Stoner Story Witch

Ep37: 🌕♋️ From the Archives: Eros & Amor Fati w/ Jeanna Kadlec & Carmen Spagnola

Today’s episode revisits two conversations “From the Archives,” in particular, the Full Moon in Aries in 2025 with Jeanna Kadlec and the New Moon in Sagittarius in 2024 with Carmen Spagnola.
Today’s episode is all about how romance, desire, and eros is at its core about helping us find and orient to our destiny, Amor Fati- the love of our fate.  At the end of this short and sweet episode, I share a rough draft of a song integrating this concept as a somatic practice to overcome perfectionism as I keep trudging along writing my book.
Follow the Stoner Story Witch podcast on Substack or Instagram!
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
Carmen Spagnola’s Numinous Network
Jeanna Kadlec’s substack astrology for writers
Audrey Lourde “Uses of the Erotic”
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

S5E4: 🌑♐️ Writer’s Group Ch 4: Characters Companioning us to Feel & Build Empathy w/ Matt

Note: This Writers Group episode is more of a diary entry documenting our creative process rather than a well-researched audio essay about a theme or an outlined interview. Transitions may feel jarring or confusing since the priority is consent and privacy over elements of our work.  If you have a pressing question, feel free to ask on substack!  (These conversations occurred in September 2025)
 
Today’s episode is about the responsibility of writers to leave their readers feeling empathy for others and empowerment to go against the grain of the tendencies Empire tries to condition us into.  
 
You can find Matt here and here
Follow the podcast on Substack or Instagram!
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
Jeanna Kadlec: “Embrace the Cringe” and “No new stories”
 
People’s Oracle, Dayna Lynn Nuckolls “Liberation is Collective Imagination” 
 
Trancework with Carmen Spagnola on The Numinous Network 
 
Thanks to Sophie Strand for “Compost Heap” and the substack I cannot find that implores Sci-Fi writers to not fuel the future billionaires of the world with their ideas of horrific technologies.
 
Resources in the “Compost Heap”: Stranger than Fiction (2006 movie)
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
As always:----------------------------------
 
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

Ep35: 🌕♊️ Repairing Relational Rupture w/ Kevin

Last year, Kristyn recorded a podcast  with her partner/co-parent Kevin titled “Discord Mode.” This conversation is effectively a part 2 of that conversation, and a public offering of repair after a public rupture event.
 
How can cis/het white women compassionately offer grace (the same grace Black women have given us) to our men in order to invite them into liberation while also not tolerating abusive fragility?  How can pivoting a relational framework from “husband” to “friend” create spaciousness for secure attachment to (finally) flourish?  Why does patriarchy have to be such a fucking sinister villain?
 
If you like Reality TV- especially fraught emotional predicaments based on historical abandonment wounds and attachment patterns, you may really enjoy this “Reality Podcast.”  
 
Please tend to your nervous system and listen with caution, while moving/tasking, and/or taking many breaks, or even consider skipping this episode altogether.  Be kind and compassionate to yourself.
 
#attachment #liberation #couplestherapy #realityTV 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration in today’s episode:
 
Carmen Spagnola's podcast marriage miniseries, courses on Secure attachment and Contact Nutrition on The Numinous Network 
 
Zawn Villines’ podcast with Desiree Stephens 
 
Desiree Stephens’ substack about extending grace
 
Desiree Stephens’ substack on interrupting fragility during repair
 
Hospicing Modernity (Book)
 
Ani Difranco: “If more people were screaming then I could relax”
 
Roadmap to Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
 
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music and sound editing)

S5E3: 🌑♏️Writer’s Group Ch 3: Plotting vs Pantsing & the Pains of Editing w/ Matt

Note: This Writers Group episode is more of a diary entry documenting our creative process rather than a well-researched audio essay about a theme or an outlined interview. Transitions may feel jarring or confusing since the priority is consent and privacy over elements of our work.  If you have a pressing question, feel free to ask on substack!  (These conversations occurred in September 2025)
 
Today’s episode is about the push and pull between Pantsing (ie: writing by the seat of your pants) vs Plotting (ie: outlining the story ahead of time. Kristyn shares a cute anecdote about how her opening was inspired by ideas shared on a fandom’s reddit page. Matt relieves some of Kristyn’s anguish by reminding her that “the bud is not the mistake before the flower” and the emotional intentions of editing.  (She still kinda hates it, though)
 
You can find Matt here and here
 
Follow the podcast on Substack or Instagram!
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
 
Jeanna Kadlec: “Embrace the Cringe” and “No new stories”
 
Sarah Faith Gottesdiener ‘s  Moon Studio & Moonbeaming Podcast
People’s Oracle, Dayna Lynn Nuckolls “Liberation is Collective Imagination” 
 
Thanks to Sophie Strand for “Compost Heap”
 
Resources in the “Compost Heap”: Zawn Villines’ Low Value Men
 
For more deconstructing fundamentalist Christianity, check out Tia Leving’s Instagram and Substack and Jeanna Kadlec’s “Heretic: A Queer Revolt Against Evangelicalism, Empire, and the Lies we are Sold”
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

Ep33:🌕♉️ V for Vendetta, Gentrification of the Pura Vida, and Solidarity w/ Adri of the iGuana Collective

Remember, Remember the 5th of November!  The movie V for Vendetta is now 20 years old, and it is clear from looking around that the dystopia has arrived!
 
