The Don't Fret Podcast

This week I dive into some booktok drama that happened last week and share my thoughts on some people feeling entitled to their dreams.

Back again! I (D) give a little update on changes to the podcast. Then I talk a little bit about how I deal with things when they don't go according to my plan(s). I'm trying to keep things short but sweet so I hope you enjoy this episode.

This week D talks to friend of the podcast (friend in general) Rachel aka amodelwhosread. Rachel and D talk about navigating social media, liking books that some call problematic, representation in literature and more. It's a really chill episode, we hope you enjoy it.

This week D talks with fellow author Alexis C. Maness. They talk about Alexis' growing up in southern California, her love of reading/writing and body representation in literature. It's a fun conversation and we hope you enjoy it!

D jumps on the mic solo again and talks about feeling like you're stuck in life and reflects on how he's been dealing with it.

D jumps on the mic and rants for a little bit. Then he talks about 4 strategies he's using to combat his imposter syndrome.

This week D talks with rising booktok star Deanna J Duxbury! They talk, writing, social media, self care...y'know all the stuff we love at Don't Fret. 

This week D talks with indie author Natalie Hernandez about her debut novel The Name-Bearer, her writing journey, growing up as a third culture kid and much much more. 

Content Warning: This weeks episode contains discussions of the topic suicide. If this is a sensitive topic for you please take care of your self and if that means not listening to this episode we wholeheartedly support that decision. If you would like to simply skip the part where D's talking about that, you can fast forward from the 29 minute mark to the 30 minute mark. 

This week on the podcast D talks to psychologist and co-founder of the Being Human Club, Ashley Wanamaker. And they basically become best friends!! Not really but it is a good conversation about mental health, healing, the wellness industry, anti-racism, anti-misogyny, and they gush over Taylor McNallie. 

this week D chats with twitch streamer, tiktoker, patreon creator HalfCourt. They get into some nerdy shit, creativity, and of course mental health. HalfCourt teaches D a new term and recommends the book How To Be Everything by Emilie Wapnick. 

This one was wild. R.S. Twells returns to the pod to talk about her second book The First Traitor. Piya returns as a guest host. And D's wife Alanna joins the party cause, why not?

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This title is misleading...This week D talks to public speaker, advocate, and shit disturber Taylor McNallie. Taylor discusses her community work with Walls Down Collective, what defunding the police and abolition really mean, her media company, growing up Black in Canada and so much more. We hope you can overlook D's apparent nervousness and enjoy what Taylor has to say in this banger of an episode. 

This week D catches up with old friend isobel! They get into isobel's artistic origins, her faith, mental health, songwriting, production and everything in between. Isobel and D go really deep (as they are known to do) it's a really good epsiode and we hope you enjoy it. 

This week, D talks with his band BigHollywoodMeetings. It's a lot of joking around and being stupid. But they get into music, mental health, and all the usual Don't Fret stuff. This was so much fun this may be the unofficial backdoor pilot episode of a new podcast...maybe...we'll see. 

Really diving into the mental health and healing themes this week. D talks with Erin Egan (MAMFT, RCC) a counsellor currently based in Abbotsford BC. D and Erin reminisce on how they first met and get right into Erin's journey to becoming a counsellor. There's a lot of philosophizing along the way. This is a really soothing conversation we hope you enjoy. 

This week D catches up with Vixen Valiant aka ValiantF0x. They talk about Vix's creative process, cosplaying, being shadowbanned, tiktok and all that. 

This week friend of the podcast Piya Sandhu returns to the podcast to guest host and interview D Fretter about his upcoming spoken word special, Joy+Misery: LIVE! Piya and D talk about why he's embarking on this project, who inspires him, his writing process and much much more. It's a great conversation and hopefully we'll see more of Piya on the mic 

So a while ago D posted on his story asking people to ask him questions for a Q&A epsiode and he got two!! So in this solo episode D answers these questions and goes into how you can support him as an artist. 

This week D talks to friend, fellow poet, and collaborator Fanny Kearse. 

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D talks to singer-songwriter, tiktoker, and Twitch streamer Ariel Petrie about her music, streaming, and navigating online spaces

This week on the podcast D talks with indie romance author A.E. Valdez. They talk about how romance is a niche genre in literature, A.E.'s writing origins, and the unique lived experience of being a Black adoptee. 

