My Five Minutes - Short Thoughts on Creativity and Culture

{5} My Five Minutes Episode Five - Yes, these are things people ask me.

In this episode, I, Dan Vado, sit with my cohorts, Kevin Ryan and Chris (Meat) Edwards, to go over viewer mail, such as it is, and discuss the burning questions of the day, including what that thing is on the tip of my nose and whether I have gained weight. Yes, these are actual questions I get. Later in the episode, I talk about why I am podcasting, how I find it a powerful medium, and how I want to work towards telling people's stories. I also talked warmly about the people who stuck with me on Patreon after my venue, Art Boutiki, closed. Ironically enough while I was editing this episode (on June 1) four people cancelled their support. Which is my way of saying, if you like what you hear, give my Patreon page a visit and drop a monthly tip our way. https://www.patreon.com/cw/artboutiki Also, tell a friend if you like this, and if you have comments, please feel free to message me. Dan Vado

{4} The Grind - Restaurant Life, Art Boutiki and a story from the early days of SLG Publishing

This episode clocks in at just shy of 14 minutes, which may make me a liar about the title of this podcast. Not really. My Five Minutes has always been about having something to say and taking the time to say it. In “The Grind,” I am joined by Chris Edwards, otherwise known as Meat, to talk about the daily labor, routine, pressure, and chaos of the restaurant industry. Meat was the chef at Art Boutiki, the music venue I operated until it closed in December 2025, and he saw firsthand the many grinds involved in keeping a venue running. Later, I share a story from the 1990s about the day Jeff Smith, creator of BONE, walked into my comic book store and pitched us on carrying his book—and what that moment says about the work behind every creative success.

[3] An Explosive Story from Comic-Con

This episode I recount a story from Comic-Con which was an impactful moment that has stayed with me to this day. Yes, this episode of My Five Minutes is ten minutes long. I imagine that had I called it My Ten Minutes the would be much shorter, or longer, or whatever. The story is the story and it takes however long it takes. I am going to admit that, from a production standpoint, this one was another step backwards for me. Much like my previous decision to record in my car, this time I decided to record in my back yard and it turned out, not well. There was all kinds of road noise and wind that I tried my best to eliminate and I had the gain on the mic turned up so loud that every breath I took sounded like I was broadcasting from a hurricane. Why didn't I just start over? Because the story itself is difficult to tell. Doing it again would have been a technical improvement, but I am not sure I would have had the energy to recount the incident as well as I did in the take that you are listening or watching. And if you are watching the video version of this, yes I do have a face made for radio and yes I did leave the autofocus turned on. Long story short, the story is worth listening to, I will get better at this and lastly thanks for your time and support.

{#2} BIIIIIIG SWING AND A MISS - Not all ideas are great.

The takeaway from this episode is that I set out to do one thing, realized it wasn't great, and pivoted to another, which was also not great but better than the first. This illustrates the dangers of not recording several episodes ahead of releasing the first one. I could have just trashed the whole thing and come back a week from now, but I didn't want to give the appearance of having spun off the tracks already. To be honest, this episode is pretty solid, just not the sound or video quality I wanted. I got a lot of compliments on my first episode's production values, so I am now willing to take the lumps on this one. You let me know. Episode four or five is going to be a Q&Q, AMA type thing so if you have questions for me, please direct them to my email at danvado@gmail.com Next week, a story from Comic-Con

Ya Gotta Believe - The Arrogance of Creativity

In the first episode of My Five Minutes, SLG Publishing publisher and founder Dan Vado looks at the arrogance required to create anything at all, at least anything worth remembering. Before there is a book, a comic, a song, a podcast, a company, or a stage, there is usually one unreasonable belief: that the idea in your head is worth bringing into the world. As SLG Publishing celebrates its 40th anniversary, Vado reflects on the confidence, delusion, ego, and blind faith involved in his own path through being a creativer professional.. This episode sets the tone for My Five Minutes: short, personal reflections on creativity, memory, mistakes, publishing, music, failure, and the strange art of not quitting. Topics: creativity, ego, indie comics, SLG Publishing, podcast launch, independent publishing, creative risk, making art, failure, persistence.