Why is it important to listen to and follow native Voices in the reVolution? How can we all be a little more mischieVous in how we disrupt the status quo?  What is it that makes Costa Rica a Blue Zone anyway?  Just how many layers of symbolism are there to the Guy Fawkes mask in the 2005 movie {V for Vendetta} anyway?
 
Kristyn with a why chats with Adri Leiton about the importance of being in solidarity with indigenous people everywhere, the importance of community and mutual aid with the iGuana Collective, historical and cultural insights about Costa Rica (specifically the Guanacaste province), and grappling with power and privilege, all through the lens of the story {V for Vendetta}.
 
Follow La Colectiva de La iGuana on Instagram and Facebook
 
Follow the podcast on Substack and Instagram!
 
#vforvendetta  #rememberrememberthe5thofnovember #guyfawkes #PuraVida #costarica #colectivadelaiguana
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
 
Desiree Stephen’s Substack: No Kings, just Kinship: From March to Momentum
“Disruption leads to Risk”
 
For more on protecting yourself from the Empire's mass surveillance, YK Hong’s Liberation Toolbox is a must!
 
Timothy Snyder’s Book: On Tyranny
“Do not obey in advance”
 
The Flag that Adri mentions from the scene he watched on TikTok
 
Carmen Spagnola’s Numinous Network for practicing grappling with settler identities and land acknowledgments
 
Cosmic Anarchy is a great substack to follow, like this piece on revolution and mutual aid
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
 
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

S5E2: 🌑♎️ Writer’s Group Ch 2: Confronting the Creative Wound & Co-Creating Corrective Experiences w/ Matt

Note: This Writers Group episode is more of a diary entry documenting our creative process rather than a well-researched audio essay about a theme or an outlined interview. Transitions may feel jarring or confusing since the priority is consent and privacy over elements of our work.  If you have a pressing question, feel free to ask on substack!
 
Today’s episode is about Kristyn’s attachment issues that came up as she is diving into a journey alongside her friend Matt (to see the Wizard of Oz? Deliver the ring to Mordor? For Kristyn, it is finishing and publishing a fanfiction!) and what it looks like to create a corrective experience as we confront the wounds of being earnestly creative in a capitalistic system that would rather us be numbed out cogs.
 
You can find Matt here and here
 
Follow the podcast on Substack or Instagram!
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
 
Little Women: Scene where Jo shares her work with Friedrich
 
Jeanna Kadlec: “Embrace the Cringe” and “No new stories”
 
Sarah Faith Gottesdiener ‘s  Moon Studio & Moonbeaming Podcast
 
People’s Oracle, Dayna Lynn Nuckolls “Liberation is Collective Imagination” 
 
Thanks to Sophie Strand for “Compost Heap”
 
Books in the “Compost Heap”: Dracula and The Dispossessed 
 
For more deconstructing fundamentalist Christianity, check out Tia Leving’s Instagram and Substack and Jeanna Kadlec’s “Heretic: A Queer Revolt Against Evangelicalism, Empire, and the Lies we are Sold”
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

Ep32: 🌕♈️ Memoir as a Map: Finding, Redefining, and Resourcing Ourselves to Make our Way in the Revolution against Empire w/ Jeanna Kadlec

How can astrology help us give ourselves permission to do the things we deeply yearn to do and live the lives we would prefer?  What is the connection between a creative practice and a spiritual journey in helping us to process shame, and how can practices like playing Dungeons and Dragons with friends or baking sourdough for our community resource our somatic capacity in the revolution?  
 
Kristyn with a why chats with Jeanna Kadlec about her memoir- "Heretic: A Queer Revolt against Evangelicalism, Empire, and the Lies we are Sold;" astrology; the role of queerness, creativity, and community in the revolution; the importance of being cringe earnest; and why it is imperative to prioritize and keep personal our playful pleasure practices to stay grounded and resourced in capitalism.
 
Jeanna Kadlec’s Disney column at Longreads
You can follow Jeanna’s substack "Astrology for Writers."
 
Follow the podcast on Substack or Instagram!
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
Carmen Spagnola’s Numinous Network 
Listen to Jeanna and friends on their podcast Call your Coven- Coming out of the broom closet
Audrey Lourde “Uses of the Erotic”
Kristyn’s Intro to Astrology →Diana Rose Harper 's Podcast with JVN
 
Looking for a personalized astrology reading?  Check out:
Maeg Kaene*
Pallas K. Augustine
Mecca Woods
Sasha Ravitch
ET Shipley*
*Kristyn has had readings with Maeg and ET and highly recommend them both <3
Memoirs
Melissa Febos.
Lilly Dancyger
Mary Karr
Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Ashley Ford's “Somebody’s Daughter”
 
For more deconstructing fundamentalist Christianity, check out Tia Leving’s Instagram and Substack
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
 
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

S5E1: 🌑♍️Writer’s Group Ch 1: Introductions & Intentions- The Seeds & Sparks of Spirit Stuff w/ Matt

Can any good story that compels you towards a more liberated life be considered “Gospel?”  If the Bible doesn’t mention Hell, what else might fundamentalist Christianity be getting wrong?  Is this whole podcast made possible by Kristyn’s teenage years of evangelical somatics?  If inspiration is really a godsend, then isn’t our creative practice a worship of the divine?  
 
