Excelsior Journeys: The Road to Creativity

On this week's episode of Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois celebrates 300 episodes of this podcast by presenting the complete 2-hour production of "Excelsior: The Audio Journey." Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to listen to at least one episode of this show over the previous six years. For those who would like to get involved with the Once Upon a Podcast Network,...

On this week's episode of Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with author & editor Lindsay Flanagan. The two discuss Lindsay's history in writing, leading to her not only releasing her latest novel Little Red Wraith, but also joining the staff of Roan & Weatherford Publishing Associates, just as George did earlier this year. For more about Lindsay and her works,...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with actor & voice artist Chris Dattoli. Experienced in commercials, elearning videos, video games, radio spots, and more, Chris has built an incredibly impressive portfolio over the years and an even more impressive list of happy clients, including Microsoft, Lowe's, Samsung, Red Robin, and the NFL. Here, Chris share...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with acclaimed book coach and novelist Josee Smith. For years, Josee had been considering the possibilities of what could happen if she decided to pursue her passion of writing and creating characters that represented her and her loved ones. And then, in 2021, she started her journey as an author, and has introduced herse...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with physician & researcher Dr. Laura Gabayan. While breaking down the elements that make up Common Wisdom, as described in Dr. Gabayan's book, the two have a fascinating discussion about how this project came to be, the different people who were tracked down to participate in the research and interviews, the various...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois leaves the confines of the home recording studio and meets with children's book author & poet TM Pedroley. Inspired by a particular student in TM's classroom during her teacher days, she has literally jumped into the world of children's books with her book "Jack Jumps to the Zoo." Since its release, she has gone on to write thr...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with a woman of many talents: entrepreneur, actress, musician, television show host Keldamuzik. For several years now, Kelda has been working hard not only getting her persona out there - especially on the west coast - but also putting the spotlight on up-and-coming artists. All the work she has put in is paying off, with...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with author & publicist Laura Stegman. As the mind behind the acclaimed "Summer of L.U.C.K." trilogy for young readers, Laura has dedicated years of her life to get these books out into the world, and has also provided tools and knowledge for other up-and-coming authors with her PR Tips for Authors workshop, a step-by...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with writer Michael Charles Hill, and the two of them look back at his time as a writer/producer with Sunbow Productions. While there, Michael was responsible for some of the most memorable episodes of 1980s animation. Michael gave us the unforgettable riff of "Cold Slither" on G.I.Joe, the origin story of the Combaticons...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with Jamey Stegmaier, co-founder of the St. Louis-based tabletop game publisher Stonemaier Games. For over a decade, Jamey and his team have released games such as Expeditions, Scythe, Rolling Realms, and more, while pushing the possibilities of design & execution beyond the typical roll-and-play dynamics we have know...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with award-winning author & instructor Nina Schuyler. After presenting various books that focus on many different genres, Nina decided to take a collection of her own short stories and combine them into one large anthology, "In This Ravishing World," which has been released through Regal House Publishing. Nina not onl...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with Pooneh Sadeghi, author of the recently released global thriller Rumi and the Retribution. The two discuss the age-old phrase "write what you know" and how Pooneh wove years of research and knowledge of Persian culture into a story rather than just write a non-fiction book. She dedicated years of writing and rewriting...

THIS EPISODE OF EXCELSIOR JOURNEYS FEATURES LANGUAGE OF A MORE FRANK & EXPLICIT NATURE. LISTENER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with Kerrie Legend, an author, a designer, an expert at navigating various social media platforms to an author's benefit. She has a lot to share when it comes to helping authors with developing and h...

Nearly 40 years ago, host & producer George Sirois was introduced to this week's guest when he stumbled upon a movie on HBO called "Summer Camp Nightmare." It featured a brief appearance by actor & author David Hern, and this was not only the starting point to this week's conversation, but it was also the start of David's time in Hollywood. Since then, he appeared in various roles on films...

For more than forty years, composer Misha Segal has been consistently working on all kinds of films and television projects, from Ninja III: The Domination to The Facts of Life Goes to Paris to Berry Gordy's The Last Dragon to 1989's Phantom of the Opera with Robert Englund. To this day, Misha not only continues to inspire as he had throughout the 1980s, but he also makes a point to check out othe...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with accomplished jazz musician, instructor, and podcaster Miguel Landestoy. For nearly twenty years, Miguel has taken his love of music and turned it into a livelihood, and also turned his love of pop culture into the PlayBlack Podcast. Learn more about Miguel by clicking HERE and subscribe to his podcast HERE . For thos...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with author, college professor, and LGBTQ advocate Joe Chianakas. After reaching bestselling status with the Rabbit in Red trilogy, Joe would go on to create a new LGBTQ-focused YA series starting with Singlets & Secrets, inspired by The Karate Kid and its sequel series Cobra Kai. Learn more about Joe Chianakas by cli...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with author / publisher Jendia Gammon. A Nebula Award finalist, Jendia has had a love and passion for writing since childhood, and that has led to various published works released through different presses around the country. And now, with the development of an anthology filled with works by celebrated authors around the...

It's the Season 9 Premiere of the Excelsior Journeys podcast, and host/producer George Sirois is starting this season with multi-game designer Lucas Zellers. In addition to sharing his journey into the world of games, Lucas goes into great detail about the development of his enormously successful crowdfunding campaign for his game "Book of Extinction," and so much more! For those who would like to...

We've reached the end of Season 8 of Excelsior Journeys, and so this conversation with digital strategist Ann Koppuzha is picking up where last week left off. Last week, we learned about how Ann has been working for years with podcasters, authors, and other content creators developing strategies for them to get their work in front of as many eyes as possible. For this episode, Ann & I go into...

We're reaching the end of Season 8 of Excelsior Journeys, and so this conversation with digital strategist Ann Koppuzha will be a two-parter. Ann has been working for years with podcasters, authors, and other content creators developing strategies for them to get their work in front of as many eyes as possible. For this episode, Ann & I go into her history of how she got into being a strategis...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with FMO Media's VP of Operations, Rebecca Vickers. As a marketer, a performer, and now as the head of her own publishing company, Rebecca's primary thrust that she brings to all of her ventures is storytelling. And the lesson she learned during her journey is that fellow creatives don't have to be afraid of marketing, th...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with author Mic Lowther, who harnessed his decades-long dream of writing into seeking out experiences that can become the basis for later stories. The first major experience came in 1973 when he, his wife, and their 10-year-old child walked the Appalachian Trail, a 200+ day-long adventure that was documented in his book "...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with multimedia artist & author Michaell Magrutsche. This became a truly fascinating conversation that focused on the one thing that all creatives take for granted: finding out where the ideas came from that sparked the artistic journey we're all on. Learn more about Michaell by following the different links on his we...

This week on Excelsior Journeys, host & producer George Sirois sits down with ceramic artist & author Morgan McCarver. From overcoming scoliosis spinal fusion surgery to working with all kinds of clay to start up her business that now resides in Asheville, NC, Morgan never lost sight of her faith, which guides her to the next milestones in her life, which includes when she became an author...