Minisode 15: Writing Inspiration - TV, Movies, and eavesdropping

Pulling from the archives of unpublished awesomeness! This week's minisode covers the way TV and movies inspire our writing. (We also talk about football, fairy tales, and eavesdropping.)

Join us for an overview of our favorite witchy media!

Let us know what inspires you - or what you think should inspire us! (Head on over to our instagram to see the brackets of Amy's 2023 Vampire Showdown - and let us know if you'd like to see another contest for 2026!)

Watch us on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@cliffhangersandcocktails

Visit our sponsor, the Paranormal Women's Fiction Bookclub, for a free monthly book at https://pwfbookclub.com/.

Follow the pod on instagram at https://www.instagram.com/cliffhangersandcocktails/, 

Check out our website at https://www.cliffhangersandcocktails.com/ and sign up for our newsletter!

Theme song: Chernoye Vedma by Ian Post

Don't forget to like, rate, review, subscribe, and share!

Thanks - the Caftan Coven

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:04

Welcome everybody to Cliffhangers and Cocktails Podcast with Annie Sissel and me, Shayna McLeod. We are both USA Today best-selling authors of paranormal women's fiction, among other things, brought to you by the Caftan Coven.

SPEAKER_00 0:22

Yay! Yay! I don't know. I thought that was very like calm. Anyway, um, welcome, welcome to our mini pod. Um, we do these mini pods where we discuss a single topic related to the craft, whether it's craft cocktails, uh witchcraft, or the craft of writing. Today's topic is writing craft, and we're going to be chatting about the witchy movies and TV shows that inspire us. Yay. So, um, like how we how we had movies and TV. As authors, we often get questions like, what inspires you? Or how did you get that idea? Um, so we're gonna talk about the way we get inspired with witchy movies and TV shows. So sure. How do they inspire you?

SPEAKER_01 1:07

Oh, well, I'm glad you asked, Amy. What an excellent question. So um, I would say the first and like, well, probably one of the more important ways is that they kind of get me in the mood, if you will, but not like you think.

SPEAKER_00 1:25

I know it's I'm watching the wrong show.

SPEAKER_01 1:30

When I um wrote my Lady Rample series, it was my first sort of foray into historical writing. And not that I'm not that I write my historical mysteries, they're not like hardcore history. They're like history light. Soft softcore history. Yeah. I'm just trying to get my reader into the mood of being. And then you close the door. And then you close the door. So I'm just trying to get them the feel to have the vibe of being in that era rather than trying to be 100% accurate and super detailed. And, you know, I'm talking about what they're wearing, I'm talking about what they're eating, I'm talking about, you know, things like that. So it's it's more, I don't go heavily into like historical events or that's not my that's not my bag. Um, so when I was preparing to write it, I wanted to sort of get that feel of being in the 1930s, being in that sort of jazz era. And so I watched a lot of movies that were actually not just filmed in, but set in the 1930s. So you got that sort of snappy sort of dialogue going on, you know, um, like the thin man, the first one.

SPEAKER_00 2:56

I hope you watch the thin man and the thin man. Um, the second one, Thin Man Comes Back.

SPEAKER_01 3:01

Yeah, I watched all of the thin man's.

SPEAKER_00 3:04

Well, those are the two best ones.

SPEAKER_01 3:06

Those are the two best ones. Well, the first one was pre-code, so it is very, very snappy. Very lots of innuendo, lots of um shenanigans that lots of drinking, like lots of cocktails. So much drinking. So much drinking. I mean, she gets up at what is it, 2 a.m. and wants a cocktail or something out of her.

SPEAKER_00 3:29

Well, the first time she walks into that room, like her first scene, she walks in and is like, How many have you had? And he's like, six, and she's like, All right, bartender, give me six martinis and line them up right here. Oh, yeah. And then like later, she's got like the ice pack around her head.

unknown 3:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 3:46

I just, it's such a great sorry.

SPEAKER_00 3:48

I love that movie so much.

