Meet Lance Stanford | Writer & Podcaster

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lance Stanford and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lance, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
When I first started The Night Nerd it was just as a creative outlet. I wanted to talk about comics, video games, movies, you know, nerd stuff but didn’t have anyone who would listen. I live in what you might call a dead zone for outlets like that. After taking some time and talking to my family I launched the podcast. Overtime I saw that it was also a great banner to put streaming, newsletters, merchandise and the books I’ve written under.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’ve always wanted to be a writer, even as a kid, but didn’t take the plunge until older in life. I debuted my first book (Santa’s Kitchen) back in December of 2019. The following spring I launched two comic series (The Embassy and Flames) in February of 2020 with a booth at my local comic con. I had plans to appear at multiple shows that year, travel and talk to publishers, then the world shut down. Instead of seeing it as a blow to my career I took the time to better myself and my craft. I learned everything I could about style and execution, took classes and had chats with some of the greatest writers out there. As the world opened back up I started doing shows again and produced a new kid’s book (Len, the Littlest Light) and added a new series to my line-up (We the People). Sometimes it was hard to keep going, and still is, but seeing someone read any of my books makes it all worth it. If anyone thinks something isn’t worth finishing they should know that someone out there is waiting to hear their story so keep going!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Hopefully they would come at the first of the month and we could hit up our First Friday Art Trail. Check out tons of local artist and musicians, make a few passes by the food trucks and end it with some local drinks from Two Docs Brewery. Wake up the next day and go by Star Books and Comics, spend some time digging through back issue bins. After that grab some food at our local Cuban spot, Cafe Alvarez, then spend the evening having drinks at the Gaslight, on the patio, overlooking the water. Sunday would be great to catch a matinee of whatever play Lubbock Community Theater is doing, then probably back to Gaslight. The rest of the week would be spent exploring other great bars and restaurants like Flip’s Tavern, Beijing House, the Lantern, the Bar Room, LBK Brewery, King’s Street, and J&M BBQ. We’d also stop by the Texas Tech Museum, the Ranch Heritage Center, Charles Adams Gallery and Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts.

Then finish it all off with new tattoos at Stage Coach Tattoo.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My local comic shop, Star Books and Comics, has been a huge encouragement on my journey. They’ve let me host shows in their shop, done various interviews with me and even had a few book releases for me! Also, I wouldn’t be able to do any of this without my amazing wife pushing me to do more.

Instagram: www.instagram.com/thenightnerd

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thenightnerd/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thenightnerd

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thenightnerd

Other: thenightnerd.substack.com