Vibe Sesh #13: David Niall Wilson — Two-Time Bram Stoker Award Winner on Becoming "The First You"

Vibe Sesh #13: David Niall Wilson — Two-Time Bram Stoker Award Winner on Becoming "The First You"

This week on Vibe Sesh, we sit down with David Niall Wilson — USA Today bestselling author, two-time Bram Stoker Award winner (horror’s highest honor, named after the author of Dracula), former president of the Horror Writers Association, and founder of Crossroad Press. David’s written 40+ novels and 150+ short stories across horror, dark fantasy, and science fiction — starting with fiction typed at night on a Navy computer while serving aboard ship. Decades later, he’s still writing, still publishing, and still chasing the same question we built this whole episode around: what does it actually take to become the first version of yourself? We get into: - “Be the first you” — his own philosophy on style, influence, and never trying to be the next Stephen King - How his novel Jurassic Ark started as satire and turned into something far more human - The Zone — what happens when a story stops going where the writer planned - AI, authorship, and whether a tool can help you find your voice instead of erasing it - Vampires, the Holy Grail, and why Dracula still shapes how we tell monster stories - Crossroad Press and the mission of rescuing forgotten horror, sci-fi, and paranormal books from disappearing entirely — including the strange true story of how a Hans Holzer book falling off a shelf led to republishing his work - The Eternal Loop — David’s answer will stay with you Raw conversations. Real truths. No filter. Find David Niall Wilson: Website: https://davidniallwilson.com/ Substack: David Niall Wilson [https://substack.com/profile/305560800-david-niall-wilson] Instagram: @davidniallwilson Get full access to Vibe Samurai at vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe [https://vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Vibe Sesh 12 - I Talk to Dead People. But That's Not the Point.

Vibe Sesh 12 - I Talk to Dead People. But That's Not the Point. Why one of the internet's fastest-growing spirit mediums sounds just as much like a neuroscientist as a spiritual teacher. Kathleen Ives has built one of the fastest-growing communities on the internet by saying something most people would never dare say: “I talk to dead people.” But that’s only half the story. The other half is surprisingly grounded. She talks about nervous system regulation, mindfulness, self-trust, intuition, authenticity, emotional healing, and the neuroscience of transformation. About halfway through our conversation, I joked that she’s 50% neuroscience and 50% spirit medium. The more we talked, the more that description actually fit. Together, we explored what intuition really is, whether synchronicities are coincidences or communication, why grief and joy can exist at the same time, what healthy masculinity looks like, the role of AI in human growth, and why the goal isn’t to outsource your power—but to reconnect with your own inner wisdom. Whether you’re deeply spiritual, completely skeptical, or somewhere in between, this episode isn’t asking you to believe anything. It’s inviting you to stay curious. In this episode: * Why Kathleen says everyone has intuitive abilities. * What she actually means when she says, “I talk to dead people.” * The surprising overlap between neuroscience and spirituality. * How to distinguish intuition from fear, trauma, or wishful thinking. * “Listen to the ping”—learning to recognize intuition in everyday life. * Synchronicity: coincidence or communication? * Grief, guilt, and what death teaches us about living. * Healthy masculinity, emotional safety, and holding space. * Why authenticity isn’t enough—you have to stop hiding. * AI, consciousness, and the danger of outsourcing your power. This wasn’t really a conversation about talking to the dead. It was a conversation about learning how to be fully alive. Connect with Kathleen 📖 Book: 7 Ways to Live IN-Joy Todayhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FJJJ6S9Y [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FJJJ6S9Y] 📷 Instagram: @kathleenives_ 🌐 Website: https://www.kathleenives.com Get full access to Vibe Samurai at vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe [https://vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Vibe Sesh #11: David Caixeiro — States, Not Stories