SPEAKER_01 3:50

I do too. I watch it. One of my favorites, it's one of my rewatch favorites. I don't necessarily re-watch the others as much, but that first one is just delightful. It helped get me in the vibe of writing that era, writing that kind of character. Like if I'm it's the same thing for like anything paranormal or supernatural or whatever. Like, one of my favorite K dramas is called the Mystic Pop-Up Bar. And it's this whole thing, it's very like lots of supernatural stuff, and it's really fun. And so it really got me in this thing of like, ooh, I want to write more like fun, witchy stuff. And so it definitely like puts me in the mood to write whatever that is. And then second, I obviously I think this is pretty common, is that they give me more specific ideas for world building and characters, and the soap and lotion shop and practical magic that you know that she has, uh Sandra Bolt's character has, and you're wincing at me, which tells me either you don't remember or you've never seen practical magic. There are midnight margaritas. I pleaded a bit. I pleaded. How did you mix midnight margaritas? That's what I want to know. You have no comeback. And the ants are delightful. I love the ants. But okay, so there's a really cute soap shop. She makes soaps and and lotions and things, and she has this little cute shop, and that inspired um one of my witches shops in um my Deepwood Witches series. Uh, if you've read the Deepwood Witches Potions, Poisons, and Peril, Emery's herb shop was inspired by I've read that. Well, so now now you know. I mean, you know, as well as you don't have to watch the movie now. I mean, it was also obviously inspired by real life shops as well, but that like sort of vibe is what inspired it. Uh in fact, it I think I ended up it it kind of looks in my mind a little bit the same, but different. Um and then my very first series that I ever wrote was an urban fantasy series, and um, and it was basically um, I loved Buffy.

SPEAKER_00 6:06

You know, who doesn't love Buffy?

SPEAKER_01 6:08

I mean, right?

SPEAKER_00 6:09

I mean, probably some people.

SPEAKER_01 6:10

I mean, maybe some people, but they're wrong. No, kidding.

SPEAKER_00 6:13

They are indeed. No, uh, we're not kidding.

SPEAKER_01 6:16

Fine, I'm not kidding. You're wrong. The Sun Walker saga saga that I wrote was kind of my like, I had this idea, like, what would Buffy do when she's all grown up? And of course, the answer was she'd probably still be kicking vampires in the butt. So I wrote the Sun Walker saga, was kind of inspired by that. Um so yeah, those are kind of the two ways I guess that they inspire me. How do they inspire you?

SPEAKER_00 6:46

Well, so I need to I need to admit something out of a confession.

SPEAKER_01 6:53

Okay, you don't get inspired by movies and TV.

SPEAKER_00 6:58

Not usually. Oh, I don't watch things very often. Um like I don't watch a lot of shows. Um, I would say that like I have a book called Vamps in the Vineyard, and that very much was inspired by Buffy. Because again, Buffy is a whole thing. Buffy is a whole thing. Um, and then Supernatural would be my other show that I loved to look into the you know, the the beginning season seasons especially were like very much monster of the week.

SPEAKER_01 7:30

Right. I love that.

SPEAKER_00 7:32

Yeah. Um, and so stuff like that, but like my a lot of my inspiration comes from reading. Um, and then like not just reading urban fantasy, although, yeah, 100%, or paranormal romance, although again, yes, but like doing those weird deep dives into mythology, like try dumping dumping, no, um jumping, jumping down a Wikipedia hole, or and sometimes it'll be on YouTube, and I'll be like, okay, I want to know about this, and then like three hours later, I'm learning about the history of the Iberian wolf, which is beautiful, by the way. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 8:19

Well, are you have you taken the clin the Clifton strengths?

SPEAKER_00 8:24

Yes, we've talked about this before, and we're the same.

SPEAKER_01 8:26

We're the same, you're high input, also, right? But are you number one input?

SPEAKER_00 8:31

Nope, our one and three were switched.

SPEAKER_01 8:33

Oh, that okay, so that's probably why. Because like for me, it's like it's TV, it's movies, it's I mean, yeah, it's all of it. So much input. Like, if I just went with books, it it wouldn't be enough. So that's probably why I I watch well, and then of course, not being able to like get out and about, I watch a lot more too. But um, yeah, like I watch a lot of documentaries too. Like, I can't tell you how many murders in my books have been inspired by like true crime documentaries. Yeah, I love that. A little bit of murder is always fun.

SPEAKER_00 9:07

I mean, when I do watch TV, I tend to watch things that are very weirdly funny. Like, that's what I want in my life, is just like, oh, you're a random British comedy show with weird stuff, and okay, totally in, totally into you.

SPEAKER_01 9:26

Dick, I know like Dick Turpin Highway men.

