Hi Dee, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I fell in love with comic books in elementary school. As a young black man on the Westside of Atlanta, it was hard to find people to connect with who loved the characters, multiverses and story arcs as much as I did. As comic books were made into Blockbuster movies and Marvel and DC made their way into mainstream culture, I was eager to talk about the subtleties that did not make it into the movies and conversations so I started a YouTube channel that highlighted new comic books, new artists and TV/Movie news that mostly flew under the radar.
After 2016, I started a Facebook Page and group that served to highlight comic book creators, cosplayers, and projects that were being put into the nerd world from BIPOC and the LGBTQ+ Community. I was desperate to create a virtual space where people would be safe not only to come as they are but safe from attacks by straight, white cis-men who felt entitled to the Nerd World. Today I run an FTO: Nerd Talk LLC across all social media platforms as well as host a weekly podcast that highlights and promotes the work of Black creatives. I also assist them in running successful Kickstarters and curating an online presence of their own.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Creating and running FTO has not been a smooth road, it has had a lot of stops and starts. One struggle of mine has been creating a work-life balance. Most people who follow me and collaborate with me don’t know this, but I do all of the work from my house, where I have three children running around almost constantly. Another struggle has been finding people who I vibe with and take the tone of FTO seriously. I have worked with people who see the number of followers I have and want to work with me, but I am burned by them as they do not take our unapologetically pro-black, pro-LGBTQ+, pro-woman, etc. tone seriously. I have a zero-tolerance rule when it comes to bigotry and many people are just not ready to do the hard introspective work to unlearn some of their biases and we have a falling out but I believe my zero-tolerance rule is what keeps my followers interacting and consuming the content I create.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Utilizing social media, I created a page and a platform for nerds to unite with one another and discuss nerd news. I also promote and highlight the work of cosplayers, authors, comic book creators and creatives. I specialize in propping up the work of lesser-known artists and giving them a platform to talk about their craft and share their work. It is hard to say what I am most known for, but amongst nerds, people recognize FTO as a place that has zero tolerance for bigotry. I also am known for creating content (i.e. fan castings or questions about the media we consume) that gets the people going. What I am most proud of and what sets me apart from others is that I have a zero-tolerance policy for bigotry and use my platform to highlight the works of marginalized voices like myself. While *blerd* pages are on the rise in 2020, I am hyper-vigilant about creating and maintaining a space where hate is not welcome.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
I have been commanding an online presence for ten years now, discussing nerd news and highlighting the work of artists, I am constantly changing things up and seeing what sticks. I want to keep making a safe place for nerds like myself and for future generations.
Contact Info:
- Email: flippingtablesover@gmail.com
- Website: ftonerdtalk.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/ftonerdtalks
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ftonerdtalk/
- Twitter: twitter.com/flippingtable
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ftonerdtalk
- Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fto-nerd-talk/id1468351335
Image Credits
DC Comics
