Episode 108: [SPECIAL] Day After Our Summit with Sharissa Bradley & Allison Lau

Our Memoir Summit was absolutely incredible! You’ll hear more about the experience in this week’s episode. We’re joined by Allison Lau & Sharissa Bradley, who not only brought incredible value as panelists but hopped into the webinars as attendees, so we sat down to chat about what we all took away from the experience. If you missed the Summit, you can order the replays here. When you watch the replays you’ll experience the incredible community we’re cultivating at the Inspired Writer Collective. Writing and being a writer does not need to happen in isolation. You want to find the people who are champions for your work. We had 9 women join us to share their brilliant insights about varying aspects of the writing journey. If you’re curious about them, you can find details here.  (And trust us, you want to get to know them). Our hearts are so full!

 Welcome to the Inspired Writer Collective podcast. If you've ever felt the pull to write your truth, to shape the chaos of real life into something meaningful and to share your journey with the world, you're in the right place. We're your hosts, Elizabeth and Stephanie, writers, coaches, and entrepreneurs who believe in you and know how important it is to find a writing community to guide you on your path to self-publishing.

You’re invited to connect with us by joining our Embodied Writing Experience where you’ll get a writer’s retreat directly to your inbox on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays each week. Whether you’re working on a memoir, a novel, or journaling for yourself, this is an invitation to slow down, tune in, and write with embodied intention.   

Join our Embodied Writing Experience where you’ll get a writer’s retreat directly to your inbox on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays each week. This is an invitation to slow down, tune in, and write with embodied intention.   

Work 1:1 with Memoir Coach Elizabeth Wilson. Book a session here.

Feel Good Marketing with Stephanie. Book a session here.

If you prefer to watch our conversations, you can find all of them on our YouTube channel.

You can find us on Instagram and Threads

Transcript

Elizabeth Wilson 1:20

Welcome back writers. This is a special episode of the Inspired Writer Collective podcast. Today you do not only get me and Stephanie, but we're also here with our recent guest panelists from the Memoir Summit. We have Alison Lau and Theresa Bradley, and between the two of them, they basically attended every session, either as a panelist or as an attendee as well. So we're super excited to chat with you ladies today about. How the summit went. This just happened yesterday. We just spent all day yesterday working on this, showing up in this space and today we're recording this and this will go out for Monday's episode. So welcome everyone. It's so good to see you guys especially'cause after each webinar ended, it was just like, bye.

Sharissa Bradley 2:07

I think it's telling how much like we are excited about the summit because I'm so excited to get up literally 8:00 AM on a Sunday morning just to be with you all again and to share space again. And I feel like if nothing else like that has to be a rave review because I feel I was already like, I got up early, like I was checking my phone, like what time am I supposed to be there? Like I couldn't wait to come back and sit in the room with you guys today. Today again. So I feel like that has to mean something.

Elizabeth Wilson 2:37

Oh, absolutely. The way the group just totally like meshed and bonded from like the panelist perspective, like it just gives me so much like affirmation that Stephanie and I have cultivated this phenomenal community and we clearly have a vibe, right? Because if we've attracted all these people individually through being previous guests on the podcast, and then we put you guys in the same room together and you all gel with one another. know there's already requests to be like, I wanna talk to so and so. I need to hang out with so and so. I wanna refer people to so and so. Um, I think that's so cool. And just for like some context. I met Lena. She was probably the first of the guests that we had at the panel, um, on the panel to appear on our podcast. And she was episode 26. So that was like two years ago that I started cultivating that relationship. And since then, you know, we've added more people. Catherine was probably the next one. Um, and so. This has been two years in the making, in the sense of cultivating these relationships with everyone and then maintaining those over the duration of like that time period. Like I'd reached out to Lena multiple times. I've, you know, worked with Catherine and so, you know, it's so cool when I think about the grand scale of like how long it really took to bring this together. It wasn't just the six months of planning, which already sounds. A long time, right? Like of actual, like figure out what the sessions are, figure out when we're scheduling it, figure out who we want to be a part of them, but like actually forming those relationships. And that's one of the things that I don't know if really like that when they bought their ticket, but I think they got to feel it when they were in the room with us that this was a whole community they were stepping into. It wasn't just a one day. pool of people like we live and breathe and work together all the time, and now we've welcomed them in.