SPEAKER_00 9:30

I I can I know I know all of the I'm not all of them, I know so many British comedians, so many because of this. But um, that's what like, but then but then there'll be something that somebody will say because a lot of these people are incredibly educated. Yes, and they'll make a joke or they'll make a fact or whatever, make a fact, make a fact, they'll just say a fact, say a fact, say a fact, and I'll be like, ooh, and that's how I go down my Wikipedia hall. Um so I guess like even stuff like that where people are randomly saying stuff that's funny, and I'm like, that is funny, but also, hmm. So look, we've discovered something new about me live and in person. Live and in person, feeling before a live studio audience. Totally live.

SPEAKER_01 10:25

Audiences I'm tired of. Yeah, they really are. Um make it out of it. I'm writing that down. Writing that down, yes. So um you obviously like watching clearly, if you're watching YouTube stuff, you know, those are sort of I wouldn't say those are I mean, maybe those could be considered documentaries, but like not always. Some are just people and like comedians and whatever. So, but what are some specific like obviously Buffy Supernatural, those have been your inspirations? Um, anything else or just like movies and TV that you've loved and are like kind of witchy or I mean I love silly, silly stuff.

SPEAKER_00 11:13

So, like a lot of the stuff I wouldn't say directly relates to that. I also love supernatural, which is seldom silly, but I have to tell you, the episodes that I go back and watch are the silly ones.

SPEAKER_01 11:24

Are the silly ones, yep.

SPEAKER_00 11:25

Silly things. Um, like I love Monty Python and Oh, I love Monty Python. I I like things like that that are gonna make me laugh. Um I because I don't I don't want to be tense when I'm watching TV or watching a movie. So, like honestly, my go-to movies are things that are like Robin Hood, um, men and tights, and not like the big drama ones, but let's laugh. Um and things like oh, what do I watch repeatedly? Uh Star Wars, uh Lord of the Rings, which is not silly. No, but I guess some of my magical inspiration probably does come from those things, but again, they're because I like for that it's because I love the books first. So I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 12:12

Hmm. Interesting.

SPEAKER_00 12:13

I don't know. I've been weirdo list.

SPEAKER_01 12:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 12:17

I I looked over your list because she shared it with me. Yes, and you can look at my list, which is nothing. Nothing. Um, there's nothing on my list. And I haven't seen anything. Really?

SPEAKER_01 12:33

Except for the very well, you've seen Buffy. You have not seen practical magic, you probably haven't seen Good Witch. Nope. Which, if you love super cozy vibes, Good Witch is it. Um, The Craft.

SPEAKER_00 12:50

You never saw the Okay, original, original The Craft movie, of course, or not not remake the Craft movie, no, the original. Okay, yes, I have seen Original The Craft.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

I re-watched it recently and it uh it's like oh that wasn't as good as I remember, like when I was in my early 20s, you know, when it came out or whatever. But um it you know, it really was like at the time, it was like I don't know if I would say groundbreaking, but kind of like I don't know, it was really awesome when it came out, very inspiring. And the original charmed. You never saw the original charmed?

SPEAKER_00 13:29

I mean a few episodes here and there, but like not really.

SPEAKER_01 13:32

I loved that. And the witches of east end. It was I can't remember, I want to say Julia or Amond was in it, but that could be wrong. But it was like it was mostly their house. I just wanted their house.

unknown 13:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:46

And Bewitched, surely you saw Bewitched.

SPEAKER_00 13:49

I mean, I've seen a few episodes of it. I'm familiar with it as a thing. Yeah. Well, I recently I know it exists, I know the premise.

SPEAKER_01 13:58

I've never watched it before, so I literally we watched it from the beginning all the way through. And it was like Darren needs to like go. He is so annoying. Basically, Endora is I don't know, she's like my spiritual guide or something. I think the mom. Yeah, Agnes Moorhead played her. Yeah, she's the redhead with older witch, and she is fantastic. So she's very inspirational.

SPEAKER_00 14:31

You haven't watched Wednesday? No, not even a single episode.

SPEAKER_01 14:35

Oh, it's so good. I'm surprised your child doesn't watch it. Well, I know you haven't watched the K dramas, but I will say if you like supernatural or witchy stuff and you like K-dramas, Mystic Pop-Up Bar is like one of my favorites of all time. And then Witches Love is a fun, cute little uh K-drama with three generations of female witches running a restaurant, and they like use their magic to make soup. It's really cool. Uh, and then The Witch's Diner is also a K-drama. It's a little darker, but um that's so those are some really cool ones if you uh are into that.