This week D sits down and talks all things nerdy with Arnaldo and Berto from the podcast Films from the Phantom Zone!! They get into all kinds of comic book movies, television shows, Avatar, Star Wars. They get into faith and race and all kinds of fun stuff. We hope you enjoy this whopper of an episode. 

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It's been a minute since we've posted an episode of the podcast. So welcome back! This week, D talks with Viktoria Bradley of the Lit with Vik Podcast. They get into literature in all of its forms. Viktoria tells us about her studies as a History and English double major. It's basically an hour and a half of geeking out! We hope you enjoy and thank you for listening!

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Carlie Blume jumps on the pod to talk about her new book Gigglepuss. We get into her origins as a writer, some of her past traumas, and how writing helped make sense of it. Carlie was kind enough to read TWO poems from the book for this episode. I hope you enjoy it!

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We finally made it happen! NeeNeeBell comes onto the podcast!! We get into the different platforms we do things on, mental health, connecting with our respective cultural heritage. 

This week I sit down with independent pop artist Sof. She shares her musical origins, struggles with confidence, and staying true to her artistry. THEN she kind of flips the podcast on me and interviews me about my new book. It's a really fun conversation and I hope you enjoy it. 

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I jumped onto zoom with Untestimony to talk about her journey away from christianity to atheism. We get into dealing with negative stereotypes of athiests and navigating the loss of faith journey. It gets pretty deep but it's fun. I hope you enjoy

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This week I talk to my tiktok friend Red about all things nerd culture, we touch on race, only fans, and mental health. Also I whine about not tiktok cause thats what I do here (I'm so sorry). Anyways I hope you enjoy this episode cause I had a LOT of fun recording it. 

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Okay first off...Logan dared me to name the episode. Second: it was a really dope conversation with comedian & podcaster Logan Nielsen. Cohost of the Josh Johnson Show. We get into Logan's comedic origins, his process, and mental health. I hope you enjoy!

This week I talk nerdy with Prof. Neil Shyminsky!! Neil is an incredibly thoughtful, intelligent guy and it was really cool to dive deep into comics and movies and all that shit. 

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This week I talk with my tiktok friend Camille about deconstructing faith, spirituality, feminism, and internet creeps. And I don't mention the ninja turtles or V.E. Schwab once...wait...fuck. 

This week on the pod I talk to one of my very first tiktok friends Cinzia. Cinzia is a Montreal based musician who's known for here serene melodies and relatable lyrics. Not to mention one of the loveliest singing voices. We get into Cinzia's musical journey, navigating social media as artists, and body positivity. 

This week's episode is my first official episode recorded in person with my friend, Lajla Jean! Lajla (sounds like Ly-la) is a singer/songwriter from the Vancouver music scene and one of the sweetest, funniest human beings I know. In the podcast we go deep talking about mental health, and our experiences with racism growing up in Canada. It get's heavy in spots but this is maybe my favourite episode so far. 

This week was a delightfully bookish and chaotic chat with my new friend Stephanie Koetsier! We talk dragons, mental health, and working on our respective novels. 

This week I talk to my friend Emma Alves! Emma is a singer/songwriter, producer, and all round amazing human. We talk about her music, mental health, anime, and a bunch of other cool sh*t!!

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This week I talk with friend and fellow poet Sabrina Benaim to discuss her upcoming book I Love You, Call Me Back! We get into Sabrina's creative origins and process a little bit. I embarrass myself, AND we get a special segment with questions from mutual friend Rebecca Baird! 

This week I talk to TikTok creator Morgan Walker. We get into content creation, how we deal with creeps and haters, and social media in general it's a good time and I hope you enjoy it!

This week I chop it up with my cousin (technically first cousin once removed) Jonzi. We get into twitch, tiktok, God, and all kinds of other shit. It's a good time and I hope you enjoy it. 

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This week I talk to Emily Fletcher of the podcast, Infatuated. We get into content creation, her writing journey, and of course...books! 

This week's episode I gave my friend Piya Sandhu a call. We talk about her shop The Handpicked Home located in White Rock, BC, Canada. Piya is a delightful energetic guest and a dear friend I think you're going to like this episode a lot!