Sharissa Bradley 4:33

I thought that was so cool. Every time Stephanie said, these are our podcasts. are the people that we've been, we've already been talking to. We've already vetted every time she said that. Every time you said that, Stephanie, I was just like, this is a community. You've cultivated a community. I kept like, that's just so beautiful. You both have done such an incredible job. And just to speak to the, the schedule of, I've been going to a lot of summits and the publishing industry for the last few years because I've been trying to immerse myself in the world, learn and to meet those people. I think that the group that you cultivated is. So beautiful. You're so right. You, that's like that vibe a attract your tribe, right? You attracted such a beautiful tribe and then the structure of it, like the way that you laid it out, you could tell that this had so much thought put into it. The timing of everything, just the structure, the, your, you, your partnership. I was in awe all day of your partnership. I just thought that was so

Elizabeth Wilson 5:30

you. Mm-hmm.

Sharissa Bradley 5:31

beautiful. I have tried to have partnerships. When I first started my publishing house, I had two partners. I asked'em to leave the business at some point, lost the friendships. Literally a 26 year friendship, like the, I am in awe of the relationship. The partnership that you've built, because you can see, we could so clearly see like it was like on off click boom, like everything was. So perfect. And the only way you get that synchronicity is by building the relationship that you two have built. So that, that was one thing I was just completely in awe of all day thinking about all night last night. Just what a beautiful relationship the two of you have cultivated. Um, and it made me feel like I left, this isn't like this is me. I was like, oh, wow. I'm still not a good partner. I was just like, there's still things like I need to work on because that was just. Such a beautiful, um, like a play, like, um, I just kept seeing like synchronized swimmers. Like it looks so effortless because of all of the work. So like, yeah, that makes sense. Two years building the relationship, six months working on the analytics side of it. That makes sense. And it, it totally came off that way. There was nothing for people who were looking to buy the replays. Like it was just so seamless. So yeah, like amazing.

Elizabeth Wilson 6:51

Oh, thank you for saying that.

Stephanie Oswald 6:53

Yeah. Thank you. Thank you so much, Issa. That's just so good to hear that feedback because I know that, I mean, I had nerves going into it. We'd had some practice, you know, in preparation and I mean, Elizabeth poured so much into making sure we had the script to follow and yeah, it was, and it was just so great to see everybody together. And you know, I've had more limited interaction'cause I didn't get to. Interview everybody on the podcast, but again, that just speaks to, to the, to everybody's vibe that we could all come together and compliment each other with what we were talking about. And. That's what, that's what just impressed me so much was that we didn't even practice other than having a basic in, you know, informal meeting before it all started and then everybody came together and the flow was so great and the q and As. There wasn't, you know, anybody talking over anybody else. There was just this flow and connection. Yeah, it really was incredible and I got so much out of it and I was, I mean, from behind the scenes too, I was just glad I didn't have to be. Taking notes at the same time that there are the replays, so that even I can go back and listen again because I probably couldn't tell you all the things that were said, but it's definitely worth watching again and again.

Allison Lau 8:24

I was so impressed too with just the, the participants that managed to find us, and I know that was through a lot of hard work on, you know, Elizabeth and Stephanie and, and everybody's part to like find the people that need these resources, but. To see the really organic interactions happening in the chat and to see just how kind of naturally the participants and the panelists were all interacting together too. It just felt like a really cool synergy that we found that somehow you two managed to put together the right panels, find the right people, and it all just was the right, you know, melding of minds. So it really felt like a mastermind kind of group, which is such a cool space to.

Elizabeth Wilson 9:03

I actually pulled some of the stats this morning before we hopped on this recording and. So about 50% of the people who purchased tickets attended live, which, you know, the kind of standard that I sent you guys earlier in the week was like 45%. So we definitely hit that and. people I knew were buying tickets to take advantage of the replay discount. And so another 25% of those people did not attend but had already purchased the replays probably knowing that they couldn't make it to the live event. Right? So that's 75% of the people who said, yes, I want this. Like are either getting the replays or showed up. And guys, this was what was so incredible to me when I pulled like the actual like registrations of who was showing up to each webinar. Everyone who joined the first session stayed all day guys. We had all of those people in every single session. And I know I could see some of the same names popping up in the chat that I'd seen earlier in the day, but like that was so impactful to me when I was pulling these stats that like. People really like from the first session knew that like this was for them and these were the kind of people and this is how they wanted to spend their day. It's also interesting, we did have someone new join at session two who stayed the rest of the day, and then we had four people, four new people join us for session four. And most of those only came for session four. So that was the one on publishing. Um, like all of those like last minute considerations as you're picking what. Route of publishing you wanna take. Um, maybe doing beta readers, um, content considerations. Like we didn't even like scratch the surface of that one. And so to see that that was the most highly attended and also that that was one that drew some people in that didn't check out. Anything else that makes me think that there might be some interest in us putting together maybe, um. Two or three hour thing that is purely on those topics. Um, so writers, if that is something that you're feeling like there's a void of quality information and experts and stuff to talk to, and you would want something similar to this summit structure where we have some guest panelists to come and speak to their own expertise in doing a q and a session, but for an extended period of time, maybe like a two or three hour timeframe versus the 45 minute session. Please comment if you're watching on YouTube or use the, like, send a message if you're listening on through Apple Podcasts, like there's enough interest, I am willing to like put in the like six months it takes to do this again. Um, if we see that there's enough interest for something like that, because that was, that really stood out to me that, like that session in particular drew a couple of extra people in who weren't there for just the whole, um, experience.

