What if the story running your life isn't yours at all?

Author and publisher Nate Ragolia (Brink Literacy Project) joins us to talk about how the stories we inherit—about who we are, what we deserve, and what we're capable of—shape everything. From teaching creative writing in prisons to publishing comics by people society wrote off, Nate's work shows what happens when people stop living inside someone else's narrative and start writing their own.

Why the stories we believe decide what we see—and who we become

How Brink uses story to rebuild identity and hope

Why "you are not a static thing" might be the most freeing idea ever

The problem with protagonist syndrome (and why it's not all about you, actually)

How empathy starts when we drop the hero/villain binary

What media literacy really means—beyond yelling at the algorithm

Reclaiming authorship: changing your internal story before someone else does

The American story: can we still write one we believe in?

Brink Literacy Project — brinklit.org

Friction Literary Journal — frictionlit.org

The Brink Store — brinkstore.org

Instagram: @brinkorg, @frictionseries

Nate's Podcast: Debut Buddies — wherever you listen

Books by Nate Ragolia: There, You Feel Free | The Retro Activist | One Person Can't Make a Difference

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Email madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com

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MAD Warfare™️ is hosted by narrative strategist Jocelyn Brady and cognitive neuroscientist Sean Anthony Guillory.

Edited and produced by Amine el Filali.

Visit madwarfare.com for more absurdity and insight.

Got wishes, dream guests, or brilliant sponsorship ideas? Email madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com.

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FAIR USE: We include short clips and cultural references for context, education, and joy under Fair Use. If we've missed attribution or you'd like to collaborate, reach out—we're all ears.