SPEAKER_00 15:23

I do love vampire movies. I just remembered.

SPEAKER_01 15:26

There you go. What are some of the um okay?

SPEAKER_00 15:30

Well, my favorite one, my favorite movie, vampire movie, and also the spin-off TV show is what we do in the shadows.

SPEAKER_01 15:38

Okay. All right. Because it's silly. It is very silly.

SPEAKER_00 15:43

We're werewolves, not swearwolves.

SPEAKER_01 15:47

I'm gonna have to give that another shot because that's in the movie, just in case you want to. I figured, yeah. I I love ghosts. I've seen both the original uh UK version and I'm watching that um US version, and it is there is a lot of silliness in shenanigans that goes on, and like there's a ghost who's always trying to find cocaine. She's like, she's from the 1800s where in cocaine was like everywhere. And you could just take cocaine because it wasn't illegal, and it was like, you know, she's like, you know, why what what anything, any issue that anyone has can be solved with cocaine, she will tell you.

SPEAKER_00 16:27

I mean, that could be true. I mean um one time I did, and you may re may or may not remember this, um, but it was for the PWF book club. Um one month, I did an entire my month that year, I did a vampire like March Madness kind of bracket situation.

SPEAKER_01 16:48

Oh, that's right. I vaguely remember. I don't remember who was on it necessarily, but yes.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

You know, like the guys from that other show. There's a blonde one and a dark one. Oh, yes, and um Angel and Spike, the count from Sesame Street, who did not go nearly far enough in my personal, even though I gave him a bye in the first round.

SPEAKER_01 17:13

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_00 17:14

Yes, I don't uh it's been a couple years.

SPEAKER_01 17:16

Yeah, I don't remember who I was.

SPEAKER_00 17:18

That was 2023, but yeah, that was so long ago. It was so fun. Maybe I'll do that again.

SPEAKER_01 17:24

Yeah, for sure. Last night we watched The Haunting again, like those 1963. Uh-huh. That is like old timey spooky. It's awesome. And um, I really want to watch there's another one I think it's Haunting of Hill House or something, with Vincent Price. I I honestly I just love Vincent Price, he's frickin' hilarious. I love him and all the stuff. There's a um one that he did three little mini movies inside of a bigger move bigger movie where it's all uh Edgar Allan Poe stories.

SPEAKER_00 18:04

I love Edgar Allan Poe.

SPEAKER_01 18:05

Me too, and it's really fun. It's a good one.

SPEAKER_00 18:09

I am yes, all right. So I thought of more things while we were talking. I should have just talked to you before we no, no, I mean just with the vampire movies. Oh okay, okay, yes, yes I should have like talked to you before we recorded so I could remember all these things that apparently I'd buried deep in my mind. Deep in your I don't really watch a lot of stuff. But you think clearly all the vampires sometimes so tell me what more stuff no, that was all my stuff. I ran out of your stuff.

SPEAKER_01 18:41

Oh, you've run out of stuff. There's no more stuff. So let's talk about the specific parts of our books that were inspired by like shows. Well, I mean, I we kind of cover that a little bit. Like for me, it was Emery's store, it was my Sunwalker saga, it was um I'm trying to think if there was anything specific in uh any of my other I will say in my Deepwood Witches mysteries I have their portal witches, so they can open there's like portals that like they call them the portal ways, and they're basically sort of like wormhole tunnels, if you will, that exist between you know, so you can basic that that exist between our reality and like just sort of this inner space. And so you can take them if you have someone who can open them and like basically transport very quickly from here to say Porto or from Porto to here, like for instance. You should get one. I know, I need one, and so uh obviously, like that was totally inspired by Star Trek. I mean and like the mirror and the all that, and you're looking at me vaguely, like what No, I've seen Star Trek the next generation. Oh, well, see there you go. So, like you've got there was a couple of things. I mean, for one, you've got just the wormholes when they when they're traveling or whatever, but also like there's the um guardian on the edge of forever or whatever it is, where there's like this sort of mirror thing, and they can just like step through and so it's it was kind of a combination of like transporter technology, wormholes, and and and that sort of I don't know, wibbly wobbly, timey whimey, Doctor Who.

SPEAKER_00 20:28

I do love Doctor Who. Wait, how did I not even think of that before?

SPEAKER_01 20:31

How did you not think?