Vibe Sesh #11: David Caixeiro — States, Not Stories A Canadian bobsledder and nervous system coach on why "follow your heart" isn't a feeling — it's a state of regulation, and why the moment his father passed away wasn't actually where his story began. David Caixeiro is a bobsledder on Canada's national team, a personal trainer, and a nervous system and mindset coach. In this episode, he and Bruno trace David's path from a competitive athlete sidelined by injury, through a breakup and a career he didn't want, into meditation, coaching, and eventually a random invitation from a stranger that put him on a bobsled for the first time. The real origin story. Everyone assumes the pivotal moment was his father's sudden passing during COVID. It wasn't — not entirely. The real seed was planted earlier: a breakup, walking away from a program he didn't feel passionate about, and a mentor who told him that to be good with people, he first had to know himself. His father's death didn't start the journey — it deepened it. The Ozark story. David shares the night before his father passed — a small moment of saying "I'll watch it with you another time" that never came. A hard lesson on presence and no guaranteed tomorrows. The Eternal Loop. Bruno's signature question: if you had to relive one experience forever, which would you choose? David's answer traces back to Maui, family, and the beach — but the real discovery is that it was never about the place. It was the state underneath it: peace, love, enrichment, abundance. Synchronicity on synchronicity. Bruno and David dig into meaningful coincidence — including David's own unplanned one, discovered live on air: his very first bobsled run flipped over showing the number 11. This is Vibe Sesh #11. Heart vs. nervous system. When your heart wants one thing and your nervous system wants safety, which do you trust? David's answer: you can't actually hear your heart until you're regulated enough to sit still and listen for it. Following excitement into the unknown. How a stranger's offhand suggestion turned into a spot on Canada's bobsled team — and why David calls it proof that following your heart doesn't require forcing an outcome. The close. If someone listening feels completely lost — David's answer: come back to your breath. It's the simplest tool you have, and it's the candle in the dark. Vibe Sesh airs live on Instagram every Monday and Wednesday at 8PM ET, with new episodes on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Get full access to Vibe Samurai at vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe [https://vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Vibe Sesh #10: AI For A Friend? What It Means To Be Human

Vibe Sesh 10 - Open Vibe Night Episode 10 hits double digits with an unfiltered, no-agenda “AI Night” — Vibe Samurai and Cisco the Kid dive deep with the community on what AI is actually doing to us, and what it’s revealing about being human. * Only 3% of people can tell AI-generated music from human-made music — what that stat really means, and why it shouldn’t freak you out * The real reason people stop liking a song the moment they find out it’s AI (it’s not the music) * Cisco plays a live track blending his own taste with AI production — and gets real about whether it still feels like “him” * A hard look at decentralization, big tech, and what happens when you don’t own your own data * Epigenetics, inherited trauma, and why “grandma’s trauma is in your DNA” isn’t quite right * Viktor Frankl’s stimulus-response gap — the space between what happens to you and how you respond, and why that’s where your freedom lives * Special guests Felix and Marco join live from Germany and LA for a global, four-country conversation * Closing out with the realest reminder: life is short — ask better questions, love harder, forgive sooner, laugh louder Real conversations. No filter. Everyone welcome. Get full access to Vibe Samurai at vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe [https://vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Vibe Sesh 9 - The Best Vibe Sesh We've Ever Had

Vibe Sesh #9 — Tara Moraleda: Love, Duality, and the Art of Creating Yourself This week's guest is Tara Moraleda — poet, astrologer, artist, and entrepreneur, and author of the #1 bestselling book Infinite Love in Finite Forms: Flavors of Duality. We went for two hours and didn't want to stop. We got into duality and why holding contradictions is more powerful than resolving them. AI and what it actually means to embody wisdom vs. just receive it. The dating crisis and why infinite options are making people less satisfied, not more. Masculinity, femininity, and what men lose when struggle gets taken away. Abundance as the baseline of reality, not something you manifest. Intuition as a whisper you have to learn to hear. And a story about her dying grandmother, a 70-page book written by a man decades ago, and art that transcends time. She also brought a real samurai sword. Best Vibe Sesh yet. Follow Tara on Instagram: @taramorelove Get her book Infinite Love in Finite Forms: https://shorturl.at/AiWx8 [https://shorturl.at/AiWx8] Vibe Sesh is live every Wednesday 8PM ET on Instagram Get full access to Vibe Samurai at vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe [https://vibesamurai.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]