Stephanie Oswald 11:54

Yeah, I, I love hearing that there were attendees who started the day with us and stayed because you never know when with any of these online summits, I've certainly attended some different things online and. I don't always wanna stay, you know, I, I go and I think like, okay, well I got enough, but it's not really, you know, my vibe or it's not really engaging me. And so it's incredible to hear that because. Going in. We of course, didn't know what it was going to look like. We certainly weren't anticipating that. Even that percentage of people, we were like, well, maybe you know, two or three people will come. And then to hear that so many people showed up and participated, that's just incredible. And it just spurs us on to. Keep talking so much as we do about community. It's really about finding your people, finding your tribe, finding those who are gonna support you along the way, because writing can't be done in isolation. And if you're trying to do it that way, please find your space and your people because you'll just discover that so much more happens when you do that.

Elizabeth Wilson 13:13

That reminds me of a, a picture I took of one of the, um, one of the statements that one of our participants put into the chat at the end of the day. Sandra said This is exactly the kind of summit for memoir writers I've been looking for. So helpful. Thanks. And then Sandra was one of those participants. I saw her name over and over again. She's one that attended the full day. She had submitted questions ahead of time that we answered during our QQ and A sessions. She was engaging in the chat with us, and so she was one who was really soaking up everything that the summit had to offer. And so I'm so grateful that she is someone who then. Was able to reflect back to us that this was exactly what she needed, um, and that she got a lot out of it. Um, I know I even, um, got a comment from Julie who was one of our panelists, and she sat in on some other sessions. And, um, she sent me like a voice note or whatever, and she said she was reflecting on writing her, now that she's writing her second memoir, after publishing her first, she said, is this story going to be as powerful and moving as the one I already did? Can I put lightning in a bottle again? And I think I can, listening to everyone today made me feel hopeful that I can do this again. And I just thought that was so beautiful. I was like, Julie, please let me quote you on this because. know, that's, that's the fear, right? That like, okay, maybe we did well with our first book and, and maybe we've, we've run the gauntlet. We now know what it takes to get a book out into the world, but now I'm gonna do it again. I mean, like, that beginner mindset is so helpful when you don't know how long this road is and you don't know, like all the hoops you're gonna have to jump through. But then to decide like, okay, I have another story I, I need to share. But like, can I make it as powerful, as dynamic, as emotional, as beautiful, as the one, my first one? And I just think that's such a common fear that writers have, especially with their, their second book. It's like, I, I was successful the first time, but was that just happenstance that I just get lucky? Was that a one-off or, or can I do it again? And to know that she, even as a panelist, walked away from this with the confidence that. can do this. I have support. I know what I'm doing. You know, everything everyone was sharing jives with what I know to be true about the writing process, about how you show up for yourself about how you can give space for your story to just shine and come out on its own as the way it's gonna flow, as the way you tap into your creativity. I thought that was beautiful too, that like this summit we put it on for the attendees and ticket holders, like. We as panelists and me as a host, like I just got so much out of it. Like I was beaming all day. I, for the people I had phone numbers for, I was like texting in between sessions or on the lunch break, like, oh my gosh, this is amazing. I'm having so much fun. Um, I, I told my fiance Jordan this morning, I was like, I think that's one of my favorite days I've ever had in this business. Like, I'm gonna tear up. Like, it was so cool guys.

Sharissa Bradley 16:16

You did such a good job. And I, as a panelist, I, I attended every single session except for the first one because of my silly time change, dyslexia, and I just absolutely got so much inspiration, like so much inspiration, so much. Um, like the soul of your book, was that that was talking about that? It was just so.

Elizabeth Wilson 16:38

Mm-hmm.

Sharissa Bradley 16:39

That was so beautiful and explaining like kind of taking yourself apart from the book and like,

Elizabeth Wilson 16:45

Mm-hmm.

