{"podcast":{"title":"Ink Speak with Maverick Malone","slug":"ink-speak-with-maverick-malone-6406875","podcast_index_feed_id":6406875,"rss_url":"https://media.rss.com/inkspeak/feed.xml","website_url":"https://www.maverickmalone.com","image_url":"https://media.rss.com/inkspeak/20230530_020552_2169af1e3d44b299054f3cd6624746b0.jpg","author":"Maverick L. Malone","episode_count":62,"summary":"Ink Speak : A Podcast for Storytellers, Dreamers & Seekers Have you ever felt like there’s more to life than what you’re living? I did too, until I set fire to the life I thought I was supposed to have and chose myself instead. Once choice led to another and I crash landed here, to tell the story of the magic that happened along the way. I’m Maverick Malone ( @mavmalone )—author, poet, and spoken word artist—and this podcast is a space for everyone. Most podcasts teach, interview, or perform, but this one just lives. It's a podcast you step into. Ink Speak is where personal storytelling meets poetry, magic, and the raw human experience. Each episode feels like sitting down together in real time. Sometimes I’m in my backyard, sometimes I’m traveling, sometimes I’m in the middle of something I don’t fully understand yet. But wherever I am, you’re right there with me. Every episode begins with a poem or spoken word piece that sets the tone, then unfolds into raw, unfiltered storytelling—about love, loss, transformation, spirituality, and the in-between moments most people don’t share. This is a space for thinking differently, seeing your life from a new angle, and feeling a little le…","last_synced_at":"2026-09-06T12:19:02.371741+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ink-speak-with-maverick-malone-6406875"},"episode":{"title":"50. “Top Down, Bottoms Up” - The Universe Knows Best: Dropping out of Colossal’s national contest, America’s Favorite Couple","slug":"50-top-down-bottoms-up-the-universe-knows-best-dropping-out-of-colossal-s-national-contest-america-s-favorite-couple","published_at":"2025-08-19T11:00:36+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ink-speak-with-maverick-malone-6406875/50-top-down-bottoms-up-the-universe-knows-best-dropping-out-of-colossal-s-national-contest-america-s-favorite-couple","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ink-speak-with-maverick-malone-6406875","url":"https://rss.com/podcasts/inkspeak/2173454","audio_url":"https://content.rss.com/episodes/212166/2173454/inkspeak/2025_08_19_01_34_01_663072ab-06f7-4194-944b-32280ae27fb2.mp3","summary":"For this milestone 50th episode (!!), I’m sharing why Jake and I chose to step away from the America’s Favorite Couple contest, even after making it to the quarterfinals. What looked like a “loss” turned out to be a bigger win: a chance to honor my integrity, align with who I’m becoming, and trust that the universe always knows best. In this episode, I: 💫 Reflect on the lessons behind our decision and why not every opportunity is meant to be pursued. 💫 Reframe rejection as redirection (and share how you can too). 💫 Read my poem “Top Down, Bottom’s Up”—a reminder to stand firmly in your power. 💫 Launch a new segment reclaiming the acronym AFC, now standing for Amplifying Fierce Community—and highlight Amanda Dzimianski’s stunning new poetry collection Something Hungry Just Woke Up. This conversation is all about integrity, alignment, and celebrating the unexpected wins hidden inside every “no.” If you'd like to dive deeper and read the full Substack article on my experience with Colossal's America's Favorite Couple contest, you can read that here: ⁠America’s Favorite Couple Contest: People’s Choice or Privileged Choice? ⁠ To purchase ⁠Amanda Dzimianski's⁠ book Something Hungry Just Woke Up , you can choose from the below retailer (and we suggest using Bookshop.org to support local bookstores): ⁠ Bookshop.org ⁠ ⁠Barnes & Noble⁠ ⁠Amazon⁠ (womp womp.)","meta_description":"For this milestone 50th episode (!!), I’m sharing why Jake and I chose to step away from the America’s Favorite Couple contest, even after making it to th…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2633,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/ink-speak-with-maverick-malone-6406875/episodes/50-top-down-bottoms-up-the-universe-knows-best-dropping-out-of-colossal-s-national-contest-america-s-favorite-couple/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ink-speak-with-maverick-malone-6406875/50-top-down-bottoms-up-the-universe-knows-best-dropping-out-of-colossal-s-national-contest-america-s-favorite-couple.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}