SPEAKER_00 20:32

Well, because I said witchy stuff, and yeah, and you don't should have because like that's one of my all-time favorite shows, and there's so much in there that is just like, oh, so Queen Victoria like knows some werewolves. Because let me look at what that happened.

SPEAKER_01 20:48

Yeah, the whole world family is werewolves.

SPEAKER_00 20:51

Yeah, I want to know more about the werewolf thing with Queen Victoria, like stuff like that. This stuff where they go back to the past and um, oh, what can I do with that? Or the stuff where they're in the present and like something's gone a little bit wrong. It's a lot more alien um oriented than what I would do, but um, there's still places that they visit, like these weird markets that have like secret places where they will take your memories and make you make different decisions to affect the future, right? And um I think they put a bug on your back and they do it to you if you're Donna, and you have to go back and decide whether you're gonna turn anyway. Um I've seen it, but like stuff like that, like those marketplaces where you're it's just like Yes, it's alien, but it's also like this is what a creepy magical sort of market would look like. Black market kind of situation, totally magic market, yes, totally. So stuff like that. Yeah. Oh, look at this. We're it's like therapy.

SPEAKER_01 21:57

So much is just pouring out of you. And like one of my one of the episodes I loved was when David Tennant was the doctor and he meets me. Well, him and um uh Shudi Gatwa uh are like my two favorite doctors. And like, well, I don't know, Donna Noble is right up there. Um, but she's my favorite companion. Um, but like with David Tennet, he goes back in time and he meets Agatha Christie. And yes, it's so great with a big hornet. And it it's sort of to explain her her sub so-called missing time, which they're saying, oh, we don't know what happened. Well, we do know what happened because she herself said she had a mental break. She had a mental health crisis, and that is why she disappeared. She struggled with mental health issues all her life. But they made this big deal, and they have all these movies and speculation about what happened during that time she went missing. And the reality is sad. So they rather make up other things. So for this, it was she helped him solve this wibbly wobbly timey whimey giant hornet mystery. Um and when when hasn't that come up in our lives? Exactly. And you could look at it, a giant hornet is kind of a metaphor for depression and anxiety, if I ever saw one. All that buzzing in your brain. Yes, exactly. And so I I think in that way, Doctor Who is really clever. But yes, I love the time travel ones when they go to somewhere cool in the past, and I love the market, the market ones, those are fun. It's always fun to go to a kooky, spooky, weird old market somewhere on an alien planet or whatever.

unknown 23:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:52

Yeah. I think they're all okay. So this is so great. Like, yeah, I thought I was going in here with very little to say. But you actually had a lot. I just haven't seen most of the things on your list.

SPEAKER_01 24:05

And that actually, like, sort of brings that full circle back to the question of where do you get your inspiration or where did you get that idea? And obviously, as you can tell, it's so storytelling is so intrinsic in our nature that those ideas come from everywhere. Like so that most of us don't even really think about where our inspiration comes from. Like the kooky market that spooky black magic market that we put into this book over here came because we saw an episode of Doctor Who while they were on a space station at somewhere at Alien Market. Or the bar in this 1930s speakeasy was from the bar on Tatooine in Star Wars, you know.

SPEAKER_00 25:02

I have um a like a bookmark folder that has it's just called plot bunnies. And this is the stuff that makes you go down the rabbit hole um looking for more. And it's a lot of oh, it's very small right now. Where did I start putting them? Um, it's just a lot of stuff like here is an article about a meteor shower. Here is an article about a soap opera. I don't even know. I don't know why I would have saved these, but you know, it's because something caught my eye whether I was watching something and a word or a concept breezed by, and I'm like, ooh, interesting. Or whether I'm reading something, or sometimes it's just I overhear people talking. Yeah, I'm I love eavesdropping you guys so much.

SPEAKER_01 25:55

Like in here, I have a problem for me right now. I mean, who doesn't? I love eavesdropping.

SPEAKER_00 26:02

You hear some great stuff, but I have like not if everyone speaks Portuguese.

SPEAKER_01 26:06

Oh, well, that's a problem until you learn. So I have to learn a language.

SPEAKER_00 26:10

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 26:11

So, like here, I have writing research under my safari and my iPhone. The little known family story that helped inspire the Pippi Longstocking books. A woman writing research, okay. A woman named Diet Coke was born in the Middle Ages. There was something here about the moon-eyed people, Nandor Fodar, who is a real person, and they made a movie about him. Uh, Count de Saint-Germain. So there's like just random shit I put in here. Oh, and there's this really cool picture that my friend sent me called the Candlemaker.