Sharissa Bradley 16:45

I'm a, I wrote my memoir 10 years ago and writing an, I've been writing another book for 10 years and it's just like, sits in the, in the drawer. Right. And I just got so much inspiration and encouragement and just, I kind of. I've been thinking all day about like the fool's journey, like in the terror deck. Like, like when we, you know, you like to start out right? And you're just like about to jump off the cliff and you're gonna do the new thing.

Elizabeth Wilson 17:10

Mm-hmm.

Sharissa Bradley 17:11

so, it's easy to do it the first time.'cause you don't know you're the fool. You don't know who you're about to meet, right? You don't know the tower, you don't know death yet. Like you don't know it. And then now this second time around, it's like, I'm scared I'm gonna meet everybody. Like obvious, like all the darkness all over again and yeah, it's so scary. But like. At, even as a panelist, I got to go and I got to watch everybody. And I was so inspired and so encouraged and yeah, I mean, it just really speaks to the community that you've, you've already cultivated and obviously are continuing to cultivate.'cause it just seems like such, um, a beginning, like a launch pad. You, you're amazing. You guys did amazing.

Allison Lau 17:52

Yeah, the whole summit, you know, my partner and toddler in the background and they're overhearing, you know, different sessions and stuff and my partner at the end of the day, he goes, are they good to do that again?'cause like that seems. they should do that again.

Elizabeth Wilson 18:05

Oh my God.

Allison Lau 18:06

even someone who's not writing a memoir, not supposed to even be a part of this is over there. Like that was really valuable. So the fact that I think everyone who showed up got something out of it and that the. I was really impressed by how the, like the artificial divide between panelists and participants didn't feel like it existed. Just because everyone that's showing up there has something that they're bringing to the table. And like you said, and like Julia said, like all of us panelists are learning from each other in the same, know, space in the same moment. And to see what our participants are asking about like really help make this kind of cool synergy that I don't think I get from a lot of other summits or a lot of other, you know. Places like this, um, it's often really easy to just hide in the back of a Zoom call and, you know, half pay attention and not really be a part of it. But the fact that everyone who showed up to the first session stayed all day like that really says something to the, like the welcoming and valuable and cozy environment that this created fantastic job on behalf of Elizabeth and Stephanie. Oh my gosh.

Elizabeth Wilson 19:11

Uh, there were some moments that really stood out for me. Um. I know my fiance asked me,'cause I had put up a, like a midday break when we were on the break. I made a quick reel and I referenced Lena's, um, conversation about the bikini wax and reference to the whole like, kill your darlings in the session. Three editing for impact, you know, and she's talking about how you have to just rip it off because sometimes you gotta cut some serious parts of your. Your book, some significant parts of it. Um, and, and, and then I ho I loved in the chat like what everyone was saying, you know, like, oh yeah, and then you replant your darlings and you can use them other ways if you want to. And there were just so many like beautiful moments of like lightness and levity too, even as we're talking about memoir, which tends to be more like heavy topics. And, and we did talk about, you know, give some advice to writers about how to manage some of those heavier feelings that come up in the writing process. But I loved that so many of of our panelists showed up with this beautiful, like, acceptance and levity. Like at the end of it, like you could see how so many people have felt healing from the writing process because of the way they're able to show up now and talk about the process. And they're not like, oh, don't do it. It was the scariest thing I've ever done. You know, it's awful. No. Like, everyone's like, yeah, you gotta do this. Like, yeah, there are parts that are gonna be hard, but like the, the healing that you get or the realizations you get to have about your life. Are really so cool and I wasn't writing quotes down all day, where though I probably should have, but I, I captured a couple, especially from our session five on marketing. I think charissa, it was you that said marketing is just talking about yourself. Was that you? Yeah. That was like, I get that, that's like so like, duh. But like, it was profound for me. I was like, it is, it is like I don't have to like look up how to market. Like I just literally have to be willing to talk about myself. And then, and then Hannah came on next and she. Had this beautiful, I, I loved her five minute talk in that one, and she was talking about you're helping readers discover a story that already matters to them. And that just boosted my confidence so much when I'm thinking about sharing about my story that like I don't have to. Convince them that it should matter to them. Like I'm just targeting the people who this story already matters to. They've already lived parts of it themselves and that's why they're gonna resonate with it. And so I don't have to convince anyone that this is a worthwhile story. Like I just need to tap into the people who are already having these conversations and who already like believe that this subject needs to be talked about more.

Sharissa Bradley 21:46

Yes.

