of Podcast Guest Profits and founder of podcast interview marketing pioneer Interview Valet, says he'd rather be the guest than put in all the work it takes to produce a podcast. In fact, Tom estimates his podcast interview count at well over 1200. Hear why he says podcast interviews are the next gold rush in marketing, and how to truly get value from being a guest on podcasts.

Gamertag Radio founder and co-host Danny Peña joins host Dan Moyle for this episode of The Storytellers Network. This guy is a legend in the podcast world, at the forefront of the video games community, starting an Internet radio show back before podcasts or even really a thing. In fact, Danny is such a legend, he was inducted into the podcast hall of fame in the inaugural class. He's also been a keynote speaker at Podfest Multimedia Expo. He's toured the world. This guy just is an evangelist for the gaming community. To date, Danny and his team have recorded more than 750 numbered episodes of Gamertag Radio, plus bonus episodes that they just put out there not numbered. Needless to say, Danny is big in the world of podcasts.

Former-teacher-turned-marketer... and teacher of podcasting Jeff Large hosts his own show and helps others launch podcasts through his podcast production agency Come Alive Creative. Also a dad, he wears a lot of hats. One of those hats that he proudly wears is storyteller.

"I usually tell stories to my kids every night as part of our bedtime routine. We have like kind of ongoing Tolkien or C.S. Lewis type woodland characters ... They've been ongoing for years now and it's crazy how much it's progressed." - Jeff Large on his storytelling passion

Jeff also says he loves the power of story, board games, and creating awesome things with other people.

Established in 2005 if you want to learn about podcasting, Dave Jackson brings knowledge and expertise of a podcasting hall of fame legend to his show School of Podcasting. He works tirelessly for the world of podcasting - including as a customer support specialist for Libsyn - helping to develop a culture of giving. Dave has been helping people understand technology and has been called "The Analogy King." 

David Hooker is Head of Evangelism for a company that helps us tell stories more effectively with a powerful visual software, Prezi. He's also the co-host of Prezi's The Narrative podcast with Nadjya Ghausi, a Tedx speaker and storyteller in general. David shares his storytelling craft, his successes and stumbles, his favorite story.