SPEAKER_00 26:50

I have stuff like where to buy potassium cyanide.

SPEAKER_01 26:54

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00 26:56

Um, oh, I have more than one tab on that. A lot of stuff on Dionysus. Those two probably shouldn't go together. Um, probably not, no. Like Randah, like the 12 biggest volcanic eruptions in recorded history. Is that for me or is that for my kid? We may never know. A lot of masquerade stuff. I don't know why. I've been saving this stuff in the solder. I should look at it more often.

SPEAKER_01 27:26

Yeah, like I have this image that I've that a friend sent me. I don't know if you can see this very well. No. No. Okay. It's an image of this young witch. She's got her little apron on that's like with the pocket in the front that's just stuffed full of herbs. She's got her little witch hat. She's in this like room with like crystals and candles hanging in the window and little potted plants everywhere, and uh uh old-fashioned uh LP player, record player, and shelves of books and plants, and her little cauldron going, and she's pouring candles. She's making candles, and it's called the candlemaker, and it's a it's art by Jacqueline DeLeon. And I don't I'm not finding it available in her store anymore, but that picture absolutely inspired um a lot of stuff for Deepwood and Season of the Witch, because it's just got that vibe of you know, witchy doing witchy things in her witchy little world. So um, yeah, so I it's like I think a lot of authors maybe have those kinds of of folders, but I think when you're high input or something like that, or high learner or something like that, you probably have even more because everything is a as a possibility for inspiration. Everything is a little spark, and sometimes we don't even realize it.

SPEAKER_00 28:59

Well, I think we talked about this on a previous podcast, but one of the things that kind of sparked a whole book series for me was seeing an old tarot sign um on the side of the road wasn't being used anymore. And I'm like, oh, well, that's interesting. What would you do if you just bought that? Like, what if you just bought a ready-made tarot shop? Like, what happens next? Yeah. And who buys those kind of things? And what if you're called to buy them? Yeah. Because you have that in you, yeah. And you're just like, I'm gonna use this to make ends meet. I'm not in a good place right now. Well, I figure my life out, and then you're like, oh, actually, I'm good at this. I feel something different here, and that's kind of how my whole Oracle Bay series got started. So it's not necessarily just um media for me, like traditional media, but it's like eavesdropping, and I gotta learn Portuguese. Man, it sounds like somebody in my my building, she loves she spends some time on the phone, and I can tell, like by tone and cadence, right? That it's something about a dude. And I know enough words in Spanish to know that he's got like we're not sure if we like him or not. Um, some names that I recognize. Oh, okay. Okay. Um unfortunate. Okay. Um but like I want to know what he's doing because I want to be like, yeah, let's get him. Shovel. Dump him, dump him. He sounds like crap. But I want to know for sure.

SPEAKER_01 30:44

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Because it's real hard to like when you don't speak the language, to just extrapolate everything from some swear words.

SPEAKER_00 30:54

Which is really all I've got.

SPEAKER_01 30:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 30:58

Um, but yeah, that's so I get all my input from from a lot of stuff. So the visual input that I get isn't necessarily from movies and TV, but like observing people and um listening. I love I just love eavesdropping so much. I have like notes. I have like notepads, like where I will write sometimes verbatim what people are saying.

SPEAKER_01 31:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 31:23

And it's why I love writing in coffee shops because sometimes I or wine shops, because sometimes I don't write. I just I don't write my book. I'm just date. You're you're just transcribing.

SPEAKER_01 31:36

Oh, that was great. Yeah, that was. Were you the one that was telling us about the or maybe it was somebody else? I don't know, but I know I saw it on it was somebody wrote it out, but it was like some first date or something, and they were they were oh you, it was you. It was about the wedding plan.