Elizabeth Wilson 21:47

Lindsay said towards the end of that session, um, a book is new to anyone who hasn't read it before. I was like, oh, that's so true. And even in like the marketing of, of the memoir Summit, Stephanie and I had to constantly remind ourselves that like. If someone new has joined our email list, they may not have heard about the summit yet. If someone new is suddenly following us, they may not have heard about the summit yet. So like I was talking to my mom during the break and she was like, I looked back and you did so much marketing. And I'm like, yeah, we really hit it hard this last month leading up to the event. But that's because there's so many new people that are constantly coming in and. They often don't look back at what you've previously done. When someone starts to follow you, they might look at a couple of things, but like then they're never, they're never gonna look back. Right. And so like, you have to be talking about your book or your event or your offerings like all the time. Um, and so that was, that was a good reminder what Lindsay said about how it, it's new for anyone who hasn't read it before, like you are not gonna. You're not gonna wear people out like talking about it. People don't even notice. And if they do know about it and they've already read it, maybe they'll just comment on your post and be like, yeah, it was fantastic and you know, keep it going.

Stephanie Oswald 23:00

Well, I think there's also the piece too that people need to hear things. I mean, I think they say it's like an average of like 88 times or something before anything really sticks and you know, we all know that. In reality, like as humans, everybody's in their own lane, their own space, yet they're paying attention to things. Things come through and they see them. And so I think that just, again, that reminder of like even a little bit of repetition. And one of the things that came to mind for me too, as I was. You know, hosting and atten, you know, in the background and also just, you know, attending was thinking about how, while I'm not writing a memoir myself, everything I heard absolutely resonated with me because certainly as a fiction writer. Aspects of my life are going into what I'm writing. I mean it, there's not a separation there, it's just that I'm not gonna write the memoir, but if people know me and they read what I'm writing in fiction, they're gonna know like who some of the characters are based off of. And so, you know, or some of the events that I share about or different things. And so that's the one piece that I love too, is writers, if you're listening and maybe memoir is not your genre. There's also an opportunity in watching these replays to just get inspiration about the writing life and to feel that piece of, yeah, there are other people who are in the same space as I am, and you know, listening to all of. You as panelists that there's so much you can gain from connecting with people who are already connected to other people who can guide you in the direction of who you should know essentially. And then it's a shorter distance to reaching your writing goal when you already have, you know, on our website now we have a whole page with all of our panelists and their information and their offerings and you know, just amazing. Women who are raising up other women in this writing space that just, you know, the energy. I mean, I crashed yesterday afternoon after I like hit the high and then I was like, I laid down. I'm, I mean, I don't even remember falling asleep. You know, it was like one of those things where I woke up and I was in this daze, but then it was this like really good feeling that not only as someone who was part of putting it all together. Just being part of a community of writers and editors and publish. I mean, just all of that was just incredible.

Elizabeth Wilson 25:37

Yeah, it's so true. And you know, I'm glad you said that, Stephanie, because so much, I mean, sure. Maybe the first one we focus a little bit more on the aspects of memoir and sharing your personal stories in session. One, but literally every other part was like universal. Just writing, you know, it's how to get through your, your first draft, how to approach edits and find editors, you know, what kind of publishing considerations to make and then how to market those. Were not like just specific to. You know, memoir, there was some advice that is, you know, geared or shaped around memoir, but it, it could be applied universally. Um, so that's so true. And you know, we have those replays available for purchase. They're$27. You get all five sessions, which include not just our individual five minute talks that every panelist had an opportunity to do, but also the q and a, um, session. What you don't get is the chat. You had to be there, life, you had to be there in the moment in order to get all of that. If there was anything that, um, was relevant in the chats, like someone was sharing a resource or whatever, we generally did speak on it so that you can go and search those. So you will still have access to that. But sorry guys, you had to be there if you wanna really get the whole experience, but we have recorded it and those replays are available.

Allison Lau 26:57

Oh, I was so excited when I saw the replays hit our inbox. As panelists, we have the privilege of getting those ahead of time,

Elizabeth Wilson 27:03

Mm-hmm.

Allison Lau 27:04

felt like a little dragon like hoarding my treasure. I was like, thank goodness I could go back. And rewatch all of the insight that everyone shared. Um, but Stephanie, I wanted to real quick circle back to what you said about, you know, writing fiction and how there's so much to be gained from this summit. Even if you're not working on memoir. I mean, it's because memoir sits in this really unique space that's not, it's not fiction, it's not nonfiction either, and it really is this beautiful blend of storytelling that's so character focused and so inherently. Emotional and powerful, and I think that that space is what makes this such a unique collection of people as well, because they're the people who want to do the work, who want to understand themselves and who want to share that in a way that is, Not necessarily universally relatable, but relatable to the most people that it can be. I think that that is part of what makes like the inspired writer collective so powerful and the like Memoir Summit that we just put on is really that, that kind of writer and that kind of person that has like found this space. So just more kudos to you of course.

