INSIDE AND OUTSIDE: Nature + Pop Culture News with Jessica Murnane · Jessica Murnane

The History of Flower Societies + The Pros and Cons of Substack + The Story Behind the Zingerman's Brand with Allie Lehman (founder of Wonderly and Huge Fan)

·1 hr 5 min·4 clips

Taylor Swift fans, YouTube comfort, and group chats all show why fandom lasts.

1. Inside and Outside: Nature + Pop Culture News with Jessica Murnane centers on flowers, fandom, and Substack through a conversation with Allie Lehman. 2. Jessica Murnane is the host and founder of Basker, and Allie Lehman is the founder of Wonderly and the writer behind Huge Fan. 3. The episode asks how people build belonging around plants, creators, and newsletter platforms. 4. Jessica opens with Basker’s new service, Starting a Well-Being Garden, for people who want small pot gardens or larger yard gardens. 5. She also promotes a flower-pressing workshop and says pressing flowers is useful for colder climates and indoor plant work. 6. Allie describes Huge Fan as a publication about fandom and the business behind it, aimed at creators and audiences. 7. Jessica frames the interview around a Survivor-style vibe check after seeing Allie on LinkedIn. 8. Allie says she used to think she did not like the outside because outside activities were presented to her through sports. 9. She tells a childhood memory of Corey Lake in Three Rivers, Michigan, where she imagined a lake monster in the water. 10. She says COVID lockdown changed her relationship to nature and led her into winter hiking and learning how to dress warmly. 11. Jessica connects the outside discussion to a survey where people said time was their main barrier to nature and gardening. 12. She argues that people will binge three hours of Apple TV, but still say they do not have time for nature. 13. Jessica then compares plant fandom to the American Rose Society, Orchid Society, Lily Society, Daffodil Society, and National Chrysanthemum Society. 14. Allie notes that some flower societies and their websites feel like early internet artifacts, including domains like begonias.org and irises.org. 15. She says the appeal of fandom often comes from reciprocity rather than just admiration for the person or brand at the center. 16. Allie describes fandom as an orbit, where the strongest pull comes from comment sections, Reddit, concerts, and shared identity. 17. Her Taylor Swift examples focus on group chats, concerts in other countries, crafts, and personal heartbreak rather than celebrity worship. 18. The Substack segment turns practical, with Allie arguing that Substack should be treated like social media and that creators need ownership. 19. The tone is conversational, curious, and lightly analytical, with Jessica pushing examples and Allie answering in long, specific explanations. 20. Fans of creator economy, newsletters, and plant culture will get the most from this episode; listeners wanting a tight one-topic chat may skip it.

As heard by us

A thoughtful episode about why fandoms last, though the opening lingers a bit before the conversation fully opens up.

Inside Outside settles on a clear idea: fandom lasts because people keep choosing to show up for one another. The episode moves toward that point with an easy, thoughtful pace, and the conversation about connection and community lands cleanly once it gets going.

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Why you'd press play

A loose chat about gardening, fandom, and why connection keeps people coming back.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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