SPEAKER_00 31:54

Wasn't it about the wedding planner? Yes, that was the best, and I'm gonna figure out how to use this at some point. Yes, because this woman had there, so there's this wedding planner, and she would be at the wine bar every once in a while to meet with like various clients, clients or potential clients, yeah. And so she was there once and she always sat at the same place, and she always ordered the same one. And um, this and she always had her big binders of like, here's all my wedding stuff. And this woman came in and sat down, got a glass of wine, and they're chatting. And then, like, after they're looking at the big binder, and after a while, she's like, Oh, are we waiting for your fiance to join us? And someone's like, No, he canceled. Um, so it's just me. And uh the wedding planner is like, Well, a lot of times I find that it saves issues down the road if both people are involved with the planning. Right. And do you want to reschedule? Do you think he'd want to do this on the phone? And she's like, No, he's not gonna do any of this. Like, and then she's like, I don't even think he's that interested in this wedding at all. Oh and then in a little bit, she said something like, Yeah, I don't even know if he really likes me. Oh my god. And she's like, and I'm not sure I really like him. And then in a little bit, the binder went away, and they're like talking, and I can't hear them at this point, and you can only scooch over so far before you're like being obvious, super obvious, yeah. And then next time I glanced over, the uh bride to be was on the same side of the table as the wedding planner, and like 20 minutes later, they were making out you guys. And this is the kind of media that I'm down for. I like reality shows, I guess.

SPEAKER_01 33:48

That is like I so when our favorite wine bar that we have gone to together, which is now Jill. Hi Jill. So when she was in Multnomah Village, uh in that little uh space she had there, um, I went there to meet a friend, and uh he had some other friends that were there, and we are all kind of like not me. You have other friends? I one or two kind of vague friends. They're not real friends, only you and my real friends, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 34:18

Okay, cool, cool. Same, same.

SPEAKER_01 34:21

Don't listen, Deb. Deb later buries me in the backyard. We're all sitting around, we're having our wine, and there's the table near the door, and there's this woman who's, you know, probably about um, I would say late 30s, um, attractive woman. She's sitting there, and she's got like a like she's just like hanging out, and she's with this really young buff guy, and they're laughing and talking and carrying on, and like they look like they're on a date. And I don't think anything of it really, and then he he gets up and leaves, and they kind of just like do the cheek kissy thing, or which is like not really that normal in the US, like unless you know someone well. And then, like, maybe if you were on a date, so I'm like, they must be on a date. So he leaves and she's diddling around on her phone, and then another good looking guy, good looking guy about 30, super buff, comes in, sits down, they have their little 30-minute date laughing, talking, back and forth, teasing. Totally like a f it looks like a first date. And I'm like, whoo, she's busy. But you know, I mean, this is when we're single, this happens, you know.

SPEAKER_00 35:50

You might have two dates and you don't want to get dressed up twice. Right. Exactly. You get dressed up once and just schedule them back to back. Right. I've never done that, but it seems efficient.

SPEAKER_01 36:02

Uh yeah, I've I've I don't think I've ever had two dates in one day either. But I I know people who do, you know, when they're really serious and they'll meet some people for the first time, they might meet two in an afternoon or whatever. So I again not thinking much. Then a third guy comes in. Oh it's like not speed dating, it's like medium speed dating. So I don't, yeah, like, and so this is going on, and then he leaves, and he was like the hottest of the three of them.

SPEAKER_00 36:38

And but I think also that weird fairy tale.

SPEAKER_01 36:41

Like, right?

SPEAKER_00 36:42

I think he was also the youngest, though. The king sent his three sons, each one younger and more attractive than the first.

SPEAKER_01 36:51

So my friend was driving me home, and we were just like, what on earth? Like, you know, was she dating a soccer team? Or you know, I mean, it was like we're just we're like never seen anything like it. Because I think about the time that we left, she a fourth guy had come in.

SPEAKER_00 37:11

The king had so many sons. I hope he had seven sons.

SPEAKER_01 37:15

Don't know. Well, here's the thing later, so I have this whole scenario going on in my head, and uh then comes to find out um my friend he messaged me later and he's like, I asked Jill. And apparently this woman works for like I don't know if it was like a like an online paper, a physical paper or what, some kind of paper or magazine. And she was interviewing these guys who were like all on the timbers, which is a soccer team. Um, so these she was doing an interview. She was interviewing these guys for her. But trust me, when I say it looked like a freaking date, it looked like she was on a date with four different guys. Probably seven, because the king sent his seven sons. Seven sons. No, but he's four sons. No, every it's seven or none. Um seven or three. Seven or three. Oh maybe one. Maybe there's a one son if he's a king, and then like and then there's seven women he has to choose from or something. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 38:19

And they turn into swans.

SPEAKER_01 38:20

But it was so wild, I'm telling you, because there was so much flirting going on. It looked like it looked like they were on a date.