Elizabeth Wilson 28:15

I, as I was reflecting, knowing that we were recording this today, um, I wrote down a couple of things. Things that I really loved seeing with this and some, some things that I thought really made a difference. Um. The things that I think had the biggest impact on just the success of the flow and creating that sense of space within this summit community for the day were was certainly the pre panelist meeting where we met with you guys the week ahead. And I, we each got to hear like a brief summary of what everyone planned to speak about. And I could just see and feel the excitement in that space rise. And so for that, you know, week leading into the summit, it was so much easier for me to like continue to market and promote because now I had something a little bit more tangible to be like, someone's gonna be speaking about this specific thing. If you have a question about this, you've gotta come here so and so. Talk about this. Like, it was so cool as I was starting to see it actually shape, like I, I finally got, um, an idea of like what ingredients I had to work with as far as panelist talks, and then curating that experience by, you know, figuring out what order and everything like that was such a cool thing for me. And I've been asked to be a part of groups before and went into the day with so much uncertainty about like. kinda environment am I stepping into? How is this even gonna work? I don't really know what's expected of me. I don't know the order of events or the timing of anything other than like, I have to be here at this time and I'm supposed to say something, right? And so like I, as a host, I wanted to not have you guys be anxious or nervous or uncertain about any of that.'cause I wanted you guys to be able to show up. As just your beautiful selves without those kind of anxieties in the background. Um, but I just think it was so impactful for me too, as one of the hosts to like know what I was stepping into, to kind of know what everyone wanted to talk about and be able to curate that a little bit for the summit. Um, another thing that worked was helpful for me, um, just from a host standpoint, was that detailed agenda that you guys referenced and the assigned roles, like for Stephanie and I to go into it, knowing I knew exactly what I needed to do in the morning sessions as the like. Face forward, host. Um, and then in the afternoon sessions when we switched roles and Stephanie stepped into that role, and then I became the behind the scenes, pressing the buttons, moving people around on the screen, managing the chat, like to know exactly what I needed to do when I think is what created that sense of it being very seamless and not clunky. And of course we run into technical issues. I was shocked with Mercury and retrograde that there weren't more. But you know, our little polls in the first session, like glitched or whatever, and that's fine. We pivoted for the next session. Stephanie and I were in constant communication between sessions, like checking in with one another, like. How did that go? What do we need to do? And then when we did that afternoon switchover, I gave her some advice of like, here's how I was managing the hosting. Here's the one thing to keep in mind. And she gave me some tips on like, here's how I'm doing the stuff on the backend. Here's what to keep in mind. Like have this stuff highlighted and ready to post into the chat. So it was so great. And yeah guys, I'm like a total like. I don't know. I let sometimes my anxiety runs away with me a little bit, and so I over plan and I, you know, get that really detailed agenda and I, but I, I think it really helped make it seem, um, seamless, even though I may have been a little bit demanding it over a bearing in a weeks leading up to it, or at least I, I was worried that I was being a little too much, but ultimately it made for such a smooth experience and I was so grateful for that.

Allison Lau 31:56

Demanding and overbearing are like the last two adjectives on the list of Elizabeth Adjectives. What are you talking about? I

Elizabeth Wilson 32:03

I mean, maybe only Stephanie experienced it when I'm like, do we have this yet? Do we have this yet? What about this? Can we make this?

Stephanie Oswald 32:09

No, not, no, not at, not at all, Elizabeth. I mean, you know, you know me well enough with working with me that, you know, I can get, I can get stuff done and sometimes, like my A DHD brain takes me in different. Directions and I just need to be, you know, reigned back in a little bit and refocused. So it was actually really helpful for me because it, you know, it gave me structure, which I needed. And it also, but it was, there was also this like ebb and flow and, you know, when Elizabeth was like, oh, we need the website. And then I was like, okay, I can do that. And then for me, something like that. It's, it allows me to use my A DHD hyper focus mode, and I can just get it done. I mean, I think I got it done in like an hour or whatever the other night.