Kristyn with a Why chats with friend and fellow spiritual-creative Matt about story and gospel as they introduce themselves and set intentions for the stories they are working on in their weekly writer’s group.
 
You can find Matt here&here
Follow the podcast on Substack & Instagram!
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
 
Carmen Spagnola’s Numinous Network 
 
Sophie Strand’s novel: “The Madonna Secret”
 
Marcus Borg: “Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time”
 
For more deconstructing fundamentalist Christianity, check out Tia Leving’s Instagram and Substack and Jeanna Kadlec’s “Heretic”
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
 
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

Ep30: 🌕♒️Working on a Song: Unpacking the Liberation and {Hadestown} Vibes in the 🌿📖🧙‍♀️Theme

(This episode is inspired by and heavily discusses the 2019 Tony Award Winning Musical Hadestown.)
 
Why is Kristyn so obsessed with Hadestown, really? What becomes possible when we treat stories as animist beings?  What can be gleaned in reviewing the previous year of the podcast, and what are we inviting for the next year?  Can we grapple with the fact that TERFs can create meaningful art and can that practice help us navigate collapse?
 
Kristyn with a Why shares the story of creating the song for the podcast and in doing so essentially explains the entire musical of Hadestown, singing and referencing over 9 songs.
 
#hadestown songs and vibes:
-Wedding Song as Indigenous Wisdom, and the connection of creativity and spirituality.
-Wait for Me- Orpheus’ hymn cracking the wall
-Come home with me (reprise) The animism of stones who wept to Orpheus’ beautiful song
-Our Lady of the Underground The Stoner Story Witch theme, Psychopomp Persephone breaking the 4th wall
-Living it up on Top- May the World we dream about be the one we live in now
-Road To Hell- “It’s a sad song and we are gonna sing it again”
-We Raise our Cups: “To Orpheus and all of us”- Psychopomp Persephone breaking down the 4th wall again!
-Chant: How Capitalism conditions us to “keep our head low if you wanna keep your head”
-Doubt comes in: The Loneliness of the Creative/Liberatory Path
 
My early blog posts on Hadestown
 
Follow the podcast on Substack or Instagram!
 
Stoner Story Witch: The tattoo episode 
 
Stoner Story Witch: Secure Attachment and the Male Gaze
 
More about the sourdough practice on Asteria’s Convos Podcast
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
 
How Hadestown introduced Kristyn to the work of Carmen Spagnola?  (Carmen Spagnola’s Numinous Network and episode on Persephone.
 
Contrapoints’ Video on JK Rowling
 
 Sophie Strand’s “Flowering Wand” for more on Orpheus as a role/title
 
Bonus Content at the end from Kirsten- @tendingnettles
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
 
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)

Ep29: 🌑♌️Witnessing the Stories Empire Tries to Hide: {Say Nothing} Northern Ireland w/Jamie

(This episode is based off the FX show “Say Nothing” that came out in 2024, based on the non-fiction book of the same name.)
 
What is it that makes stories of revolution (Les Mis, Hadestown, etc) so irresistible? How is it possible that our suburban public school education in the 90s in the USA did not properly educate us on the realities of oppressed peoples overseas?  Who benefits when we believe the narratives that empire tries to convince us are “too complicated” to understand?  Who gets to define “terrorism?” How can we do better- individually and collectively?
 
Kristyn with a Why invites her friend Jamie onto the show to share a “Story History” lesson about the time of “The Troubles” in Northern Ireland and its echo in the revolution against colonist regimes in current day, specifically in Palestine, all through the 2024 FX show “Say Nothing.”
 
#Saynothing #northernireland #palestine #thetroubles 
 
Follow the podcast on Substack or Instagram!
 
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Grateful for all the learning and inspiration alluded to in today’s episode:
 
Toni Cade Bambara- “The role of the artist is to make the Revolution irresistible” 
 
A classic example of “Drunk History”
 
Podcast “Millenials are killing Capitalsim” about “The Dark- Selected writings of Brendan Hughes”
 
More History on the Colonization of Northern Ireland featured in “Millenials are Killing Capitalsim” Podcast
 
Chani App for Astrology
 
Audre Lorde- “The Master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house”
 
Timothy Snyder’s Book: On Tyranny
 
Book: “Let this Radicalize you” 
 
Carmen Spagnola’s Numinous Network for more on the Ace Studies & Secure attachment.
 
Liberation with Rev. angel Kyodo williams
 
As always:----------------------------------
Thankful for the musical inspiration for the theme song:
Hadestown by Anais Mitchell, specifically “Our Lady of the Underground” and Orpheus’ Song
“Hedwig’s Theme” by John Williams
 
Shout out for the artistic assistance of:
Matt Schubbe (Logo)
Kevin Carlow (Music)