SPEAKER_00 38:27

So and I said I would be flirting with the football players. I mean 100%. I live in Europe now, so I have to call them football players.

SPEAKER_01 38:34

Yeah, you have yes, exactly. And I live in America, so I still have to call them soccer players, even though I know they're football players, because that will get people confused. But I mean, I I don't blame her one iota for flirting, and then I couldn't hear what their conversation was, which was really unfortunate, even though I was sitting fairly close because it was just too loud, and I was like, I really, really, really wanted to eavesdrop very desperately, but it was not possible. So I had a very interesting scenario going on in my head, and it was not accurate, but she was a very lucky girl in my mind.

SPEAKER_00 39:11

So um, I clearly didn't want to hear the end of the story for reels because I had a whole thing going too.

SPEAKER_01 39:18

No, because your ending, your actual ending to your story was way better than mine.

SPEAKER_00 39:24

Wait, yeah. I mean I think it was great.

SPEAKER_01 39:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 39:32

So I I hope she actually broke it off with that guy. I hope so too.

SPEAKER_01 39:35

I hope it wasn't just a one-time make out with a wedding planner kit.

SPEAKER_00 39:39

What a meat kit.

SPEAKER_01 39:40

A witchy rom com or something.

SPEAKER_00 39:43

I bet somehow that could fit into a rom or com very much that I might work into it.

SPEAKER_01 39:53

But you could probably work it in somehow.

SPEAKER_00 39:55

I'm pretty sure. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 39:58

I'm not sure. I'm not sure how I would work mine mine in, but I would definitely go with what I was imagining rather than what actually happened. Because what I was imagining was way more fun. But yeah, because I was like, oh my gosh, you go girl.

SPEAKER_00 40:18

They're probably all dragon shifters.

SPEAKER_01 40:20

I mean, that could be very that is a likely scenario. Yes. I like it.

SPEAKER_00 40:26

Listen, I have a whole story in my head now for it too.

SPEAKER_01 40:29

So see, people in real life action, you got to see how inspiration works for writers.

SPEAKER_00 40:39

It was like a lesson. You're welcome for this. You're welcome.

SPEAKER_01 40:44

You're welcome. You can think of sweet.

SPEAKER_00 40:46

And I do have to say that a lot of times it will be like, I'll make these notes or I'll hear this thing or see this thing, like on Supernatural or Buffy or any of the number of shows Shay listed, and I'll make it no. And then it's like conversations like this where it really starts to come out. And not necessarily with another writer, but just like talking to anybody, like just bounce, because we all have, I mean, we're all wonderful, intelligent, fantastic people, which means we generally have wonderful, intelligent, fantastic friends.

SPEAKER_01 41:21

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 41:22

Um, and so being able to bounce those things and just having, I mean, sometimes it's just silly conversations about this king and his seven dragon shifter sons. Who apparently were also football players.

SPEAKER_01 41:37

Apparently, yes. Which then they have a whole dragons football team and like a league, and like a oh my god, here we go.

SPEAKER_00 41:44

Did you know that our football team here is the dragons? No, I did not realize that. FC Porto is the dragons.

SPEAKER_01 41:52

Oh, that's so cool. I love it. I will have to vote for them when I move there or root for them. I don't know. Whatever you do. I don't think you need to vote. Whatever you do at a sports for sports ball.

SPEAKER_00 42:05

Oh, you say, yay, go team.

SPEAKER_01 42:07

Yay, go team, and like wear a dragon. I guess we should and uh so I want to ask our readers though, our readers, our listeners, if you have any recommendations for TV shows or movies that have inspired you or that you think would be inspirational or that are just cool and witchy and supernatural.

SPEAKER_00 42:28

They don't even have to be witchy, just like yeah, it's your creative flowing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 42:35

Which is not what I call witchy, but no, although occasionally there are witches on Doctor Who. So leave us a note and you know, and uh leave a comment and tell us, you know, something you would recommend, something that you love. That brings us to the very end of our mini podcast.

SPEAKER_00 42:54

Please leave a review, like, subscribe, oh, share. Yeah. I guess you could smash the like button if you wanted to. Or you could do it gently, whatever is your jam there. And we'll drop everything in the show notes. So look there for how to sign up for the newsletter. Yes, all the things.

SPEAKER_01 43:16

All the things. All the things. Thanks for stopping by, and we'll see you next time. Oh, with fingers and cocktails. Bye.