Elizabeth Wilson 32:56

You did. It's phenomenal. The way Stephanie can just like something that I, I get anxious about it because I'm like, this would take me like two days and like I'm like, Stephanie, do we have this yet? We kind of need this for like two days from now. And she's like. yeah, I'll get to it. And then like an hour later she's like, here it's, and I'm like, oh my gosh. Because she's so good about that. And that's one of the ways that, like, Issa, you, you alluded to this at the beginning of the episode about our dynamic mine and Stephanie's dynamic. And it, it really is that like I know what Stephanie's strengths are and she excels in those areas. So the way we divide up tasks, we really lean into our individual strengths.'cause they're very different.

Stephanie Oswald 33:34

Yes.

Elizabeth Wilson 33:35

but they work so well together.

Stephanie Oswald 33:37

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. No.

Sharissa Bradley 33:38

shows, that really shows and it shows that you, like what I was saying, it speaks to your, your partnership, having the ability to say. I know the strength, I know these, these areas that I can pick up that is trust and that is hard to get and make and keep. So that is what I'm saying, like this isn't some easy thing that you guys just like, oh, we're just perfect. We just clicked. No, you have good communication, you have good trust, you have, you know how to like divide and conquer and split up the task. These skills that you have developed are things that I have failed at in my life. And so I'm recognizing and saying like. Yes, kudos.

Elizabeth Wilson 34:20

I think it helps that Stephanie and I have each run businesses by ourselves before. Um, so we know what the flip side is. We know the alternative that like, you can do it all if you want or you can figure out a way to like, let someone do it their way even if it's not your way. Um, and yeah, and I think it, it works well. The other thing I really loved that sort of naturally came about, um. And this speaks to the quality of the panelists that we had, is the way that the panelists were also engaging in the chat. You know, that's not something that we, you know, said from the beginning. Like, Hey, we want you guys to give your five minute talk and do a q and a and also engage in the chat. But I just loved the way that everyone was just naturally showing up in the chat, encouraging our attendees as they were commenting and sharing the, their struggles or how they were feeling about their writing process or writing journey. I just loved how supportive everyone was, especially you guys, even coming as attendees on in panels you didn't have to be at in sessions you didn't have to do anything for. But still being so active in the chat, I really think it made the experience for everyone who was there. Um, just so much richer. So I really, I really appreciate the way that all of our panelists were showing up for the day of,

Allison Lau 35:36

I have a kind of tangential thing, but if you will indulge me. Um, I have been working on this fabulous memoir that I've been line editing lately. Um, it's called Lonely

Elizabeth Wilson 35:47

uh.

Allison Lau 35:47

the author is brilliant. Um, but. I happened to be on the chapter last night where Elizabeth and Stephanie meet for the first time, or not the first time, May, may. I, Elizabeth, read a quick line from your

Elizabeth Wilson 36:03

Yeah, sure.

Allison Lau 36:04

Okay.

Elizabeth Wilson 36:05

Have fun.

Allison Lau 36:05

Um, let's see. The process of working on the book led me to the community meeting room of the local library, long tables arranged at a rectangle with chairs around the perimeter. I showed up to the weekly writers group with my journal and a pen not knowing what to expect. washed over me as I saw a familiar face. A woman named Stephanie, who I met at the local yoga studio. We'd both been attending a weekly restorative yoga and journaling class through fall and winter. And then my brain exploded because isn't that Adrian who has been on the podcast before? Who taught that yoga class?

Elizabeth Wilson 36:40

No, she lives somewhere else, but yeah. But she does a similar, she does a similar thing, which is why I connected with her, because she offers like her pros and poses, which is very similar to what the kind of class that Stephanie and I showed up for that winter and ultimately bonded over. And that it's such a cool concept to combine writing with this embodied experience, and that's what's really cultivated. You know, Stephanie's focus on this embodied writing experience and all the ways that, you know, we're trying to talk about our writing, but it sometimes lives in our head, but like all the experiences are felt in the body. And so how we bring in that, that dynamic and how we combine those two essences. And I was just thinking like, I loved how, I mean, we just kind of divided the sessions a little bit arbitrarily. Um, but I loved how much Stephanie was able to lean into talking about the embodied writing, um, through those later two sessions with the panelists who just happened to be on that session, like it, it merged so

Stephanie Oswald 37:42

Mm-hmm.

Elizabeth Wilson 37:42

and that was totally organic. That

Stephanie Oswald 37:44

Mm-hmm.

Elizabeth Wilson 37:44

controlled or planned or puppet mastered by.

Stephanie Oswald 37:48

Yeah, no, I didn't. I didn't anticipate that happening at all. I mean, I knew I would talk a little bit about it because that's where my weekly email focus is for us, but I mean, it just naturally all came together and I loved that there was the woo. And even if you know Woo is not your thing. There's just so much power that came through what people were sharing about how to really connect with yourself in the writing process.

Elizabeth Wilson 38:19

I love it. Thank you guys for being there. What, does anyone have any final thoughts on the summit and the experience yesterday as we wrap up this episode?

Sharissa Bradley 38:30

Yeah, I thought.

Allison Lau 38:31

to be a part of it. It was

Elizabeth Wilson 38:32

Oh,

Allison Lau 38:33

of it. Thank you for the invite and for allowing us to be part of the collective because it's phenomenal.

Sharissa Bradley 38:40

One thing I wanted to say that I haven't shared yet was that I hadn't met anybody from the panel before. I had never met Stephanie. The only person I had met is Elizabeth and

Elizabeth Wilson 38:49

Mm-hmm.

Sharissa Bradley 38:50

at the summit, like while we were all on the panel and while we were, while we were doing things, there was so much collaboration. the panel, and I had never met these women before, but there was so much like, oh, she just said that in that session. Or, oh, Charissa could speak to that. Oh, Laura could speak to that. Oh, you know, and it was just. Like, I just wanna say like I had never met any of those women before. That was my first introduction to them. So to have such a collaborative space, I just wanna share that because when they're watching the replays, I want you to know that happened. then and there. It didn't happen outside of that. So that is just, it was so beautiful. The, you did control the environment, but the collaboration was completely organic and it was just so magical. And I just need that to be known. Like we didn't know each other. We, I've got some, some coffee chats on my calendar for the next couple weeks.'cause I'm gonna get to know'em. I, you brought such brilliant women. I can't not, right. I couldn't not.

Elizabeth Wilson 39:49

yeah.

Sharissa Bradley 39:50

So the connection and the collaboration is gonna be continuing because I, I want all those editors to be my friends. I want all those, I mean, the book, I want everybody as my friends now. So the collaboration is continuing, but I just want it to be known. Like I didn't know any of these women before. So to have like that organic, that connection, all of that, like collaboration happening all right there live, that was all happening right there in front of you. Like that was not a before thing.

Elizabeth Wilson 40:16

Yeah, and you're not odd man out in that charissa. Like there are very few people on that panel who had ever worked with any other person. Like Carolina is who introduced me to Allison. So they had worked together previously on a previous book project, but not in this kind of like summit kind of environment. Um, and, and, and like you, many people hadn't worked with Stephanie because I did most of the interviews of the panelists that appeared here. Even Lindsay, who lives in the same town with me and Laura, I had never really interacted with her, and Laura didn't know her, and, and so it's, it's so cool the way that all comes together. I literally texted Laura and I was like, I wish we could plan a retreat with these panelists because like it would be.

Allison Lau 40:57

my gosh.

Elizabeth Wilson 40:57

a fun hang to just get like the panelists together and brainstorm things and come up with ways we can collaborate with each other, you know, break out into groups and like, these two people work on this project. You guys do this. I just think it would be so cool and I, I definitely wanna encourage everyone to, to connect with one another. I know I just sent Allison a text this morning that like Lena was trying to get in touch with her and so I love a thing that's so beautiful. This is. this was the vision. This was the vision all along for me and Stephanie, that we, we don't have to know everything. We aren't providing all the services, but we wanted to be like a space that you could come to and we'd be the center of the spoke of the wheel, and then we'd send you out to all these amazing people who could take you to do your editing, do your book cover design, help you with the publishing process, whatever that is, whatever like service you need that we don't provide ourselves like. That's what we, that's what we see as our vision of our role is making these connections, forming this sense of community, and then sending you on your way to connect you with people that we also know are fantastic and will support you and your story.

Sharissa Bradley 42:06

You nailed it.

Elizabeth Wilson 42:08

thank you guys. And writers, if you're not convinced yet that you need these replays, I don't know what else we could possibly tell you. If it's just not for you, it's not for you, and that's okay. But for all of you guys who are now just dying to go watch these, there will be a link in the show notes that you can use to purchase those. Stephanie and I already have them, as you've heard, we've already sent them to the panelists, so those will be sending out momentarily. We're gonna have those ready for you in your inbox. So go ahead, pay your$27. You get to watch all five of these sessions, each session's like 45 minutes long. So that's a significant amount of key quality information. Um, and thank you ladies for spending all day with us yesterday and being willing to hop on this call again this morning. Um, as far as like a promo team, you guys have been so stellar. So thank you so much and writers happy writing.